“Actually, it’s probably stupid I’ve never been there. My mother suggested I steer clear of the place, since she claims I already have enough issues with the hero worship of my dead father. But the morbidity keeps me away, not her.”

“Have you talked to her since this morning?”

“No. And I feel guilty, but not guilty enough to call her, know what I mean?”

“Yeah. My mom gets on my nerves too. We butted heads big-time when I stayed with her after my surgery.”

“Sharlene and I get along for a while and then kaboom! We don’t talk for months. My grandma Elsa reminded me I might not like what my mother does, but at the end of the day, she’s still my only mother.” She sighed. “I miss Grandma putting things in perspective for me.”

“When did she pass on?”

“A little over two years ago.”

“I’m sorry. You’re lucky. I never knew my grandparents.” Heck. Kyle never knew his father. That was one thing his mother never shared—the name of the sperm donor who impregnated her. “What was your grandma like?”

“Elsa was an amazing woman who lived a hard life. Her parents married her off at eighteen to a family friend who was fifteen years older than her, right after he was discharged from the military. They had nothing in common and she didn’t get pregnant until she was thirty-eight. My dad was her miracle baby. Arthur, my grandfather, died when my dad was six, so Grandma raised her son on her own. She cleaned houses, took in sewing and ironing. She grew most of their food and hunted and fished for their meat.”

“She does sound amazing.”

“My dad’s death nearly killed her,” Lainie said softly. “And then my mom moved me away. When I was nine I ran away and my mom finally agreed to let me spend summers with her. After I graduated from high school, I packed up and moved to Oklahoma. Gram needed a caretaker and I was all she had. Times with her were the best of my life. She was . . . real—know what I mean?”

Kyle squeezed her hand. “I like seeing this sweet, sentimental side of you, Lainie. I’m just sorry I didn’t take the time to notice it before.”

The conversation died. Had Lainie taken that the wrong way?

“Kyle, can I be honest?”

“Sure.”

“I liked that you saw me as sexy, not sweet. I really liked that you were so hot to have me you couldn’t wait.” He felt her curious stare. “Do you remember that first time?”

“Remember? Hell, how could I forget?” After two months of flirting, Lainie agreed to meet him for a late-night breakfast.

She’d sauntered in wearing a pair of short shorts and a tank top. Kyle had taken one look at her copper eyes and freckled skin and lost his cool. Without a word, he’d dragged her into the women’s bathroom and locked the door. He’d been absolutely f**king crazed to feel her soft curves, heated skin, and wet pu**y clinging to him as he f**ked her. He took her against the wall.

Then Kyle rushed her to his motel room and nailed her in the shower; he bent her over the vanity and they f**ked in front of the mirror. There hadn’t been a whole lot of talking. To some extent all their sexual encounters played out that way—urgent.

And hot. Holy freakin’ hell, did the woman turn him inside out and upside down with pure animal lust.

“Can I tell you something that sounds ironic?”

He nodded, hating that his stomach tumbled.

“That night I’d planned to tell you I was already seeing someone. But then you looked at me like that . . .”

“Like what?” he asked hoarsely.

“Like I embodied your every secret sexual fantasy.” A giggle escaped her. “It was thrilling stuff, Kyle. No way could I resist you.”

“Ditto, sugar.”

Her nervous energy amused him. Lainie messed with her cell phone. Stared out the window. Checked on Hank. They didn’t speak again until they’d passed through the Denver metro area.

“Was your grandma proud you chose sports medicine?”

“I didn’t go to work for Lariat until after she died. She was just glad I took advantage of getting a higher education. I’d already earned my EMT certificate and certified nursing assistant diploma my senior year in high school. I graduated with an LPN degree after I moved to Oklahoma. At some point, massage therapy interested me, so I went to school for that.”

Kyle smirked at her. “The masseuse thing explains those magic hands.”

She batted him on the biceps. “I probably don’t have the medical degrees needed to work for Lariat, but Doc offered me the part-time position and I jumped at it—much to my mother’s eternal dismay.”

“Working part-time is enough to pay your bills?”

Lainie sighed. “No. I work third shift as an EMT when I’m not on the road with Lariat. I’m hoping once I get the—” She stopped. “Sorry. I’m boring you, huh?”

“Never. I could listen to you talk all night.”

“I guarantee it’s better than listening to me sing,” she said glibly.

The discussion changed to general topics. Music. Movies. TV shows. When they hit Fort Collins, he exited off the interstate and cut through town. The residential sections disappeared and they zipped through rural countryside again.

“Are we filling up with gas way out here?”

“Slight change in plans. We’re taking the scenic route on Highway 287 instead of goin’ through Cheyenne. We’ll hook up with I-80 in Laramie and head to Rawlins.”