floor was going to be conference rooms and offices for the TCC officers. There was still a lot of work to do on the place, but Liam knew that at least one of the suites on the top floor was finished, because Sterling had insisted on having a place for either him or other board members to stay if they had to. Sterling’s insistence on his and his friends’ comfort was no surprise.
Still, he turned his head from the club to the old, brick office building across the street. Liam checked the GPS just to make sure, but yeah. That was Chloe Hemsworth’s address. Surprised, Liam studied the building. It had a lot of years on it, but looked sturdy enough. It wasn’t what he’d pictured. He’d imagined a rich girl would want some plush, sleek, penthouse office in a modern building.
But wherever the hell she was, he had to take this meeting. Frowning, he climbed out of his truck, and tugged his hat brim down low over his eyes. The wind was still kicking, and the sudden gusts were enough to snatch a man’s hat and send it to Albuquerque. Stepping around the people hurrying along the sidewalk, Liam headed for the office where the words It’s a Party were scrawled across a wide front window in bright pink paint. Shaking his head, he opened the glass door, stepped inside and stopped dead.
This he hadn’t been prepared for.
A woman—Chloe?—was bent over, picking something up off the floor. His gaze locked on that luscious curve of behind, showcased in a short, black skirt. She glanced at him over her shoulder, sent him a bright smile and said, “Hi! Can I help you?”
Slowly, she straightened up and the view only got better. She wore a dark blue, off the shoulder blouse, and her long, light brown hair lay in loose waves that kissed those bare shoulders. She wore sky-high black heels, and her gorgeous legs were tanned. Her amber eyes were wide, her mouth still curved in a welcoming smile, and all Liam could feel was the heat swamping his body.
He’d seen pictures of her of course. Like every other wealthy woman, Chloe’s face was in the society sections of the Houston newspapers, and splashed all across the news website he checked every day. But she was even more gorgeous in person. Every inch of him felt tight and hot, and when she talked, he realized he hadn’t heard a word.
“Sorry. What?”
She stared at him, and Liam saw a flicker of the heat that still had his body at a slow burn.
“I’m Chloe Hemsworth,” she said just a little breathlessly.
That voice conjured up all sorts of interesting images in his mind, and his body responded to them instantly. She was exactly the kind of woman he avoided—and he wanted her. Bad.
Liam knew he was in deep trouble.
“What happened?”
I couldn’t believe it had gone so wrong so quickly. Pacing this stupid room wasn’t helping, but I felt like a caged lion or something. Nothing I could do to change anything and besides, if you thought about it, it really wasn’t my fault at all.
The Texas Cattleman’s Club was visible from here and I couldn’t keep staring at it. The rain started and I couldn’t stop thinking about what happened. He was all alone in there. Did he still care? Should I have cared? No. I should have left. But I didn’t.
This all started years ago, and what happened today was just a part of it all. So really, they set it all in motion way back when. Today was just another link in a long, ugly chain.
I did what I had to. Now, I wanted my stomach to stop spinning and my brain to stop racing. Nothing could change it, and I’m not sure I would change it even if I could. I came this far, there was no going back, and really...didn’t they have it coming after all I’d suffered?
Was it fair that only I was affected by those decisions made so long ago? Was it fair that I’d been forgotten and my pain buried? None of this was my fault.
None of it.
* * *
The cowboy was tall and broad shouldered, and had sun-streaked brown hair that lay just over his collar. His blue eyes were as clear as a Texas lake, and filled with the same mystery of what lay beneath the surface. He was staring at her with a steady fascination that kindled awareness and something more inside her.
He wore the Texas cowboy uniform of faded jeans, scuffed brown boots and a long-sleeved white shirt, rolled back to the elbows, displaying deeply tanned, strong forearms. He had a tight grip on his dust-colored Stetson, and just standing there, he seemed to take up all the room in her small office.
Breathing was harder than it should have been, and Chloe made a deliberate effort to drag air into her lungs. Instant attraction roared to life inside her, but Chloe dialed it down. He was probably there to arrange a party for his girlfriend. Or wife. Still, there was something about him that was almost overwhelming. She had been born and raised in Texas, so she was no stranger to the “western man.” But this one had such a compelling aura it was hard to be unaffected.
Silently, sternly, she told herself to dial it down.
“You’re Chloe, right?” His gaze swept her up and down before settling on her eyes. “I’m Liam Morrow. Sterling Perry sent me.”
Stunned, Chloe stared at him for only a moment longer. She’d been expecting some gruff, older guy, with a comfortable belly. She’d never considered that the foreman of a ranch the size of the Perry place could be so young and...hot.
“Oh, well, hi. Thanks for coming,” she said, recognizing that she was starting to burble. She took a breath. Okay, he wasn’t there to book a party, but that didn’t mean he was single. “You want some coffee? Water? That’s about it on the refreshment front, I’m afraid. But there’s a diner just down the street. We could go there and—”
He held up one hand and, as if she’d been trained, she closed her mouth and stopped talking. Well, that was irritating.
“I’m not here for snacks,” he said. “Sterling wants me to hear you out. So if you want to tell me your ideas, show me your plans, we can get through this meeting and I can get back to the ranch.”
Okay, hot didn’t excuse rude. “Wow,” she said. “Thank you for your complete attention.”
His beautiful blue eyes rolled. “Fine. Sorry. I’m here to listen, and that’s what I’m going to do. When we’re finished, I’ll let Sterling know if I think it’ll work on the ranch or not.”
“Okay.” Chloe could tell from his body language and his expression that he’d already made up his mind to say no. So it would be up to her to convince him. Well, it wouldn’t be the first time Chloe had had to fight for what she wanted.
She walked to her desk, one she’d taken from her old room at her parents’ house, and picked up a file folder. “Sterling actually told me that the decision would be yours because you know the ranch so well. I’m just hoping you’ll actually give me a chance and not dismiss the idea out of hand.”
He sighed, set his hat, crown down, on a tabletop, then folded his arms across his chest. He stood, feet braced apart as if ready for a fight and the move was so inherently sexy,
