Secret Love - Brenda Jackson [106]
Chapter 6
Chapter 7 J ake Madaris was in a bad mood. A very bad mood. He knew it. Blaylock knew it. And his men knew it. But what Blaylock and the men couldn’t figure out was why. Of all the men who had been around Diamond at lunch two days ago, Jake had spent more time with her than anyone. So everyone couldn’t help but wonder what had him in a tiff. If anything, to their way of thinking, he should have been a man on top of the world. What man wouldn’t be in his shoes? All of them would have been surprised to know that Jake didn’t want to be in those shoes. He didn’t want to be the man Diamond had spent most of her time with that day. It was for that very reason that he had deliberately avoided her since then. The night he’d taken her back to the cabin was one he was trying hard to forget, but the memory of her taste wouldn’t let him. And that was the reason for his bad mood. The men were still talking about her visit and the pies she’d baked for them. There was nowhere he could go on the ranch
Chapter 7
Chapter 8 J ake wasn’t surprised the next morning to find Diamond dressed and enjoying a mug of coffee when he arrived at the cabin during the predawn hours. To make matters simple, he had saddled up a horse at the ranch, a mare he’d felt would be easy enough for her to handle, and had hitched the animal to his horse and brought it along. Diamond had been standing on the deck, waiting for him when he’d ridden up. She had immediately put down her mug and smiled, evidently pleased with his choice of a horse for her. “She’s beautiful, Jacob,” she said, as she took a good look at the horse she would be riding that day. She reached up to touch the animal’s muzzle. Diamond’s smile widened when the horse nickered and playfully tossed her head. You’re beautiful, too, Jake thought as he watched Diamond interact with the huge palomino. Even now he doubted she was wearing makeup, but the smooth freshness of her dark skin, her eyes the color of whisky and the fullness of her lips made her a delect
Chapter 8
Chapter 9 J ake and Diamond returned to the cabin just before dark. Their bodies were tired but totally satiated. They had remained in Jake’s private place, making love over and over again, and each time they had wanted each other that much more. But making love had not been all they had done. They had talked. She had told him of her strained relationship with her father, her less than amiable parting of the ways with her ex-husband and her special friendship with Sterling. She had explained how she and Sterling had decided to take advantage of the rumor Samuel had started and feed the media’s frenzy that they were having an affair. That way men wouldn’t try coming on to her, and women—the less than brazen ones—would assume Sterling was spoken for. That worked out fine since neither of them wanted a serious relationship with anyone. Jake in turn told her about his childhood growing up on Whispering Pines, and about the five older brothers he loved and respected. He talked to her about
Chapter 9
Chapter 10 J ake had been back at the ranch less than five minutes and already he was in his room, preparing to take a hot shower. The five days spent on the range had been hard ones, and the torrential downpour that hit a few days ago hadn’t helped matters. As usual, he was proud of his men and the fine work they’d done. They had gone above and beyond in displaying their skills as cowhands. Working together, they had successfully moved the entire herd of cattle to the high pastures. There