by Jaci Burton
"Fine. But we do need to discuss the inventory you're adding. Let's meet in my office tonight after dinner to go over the figures."
Damn. She could turn him down all she wanted when it came to personal matters, but this was business, and she was here to learn.
She'd have to meet him.
"Fine. I'll see you then."
Kyle stood, moved the chair and walked away without another word.
Why did she feel as if she'd just hurt him? He'd have to care to be hurt, and he made it quite clear the other night he had no feelings for her.
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Kyle's interested in you. Jenna's words came back to haunt her, making her doubt, making her want. If only that were true, but it wasn't.
No matter how much she wanted it to be, it wasn't.
Jenna was way off base on her assessment of Kyle's feelings. He didn't care for her at all.
Kyle strode toward his horse, swung up into the saddle and took off in a gallop, hoping to ride off some of his frustration.
Why wouldn't Sabrina talk to him about the other night? How was he supposed to find out how she really felt if she continued to refuse to have a conversation with him?
She had already written off their encounter and the kiss they shared, making it clear she had no interest in discussing it further.
Why? Because he hurt her the other night? He was experienced, more experienced than Sabrina. Her innocence made her vulnerable, and he had taken advantage of that. Then, when she responded like he wanted her to, he shut her down and told her he wasn't ready.
And they called women teases? He was worse than any high school girl who offered it up then pulled it away at the critical moment.
No wonder she didn't want to talk about it. Not only had he fired her up, he'd also shut off the flame he ignited in her. With a snap of his fingers he doused her fire, as if her desire meant nothing to him.
And now that she agreed to forget about it, he was the one wanting to bring it up again. And all because Jenna thought she saw something there.
Well maybe it had been there before, but he'd done a damn good job of pushing it away. And it appeared Sabrina was happy with the way things were now, and didn't want to take a step backward and dredge it all up again.
So why did she keep looking at him like she wanted to devour him on the spot? Like she wanted him so badly she could barely stand it.
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It always gave him a headache when he tried to figure out what women were thinking. Why even bother?
Jenna didn't know what she was talking about. Sabrina was innocent and inexperienced, and Kyle had confused the hell out her. And now that he made it clear he wasn't going to pursue her, she didn't want him at all. Which suited him just fine.
Didn't it?
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Chapter Nine
The calves bawled nervously in the metal pen adjacent to the long, rectangular corral. Crowds had begun to gather, many since early this morning.
Sabrina was so busy she didn't have time to watch the preparations for their first weekend roping. She had been working steadily, preparing the food and drink for the early morning arrivals. The tables were set up near the spectator's area, and already people were clamoring for coffee and pastries.
Participants in the roping were the first to arrive. They hung around the tables, thirsty for a cup of liquid caffeine to accompany the adrenaline already coursing through their veins at the thought of competition. Once they smelled the fresh baked pastries most decided they were hungry too.
Sabrina was thrilled at the turnout. There were at least twenty cowboys milling about, all talking about the roping. When the flyers were handed out announcing the ranch would be hosting a rodeo circuit event in four weeks, their talk grew more animated as excited whispers reverberated throughout the crowd.
"I can't believe it. A rodeo in our little town."
Sabrina smiled as a woman introduced herself as Lula Welton, wife of one of the ropers. A pretty young woman in her mid-twenties with a cherub face and short, curly blonde hair, Lula bobbed her head around excitedly.
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"When Bobby told me the Rocking M was having a roping, I was so excited I couldn't stand it. Ropings are hard to find around here--usually we have to travel more than fifty miles to find one. And then you're having a rodeo too? Bobby can't wait. Well, me either to tell you the truth. Bobby's been wanting to get into the circuit for some time now, but with the farm keeping him busy, he doesn't have the time to go to the ropings on the weekends. And now that it's so close we can come every weekend. Why I'm so hyped up I could just scream!"
Sabrina smiled benignly and listened to the young woman chatter on and on. Finally Lula left to find her husband.
"Gee, and I thought I talked fast," Sabrina commented dryly as she watched Lula chatter to everyone she saw as she headed toward the barn.
"She's always been that way," Jenna said with a laugh as she placed a tray of pastries on the table. "From the time she was born. Doc Maynard said he couldn't shut her up then and neither her momma nor her husband has been able to shut her up since."
"Well, at least she's enthusiastic about this. Maybe we could use her to promote the ropings and the rodeo," Sabrina said tongue-in-cheek.
Jenna rolled her eyes as she opened a package of cups and set them in front of the super-sized coffee pot. "Please, that's all we need. If Lula started talking up the rodeo, people would deliberately stay away because she annoyed them so much about it."
The next hour was spent busily selling coffee, juice and pastries to the growing crowd. By the time things slowed down, they were both exhausted, but overjoyed at the morning's sales.
"This was much more than I expected," Jenna said as she counted the money from the sale. "Granted it's not a fortune, but there's definitely a profit in here."
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Sabrina beamed. "I knew it would work. Just wait until lunch." She craned her neck to see the riders heading toward the corral to saddle their horses.
"Go ahead and watch. I've got it under control here," Jenna said as she pulled up a chair and eased into it. "It's slow right now and my feet could use a break. Damn heat is making them swell again. And my back is killing me today."
She was concerned about Jenna. She'd been complaining of her back hurting all morning, and try as she might to get her to go inside, Jenna refused. "Are you sure you don't want to lie down inside? I can watch things here while you rest."
Jenna propped her feet on a milk crate and waved her away. "It's much too beautiful today to lay down inside. Besides, I might miss something. I'm going to have a glass of tea and watch the roping from here."
Sabrina started to object again, but Jenna interrupted. "I'll be fine here, you go ahead."
As she headed to the corral she made a mental note to do a cost comparison of adding some help to the food and drink stands, instead of Jenna doing all the work.
There was a seat still available on one of the metal benches just outside the ring. Perfect timing as a roping was about to begin.
The men on horses were behind the starting line, the nervous calves parallel to them in a separately confined area. The gate opened and a small calf shot out and made a beeline for the opposite end of the long arena. Rider and horse flew past the starting line and took off after the calf at full steam. The cowboy kept one hand firmly on the reins, the other swinging the rope over his head.
It didn't take long for the rider to toss the rope over the calf's head.
The cowboy's horse stopped instantly and the rider leaped off and dashed toward the restrained calf. He threw the calf down and tied three of the
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animal's legs together using a string he was holding in his teeth. As soon as he was done he threw his hands in the air to let the judge know he was finished
. Then he remounted his horse and slackened the rope holding the now prone animal.
A few seconds ticked by and the calf struggled mightily but remained tied. The run was over and the rider was scored for his time.
Sabrina was amazed at the quickness and agility of the ropers. The events from start to finish couldn't have taken more than ten to fifteen seconds at most. Murmurs among the crowd indicated it was an average run, leading her to believe that some ropers could do it faster. Incredible.
To her it happened so fast it was all a blur.
Several other contestants did the same thing as the first, some faster, some slower than the others. Her heartbeat quickened every time a calf bolted through the gate and the next roper took off after the fast-footed animal. It was exciting to watch. She couldn't quite get over the dexterity and skill one had to have to rope a calf.
After watching at least half the riders do their runs, she reluctantly stood so she could go relieve Jenna. As she turned to leave, her gaze whipped to the next rider in the line. It was Kyle.
Unable to tear her gaze away, she stepped closer to the corral fence, resting her forearms on the top rung.
God he looked sexy. Dressed in faded jeans, weathered boots and a long-sleeved denim shirt, he wore beige chaps over his lean legs and sat his horse like a king. His black cowboy hat rode low over his face, obstructing most of Sabrina's view with the exception of the unshaven beard spread over his strong jaw.
She broke out in a sweat that had nothing to do with the warm weather.
The calf sprung through the gate and before Sabrina could blink Kyle tore out after the animal. He quickly roped the calf and flew off his horse, dropping and tying the bawling animal with lightning speed.
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The rest of the competitors looked like turtles next to him. She was stunned, her mouth gaping open in shock. She'd never seen anyone move so quickly, with so much precision and agility. The crowd agreed with her as they stood and cheered wildly for Kyle's performance. He scored a time under seven and a half seconds.
Turning to acknowledge the crowd, Kyle swept off his hat and smiled, his gaze scanning the bleachers until his eyes settled over her. Their gazes locked and he fixed her with a look of heated desire that melted her on the spot.
He was sending her a message. And she received it loud and clear.
Her cheeks flamed hot and she hoped no one could see the way he was looking at her.
But how could they? Their eyes had met for only a millisecond, but to Sabrina it was an eternity.
Just as fast as he'd spotted her he turned away, waved once more to the crowd and walked from the center of the corral, streams of applause still ringing out at his performance.
She stood at the fence until she couldn't see him any longer, then turned toward the concession area to relieve Jenna.
Sisterly pride rained over Jenna's face.
"Wow," was all Sabrina could say. Jenna nodded.
"Told you he was the best."
"The best is an understatement. That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. He was so fast, clearly heads above the others."
"I know. Of course these competitors ride the circuit, not professional rodeo like Kyle did. They'd expect him to be better. But I don't think many of them really knew how good he was."
"They know now," Sabrina said.
Jenna grinned. "Yes they do."
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"Nothing like a bunch of hungry cowboys to fill the coffers," Jenna said. "The barbecue cost us practically nothing and brought in more money than we thought it would."
Sabrina agreed. If today was any indication of the kind of crowds to expect every weekend, the sale of food and drink would certainly help bring in extra cash.
"We leased a lot of our stock today too," Brady added as he walked up and grabbed fresh lemonade from his sister. "More than I thought. Guess the guys don't want to haul their own horses here, which is much better for us. And they want to start steer wrestling and bull riding too, so the Old Devil will get quite a workout in the upcoming weeks."
Old Devil, Sabrina knew, was the Morgan's Brahman bull, a huge, mean-looking creature that clearly ruled the cattle roost on the ranch.
She'd given Old Devil a wide berth when Kyle pointed him out one day.
How anyone could ride something as big and fierce as him was beyond her. But she couldn't wait to watch someone try.
"That's great news," Sabrina said.
"Even better, I heard there'd be more ropers coming next weekend, now that the word's getting out we've been authorized to host a circuit event next month."
Jenna rubbed the small of her back as she gathered up the remaining food trays. "I'm so happy this worked out. Kyle's been carrying this burden alone for far too long, and I'm glad we're all doing something to help for a change."
Brady nodded. "Me too. Damn stubborn is what he is. Never once thought about sitting down with us and coming up with ideas to make money. He just thought he could do it the same way as it had always been done, except we were short on cash after...well, after..."
"After Amanda took one-third of what we own you mean?"
The three of them turned at the sound of Kyle's voice.
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"Yeah, after she took the money," Brady finished, not contrite in the least he'd been caught talking behind his brother's back.
"Anything else about me the three of you would like to discuss?" An angry tic formed at the corner of Kyle's mouth, twitching rapidly.
"We were just talking about how well everything went today," Sabrina said, hoping to diffuse a potentially explosive Kyle. "You did a wonderful job."
His gaze whipped to her, freezing her on the spot. Wow, was he angry. "I didn't do squat. All of you did."
Jenna touched the sleeve of his shirt. "That's not true, Kyle. You brought these people out here--all of them. Without your reputation, no one would have come."
He stared silently at his sister. Then his shoulders relaxed and he hugged her. "Thanks, Jenn," he said softly as he kissed the top of her head. "Thanks for all the work you did today, too. And shouldn't you be off your feet resting or something?" He glared at Sabrina as if Jenna's presence was somehow her fault.
"I tried to get her to rest, told her I would take over, but--"
"You should have tried harder," Kyle said sharply.
Jenna pushed away from her brother's embrace. "Hey, am I not here or something?"
Kyle looked down as Jenna tapped him in the chest with the point of her finger. "This isn't the dark ages, buddy, and I'm perfectly healthy.
And more than capable of deciding when and if I need to lie down. So just butt out and quit trying to blame Sabrina for something that's obviously my choice."
Now Sabrina knew what Kyle meant by the look Jenna gave him sometimes. She was spitting mad at her brother.
"Well that's my cue to hightail it out of here before my little sister decides to start on me." Brady donned his cowboy hat and turned away.
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"If it isn't the whole Morgan family, assembled like a herd as usual."
Amanda Dent's syrupy voice halted Brady's imminent exit. He turned to face her, as did Kyle and Jenna, a united family front.
"Go away Amanda," Kyle said. "You're not wanted here."
Amanda swept her long brown hair off her shoulders, her jewelry doing the same annoying jingling it had in the grocery store. "I didn't realize this event was invitation only. After all, it's not like the elite of Dreamwater are here. Then again," she added with a dismissing look at the lot of them, "they wouldn't come if they were invited."
"You're not invited, Amanda. I thought I made that perfectly clear when we divorced."
"We didn't divorce, darling. I divorced you, remember?"
Her sugary voice grated on Sabrina's nerves. It was beyond her how Kyle had stayed married to the shrew as
long as he had. Now she understood why he said he traveled so much.
"However, I see you've managed to find a new plaything," Amanda said as she eyed Sabrina and wrinkled her nose. "Lowering your expectations I see."
Sabrina bristled, not about to take any guff from the dime-store, country-club-queen wanna-be. "Now just a minute--"
Kyle cut her off. "As a matter of fact, I think I've upgraded, Amanda,"
he said as he slipped his arm around Sabrina and pulled her next to him.
Shock kept her from protesting his movements. Shock and the fact Amanda didn't like it one bit that Kyle had his arm possessively around Sabrina's waist. And that suited her just fine. Perhaps she'd see how far she could push the two-timing snob.
Sabrina pressed her left breast further into Kyle's chest as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Thank you, my love," she said as she turned her best dreamy-eyed look in his direction.
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Kyle looked down at her, and suddenly there was no game being played. His emerald eyes darkened, those flecks of yellow shimmering like gold in his heated gaze. She breathed deeply, her nipples awake and aware of the masculine chest they rested against as they rose and pebbled under her thin blue tank top. Her eyes widened at the sensation.
Kyle felt it too because he grinned. "Miss me while I was busy today, babe?"
It was all she could do not to burst into embarrassed flames on the spot. But she'd never let Amanda know this was all a game.
"You know I did," she said in a voice sounding too low and breathy to be her own. She trailed a finger along his chest and smiled like a contented cat. "You belong here, at my side, and when you're not here a part of me is missing."
"Well I'm here now," he answered and tilted her chin up. He wrapped his arms fully around her and pulled her close, then pressed his lips firmly against hers in a heated kiss that sent Sabrina's desire to dangerous levels. With that one kiss he inflamed her, and she wished with all her might that they were alone. His tongue darted deeply in her mouth before he pulled it back, sliding it gently against her open lips.
Their mouths parted and Kyle held her to him, smiling down at her as she stood rooted to the spot, utterly speechless.
If that was just an act then Kyle Morgan should win an Academy Award.
"This is disgusting," Amanda spit angrily. "We are in a public place, you know."
Sabrina tore her gaze away from Kyle and tried not to grin as Amanda looked ready to physically tear the two of them apart.
