by Sable Hunter
As the meeting neared its end, Lance requested some additional information and Aron expressed interest in flying down to see some of the stock firsthand. “I enjoy looking at colorful catalogs and websites, but nothing beats standing near enough to look an animal in the eye.”
“You will be welcome,” Isabella assured him.
Bull noticed she never mentioned Don Luis. He was worried her uncle might not fade into the woodwork as fast as Isabella hoped he would.
A tap on the door drew their attention. Noah McCoy stood there with an older woman and a young Hispanic man. “Excuse me, Aron. Do you have any plans for the Lear in the next few days? I’ve got some loose ends to tie up in Oklahoma concerning Blue Dawn’s adoption.”
Isabella looked curious and Lance satisfied her unspoken query. “My sister Skye is married to Noah. They adopted a baby not too long ago.”
“Wow, that’s wonderful,” she smiled, “Blue Dawn is a beautiful name.”
“Thank you, we’re very proud of her,” Noah acknowledged Isabella’s compliment.
“Take the Lear if you need it,” Aron addressed his brother. “I don’t have anything going on.” He stood once more. “Let me make some introductions here.” Bull stood also. “Noah, I know you’ve met Bull Redford. Sophia, we used to compete on the circuit together. He’s one of the best stock contractors in the business. This lovely lady with him is Isabella Cortez, she’s a breeder of some of the best cattle in Mexico. Miss Isabella, Noah is my younger brother and this is his mother, Sophia Esteban. With them is Mateo Garcia, one of our ranch hands.”
Sophia’s eyes lit up with her smile. “I am very familiar with the Cortez family of Terra Dura. Her family has been considered one of Mexico’s first families for years.”
Bull was surprised to see Sophia bow a bit in deference.
Mateo acknowledged her also. “Your father was my hero. The legend of Terra Dura is known far and wide, Senorita.” The handsome young Mexican kissed Isabella’s hand and Bull frowned. He didn’t like this.
“If there is anything we can do for you while you’re here, you must tell us,” Sophia continued. “To know you have connections to our family is inspiring.”
Isabella hugged Sophia. “Meeting you is my pleasure. Have you spent much time in Mexico?”
She smiled a little sadly. “Yes, many years. I have some happy memories and some very sad ones. Regardless of the time that has passed, I still have many contacts in Mexico. Countless friends.”
“Mother has a whole network of co-conspirators in Mexico,” Noah teased with a shake of his head, “from ladies of the evening to men of the cloth.”
“Shush, Son.” She tapped Noah on the shoulder. “Those friends might come in handy one day, but Miss Cortez is special. Her family is known for their philanthropy, she represents the heart of the Mexican people.”
“Senorita, if there is ever any way I can serve you, I am at your disposal. Always.”
When Mateo put in his two cents and kissed Isabella’s hand again, Bull decided it was time for them to go. “Well, I hate to break up this party, but Isabella and I have things to do. Is Canyon in his shop today?”
Aron seemed amused at Bull. “You never did play well with others, did you, old man?”
The group moved out of the office and toward the front entrance. Aron bid them adieu and left by another way to return to the main house. Isabella walked next to Sophia and they whispered of a shop the older woman had opened in Kerrville, right next to Lance’s wife’s flower shop, she said, “You’ll have to stop by one day, we’ll all do lunch.”
“I would like that very much,” Isabella agreed, warmed by her reception at Tebow. As they stepped out into the sun, even more people arrived, a man and a woman riding in an old-fashioned horse-drawn wagon. “Oh, how quaint.”
“Another dang McCoy, this place is overrun with them,” Bull teased as he grabbed the harness to one of the horses pulling the wagon. “Joseph, Cady, this is my friend, Isabella Cortez. Isabella, this is the daredevil McCoy and his very patient wife.”
“How do you do?” Isabella smiled at the couple. The man looked very much like Aron, while his wife was a beautiful woman of color.
Noah stepped forward to assist Cady to the ground. Once he did, Isabella could see that Cady was quite pregnant. “Where are you two headed?”
“Down to the river for a picnic. I’d invite you all to join us, but I don’t have enough ham sandwiches to spare.” Joseph eased up to Bull. “I see you took my advice in a most spectacular fashion. Good work, Redford.”
Bull felt his cheeks pinken, remembering Joseph’s words to him the day they watched the heifer be bred. You just haven’t met the right woman, Redford. Don’t judge them all by your ex. “It’s not like that, we’re in business together.”
Isabella tensed. It’s not like that? Last night he’d said he loved her. Today he called her ‘friend’ and ‘business partner’.
Noah and his mother said their goodbyes and Mateo gave her one last admiring look. While Joseph and Lance stood talking to Bull, Cady came to her. “Welcome to Tebow. You are a long way from home.”
Isabella nodded. “Yes, I am from Aguascalientes, a city in central Mexico.”
“Lola misses you and Bonita thinks you are lost.”
“Awww.” Tears came to Isabella’s eyes. “I miss them too.” And then it hit her. “What?” Her mouth went agape. “Are you a bruja?”
“I am a sensitive, an empath.” Cady placed an arm around her. “I just pick up impressions.” She looked at Bull. “You love him.”
“Yes, I do. Very much.” Isabella searched Cady’s face. “He said he loves me too.”
“How could he not? Your spirit is one of the purest I’ve ever seen.”
Isabella shivered. “Your sight is welcome. Do you see my future?”
Cady shook her head. “No, not clearly. I do see a time of testing. You have much love to give and the man who will receive it, he shall be very blessed.”
“Is he the man?” Isabella pointed to Benedict Redford.
Cady gave her a gentle smile. “I cannot tell, there is a cloud obscuring my vision.”
“What does the cloud mean?” Isabella was desperate for assurance.
“Future events, yet undecided. Fate is fluid. Sometimes our destinies are determined by our will. Our intent. This is true power, Miss Cortez. Decide what your fate will be and make it so.” With that bit of sage advice, the mysterious woman went to place a hand on her husband’s arm. The light that sprang to his eyes at her touch was amazing to see.
Isabella stood and pondered Cady’s words until Bull called her name.
“Hey, Isabella, there’s someone else I want you to meet.”
She straightened her shoulders and went to see who her friend and business partner wanted to introduce her to.
“This is my neighbor and best friend, Canyon Brady. Isabella Cortez is from Terra Dura Ranch in Mexico. Her family breeds prime stock.”
“What a privilege it is to meet you, Mr. Brady.” She gave him a kind smile and a simple squeeze of her hand. “Benedict speaks very highly of you.” As she greeted the big blacksmith, all she could think of was what Bull had told her of Canyon’s losing a child to cancer.
“I’m surprised.” Canyon chuckled. “He’s usually too ornery to have much good to say about anybody.”
Yes, she’d noticed that. In the past few minutes, she’d been demoted yet again. From friend to business associate and now to just an acquaintance who breeds prime stock. If she stayed much longer, she’d fade into obscurity.
“How much longer will you be in Texas, Miss Cortez?”
She met Bull’s eyes. They were unreadable. Cady might not be the only one who could discern the future, she could foresee a very tense ride home, followed by an even more intense discussion. “That remains to be seen, Mr. Brady.”
Bull might be big, but he wasn’t dumb. He could tell their visit had accomplished more than adding another potential
client to their list. From the look on Isabella’s face, she wasn’t happy. He’d blown it, not telling his friends they were together, not claiming her as more than a friend or a business associate.
“If you’ll have that trailer your men rolled the other day towed to my shop, I’ll see what I can do to fix it,” Canyon offered, leaning on the fender of Bull’s double-cab dually.
While they spoke, Isabella strolled over to the white wooden fence framing the perimeter of the adjoining field. Her eyes surveyed the lush pastureland, in some ways reminiscent of her own home. While she gazed outward over the landscape, her mind was otherwise occupied. What had changed? How could he be so loving one day and so cool the next? What had she done wrong?
“Thanks, Canyon, I’ll do that. Maybe we can get together in a few days and have a beer.”
After he said goodbye to his friend, Bull opened the driver’s side door of his truck and addressed Isabella. “Are you ready to go?”
“Yes,” she said, climbing into her seat. She was ready to leave Tebow. She wasn’t ready to leave Benedict Redford.
The distance from Kerrville to Leakey was less than an hour’s drive. To Bull, it felt like an eternity. What the hell was wrong with him? He’d been given a gift from heaven and he was squandering it. “I think the McCoys liked what you had to say.”
“I think so too.”
He swallowed, trying to find firm ground. Seeing how Noah’s mother and the young Mexican had reacted to Isabella - their admiration, their respect – made Bull realize how far Isabella Cortez was out of his league. She was beautiful. She was rich. She was a celebrity in her country, both as herself and as La Diosa. There was simply no comparison between them, he couldn’t help but feel unworthy and inadequate. “How many acres is Terra Dura?”
“A little over a half million,” she answered softly.
Bull’s eyes bulged. “Holy merciful mother of…”
Isabella’s heart constricted. “Why?”
“Just curious.” He kept his eyes on the road.
“Are you displeased with me?”
“Oh, Lord, no. How could you think that?”
“You’re acting…strange.” His eyes didn’t look happy.
“I’m sorry,” he groaned aloud. “I’m a fool.” Bull picked up Isabella’s hand and rubbed his lips over the back. “I used to lay in my bed and pray for someone like you. Loving you is like being caught up in an electrical storm, you light up my whole life.”
“Then…why? What did I do?”
Bull cursed under his breath. “You didn’t do a damn thing wrong. I’m just tired.”
“I guess so. You do your regular work on top of arranging all this extra to attract business for Terra Dura, then I keep you up half the night…
“Hey, don’t go cutting into my alone time with you. That’s what makes life worth living.”
“I wish you would let me help you. There’s a lot of things I can do.” She squeezed his hand. “I can ride as well as any vaquero. I can learn your paperwork. I’m here, you need to put me to good use. I could be handy to have around.”
Bull’s hand dropped to the bulge in his pants, kneading it, lifting it. “I can think of something you do very well.”
“I’m serious, Benedict! I don’t want you to work so hard and me sit in the house like a princess or something.”
“Duchess. Not a princess, you’re a duchess.”
Isabella froze. “Is that what this is about?” She could tell by his face that it was. “Do you think I care a fig about some antiquated title? I don’t use the thing. It means absolutely nothing. I just told your ex about it to put her in her place.”
“Well, you did that very well.” He glanced over at her. With those big brown eyes shining over at him, why should he be unhappy about anything? “When it’s just you and me, I don’t think about anything else. Those people today reminded me of how different we are.”
Isabella slid her hand to his upper thigh, rubbing circles that drew nearer and nearer his cock. “I like the differences between us very much.”
“Oh, baby, so do I.” Bull cut his eyes from the road to look at her exquisite face. “Do you want to do something special tonight?”
“I just want to be with you.” She had something special in her mind, something to prove to Benedict Redford how important he was to her.
Seduction.
“Isabella, baby, I’m back. Where are you?”
He could smell dinner, some delicious concoction that she’d whipped up just for him. He wandered through the kitchen, but it was empty. Whatever comfort food she’d prepared was waiting in the crockpot, keeping warm.
He could use some comfort about now, this had been a helluva afternoon. He couldn’t remember a day more fraught with trouble.
It had all started when Dax had come to him.
“Boss, I need to talk to you.”
“About what?”
“Esteban. Armando tells me that he’s a crook.”
Bull leaned back in his creaky desk chair and folded his arms over his chest. “What kind of a crook, Dax?”
“Well, Armando says that he’s laundering money for some guys in Mexico. He’s says he’s off-loading drug money from a cartel by buying cheap quarter horses for big dollars. Armando says he’s been bribing gate keepers to hold back horses and even injecting his with anabolic steroids. Armando also says he tortures his bulls, that’s what makes them so mean in the ring.”
“Armando says a lot, doesn’t he?”
Dax looked guilty. “Well, yea.”
“Why are you telling me this, Dax? What do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know. I just thought we shouldn’t get any more involved with him, having his name linked with Redford Contractors could be detrimental. You’ve used his seed bull and now you’ve bought Hurricane. If he goes down, I don’t want you associated with him in any way.”
“I appreciate that, Dax.” He eyed his foreman. “If Esteban is so bad and Armando is worried, why is he still working for him?”
“Well, his sister is Esteban’s housemaid and Armando is concerned for her. He says Esteban forces himself on his sister and won’t let her leave.”
“Won’t let her leave? He’s holding her captive? Where’s Doff’s widow in all of this? Why is she putting up with him having another woman in the house?”
Dax shook his head. “Armando hasn’t seen the lady in a while.”
“Well, this does sound suspicious.” He shut off his computer and grabbed his Stetson. “Let me go into Kerrville and talk to Sheriff Saucier. Maybe he knows something about Esteban or can at least check things out.”
“Good.” Dax looked sheepish. “Would you tell him about Armando? If something happens I want the authorities to know Armando isn’t involved.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
He’d driven into Kerrville and that’s when things went from bad to worse. Kane was out with two of his deputies on a call and Bull had been forced to just leave a message with his dispatcher for the sheriff to phone him later. As he was leaving the courthouse he’d heard a woman screaming and when he ran to investigate, he realized a man was trying to carjack the woman’s minivan with her baby inside. There were people watching, but no one was doing anything. He’d yelled at one gawker to go get help, then Bull did the only thing he could do. He backed his ears and took care of the situation. The woman was beating at the thief through the window with her fists, desperately trying to stop him from turning the key. She failed and the idiot began to back up and turn the wheel. Bull did the only thing he could think of, he’d taken off after the van, Oreos and all. Before the guy managed to get out of the parking lot, Bull rounded in front of him and faced the van down like a charging bull. When the vehicle went to veer around him, Bull jerked the door open and forced the fool to stop. The screaming baby was saved, the mother was grateful, and he was stoved up and embarrassed. No lawman had arrived in time to help, but someone had taken a damn lot of pictur
es.
Right now, he just needed some rest and a little bit of TLC.
“Isabella?” He made for the stairs and that was when he saw it.
An engraved invitation.
A pair of lace panties lay on the bottom step and a matching lace bra hung on the banister. Something told him he had a surprise waiting for him in his room. Holding his breath, he eased open the door and what met his eyes sent Bull’s heart rate sky high.
Isabella lay propped up on his bed wearing the wickedest garment he’d ever laid eyes on. Her luscious wet dream of a body was lovingly encased in a little red corset with see-through lace over her breasts. “Sweet Jesus,” he muttered when he saw her legs were spread and her hand was between them. There was a slit in the garment, right over her pussy and she was touching herself, rubbing circles over her clit.
“Would you like to join me, cowboy?”
Bull almost went to his knees. His cock was instantly hard and throbbing.
To make this erotic scene even more outrageous, she wore her La Diosa mask and her hair was caught up in a high ponytail, just right to wrap around his fist. “You look fuckin’ amazing.”
“I was saving this little outfit for a special occasion.”
“Is this it?” He began to stalk across the room, one step at a time.
“It could be.” She held out her hand. “Come see.”
Bull stripped, he wasn’t careful about it either. Boots and hat flew in opposite directions and his underwear ended up on a blade of the ceiling fan. Once he was naked, his manhood stood out, proud and brutish, pulsing and throbbing at the vision before him. “Do you like playing with yourself?” He was mesmerized as she fingered her pussy, her hips moving with every thrust.
“I like thinking about you while I play. I would do this while we talked on the phone.”
“Really? I wish I’d known that, I would’ve joined you.” Bull went to the bed, straddled her thighs and loomed over her in a kneeling position. His lust was raging. “I like the ponytail, I’m going to use it.” Bull fisted his cock, a tight squeeze up and down the shaft.
Isabella’s lips parted and little panting noises slipped from them. “How will you use it?”
