by Janet Dailey
How could she even think of getting married when Will needed her? Her losses were his losses, perhaps even more deeply felt. This was no time for him to lose his daughter, his only child, to another man.
She had her answer for Kyle. Any talk of marriage would have to wait.
Erin greeted the decision with a sigh of relief. Until now, she hadn’t realized how much pressure Kyle’s proposal had put on her, and how unprepared she’d been to say yes and let him put that stunning diamond ring on her finger. Maybe later, she thought. Maybe in a year or so. But not yet.
As moments passed, she could feel herself relaxing in the chair. The peaceful sounds of night crept around her—the chirr of crickets under the porch, the faint creak of the windmill, the murmur of horses in the paddock, and the far-off wail of a coyote. Little by little, she began to drift....
* * *
The security light, mounted with a motion sensor on a leg of the windmill, flashed on, startling Erin awake. She jerked bolt upright in the chair, blinking in the brightness as she struggled to focus her sleep-dulled mind. What time was it?
A black pickup towing a small trailer was pulling into the ranch yard. That would be the farrier her father had hired, arriving late, without so much as a phone call to let anyone know when he’d be here. What was his name? Matlock? No, Maddox, that was it. Pushing to her feet, she took a deep breath and strode down the steps to meet him.
* * *
Luke Maddox let the truck’s engine idle a moment while he watched the Rimrock welcoming committee walk toward him. He’d expected Will Tyler to come lumbering out of the house, ready to rip a piece out of his hide for showing up after midnight. Instead, here was this woman—a pretty one at that. She was dressed like a boy, in jeans and a plaid shirt. But there was nothing boyish about her lithe, confident walk, her willowy figure, or the honey-colored hair that fluttered in the wind.
She looked young—too young for him, Luke reminded himself. So why did he find himself wishing he’d bought a pack of breath mints before leaving that poker game at the Blue Coyote in town? He would’ve been here sooner, but what the hell, he’d been winning. Tyler couldn’t fault him for that—not as long as he showed up ready for work in the morning.
Mildly intrigued, he opened the door of the cab, swung his feet to the ground, and waited as she approached him. Close up she was even prettier than he’d expected. Maybe younger, too. Boss’s daughter, he guessed from her confident manner. Strictly off limits if he didn’t want to get butt-kicked off the ranch by her father. But glory be, he couldn’t be fired for looking.
photo credit: copyright © Sigrid Estrada
About the Author
JANET DAILEY’s first book was published in 1976. Since then she has written more than 100 novels and become one of the top-selling female authors in the world, with 300 million copies of her books sold in nineteen languages in ninety-eight countries. She is known for her strong, decisive characters, her extraordinary ability to re-create a time and a place, and her unerring courage to confront important, controversial issues in her stories. You can learn more about Janet at www.JanetDailey.com.
