"When is he going to be back?” Leland asked.
"About a week."
"I can't wait a week."
"You can always call someone in. It’ll cost you, though."
"Thanks for your help."
Leland turned and walked out the door, cursing under his breath. His herd was in worse shape than ever, and he couldn't get the help he needed. Calling someone from out of town was going to cost a pretty penny. With his dad’s and the company’s assets frozen, he’d have to start digging into his own account just to make sure he didn't lose any of the family’s cattle.
Chapter 9
Leland walked into the dining room and placed a plate with a sandwich, potato chips, and a pickle spear beside her. She looked up at him with a smile.
"Thank you," she said, her stomach starting to grumble at the sight of food. She glanced down at her watch, realizing she had forgotten the time.
"This is going to hit the spot," she said, lifting her sandwich to her lips to take her first bite.
"I had it made fresh at the deli so you could eat as soon as I got back."
"You are the sweetest man," she said with a laugh.
He leaned down and softly kissed the top of her head, and she had a feeling of pleasure wash through her entire body as he stood back up and asked her if she'd like some lemonade to drink.
"I would love some," she said.
He went back to the kitchen and returned a moment later, setting a tall glass full of ice cold lemonade beside her. She couldn't believe a man whose very livelihood was being threatened by her job could be so kind and giving to her.
It made her melt under the warmth of his attention. Sylvia had waited her entire life for feelings like this. Working as an auditor, she didn't tend to have a lot of positive experiences with her clients. She had grown a thick skin over the last several years at her job.
With Leland treating her so sweetly, it made the burden of her job so much greater. She took another bite of her sandwich as Leland sat across from her and ate one of his own. She had no idea what would happen in the future.
After her father died, she’d admitted to herself that what she really wanted was marriage and family. Now that Leland was here, and offering her everything, it should have been the happiest moment of her life. Since the moment they’d met, he’d shown nothing but devotion to her, but she still felt an annoying sense of anxiety that this love affair was too good to be true.
No matter what she wanted, she had to do her job accurately or they could both find themselves behind bars. That certainly wouldn't solve anything. If it was proved in court that Leland’s father was evading his debt, then the government would confiscate everything. Leland and his brothers would be left with nothing. How would Leland ever be able to forgive her for that?
"This is good," she said.
"Sure is," he said. "Didn't realize how hungry I was until right now. Gotta make sure to keep our stomachs full. Looks like the cattle are still suffering from the wet hoof even after all the medicine I gave them. The large animal vet is out of town. I’ve got no company resources to pay for a vet come in from out of town. I’ll have to dig into my own bank account to bring one up here. But what else can I do? I can’t let the cattle suffer. The bloodlines of that herd have been in my family for five generations. I'll be damned if I let my cows go down like that."
"Do you need a loan?" she asked.
"No," he said. "I’ve got money in the bank. It's going to cost me, but it's worth it for the family herd. Always wanted to ranch this land. I got the chance for about two days and now it might be taken away from me."
His words made Sylvia's heart sink, but she knew they weren't intended to hurt her. She wanted to help him, but there was nothing she could do except keep working on his books.
"What are you going to do?" she asked sympathetically.
"I'm going to call somebody up here to take care of it. Hopefully, it'll put an end to the wet hoof they've got. We’ll at least have one less problem to deal with."
"That would be nice, wouldn't it?" she asked with a giggle.
"I sure am sorry that things happened this way. Finding you, my fated mate, right after my dad died and left me all this mess. You deserve better than this, Sylvia. And I promise you, I'm going to make it up to you. Will you let me take you out to the lodge tonight?" he asked.
"I would love that," she said with a smile.
"It’s a date then. Oh, and my brother Jessie wanted to invite us out to his motocross race at the end of the week. That's probably not the kind of thing a lady like you enjoys, but I thought I would ask just in case."
"I'd love to see that. I haven't met your brother Jessie yet. And you have another brother, correct? I see that here in the paperwork. His name is Cyrus? Where is he?"
"Cyrus? That fool’s been off in the mountains for the last seven years. No one’s seen hide nor hair of him, except a couple times a year. Of course, I haven't seen him in seven years myself. But Jessie says he saw him just four months ago, so, I guess he comes down every once in a while. Buck was talking about how he and dad had an argument before he left for the mountains. I wonder if Cyrus knows anything about all these debts Dad got himself into."
"It would be worth asking him, don't you think?"
"Yes, but asking Cyrus means taking a trek up into the mountains to a location that can only be accessed by foot. I’ve got a herd full of wet hoof and an audit to deal with."
"Well, maybe he'll come down from the mountain soon," Sylvia suggested.
"I doubt it at this the time of year. Maybe he’ll come down in the fall before the winter snows come in. I imagine he's gorging on meat and berries right now. Doing hell knows what up there, living like a feral beast in the mountains."
"Do you know why he left?"
"He said he was done. Done with society, the family, the ranch, the humans, the shifters, all of it. He's living totally off the grid. I don’t think he even uses money anymore. Even when he comes into town for supplies."
"He must be very brave.”
"Or very crazy," Leland said.
Sylvia could tell that Leland was agitated. He had just arrived back on Fate Mountain a few days ago, and his world was being turned upside down by something new every day. The thought of his brother being able to escape the worries of the world, on the mountain, obviously irritated him. Sylvia could tell that Leland was the kind of man who took his responsibilities seriously.
A brother who had given up all responsibility for anything probably sounded like a crazy man to him. But Sylvia could almost understand why a shifter would take to the woods after the Great War. She hadn't kept up on all the shifter gossip since they'd been drafted twelve years ago, but she knew enough to understand that much of what had happened to their community was deeply unfair.
When shifters had first come out to the public, about thirty years ago, revealing their existence to humanity, the fear of the unknown had taken hold of the human population. Shifters had suffered a great deal. Then adding insult to injury, the government had drafted able-bodied male shifters into the Great War, a war they had nothing to do with. Shifters had helped put an end to the human war, and after that, the Shifter Equality Act had been passed. Shifters were now considered heroes, but a lot of blood had been spilled and a lot of grudges had been made.
“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” Sylvia said.
"Cyrus always was one to keep to himself," Leland said, standing from the table with his empty plate in hand.
Leland took Sylvia’s empty plate and headed to the kitchen. When he came back, he told her he needed to go find a large animal vet. Sylvia nodded in agreement and watched him walk out of the dining room, wondering when would be the next time she could run her hands over the rise of his perfect round ass over those tight Wrangler jeans. With a sigh, she went back to her work.
Chapter 10
After a full day of working on the books for Timber Bear Ranch, Sylvia was ready to be done. She
squeezed her eyes closed and rubbed her temples. She’d never seen a business with such disastrous accounting. Part of her wasn't sure if she would ever get to the bottom of the Kincaid family’s debts at this rate. There were too many years of loose ends. But she knew that if she couldn't work it out, Leland and his brothers would be in far worse trouble than they were now.
Leland had gone out to tend to his cattle and to track down a vet, leaving her at the dining room table to work out how much he really owed. She wasn't even a fraction of the way through the job by the end of the business day, and she knew that there were many days remaining of just as much work ahead of her.
Leland wanted to go out for a date, but she felt so exhausted she didn't know if she could make it. She walked through the parlor and glanced out the window. Leland was in a side yard, squatting in the grass, petting a dog. The sight of such secret sweetness made her heart thump. She let out a long quivering sigh and decided that it didn't matter how tired she was, she still wanted Leland to take her out for dinner. She went outside and walked around the house, meeting him in the side yard. He stood and tipped his cowboy hat at her when he saw her.
"I'm done for the day," she said. "I'm going to head back to my hotel and get ready for tonight."
"I made a reservation at the Lodge for seven. Is that going to give you enough time to get ready?" he asked, walking across the yard to stand right in front of her.
She could feel the heat of his body, and the waves of his dominant Alpha nature, rolling off him. It was so exhilarating to have him focused on her. It was a feeling she had always longed for but had never quite experienced. Now he was giving it to her without holding back. And she didn't want it to ever end.
"That should be plenty of time," she said.
He stepped closer and reached out to touch her arm. A chill wind blew down from the mountains and ruffled the collar of her shirt, sending a shiver down her spine. He drew closer and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her into his warmth. He cupped her cheek with his rough hand and tilted her face toward him. Their eyes met. The connection between them required no words. Leland bent down and brushed his soft full lips over hers, sending a tingle of desire down her spine.
She let out a sigh and accepted his kiss. He pressed his lips to hers so gently, so lightly, it felt like butterflies tickling her lips. It left her wanting so much more.
He stepped away with a smile and said, "I'll see you soon, darling."
"I can't wait," she blurted out.
Sylvia wasn't used to being able to express her feelings with the men she dated. Usually there was so much restraint required when dealing with the average blind date from a dating website or a random guy she had been hooked up with by her mother. But with Leland, she didn't have to hold back at all. In fact, she knew he wanted so much more than she was even ready to give, and that knowledge made her quiver all over.
“Neither can I," he said, grabbing her bicep gently one last time before he turned to go back to the paddock where several sick cows were mooing for attention.
Sylvia drove back to her hotel room and jumped in the shower, feeling sticky from a full day of concentration. After her shower, she wrapped herself in a towel and headed to the closet where she chose the prettiest outfit she'd brought with her.
The dress was a perfect color for the early spring, soft purple with yellow accents. It reminded her of a crocus pushing up through the snow. She slipped into her nicest bra and panty set and then pulled on the dress before slipping into a pair of nude pumps. She did her hair and makeup more carefully than usual, dabbing on deep matte red on her lips to go with the delicate cat eyes that she’d carefully drawn.
She stepped back and looked at herself. Her big brown eyes tilted up at the corners and the lines of mascara and eyeliner accentuated the tilt even more. Her curves looked good in the flowing purple dress. She couldn't wait to see the look on Leland's face when he came to get her.
As she was spraying on her perfume, there was a knock at her door. She slipped into her jacket and grabbed her purse before answering it. There he was on the other side, wearing all black: shirt, jeans and cowboy hat. The sight of him in his polished outfit made her heart flip-flop. She had only seen him in flannel shirts and blue jeans, and his straw cowboy hat with the ring of sweat around the headband. He was obviously wearing his more formal attire, coupled with a tailored western suit jacket. Her knees almost buckled at the sight of him.
"You look amazing," they both said at the same time.
They both started to laugh. He offered his arm to her, and she slipped her fingers around the crook in his elbow and followed him out of the hotel room. Sylvia had never felt like such a lady before. Leland's tall, broad, strong body guided her down the hallway and the stairs to the parking lot where he held open the door of his big red truck for her and helped her climb inside.
He shut the door behind her and she slid on her seatbelt as he went around and climbed in the driver's seat. Her heart was slamming in her chest at the knowledge of his presence. They had already made love the first night they'd met. But now that they were going on a proper date, her nerves were getting the best of her.
This man seemed to have walked out of a dream. There he was, sitting beside her, turning the key in the ignition and driving her down the road. She felt so safe under his protection, with his hands on the wheel of his big truck. He was taking her to a beautiful place to be together and to connect even more deeply than they had before. It had all been his idea.
She hadn't expected a single thing and he was giving her everything. It almost made her feel as if she didn't deserve it. They turned off onto a road that led to the Lodge and parked in the parking lot.
Fate Mountain Lodge was a three-story log mansion with a huge wraparound porch, sprawling lawns, and a view of Lake Fate. The lake waters gleamed in the fading daylight, silver and blue and yellow as the sun set over Fate Mountain.
Leland was there, opening the car door for her before she could do it herself. His big strong hand outstretched, offering to help her down to the ground. She knew of course she could do it on her own, but having him there to help her step down from the raised truck made her feel so very safe.
As they walked arm in arm down the pathway toward the front entrance of Fate Mountain Lodge, Sylvia's mind ran a million miles a minute. The critical voice inside her kept asking her how she expected to have a relationship with a cowboy on Fate Mountain when she worked almost a hundred miles away. It would never work out. They were from two different worlds. How could she possibly balance her career and a relationship with this man?
He needed a woman who would be there for him, to take care of his home while he took care of the ranch. How could Sylvia possibly be that person? She had prepared herself to be a career woman, to give back to her family the way her father had. She couldn't possibly turn her back on her career. After all the sacrifices her dad had made to get her there.
By the time they were greeted by the maître d', Sylvia was so confused, she squeezed her eyes closed and shook her head to make the thoughts go away. When she opened her eyes again, the host was guiding them through the dining room of the five-star restaurant.
"Our specials today is poached Pacific salmon with a lemon sauce, potatoes au gratin, and fresh spring greens."
"That sounds delicious," Sylvia said, feeling her stomach rumble at the thought of dinner.
"That's what I'll have too. And a bottle of your best Chardonnay."
The waiter took their menus and hurried off to bring them back their wine. Sylvia gripped the stem of her wine glass in her hand and brought the crystal to her lips, looking over the rim at Leland as he did the same thing.
It was still hard for her to believe that she was out on a date with a man like him. Nothing in her life had prepared her for this moment. He was everything she had been looking for, but now that she was confronted with it, she didn't have any idea how to accept him.
She was supposed to take care of hersel
f and be an independent strong woman. Sylvia knew she was capable of anything. She didn't really need a man. She made a good living, had a nice apartment, and was happy with her cat. But when she gazed into Leland's eyes, she knew that life could offer so very much more.
His love washed over her like a soft warm blanket. It comforted her, like a cocoon. The fear of losing everything she'd worked for made her want to kick the feeling as quickly as she could. The critical voice inside her mind kept telling her they could never be together; that a man like him simply didn't want a woman like her. She worked as an auditor. She had a degree in accounting. She didn't know how to do any of the wifely things he needed. Why would he ever want her?
"You look so beautiful tonight, Sylvia," he said, reaching across the table to grasp her hand as it rested beside her silverware.
His words made her cheeks heat up and her core tingle.
"You don't look so bad yourself," she said, not sure how to return such a sweet compliment to such a sweet man.
She didn't know how to reconcile her feelings. None of it was fair. Why was her mind playing tricks on her?
The waiter returned not long after with a basket of French bread cut into little slices and a tub of sweet cream butter.
Sylvia and Leland nibbled on the French bread and sipped their wine while they waited for their meal.
"Did you get very far with the books today?" Leland asked.
"I was able to get halfway through last year’s," she said.
"I still don't understand how my dad could have let himself get so far behind. When I lived at home. He was a stickler for organization. It's so unlike him."
"When was the last time you were home again?" she asked curiously.
"It was seven years ago," he said, taking another sip of wine as if he needed it just to face the memory. "Right after the war.”
"Did you look at his business dealings back then?” she asked.
"God, no. My dad never let me into the business like that. It was one of the reasons we disagreed so much. And exactly the reason I chose to go work in Texas on someone else's ranch rather than to stay here and tend to my own family's land.”
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