RattlingtheCage by Ann Cory Read Free Book Online

See?”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “Now, get some sleep. I expect you up early.”
    Garvey nodded and sauntered down the hall, his head down
like a defeated dog.
    While he’d done his best to raise the boy, Clint hated how
little they were alike. Too soft in the middle and not much smarts. Still, he’d
been strapped with him.
    Clint leaned forward, his head pounding. The stranger meant
trouble. He didn’t need trouble. And Little Miss Short Skirt didn’t need the
motivation to skip town. His father didn’t stand for outsiders, and neither did
he. A bullet could be mighty persuasive.
    * * * * *
    Garvey knew sleep wouldn’t come with Montana on his mind.
She occupied his every thought. Not hard when she paraded around in slinky
clothes that showed off her figure. Or when the sun hit her shiny gloss and
made her lips irresistible. None of the women in town compared to Montana Lee.
    If she’d let him, she’d understand how much he cared. He
wanted her happy and smiling and his. He wanted to come home to her after
another wasted day and make love ’til sunrise.
    Garvey removed his gun and holster, and sank to the bed.
    Now he had a stranger to contend with. He didn’t need the
competition.
    His pop had a point. Maybe it was time to prove his
intentions to Montana. Maybe she’d respect him more for it. She lit him on
fire, even when she treated him like dirt. He knew the novelty of being with
her would never wear off. All the nights he’d stood outside her window and
watched her undress. Seen her step out from the shower, dewy wet and fresh
looking.
    Garvey didn’t want anyone else touching her. He was done
being pushed away. Come morning he’d give Montana the kind of attention she
wanted. Whether she begged him to or not.

Chapter Eight
     
    Lawson picked at the chipped paint in his motel room. He
didn’t know why he’d invited Montana back, but he didn’t want to bail right
after sex like he always did. Had he any sense, he would’ve kept his ass out of
the bar.
    She sat on the bed, her nipples plump beneath her nothing of
a shirt. The nipples he’d had his lips around. She’d been so hot, so damn
responsive that even when he wanted to turn and run, he couldn’t ignore the
pull. The scent of her lingered on his skin, his fingers, his entire body. Fuck
she smelled good.
    Lawson ran a hand through his hair. He needed to get his
mind off her body and back to why he’d returned to Rattler City.
    He glanced around, uncomfortable and craving beer.
    “Did you want me to leave?” She looked up at him, her eyes
big and expectant.
    “I didn’t say that.” He hated the way she read his thoughts.
    Her features clouded. “Are you sorry you fucked me?”
    Lawson fiddled with the chipped wall some more. What could
he say? She was the devil in disguise. A sexy little seductress hell bent on
destroying all the plans he’d worked up over the years. He’d already told her
straight out—no attachments. She couldn’t give him grief about it later.
    “I’m sorry you’re here at all,” he said. “Why do you stay?
You don’t belong in this place.”
    She sighed. “It’s complicated.”
    “What’s complicated?”
    “I don’t have enough money to leave. I’d never make it on my
own.”
    “You work,” he pointed out. “I’m sure you get decent tips.”
    Montana shook her head. “I can’t up and leave like you. I
have obligations and responsibilities.”
    All he heard were excuses. “Like what?”
    “Like my momma’s debt. Half my earnings go toward paying off
her loans.”
    Lawson leaned his shoulder against the wall. “I don’t
understand.”
    “My momma borrowed a lot of money to help pay for our home
when we moved here, and for food and clothes. It took her a while to get a job.
After she died there was a large sum of money still waiting to be taken care
of, and I had to borrow more to pay for her burial.”
    Sounded more like slavery to him. “Doesn’t seem right to
me.”
    “It’s the law.”
    He