another chance.”
She felt like a trapped animal with Eric watching her expectantly while Lane worked the Carrigan charm for all it was worth. Obviously his ego had swelled to the point where it put pressure on his brain. How could he think she’d get anywhere near him now that she’d caught him about to betray her confidence?
She remembered the vow at the Starbucks and repeated it to herself. Never again. No more following her impulses. No more letting down her guard. No more sex with cowboys in moonlit trailers at the rodeo grounds.
That last thought brought another flood of heat to her face and she turned away so Lane couldn’t see it as she edged out from behind the desk. The space between it and Eric’s neatly organized bookcase was narrow, and knowing Lane was watching her backside didn’t make her face cool down any. The room felt close and hot and she just wanted out of there, but her heel caught on the leg of the desk and she tipped off balance, grabbing at the chair for support.
But the chair wasn’t there; Lane was. He stood quickly and caught her hand in his, putting the other hand on her waist to steady her. In an instant Eric was gone, the office, the tower, even the humiliation and dread that had filled her moments before. Suddenly she was back on the dance floor at the beer tent and she had a crazy impulse to melt into him the way she had the night before.
She glanced up, praying he hadn’t caught her reaction, but his eyes were inches from hers, fixed on her face. He wasn’t smiling like she expected; he looked intensely serious, as if he was forcing her to take notice of this moment.
She jerked away from him and hooked her shoe with her toe, sliding her foot back inside and righting herself. Backing up a step, she smoothed her skirt and then her lapels, wishing she could smooth down her feelings as easily as she straightened her clothes. She was being a fool. He was a rodeo cowboy—a player. All those tender words, those sensitive responses—they were simply designed to get her naked.
And she wasn’t going to fall for them again.
Chapter 14
Lane looked down at his hands as Sarah stalked out of the office. He could swear his fingers were tingling from where he’d touched her. For half a second, the two of them had replayed their brief dance at the bar, his hands steadying and supporting her, her flesh yielding under his palm.
He looked up to see Eric watching him, eyes narrowed. “Did something happen between you two?”
“No.” Lane’s voice came out thick and hoarse. “Nothing. I just—I need to talk to her.”
He almost overturned the chair in his hurry to follow Sarah, but she was already halfway down the hall. He called her name and she hastened her steps, turning into an office and swinging the door shut behind her.
Lane caught it just before the latch clicked.
“Hey.” He edged through and let the door close behind him. “We need to talk.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.” She stood with her back against a desk, her hands gripping the edge on either side of her hips. He had no doubt she was trying to look tough, but the pose was more alluring than fierce.
“There’s a lot to talk about,” he said.
“I noticed you had a lot to talk about with Eric.”
“Not really.”
“You were talking about where I was from.” She tossed her head in a move worthy of a soap opera star, but he saw more fear than anger in her eyes.
“I wasn’t going to tell Eric a damned thing. I was trying to help.” He took a step toward her, but her knuckles whitened on the edge of the desk and he took the step back and spoke in the soothing cadences he used on frightened horses. “Eric’s a detail guy. I was trying to see if he’d checked you out. If he had, I could have saved you from worrying about keeping secrets. As a matter-of-fact, he knows you’re keeping something from him, and he says it doesn’t matter.”
She scanned his face and he stared back, willing her to believe him. Her jaw was tense, but he sensed that sudden shift of energy he’d felt the night before, and he thought he saw that straitlaced professional mask slip for a moment.
She wanted to believe him. He just needed to keep pushing. Like he did with the