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  He rolled to the side, turning her, coming over her and dragging her up the bed until they lay in the center of it, his body stretched over hers.

  “He had to know he’d lost the game,” he ground out.

  “This is a fucking game?” Her arm swung wide, her fist landing against the side of his head.

  “His game,” he said, and then cursed as he reached to catch her fist before the next punch landed. “Johnny won’t ever leave us alone if he thinks there’s a chance of coming between us.”

  Her body bucked again, her thigh jerking to the side, then her knee coming back to slam at his hip. She was strong. He’d have bruises. But damn if the fire in her eyes didn’t turn him on.

  Wrestling Cass was like holding a wet fish inside his bare hands. Finally, he locked her feet with his ankles and stretched her hands high above her head, and waited until his weight pressed the air from her lungs and she ceased to have the strength to fight him.

  “Think I won’t sink my teeth somewhere?” she said, her voice shaking with fury.

  “You don’t want to injure me. Not seriously.”

  “And how did you come to that wrong-ass conclusion?”

  “You could have gone for my balls a time or two there, reached right between my legs and had me. You didn’t want to hurt me.”

  Her chin jerked up. “I twisted Johnny’s balls. To get him off me the other night.”

  “But you wouldn’t have done that to me. Not even if I’d goaded you hard enough.”

  “Why did you do that?” she whispered. “Why did you let him see me that way? Couldn’t you have just waited until morning when we both strolled out the door? Why humiliate me like that?”

  “I had to send him a message he could understand.”

  “What he said about sharing, you thought I’d go for that?”

  Adam sighed. “I’m not perfect, Cass.”

  She snorted.

  “I had to let him see that, but I didn’t like sharing the view. I was jealous. And I’ll admit I can get damned ugly when I think about you with him.”

  “This ‘who’s-got-the-bigger-dick contest’ didn’t start with me, did it? You brought me into the middle of it tonight, I deserve to know why.”

  “You through fighting me?”

  She sniffed. “Depends.”

  “I’m going to let you go. Throw any more punches and I’ll go find that duct tape again.”

  “You’re as big a bastard as your brother.”

  The tears in her voice bled away his strength. His gaze dropped away from hers, and he climbed off her, lying on his back. If she decided to leave now, he wouldn’t stop her.

  Cass sat up on the edge of the bed, her back to him. “I still want to know why.”

  It was easier this way, not having to meet her gaze. “My brother and I hate each other’s guts. Our father set us competing with each other for everything. Sports, grades, for a truck, a horse, his love. Guess I won, because he left me controlling interest in the ranch.”

  “Sounds like a right bastard.”

  “He was. Can’t say I was all torn up when he died. I got engaged to a girl in Canyon.”

  “A blonde?”

  Adam’s jaw tightened. “Yeah, she was pretty and tiny, like you.”

  Cass’s head shook. “And you judged me for using Johnny as a substitute.”

  “Those are the only similarities you share. Pam was sweet.”

  A short, harsh laugh gusted from her. “I take it Johnny interfered.”

  “He seduced her. I found them both in my bed.”

  Her hand tightened around a fistful of sheeting. “This is looking more and more sordid by the second.”

  “I didn’t want to fuck you because of Pam or Johnny. I wanted you for me.”

  “But you couldn’t help using the situation to make a point with your brother either.”

  “No. I want him gone. I want him to know—”

  “That he lost?” Her head turned, her liquid gaze unmanning him completely.

  Adam’s chest deflated. Saying it out loud, admitting his own less-than-honorable intentions, made him feel ashamed. “I’m sorry, Cass.”

  “And I should listen to you now because you were so ready to hear my apology?”

  “I never meant…”

  “Can’t say it, can you? You meant to hurt me. You meant to rub your brother’s nose in my pussy.” She stood, her gaze raking the floor until she found her clothes and scooped them up. She held them in front of her, and then raised her face again. “I think I’d prefer to have him take me back to the park.”

  Adam swallowed hard. Unable to force another word past his burning throat, he watched as she walked to the bathroom and quietly shut the door behind her.

  He stared at the ceiling as the water started, finally looking at his actions from her point of view and coming to the same conclusion—he was a bastard. He’d used her, just as Johnny had intended to do.

  Problem was, now that is was over, he didn’t know how he’d let her walk away. He hadn’t started out to pursue her. Hadn’t wanted to act on the attraction that sparked between them, because he’d cared enough about her to want better for her than bringing her into his battle with his brother.

  Now, it was probably too late to make amends. She’d never trust him again.

  Adam scrubbed a hand over his face then rose. He dressed in the darkness, turned on a light so she’d know she was alone when she came out, and closed the curtains.

  Then he strode down the hall to his brother’s bedroom only to find it empty.

  Johnny was in the kitchen, nursing a beer at the kitchen table. His eyes narrowed as Adam approached.

  “She wants you to drive her back,” Adam said quietly, feeling the familiar tension build in his shoulders and arms.

  Johnny started to smile, but Adam held up his hand. “Leave her alone. She’s had enough of us.”

  His brother set his beer on the table. His expression sliding from a self-satisfied smile to a thoughtful frown. “I’ll take her. And I won’t mess with her.”

  Adam nodded, and then turned to leave.

  “Pam wasn’t the one for you,” Johnny said quietly behind him. “You know that don’t you?”

  “You saying you fucked her as a favor to me?”

  “She wasn’t the one. Pam liked stringing us both along. I let her. Didn’t know how else to show you.”

  “You saying you didn’t get satisfaction from proving it to me. In my bed.”

  “Didn’t say I didn’t enjoy it. But Cass isn’t Pam. I kissed her. But I had to back her up to the wall and make her take it. She didn’t expect it. Just bad luck you happened to be there. Her bad luck.”

  “You saw me there.”

  “Of course. When she cupped my balls, I thought she’d changed her mind. But she damn near twisted them off. She’s perfect for you, man.”

  Adam grunted. “Nice to know, but a little too late to change a thing.”

  “I wouldn’t give up if I were you. She’s strong. Tough. She can take your shit.”

  “I don’t need your advice.”

  “You’ve never wanted to hear a thing that came from my mouth, but I’m telling you. She loves you.”

  “It’s too damn late.”

  “Maybe it is. I’ll take your girl home. Then I’m heading to San Antonio.”

  Adam turned to his brother and shot him a questioning glance.

  “There’s a spread up for sale I’ve had my eye on for a while. Get the money together. I’m out of here.”

  “Because of Cass?”

  Johnny snorted. “Because it’s time to be my own man. We both have to let go of the past.”

  Cass hugged the passenger door all the way to the park. She’d ignored every attempt at conversation Johnny had made. She’d
turned her head away when he’d asked if she’d like music. Folded her arms across her chest when he’d asked if it was too cold.

  “Okay, I get it. I’m the last person on earth you want to talk to,” he muttered.

  Cass snorted and hit the switch to lower the window, preferring the scent of rain-freshened air to him.

  “I’m sorry you got in the middle of this,” he said softly. “Didn’t realize how much we were hurting you until I saw you in his lap.”

  Cass stiffened, hoping like hell he wasn’t about to start talking about everything he’d seen.

  “You’re better than he deserves.”

  “Damn straight,” Cass muttered.

  Johnny let loose a soft, sexy chuckle, and Cass eyed him with disdain.

  “I know I don’t have anything you want,” he said with a crooked smile. “And to tell you the truth, I’m not that into blondes. Just wanted you to know that.”

  “But you don’t mind screwing with a girl’s heart for revenge,” she muttered.

  “Since I know I never touched yours, I’m assuming Adam told you all about Pam.” He nodded, his lips tightening. “She was sweet. And easy. Adam was at an age when he thought it was something he was supposed to do. Find a wife. Start having kids. Pam seemed eager for the sex anyway—and it might have worked. But I saw her flirting with another man. Much as I dislike my brother, I had to do something.”

  “You couldn’t have just told him?”

  “And he’d believe me?”

  Cass huffed a breath. “He has trust issues.”

  “Didn’t start with me, I promise.”

  “Your old man.”

  “Yeah. Played us against each other. Thought it would make us tougher. Things between me and Adam were always tense, but after Pam…” His glance left the road as he gave her a look wiped free of his usual sly humor. “I didn’t understand why he brought me to the park to meet you.”

  “Must have been a test. See if I’d fail.”

  “That’s what I thought too. Figured you must have been booby-trapped or wired to explode. Never figured he’d let me around anyone he cared about.”

  “Well, surprise, surprise. You were right.”

  “But I wasn’t. I think maybe the test was for me. I failed, Cass.”

  “And I feel so much better knowing he used me to figure out if you could pretend to be a decent person.” Cass shook her head, feeling even more dejected. “That’s my car. Turn in here.”

  Johnny drew his truck to a stop beside her vehicle, and she pulled at the handle to open the door.

  His hand closed around her upper arm.

  She stared down at it, and then lifted her gaze to his.

  He let go his grip instantly. “Cass. Don’t quit on him. He cares about you.”

  “For all I know you’re saying that because you know we’d make each other miserable for the rest of our lives.”

  “Not true. I may not get along with him. But he’s all I’ve got for family. I want him happy.”

  She studied his gaze, read regret, and hoped for his sake that it was real. “You two could have been amazing together, if you weren’t so busy tearing each other apart.”

  “I’m just figuring that out. I don’t know if Adam will ever come around to that way of thinking though. I fucked everything up.”

  “Yeah you did. But don’t let him off so easy. What he did tonight…” Her lips tightened and her glance fell away.

  Johnny cupped her chin and turned her face toward his. “Take heart. I saw his face after you jumped into the shower. He knows he screwed up and he’s scared.”

  Cass’s eyes filled with tears, which she quickly blinked away. If Adam felt only a fraction of her own despair, then there was hope. “Good. I’ll let him stay that way awhile.”

  “You do that,” he said softly. “He needs to appreciate what he has in you.”

  She opened the door and slid to the ground, the beginnings of a smile tugging at her lips.

  Johnny honked the horn, and she lifted her hand without looking back. She wasn’t ever looking back.

  Chapter 7

  “More flowers?” Mavis asked, leaning over the tall vase filled with daisies and orange-red roses to take a sniff.

  “Uh-huh,” Cass said, pretending interest in the report she was finishing up. “Take ’em to the information desk. They’ll cheer the place up.”

  “And he’ll drive by again and think you didn’t like them.”

  “I don’t want flowers from him.”

  Mavis snagged the note nestled in the flowers. “‘I’m sorry.’ How many times has he said it?”

  “I’m not counting,” Cass lied. “I’ll believe it when he means it.”

  Mavis clucked. “You’re a hard woman, Cass McIntyre.”

  Cass grinned. She wasn’t. Not really. She’d discovered she had a big sappy center when the first bouquet arrived and she’d burst into tears.

  “Quit lollygagging, girl. Brody’s already got his hands full with trouble in the park.”

  “Really?” Cass said, hitting SAVE and closing down. She reached into her drawer for her radio. “Forgot to turn it on.”

  “He’s waiting for you at the Mesquite Camping Ground. Said something about a party getting rowdy and finding something interestin’.”

  “Why didn’t you say something?”

  “I did, but you were off dreaming. Must have been the flowers.”

  “I told you. I don’t care about the flowers.”

  “No, but you can’t say the same for the man who sent them. Can you?” she said grinning.

  Cass frowned, but couldn’t hold the expression for long. Her lips twitched into a smile. “I’ll see you later, Mavis.” She added dryly, “Better go rescue Brody.” She swiped her keys from her desk and headed to her vehicle, eager to get outside in the sunshine and away from the sly winks and asides she’d been getting from the rest of the park’s staff once the flowers had begun to arrive.

  Adam hadn’t missed sending something beautiful to greet her each morning for the past week.

  Not that she thought for a minute that reconciling would be smooth riding once she returned the many calls he’d left.

  She’d pricked his burnished hide, burrowing deep—even though she knew he’d tried hard to fight the attraction that flared hot between them like dry tinder in a forest fire.

  That she wielded that kind of power over such a powerful and masculine man thrilled her to the core. Not that she’d make it easy for him to work his way back into her good graces and her bed. The man deserved to wonder whether she’d ever forgive him.

  However, her defenses were slowly crumbling away, rather like that ledge she’d found herself perched upon. She wasn’t sure she’d last another day.

  She found Brody standing at the edge of the road, waving her down. “Heard you’ve got your hands full,” she called out as she dropped to the ground.

  “Yeah. What took you so long? Mooning over roses?” Brody growled, a quick smile followed that sank dimples on either side of his cheeks.

  Cass gave him a blistering glare, but chuckled. “What do you have?”

  “A party getting out of hand, which I’ll handle, but I have something else that’s right up your alley.”

  Cass lifted an eyebrow and followed him onto the bridle trail. A freshly dug hole sat in the center. A shovel and plastic box sat next to it.

  “Found it just like this. Looks fresh.”

  Another cache box. Cass knelt next to the box and lifted the lid. Inside lay a folded sheet listing a set of coordinates and a shiny compass for the next GPS hiker to claim.

  Brody cleared his throat.

  She glanced up as he pulled a small plastic case from his pocket and held it out to her. “Your mission, should you decide to accept it, Agent McIntyre, is to fin
d the next prize.”

  Taking it, Cass glanced at the GPS tracker and the note she held, and then met Brody’s amused expression. “What’s going on here?”

  “Where do you think those coordinates will take you?”

  Cass entered them in the tracker and pointed it toward the northern rim. The blip on the contour map within the small computer’s screen looked as though the point lay smack in the middle of Adam Youngblood’s property.

  “Thought you might like to take this one,” Brody said with a wink.

  Cass rose from the dirt, eyeing him with suspicion. Something was afoot. “It’s off park property. Why should I?”

  Brody rolled his eyes. “Give a guy a break,” he said. “Follow the trail.”

  Cass pocketed the tracker. “All right, I’ll bite. I’ll get this back to you later.”

  “You do that. Good luck.”

  Cass glanced over her shoulder as she left and saw the huge smile he quickly wiped from his face. Something was definitely up, but she fought the giddy rush of hope that rose inside her at the thought of what, or who, would be waiting for her at the end of the trail.

  Wouldn’t you know it, the coordinates led her straight back to the cut fence she’d seen before when Adam dragged her out for a little afternoon delight.

  Cass parked beneath the mesquite tree and cut her engine, then made her way across the fence and dried out grass to the edge of the arroyo. She followed the blip to a curve in the creek bottom and glanced around.

  No telltale mound of dirt lay in the vicinity, and no sexy rancher waited for her on the spot. Thinking she’d been the butt of a bad joke, she turned to head back to her truck and found Adam standing in the center of the trail behind her.

  Her heart thudded against her chest. She held up the GPS and note. “Your idea?”

  Adam shook his head. “Mavis’s. It was the best of a dozen we threw around. She was disappointed I didn’t latch on to her plan to resurrect the old Comanche tradition of kidnapping.” His lips curved into a rueful smile, which faded quickly when she didn’t return it.

  “You two have been plotting?” she said, keeping her tone even. “Why?”

  “You won’t return my calls.”