Her Hill Country Cowboy

by Myra Johnson

  This was getting a bit too awkward. Christina edged her chair away from the table. “I think I’m ready for seconds. Would you excuse me?”

  Seth stood abruptly, Diana’s hand falling away. “Mind if I tag along? I need a tea refill.”

  But instead of detouring to the beverage table, Seth accompanied Christina to the serving line. While she waited for the pastor to fill her bowl, she cast Seth a curious glance. “Thought you needed more iced tea.”

  “Not really.” He grimaced. “Just needed a break from Diana.”

  “She does seem to have a thing for you.”

  “We’re friends. That’s all.”

  Not the message Christina was getting, at least from Diana. Retrieving her bowl, she started back to the table, then had second thoughts. Pausing in front of Seth, she said, “This has been really fun, but I’m verging on social overload. I’ll wait for you by your pickup, okay?”

  “I’ve about had it, too. I’ll be right behind you after I say my goodbyes.”

  Before Christina could argue that he didn’t have to cut his time short on her account, he jogged away. Finding an out-of-the-way spot at the corner of the church building, she finished her bowl of chili and then deposited the bowl in a waste receptacle. A few minutes later, Seth strode toward her with two frosty water bottles.

  “Thought you might need this for the road,” he said, handing her one. “Ready to go?”

  With Gracie secured in the back seat, Seth pulled out of the parking lot. As he drove through town, Christina cast him an appraising glance. He seemed as relieved as she was to escape the crowd...or maybe just the attentions of one overly zealous admirer. A tease in her tone, Christina said, “Anytime life gets too stressful for you, I’m happy to share my dog.”

  He shot her a grin, and the tension lines around his eyes and mouth began to soften. “Might have to take you up on that.”

  When they turned off Main Street, Christina smirked as they neared the spot where she’d first met Seth. “Oh, look, here’s our special place. Rescued any turtles lately?”

  Seth surprised Christina by hitting the brakes and steering the pickup to the curb. He shifted to face her, his expression growing serious. “I hope you’ve forgiven me for how I acted that day—about Gracie, I mean. She’s a terrific dog, and I was an ignorant jerk.”

  Lips twisted to one side, Christina tapped a finger on her chin. “Yes, yes, yes...and no.”

  Seth quirked a brow. “Huh?”

  “Yes, I’ve forgiven you. Yes, Gracie is most certainly a terrific dog. And yes, you showed your ignorance that day. But I’d never stoop so low as to call you a jerk.” She winced. “Well, not to your face, anyway.”

  Laughter burst from Seth’s throat. “Nobody could ever accuse you of holding back the truth.”

  She kept her smile in place, but the little detail she’d kept from him at his grandparents’ request now churned in her belly and made her wish she hadn’t downed the second helping of chili. Laying a hand on her stomach, she reached for her water bottle.

  He tilted his head. “You feeling okay?”

  “Guess I ate too much.” She took several sips of water. “We should get going. I still have a cabin to clean.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll help.” Glancing over his left shoulder, Seth pulled onto the road, then looked back at Christina with a wink. “I was thinking we should put up a marker back there to commemorate the day you came into my—” Blinking rapidly, he cleared his throat. “That is, when the kids and I first met you. Because you’ve really made a difference in our lives.”

  “I’m just glad I’ve been able to help.” Then, to lighten the moment, she added, “Actually, it probably wouldn’t hurt to erect a Turtle Crossing sign so future turtle-rescuing do-gooders don’t get rear-ended.”

  “Good idea.” Seth’s easy laugh warmed her. When he reached across the console to give her hand a quick squeeze, a whole new batch of feelings spiraled through her chest.

  This was crazy. She was crazy to imagine for a minute that this could ever be anything more than friendship. In fact, she’d be better off remembering Seth was her employer and her job at Serenity Hills was only a means to an end.

  Gracie stretched a paw between the seats and yipped softly.

  Seth glanced over. “What’s she telling you?”

  “Probably that she’s ready to get home. It’s been a long day for her, too.” It was as close to the truth as Christina dared admit, when she knew perfectly well her own tumultuous thoughts had pricked Gracie’s senses.

  They drove the rest of the way in silence. Seth parked in front of the garage and helped Christina get Gracie out of the back seat.

  “Thanks for taking me to the cook-off.” Christina absently massaged the hip that sometimes stiffened up. “And thanks for bringing me back early. Guess I’d better get cleaning.”

  “I told you I’d help. It’ll go twice as fast with both of us working.”

  “You really don’t have to—Gracie, stop!” Either the dog really thought Christina’s emotions were on overload, or she was just being a pest.

  Seth laughed. “I think she wants you to accept my help.”

  “Okay, fine.” At her dog’s next insistent nudge, Christina pushed back. “I get the message, girl—”

  Gracie shoved again, throwing her off balance and straight into Seth’s chest.

  “Easy there.” Seth steadied her in his solid embrace, his surprised breath warm against her face.

  Nerves aflame, Christina kept her eyes lowered. “I don’t know what’s gotten into that dog.”

  “I think I do.” Seth’s tone had grown husky, and now Christina couldn’t keep herself from peering into his shadowed gaze. Half-lidded eyes, dark and intense, revealed his inner struggle with emotions he clearly resisted.

  She knew those feelings well. Her hands clamped down on his forearms. “Seth, please...”

  “This is crazy, I know.” Inch by inch, he inclined his head toward hers. “But there’s something about you. Something I can’t—”

  At the rumble of tires on gravel, Christina jerked away, her heart galloping. Where was her dog when she needed her?

  Seth’s chest heaved, and the look he shot Christina spoke both his regret and his relief, because he had to know as well as she did that they’d just been saved from crossing a bridge of no return.

  Chapter Eight

  Almost kissing Christina? What had he been thinking?

  Scratch that, because Seth’s brain must have gone on vacation about the time Christina fell into his arms. If the Finches hadn’t driven up at that exact moment, he could have made the second-worst mistake of his life.

  The first being the day he let Georgia leave with their children.

  Except thinking of Christina as a mistake went against everything in him. He was attracted to her, no use denying it, and a tiny but growing corner of his heart yearned to find out if something more could come of these feelings.

  No time to dwell on the possibilities now, though, not with a cabin to clean and three rowdy boys stampeding around the ranch like a herd of broncs. While Christina readied the cabin with clean sheets and towels, Seth showed the Finch family inside to the reception desk and got them signed in. They apologized for arriving earlier than expected and said they didn’t mind hanging out until their accommodations were ready. Soon they’d provided Seth with a long list of activities they wanted to plan, including riding lessons, trail rides, swimming, fishing and lakeside barbecues.

  This was going to be one busy week, probably a good thing because there’d be plenty to keep Seth’s mind on the ranch guests and off the charmingly fascinating housekeeper he was trying hard not to fall for—and failing miserably.

  Despite his best avoidance measures, his path often crossed with Christina
’s over the next several days as they saw to the guests’ needs. Things got even busier when a young couple and a family of four made reservations for the weekend.

  On Thursday morning, as Seth headed out to the barn to get horses ready for the Finches’ daily trail ride, he glimpsed Christina struggling to push the maid’s cart up the hill. The grimace twisting her face, along with her obvious limp, told him she was hurting. He did a quick about-face and jogged over.

  “Here, let me.” Easing the handle from her grip, he pushed the cart the rest of the way to the workroom.

  She trudged in behind him, rubbing her hip. “Thanks. Not sure I could have made it if you hadn’t come to my rescue.”

  “Bad, huh?” Seth guided her to a folding chair. “Would it help to prop your foot on something?”

  “No, I just need to stretch through the cramp.” Extending her leg, she closed her eyes and took several slow breaths.

  Seth looked down to see Gracie sitting at his feet. Those big brown eyes staring up at him seemed to say, Do something, you idiot.

  He glared at the dog. “You think you’re so smart, don’t you?”

  Christina’s eyes popped open. “What?”

  “Oh, uh, not you. I mean, obviously you’re very smart. I mean, really smart, not—” Since when did grown men babble? He shot Christina a sheepish grin. “I was talking to the dog.”

  Looking a little less pained, Christina called Gracie over and scratched her behind the ears. “Are you pestering Seth? What is going on with you lately, girl?”

  “I think she’s trying to tell me we’ve been working you too hard.” That was his story and he was sticking by it. Turning his back on the woman who’d started showing up in his dreams way too often, he began transferring towels and sheets to the laundry collection bin.

  Christina stepped up beside him and gathered an armful of damp towels. “You don’t have to do that. Aren’t you taking the Finches on another trail ride this morning?”

  “Rafael’s getting the horses saddled. I’ve got time.” Idiot. She’d given him the perfect out and he opted not to take it. He studied what looked like a chocolate stain on a pillowcase. “Looks like the Finch boys are snacking in their beds again.”

  “Figures. There were several candy bar wrappers in the wastebasket.” Tossing in another towel, Christina groaned. “I love kids, but those boys have run me ragged this week.”

  “Three more days and they’re gone. Think you can survive?”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  Gracie poked her nose between them and whined.

  Christina huffed. “Honestly, girl. When we get back to Little Rock—” Flicking Seth an embarrassed glance, she snapped her mouth shut.

  His chest deflated. “I get it. Omi told me this was an interim job for you, so I know you hope to go back to...whatever you were doing before.”

  “Yes, that’s the plan.” Christina dropped the last of the laundry into the bin, then marched over to the supply shelf. While methodically referring to the notebook she pulled from her pocket, she restocked the cart with an assortment of travel-size soaps, shampoos and lotions.

  “I still don’t know what you used to do.” Seth set a stack of clean towels on the cart. “But I’m guessing it involved kids somehow. What was it, a day care? Kindergarten teacher?”

  “Um, no, not exactly.” Fingers coiled in Gracie’s ruff, she straightened. “Shouldn’t you be heading out on your ride?”

  Seth studied her through slitted eyes. He was about to press for the answers she seemed so reluctant to give, when three freckle-faced boys tumbled through the door.

  “Hey, Seth.” Bobby Finch, the oldest, swept a hank of red hair off his sweaty forehead. “Are you coming or not?”

  “Be right there. Don’t forget your helmets.” When they’d taken their roughhousing outside again, he turned to tell Christina he’d see her later, only she had her cell phone to her ear.

  “I’m doing great, Mom.” She wiggled her fingers at Seth. “Sure, I can talk for a few minutes.”

  With a lopsided smile, he waved back, then headed out to the barn. About time he got his head on straight where Christina Hunter was concerned.

  Over the course of the week, the Finch kids had turned into pretty decent riders. As boisterous as they could be when chasing each other around the ranch or splashing in the lake, once they climbed into the saddle, they settled right down. Seth knew from years of being around horses how calming they could be. He recalled the framed words of Winston Churchill that hung over the registration desk: “There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.”

  He supposed the same basic truth held for what Gracie did for Christina.

  And maybe Christina’s good for you like that, too?

  Except she made him feel anything but settled. In fact, it had been awhile since he’d felt this particular kind of completely unsettled.

  * * *

  “No, Mom, I haven’t decided yet how much longer I’ll be working here.” Christina carried her phone outside where she could catch the morning breeze. And, okay, where she could catch a glimpse of Seth Austin on horseback.

  “But you promise you’re feeling well? Not overdoing?” Mom had slipped into her worried-mother voice.

  “I told you, I’m fine.” The nagging ache in her hip said otherwise, but Christina didn’t dare mention it.

  “I ran into Lindsey Silva at the supermarket the other day. She asked about you.”

  Lindsey had been Christina’s supervisor at Child Protective Services. “That’s nice. How are things going at the department?”

  “They miss you, naturally. Lindsey said if you ever feel like you’re ready to come back...”

  Seth and his riders, including Eva perched up front with him and Joseph riding Spot, headed toward the lake, and Christina stepped to the end of the garage for a better view. She’d rather be out there with them right now instead of skirting difficult topics with her mother. “If you see Lindsey again, tell her I said hi. I should go, Mom. Still have some work to finish.”

  Her mother said a reluctant goodbye. Tucking the phone into her pocket, Christina heaved a sigh and tore her gaze from the riders now making their way along the hillside trail.

  As she started back to the workroom, Marie called to her from the porch. “Got a minute, hon? Need to talk to you about something.”

  “Sure. What’s up?”

  Marie motioned Christina inside, where she led her down the hall to the office and quietly closed the door.

  Insides quivering, Christina reached for her dog. “This looks serious. I hope I haven’t messed up somehow.”

  “Oh, no, not at all.” Marie plopped into one of the side chairs and absently pointed Christina to the other. “Sorry, a lot on my mind this week. You know I took Bryan to see his doc yesterday.”

  “Yes, how did it go?”

  “Doc made some adjustments to his meds and says he’s doing pretty good, all things considered.” Marie’s mouth flattened. “Except he has to cut back on the stress.”

  Christina had a feeling she knew where this was going. “The doctor wants him to retire?”

  “You got it.” Marie’s eyes glistened. “I don’t know what to do, Christina. The ranch is Bryan’s whole life. If he has to give it up, I’m afraid that’ll be what kills him.”

  “Isn’t there a happy medium? Can’t Seth assume more of the management responsibilities?”

  “He’s doing all he can already, on top of being the best dad he can be to those two little ones.” With a shake of her head, Marie rose and paced to the window. “I’m thinking our only choice is to make a clean break. Sell the ranch and move away from Juniper Bluff. If I could convince Bryan to take up golf or fishing, anything to keep him active without stressing him out
...”

  She didn’t sound convinced, only desperate, and Christina didn’t know how to help. She joined Marie at the window and slid an arm around her waist. “I’m so sorry. I wish I could do something.”

  “Thanks, honey.” Marie gave her a quick hug. “I just thought you should know. The future’s looking too uncertain, and I wouldn’t want you to feel obligated to stay if you can find work somewhere else. Leastways, maybe this’ll get you back to Little Rock and your career sooner.”

  Suddenly torn, Christina chewed her lip. Her mother’s mention of Lindsey Silva had stirred a restlessness to hurry things along. She was tired of being held captive by her injuries from the auto accident. The aching hip she could deal with, but the effects of head trauma—headaches, anxiety, roller-coaster emotions, occasional forgetfulness—had sidelined her much too long. She grew increasingly eager to get back to the life the accident had stolen from her.

  But then the sense of belonging she’d admitted to a few days ago—those feelings were strong, too. The Petersons, Seth and the children had begun to seem as much like family as her own mother and father. In some ways even more so, because here she was treated like a capable adult, not a recovering invalid.

  Well, except for times like this morning, when she pushed herself too hard and Seth came to her rescue.

  She gave Marie another squeeze. “You’re right, we don’t know what the future holds. But if and when I decide it’s time to move on, I’ll give you plenty of notice. Until then, I’m here to help in any way I can.”

  Nodding mutely, Marie grabbed a tissue from the box on the desk. After blowing her nose, she cast Christina a misty-eyed smile. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—God brought you to us for a reason, and I’m thanking Him for it every single day.”

  Excusing herself to get back to work, Christina had to pause in the hallway to dab away a tear of her own.

  By the time she finished the morning chores, her stomach was demanding lunch. At her cabin, she made a ham-and-cheese sandwich and a tumbler of iced tea, then took the meal outside and plopped down in the red porch chair. Gracie stretched out across the floor with her chin resting on the toe of Christina’s sneaker.