"Hi," Carla said. "There’s nothing heavy to lift off the stove tonight."
"Then I’ll just steal a cup of coffee," he said, watching her intently.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
"I was just going to ask you the same question."
"Everything’s fine. Dinner will be on time and big enough to feed an army."
"That isn’t what I meant." Ten hesitated, swore under his breath and said bluntly, "You look unhappy."
"I’m always unhappy to be leaving the Rocking M," Carla said, her voice as matter-of-fact as she could make it. "Don’t you remember? I used to pitch a regular fit when it was time to go back to Boulder."
"You were going back to school, then. What are you going back to now?"
"Actually, I’m going to help Cash wrestle with his doctoral thesis. He’s a whiz at cards and hard rock mining, but typewriters frustrate him."
Ten started to say something, thought better of it and shrugged. "We’re sure going to miss you."
"Thanks." Unshed tears scorched Carla’s eyelids. Impulsively she gave Ten a hug. "I’ll miss you, too."
Ten wrapped his arms around Carla, lifting her off the floor in a bear hug just as the back door slammed again.
"Put her down."
The tone of Luke’s voice made Carla stiffen. Automatically she moved to end the hug. Ten’s arms tightened, holding her captive. With a taunting lack of speed, Ten lowered Carla’s feet to the floor, released her and turned to confront Luke.
"Something wrong, boss?"
Carla winced. She had learned that Ten only used the word "boss" when he thought Luke was out of line.
"Dinner is ready," she said quickly to Luke. "I’ll set an extra plate. I wasn’t expecting you."
"I figured that out right away," Luke drawled coolly, "when I walked in and found you practicing your newfound techniques on my ramrod. Let me give you a bit of advice, schoolgirl. Ten doesn’t like being tripped and beaten to the floor any more than I do."
The sardonic words caught Carla completely unprepared. Luke had been so polite to her since September Canyon, so proper and distant Not by so much as a word or a look had he alluded to what had passed between them; and now he was all but saying she had thrown herself at him and he had been unhappy at the result.
"Speak for yourself, boss man," Ten drawled, his voice every bit as cool as Luke’s. "If Carla is in the mood to trip me, I’ll fall to the floor any way she wants me."
"I didn’t mean the hug that way," she said unhappily, watching both men, her face pale.
"Hell, I know that, honey," Ten said without looking away from Luke. "It’s the boss who’s a little thick between the ears where you’re concerned."
"Don’t kid yourself, ramrod. She may look as innocent as – "
"If you say any more," Ten interrupted curtly, "you’ll regret it."
"Oh? And I suppose you’re going to make me all regretful?" Luke asked.
"I won’t have to. You’ll look in the mirror and your stomach will turn over."
Ten’s quiet certainty was more effective than a blow. Luke closed his eyes for a long count of three. When his eyes opened again they were no longer a savage, glittering gold. They were nearly opaque, full of shadows, as dull as gold could be. Ten muttered something sad and savage under his breath, but before either man could say anything more, the sound of the ranch hands gathering in the yard came through the open door.
"Find somebody else to give you the beating you think you deserve, Luke," Ten said softly. "I like you too well to enjoy hammering on you." He turned to Carla. "Go wash your face, honey, or you’ll be answering a lot of questions about those tears."
Carla fled without a word.
When she came back, dinner was on the table and Luke was nowhere in sight. Ten looked up and smiled encouragingly at her.
"Told you she was just slicking up to impress us," he drawled to the table at large. "Nice job, honey. You look good enough to eat"
"Then it’s a good thing for me you’re already working on seconds, isn’t it?" she said, smiling in return.
Only Ten noticed that Carla’s smile hovered on the brink of turning upside down, and he wasn’t going to point it out. He stood, pulled out her chair and seated her with easy grace.
"Thank you," Carla said, glancing up into his gray eyes as he bent over her. Quietly she added, "You’re a good man, Ten. I don’t know why some woman hasn’t snaffled you off."
"One did," Ten murmured as he sat down again next to Carla. "It was a lesson to both of us."
"Hey, ramrod," Cosy said, jerking his thumb toward Luke’s place. "The boss came in early today. Should I drag him out of the barn to eat?"
"Depends on how lucky you feel."
Cosy hesitated. "Uh-oh. You mean he’s in the shop?"
"Yeah."
"Turning big hunks of wood into little bitty shavings?"
"Yeah."
"Is the door locked?"
"Yeah."
Cosy settled more deeply into his chair. "You gonna keep those potatoes for yourself or are you gonna share them with the hands what do the real work?"
Smiling thinly, Ten passed the potatoes.
"What are you two talking about?" Carla asked Ten.
The ramrod hesitated, then shrugged. "When things get to grinding too hard on Luke, he goes to his wood shop in the barn and locks the door behind him. You know that bed and dresser and table in your room?"
"I’ve been trying to figure a way to spirit the bedroom set out of the house when I leave," she admitted. "I’ve never seen any furniture one-tenth so beautiful."
"Luke made each piece three years ago. He worked all summer, way into the night, night after night, and then put in long days of ranch work every day, as well. After a few weeks of that he looked like hell, so I decided to talk some sense into him." Ten shook his head ruefully. "That’s a mistake I won’t make twice. I’d as soon take on a cornered cougar with a licorice whip as tackle Luke when he’s holed up in his workshop."
Carla’s uncertain appetite faded entirely as she digested Ten’s words. Three years ago she had offered herself to Luke with unhappy results for both of them: I’ve regretted that night like I’ve never regretted anything in my life. So he had locked himself in his workshop and dealt with his emotions by creating an extraordinary bedroom set and putting it into a room no one used. Three weeks ago she had offered herself to Luke once more…and when it was over, he had whispered, Please don’t do this to me again.
Now Luke had locked himself away once more, and he wasn’t going to come out. Not while Carla was still on the Rocking M. She was sure of it. She was also certain she couldn’t let that happen. She loved Luke too much to walk away and pretend that nothing had occurred between them except a one-night stand that never should have happened.
"Don’t do it, honey," Ten said too softly for anyone but Carla to hear. "Don’t be the one to give Luke the fight he’s looking for. You’ll both regret it."
Carla’s head snapped up. She stared at Ten, startled by his accuracy in reading her thoughts.
"But I love him," she whispered.
"That just makes you more vulnerable."
"Luke came in early today. Maybe he wanted to talk to me. Maybe he…" Carla’s voice frayed over the hope she couldn’t put into words.