Cathy Thacker - The Reluctant Texas Rancher

Figuring it might help convince him to confide in her if they lightened up a little, she allowed herself to tease him back. “Why, Counselor, are you asking me if I have a date?”

He grinned at her exaggerated Texas accent. “I didn’t see any photos of a boyfriend at your office.” He paused, his eyes opaque. “Or the homestead, for that matter.”

Liz let out a long, careful breath. She slowed her steps, delaying the moment they would get back into her SUV. Suddenly, the space felt a tad too intimate.

She lifted her chin. “That’s because I don’t have one.”

“Which means what?” His eyes narrowed, he stepped close enough that she could smell the leather-and-soap scent of his hair and skin. “You’re not dating?” He reached up to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. “You’re opposed to dating?”

When she didn’t answer, he met her gaze. “It’s nothing I couldn’t easily find out from someone else. I just thought …” His voice dropped another notch, in a way that sent heat slashing through her. “If the story is that we’re resuming our friendship, we ought to know the basic facts about each other.”

The woman in her wanted to keep up all the barriers. The attorney in her knew he was right. Plus, she was curious about him, too.

She resumed walking toward the parking lot behind the sheriff’s station while gazing up at the stars shimmering in the black velvet sky above. “I had a serious relationship a few years ago, when I was working in Dallas.” She shook off the unhappy memories. “We broke off our engagement by mutual agreement.”

Travis cocked his head and ran his gaze over her like a caress. “Are you still friends?”

“Not really.” She rummaged in her pocket for her keys, then hit the electronic keypad. The locks clicked; the interior lights went on. “It’s kind of hard to come back from something like that.”

He opened the driver’s door for her, stood waiting for her to get in. “And since …?”

The intensity of his regard had her whole body tensing. Liz adapted the casual attitude that perfectly summed up her nonexistent love life, the one that had the women in the family so worried she would never fall in love, never marry, never have a baby to carry on the Cartwright bloodline. “I’ve had the occasional date here and there.” She forced herself to meet his probing gaze. “What about you?”

He shrugged. It was, Liz thought, his turn to skillfully evade.

“I’d like to date. In theory. I just never seem to have the time.”

A lament voiced by many an associate at big law firms. “Not part of your one-, five- and ten-year plans?”

“Actually, marriage and family is. If I could ever figure out where I would work it in.”

That was a surprise, Liz thought. Travis had been so focused on his career, she hadn’t expected this was something he would want. She sized him up, wondering which allure would turn out to be stronger, his desire to live a more authentic, not so big-city life, or his desire to redeem his name and regain his former glory. “So when this is over, you plan to go back to working eighty-hour weeks….”

He shrugged, not about to commit yet, either way. “It is the norm for an associate in any big or midsize law firm,” he offered casually. “No matter where it is located.”

Liz knew that.

Lawyers in Lubbock who wanted fame and fortune—and the bank accounts that went with them—worked as hard as attorneys in Houston.

Fortunately, she had learned there were other, more important things in life.

Like feeling you made a difference .

She bit her lip, admitting, “Too many long hours are exactly why I quit my job at that firm in Dallas. I wanted more of a life outside the office.”

“And yet,” he murmured, playfully tapping the end of her nose, “here you are at 9:45 on a Friday night … lamenting your lack of a love life, same as me.”

Liz stiffened. Honestly, the man was taking far too much for granted. “I didn’t say I missed it,” she returned archly. Even if I have been wondering all evening long just how it would feel to kiss you… .

“Really.” He lifted his eyebrows and waited for her gaze to meet his.

Indignation flushing her cheeks, Liz asserted, “I can live without sex.” Could he?

Travis grinned, as if he would like nothing more than to wear her down. “How about this?” he asked her softly. Grasping her waist, he tugged her against him. Threaded one hand through her hair, tilting her face to his. His mouth lowered seductively. “Can you live without a kiss?”

Her mouth went dry. The practical side of Liz said Don’t kiss him . The romantic side of her insisted there was no harm in finding out if Travis Anderson still had the power to take her breath away as he had back in high school.

So instead of rebuffing him, she stepped into the fray. Allowed him to keep right on coming and lower his mouth to hers.

The first touch of their lips was astonishing. Electric. And oh so sweet. The first hint of subtle pressure was even more intoxicating.

Before Liz knew it, she had surrendered to the moment and moved all the way into his embrace. Her breasts brushed the hardness of his chest and her arms slipped around him.

Travis moved forward, too, sliding his palms down her hips and holding her against his body. Her softness melded to his strength and the kiss took on a quiet intensity that turned her whole world upside down.

Liz moaned, tilting her head to give him better access, relishing the sure sweep of his tongue tangling with hers.

She knew she had wanted him years ago, even if they were too young, too reserved, too focused on everything else to fully explore that yearning.

Turns out, the schoolgirl passion she’d experienced back then was nothing compared to what she felt now that they were all grown up.

Holding him like this, letting him hold her, was magic. And she knew if they kept it up—if they let this recklessly wild kiss continue—there would be nothing but regrets for both of them.

Shuddering, she clasped his shoulders and pushed him away. “We can’t do this.”

“Actually,” Travis teased, kissing her temple, her cheek, the lobe of her ear, “I think we were excelling in this venue….”

With her body still tingling everywhere they had touched—and everywhere they hadn’t—Liz took another step back and tried to regain her composure. “You’re my client.” She emphasized every syllable of every word.

He grinned sexily, not at all repentant. “Lucky for me. It’s the one good thing, besides a temporary job, I’ve got going for me at the moment.”

That was Travis all right, Liz thought in exasperation. Charging headlong into whatever awaited. Letting nothing stand between him and his goal.

Her heart racing, she tried again to talk sense into him. “We were kissing.” She held up a hand before he could interrupt. “And you and I both know that crossing the line this way will lead to nothing but trouble.”

His expression solemn, he gazed at her. “I agree,” he told her in a husky voice. “If we let this impact the way we conduct ourselves in terms of the business at hand, it will bring us bucketfuls of heartache. But that’s not going to happen over a kiss, Liz.” He leaned closer, his breath fanning her neck. “And you know why? Because we’re both lawyers. And we’re smart enough to be able to separate our private lives from our professional alliances.”

She had certainly thought that was the case up till now.

She’d never even been tempted before. But Travis had thrown her emotions into chaos, by kissing her for just a few minutes.

Deliberately, she put her lawyer hat back on. “Which makes our actions all the more foolish,” she retorted. “You have to know that.”