The Cowboy's Last Goodbye (Grass Valley Cowboys Book 6) Read online

  Harper blinked twice, struggling not to fall prey to Ben’s substantial allure. “So you admit you’ve got plans for no good on the agenda this evening.”

  “You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?” Ben broke off a chunk of bread and took a bite. With Harper’s fragrance wafting around him in tantalizing whiffs and her smile bedazzling him, he no longer cared about food.

  Eating just kept his mouth and hands occupied rather than taking her in his arms and ravishing her with kisses.

  As he watched her bite into a ripe, red tomato, he fantasized about the taste of her mouth, what it would feel like to savor her lips.

  Heat churned in his gut so he looked around, searching for the dog. When he didn’t see him anywhere, he gave Harper a concerned glance. “Do we need to call General? He won’t wander off, will he?”

  “No, he’ll stay close enough he can hear us. If you whistle, he’ll come, but then he’ll want a reason for being called away from his fun.”

  Ben nodded in understanding. “I’ll leave him to it, then.”

  Harper wiped her fingers on a napkin as she studied Ben. “Thank you for being so good with my dog. People forget he was a soldier, one badly injured, that saw his partner killed right in front of him. Dogs can have post traumatic stress disorder, too.”

  “I’ve heard that is a possibility. Does General have a lot of problems with PTSD?”

  “Not now. He used to have terrible nightmares when I first got him. He’d howl, snap, and whine in his sleep, but he hasn’t done that for a long time. I think he just needed to find a human he could trust and connect with them.” Harper glanced across the creek. “I feel very blessed General was put into my care.”

  Mindful of the somber mood that had settled over them, Ben felt a need to lighten it. “How did General get his name? Did he belong to a general?”

  Harper laughed and kicked off her shoes, wiggling her toes. Ben had the most insane desire to massage her feet and kiss each hot-pink painted toenail.

  As though sensing the direction of his thoughts, Harper pulled her feet beneath her full skirt and hugged her knees to her chest.

  “Ryan used to write me emails when he had online access. One of the things he told me was that many of the service dogs are raised overseas and given names before the military takes possession of them. He said some of them have horrible names, like Babycakes or Hotstuff.” She giggled. “Can’t you just see these soldiers calling out for the dogs, ‘Here Loveybuns, come here, boy.’ He said they also gave the girl dogs boy names and vice versa.”

  “General seems like it would be a good name.” Ben commented as he finished his dinner and wiped his fingers on a paper napkin.

  “I think that one was meant to cause some interesting moments, too.”

  “Why do you say that?” Ben placed the leftover food back in the picnic basket.

  Harper sighed. “Come on, Ben. Think about. The Army has generals. A dog named General in the Army.”

  “What happened?” He glanced over at her and waggled a dark eyebrow. “It must have been good.”

  “I don’t know how good it was, but it was funny, at least after the fact.” Harper plucked at a thread on her skirt, allowing the memories of her brother to flow over her. This time, they didn’t bring an agonizing ache, but a feeling of warm familiarity.

  “Ryan had just returned from a mission with General. They were walking across the compound when some officers wanted a demonstration of what the dog could do. Ryan showed them a few things and when he finished, General walked over to the general and lifted his leg. Ryan started yelling, ‘No, General! No!’ but the dog did his business right there all over the general’s leg and boot. Ryan was sure he was in for it. Instead, the general grinned and said, ‘In a matter of speaking, he’s not the first general to do that and he probably won’t be the last. At least he’s honest enough to do it right in front of me.’”

  Ben chuckled. “Did your brother get in trouble?”

  “No, he didn’t, but some of the guys in his unit gave him a really hard time about it. It was a joke that kept them laughing for weeks.” Harper giggled. “It makes me smile every time I think about the look that had to have been on Ryan’s face.”

  The dog bounded out of the bushes across the creek and splashed his way over to Harper and Ben.

  “General, don’t you dare,” Harper cautioned as the dog ran up the bank and over to them. When he gave himself a big shake, sending water droplets spraying over them both, Harper ducked her head.

  “Oh, you naughty boy.” Harper eyed the dog as he flopped down on the grass next to her and licked her hand.

  Ben grinned and held out a hand to her. “I suppose now wouldn’t be a good time to give him a treat.”

  “You’ve got that right. Don’t do anything to encourage more of that behavior.” Harper stood and wrinkled her nose as the smell of wet dog assaulted her.

  Ben put the basket of food back in the truck and left his hat on the seat. He returned to where Harper glared at General. The dog appeared to be pouting with his head on his paws.

  “Are you ready to cool off in the creek or do you want your food to settle a while longer?”

  “If you don’t mind, could we go for a walk first?”

  “A walk sounds great,” Ben said, taking her hand after she slipped on her shoes. “Your wish is my command.”

  Harper almost tripped at the words he spoke. If that were true, they’d be on the blanket exchanging fervent kisses.

  Instead, she looked back over her shoulder and whistled once. General lunged to his feet and ran over to her, falling into step beside them.

  “Does he play fetch?” Ben asked as the dog cocked his head and looked at him.

  “Oh, you’ll be sorry you said the f-word.” Harper grinned at Ben. “He can play that particular game for hours.”

  Ben found a sturdy stick and waved it in General’s direction. “Wanna fetch, boy? Gonna fetch the stick? Huh, General? Ready, boy?”

  The dog had his rump in the air and his front paws stretched out in front of him, waggling his whole body in excitement, waiting for Ben to toss the stick.

  When Ben threw it behind the dog, General took off running after it with a happy bark. It wasn’t long until the canine returned and dropped the stick in front of Ben, anxiously waiting for him to throw it again.

  “Can we walk and play at the same time?” Ben asked as he tossed the stick and took Harper’s fingers in his hand not covered with dog slobbers.

  “Sure. He’ll follow you anywhere as long as you keep playing with him.” Harper stepped over a log and smiled at Ben as he watched her every move.

  The warmth of his smile and the heat in those amazing brown eyes made her stumble. Ben grasped her elbow and moved a little closer to her. “Careful, there. Don’t want you to get that pretty dress dirty or hurt yourself.”

  “I’m pretty sure the wet dog smell qualifies my dress as dirty and you might as well know I can be a klutz of epic proportions, so be on guard.”

  Ben let his gaze travel over the length of Harper and back up again. “You, a klutz? I’m not buying that. A dancer, maybe, with the graceful way you move. But a klutz? Nope, can’t believe it.”

  Delighted by his comments, Harper figured if he spent any time around her, he’d learn soon enough that she was just as likely to make a dork out of herself as she was to exhibit any decorum.

  Ben tossed the stick when General returned with it and they watched the dog scamper along the edge of the nearby wheat field.

  Harper studied the golden heads rustling in the slight breeze. “I’ve heard the farmers say it’s a great wheat crop so far this year.”

  “It has been good,” Ben agreed, steering them back toward the grove of trees where they’d left their things. General ran up to them, still wanting to chase the stick.

  Ben drew back his arm and gave it an extra hard throw, sending it spinning through the air.

  Harper watched the dog chase af
ter it. “I warned you not to start that game with him.”

  “I’ll know better next time.” Ben grinned and glanced down at her. “I don’t mind playing with him. I can understand about having pent up energy that needs released.”

  It was Harper’s turn to stare at him. “Does that mean you get restless when you’re out on the river working?”

  “Sometimes,” Ben admitted. “Don’t get me wrong, I love what I do, but sometimes I feel kind of trapped and confined, like I need space to move. So I understand General’s eagerness to stretch his legs and run off some of his energy.”

  “I could get a stick and throw it for you,” Harper offered with a flirty wink.

  Only a few seconds passed before Ben lunged at her. She took a few running steps, but he caught her in no time. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off her feet. “You better watch out, Miss Hayes. You might get yourself into trouble.”

  “Trouble is my middle name,” she giggled as he swung her around. They’d made it back to where they’d left the blanket and her phone blasting out music.

  Ben set her down as a slow song started to play and took her hands in his. “Will you do me the honor of a dance?”

  “I’d like that very much, Captain Morgan.” Harper stepped closer to Ben. He settled one hand at her waist while the other held hers and they swayed to the music.

  Somehow, her hands ended up linked behind Ben’s neck and his bracketed her waist before the song ended.

  When it did, Ben dipped his head toward hers. Mentally bracing for the impact of the kiss, more than ready to experience it, a wiggling body bumped into them knocking them over onto the blanket.

  Exasperated, Harper sighed as General sat on the grass with a big stick in his mouth.

  Ben appeared every bit as disappointed as she felt by having another kiss interrupted before it happened.

  “I think I’m ready to go swimming now,” she said, resolved to never melding her mouth to Ben’s. Perhaps it was all for the best anyway. Ben was someone she liked and enjoyed being with. Maybe they were meant only to be friends. “Do you still want to swim?”

  “Yeah, that’s fine,” Ben said, slightly annoyed the dog had chosen such an inopportune moment to appear. If he didn’t know better, he’d say the canine did it on purpose. The grin on General’s face as he watched them wasn’t helping him appear innocent.

  Since they were already seated on the blanket, Ben removed his boots and socks then unsnapped his shirt and tugged it off.

  Dazed by the sight of Ben’s bare chest, Harper froze with a sandal half off, unable to peel her eyes away from that muscled, bronzed skin.

  Ben reached down and grabbed her foot, removing the sandal. With unhurried movements, he undid the buckle on the other shoe and took it off before softly trailing his finger along the pad of her foot. She squirmed and yanked her feet back.

  “Ooh, she’s got ticklish feet, too.” Ben grabbed for a foot and tickled it, making Harper kick and giggle.

  General barked and paced back and forth, uncertain if she needed help or was having fun. Concerned they not upset the dog, Ben let go and rubbed a hand over General’s head, assuring him all was well.

  He stood and unbuckled his belt, tugged down the zipper and dropped his jeans. Harper’s eyes widened then blinked twice as she observed every move he made.

  Curious if she thought he’d swim in his underwear, he didn’t say anything as he adjusted the waist of the swim trunks he’d donned beneath his jeans. He looked at her dress and tipped his head toward the creek. “Are you planning to swim in your dress?”

  “No, but I… um…” Harper had on a swimming suit beneath the dress, but she wasn’t comfortable stripping down in front of Ben. She hardly knew the man and besides that, parading around in a swimming suit didn’t rank high on her list of ego-enhancing activities. She was in good shape, but that didn’t mean she liked all her shape on display.

  “Do you need some help?” Ben asked, taking a step closer to her. Mirth and something else, something that made heat curl from her stomach to every extremity, glistened in his expressive eyes.

  “I do not. Be a gentleman and turn around.” Harper used her index finger to make a circular motion, indicating he should turn his back to her.

  “You know how to suck the fun right out of what would be a pleasurable situation, don’t you?” With a show of great hesitation, Ben finally turned around and stared at the creek in front of him.

  Harper turned so she faced the pickup and reached back to undo the zipper on her dress. When she did, she caught Ben peeking at her over his shoulder.

  “Good grief, Ben Morgan! Are you thirteen?”

  “And a half, if you ask my sister.” He chuckled and turned around again.

  The sound of her zipper sliding down echoed around him. As he envisioned helping her out of her dress and taking her in his arms, he fought to hold onto his self-control.

  His palms grew moist and he found it hard to breathe. Consumed by his thoughts, a shove from behind caught him off guard and he took an awkward step forward.

  “Hey, what was that for?” he asked, turning around. Only by clenching his jaw did he keep his mouth from hanging open.

  Harper had pulled her blond hair on top of her head in a messy bun. With the green swimming suit she wore, complete with a flirty ruffle along the hem, he thought she greatly resembled Tinker Bell.

  She already reminded him of a pixie, but seeing her with those big blue eyes and that little green swim dress teasing the top of her thighs made him smile.

  Part of him had hoped she’d wear some teeny little bikini that showed off all her luscious curves. The more sensible, sane part of him hoped she’d wear something old-fashioned that covered her from neck to ankle because he wasn’t sure he could handle seeing too much exposed skin.

  The sassy outfit she wore was perfect for her, though. Not too revealing, yet not overly conservative, it provided just enough of a hint of her figure for Ben to swallow hard as he reined in his thoughts.

  “Has anyone ever told you that you look like a fairy. You just need some glittery wings,” he teased as she looked at him uncertainly.

  “A fairy? I think that’s an insult if I ever heard one. Maybe we better just call it a night.” Harper turned around and started back to where she’d left her dress on the blanket near her purse.

  Ben grabbed her hand and tugged her toward the creek. “I meant it in a good way. You know, like Tinker Bell. She’s full of sass and fire, and she’s a cute little thing to boot.”

  Harper raised both eyebrows. “And just how do you know so much about fairies?”

  “Cass Thompson was obsessed with them for quite a while. We were all well versed in fairies before she outgrew that phase. Emily is just getting started on them, so ready or not, here comes round two.”

  Laughter spilled out of Harper as Ben made motions with his hands that were supposed to look like fairy wings.

  “Honestly, Ben, I’m impressed by how much you care about your friends and their families. Most single guys wouldn’t have a clue about fairies or a little girl’s favorite color.”

  “The Thompsons aren’t just friends, they are family, or as close as you can be without being blood relation. It’s always been that way and I don’t see anything changing that.”

  “It’s wonderful.” Harper offered him a soft smile. “But I still think comparing me to a demented pixie is taking things a little far.”

  Without warning, she gave Ben a shove into the water. He spluttered and splashed, but came up laughing.

  “You are in for it now, Tinker Bell.”

  She squealed and began to run, but Ben was out of the water and had her in his arms before she took two steps. General barked and ran over to them as Ben carried Harper into the water and dropped her into a deeper section of the creek.

  The dog jumped in and playfully lunged around them as they swam and laughed.

  When General tired of the water, he ran up
the bank to chase after some birds while Ben and Harper continued to swim and splash.

  As the evening began to cool, Ben snuck up behind Harper and grabbed her around the waist, prepared to dunk her again.

  She managed to spin around and wrap her arms around his neck, grinning as the water lapped around them.

  “Harper…” Ben’s husky voice reached places in her soul that had never been touched.

  Enthralled with him, with the feel of his hands against her back and his strong body floating close to hers, Harper couldn’t think of a single thing beyond how much she wanted to kiss Ben.

  Completely focused on experiencing his kiss, Harper raised up in the water until her lips nearly touched his. In that moment, explosions might have gone off around them or it could have hailed golf balls. She wouldn’t have noticed. All she could comprehend was that he was finally going to kiss her.

  Ben groaned and tightened his hold around her.

  When he hesitated, she started to pull away, wondering if, in her intense longing for his kiss, she’d mistaken his interest in her.

  Before she could further contemplate his intentions, Ben’s mouth brushed across hers with a feather-light touch. His lips were cool and so much softer than she imagined.

  Gently, he nipped at her bottom lip, teasing and tormenting her.

  The warning sirens sounding in her head, telling her it was a bad idea to get involved with Ben Morgan failed to register in the foggy recesses of her brain.

  Instead, she stroked her fingers over the wet hair at the back of his head and drew even closer to him. Ben sighed and pulled back, as if he considered his next move.

  All at once, he seemed consumed with her, with the need to hold and kiss her.

  One moment they were in the water, the next, he gently laid her down on the blanket and covered her face with kisses.

  She directed his mouth back to hers, exchanging kisses so full of feverish longing, she was surprised the blanket didn’t spark and set the surrounding wheat fields aflame.

  Ben’s hand trailed from her knee up her thigh, igniting a trail of fire unlike anything Harper had ever experienced.

  Lost in the moment, in the passion exploding between the two of them, neither of them noticed the dog running at them or his barks of warning.