“Of course. We have shelter when it rains and can carry things much easier.”
“Of course,” he echoed.
“You don’t let your workers wear shorts, do you? And they have to wear hats? Well, of course, you’re cowboys, you have to wear hats. It’s really amazing how much work is lost due to overexposure of the sun.”
“I hadn’t thought about that. I’ll keep it in mind when we do our annual reviews.” He kept his mouth straight.
Leigh nodded in agreement. “That’s a really good idea. Annual reviews always keep everyone focused on their goals and objectives for the betterment of the company.”
Where were his sisters? He’d even welcome Ainsley back and fight with her some more instead of continuing this conversation. Leigh made notes on her paper, taking apart his business, until Jeanne freed him. As soon as she was gone, he tried to escape upstairs to change and slip outside before anyone saw him. He was done.
Didn’t happen. “Hey, Ry,” Molly called as he tried to sneak by her room. “Can I have your list? I’d like to start organizing the dinners.”
His body dropped in resignation and he stood in her doorway. “There’s no list. It’s mostly in my mind.”
She shook her head, her hair grazing her shoulders as it moved. “I need it tonight. How do you expect me to organize the horses if I don’t know who to put where?”
Riley bit his tongue and entered the room, for once cursing Molly’s need to organize everything. It worked well for the ranch finances and reservations, but it needed to stay out of his personal life.
“I have work to do, Molly.” A cabin had a leaking sink and he wanted to look at a ewe that may have a sprained foreleg. Plus he had to check his stock and order supplies. But apparently these things could wait in the all-consuming quest for love. She opened her notebook, pen poised and ready to write.
“What do you need to know?” He leaned against the pale pink walls and folded his arms across his chest.
“Tell me what you thought about each woman,” she demanded.
“Shouldn’t Jeanne or Seth be here?” Riley swung his head to observe all corners of the room. “Isn’t it a rule to tag team me for this?”
“No, it’s just you and me,” Molly said. “Jeannie is finishing homework, and Seth is…I don’t know what’s going on with him. When he came back tonight he lied and said he’d been in the house the whole time except for going to the stables in the time I was looking for him. I’ve seen him skulking around, like he’s trying to sneak away.”
“Have you asked him about it?”
She shook her head. “I keep hoping that if I ignore the problem, it will go away. He’s been so upset since Dad died, Riley, and I don’t know what to do.” Her voice cracked.
His sister’s pain was so much more real now than in the kitchen earlier. He couldn’t blame her, though, when he felt much the same way. He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “I’ll talk to him,” he said. Again. “Maybe it’s a guy thing. Maybe he wasn’t comfortable talking to you.”
Molly nodded and brushed the unfallen tears from her eyes. She took a deep breath before picking up her pen again. “Tell me about Jewel.”
“She’s okay. She can ride and she can cook.” As much as he wanted to find Seth, he welcomed his sister returning to what passed these days for a normal conversation.
“Just okay, huh? What about Leigh?” She studied her list again.
“Impassioned but bossy,” Riley said. “She understands working the land, though. A vineyard, anyway.”
Molly tapped her pen against the table, but he offered nothing more. “Okay, then. Robin.”
“Who?”
She sagged in the wooden chair. “Brown hair, brown eyes, slightly upturned nose?”
He shook his head.
“What do you remember about Daisy?”
“She was probably a stripper in a former life,” he muttered, rubbing his eyes to block out the vision.
“What was that?”
“She likes to dance,” he said.
“Oh, that’s nice. I think she’s a dance teacher.” She flipped through her notebook and read Daisy’s entry. “Yeah, she teaches at a fitness center. Maybe she could help me get into shape.”
She better not.
“Ainsley?” Molly asked.
He wasn’t prepared for the heat on his skin when his mind recaptured the spirited woman in the greenhouse, but it was doused as soon as he remembered the unsettled, out of control way she left his insides. “I don’t know about her.” He stood up and raised his arms above his head while he stretched, yawning so his jaws creaked.
Molly quirked an eyebrow at his performance. “You can tell me that you’re tired, you know. I won’t keep you up past your bed time.”
“Good night.” He kissed her on the cheek and eased into the hallway with no intention of going to bed. He had his real work to do. Plus he wanted to talk to his brother, really talk and find out what was going on. Muted music escaped from under Seth’s door and he rapped softly but heard no answering call. He waited a bit and tapped again but there was still no response. He hoped Seth was sleeping. At least then he’d be free from his guilt and grief, at least for a few hours. Riley went to his own room and pulled on a pair of well-worn jeans and changed into a blue cambric shirt.
Five minutes later, he cracked his door open and peeked down the hall. Molly’s door was closed and no light shone from underneath. He took the back stairs to go outside.
* * *
Ainsley strode onto the walkway back to the cabins with several other women at the end of the so-called interviews. Small lights staked in the ground provided illumination down the dark path. Nighttime creatures chirped and skittered around her, but she couldn’t identify the sounds.
“Who else here thought Riley was one of the most unsuave men in existence?” Mary Ellen asked. She rubbed her arm like she was trying to remove something unpleasant, like a cobweb.
Ainsley wanted to agree, but a tiny seed in her head told her she was a big fat liar. Despite the fact that she wanted to dislike him, his hidden vulnerability aroused her protective instinct. Among other things.
“I thought he was great,” Daisy laughed. “Good kisser, too.”
Ainsley stumbled a bit. No. She didn’t care. Riley could kiss whomever he wanted and it didn’t matter one bit. A quick moment of shocked silence happened before the women started throwing questions at Daisy.
“Oh, my God, he kissed you?” asked Leigh.
“How was it?” Jessica asked.
“He does look like he knows how to kiss a woman,” Meagan mused.
Daisy tittered a little, and Ainsley swore the hairs on her arm rose in protest of the sound. “Let’s go back to my cabin and I’ll tell you all about it. The anticipation, the build up—it’s all part of the experience.” Daisy’s eyes sparkled with her secret as she eagerly took in each member of her small captive audience.
The women decided to meet in Daisy’s cabin soon, where she would regale them with the tale of Riley’s lips.
Ainsley shuffled to her cabin with Meagan. “To think he kissed her after only five minutes! She must be something special.” Meagan practically bounced into the common area before heading into her bedroom.
“Mm hmm,” Ainsley said. So he was attractive. Big deal.
“I mean, she certainly was dressed to kill, and it must’ve had the desired effect on him,” her roommate continued, her voice coming through the half-open door.
“Dressed to inspire lust in the hearts and penises of men everywhere,” Ainsley muttered, kicking off her shoes.
Meagan poked her head out, her face a picture of suppressed humor. “You’re not jealous, are you?”
“Oh, no. I don’t think I could be jealous of someone who wears body glitter all over her chest.” She flopped down on the brown sofa and flung a leg over its arm. “You go ahead. I’m going to stay here. I hear there’s a good movie on tonight.”
“Ain
sley, there’s no TV here.”
“I’ll go find one.”
“Please come,” the other woman pleaded. “It will be fun. We’ll have something to drink, get to know the other girls without the pressure of a man nearby… it will be great.”
Ainsley sighed. She had planned on some time alone to squash the pull she felt for the cowboy, but her roommate looked so excited about going that she had to agree. “Fine. I’ll go. But if Daisy gives her little high-pitched laugh again, I’m leaving.”
Daisy, Jessica, and Robin were already talking and drinking wine in Daisy’s cabin by the time Meagan and Ainsley arrived. The layout was similar to the one the two women shared, but Ainsley was overwhelmed by the cloying odor of jasmine. She searched the room for the climbing vine since there was no evidence of it outside. Was it even the right season and climate for jasmine? Daisy flitted by in a pair of baby blue fake silk pajamas and Ainsley gasped for breath. The scent came from her.
“So how did it happen?” Robin demanded once everyone had received their libations and sprawled around the cabin, sitting on the maroon sofa and wooden chairs. The women had changed out of their more dressy clothes and lounged around in jeans and t-shirts. Ainsley sat on the floor, her back against the couch. Meagan was right. This might be a good way of getting to know the other ladies.
“We just had this instant connection, you know? We even danced around the room together.” Daisy wrapped her arms around herself and swayed as if reliving the moment, her eyes closed and a rapt expression covering her features. Ainsley looked at her roommate so she could roll her eyes but found Meagan captivated by the story.
“What did you talk about?” Jessica asked. She sat cross-legged on the floor, finger-combing her curls.
“Talk?” The tittering started again, and Meagan put a light, restraining hand on Ainsley’s arm with a quick grin. “We didn’t need to talk.”
“We talked about cooking,” Jessica muttered. Several other women nodded.
“Oh, no.” Daisy made sure the attention was focused back on her. “After we danced, he held me in those strong arms of his. The air between us was so hot, so charged, and…well, the kiss would have been deeper if his sister hadn’t interrupted us.”
“Wow. Sounds really romantic,” Ainsley said, hoping she sounded as sincere as she didn’t feel. Daisy flashed her a big smile, glowing from her happiness. A thorn of disappointment prickled her. Maybe there had been something. Maybe Daisy was what Riley wanted in a woman.
“I hope you girls aren’t too devastated that he kissed me first. Well, almost, anyway. I mean, we only just met him and all, but I have a feeling I’m in this for the long run. This was such a fairy tale evening. I should have left a shoe behind.”
Okay. That was all the romance she could take. She had to get out of there. And it had nothing to do with jealousy.
Talk moved to how hard it was to find a good man and other reasons the women had applied for the invitation to help out with the market research on turning the Crescent Ridge into a singles ranch. Ainsley studied Daisy through the corner of her eye. She was pretty enough when she wasn’t tramped out, but that wasn’t who Riley saw. She gave herself a mental shake. Why should she care who Riley ended up with? If he wanted to go for superficial instead of substance, that was his business. She’d be gone in a week.
After listening to Daisy rehash her special time with Riley for the seven millionth time, the mystery novel in Ainsley’s suitcase started to become more and more appealing. She ran through a litany of excuses to leave the cabin. Some women were trying to compete with Daisy’s tale, but Ainsley kept her mouth shut. An evening being accused of manipulations was nothing to brag about. And even if something had happened, even though nothing was ever going to, she wouldn’t have lessened its meaning by spreading it among the other wife wannabes.
Mary Ellen poked her head in and a spark of inspiration came to Ainsley. The other woman would make a good diversion in her grand plan to escape. “Hello, ladies. I’m looking for Leigh.”
“She’s not here.” Daisy raised a bottle of red wine in Mary Ellen’s direction, but she shook her head at the offer.
“If you see her, tell her I’m looking?” she asked. The other women nodded and she left.
Two seconds after the door closed behind her, Ainsley bolted upright. “Oh, I meant to ask her something.” She sprinted out of the cabin.
Oh, sweet blessed freedom. She picked her way down the illuminated path, enjoying the calm after the night of tumultuous chatter. She passed the herb garden, the aroma of rosemary and—she sniffed again to be sure—chamomile reaching her as she strolled to her cabin. Definitely no jasmine.
Safely in her room, she pawed through her clothes to find a new set of pajamas. Thecotton pants had been worn to exhaustion, so she settled on a pair of boxers. After she changed, she stretched out on the sofa with her book and a glass of water by her side. She was engrossed in the race against time to find the lost child when Meagan returned. A frown creased her roommate’s forehead, the first time she seemed to display any negativity at all.
Wary anticipation spread through Ainsley. “What’s wrong? What happened?”
“I’m glad the first elimination isn’t for a bit,” Meagan said. “Riley’s been so nice but I don’t feel a connection to him yet. Maybe given time I will. I hope I get that time.”
“Nice” was not the word Ainsley would’ve chosen. “Why are you so anxious about it now? It’s only been one day.”
“Well, I listened to Daisy talk all night about the strength of his lips. I saw the sparks between the two of you at the brunch, and how he talked to Jewel, too. I don’t think he sees me as a potential lover.”
Ainsley froze, her heart thundering in her ears. “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Sparks? What sparks? You saw no sparks. There were no sparks to see. At all. It was completely sparkless.”
Meagan laughed. “Right.” She went into her room. Ainsley frowned at her retreating back and tried to smooth out the goose bumps that had prickled her skin. When the other woman came back to the common room, she had exchanged her flowing blouse for a plaid shirt and her cowboy hat sat firmly on her head.
Ainsley studied her with curiosity. “Where are you going?” Meagan mumbled something that she couldn’t quite hear. “You’re going to bake cookies?”
The other woman suddenly found her feet interesting. “Cookie invited me to the barn to see Scarlet and Montgomery.”
“Who are they?”
“Cookie is the ranch foreman, and Montgomery is Scarlet’s newborn colt.”
“Oh.” She kept her eyes on her roommate, who avoided Ainsley’s gaze. “Are you blushing?”
“No,” Meagan denied, bringing her hands up to hide her cheeks. Ainsley snorted her laughter. “Okay, fine, but I was there when the foal was born. I have a vested interest in his well being.”
“It’s late, though.”
“I know. Montgomery will most likely be sleeping, but I’m not sure when I’ll get another chance to see him. We’re going to have some busy days coming up.”
“You’re not sleepy? Listening to Daisy alone was enough to tire me out.”
“Actually, no,” her roommate said. “I get more wired at night than I do during the day.
Cookie said I’d only have a few minutes to visit with Scarlet, so I have to leave. He’s so knowledgeable about horses. It was really interesting being with him when the horse was born. Such an amazing experience.”
“Is Riley going to be there, too?” Ainsley thumbed through her book, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.
“I really don’t think so. I don’t think I would go if he was. It would seem unfair, you know? Seeing him at an undesignated time when none of the other girls were there.”
“I don’t know about that. You probably get a better feel for the person at an unstructured meeting.” Like in a greenhouse.
“Why did you leave Daisy’s, anyway? I turned away for a moment and you weren’t ther
e anymore.”
A small bit of envy tugged at Ainsley’s gut and she avoided a direct answer. “I figured Daisy would go on all night.” She took a drink of her water and settled back into the sofa. “Give the little horse a big kiss from me.”
“I will.”
Meagan’s interruption had broken Ainsley’s concentration on the story and her mind kept wandering to the wonderful fragrances in the herb garden. One was a bitter, spicy scent that she couldn’t place. It wasn’t anise or cloves. And it would bug her until she found out, but so would leaving this chapter unfinished. She flipped forward in the book to see when it ended, then breezed through the remaining three pages. The garden beckoned from outsie and she grabbed her blue sweater and headed into the darkness.
Chapter 6
Ainsley’s cell rang in her pocket, breaking the stillness of the night. She fished it out and frowned at the unfamiliar number, her phone vibrating against her hands. Usually she ignored numbers she didn’t recognize, but tonight curiosity won her over. “Hello?”
“Men are pigs.” Her normally cheerful, glowing sister sniffed in the most sorrowful voice Ainsley had ever heard. “I hate them. All of them.”
She had to stifle a snort. “I thought you and Edward were having a great time.” She stepped carefully around the rocks that bordered the small garden and sat on one of the many stone benches surrounding it. She’d never before been in a place that held so much peace. The herbs sat in neat green rows with the occasional pop of white or yellow where flowers had bloomed, nothing like the jumble of decay she’d seen earlier in the greenhouse.
“We were. We were talking about you at dinner with the other people at our table, laughing and having fun. I told him I was excited about seeing you after our trip and he just stopped.” Cecelia’s voice grew hushed. “His breathing got funny and he had such a strange look on his face, like he didn’t expect me to be there, like he didn’t know me. It was awful. And he gripped his hands together and got all reserved again and avoided looking at me.”
Who Wants to Marry a Cowboy? Page 9
