The Practical Pretender

by Danni Roan

  Chapter 4

  Dewis woke to the sound of the television on low then looked down at the woman who had fallen asleep on his shoulder hours earlier.

  She was peaceful in sleep, rest had scoured away the hard lines around her mouth and eyes and she seemed somehow renewed. All traces of the smart, hard to beat business woman he’d glimpsed in the law office had gone and a soft, beautiful woman sat snuggled up to him now.

  Looking up Dewis squinted at the large, wooden carriage clock on the mantle below the television. It was almost four in the morning and he wondered if he should wake pretty Penny or let her sleep.

  “What time is it?” Penny asked sitting up and blinking bringing the debate in his head to an end.

  “A little after four,” Dewis said sleepily.

  “I’m so sorry, you should have been in bed hours ago.” Penny said with a sleepy smile.

  Dewis chuckled. “I’ve been asleep just like you. I often fall asleep sitting here while watching some silly rerun of an old show. I think the day sort of catches up to you somehow.”

  Penelope nodded. “I know. I fall asleep reading all the time, it’s a wonder I haven’t squashed my kindle a thousand times already. I bought a spare one just to be safe.”

  Dewis chuckled extricating his numb arm from the back of the couch and standing. Turning he offered Penny his hand. “You’d better get some sleep,” he said. “I’ll be up in another hour and out working but make yourself at home and I’ll check in on you this afternoon.”

  Penny took the cowboy’s hand unfurling from the couch as soft warmth infused her. It felt so right being here, so uncomplicated. It felt like she wasn’t alone anymore and she paused studying the man before her.

  “I’ll see you in the morning,” Dewis said releasing her hand reluctantly. “Sleep tight.”

  Penny watched the lean cowboy walk away and a slight chill seemed to wash over her whole body as he disappeared down the hall. Dr. Lachele really did something right sending her here, now could Penny really help this man out of the mess he was in?

  ***

  Dewis dropped into bed but was wide awake. It had felt so perfect snuggled up on the couch with Penny. She was obviously a smart capable woman and he desperately hoped she would be able to help him save his ranch.

  Earlier that night she had told him she could stick around for a couple of weeks and that she would do what she could to help out. But was she everything she seemed to be?

  Why would a business woman like Penelope Pembroke agree to help him? Could he trust her with his ranch or was this a smart move on the part of a woman who obviously knew how to get what she wanted?

  Dewis tossed and turned for another hour, trying to put his doubts to rest, before finally giving up and headed for the shower. Hopefully the hot water would wash away his doubts as well as the sleep from his eyes.

  Scrubbing a towel through his wet hair Dewis padded into his bedroom grabbing fresh clothes. As he buttoned his shirt, the distinct smell of bacon drifted toward him and his stomach grumbled in anticipation.

  Running a comb through his still wet hair and hopping into his socks he headed for the kitchen.

  “I hope you don’t mind,” Penny said as Dewis entered the kitchen still pulling up his socks. “I was hungry.”

  “I don’t mind a bit,” Dewis said grinning from ear to ear. “It would have been a pop tart for me otherwise, and this smells a lot better.”

  Penny shook her head at the man. “How do you do ranch work on nothing but a pop tart?” she chided noting his slim hips and broad shoulders. “Eggs?”

  “Please,” Dewis responded.

  “How do you like them?”

  “Anyway you’ll cook them,” the cowboy grinned enthusiastically.

  Penny laughed. She had always believed that breakfast was the most important meal of the day and even with her helter-skelter schedule she’d made time to eat something decent before she started the day. With her job she had often skipped supper but never breakfast. “How many then?” she asked her dark eyes shining with mirth.

  “Can I have three?” Dewis asked sounding like a kid asking for more candy even to his own ears.

  “They’re your eggs,” Penny chuckled, “you can have as many as you want.”

  Lifting the bacon from the skillet and placing it on a paper towel she carefully cracked five eggs into the hot drippings while Dewis started the coffee maker then grabbed plates and cutlery.

  “I’ll make the toast,” the cowboy said his voice excited.

  “If you get this excited about breakfast how do you feel about lunch?” Penny couldn’t keep the teasing from her voice but Dewis only smiled pushing frozen slices of bread into the four slice toaster.

  “I never have time to eat breakfast, not if I have to cook it anyway,” he admitted. “It’s usually pop tarts and peanut butter sandwiches for me. If I’m lucky, I’ll have a frozen dinner before I fall into bed.”

  There was no bitterness in the cowboy’s voice but the words still made Penny’s blood boil. How long had he been trying to hold this place together with no one to help? His step-brothers had obviously been no help and more of a hindrance if the empty spaces where missing items once stood around the house were any indication.

  Using a spatula Penny lifted the eggs from the pan onto the waiting plates and then added three slices of bacon to each plate as Dewis stacked freshly buttered toast on a small dish.

  “Coffee?” he asked as he placed the dish on the table and grabbed two mugs from the cupboard.

  Penny looked at the hot black brew he was pouring and nodded. She preferred tea, but coffee would do. “With milk, if you have it,” she called as he topped up the mugs.

  Dewis tipped his head studying Penny’s expression but didn’t say anything as he poured coffee and grabbed cream from the fridge. He knew he was missing something but couldn’t tell exactly what it was. He didn’t know what that look had been, but it was something. He would have to pay attention if he was going to understand who Penny really was.

  Moments later Dewis was seated at the table with the young woman who was posing as his fiancée over a hearty breakfast as the first rays of the sun peaked from the eastern sky.

  Grabbing Penny’s hand in his he bowed his head and offered thanks for the food, then looked up into dark startled eyes.

  “Sorry,” he said with a blush, letting go of her hand “My mother and father always did that and somehow sort of seemed right. I didn’t mean any offense.”

  Penny shook her head. “None taken. I was just surprised. It seems that I don’t really know what to expect with this whole situation yet,” she finished gesturing around her with the fork in her hand.

  Dewis broke off a piece of toast dipping it into his egg. “I don’t really expect anything,” he said before taking a bite of his breakfast. After chewing and swallowing he took a sip of coffee still studying Penny’s face. “Just help me save the ranch.”

  “I’ll do my best,” Penny agreed, then smiled changing the subject. “What will you do this morning?” Penny asked as she too started on her breakfast.

  “I’ve got to ride out to the back forty and check the fence line to start with.”

  “Can I come?” Penny asked visions of ambling across the prairie on horseback zipping through her head.

  “You’d like to come along?” Dewis half choked on his coffee but managed the words.

  “If you don’t mind, I’ve always been fascinated with the idea of ranch life and how everything works. Besides what am I supposed to do around here all day as we wait for word from that lawyer you mentioned last night?

  Dewis nodded a slow smile breaking across his face. It might be nice to have someone along and if the classy business lady wanted to see what a real ranch was like, why not indulge her.

  “Alright,” Dewis said. “We’ll finish up here and then head out.”

  After breakfast while Dewis rinsed the dishes and put them in the dish washer Penny hurried up stairs to
brush her teeth and put on her new hiking boots. She hoped they proved as comfortable as all day wear as they had stomping around the store in them the day before.

  Deep down inside Penny felt a strange exhilaration that lifted her heart and filled her with energy. She was on a real ranch, with a real cowboy, and her whole life could be changed forever. She still didn’t understand how this power of Dr. Lachele’s worked but she couldn’t have picked a better story for herself. This was her dream if only they could make it work. All the stories Penny read had a happily ever after in the end so didn’t that mean this one would too?

  Bouncing out of the back room she skipped into the kitchen where Dewis was waiting an old coat and a pair of gloves in his hands.

  “You’d better take these,” he offered. “It’s still cool in the mornings and you’ll want to protect your hands.” He nodded at her delicate looking hands with the prettily painted nails.

  Penny took the proffered items and grinned. “I guess I’m ready then.”

  A few moments later she was scowling though as Dewis revved the engine of a green ATV with a tool box strapped to the back.

  “Climb on,” the cowboy shouted shoving his hat down tight on his head.

  Sighing Penny swung her leg over the seat slipping in behind Dewis. This was not the romantic ride she had envisioned, but she had said she wanted a modern day cowboy so it would have to do.

  Chapter 5

  Dewis was tired, hungry and rather in awe as they turned the ATV toward home that evening. What had started out as a simple drive down the fence line to check for broken wire had ended up in a fight with a young bull and a mud pit.

  He had been amazed at how Penny had stuck right with him through the day and hadn’t even backed down when they found the young bull with his head tangled in a strip of barbed wire that he’d yanked loose from the fence.

  The creature had led them a merry-chase right into a shallow mud hole where Dewis had been able to get a rope on the animal’s back legs and secure it to a tree.

  Even then he’d been tumbled in the mud as he pulled the beast down holding it by the horns while Penny had cut the strands of barbed wire with wire cutters from his tool box.

  “You’re kind of a mess you know,” Penny teased as they climbed off of the ATV back at the house.

  “You’re not so spiffy yourself,” Dewis shot back swinging a leg over the seat as sheets of dried mud flaked from his jeans and boots.

  “Is every day this much fun?” Penny continued teasing as she tried to brush some of the dirt from the old jacket she wore.

  “Some are even better,” Dewis replied. “Once I had to wade into a half frozen pond to get a rope on an old cow who couldn’t get out over the ice. I nearly caught pneumonia,” he added his green eyes sparking with mischief.

  “You really love this place don’t you?” Penny asked growing serious as she looked in to the cowboy’s rugged face.

  “It’s everything to me,” Dewis admitted trying to dust some of the mud from his pants. “It’s my home, my heritage, my future.”

  Penny laid a gloved hand on the cowboy’s arm. “I really do want to help,” she said. “Somehow we’ll make it happen.”

  Dewis looked into dark serious eyes and swallowed as emotions he usually kept penned up threatened to stampede right over both of them. Something in his heart told him to trust the woman before him, but a tiny voice in his head shouted doubt.

  “Thank you,” he finally said his voice husky with hope, worry, and desire. He wanted to lean in and kiss Penny, to taste her lips, and find a connection that would last forever. If he could only know that she was real and that she’d stand by him through all of this. Pulling his hat from his head he smacked more mud from his pant legs. “Why don’t you go in and get cleaned up while I feed the stock.” he suggested.

  Penny could sense something changing in Dewis and nodded. She had seen the play of emotions on his face and the light of desire in his eyes. Something was holding him back from trusting her but she couldn’t quite say what it was. Perhaps his past had left him cautious and she would need to be patient.

  “Alright,” she said. “I’ll see you inside in a bit,” Penny agreed hurrying to the house. In a few minutes she had showered and changed, combing out her hair and pinning it into a damp bun on the top of her head to keep it out of her way.

  She was already starving since she hadn’t thought to pack a lunch and had only eaten stale pop tarts from Dewis’s tool box that afternoon.

  Rummaging through the freezer and finding two fat chicken breasts that looked like they needed cooked; she flipped on the stove and continued the hunt.

  To her delight she found an electric pressure cooker in the pantry and a bag of brown rice. Dinner would be ready in short order if the essential cream of chicken soup would materialize next.

  With a squeal of joy the red and white can was spotted on the top shelf of the pantry and ten minutes later the whole mess was beeping to life in the pot.

  Turning off the oven and turning on the stove, Penny grabbed a small sauce pan filling it with water and placing it on a burner that glowed up at her.

  Reverently she grabbed the thin golden box from the largely empty pantry and pealed open the plastic wrapping breathing in the sweet smell of black and orange pekoe tea.

  Dewis stepped into the kitchen as Penny reached for a big mug pulling it down and plopping a tea bag into it. A little light seemed to spring into existence in his head as he watched her peek at the pot of water on the stove and he suddenly understood the look she had given him at breakfast. Miss. Penny Pembroke was a tea drinker. He would need to remember that.

  “I thought we could head into town for supper if you want,” Dewis suggested making Penny jump.

  “I’ve already got it covered,” Penny replied looking at the minute display on the cooker. “You’d better get cleaned up cowboy,” she continued tapping the little display. “You’ve got exactly thirty minutes before we eat.”

  Dewis raised a brow in surprise but didn’t argue. Instead he trotted toward his room and a hot shower at double time.

  Penny grinned at the stiff legged trot that carried Dewis from the room. He’d taken his boots off already, leaving them by the little bench near the door and had somehow scraped most of the mess from his clothes. She was surprised at his thoughtfulness at one level but then thought of who he was.

  Someone had taken the time to teach the boy some manners along the way and she couldn’t help but appreciate it. For a moment she wondered what his mother must have been like. So many of the men she had known in the city were impatient, careless, and self centered. It was one of the reasons she had never really dated. As a teen a friend of hers had given her a cowboy romance story and from then on she was hooked.

  She knew it was silly, but she had always longed for a cowboy, a man who wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, or work long hours for something more than money.

  Behind her the little pot was making roiling noises as it came to a boil and she quickly lost her train of thought as she filled her mug and grabbed the cream from the fridge.

  Wrapping her hands around the warm mug she inhaled the smell of freshly brewed tea sweetened with only a bit of cream. Penny loved her tea. There was nothing in the world like curling up with a good book and a hot cup of tea. Every bit of the experience was a delight. The warmth of the tannins dancing on your tongue or the smooth heat racing down your throat, it was all so soothing. Tea and a book, it made the world go round.

  ***

  “Something smells good,” Dewis said walking back into the kitchen a half hour later. His hair was still damp and he smelled of soap and a light spicy aftershave.

  “It’s only chicken and rice,” Penny said. “This little beauty was a huge time saver,” she added tapping the pressure cooker on the counter.

  “My step-mother insisted she had to have it,” Dewis said shaking his head. “She said feeding three hungry boys and a man who owned a ranch she nee
ded short cuts. I don’t think she ever even used it.”

  “What happened to your step-mother?” Penny asked as she turned on the broiler and buttered two pieces of frozen bread sprinkling them with a bit of onion and garlic salt for something extra to go with the meal.

  “She was killed in a car accident,” Dewis said. “She was out with another man one night and they were drunk.”

  Penny looked up into the angry eyes of the man she had agreed to help and cringed at the fire in his green gaze. “I’m sorry,” she said.

  Dewis dropped his gaze moving to the cupboard to get clean plates. “It broke my dad’s heart,” he said softly. “Not only her death but to find out she’d been stepping out on him. He thought he’d won the prize when he married Lizette.” Dewis finished plunking the plates on the table a little too roughly.