To Tame a Renegade

by Connie Mason

  Chad knew precisely what his family was thinking. They knew it wasn’t like him to bring strangers into their home unless they were people he cared about. Nor was it his style to dump someone on them and take off. But he’d changed during the two years he’d been away. Chad was surprised his brothers didn’t recognize the differences in him. He’d always been stubborn and hardheaded; now he was bitter and disillusioned.

  “All I ask is that you protect Sarah and Abner from Freddie Jackson,” Chad continued. “I’m going after him as soon as I leave here, but it might take a while to catch him.”

  “You can count on us, Chad,” Pierce said. “it’s time we returned to the Circle F. Sarah and Abner can accompany us.”

  “Accepting charity is new to me,” Sarah said with quiet dignity. “I’ve provided for myself and Abner since the day he was born. My son’s wellbeing is all that matters to me and I’d do anything to keep him safe. I’ve worked hard all my life, I don’t want to become a burden to anyone. I intend to work for our keep. I can cook and sew and clean and do laundry. Taking in laundry is how I made my living in Carbon.”

  “We wouldn’t dream of making you work for your board,” Zoey said, aghast. “You’ll be our guest. The pleasure of your company is all we’ll ask of you. It gets pretty lonesome on the Circle F. Our nearest neighbors live miles away.”

  “Your generosity overwhelms me,” Sarah said with feeling. “Unfortunately I can’t accept on those terms. I wouldn’t be comfortable with accepting charity and giving nothing in return.”

  “I have another solution,” Ryan injected before Zoey could reply.

  Zoey frowned at her brother-in-law. “What other solution can there be? Sarah and Abner will be our guests for as long as they wish to stay.”

  “Suppose we let Sarah decide,” Ryan suggested. “I need a housekeeper. Mrs. Lester left some weeks ago, and I haven’t gotten around to replacing her. The hands and I can protect Sarah and Abner just as well as Pierce. if Sarah wants to work for her keep, then I say we should let her.”

  Sarah was grateful for Ryan’s understanding. He must have known she was uncomfortable with Zoey’s offer and countered with one more acceptable to her.

  Chad glowered at his brother. “Sarah isn’t a servant, Ryan. She’d be better off accepting Pierce’s hospitality. Hard labor nearly ruined Sarah’s health. She was recently scalded and only newly recovered. I don’t want her to work that hard again.”

  A bubble of anger rose up inside Sarah. Chad should know by now that she wouldn’t be content to live on charity. She had no money of her own, and accepting Pierce’s hospitality wouldn’t add a cent to her financial security. Accepting gainful employment would salve her pride and provide much needed funds to set aside for the future.

  “It’s my decision, Chad,” she reminded him. “Pierce and Zoey don’t really need me, but Ryan does. I want to be useful.” She turned a brilliant smile on Ryan. “if the job is still open, I’d be happy to accept the position of housekeeper.”

  Ryan’s answering grin was potent enough to set most women’s hearts to pounding. Sarah pitied the poor smitten women who had lost their hearts to a rascal like Ryan. “The job is yours, Sarah. And don’t worry about Jackson. if he’s stupid enough to show up on Delaney land, he won’t get past the hands. We’ll set guards, if we have to.”

  Sarah prayed that was so. But Freddie was a sly one, she’d put nothing past him. ‘It’s settled then. I’ll accept the same arrangements you had with Mrs. Lester. You won’t be sorry, Ryan.”

  Sarah didn’t like the way Chad looked at Ryan. It was as if he thought his brother had designs on her. if that was Ryan’s intention, she’d set him straight on her own.

  “Sarah is old enough to make her own decisions, even if I don’t agree with them,” Chad said with ill humor.

  “I can’t say I’m not disappointed,” Zoey sighed regretfully. “Robbie would have enjoyed a playmate.”

  “if that’s settled, we’ll leave for the Circle F in a day or two,” Pierce decided.

  “I wish you’d stay,” Chad persisted. “Otto Zigler was here the other day. He’s giving up the lease to the Rocking D. I was hoping you’d take care of it for me.”

  “I’m not covering for you this time, Chad,” Pierce told him. “I filled in for you once, but you’re here now to take care of the matter yourself. The Rocking D is your responsibility.”

  “Dammit, Pierce, I told you I wasn’t going to stick around long. if you won’t handle this for me, I’ll get Ryan to do it.”

  “Not me,” Ryan drawled. “I’ve got enough to do around here. Pierce is right. It’s time you faced up to your responsibilities. You’re not to blame for what happened on the Rocking D. Ghosts don’t exist, Chad. it’s time to put your guilt behind you and get on with your life.”

  Ryan’s words had little impact on Chad as he rose abruptly. The chair behind him crashed to the floor. “Fine brothers you are! I know why you’re doing this and it’s not going to work.” Whirling on his heel, he strode angrily from the room.

  “What do you mink he’ll do?” Ryan asked worriedly.

  “Chad always was stubborn,” Pierce said. “Once he cools down, he’ll probably go to town and have our lawyer handle everything for him.”

  “He’s going to leave,” Sarah said with conviction. “It never was his intention to stay. He never wanted to come to Dry Gulch. His plan was to dump me and Abner on Pierce and Zoey and take off again. Pierce wasn’t home so he was obliged to continue on to Dry Gulch.”

  “We had so hoped that Chad had finally found a woman to love,” Zoey said wistfully.

  “Chad doesn’t believe in love,” Ryan guffawed. “Pierce is the only one who believes in love, and even he didn’t succumb until he met Zoey. Marriage works for him, but it’s out of the question for me and Chad.”

  “What a terrible thing to say!” Zoey scolded. “Chad isn’t as hard-hearted as you seem to think. He wouldn’t have brought Sarah and Abner here if he was.”

  Zoey’s rebuke brought a flush to Ryan’s face. “Sorry, Sarah, I didn’t mean to imply …”

  “It’s all right, Ryan. I know exactly where I stand with Chad. I’ve never asked for a commitment, nor have I expected one. Chad has been very good to me. I owe him a great deal. He’s too good a man to carry around the daunting burden of guilt. He’s told me everything, you know.”

  “You must be very close if he told you everything,” Zoey said thoughtfully.

  Sarah’s cheeks reddened. “We’re just friends.” Lovers would have been an apt description, but she didn’t want to share that information with Chad’s family. “Chad took care of me and Abner when an injury rendered me nearly helpless.”

  “I worry about Chad,” Pierce said. “He has to help himself, none of us can do it for him.”

  Pierce’s sobering remark brought a halt to the conversation. Sarah took advantage of the lull to excuse herself. if she was to function as housekeeper, she needed to consult with Cookie about supper, and make a thorough inspection of the house.

  Sarah found Cookie with the boys in the bedroom. She shooed the children out so she could ask Cookie about her duties.

  “Where are you going?” Zoey asked when the boys skipped into the kitchen, where they all sat around the table.

  “Out to the bam,” Robbie lisped.

  “Not without a wrap,” Zoey replied. “It’s cold outside. Both of you come upstairs with me, I’ll see what I can find for you to wear.”

  “My jacket is hanging on a hook by the door,” Abner said. “I’ll wait here for Robbie.”

  “Sit down, son,” Pierce invited, indicating an empty seat beside him. Abner slid into the chair.

  “Are you and Ryan as nice as Chad?” Abner asked shyly.

  “You mink Chad is nice?” Ryan asked with surprise.

  Abner nodded emphatically. “Mama thinks so too. I asked Chad to be my papa, but he said it wasn’t a good idea. Do you think you could ask him? He might listen to
you.”

  Ryan and Pierce exchanged startled glances. “We don’t have much influence over our brother,” Pierce said kindly.

  “Mama and I didn’t have enough to eat before Chad came to our house. We were lonesome, too. Now when I get lonesome, I crawl in bed between Chad and Mama. I wanted to sleep naked like they do, but Mama said I couldn’t do that.” He sighed hugely, innocently unaware of the information he’d just revealed. “I’m sure gonna miss Chad when he leaves.”

  Abner’s revelation was met with gaping silence and shocked expressions. Abner seemed not to notice. Robbie returned to the kitchen a few minutes later, and the boys skipped out the back door.

  “I’ll be damned,” Ryan muttered, sharing a knowing glance with his brother.

  “I suspected as much,” Pierce contended.

  “What are we going to do about it? What if’ Chad leaves Sarah in the family way? In my opinion, Sarah isn’t the kind of woman who shares her favors with just anyone. According to Chad, Sarah was the victim of rape.”

  “I suggest that we have a talk with our brother,” Pierce said. They both rose and strode off to find Chad.

  Chad was in the corral when he saw his brothers shoot from the kitchen and head in his direction. He groaned aloud when he noted the determined looks on their faces. He wanted to walk away, but when they got their dander up they were like dogs panting after a bone. They had something to say and Chad knew from experience they wouldn’t let him rest until they said it.

  “You lied to us, brother,” Pierce charged. “You told us that you and Sarah were merely friends.”

  “So?” Chad contended. “What of it?”

  “You can start by telling the truth,” Pierce demanded.

  “I don’t answer to you, Pierce. I’m twenty-eight years old and capable of handling my own affairs.”

  “Like hell! Not an hour ago you asked me to handle your affairs for you.”

  “Dammit, Pierce, what’s the point of all this?”

  “You’re sleeping with Sarah!” Ryan charged.

  “You brought her here, asked us to protect her, then lied about your relationship. Do you still intend to leave?”

  “That’s always been my intention. Sarah knows it and hasn’t questioned my decision.”

  “I don’t suppose you know why she’s so accepting,” Pierce challenged.

  Chad didn’t appreciate this interrogation. Then he recalled that he had challenged Pierce two years earlier about his relationship with Zoey, using nearly the same words. “Since you’re so smart, you tell me.”

  Pierce cursed beneath his breath. “I’m smarter than you are. I married Zoey. it’s obvious to everyone but you that Sarah loves you.”

  Chad gave a shout of laughter. “You don’t know Sarah if you think that. She doesn’t want marriage any more than I do. She doesn’t love me. She’s grateful to me, but That’s as far as it goes.”

  “Does she make a habit of sleeping with men out of gratitude?” Ryan retorted. “How many men have there been before you?”

  Rage exploded in Chad’s head. “No one talks about Sarah like that and gets away with it.” His words were punctuated with a smashing blow to Ryan’s chin. Ryan reeled backward, but came back swinging. Soon both brothers were rolling on the ground, exchanging punches.

  With difficulty, Pierce separated the two of them and held them apart. “Enough of this. You’re damn protective of someone for whom you profess simple friendship, Chad. We’re not condemning you for your relationship with Sarah. Lord knows I was as stubborn as you are, until Zoey finally convinced me we belonged together. The difference between our situations is that Zoey and I were married before we slept together. But if you’re going to leave Sarah with Ryan while you run off to escape your demons, he deserves to be told the truth about you and Sarah.”

  “Exactly,” Ryan concurred. “And if you’re not interested in Sarah romantically, does that make her fair game? Sarah is a beautiful woman, I wouldn’t mind…”

  His sentence ended abruptly when Chad darted around Pierce and flung himself at Ryan. Another scuffle ensued. It ended in a draw when Abner and Robbie came out of the bam and saw the fight. In a surprised move, Abner flung himself on Ryan’s back and started screaming at him to stop hitting Chad.

  “I’m all right, Abner,” Chad said, picking himself off the ground. “You and Robbie go on up to the house. it’s time to wash up for supper.”

  Abner’s little face screwed up into a frown. “Why were you and Ryan fighting?”

  “You wouldn’t understand. Do as I say, son. Go on now. I promise there won’t be any more fighting.

  “I promise, too,” Ryan added when Abner glared at him.

  “Abner’s a smart little kid,” Ryan said as Abner and Robbie trudged off toward the house. “You think a lot of him, don’t you, Chad?”

  “Yeah,” Chad growled, dusting his hat off on his pants and clamping it back on his head.

  “He’s going to miss you. I suggest you search your heart carefully before you leave. You might not find it as barren as you think. Thank God compassion is foreign to me,” he added. “No woman is going to tie me in knots. Love has no place in my life. Love ‘em and leave ‘em, that’s my motto.”

  “You’re talking nonsense,” Chad argued. “You know damn well I have nothing to offer a woman. I’m emotionally bankrupt. I’m not a womanizer like you, Ryan. You need a woman in your bed to make you happy.”

  “I know what and who I am,” Ryan said. “Are you ready to talk about Sarah now?”

  “What about her? You promised to protect her and Abner.”

  “I intend to,” Ryan declared. “Both Pierce and I are of the opinion that you should do the honorable thing where Sarah’s concerned. She’s already been hurt by a man. Rape is a horrible thing for a woman to suffer.”

  “I think, and Pierce agrees, that you care more for Sarah than you’re letting on.”

  “You two just don’t give up, do you?” Chad muttered. “Neither of you understand. I do care for Sarah. I’m actually doing her a favor by walking out of her life. I don’t want to make a mess of her life like I did mine. She’s better off without me.”

  “Why don’t you let Sarah decide,” Pierce challenged.

  “She’d agree with me.”

  “Which brings us back to the question Ryan asked earlier,” Pierce said. “With you out of the picture, is Sarah fair game for other men?”

  “if Sarah finds a man to love, I won’t be around to object,” Chad said. “She deserves better than what I can offer.”

  “Damn fool,” Pierce bit out. “You two had better see to your bruises before supper. The women don’t need to know about your little fray.”

  “Stubborn wretch,” Ryan muttered as he walked away.

  “I’m charging you with keeping Ryan in line while I’m gone,” Chad told Pierce. “I don’t trust him around Sarah. All women are fair game to him. You and I both know he won’t marry Sarah.”

  “For what it’s worth, I’d advise you to stick around and protect your property,” Pierce threw over his shoulder as he walked off.

  Chad watched his brothers leave, the two people he cared the most about. Well, maybe not the only two. There were Sarah and Abner. if he even suspected Ryan would seduce Sarah in his absence, he’d beat his brother bloody.

  Abner and Robbie had already given their version of the fight between Chad and Ryan to the women before the men reached the house. It really wasn’t necessary, though. The bruises on their faces gave them away.

  “Do you want to tell us about it?” Zoey asked when they sat down to the evening meal.

  “No,” Chad and Ryan said in unison.

  “They have always settled their differences with their fists,” Pierce said by way of an explanation. When Ryan and Chad remained mute, it became apparent that the women were going to get nothing more.

  Sarah wasn’t sure she wanted to know what Chad and Ryan had fought about It would be disheartening to learn she
was the cause of the fight She’d leave before she’d let herself come between Chad and his brothers.

  Two days later, Pierce and his family returned to the Circle F, deciding to travel while the weather still held. Sarah began her housekeeping duties with enthusiasm. In truth, the work wasn’t hard. With winter fast approaching, Chad, Ryan, and the hands were busy preparing for harsh weather. Hay was hauled in for feed, the cattle driven to lower ground, and the outbuildings were reinforced to withstand blizzards.

  Somehow Ryan had convinced Chad to return to the house to sleep and he now occupied his old room, but Sarah saw little of him in the ensuing days. She knew he was eager to leave and couldn’t imagine why he was sticking around. She supposed it was due partly to the problem he was having getting rid of the Rocking D, and partly because Ryan kept finding work that desperately needed Chad’s attention.

  One day Frank Frasier, who was new to the area, strolled up to the house. Looking to buy a ranch, he had been told in town that the Rocking D was for sale and to inquire at the Delaney ranch. When Chad asked Ryan to take Frasier to the Rocking D, Ryan politely declined, declaring himself too busy to spare the time. In the end, Chad was obliged to show Frasier around the spread They left immediately, and Sarah spent the next several hours worrying over Chad’s reaction to another visit to the Rocking D.

  Chad returned shortly before supper. He was quieter than usual; his face was colorless, his expression bleak. Sarah wanted to comfort him, but didn’t know how.

  “I sold the Rocking D to Frank Frasier,” he said when they had all gathered for supper. “He’II bring the money around in a day or two. I intend to. deposit the funds in Sarah’s name, than I’II be moving on.

  Sarah didn’t realize she’d been holding her bream until it exploded from her throat. “I don’t want your money! The wage Ryan pays me is sufficient for my needs.”

  Chad’s expression hardened. In this matter he was inflexible. “Nevertheless, the money is yours.”

  “Have you thought this over carefully?” Ryan asked. “This is your home, Chad, there’s no need for you to leave.”