No.
Caesar had laughed at him.
Shanghai despised himself because in the next breath hed begged and apologized.
PleaseIm sorry. Pleaseleave him alone!
Caesar had guffawed again. Everybody in three counties knows that cards and liquor are a fatal combination for your old man, boy. Kinky! Eli! Get him out of here! Caesar turned back to Shanghai. When Im through with you, youll have nothing and be nothin, boy! Mia will finally see you for the lowlife you are!
Dont you go near my daddy!
When Shanghai had fought Eli and Kinky, Caesar had called for more cowboys. It had taken five of the bastards to fling Shanghai down the stairs into the rain.
When Shanghai had pulled himself to his feet, the last thing hed seen was pretty Mia Kemble leaning out of her upstairs window. When hed looked up, shed thrown something down to him and then banged her window shut.
Pretending not to give a damn about her, hed rammed his dripping Stetson with his lucky turkey feather on his head even harder than shed slammed her window. Curious, hed picked up the object shed thrown. When hed realized it was a red rose, hed pitched it back into the mud.
Now that he was at his hunting cabin, Shanghai dreaded his daddy finding out that hed gotten in a fight with Caesar. He might never let Shanghai go home again. His father didnt care if the Kembles had robbed the Knights of practically all their land. He just wanted to drink and gamble. Caesar kept offering to buy their last fifty thousand acres and his father kept refusing to sell, mainly because he and Cole begged him not to. The land was Shanghais heritage, Coles, too; part of their souls.
No use thinking about it. Shanghai knew hed started something tonight that couldnt be stopped.
As he got out of his truck, he stood in the rain for a moment to inspect the mangled bottom step hed just smashed. Damn.
He sprang to the second step, which was still sound, just as the sky flashed livid white fire and then went black again. Every timber of the tiny hunting cabin shook when thunder exploded again.
He threw open the front door, ripped off his wet, Western shirt and hung it on the back of a tattered leather chair where it dripped water onto the scarred oak floor. Then he went to the fridge and grabbed a couple of beers. He downed the first beer and paced restlessly.
He was twenty-four. What the hell was he going to do with the rest of his life? Cowboying and rodeoing were all he really liked to do. Not that he could stay here when there was no future at Black Oaks. At least not in the business of cows and calves and horses. Livestock prices had collapsed too many times, and Daddy had borrowed way too much money. There was only his kid brother, Cole, to consider.
Hell, Cole was twenty-one, which meant he was all grownupeven if he was still in college. It was time for Cole to be on his own.
Shanghai didnt want to leave his home, but he hadnt liked feeling like nothing on Caesars floor with Mia watching. If he stayed here, hed be nothin all his life.
He sank wearily into the leather chair near the open window. The only thing hed ever done to make money besides working Black Oaks was rodeoing. He was good at bronc ridin and bull riding. When he donned buckskin chaps with silver conchos, pointed cowboy boots with spurs and his Stetson, people cheered and screamed and then patted him on the back when he rode well. They went wild when he won. Pretty women threw themselves at him.
He was too tall and powerfully built for the sport, and hed have to be damn goodthe best everto make it really pay. Good or bad, you could get yourself stomped or gored to death in front of thousands. Champions died of injuries as small as a broken rib nicking an artery.
What choice did he have?
Hell, hed been beaten up all his life, hadnt he? A man could become famous riding bulls, as famous as any Kemble, at least for a spell.
Nobody wrote country songs about lawyers or doctors, did they? He reckoned he could take about as much pain as any man.
His black brows slashed together as he watched the rain hammer the earth. Caesar had destroyed the sheaves of old journals and ancient bank documents hed slung on the tableall the evidence hed been gathering for nearly two years to prove that his family, the Knights, had as much right to the Golden Spurs Ranch and its staggering mineral riches as the Kembles did.
What should he do next?
A bolt of lightning crashed again. Shanghais heart beat faster. He rubbed his sore jaw. After his quarrel with Caesar Kemble, the storm more than matched his mood. Since Caesar had refused to even talk about making a fair settlement, maybe he should think about finding a real lawyer. But he couldnt go to a lawyer until he reassembled at least some of the evidence Caesar had destroyed. Besides lawyers cost money.
Even though it was so obvious the Knights had been swindled, his father had told him not to fight the Kembles.
His father could go to hell. Most people probably saw his daddy as an easygoing, shiftless soul, who had a weakness for the bottle. But they didnt know. His old man could get really drunk, and when he did, he always went after Shanghai.
There was no talking to him then, no arguing with a drunk.
The lights in his kitchen flickered twice. Shanghai wouldnt have minded the thunderstorm if hed been in a better frame of mind. Water was scarce in south Texas.
He was stretching his long legs out when he heard a car door slam and quick, light footsteps followed by a timid knock at his door.
Not wanting company, Shanghai hunkered lower and ignored the light taps.
Thunder crashed outside and was quickly followed by brilliant lightning. Then the world went dark again as the rain continued to pour down.
The door rattled as a girls hand pulled it open. Can I come in?
Mias soft whisper cut through the noise of the storm and sliced bits out of his bruised heart. Shanghai sprang to his feet as if shed pelted him with buckshot. Then pain licked through him from the beating hed taken from her daddy.
Go away! he growled. Youre the last person I want to see.
Not till we talk.
Damn your hide, girl. Git. His mouth hurt so badly he could barely speak. He rubbed it before he thought and orange stars flashed in front of his eyes. Damn.
When she didnt leave or say anything, he bit his lips in frustration. Then quick as a panther he flung his empty long-neck so savagely into the trash can, it burst. Broken glass tinkled to the bottom of the can. His boots made hollow sounds that rang on the oak flooring as he stalked heavily to the front door, which he slammed open wider with enough force to show her she wasnt welcome.
Shanghai flipped on the outside light and saw her through the screen. She sure as hell looked different with her long red hair flowing like fiery amber about her pretty face and slim shoulders. Despite his injuries, he tensed when he saw that she sucked in a quick breath after looking at his bronzed shoulders and torso. Then she blushed.
Shed changed out of her jeans. Why the hell had she done that? She looked so soft and feminine and sweet. Her beauty caused a hard knot to lodge in the base of his throat. Hed never seen her in a damp, clingy white dress before; never guessed that a tomboy kid like her could have such a good figure. She was still wearing her bright red boots, though, and she was holding a mud-spattered rose.
What happened to the kid with red pigtails hed felt so easy around?
He ran a hand through his black hair and inhaled a quick, raspy breath.
Whered you get that damn-fool dress?
Borrowed it from Lizzy.
Figures. You should have borrowed some shoes, too.
Her feet are longer than mine.
Since he was bare-chested and black and blue all over, she could probably see every mark her bullying father had inflicted.
He stood up straighter, maybe to intimidate her. I wasnt expecting company. Id better put on my shirt.
No. Its probably soaking or something. You lookgood. She blushed again and lowered her eyes.
You shouldnt throw away the presents people give you, she said, pulling the screen door open.
When she twirled the rose under his nose, he grabbed it and threw it on the floor.
Girl, dont you know better than to come looking for metonightafter
Shanghai notched his chin higher as he remembered regaining consciousness and finding Caesar Kemble standing over him, his hand still clenched into a fist and that awful grin on his face.
I shouldnt have gone to your house tonight, Shanghai said. And you shouldnt be here now.
Dont you care that I hate what my daddy did to you?
No, I dont care.
Why do you hate me?
Well, maybe cause your bunch has been stealing from my bunch for umpteen generations. Maybe tonight I want to be alone to sulk and drink and nurse my hatred for all things Kembleincluding you.
I saw you ride that bull last weekend at the Kingsville Rodeo. You were great.
He inhaled a couple of long, embarrassing breaths while she stared at his chest, and he tried not to stare at hers.
Youre very young, he muttered.
Whats that got to do with anything?
Plenty. Dont you know nothin? Youre not a kid anymore.
I didnt think youd ever notice.
Go home.
No.
Im twenty-four.
So?
Ive already got a girl.
Wendy! I know.
So go chase boys your own age.
Some of the sparkle went out of her eyes. Still, she was a vision in that white dress. He couldnt very well throw her off his porch into the rain. Not when he didnt trust himself to touch her.
Still, the last thing Shanghai needed tonight was a sassy virgin from the Kemble bunch to tempt him even further down the road that led to hell.
Can I come in or not? she whispered again.
No!
She laughed as she pulled the screen door open and sashayed past him.
Are you out of your mind? How many times have I warned you to stay the hell away from me, girl?
She pretended to count her fingers and then stopped. Way too many. She went to his cooler, opened it and grabbed a beer. Then she popped the top off using the edge of his table. She would have taken a long swig of the stuff if he hadnt grabbed it from her and taken a healthy pull himself.
Youre not exactly the obedient type, are you? He watched her as he took another long pull.
Are you?
That stopped him cold.
I was worried sick about you, she said. I had to come.
Her big, golden, long-lashed eyes met his. Again he noted the raindrops glistening like diamonds in her red hair. Most of all he fixated on that single sparkle that clung to the tip of her cute, upturned nose. She was wearing lipstick and eyeliner for a change.
If youre looking to get yourself seduced, little girl, follow cowboys like me home and then throw yourself at them.
Youre not like that, and we both know it. Youre nice.
Nice? You dont have the gumption God gave a horsefly. Guys arent nice. Theyre all out to get you.
Wheres Spot?
At the house.
Her teeth chattered, and she rubbed her arms to warm herself.
If your daddy catches us together here, hell get one of his bought-off judges to railroad me into some prison until Im old and gray. Come back when youre eighteen.
What if some other girllike Wendy Harper gets you before then?
He didnt answer.
Im all wet and cold. You could offer me a blanket or your shirt or something. She swallowed a quick breath, and he realized she was even more nervous than he was. Then she picked up the damp shirt that hung on the back of his chair and slipped her arms through the sleeves. When the long sleeves dangled many inches longer than her hands, she began to roll them up.
Why cant you ever do what youre told?
Because then I dont get what I want. She paused, pulling his shirt close against her body. Can I help it if I grew up spoiled instead of with a great big chip on my shoulder weighing me down?
What if I grabbed you and snapped you against my chest? What if I gave you a kiss or two, would you leave me alone then and go chase somebody closer to your age?
She straightened up to face him. Beaming brightly, she puckered her lips. Cross my heart and swear to die.
Youre hopeless. Girls are supposed to let the guy do the chasin, he said.
Thats stupid. Youd never chase me.
Youre too young.
When Im all grown up, eighteen, would you really want
Youre a Kemble.
Kiss me, she whispered in a low, hypnotic tone. If my daddy runs you off like he said he would, this might be my last chance. Then Id have to live my whole life without knowingwhat youre like.
Hardly knowing what he did, he strolled closer, leaned down and pecked her cheek lightly with his lips. The kiss accomplished, he intended to jump free. There. Now go!
Thats not the kind of kiss I meant, and you know it!
Her gentle hands circled his wide shoulders, and she seemed to melt into him as she clung tightly. Even as he fought to loosen her grip, he heated where her warm breath brushed his cheek. He noticed that her damp body, although slim and petite, nestled against his huge frame, felt more like a womans body than a childs. Damn her hide, she was a perfect fit.
His heart thudded painfully. He should burn in hell for this alone.
On the lips, she pleaded. Kiss me like you kissed Wendy at the rodeo.
You little spy!
Just onceplease.
He yanked himself loose. Still, he admired the way she went after what she wanted. Nothing had ever been handed to him, either.
She put her hand to her cheek. My skin burns where you
It was the damnedest, most unaccountable thing, but his lips burned from the chaste kiss hed given her.
One taste of her sweet, velvet skin had rocked him. She was innocent but willing and utterly, utterly adorable.
He wished he was ten years younger so he could crush her close and not feel like he was Satans spawn.
He couldnt stand another second of this, so he stomped out of the house and stood on his porch and watched it rain.
She raced after him.
Now you really have to go, he said roughly. You promised.
She shook her head. That was only if you kissed me on the mouth. Her voice fell so softly, he had to strain to hear it over the downpour.