Worth the Risk

But not remembering all of it? Now that was just plain wrong. She was experiencing the guilt without as much as a hot spicy memory to go along with it. Now, she’d never know. There would be no repeats of last night.

Yesterday, she’d gone to the annual shoe convention, hoping to muster some interest in her failing business. The economy was slumping and only the stronger companies were surviving. No one was interested in infusing capital in her small, very unique boutique.

No one … except Jackson Worth.

Then it dawned on her. Her head spun and her eyes widened with realization. “Oh my goodness, Jackson. We’re … partners.”

Jackson’s mouth quirked with a quizzical smile, then he sighed deeply. “We made a deal before the champagne arrived, darlin’. You signed on the dotted line. Boot Barrage is now half mine.”

Dear Reader,

Welcome back to Red Ridge for my final Worth story! In Worth the Risk, we are reunited with Sammie Gold from Carrying the Rancher’s Heir. Sammie is hoping to make a fresh start in Arizona, and literally gives handsome, fun-loving ladies’ man Jackson Worth the boot! The hunky cowboy has labeled his sister-in-law’s best friend and new business partner “off-limits.” (And we all know how well that works out in romance novels!)

I had fun researching and virtual shopping while designing Sammie and Jackson’s Boot Barrage. And hey, I even fashioned my very own style of boots. You’ll have to look for the Mariannas in the story and tell me what you think!

I’ve really enjoyed writing each and every one of these romances, so my farewell to the Worth family is a little bittersweet. With this last book, I’ll have to say goodbye, temporarily at least, to the wonderful state of Arizona and glorious sunsets, jutting crimson mountains and the fictitious town of Red Ridge, one of the greatest places on earth. I will say goodbye to Worth Ranch and to Tagg, Clay, Chance and Jackson. Each one of these wonderful Worth men have kept me up nights. A girl can’t ask for much more than that!

Thanks to all of you for supporting, enjoying and encouraging me while I spent time in Red Ridge. I promise you more rugged cowboys to come!!

Stories “Worth” Reading!

Carrying the Rancher’s Heir The Cowboy’s Pride A Cowboy Worth Claiming Worth The Risk

With love,

Charlene Sands

About the Author

CHARLENE SANDS is a USA TODAY bestselling author of thirty-five romance novels, writing sexy contemporary romances and stories of the Old West. Her books have been honored with the National Readers’s Choice Award, the CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award and she’s a double recipient of the Booksellers’ Best Award. She belongs to the Orange County Chapter and the Los Angeles Chapter of RWA.

Charlene knows a little something about true romance—she married her high school sweetheart! When she’s not writing, she enjoys sunny Pacific beaches, great coffee, reading books from her favorite authors, spoiling her two cats and loving up her new baby granddaughters! You can find her on Twitter and Facebook. Be sure to visit her website for fun blogs and her ongoing contests at www.charlenesands.com.

Worth The Risk

Charlene Sands

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This book is dedicated to my dear pals at LARA. Many

thanks for your constant support,

friendship and encouragement.

I appreciate every member of the chapter!

These wonderful people include:

Debbie Decker, Tanya Hanson, Robin Bielman,

Kathy Bennett, Lynne Marshall, Ericka Scott, Maria

Seager, Erica Barton, Dee J. Adams, Eden Bradley,

Jennifer Haymore, Carol Ericson, Linda O. Johnston,

Samantha Le, Allison Morse, Christine London, Sandy

Robinson, Jody Brightman, Roz Lee, Robena Grant

and Christine Ashworth. To Rick Ochocki for always

making us laugh at the meetings and to so many others!

You all rock!

One

A woman’s boots.

They sat on the floor, next to the bed. A fancy curlicue design stitched on smooth chocolate leather trailed to the top of the zippered knee-highs. Seeing them brought a smile to Jackson Worth’s lips. He lifted his arms quietly, stretching out while trying not to awaken his sleeping companion. Images invaded his mind of how sexy she’d looked wearing those boots and how turned on he’d been sliding them off her coltish legs. Her short skirt and scoop-necked top had come next, with very little effort on his part, as he recalled.

It didn’t make a lick of sense. But he couldn’t deny that after taking one look at his sister-in-law’s best friend, Sammie Gold, approaching him at the hotel bar last night, with her familiar sweet smile, slender hips swaying and those incredible boots catching the overhead lighting, he’d been thunderstruck with lust.

But Jackson Worth was no fool. There’d be hell to pay for what he’d done. He’d hear it from both his brothers, Clay and Tagg, but the worst of the wrath would come from Callie. Tagg’s wife would take his head off and probably threaten to disown him.

Bright sunshine seeped in through the drapes and he closed his eyes, trying to ward off the headache pounding in his skull. The woman beside him on the king-size bed stirred and the scent of jasmine filled the air. Jackson breathed it in, and damn if his sated body didn’t react, just from the sweetness.

Never before had he mixed business with pleasure, but this time, he’d outdone himself.

Sammie rolled over and her arm flopped onto his chest, her fingers on his skin, soft and possessive. She murmured something in her sleep that sounded too much like “boot-scooting boogie.”

He glanced at the top of her pixie-cut, brown hair with colors of caramel, chestnut and rum blending like those of a rare gem. She was cute but not the kind of woman he usually dated. He winced at how that sounded, even to him.

He hadn’t dated her. He’d slept with her.

Yep, Callie wasn’t going to be happy when she found out. Without giving Jackson so much as a verbal warning to be on his best behavior, his sister-in-law had asked a favor of him, giving him her full trust.

Sammie’s had it rough lately. She’s lost her father and her business. Take her under your wing, Jackson. Help her. Please. It means a lot to me.

He’d blown that trust to hell.

Slowly, Sammie lifted her head off the pillow. Disoriented, she peered at him with deep brown eyes. “Jackson?”

“Morning, darlin’.”

Her gaze darted around the elegant room. She blinked and refocused, then shook her head to clear it. All the color drained from her face and her eyes grew round as poker chips. She lifted herself up, the covers falling away from her unclothed body. Her breasts appeared, small, round and firm. Jackson silently groaned. If she were any other woman, they’d be halfway to heaven again this morning.

With a gasp, she looked down and grabbed the sheets to her chest. “Oh, no!” She sent him a questioning stare, blinking rapidly. “We didn’t.”

It wasn’t the usual reaction he received from a woman after a night of great sex. “Apparently, we did.”

She made an unfeminine groan and searched the room, looking for some sign of familiarity. “Where am I?”

“Paris.”

She gulped air and her voice squeaked. “France?”

This was worse than he thought. “Las Vegas.”

She collapsed against the back of the bed, her head cushioned by a feather-down pillow that billowed when she landed. She looked up at the ceiling, clutched the covers to her chin and muttered, “How did this happen?”

He was pretty sure it was a rhetorical question, but Jackson had the need to answer her anyway. With his head propped in his hand and elbow braced on the bed, he met her tentative eyes. He gave her the only explanation that would make any sense.

“Boots.”

Sammie’s muddled brain began to clear and through the haze she remembered coming to Las Vegas for a shoe convention. Her best friend, Callie Worth, had insisted that, because Jackson was in Las Vegas at the same time, she meet with him. Jackson had a good head for business. Jackson could help get her out of the financial mess she was in. Jackson could give her sound advice. Sammie had been robbed by her last boyfriend, an accountant who’d known how to juggle numbers and her heart—before absconding with nearly everything she’d owned.

She’d felt like a gullible idiot to have believed his lies.

She still felt that way, only now she had Jackson Worth to contend with, too.

Ever since her father had died a few months ago, Sammie hadn’t made good judgment calls. But this might have been the dumbest thing she’d ever done … sleeping with her best friend’s brother-in-law.

She spotted her clothes on the floor. They painted a vivid trail of lust to the bed. Her blouse, her skirt, her bra and her thong panties were strung like drying clothes on the line, one right after the other. A whimper, bordering on panic, rose from her throat. “How much champagne did I drink last night?”

She cringed, waiting for his answer.

He seemed to be calculating in his head. “Not that much … maybe two glasses.”

Her mouth dropped open. “I—I don’t normally drink. It affects me. I get, uh—”

He sent her a knowing look. “Wild and sexy?”

“Oh, no, did I seduce you?”

A smile caught the corners of his mouth. “It was mutual, Sammie. You don’t remember?”

He’d been helpful, that much she remembered. They’d spoken business for half the night at the bar and they’d had some laughs, too. Then the champagne had arrived. After the first glass, she’d been fine, but she should have stopped at one. Having two glasses of the good stuff, with her sensitivity to alcohol and her slight frame … well, she should have known better.

Sammie had traveled from Boston a few months ago to attend Callie’s wedding and had met Jackson then. They’d had several conversations and had developed a cordial friendship. He was devastating to look at. Gorgeous with a capital G. He was so out of her league that she’d never entertained thoughts of being anything more than casual friends.

She glanced at the silk sheets, the expensive room and the man who was probably buck-ass naked under the covers beside her. Somewhere between the elevator ride up to the room and Jackson peeling off her boots, her mind went a little fuzzy.

Oh, boy. “Not really. I don’t remember … much.” She sighed. “I shouldn’t have had that second glass of champagne.”

Jackson stroked her arm, his finger making circles just above her elbow. She trembled from his touch. A jolt of throbbing heat pulsed between her thighs and her memory cleared for a second. She remembered something … how her body reacted when he touched her. “It’s a little late for that confession.”

He was right. Last night at the bar she’d thrown caution to the wind. Tired of being Miss Goody Two-shoes, the bridesmaid and never the bride, and tired of denying that Jackson Worth was the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on, she’d done something totally out of character. She’d wrapped herself around Jackson on the dance floor and kissed him. He must have thought her needy and pathetic. “Th-that’s me, always late to the party.”

“Sammie,” he said, his rasp deep and low enough to remind her how much she was missing out on by not remembering last night, “just so we’re straight—you wanted to be at the party.”

“I, uh … I know.” What woman in her right mind wouldn’t want to be?

She squeezed her eyes shut. She should have been more cautious. She blamed her behavior on losing her father and her business in a short span of time. But getting real with herself meant facing the truth. Last night she’d needed an ego boost and broad-shouldered, blue-eyed, sandy-haired hunk Jackson Worth was just the man to lift her out of the dumps. Not only was he an eyeful, but he’d been sweet, helpful and attentive. The combination had been irresistible.

Sleeping with Jackson was a stupid move—but not remembering all of it? Now that was just plain wrong. She was experiencing the guilt without as much as a hot spicy memory to go along with it. Now, she’d never know. And there would be no repeats of last night.

Yesterday she’d gone to the annual shoe convention hoping to muster some interest in her failing business. The economy was slumping and only the stronger companies were surviving. No one was interested in infusing capital in her small, unique boutique.

No one … except Jackson Worth.

Then it dawned on her. Her head spun and her eyes widened with realization. “Oh, my goodness, Jackson. We’re … partners.”

Jackson’s mouth quirked with a quizzical smile, then he sighed deeply. “We made a deal before the champagne arrived, darlin’. You signed on the dotted line. Boot Barrage is now half mine.”

Sammie lay in bed, her head cushioned on the pillow, listening to the crank of the faucet being turned on in the next room. The rush of water filled her ears and as the shower door opened then closed with a definite click, she didn’t have to imagine what Jackson Worth looked like in the buff. No, five minutes ago he’d bounded off the bed in his birthday suit, beautifully tan, with the greatest backside she’d ever seen on a guy, and sauntered toward the bathroom.

“You sure you don’t want to go first?” he’d asked.

She’d crawled farther under the sheets, shaking her head. “No, you go first. I’d rather wait.” Now she lay on the bed, her pulse pounding in her ears. For a girl who’d wanted to make a fresh start on a new life, she’d really put her foot in it. Among other things.

Sweet heaven.

A tremble erupted throughout her body like small aftershocks hitting one right after the other as the heavy weight of her indiscretion slowly sank into her brain. She tried taking deep breaths to calm her wayward nerves. It didn’t work. Her breaths came out in short rapid bursts.

Then she remembered her yoga instruction, something she’d come to rely on when Allen the Loser had accounted his way out of her life, taking with him the bulk of her hard-earned cash. Slowly she sat up on the bed and swiveled to plant her feet on the floor. She stood, circled her arms above her head, stretching out until her fingertips touched, pinkies down, and inhaled slowly, deeply, letting oxygen fill her lungs. Then just as slowly, with finesse she’d learned from the yoga master, she let her breath out smoothly as she lowered her arms and hinged her body in half until her fingers touched her toes. Better. Much better. She repeated the movements several times. Tension rolled off her. Her fuzzy head cleared and the rapid beats of her heart ebbed to a restful rate.

It was amazing how well the technique worked on her.

For the short term anyway.

She was certain she’d have many more moments of anxiety. Her life was about to change forever. Moving across the country and starting up a new venture in an unfamiliar town was enough to make her anxious. And spending the night with Jackson, her new partner, and having to face him on a regular basis wasn’t exactly the best-case scenario for a girl who’d blundered with her last love affair.

So far she was batting a big fat zero in her new life.

The peaceful hum of water ceased with another turn of the faucet, and the shower door clicked open. Sammie sank back onto the bed, lifting the sheets to her chin, making sure her naked self was adequately covered. Instead of picking up her clothes and getting dressed, she’d been focused on yoga. Ironically, all of the peace she’d gained in the past few minutes was effectively wiped away as the door to the bathroom opened and Jackson strode out.

He wore a plush robe the color of rich dark ink. Black suited him, and the day-old stubble on a chiseled face and wet, blond-streaked hair curling at his collar put him on par with a GQ model. But then, she’d already known that about Jackson Worth. He wore his clothes with style, he had a smile that could melt Arctic ice and, darn him, he had a charming personality that would set any female’s mind spinning. The bottom line … Jackson was dreamy and dangerous and last night all of her internal warning signals had malfunctioned.

He carried a snowy robe in hand and tossed it onto the bed. It landed beside her in a heap of marshmallow softness. “Maybe you should get dressed,” he said, his usual air of confidence a little shaken. “We need to talk.”

Without waiting for her response, he moved to the window to allow the daylight in and caught a glimpse of a replica of the Eiffel Tower. With Jackson gazing out the window, she hurried her arms into the robe and tied it around her waist. Snatching her clothes off the floor, she headed toward the bathroom.

Her shower was quick and efficient. If circumstances were different, she would have luxuriated in the giant-sized marble enclosure with three directional faucets and lingered under the waterfall-like spray. She would have lathered herself with smooth-as-silk body wash and then treated her limbs to a citrus lotion massage. But Jackson was waiting and they had some serious talking to do.

She dressed in the clothes she’d worn to the convention yesterday, a little rumpled now from their night on the floor. With fingers gingerly moving through her hair, the thick, short layers fell back into place without much fuss. There was something to be said about good-hair days even when all else seemed to be going downhill.

She padded out of the bathroom in bare feet and noted Jackson was still standing by the window, but this time with a coffee cup in his hand. Sometime during her shower, room service had arrived. It always amazed her how magic seemed to happen to wealthy people and how much they took it for granted. With a snap of fingers, their every wish was granted.

Perhaps it was a good thing that Jackson was wealthy though, because he, unlike so many others that had refused her, had entered into a business arrangement with her. They were partners now, and Sammie had no illusions about his reasons. Normally, a cattle baron with investments in major real estate developments and the stock market wouldn’t give a small-time boot seller the time of day, but Jackson was doing Callie a favor by backing Sammie’s boutique. It made Sammie even more determined to make her business a success. She didn’t want to disappoint Callie or have the Worth family look upon her as a charity case.

The dining table was set for two with white linens and a cheery vase of flowers. A vast assortment of breakfast foods covered the surface from end to end. Her appetite had waned the second she’d woken up next to Jackson, but now, after a good cleansing had given her a slightly better outlook on life, she heeded her stomach’s grumble for nourishment. Those white-chocolate raspberry muffins were calling to her.

Jackson turned from the window to meet her eyes. His gaze slid up and down her body, then his lips came together in a smile he couldn’t hide. He quickly took a sip of his coffee.

“What?” she asked.

He gave his head a quick shake. “You don’t want to know.”

“I do,” she blurted.

His eyes raked over her one more time, then he shrugged, as if giving her the answer wouldn’t be the end of the world. “You look cute.”

“Cute?” She glanced down at the cream-and-brown plaid pleated skirt and narrow tailored ivory blouse she’d tucked into it. The whole ensemble was designed to be worn with a solid cream blazer and her classic brown zippered knee-high boots, which tied the entire outfit together. She’d dressed for the convention to show how an entire look can be created and changed simply by wearing the right boots. It all came down to the power of the boot.

She wiggled her bare toes. Her boots were on Jackson’s side of the bed. Her blazer was slung across a wing chair in the far corner of the room. No boots, no power. What was left was cute?

“You hungry?” he asked, glancing away from her toward the dining area.

“Yes. I could eat.”

He gestured for her to go first. She moved across the room and took a seat at one end of the table. Jackson, still in his plush robe, sat down adjacent to her. He poured her coffee and waited for her to sip it. Once. Twice. The French roast was pure heaven, warming her throat and giving her the fortification she needed to get through this conversation.

His eyes stayed on her with interest and a surge of uneasiness gripped her. “What’s up?” she said.

Jackson smiled again, that killer I-know-something-you-don’t-know smile. “You really don’t want to know.”

She swallowed coffee so fast it burned her throat. Her traitorous eyes dipped below his waist, not that she’d see anything beyond the table’s edge, but the intent was there and Jackson noticed.

“Oh.”

“Listen,” he began, shifting in his seat to face her fully. “I’m not the kind of guy to kiss and tell, but especially now, because of my relationship with Callie—and yours—I think it’s best if we put last night behind us. It was a mistake and I take full responsibility.”

Sammie winced inwardly. She knew what he was getting at, but for a man to say sleeping with her was a mistake was hard to hear, regardless of the man. But to hear it coming from Jackson Worth was really a slam to her ego. “It’s not entirely your fault, Jackson. I played a part in it. Not that I remember … too much.”

Jackson pulled a deep breath into his lungs as his eyes gleamed with private knowledge. “That’s probably a good thing.”

Why? Was it that good between them? Or that bad? She didn’t have the nerve to ask.

She bet few if any of his women had forgotten what it was like to make love with Jackson. And if his ego was bruised, he wasn’t letting on. Sammie wished she’d had a memory to take with her of a night she’d often fantasized about, but that wasn’t the most important thing now.

“I really want a fresh start in Arizona. Callie’s friendship is important to me. We’ll be seeing a lot of each other and I would rather not lie to her, but not telling isn’t exactly the same as lying, is it?”

“No, it’s not. It’ll be our little secret. No one has to know what happened and we’ll move on from here, Sammie.”

“Okay, we’ll keep it a secret. I’m not one to go bragging either. I mean, it was just sex, right?”

Jackson began to nod and then stopped himself. His lips pursed. “I’m taking the fifth. Any man in his right mind wouldn’t answer that question.”

Sammie smiled for the first time since she’d opened her eyes this morning. “You’re a wise man.”

“Am I?” His gaze swept over her again and Sammie felt the heat down to her bones.

“You think I’m cute.”

He grinned. “Cute can be sexy.”

“Obviously.”

He laughed.

She grabbed a muffin and took a big bite. She was feeling a little better now that they’d cleared the air. Neither one of them had any expectations, which was half the battle. The other half was to remember that Jackson Worth was her business partner and strictly off-limits. She could do that. She had to—there was no other option.

After breakfast, Jackson came out of the bathroom dressed in dark slacks and a western shirt. He’d offered to drive her to the motor hotel to pack her belongings and then take her to the airport to catch her flight to Boston. He plopped his Stetson on his head, looking like a Worth through and through as he stood by the bed, arms folded, watching her slip on her brown leather boots.