Laying Down the Law Read Online Free Page A

“I’ll take her back to town.”
    Run her off for good was what he meant. “She wasn’t stayin’ in Caldera.”
    “She was in the cabin?”
    Colt nodded and turned to Gabe, letting him see the indecision that had to be written on his face. “With just one outfit and no shoes.”
    Gabe whistled silently. “Nothin’ but trouble’s gonna come from gettin’ involved in this.”
    “You don’t have to babysit me. I know what I’m doin’.”
    “Do you?” His brother snorted. “You didn’t have to live with you after she dumped you the first time.”
    Colt grunted and straightened. “Who’s watchin’ over the herd?”
    “Tommy and Skeeter. Almost got ’em settled in the new pasture. You think I’m bein’ rough on you, wait until Tommy gets back.”
    “I don’t suppose if I tell you both this is none of your damn business, that you might actually butt out?”
    Gabe’s lips curved into a rueful smile. “Not a chance.”
    Rubbing the back of his neck to ease the tension knotting there, Colt’s gaze went back to the front door. She was probably finished with her shower and wrapping the robe—his robe—around her nude body. Remembering again how incredible it had felt to have her skin sliding along his, he drew a deep breath.
    “Be careful, Colt. She’s not the stayin’ kind.”
    And because he knew it was true, Colt squared his shoulders, drawing on invisible armor as he walked back through the house, down the hallway to his bedroom door. With his face set in stern lines, he twisted the knob and stepped inside.
     
    Zuri looked up, her hands pulling the belt tighter around her waist, grateful that this time she was covered neck to mid-calf. Still, she was hyper-aware she was naked underneath it and only one knot away from making another big mistake.
    “You find everything you needed?” he asked, his tone impersonal.
    Oddly, she thought she might actually prefer that ragged edge of anger he’d blistered her with by the river. “Yes, thanks.” She dropped the ties and smoothed her hands down her sides, nervous beneath his unblinking stare. “I don’t suppose you have anything I might wear, besides this robe, that is.” She flushed at how awkward this felt, how ridiculous her situation was. A closet full of clothes hung waiting for her six hundred miles away.
    “You’re pretty skinny. I might have some sweatpants and a T-shirt, but you’ll have to cinch in the pants at the waist to keep ’em from fallin’ off.”
    Skinny? Once he’d likened her slender frame to a filly’s, and she’d taken it as the highest compliment. She lifted her chin. “That’d be fine.”
    She jerked when he strode for her, but he edged around the bed, headed to his dresser and pulled out a pair of gray sweat pants and a navy tee. He tossed both on the bed, and then stood with his hands fisted on his hips.
    Zuri bit back a complaint, wishing he’d quit hovering because he was keeping her on edge. But when he didn’t budge, she dragged her feet to the bed, scooped up the wash-softened cotton and turned toward the bathroom.
    “Uh uh,” he said, tsking softly. “My house. My clothes. My rules .”
    She glanced over her shoulder, not knowing if she’d heard him right, but that same hard challenge he’d issued when he’d demanded the kiss was stamped all over his granite features.
    She knew she ought to ignore him and lock herself into the bathroom to dress and gather her scattered wits, but the underlying tension riding the edge of his jaw excited her.
    Colt had never been this dominating…except when they had sex. She’d loved it then. Her body seemed to crave it now. Heat bloomed again, winding around her core. A delicious little thrill accelerated her heartbeats.
    Without a saying a word, she walked back to the bed and tossed down the clothing. Then keeping her gaze glued to his, she slowly untied the belt and let the robe fall open. With a sexy shrug, she let it slide off her shoulders and pool behind her