Grant (Riding Hard) - Jennifer Ashley Page 0,28
in here.”
“Have who in here?”
“Karen. You disappeared with her after lunch. She didn’t come back to the ranch, and the whole town’s buzzing.”
Grant’s trailer was a few miles out of town, on the road leading south. If Karen had driven straight back to Fredericksburg, there was a chance no one in Riverbend had seen her go.
The bedroom door slammed open and Christina strode out, fully dressed.
“He’s not with Karen,” she declared. “He’s with me. Has been with me all afternoon. Having sex. On his bed.”
Not much could faze Carter Sullivan, but he blinked a few times, his angry look vanishing. Christina was clearly not what he’d expected.
“Sorry,” Carter said. “I wouldn’t have charged over here if I’d known.”
“This wasn’t exactly planned,” Christina said. “But we’re done. I’ll go, and you two can yell at each other all you want.”
“No!” Grant barked out the word before he could stop it. He put his arm across the doorway. “Don’t go yet. Carter, give us a minute, will you?”
Carter looked at them both then nodded and put on his hat. “Come up to the house when you’re ready,” he said to Grant.
He gave Christina a polite nod, then turned and strode from the step to his truck, the moonlight glinting on the deep black of it. Grant closed the door.
Christina was right behind him, big purse in hand. “I really need to go. See you, Grant.”
“Hold on a sec,” Grant said in a firm voice. “What are you rushing away for?”
“I have a job, and I’m late. It’s not fair to the others if I don’t show up on time.”
“Wait. Stay.” Grant moved his hand from the door to touch her cheek. “I mean, when you’re done with work, come back here. Stay with me.”
Christina was already shaking her head. “I’ve been moving into Bailey’s place. Have a lot of boxes and stuff I still need to haul over there …”
“You know what I mean.” Grant let his hand drop to his side. “Move in with me again.”
Christina stared at him, vast pain flickering in her eyes. “Because we had sex today? Neither of us could help that. It doesn’t mean we’re ready to have another relationship.” Her voice went soft, wistful. “We were always so bad at it before.”
Grant knew she was right. “I know, baby, but I’d like to try.”
She studied the carpet, or maybe his bare toes. “But really, what’s changed?”
“I don’t know.” Grant’s throat hurt. “Nothing. Everything.”
“I hate this.” Christina looked up at him, her eyes so full of fear that Grant touched her shoulder. “I hate being without you. But I can’t go through it again. Us fighting all the time, trying our best to hurt each other, because …” She stopped there, not wanting to talk about the elephant in the room. “Then breaking up. I can’t face the pain of that again. I barely made it the last time.”
“Yeah, I know. Me too.” Grant caressed under the strap of her tank top, getting lost in the soft feel of her. “Maybe we should start all over again, you know? I could come to the bar, feed you that lame line I did when I was twenty-one and cocky as hell.”
Christina’s tiny smile almost broke him. “You mean when I took one look at you and got hot all over? You were one hunkalicious cowboy that night, smiling at me. I almost climbed over the bar and went for you. I’m as bad as Karen.”
Grant warmed. “Really? You liked what you saw?” Then he thought about her exact words, and his ego deflated “Wait a minute, are you saying I’m old and saggy now?”
The corners of her eyes crinkled. “No. I meant that was the first time I’d seriously looked at you. You weren’t just Adam Campbell’s screw-up younger brother.”
“So there’s hope for me. How about I come to the bar one of these nights and ask you out again? And we’ll take it from there.”
Christina shook her head. “You always have everything figured out. What are you going to do if I say no?”
“Ask you again. And again. Until you say yes.”
She raised her brows and put one hand on her hip. “Stalk me, you mean?”
Grant pretended to consider, and nodded. “Yep. If that’s what it takes.”
Christina lost her teasing look and reached for the door. This time Grant moved aside, gesturing that she was free to leave.
Christina turned back on the doorstep. “If Carter doesn’t kill you tonight,” she said slowly, “then sure, pull your