I Knew You Were Trouble: A Texas Kings Novel Read online

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  For Hamish.

  I think it’s about time you started reading your wife’s books!

  Acknowledgments

  This series was so much fun to write, and it was very fulfilling to write longer books with a bigger cast of characters. I’m sad to leave Nate, Chase, and Ryder behind, because in my mind those heroes are still very real.

  Thank you so much to Holly Ingraham for letting me turn my ideas into reality. I appreciate all the time you have spent editing each story with me, and I hope to keep working with you in the future. You’re the kind of editor authors love, because you embrace each story’s characters and plot, suggesting changes that serve to make the book so much stronger.

  I also need to thank my agent, Laura Bradford, for her fantastic advice and helping to make this series happen in the first place. I would be lost without you, and five years on I’m still so happy that you’re in my corner.

  As always, I have to make special mention of Natalie Anderson, Nicola Marsh, and Yvonne Lindsay—amazing authors and even more amazing friends. Thank you for your daily encouragement and support. I also receive incredible daily support from my family, and I couldn’t write any book without “grandma & granddad” childcare. My boys are so lucky to have grandparents who adore them and spend so much time with them. We all appreciate it!

  Thank you to all my wonderful readers—every email, tweet or Facebook message means the world to me. As an author, it’s the reader correspondence that helps on days when the words just aren’t flowing as fast as usual.

  And lastly for my husband, Hamish. Many years ago he told me that once I was published he’d read my books, but five years on and almost thirty books later, he’s got a lot of catching up to do!

  Chapter 1

  NATE KING winked at the beautiful blond flight attendant as she stood near the entrance, hands behind her back, as she watched him exit the plane. It had taken every inch of his willpower not to react to her blue eyes and pillowy lips during the flight, but staying in control was something he was trying to teach himself. Gone were the days of racking up points in the mile-high club with sexy flight attendants on the family’s private jet, and in were the days of behaving like a man in charge of an empire. If his grandfather stayed true to his word, Nate’s future was going to involve a whole lot more business, and a whole lot less pleasure.

  “Bye, Nathaniel,” she purred.

  He stifled his groan as he checked her out one last time. “Bye, sugar,” he replied, eyes slowly traveling up and down her body.

  Nate paused for a slow second when her hand slipped into his back pocket, and met her sultry blue gaze. But when he closed his fingers over her wrist, it was to remove her hand, not encourage it.

  “Call me,” she whispered.

  He smiled, giving her a final nod before taking his sunglasses from his inside jacket pocket and sliding them on. The sun was hot, just how he liked it, and he pushed up his shirtsleeves as he crossed the tarmac and headed for the terminal. The blonde had been sexy as hell, so maybe he would call her, but right now he had business to attend to. In less than fifteen minutes, he would be back in his car and headed toward the ranch, and after a week away he was happy to be back in Texas, even if it was going to take him days to catch up on work.

  Nate pulled his iPhone from his pocket as it started to buzz, smiling when he saw his brother’s name on the screen.

  “Hey, Chase. I’ve just landed.”

  He picked up his pace and walked through the hangar building, emerging out the other side and waving to the valet. The young guy waiting there ran off to retrieve Nate’s vehicle as soon as he saw him.

  “I was just driving past your place and you have a visitor.”

  That got his attention. “Who is it?” Who the hell would just drop by unannounced and be waiting?

  “Well, she’s kind of your type, so I didn’t want you to waste time at the airport, if you know what I mean.”

  Nate chuckled, relaxing when he realized it was a woman waiting. “Who is she?”

  “Dark hair, olive skin, bangin’ body, kind of looks like a young Eva Longoria…”

  Faith. There were plenty of beautiful dark-haired girls in Texas, but only one in particular sprung to mind. Or at least only one who might turn up at his place—he never took women back to the house, but he’d always made it clear to Faith that she was welcome. And there was only one woman his brother would enjoy teasing him about.

  “Don’t talk to her. Just leave her waiting,” Nate said, trying to keep his voice level so Chase didn’t do anything just to annoy him. “I don’t—”

  “Chill, big bro. My bed’s already taken, but I do have one of the ranch hands with me right now. She’s pretty gorgeous, always has been, though, right?”

  There was only one woman who had always gotten under Nate’s skin, and he knew Chase got a kick out of teasing him. But Nate wasn’t going to take the bait that easily.

  He had a reputation as bad as his siblings’ when it came to the opposite sex, so he knew exactly what they’d think, if they ever got too close to her. Even if they were both taken, he didn’t like the idea of them even thinking about Faith like that. He’d knock every one of Chase’s teeth out if he dared let the ranch hand go near her, too. Nate clamped his jaw shut, thinking about that long, almost-black hair tumbling over her shoulders, slender body and full breasts that teased him every time he saw her. Hell, keeping his eyes and his hands off her had been one of the biggest challenges of his life when he’d been younger.

  “Just keep away from her, okay?” he muttered, wishing he’d just stayed on the jet with the blonde. At least he would have avoided this entire conversation. “I’m on my way home. Now.”

  “Maybe she’s looking for the housekeeper’s job you’ve been advertising. Any takers for Mrs. T’s old job?”

  “Don’t you have some work to do? Like, oh, I don’t know, running our goddamn ranch?”

  Nate growled and hung up to the sound of his brother’s laughter. He would kill him—he would actually kill him. Nate’s best friend Sam’s little sister was strictly off-limits, and he would— The throaty rumble of his Ferrari caught his attention and distracted him as it pulled to the curb. The valet jumped out and Nate opened his wallet to tip him, before throwing his bag in the passenger seat and getting into the car. He closed his eyes for a second, hands on the steering wheel, before pushing down on the accelerator and heading for home. The car always relaxed him, and the drive to the ranch would keep him calm until he could wrap his hands around his brother’s neck. And his fist into the ranch hand’s face if he was so much as drooling over her.

  * * *

  Nate forced himself to slow down as he turned into the wide gravel driveway, the big wooden sign announcing the King ranch swinging in the wind as he passed it. He’d driven like a madman from
the airport, but now that he was here he needed to settle down. The driveway was over a mile long, stretching past endless post and rail fields where they kept their horses, large oak trees making shadows in the long grass. It was a hell of a place to call home, and he never failed to appreciate the property he’d grown up on every time he came back. And it wasn’t just his childhood home—it was the place he’d live until his dying days, just like his grandfather had. There was nowhere else Nate would rather be, and there was nothing he wouldn’t do to preserve the property that had been in his family for generations.

  He drove past the first house and scowled, hoping that Chase wasn’t in there. Nate’s brother had just built a new home closer to the front of the property with his wife, and as annoyed as he was with Chase right now, he did admire the architecture of the place every time he came up the drive. Although he was going to give Hope full credit for the way the house had turned out.

  Nate slowed as he approached the garage to the original homestead, the house he still called home, glancing around to see where this mystery woman was. The more he’d thought about it, the more he’d convinced himself that it couldn’t be Faith. What would she be doing at their ranch, anyway? Maybe Chase was just trying to get him fired up.

  He jumped out of the car and walked from the garage, crossing the gravel to the front door. Sure enough, there was a brunette sitting on the front steps, head down, and even better, there was no sign of his brother.

  “Faith?”

  Nate grinned when she looked up, because there was no mistaking the brown eyes that met his. Her gaze was warm, her eyes were darker than the richest chocolate, her smile lighting up her face, as she walked toward him.

  “Hey, Nate.”

  “What are you doing here?” Nate ran up the steps and pulled her in for a hug, taking her slender body into his arms. It took every inch of his willpower to keep his chest half an inch from hers. But Faith had other ideas. She hugged him tight, stepping closer against him so that he could feel every part of her.

  Nate forced himself to step back before he ended up with a hard-on, holding her at arm’s length. And as soon as he did, he knew something was wrong. She didn’t meet his gaze, and Faith never usually had a problem staring him straight in the eye.

  “You’ve never just turned up to say hi before, so I’m guessing there’s something going on. Is it Sam?”

  She shook her head and tucked a strand of long dark hair behind her ear, the look on her face making her appear … vulnerable. Faith had been the little sister who’d always tried to keep up with her brother, who never showed a sign of weakness. Right now the look on her face was making Nate’s protective instincts go into overdrive. He wanted to fold her back in his arms and protect her, find out what the hell had upset her and make sure it never happened again. He cleared his throat, impatient, waiting for her to respond.

  “Sam’s fine; at least he was the last time I saw him. I just…” She sighed. “I’m in over my head and I needed somewhere to go.”

  “What happened?” Nate asked, hating that he couldn’t just think of her like his surrogate sister. Heaven knew he’d tried.

  He followed Faith’s glance toward his door, and it was then he noticed two large suitcases sitting together, like they were waiting to be invited in. The look she gave him was one he’d seen her use on her brother countless times, and he wasn’t finding it easy to ignore. Usually puppy dog eyes wouldn’t have worked on him, but Faith somehow managed to pull it off.

  “Faith?”

  She cleared her throat and stared back at him, lips tipping up into a smile that made Nate uncomfortable. Hell no. He was about to be talked into something; he just knew it.

  “I heard you’ve been advertising for a housekeeper,” she said, “and it just so happens that I’m perfect for the job.”

  “No, you’re not,” he replied. “If you need someone to talk to, then come on in, but I’m not hiring you. Besides, you’re way overqualified.” And the last thing he needed was to be tempted by Faith bloody Mendes in his own home.

  “Yes, you are,” she insisted, hands on her hips. “And no, I’m not. I haven’t even graduated with my master’s yet.”

  “Faith, your brother is my best friend. I’ll help you, but he’d never let you take a job with me, let alone one that involved you being in my home.” If he so much as looked at her the wrong way Sam would have his head, and there was only one way a man could look at Faith. She was pure sex appeal, no other way to describe her, all long limbs, bronze skin, and deep-brown eyes, not to mention that hair that she always wore loose and tumbling over her shoulders and down her back.

  Nate sighed and looked out to the fields. He’d kept his distance from her for so long, and having Faith in his home working for him wasn’t something he was going to let happen.

  “Nate, I need somewhere to stay and you need someone to look after your house. It’s the perfect arrangement.”

  “Stay? Now you’ve definitely lost your mind,” he muttered. “I don’t recall at any point advertising for a live-in housekeeper. And besides, all applications were supposed to go to my assistant. Maybe I should give you her number.”

  “Please, Nate? I wouldn’t ask you if I wasn’t desperate.”

  Nate tried to look away, tried to ignore her, but when her hand found his and she blinked up at him he was powerless. Never in his life had he found it hard to say no to anyone. Hell, he did it all the time. But Faith? There was something about his friend’s little sister that made it impossible for him to walk away. And the older she became, the harder it was to remind himself that she was off-limits, especially when she looked at him like that. That mouth of hers alone was pure torture, because every time she spoke, hell, every time she moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue, there was only one thing he thought of. And it was wicked the things his mind could come up with.

  “Nate, I have nowhere else to go.”

  He sighed and moved past her, refusing to acknowledge her bags on the porch and pushing open his front door.

  “Fine, you can come in. But that doesn’t mean I’m saying yes, you hear me?” He’d hear her out, find out what was wrong and what kind of a predicament she was in. Then he could figure out what to do with her.

  * * *

  Faith settled into one of the oversize outdoor sofas on the patio of the King homestead and gazed out at the land. She’d only visited the property a few times when she was younger, but never for a second had she forgotten how beautiful it was. The fields seemed to stretch endlessly into the horizon, the only intrusion the massive barns and stables a few hundred yards from the house. It was easily the most beautiful place she’d ever seen, and when she was a child it had been the kind of home she’d fantasized about. Horses to ride, trees to climb, places to hide … and now here she was seeking refuge, still looking for that place to hide away from reality. Everyone always talked about the King ranch being the most sought-after real estate in Texas, but it was more than that. There was something about the place that could just make a person forget everything else, and Faith could see exactly why it had been in the same family for so many generations.

  “I was going to offer you a beer, but I decided a coffee was probably more appropriate.”

  She looked up when Nate appeared, his big frame filling the doorway. It didn’t matter that she’d known him her whole life—he still managed to make her stop and stare. His shoulders were broad, body big and muscular, and those eyes … she’d never managed to match his warm, chocolate-drizzled gaze without smiling.

  “I’ve been legally allowed to drink for quite a few years now,” Faith told him with a laugh. “You’re not going to get in trouble for giving me alcohol anymore.”

  He passed her the cup of coffee and sat down on the other sofa, a hint of a smile bracing his mouth.

  “You know, you always were a pain in the ass when you wanted something.”

  Faith grinned as she reached for her coffee. Nate had been her brother
’s best friend since before she’d started elementary school, which meant she’d had a lot of practice at convincing both of them to do things for her. The only difference was that today she actually did need help, and Nate was one of the few people in the world she knew she could count on. She might have had a crush on him throughout all of her teenage years, but right now she wasn’t interested in being with any man, and it wasn’t like Nate had ever treated her as more than an honorary little sister. Although she could see how he managed to lure so many women into his bed—even the way he stroked his fingers across his coffee cup made her wonder what he’d be like between the sheets.

  “So does that mean you’ve decided to let me stay?” she asked.

  He shook his head, jaw fixed like steel as he stared straight at her. “No. But I’ll call Sam for you.”

  “I don’t want you to call him, Nate. I need to deal with this on my own.”

  His laugh was deep, like the rumble of a volcano. “And by on your own, you mean with my help?” He stared at her, eyes never leaving hers. “You haven’t even told me why you’re really here.”

  She sighed, glancing away. “I don’t expect you to understand.”

  Now Nate looked annoyed, the scowl on his face impossible to ignore. She watched as he took a sip of his coffee and looked out over the land, before taking a deep breath and turning to face her again. If she hadn’t known him for so long, she might have been intimidated by the dark expression on his face and the way he leaned forward, elbows on his knees as his body came closer to hers.

  “Tell me what the hell’s going on, Faith!” he demanded, words as cool as ice. “I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me, and you’re not staying here unless you give me a damn good reason.”

  Faith met his gaze and leaned forward to put her coffee down again, knowing what she had to do, that the only way Nate was going to let her stay was if she opened up to him. Right now she needed to be here, needed time and space to figure things out. She took a deep breath, then stood, lifting the hem of her T-shirt and holding it just high enough to show him her stomach, shivering as she bared herself.