The Rancher's Family Thanksgiving

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  Meg disappeared. Susie heard the front door open, then close. But curiously, no words were spoken. None that she could hear anyway.

  Two sets of footsteps came closer. Susie turned as Meg and guest approached the dining room entryway.

  When she saw who was standing there, her jaw dropped.

  “I’ll leave you two alone,” Meg said and beat a hasty retreat.

  Tyler leaned casually against the door frame. He was dressed in nice jeans and a black Western shirt. He looked at her as if he had come to claim her. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

  His conceit was outrageous. Susie pushed back her chair and stood. “I can’t believe you.” Her heart skipped a beat as she approached him. “You have to go.”

  Fine lines appeared at the corners of his eyes and he laughed. “Why?”

  Susie stiffened in indignation. “Because as you very well know I am expecting Bachelor Number Five any minute!” Then added, “Which is obviously why you’re here.”

  To Susie’s further frustration, Tyler didn’t even bother to deny it.

  Tyler strolled on in as though he owned the place. “Maybe Bachelor Number Five won’t mind if I join you.”

  “Oh. Please.” Susie’s knees trembled as she waved Tyler away. “I don’t know much about Ernie Pierce except that he is a self-made man, and a good sport, to boot. But there’s no way he is going to want another man chaperoning his first date with me.”

  Tyler stopped just short of her. He rubbed a hand across his jaw. “You’re probably right about that.” He dropped his hand to his side and lowered his face to hers. “Us guys do tend to get territorial about the women we are interested in.”

  Susie flushed self-consciously. “Then you understand why you have to leave.”

  “To make way for the new guy,” he said, lazily taking in her black jeans and black turtle-neck sweater.

  Susie nodded, wishing he weren’t so much taller than she was. Even with two-inch-heeled boots on, Tyler dwarfed her by a good six inches. “Right.”

  Half his mouth crooked up in a taunting smile. “Only one thing.”

  Susie planted her hands on her hips. “And what is that?” she demanded impatiently.

  Tyler angled his thumb at the center of his chest. “I’m Ernie Pierce.”

  TYLER HAD BEEN WAITING FOR her reaction to his ploy. It wasn’t long in coming. Her soft lips pursed in a way that had him wanting to kiss her all over again. Her eyes were full of amber fire. Tossing her head so her curls bounced against her face, she scoffed, “You don’t really expect me to believe that.”

  “Actually, I do.”

  “Yeah, well, likely story.”

  Tyler tried to look innocent. He didn’t know why he liked getting under her skin so much. He just did.

  Aware she was still waiting for an explanation, he placed a hand on his chest. “My full name is Tyler Ernest Pierce McCabe. My brothers Teddy and Trevor and I all kept our birth father’s name when Travis adopted us. We just added the McCabe to the end.”

  Susie scowled. Beginning, he assumed, to believe…

  Meg stuck her head in. She had a jacket on, her shoulder bag slung over her arm. She smiled at Susie. “Sweetheart, I’m off to meet your father for dinner and a movie. So have fun.”

  Susie gaped. “Mom!”

  “Goodbye, dear.” Meg turned to him. “And Tyler—good luck. I think you’re going to need it.” She disappeared.

  Seconds later, the front door shut.

  The two of them were quite definitely alone.

  Susie continued glaring at him. “How did you get them to agree to this?”

  It hadn’t been easy. Tyler pulled out a chair and sat down. Anchoring her wrist, he tugged her down onto his lap. “I told your mom and dad that it wouldn’t be fair to drag another guy into this whole dating thing when you were only going to turn him down eventually anyway.”

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Yes. I do.” Tyler cupped her face in his palm. “I want you to be my woman, Susie.” Unable to help himself, he scored his thumb across her lips, tracing the delicate shape. “I thought I made that clear last night.”

  “Woman?” To his chagrin, she still looked confused and upset.

  “Yes, woman,” he repeated firmly, trying not to think how warm and taut and utterly feminine her body felt draped over his. “And I’m talking exclusive.” He worked his hands down her spine.

  Susie bit her lip and for the first time since he had walked in, averted her eyes. “Our parents aren’t going to approve of this,” she murmured, distraught.

  Tyler blinked. “What are you talking about? They’re going to love the fact that we’re dating.”

  She scoffed and pushed to her feet. “With no plans to ever marry?” Hands cupping her elbows, she glided away. “I doubt it.”

  Wishing he had never made such a foolhardy agreement with her, Tyler followed. He clasped her shoulders, crowding her and forcing her to look at him again. “I think you underestimate them, Suze,” he said softly. “Sure, our folks would rather see us hitched with a dozen kids around us, but if that’s not in the cards, if that particular American Dream is not right for us, they’re going to want us to find one that is. And they’re going to want to know that you and I have someone in our lives to love and be loved by in return.”

  Susie’s eyes glistened with emotion. She smoothed a hand absently across his chest. “You’ve thought this out,” she said sweetly.

  To a point. “All I know is what’s in here.” He captured her hand and held it against the left side of his chest, over his heart. “And that’s you, you, you….”

  SUSIE HAD TIME TO EVADE Tyler’s kiss if she wanted. But the moment he threaded his hand through the hair at the nape of her neck and tipped her face to his, she knew, ignoring the growing feelings between them was not what she wanted at all. She opened her lips to the pressure of his and returned his kiss deeply, passionately. He kissed her as if he meant to make her his, not just for now, but for all time. Yearning swept through her, overwhelming her heart and her mind. She wrapped her arms about his neck, drawing him closer yet, fitting her soft curves against the hard warmth of his chest. She loved the sexy, male scent of him. She loved the reckless, womanly way he made her feel, and she found herself needing and wanting Tyler the way she had never needed and wanted anyone. He was hard, too.

  Both of them were trembling when he finally let her go.

  All too aware they’d just been making out in her parents’ dining room like a couple of teenagers with no place else to go, she stepped away from him, trembling.

  He shot her a wry look, turning suddenly serious. “You ready to go?”

  Ready to make love was more like it, Susie thought. But not here, and not now. She folded her arms in front of her, taking up the contentious stance she should have used much earlier. “I hate to break it to you, Tyler. But we still have two hundred and fifty gratitude journals to put together.”

  He waved off her concern. “I’ve got that covered,” he said lazily.

  She searched his face for clues as to what he was up to now. “You do?”

  “Yep. Seems a group of the women are putting together the centerpieces for Thanksgiving dinner out at my parents’ ranch tomorrow afternoon—they’re using the testing center for Annie’s Homemade products.

  Susie had been there before. Located in a converted barn, the large cement-floored room resembled a cafeteria. Focus groups were invited to sit at the gingham-covered picnic tables and give their reaction to the latest barbecue sauces, condiments and fruit spreads made by the company Tyler’s mom owned.

  “I talked my mom into expanding tomorrow’s activities to include the gratitude journal assembly. And I invited Emmaline, my two younger brothers and some of my cousins that are also high school age to help. I figured if Emmaline met some of the kids her age that are going to be at Thanksgiving dinner she’d be more excited about attending. Right now, I get the impression she’s still dre
ading it.”

  “Good thinking.”

  “Plus it gets us off the hook tonight so we can go on our first date.”

  She’d known there was more. She narrowed her eyes. “Which is going to be…”

  “A surprise.” He flashed her a confident grin. “Good thing you’re dressed in jeans and a sweater, though. It’s getting a little cold out tonight. You might want to grab a jacket, too.”

  Susie had one with her. She went to the hall closet to get it. “What are we going to be doing?”

  He held her suede coat while she slipped her arms into the sleeves. “I could tell you.”

  “But you won’t.”

  Eyes glimmering mischievously, he said, “You’ll find out soon enough.”

  Twenty minutes later, Tyler was turning his pickup truck into the drive of Healing Meadow Ranch. He parked next to the hospital barn, instead of the ranch house. “I hope you don’t mind.” He cut the engine and withdrew the keys from the ignition. “I’ve got to check on Catastrophe first.”

  “No problem.” Susie fell into step beside him as they walked toward the entrance. “How’s he doing?”

  Tyler slipped a protective hand behind her waist as they reached the door. “The antibiotics seem to be working on the infection.”

  Susie waited for him to open the door for her. “But you’re not going to relax until the leg is entirely healed and he’s walking again.”

  “Right.”

  Looking calm but alert, Catastrophe greeted Tyler with a nicker, dropping his head and then flipping it high, making a full skyward circle with his nose. He flicked his tail as Tyler stepped into the stall, and examined not only the leg around the cast, but the sling that kept Catastrophe immobilized.

  Susie was amazed that the horse could seem so happy and content under the circumstances, and was pleased to know Catastrophe’s life was the result of Tyler’s intervention. She stayed on the other side of the stall door, gently running her hand down his mane, loving the silky texture. “He really is a beautiful animal.”

  Tyler nodded in agreement, wrote a few things on the chart and handed it back to the vet tech on duty at the hospital barn for the night.

  Susie could see that as much as Tyler cared about the animal, he had already distanced himself emotionally. His concern now was strictly veterinary.

  That shouldn’t have surprised her.

  He had always been able to do the same thing with her. Come into her life when she needed him. Exit seamlessly when she no longer did.

  Being able to step away when the time came was something Tyler was still very, very good at doing.

  Susie did not have the same talent.

  If she had been the one personally rescuing and then caring for Catastrophe, there was no way she would have been able to give the beautiful stallion away and emerge with her heart intact.

  Wordlessly, Susie watched Tyler check on the other animals in the hospital barn. Another ailing horse, a baby calf and a mule. He used the same caring touch and attention to detail on all.

  “It all looks good,” Tyler said finally, returning to the vet tech on duty. He paused, concern on his face. “Any further word on Smokey?”

  “None so far,” the vet tech replied.

  Tyler nodded. “If anything comes up, I’ll have my pager on. Otherwise—” Tyler paused to give Catastrophe a final rubdown on the neck and face “—you-all have a good night and I’ll be by again in the morning.”

  “Will do, Doc,” the vet tech said.

  Together, Tyler and Susie left the barn.

  Once again, their steps were perfectly meshed.

  “I’m assuming Smokey is another one of your patients.”

  “You assume right.”

  Which meant it was none of her business. Unless he chose to talk about it, and he clearly did not. “So now what?” Susie asked, turning to her “date” for the evening, the ignominious Bachelor Number Five….

  Tyler smiled, all barely leashed male energy once again. “We go on our very first snipe hunt.”

  SUSIE SCOFFED AND ROLLED her eyes. Seriously. Seriously! “There is no such thing as a snipe, Tyler McCabe.”

  Tyler lifted a challenging brow. He leaned closer, not stopping until they were cheek to cheek and nose to nose. “Have you ever seen one?”

  Well… “No. I have not.”

  His hazel eyes twinkled mischievously. He lifted his broad shoulders in an aimless shrug. “Then how do you know?”

  Susie held her ground and folded her arms in front of her defiantly. “Because I wasn’t born yesterday?” she teased.

  Tyler paused to unlock the back door of the house, then led them into the mudroom. He used the toe of his boot to push aside a box heaped with old towels, and plucked two heavy-duty flashlights and an over-the-shoulder day pack with mesh panels sewn into the side off the washer.

  “What’s that for?” Susie asked.

  To her irritation, Tyler’s expression remained smug as he explained matter-of-factly, “The flashlights are so we can find the snipes, the day pack so we can carry them back if we find any.”

  Exasperated, Susie said, “You’re really going to pursue this.”

  “With or without you,” Tyler affirmed, pausing to look deep into her eyes, “but I was really hoping you would come with me.”

  “You’re serious.”

  He mugged in all innocence. “Would I put you on?”

  Susie stifled a laugh. “That’s just it. I don’t know.”

  He agreed in mock solemnity. “Precisely why we should be dating.”

  Susie rolled her eyes again. He chuckled. They headed out. Susie buttoned her jacket up against the cold night air.

  Looking very intent on his task, Tyler led the way across his backyard, helped her climb a fence, then swung himself over after her. He flipped on his flashlight and headed out into the meadow of knee-high grass, scrub oak and cedar.

  “You sure there are no snakes out here?” Susie asked, shivering at the thought.

  “Nope. Which is why you should have your light on.”

  He didn’t have to tell her twice. Susie turned on her flashlight. The powerful beam spread a wide arc as they moved quietly through the grass.

  “So what does a ‘snipe’ look like?” she asked eventually, aware Tyler really did seem to be searching high and low for something in the dark Texas night. Which made her wonder if there wasn’t a real animal also known as a snipe.

  “Just keep a lookout for the whites of their eyes,” Tyler advised.

  If he was yanking her chain, he was doing a damn fine job of it. “You said their eyes? Plural?”

  Tyler nodded, looking around the base of an oak tree. “Should be more than one when we find ’em, yeah.”

  Wind swept across the meadow, chill and damp. Clouds moved overhead, partially obscuring the stars and moon.

  “Okay…”

  Tyler paused abruptly, then slowly turned to face her. He narrowed his eyes. “Did you hear that?”

  “What?”

  “The rustling in the grass.”

  Susie stepped closer, making no effort to be quiet. “Don’t you think you’re taking this a little too far?”

  “Shhh!” He leaned close. “You’ll scare ’em away,” he whispered in her ear.

  Tingling from the warmth of his breath, Susie drew back and sighed. “If you say so.”

  He didn’t smile.

  Didn’t move.

  Every inch of Tyler was on high alert.

  Ignoring her completely now, he stared into the darkness, moving the arc of his flashlight over the grass. Back and forth. Low, toward the ground.

  Susie was about to make another smart remark when a jet black blur of fur zipped past before disappearing into the weeds.

  “Was that a…” Susie frowned. It couldn’t have been a raccoon or a skunk because whatever the animal had been, it was a solid color.

  “Exactly what we’re looking for,” Tyler whispered back, firm hand on her
arm. “You go that way.” He aimed his flashlight to the left. “I’ll go right. And be careful not to step on any nests.”

  “Right. Nests,” Susie muttered, shivering more from the fear of unknown black furry critters now than the cold.

  Tyler kept going. Stopped suddenly. He arced his light at her, shining it right in her eyes, before moving it away.

  Susie looked at him.

  He was motioning her toward him urgently.

  As she neared, he put his finger to his lips indicating silence.

  The expression on his face indicated he wasn’t kidding.

  As quietly as possible, Susie waded through the knee-high grass, taking the path he had already trampled. When she reached his side, she saw what all the fuss was about. And it was enough to simultaneously fill her with wonder and break her heart on this cold, damp, dark Texas night.

  “Those aren’t snipes,” Susie whispered in awe, kneeling down beside him. “Those are newborn kittens.”

  “ABOUT TWENTY-FOUR HOURS old from the looks of it,” Tyler said tenderly. He took the day pack off his shoulder and opened it up. Handing it to her, he put the four kittens gently in the bottom, one after another. A loud yowl followed, and then the mother cat hurled herself at him. He caught the mama cat around the middle and put the struggling animal in the sack with her kittens. Almost immediately, she settled down.

  “This is what we were looking for,” Susie guessed as she and Tyler headed back to the house.

  Tyler zipped the top shut, cradled the knapsack in his arms, and headed back toward the ranch house at a much brisker clip.

  “Yeah. Smokey—that’s what we’ve been calling her—is a stray who showed up about a week ago, obviously very pregnant. We couldn’t get her to come close enough to be able to pick her up, so we were leaving milk and kibble out for her. Then about two days ago, she stopped coming round altogether. I figured she went off somewhere quiet to have her kittens, but it’s too cold for her to be keeping them out here now. Not to mention dangerous.” At Susie’s inquiring look, he said simply, “Predators. Anyway, I figured she might go off in search of her supper once the sun went down, which gave us a chance to find the nest. Turns out I was right.”

  They paused to hop the pasture fence once again.