Buckhorn Brothers: Casey Part 14

He gave her a warning look that made her swallow her automatic denial. "It's my turn, Emma, so you just be quiet and listen."

Emma snapped her mouth shut and began backing up as he kept advancing. Never had he looked so big, so imposing. So irritated with her.

She b.u.mped into the wall and was annoyed with herself for retreating. She wasn't afraid of Casey. Out of all the things she'd ever felt for him, not once had fear ever been an issue.

Casey crowded into her, caging her in with his body. When she started to sidle away, he gripped her shoulders and held her firm. They stared at each other in silence until Emma gave up and held still.

"I care that you've been lying to me from the start."

"But..."

"I care that I let you get away."

Her eyes widened. Let her get away? Far as she knew, Casey hadn't wanted her to stay. Oh, he'd offered her help because Casey was the type of man who could do nothing else. But he'd made it clear many times that she didn't factor into his future. Well, this was his future, and just because she'd materialized didn't mean...

His hands kneaded her shoulders absently, while his gaze burned. "And you can bet your sweet a.s.s I care that I've never had you." He leaned closer and his voice dropped to a guttural whisper. "I care about that a lot."

Her heart thundered, and her pulse went wild. Unable to maintain eye contact with him so close, Emma looked away. But Casey wasn't allowing that. He put a fist under her chin and brought her face back around, forcing her to meet his burning gaze. His eyes had narrowed with intent, starting a trembling deep inside her. "You quote double standards to me, but you wanna know what's really unfair?"

"No."

He pressed into her until she felt his hard flat abdomen against her belly. Oh G.o.d. Her whole body came alive, quivering with primal awareness.

"It's unfair for a gorgeous young woman to keep throwing herself at a guy until he can't sleep nights for wanting her too much. And then she runs off and no other woman will do because he has a taste for her a a G.o.dd.a.m.ned hunger a yet, d.a.m.n it, she's gone."

"Casey..." She gave the breathless complaint automatically. She couldn't allow herself to believe him. Always, he'd rejected her, wanting no more than friends.h.i.+p. Time apart couldn't have changed that.

His fingers tunneled into her hair, holding her head still. He lowered his forehead to hers and his eyes closed, his voice going rough and deep. "It's unfair because now that you're here again, all grown up and s.e.xier than ever, you no longer want me."

She felt his warm breath on her lips, felt the heat of his frustration, his urgency, which sparked her own. Her body was melting into his, her nerve endings tingling and alive. Not want him? She was dying for him.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," he murmured against her mouth, "but I don't intend to let you get away with it."

He said that so simply, sort of slipping it in there on her, it took a second for his statement to sink in. When his meaning dawned on her, Emma became alert with a start, only to have any thoughts of rejecting him quelled beneath a ravaging kiss. He didn't ease into the kiss. No, he took her mouth with ruthless domination.

Emma loved it.

All objections scattered, as insubstantial as a hot summer breeze. Aware of her surrender, Casey groaned low in his throat and tilted his head, fitting his mouth to hers more securely. He continued to hold her immobile, pressing her to the wall. She felt the muscled hardness, the vitality of his body against her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, her belly and thighs. She tried to squirm, to get closer, but his grip didn't allow it.

The kiss was an onslaught, never broken, always going deeper, taking and giving, and Emma forgot they were in a hospital with people milling around outside the room.

Casey didn't forget. Slowly, reluctantly, he pulled back. His thumbs brushed the corners of her swollen mouth. Emma fought to get her eyes open.

"I love your mouth, Em. So d.a.m.n s.e.xy." He nipped her bottom lip, licked her upper, took her mouth again. He sank his tongue in, soft and deep.

Emma groaned.

"I used to imagine your mouth on me," he whispered, "and it made me nuts."

Hearing him say it made her imagine it now. "Yes." She would love to taste Casey a everywhere. "Yes." She reached for him again.

Casey stepped them both away from the wall and urged her head to his shoulder, then wrapped his arms around her to hold her tight. He took several long, unsteady breaths, which allowed her to do the same. Emma was so shaken that if Casey hadn't supported her, she thought she might have melted into a puddle on the floor.

"I'm going to give you time, Emma."

She flattened her hands against the firm wall of his chest, relis.h.i.+ng the feel of him. Time? She didn't need time. At the moment, she didn't want time. Unless it was time enough to explore him, to kiss him everywhere, to feel him deep inside her. Oh G.o.d, she would melt.

"I'm going to wait so you won't feel rushed."

She couldn't stop shaking. "I won't."

He went still, cursed softly, then turned his face in and kissed her ear. "Shh. Not yet. First you're going to get comfortable with me again. Then we're going to talk, and I want the truth this time, Emma."

Her heart, which had only just begun to calm, kicked into a furious gallop again. "No..."

"And then." His tongue touched her earlobe, licked lightly inside to make her s.h.i.+ver. "Then I'm going to lay you down, strip you naked and sate myself on you." He groaned as if being tortured. "I've got nearly a decade of l.u.s.t to make up for, sweetheart, so it's going to take me a really long time to get my fill. I hope you're up for it."

Emma shuddered. She had no idea what to do, what to say. But in that single moment, she made a decision. She wouldn't leave Buckhorn again without having Casey first.

If that made her feelings for him harder to deal with, so be it. She wasn't a weak woman with silly illusions. She knew from past experience that Casey wouldn't want her as a permanent fixture in his life. She knew she'd never fit into Buckhorn. She never had.

When she'd left, there'd been a lot of things she wanted. Security, respectability, a close family...and Casey Hudson. But of all those things, it was only Casey who had kept her awake at night.

She had the security and respectability that came with a good job, an att.i.tude adjustment, maturity. She had a family; not her own, but the Devaughns were very special to her and she loved them. She'd attained things of value, but she'd also learned that they weren't enough. She hadn't admitted to herself what was still missing in her life until Casey made it clear that he wanted her.

She'd never be close with her own family; seeing her father again had proven that. But she could have this a she could have her memories of Casey. With everything combined, she'd make that be enough for a lifetime.

She looked into his mellow golden eyes, glittering with excitement. His sharp cheekbones were flushed with arousal. For her. Emma whispered, "All right."

The heat in his eyes flared, but was quickly banked. "G.o.d, Emma." He took several deep breaths, leaned back and finally managed a smile. "The minutes are going to seem like hours until I can get you alone."

Emma nodded.

"Until then, let's talk about your dad a and what really happened the night he dropped you on my doorstep."

CHAPTER EIGHT.

CASEY SAW the shuttered way Emma guarded herself. Well, too bad. Sometimes the truth proved painful but, d.a.m.n it, he deserved that much.

He couldn't stop touching her, smoothing her warm cheek, relis.h.i.+ng the feel of her. He could barely wait until she was naked so he could rub his hands, his face, over her whole body. He wanted to stroke her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, her belly. Between her thighs.

The second she'd agreed with him, he'd gotten semihard and he had a feeling he'd be that way until he got her alone. Heat snaked through him, adding to the s.e.xual tension and making his voice gruff. "Come on, Em. You know you can tell me anything."

She closed her eyes tightly. "People don't just fall into old relations.h.i.+ps that easily, Case."

"You and I do." Spending the day with her had reaffirmed that much. Emma looked different, and her att.i.tudes were wiser, more confident. But the closeness between them existed as strong as ever. No other woman had ever touched him so easily. "Regardless of what you ever thought, Em, you've always had a special place in my heart."

"Casey." She sounded strained and covered her face with her hands.

He couldn't keep from kissing her again, but he contented himself by pulling her hands away and brus.h.i.+ng his mouth over her forehead. "I care about you a I always have. In all the time you were gone, that hasn't changed."

"No? You want to sleep with me now. That's sure not how I remember it."

Something else that was different a her lippy comebacks. They amused him. "I always wanted you and you know it." He leaned down to see her face. "I think you enjoyed tormenting me, sending me home with a b.o.n.e.r, knowing I'd be miserable all night long." The fact that he could tease even when he was this aroused said a lot about Emma and how relaxed he was in her company.

She denied his accusation with a quick shake of her head. "You didn't have to be miserable. I would have taken care of you."

Casey's moan turned into a laugh. "You're still tormenting me. Now, enough with the distractions. What happened that night, Emma? Why were you so desperate to get out of Buckhorn?"

"You don't really want to know."

"Of course I do."

"Then you don't really need to know. Casey, I don't want to involve you. It wouldn't be fair."

She looked truly set in her decision, and Casey knew she wouldn't tell him a thing. He was contemplating ways to get around her stubbornness, when the waiting-room door opened and Dr. Wagner stuck his head in. "Am I interrupting?"

Casey stepped back from Emma. To keep her from ushering him out of the room, he said, "Not at all. We're anxious to hear how Dell's doing."

Emma made a sound, clearly aghast at his audacity in including himself. Casey pretended not to hear. She wanted to shut him out again, but he wasn't about to budge. She'd agreed to sleep with him, to accept him as a lover. She could d.a.m.n well accept him as a friend and confidant too. Whatever Dr. Wagner had to tell her, he could share it with them both.

Lois, peeved and hostile, stepped in behind the doctor. The way she watched Emma was so malicious, it should have been illegal.

Casey had never paid that much attention to Lois before now. He'd thought her cute, a little silly. He'd been out with her once or twice, casual dates that didn't amount to much and definitely didn't go beyond a few kisses. But he hadn't known how catty she could be. Poor Emma, to have put up with her and the other women like her.

He had new insight into what Emma's teen years must have been like in Buckhorn, and it was decidedly worse than he'd thought.

"Let's sit down," Dr. Wagner suggested.

Emma went to a chair and Casey stood behind her, his hands on her shoulders, making it clear to the doctor and to Lois that he was there for her.

Many times in the past, he'd stood in front of her, trying to s.h.i.+eld her. He knew now that she was stronger than he'd ever suspected. She had to be to have survived with her naturally generous nature still intact. Standing behind her, offering her support in what she chose to face, and respecting her strength to do it, seemed more appropriate.

The doctor pulled up his own chair facing Emma, and Lois sat beside him. Dr. Wagner pasted on his patented rea.s.suring physician's smile. "Ms. Clark, your father is doing much better today. I see improvement not only in his mental capacity in identifying objects, but also in his mind/eye coordination." The doctor turned grave. "But, to be truthful, for a little while there I thought we might lose him."

"Lose him?" Emma stiffened in alarm. "But I thought..."

"You're seeing him now, with much improvement. For three days he had no clear recognition of most things. He knew what he was seeing, but he couldn't find the word in his memory to identify it."

Emma bit her bottom lip. "I came as soon as I was told, but I had to pack up and I didn't arrive in Buckhorn until late last night. I stopped here first. My father was asleep, so I just looked in on him." She twisted her hands together. "The nurse said he'd be okay."

"And she's correct. But I antic.i.p.ate quite a bit of therapy not only to help him deal with what he's suffered and his diminished capacity a which should be only temporary a but to help rebuild his coordination. We'll get his meds regulated a blood thinner and blood pressure medicine to keep him from having another stroke."

For several minutes, the doctor explained the causes and effects of a stroke, and Emma listened in fretful silence.

"He'll need to be monitored for TIAs a or mini strokes."

Emma nodded. "The nurse said that he also fell?" Dr. Wagner's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Your mother didn't tell you he fell off the porch steps when she called you? She said she found him unconscious, which is why she called the paramedics. And good thing too, as I've already said."

Lois made a face. "He'd been drinking, so his wife thought he'd just pa.s.sed out."

Scowling, Dr. Wagner twisted around to face the nurse. "Incorrect, Ms. Banker. Alcohol had been spilled on him, but he had not consumed any noticeable amount."

When he turned back to Emma, his expression gentled and he reached out to pat her hand. "It's my guess that he was carrying a bottle of whisky when he had the stroke. It spilled all over him and, yes, we could smell it. I had thought to question his wife about it, but haven't seen her yet."

Emma stammered, "Mom d-doesn't get out much."

Casey wanted to roll his eyes at her understatement. Her mother was a recluse. She was seldom seen around town, and apparently she hadn't even ventured out to visit her husband.

"I see." The doctor gave her a long look, then referred to his notes. "Well, he did some further damage with his fall. We got the MRI back on his ankle, and luckily it isn't broken, though it is still severely swollen and I'm certain it's causing him some pain. Add to that the bruising on his ribs and shoulder...well, he took a very nasty spill. I'm relieved he didn't break his neck."

Emma nodded. "Me too."

"You say you're from out of town. Will you be able to stay around to attend him, and if not, is your mother capable of the task?"

"I..." She glanced at Casey, who squeezed her shoulder, then back at the doctor. "What kind of care will he need?"

Appearing to be a little uncomfortable, Dr. Wagner explained, "I don't antic.i.p.ate he'll go home for a while yet. But when he does, he'll need help with everyday tasks until he regains control of lost motor skills. He'll need transportation back and forth to the hospital for therapy. He may even need help feeding himself, dressing...at least for a while. As I said, his improvement so far is quite promising, but we can't make any guarantees."

"I understand." She waited only a moment before giving a firm nod. "I can be here as long as I'm needed."

Casey wondered if she could stay indefinitely. She'd made a life in Chicago...by all accounts, a happy life that suited her. But her roots were in Buckhorn. Whatever had driven her away the first time, he'd be here with her now, offering her support in whatever way she needed. Maybe it'd be enough.

Emma dropped back in her seat, and Casey noted the weariness in her face. She looked beautiful to him, so he hadn't at first noticed. But now that he did, he felt guilty. She'd been given worrisome news, spent several hours on the road yesterday with only a few hours' sleep to recoup, and then faced her father.

And he'd been bulldozing her straight into an affair. He suddenly felt like a b.a.s.t.a.r.d. No, he wouldn't change his mind. He couldn't. But he would treat her gently, give her plenty of time.

"I hope I've relieved your mind," Dr. Wagner said.

"You have. I'm sure I can handle things, as long as you tell me everything I need to know."

"Yes, of course. When he's ready to be discharged, we'll give you a list of his prescriptions, along with instructions on his general care. He'll have regular checkups and you can always reach someone here at the hospital or at my office if you have questions. Thanks to his injured ankle and ribs, he'll spend a good deal of time in bed, so you'll also need to rotate his position until he's back on his feet. He's going to be very sore for a while."

Wearing a half smile, Emma admitted, "I'm a ma.s.sage therapist, so I know about sore muscles."

"A ma.s.sage therapist?" Lois asked, looking down her nose.

"Excellent," Dr. Wagner said at almost the same time. "It's too bad you don't live here. I could have used your services last week after a day spent fis.h.i.+ng." He chuckled as he rubbed the small of his back. "I'm getting too old to sit on the hard bench of a fis.h.i.+ng boat for hours on end. I was stiff for two days. But the wife had no sympathy. None at all."

Emma laughed with him. "I'll be glad to help you out while I'm here. Just give me a call. The desk has my number."

Dr. Wagner brightened. "Careful now. I'll hold you to it."