Read Ropin' Trouble (Cowboys of Nirvana Book 2) for Free Online

wasn’t expecting that.” Her voice still trembled.
    “I’m glad I could be of assistance. If it’s all the same to you, I’ll wait with you just in case he decides to come back.”
    She blinked. “I’ll be fine.”
    He smiled. “I bet so, but it appears you’re having some issue with the machine.”
    “I can let the office know—“
    “Sorry, ma’am, but I know the attendant in the office and I do believe I just saw him over at the bar cozying with a tall glass of beer. ‘Fraid he won’t be of any help. Let me try.” Ben moved and Cara took a huge step back. He didn’t blame her for being cautious. He gave the machine a hard shake and pounded the side. A rattling sound was followed by a bottle dropping. “Sometimes these machines can be a little testy.” He winked.
    “I don’t know how to thank you enough.”
    “No worries.”
    “I should be on my way.” She moistened her bottom lip and turned on her heel.
    Ben reached in through the slot and retrieved her drink. “Don’t forget this. After all, it was the cause for a lot of trouble for you.”
    She turned back, took the bottle and the tips of their fingers brushed. Sparks flew up his arm, a sigh slipped from her lips and their gazes met and held. Seconds ticked by like hours while his heart pounded in his chest, sweat beading on his forehead. Her mouth tightened. And just as quickly the moment faded. She nervously pulled the bottle close to her chest, wringing the neck with her hands and an image shot through his brain—her hands were on him, touching him, pumping his co—
    “Bye.” Before he could say a word, she had vanished with a flash of long, dark hair flowing in the light breeze and a trail of her cotton candy scent tantalizing his desire. His body was hard in all of the wrong places, and his brain was as good as a bowl of mush.
    Ben stood there for an excruciating moment. What the hell just happened?
    ****
    Cara stepped into her room, slammed the door, bolted the lock, and slid the chain home.
    It took her a good minute to recover. Her eardrums were no longer throbbing and her nipples stopped aching. She’d just met Adonis wearing a hat, plaid shirt, and worn jeans.
    She popped the top off of the Coke bottle, the lid dropping to the floor and rolling somewhere. She brought the drink to her lips and sucked it down until her eyeballs burned. Lowering the bottle, she breathed heavily and blinked the stinging from her lids. A drop of pop had escaped her lips and she wiped the wetness with the back of her hand.
    “Damn! Double damn!” She knew it was unladylike to swear, but she didn’t much care. The tingling between her legs was an awakening she had no clue could exist on her body.  And the cause was a cowboy—a stranger—she’d never meet again.
    She was disappointed that she didn’t get a better look at his face. His hat sat low on his brow, shading everything but that remarkable grin that had turned up a perfectly shaped set of lips and a prominent jaw covered with a dark layer of beard growth.
    And he’d saved her life!
    She was dramatizing the truth a bit, she was certain. Considering the drunk on the sidewalk would have been reduced to a pile of bones on the ground with a slight push from her. She’d been caught off guard by the gagging smell of whiskey, a stench embedded in her nose from the years of drinking she’d tolerated from James.
    She was grateful that a stranger helped her.  A beautiful cowboy who she hoped visited her dreams, scaring away the nightmares, liked he’d done the drunk. She scoffed at her romantic notions and shook her head. When would she see that she had to put her emotions aside, and used her head? 
     
     
    Chapter Three
    Cara rechecked her outfit three times in the bathroom mirror before she forced herself not to fuss anymore. She’d chosen a simple tunic style dress that hid her curves. Her nerves were a wreck and the eggs she’d eaten that morning were threatening to find their way back