by Cindy Stark
“Jesus,” she whispered as Caleb took hold of her elbow. She knew nature could be brutal, but knowing it and seeing it firsthand were two different things.
“You don’t need to see this,” Caleb said softly.
“She’s not a newborn lamb for hell’s sake,” Bill retorted. “She’s seen it all before.”
“It’s okay.” She lifted her gaze to Caleb, grateful to have him there, but knowing his presence made things even more difficult, too. “Bill’s right. This is a common scene these days living on a cattle ranch in Wyoming.”
Caleb nodded in acknowledgement.
“Where are the others?” she asked Bill.
“Farther back. You passed them on your way here.” Bill lifted his chin. “You need to listen to me and take care of this before it becomes a bigger problem, Rachel.”
“It’s illegal to kill them, Bill, in case you’ve forgotten.”
“Shoot ‘em, shovel ‘em and shut up. Who would know?” He jerked his head toward the surrounding area.
“I would know.” She was aware that others in town had used Bill’s solution, but she couldn’t bring herself to kill the beautiful animals or break the law.
Rachel thought she caught something shining in the shadows several hundred feet away and squinted in that direction. The wolves were out there somewhere close by, probably angry that someone had disturbed their breakfast.
Bill shoved his flashlight into his coat pocket. “That’s a damn stupid decision, Rachel. You’re going to continue to lose hundreds of dollars if you don’t do something.”
“Your uncle wouldn’t have hesitated,” Mickey added.
“When did you ever see my uncle shoot one?” Never.
Mickey closed the distance and joined the circle. “Just because you didn’t know about it didn’t mean it didn’t happen.”
She stared at him, trying to assess his motivation. She’d never completely trusted Mickey even though her uncle had. Still, the thought that Uncle Walt might have said what he’d said to placate her had a ring of truth to it now that she knew what else her uncle was capable of. “We’re not shooting them.”
“Yo,” Joe said as he emerged from a copse of evergreens. “Better come take a look.”
“Joe?” She glanced at Bill with a question.
“What ya got, Joe?” he said instead of answering her. Bill’s gait was quick as he took off across the hillside. The rest of the group followed.
Rachel knew what Joe had stumbled upon before she could see it. Labored breathing punctuated by rasping pain colored the quiet morning. “Shit,” she hissed under her breath and ran the last few steps.
She dropped to her knees on the cold, hard ground next to the wounded animal. “Oh, baby,” she crooned, knowing from the amount of blood matted in its fur that it had suffered a vicious attack. It was lucky to be alive. “Help me get her back to the truck.”
“Rachel,” Joe said in a quiet voice. “She’s not going to live. She’s hurt too bad.”
“How do you know?” She twisted her head to look at him. “You can’t make that kind of assessment out here in this light.”
Bill stepped next to her. “Listen to it. The wolves have damaged its air supply. If there wasn’t so damn much blood, I could tell you if it was its neck or lungs. But either way, it won’t last more than a few hours at best.”
“Did you bring your pistol?” Mickey asked her.
“I didn’t drive.” She looked to Bill with raised brows.
“You want me to do it? Why don’t you ask your fiancé instead?”
Heated anger flared inside her. “I didn’t ask you to shoot it. I want to know if you have your gun with you.”
“I’ll get mine.” Without waiting for an agreement from anyone, Caleb strode off toward the trucks.
The second he was out of hearing range, Rachel rounded on Bill. “Why are you being such an ass?”
“Why are you being such an idiot? Here you got some jackass you met on the internet sleeping in your bed, ready to give him half of everything you got when you marry him. He must have a mighty big dick.”
Mickey and Joe both sucked in surprised breaths.
The hatred in his words dredged so much anguish inside her that she couldn’t respond. She stared at him in the dim morning light, tears in her eyes as rage burned on his face. How could he be so hateful after they’d been close friends? She was only trying to save her land. If nothing else, he should be able to understand that.
At the sound of Caleb returning to the hillside, she turned and met him halfway, glancing toward the revolver in his hand. “I’ll take that if you don’t mind.”
“Rachel,” he said with a soft voice. “Let me do this for you.”
“No.” She swallowed her angst. “It’s my cow. I’ll do it.”
He didn’t question, but held out the gun instead. She took it and marched back to the suffering animal.
“Rachel,” Joe said as she aimed the gun.
She answered with a pull of the trigger. The explosion of the bullet ripped through the early dawn and echoed off the surrounding hills. The rasping sounds ceased.
Chapter Nine
Rachel handed the revolver back to Caleb, meeting his gaze with a defiant one of her own. If he thought, if any of them thought, she wasn’t capable of handling jobs that came with the ranch ownership, they could all think again. She had nothing against Caleb and appreciated his offer, but this was not the time to be coddled.
She strode past him and the others, not looking back as frustration mixed with misery to create a hell of a raging headache, not to mention heartache. She climbed into Caleb’s truck, arranged her features into a blank mask, and waited.
A few moments later, Caleb joined her. She stared straight ahead, not wanting to discuss what had just taken place.
Caleb started his truck and shifted it into gear. “Everything okay?”
“Fine,” she snapped.
He didn’t say another word as they drove down the hillside and he parked in front of the house. She jumped from his truck and headed for the red barn.
“Hey,” he called from behind her, but she didn’t stop. She refused to fall apart in front of him or anyone else. She’d pull herself together and be strong enough that none of them would break her.
Caleb grabbed her shoulder, bringing her to a halt just inside the building. “Hang on a minute, would ya?”
She lifted her gaze to his, dark emotion sweeping through her. “This isn’t a good time to talk.”
He slid his hand down her arm, capturing her by the wrist. “I know it’s not, and that’s exactly why you should.”
She tried to tug free, but he held on tight. Her frustration burst as tears flooded her eyes. “Dammit,” she whispered as she used her free hand to wipe away the traitorous moisture.
He lifted his hand and dried the other cheek. “Talk to me. Tell me what’s up. I learned a long time ago, it’s not good to keep stuff bottled inside, and you know I’m here to help you. Use me.”
Her frustration was out now. What was the point of trying to gather it and stuff it back in? “Bill is so damn hateful. He’s angry that you’re here, and he’s never going to let up.”
Caleb nodded, a solemn look stealing over his features. “I’ll talk to him.” He turned to leave.
“No.” She caught his hand. “That will make everything worse.”
“He needs to treat you with more respect.”
“I know.” But she’d have to be the one to demand it.
“Then fire his ass.”
“I couldn’t do that to him. He’s been a loyal employee, and I think once this blows over and you’re gone, he’ll go back to normal.”
“Do you really think so? He’s more or less tipped his hand to you. Once I’m gone, he’s going to make a push for you to accept him. How do you think he’s going to react if you reject him again?”
“I don’t know.” She lifted her hands and dropped them in a show of defeat. “I
just know I can’t take much more.” It was hard enough that she’d lost her dear uncle, but to have to fight for the right to her home made it all the more unbearable.
“You’ve had some rough times, lately, Rachel. How about you give yourself a break?” His deep voice soothed the raw, aching wound in her heart.
He held her gaze for a long moment, his eyes searching hers, drawing her toward a place where worry and angst couldn’t follow. “Aw, come here and let me hug you.”
She didn’t resist when he slid his hands behind her back and pulled her against him. A heavy sigh slipped from her lips as intense sensations chased away her fears. Without hesitation, she laid her head against his warm, solid chest. His rugged coat smelled fresh like the outside air. She closed her eyes and rested her head against him.
He drew his hand over her back in soothing strokes. At first, the motions comforted her, but as moments turned into a minute, the closeness between them roused long-buried desire.
“What are you doing?” She lifted her gaze to his.
“Loving you better.” The sound of his deep voice rumbled through her, vibrating her insides.
She swallowed as her pulse increased with each caress. “I don’t need you to love me better.”
He studied her for a long moment. His face was an inch from hers, close enough she could see the lines in his lips and the flecks of gold in his eyes. She froze as she sensed his intentions, unable to decide if she should flee or stay.
“You need someone to love you better, and right now, I’m all you’ve got.” He slid a hand up her back, burying his fingers in her hair. “I’ve wanted to do this from the first moment I saw you.”
He drew a thumb across her bottom lip as though he needed to blaze a trail for his lips. When his mouth captured hers, she involuntarily released a moan as she escaped into the pleasure of the moment.
Ah, damn…
He tasted so good. He took her from worried to wanton in the space of a few seconds.
He captured her face in his hands, holding her tightly, owning her with his kiss. Her thoughts evaporated as everything inside her melted into a delicious pool of need. God forgive her for not resisting.
She slipped her hands beneath his coat, delving into the warm darkness, pressing the pads of her fingers against his t-shirt and into his firm flesh.
He was strong and unyielding, and she suddenly understood why her uncle wanted her to have a man in her life. It wasn’t because she couldn’t handle the ranch. More that her life at the ranch would be so much sweeter and easier with someone like Caleb around.
Right now, she wanted that more than anything.
She should step away, but she wouldn’t. Caleb set her on fire the way no man had, and she wouldn’t stop until he did.
She returned his kiss, needing to show him the delicious way he twisted her up inside. In return, he ran his tongue along the crease of her lips, and she opened, the physical act mimicking what she felt in her heart. She pressed herself against him, needing to be closer.
They stumbled as she backed him against the edge of a stall. He twisted and pinned her against the rough wooden structure.
“Caleb,” she whispered against his mouth, afraid of the wild feelings he’d unleased.
“Shh… I’ll stop if you want, but…” He kissed her and then kissed her again.
The scent of him, the taste of him. More. She craved him and didn’t care if—
“What the fuck?”
The sound of Bill’s angry voice coming from the doorway was equivalent to being tossed into the Shoshone River in early spring. She gasped and separated from Caleb like she’d been caught doing something wrong.
“Jesus Christ. Get a fucking room.” Bill shot her a disgusted look before he swiveled on his boots and strode from the barn.
Rachel’s breaths came hard as she watched him walk away before she turned her gaze back to Caleb. Her heart thudded so hard she was certain it would jump out of her chest. She reached for the edge of an empty horse stall to steady herself.
He returned her gaze, uncertainty flickering in his eyes. “He shouldn’t talk to you like that.”
“I know. But…”
“There are no buts. A man does not treat a lady that way no matter how pissed off he is.”
“You’re the one who told me I’d hurt him because I agreed to marry you. He’s just—”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Life had returned, chasing away whatever passion she’d found, and the pressure threatened to break her. “I…should go. I’ll talk to him.”
“Rachel…” He reached toward her, but she took a step back.
She held up a hand. “It’s okay.” But it wasn’t. She’d kissed a virtual stranger who had elicited a reaction like she’d never known. A man who’d leave in a few months. She needed to keep things good between her and Bill so she could carry on when all was said and done. Caleb wouldn’t be there for her then. Bill needed his job, and she needed him.
“Are you sure?” Caleb looked like he was about to reach for her again.
She placed her fingertips against her lips. “We shouldn’t do that.” Her cheeks heated at the mention of their powerful kiss. “It makes things around the ranch more difficult.”
He started to shake his head, a fiery argument blazing in his eyes, but then he stopped. With a nod, he removed his cowboy hat and placed it over his heart. “I’ve put you in an awkward position, and I shouldn’t. It won’t happen again.”
“No, you’re…” She couldn’t very well agree since it contradicted her desires. “I mean—”
“You don’t have to explain.” He released a sigh. “I’m not going to lie. You’re very pretty, Rachel, and I can’t deny I’m attracted to you. But you’re my employer, and I should respect that. Forgive me?”
“Oh…of course.” She shook her head as though to clear the air. “No worries.”
“Thank you. I do know how important this is for you.”
“Yes. It is.” Her ranch was everything, and this moment was turning impossibly awkward. Her heart still pounded, and her body ached for him to touch her again. “I…have work to do so I should probably get to it.”
“Something I can help with? I feel like a useless fool sitting around all day. Use me before I go crazy.”
Use him? She swallowed her sexy thoughts.
“Please. I need to be needed.”
She needed to be free of him before she seduced him this time, but she couldn’t very well say no. “Give me a few minutes. I need to talk to Bill. Then I’m headed out to check fences and see if that big snowstorm and high winds did any damage over the winter.”
****
Rachel trudged across the muddy ground toward the oversized garage that housed some of their larger equipment. Joe had said he’d seen Bill head in that direction, which didn’t surprise her. He’d made it his home away from home of sorts, and she knew he kept a stash of whiskey in the back corner of one of the bottom cupboards. He had for years.
She pulled hard on the creaky old door and stepped inside. The lights were on, so she knew he was there. But where?
She stepped around the large tractor they used to cut hay, and she moved toward the back of the building. But he wasn’t there, either. It wasn’t like him to leave the lights on.
She circled the large room again, stepping over an old engine block and past the riding lawn mower.
“Bill?” she called, not expecting an answer.
“What?”
The deep voice startled her, and she whirled around toward the tractor, her gaze drawn by movement above her. She tilted her head and found him sitting in the tractor’s seat. Next to his feet was a half-empty bottle of whiskey.
An uncomfortable shiver lifted the hairs on her arm. He’d been watching her the whole time.
“Could you come down here so we can talk for a moment?”
“About what?” He was angry and pouting.
She kept her gaze on him but refus
ed to respond until he met her face-to-face.
After a few long seconds, he stood and navigated his way down. Instead of staying where he landed, he closed the few feet between them until he was directly in front of her. He had on the same dirty shirt he’d worn the past three days, and he was sorely in need of a shower.
“What do you want?” The strong smell of whiskey clung to his breath, making her wonder if now was not the best time to talk.
Still, this needed to be handled before things festered any worse. “We need to talk about what just happened.”
He folded his arms and stared down at her, his eyes bloodshot and unhappy.
She exhaled, trying to get her bearings. “You have to stop being so rude to Caleb and so angry with me.”
“He’s an ass. He just wants you for your money and land.”
“That’s not true. We’re both very much in love.”
He stared, his eyes as hard as stone.
“Have you considered how my upcoming marriage benefits you as well? Have you thought about what it would be like to have Franklin as a boss? You think Caleb is an ass? Take a close look at my cousin.”
Bill’s gaze softened, and he nodded in acknowledgement. “Ain’t any of us that will work for him. You’re the only boss we want.”
“See? So how about some consideration for my feelings?” Finally, she was getting somewhere. She’d ruffled his feathers and probably made him feel ostracized.
He took hold of one shoulder and then her other, swaying slightly as he did. When he’d confronted her and Caleb in the barn, he hadn’t seemed drunk, but he must have started drinking earlier to be so wasted right now. “I never meant to hurt you, Rachel. But you know you don’t have to marry Caleb to save your land. There are other ways. You could marry me instead.”
Her fear returned. “I love Caleb,” she reiterated and tried to step back. His firm grip held her in place.
“If you let yourself, you would love me more. I know this land. It’s in my blood as much as yours.” Another wave of alcohol-infused breath hit her. “We belong together.”
