Her Rugged Rancher

by Stella Bagwell

  With good-natured grumbling, the two men left to fetch the slickers from the tack room. Noah remained standing at the door’s edge, watching the rivulets of water creating tiny creeks across the packed ground in front of the barn. Lightning continued to crackle close by and Noah thought about the horses they’d turned out to pasture earlier that morning. Instinct would have them running straight for the shelter of the trees. Hopefully, the lightning would spare them.

  Just as Reggie and Lew were returning with the slickers, Jett caught the faint sound of his cell phone ringing. As he pulled it from his pocket to answer, he stepped backward, hoping to lessen the din of the rain.

  “Yes, Jett, it’s raining here,” he said before the other man had a chance to say anything. “We’re going to have grass now, buddy!”

  “The rain is a welcome sight,” Jett agreed, “except that it has me worried.”

  “Can’t do anything about the lightning, Jett. Just pray the cattle and horses don’t get hit.”

  “It’s not the livestock I’m worried about. It’s Bella. She left work early with intentions of riding Casper. I warned her to take a slicker, but I never expected a storm like this. Otherwise I would’ve told her not to go!”

  Noah felt like an icy north wind just whammed him in the face. “She probably has her cell phone with her. Have you tried calling?”

  Jett blew out an impatient breath. “For the past thirty minutes. My calls are going straight to her voice mail. I’ve been ringing her landline, too, but no answer there, either. Are you still at the ranch yard?”

  “Yeah. We still have a few chores here.”

  “Oh, I thought maybe with the rain you’d already headed home and spotted her along the way.”

  “Don’t worry, Jett. I’m going to go look for her.”

  “Noah, that would be like searching for a rabbit in a field of rose hedge! When Bella goes riding it’s not just a little five-minute jaunt from the house and five back. She might go for miles. Especially considering the mood she was in!”

  Jett’s last remark caught Noah’s attention, but he didn’t press the other man to explain. There wasn’t time for that. Besides, Noah had been in a hell of a mood himself for the past few days.

  “I said don’t worry,” Noah clipped. “I have an idea where she might’ve gone. I’ll call you as soon as I find her.”

  He abruptly ended the call and turned to see Lew and Reggie walking up the alleyway of the barn. He hurried to meet them and snatched one of the oiled dusters thrown over Lew’s shoulder.

  As he jammed his arms into the sleeves, he said, “Sorry, guys. An emergency has come up and I have to leave. You two handle things here.”

  Reggie asked, “Don’t you need our help?”

  Already in a run out of the barn, Noah yelled, “I’ll call you if I do.”

  Once the dirt road passed the main ranch house, it was rough and rocky, but today with water already washing out ruts and dislodging boulders, the track was downright treacherous. Noah tried to go as fast as possible, but every few feet he was forced to downshift and jerk the steering wheel one way and then the other.

  All the while he negotiated the truck over the rough terrain, icy fear continued to grow inside him. If Bella had ridden down the canyon, a flash flood could have swept her and Casper away. But even if she wasn’t in the canyon, lightning was cracking all across the mesa. Even if it didn’t strike her and the horse directly, it could definitely cause a tree to crash down on them.

  What are you getting all panicky about, Noah? Other than being your boss’s sister, she’s nothing special to you. If she’d been that special, you would’ve already told her so. You would’ve confessed to her that she was the very beat of your heart. And you certainly wouldn’t keep pushing her away.

  Cursing at the mocking voice in his head, Noah twisted the windshield wipers to the fastest speed and hunched forward in an effort to see through the downpour. If Bella was out there, he’d have hell seeing her like this, he thought grimly.

  Nothing is over, Noah. It’s just now beginning. Pretty soon you’re going to wake up and see that for yourself. When you do, you know where to find me.

  These past few days Bella’s words had been haunting him, making him wonder if he was a selfish bastard, a complete fool, or both. Now he was getting the uneasy feeling that she was right. His eyes were opening, but at the moment he didn’t know where to find her.

  By the time he reached Bella’s house, Noah had failed to spot her or any sign of Casper’s hoofprints in the muddy road. After a quick glance around, he headed to a garage built on the far end of the house. Her car was parked inside, so she’d clearly made it all the way home.

  At the back door, he pounded loudly. “Bella? Are you in there?”

  After a few moments passed with no response, he hurried to the barn. Mary Mae was dry and safe in one of the stalls, while Casper was nowhere to be seen. Noah was certain Bella would never stall one horse and leave the other in the pasture, so that meant she was still out in the storm somewhere. And the only way to find her was to saddle up and start searching.

  A few minutes later, he reined the bay mare away from the barn and down a dim trail leading south. With heavy rain falling for more than an hour, there was no chance of spotting the tracks Casper had made when Bella rode away from the barn. Noah could merely guess and hope he was on the right path. But something deep in his gut told him she’d ridden to the canyon.

  He’d warned her not to ride there alone. Besides the terrain being extremely rough, flash flooding could occur in a matter of minutes. But Bella didn’t exactly follow his advice, he thought ruefully. In her opinion, he was overly cautious and too worried about something going wrong to let himself enjoy the pleasures of life. And perhaps he did approach everything with caution. Even loving her.

  We’ve gone through this before, Noah, you don’t love Bella. You love taking her to bed, that’s all.

  Then why the hell was he out here, in the middle of a violent thunderstorm, searching for her? Streaks of lightning were exploding over his head. Rain was pelting his face and turning the brim of his hat into a waterfall. He wasn’t out here just because he enjoyed her warm, giving body, he thought desperately. No, Bella had become precious to him. So precious that if anything happened to her, his world would be nothing more than a black abyss.

  After what seemed like an eternity, he reached the rim of the canyon and continued to travel along the edge until he found a spot he considered safe enough to descend the steep wall. But Mary Mae had other ideas and refused to take the path he’d chosen. Deciding she probably had more sense than he did about such things, he gave the mare her head and before long she found a crevice in the canyon rim wide enough for the two of them to pass through.

  Patting her neck, he encouraged the courageous mare forward. “Good girl! Now see if you can get us to the bottom safely.”

  *

  A half mile on down the canyon, Bella and Casper were perched on a narrow shelf of earth. Less than three feet beneath them, churning, muddy water raced over the canyon floor, carrying tumbleweeds, broken limbs and old logs. Small willow trees and bushes of sage bent beneath the force of the current and Bella realized if the rain continued to fall at this rate, the water would rise quickly and become even more dangerous.

  Earlier this afternoon, when the rain had first started, she’d donned her slicker and turned around to head for home. But the storm had intensified very quickly. She’d tried to shelter beneath a small copse of evergreens and call Jett to give him her location and assure him she was on her way home. But the weather had knocked out the signal, making her phone useless.

  Now the narrow shelf where she stood hunched next to Casper was only a temporary refuge. She needed to get herself and the horse out of the canyon. But even if she led the horse, rather than ride him, the bank behind them was far too steep and muddy for either of them to make the climb. That meant her only choice was to try to ford the water until she could
find a place to climb to safety.

  Oh God, she should’ve listened to Jett’s prediction of rain. And she definitely should’ve heeded Noah’s warning not to ride alone in the canyon. But for the past few days the constant ache in her chest had worn her down and the wild beauty of the canyon had started to call her. It was the one place where she could stop her mind from spinning long enough to really contemplate what was important in her life and what baggage she needed to throw away.

  Before the storm had hit, she’d been thinking how much she loved Noah and how much he’d brought to her life. Earlier today, when she’d been talking to Jett, she’d lost her patience and her temper. But now, with rain streaming into her eyes and bolts of electricity dancing around her, she realized that no matter what Noah said, or if he went so far as to leave the J Bar S, she wasn’t going to give up on him or the hope of them being together.

  God willing she made it out of this flash flood, she was going straight to his cabin and she wasn’t going to leave until he agreed to go with her to Arizona. He’d left his wounded heart there. And until he got it back, there was no hope he’d ever give her a piece of it.

  Suddenly there was a flash directly across the span of rushing water and she looked up just in time to see a huge pine splitting down the middle. Fire blazed along the trunk, while ear-deafening thunder echoed through the canyon.

  Terrified, Casper jumped backward. Bella screamed and stared in horror as the horse’s back feet teetered on the edge of the solid ground.

  “Whoa, boy! Whoa!” Knowing she had to appear strong and reassuring to the horse, she firmly pulled him forward until he was safely back to the center of the ledge. Then gently stroking his neck, she pressed her cheek against his. “It’s okay, big guy. We’re going to get out of this.”

  Casper nickered as though he understood what she was saying and then she realized his ears had gone on point, telling her he’d spotted something out there in the storm.

  Turning, she stared through the white wall of rain, blinking at the rivulets running into her eyes. She could see nothing. But then she heard the faint sound of another horse answering Casper’s call.

  Could it be coming from a wild herd of mustangs seeking shelter from the storm, or had someone actually come looking for her?

  By the time the horses exchanged another whinny, Bella spotted a horse and rider slowly making their way along the side of the north canyon wall. The muddy water churned all the way to the horse’s knees and not far from the rider’s stirrups.

  Oh, God! It was Noah on Mary Mae!

  More terrified than she’d ever been in her life, she watched the two of them slowly making their way toward her and Casper. There was no way of predicting if the mare’s next step might take them into a deep hole or if she might walk straight into a boulder. Either way, Noah would probably be jolted from the saddle and into the churning water. The mare would bolt and end up in even more danger.

  Why was he risking himself like this? Why hadn’t he called the county rescue unit and let them take care of her? Could she dare hope it was because he might actually love her?

  “Casper, the storm has made me delirious,” she said to the horse. “I’m not thinking straight!”

  Long, tense minutes passed before Noah finally got close enough to call out to her. By then it was all Bella could do to keep her tears at bay.

  “Bella, are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” she called back to him. “Just wet. I don’t know how Casper and I are going to get out of here.”

  “You’re going to have to ride out. The way Mary Mae and I came in.”

  Bella had always thought of herself as brave, but when she looked at the swirling water below her, she could feel her knees begin to quake.

  “I’m not sure I can. The ground was barely covered with water when I jumped Casper onto the ledge. I don’t think he’ll be too happy to leap off dry ground and into a raging creek.”

  “Happy or not, you have to make him do it,” he yelled above the roar of the rain and thunder. “Mount up and I’ll throw you a rope.”

  Seeing no other way, Bella followed his instructions and climbed into the saddle. Noah rode closer and tossed her the end of a lariat.

  “Tie that around the horn. If Casper stumbles or falls it might help keep him upright.”

  Nodding, she looped the rope around the saddle horn and tied it as tight as her cold, wet fingers could manage.

  “It’s tied. Now what?”

  “Make him jump toward me. Once he gets his feet under him we’ll head back in that direction.” He pointed to the east and Bella nodded that she understood his instructions, but following them through was going to be another matter.

  Bella didn’t have time to sit there worrying or trying to gather her courage. With each passing minute the water was rising. If they didn’t get out of the canyon soon they were going to be swept away completely.

  Fighting the urge to close her eyes, she kicked Casper forward. When he halted at the edge, she smooched to him and gave him a tap on the rump. He leaped and as they hit the water, it splashed all around her, momentarily blinding her. Beneath her, she could feel the horse stumbling, falling to his knees. Water filled her boots and soaked her jeans all the way to her waist, but she hardly noticed the discomfort. Instead her entire focus was on lifting the reins in an effort to help the animal stay upright.

  “Hang on, Bella! Don’t let him fall.”

  Somehow the horse found stable footing and with great relief, she slumped weakly forward in the saddle, but there was hardly time to catch her breath before the tug of the lariat reminded her that they had to keep moving.

  It took them more than a half hour to navigate their way back to the point from where they could climb the canyon wall and finally reach safety. There were several times Bella wondered if she could go on. Between her heart racing with fear and the struggle to ride over such rough terrain, she was exhausted.

  When they finally finished the climb and arrived on top of the mesa, Noah suggested they dismount and allow the horses to rest. Bella wholly agreed, but she was trembling so badly she couldn’t move. Noah had to literally pull her boots from the stirrups and lift her out of the saddle.

  Once she was in his arms, they both sank to the ground where Noah tucked her head to the middle of his chest and buried his face in her wet hair.

  “Oh, Lord, Bella, I thought I was going to find you drowned or dead from a lightning strike!”

  Her arms barely found the strength to wrap around his neck. “Noah! When I saw you riding toward me, I—you were an answered prayer.”

  Clutching her tightly against him, he stroked his fingers through the soppy clumps of her hair. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw you and Casper on that ledge! You crazy little fool! I told you not to ride in the canyon alone! I told you it was dangerous!”

  Rearing her head back, she looked at him. “That’s right. You’ve told me just about everything, except what I want to hear. Please, don’t scold me, Noah. Not after what we’ve just gone through. You can do that later. Just tell me—”

  He stopped her next words with a kiss that was both desperate and exhilarating. Then leaning his head back, he looked straight into her eyes. “All right, Bella. We’ll go to Arizona. Together. Is that what you want to hear?”

  With a cry of joy, she hugged him tightly. “It’s a start.”

  *

  On late Saturday evening, Bella and Noah’s flight touched down at Tucson International Airport. From there they took a rental car to a downtown hotel where Bella had already reserved their rooms for the night.

  While she dealt with the task of checking in, Noah waited in the lobby with their luggage. Since it was the weekend, the hotel was bustling with guests and hotel staff, but Noah hardly noticed the comings and goings around him. Beyond the wall of plate glass, a view of Tucson spread out beneath a blazing summer sun. Yet the buildings with their Spanish architecture and desert landscaping barely caught his attent
ion. It was the wilderness beyond that grabbed his thoughts and hurled them back to the time when he had ridden over similar jagged hills and through stands of ancient saguaros, their arms lifted toward the blue heaven.

  “All set,” Bella suddenly spoke behind him. “We’re on the seventh floor.”

  Pulling himself out of his memories, he turned to her and was immediately whammed all over again. A turquoise sundress hugged her slender waist while intricately designed cowboy boots covered her feet. Silver set with green malachite hung from her ears and adorned her wrist. But as always, it was the soft, tender smile on her face that made her incredibly beautiful.

  Throughout the flight, he’d struggled to keep his eyes off her, but now that they were on solid ground, it was clear that keeping his hands to himself was going to be even more of a problem. More than two weeks had passed since the two of them had been intimate and the memory still continued to haunt him. For reasons he didn’t want to examine, being in her arms that night had left him feeling particularly vulnerable and when she’d pushed him to talk about his past, everything about Ward and Camilla had come tumbling out of him.

  He’d behaved like a jackass and stormed out, but that had been the only thing left for him to do. Except stay and admit to Bella that he’d fallen in love with her. And he’d not been ready for that. He didn’t think he’d ever be ready to surrender that much of himself to anyone.

  Picking up the bags, he said, “Fine with me. Let’s go.”

  They walked to the nearest elevator and took a quick ride to the seventh floor. When they stepped off, Noah asked, “Which way to our rooms?”

  “This way,” she answered, pointing to their right. “But before we get there I—uh—should tell you we only have one room.”

  He dropped one of the bags in order to clasp his hand around her upper arm. “What do you mean, one room? I told you to book two?”

  As Noah watched a soft pink color sweep across her cheeks, he knew he was in even more trouble than he thought. It was bad enough that he hadn’t touched her in days, but now he was going to be sequestered in the same bedroom with her.