Winning Over the Cowboy

by Shannon Taylor Vannatter

  His gaze swung to his mother’s, but she ignored him.

  “Don’t I need to stay here and help?” Landry asked.

  “I can handle the order myself.” Chase’s protest battled with Landry’s. Obviously neither of them was into one-on-one time with each other.

  “You have to experience The Apple Café.” Mom clapped her hands, and a puff of flour formed a cloud in the air. “Texas Monthly listed it in the Top 40 Best Small Town Restaurants in Texas. You just can’t beat the ambiance, and the food is wonderful. Might as well grab lunch while you’re there. And have apple ice cream, then shop for preserves and the best sweet nut bread in Texas.”

  “You had me at apple ice cream. I remember Granny trying to get me to go when I lived here before, but I was always studying.” Landry put her apron and cap back on the hook. “But one of these days, y’all are gonna have to let me work.”

  “You earn your keep handling reservations, sharing your marketing skills and keeping the website up to date for the dude ranch. That you’re a chef is just a nice bonus. But be sure and get back by church time tonight.”

  Great. How could he avoid Landry when his mom kept saddling him with her?

  * * *

  The Apple Café, the quaint eatery in Medina, fifteen minutes away from the dude ranch, was like nowhere Landry had ever been.

  As Chase ushered her into line, she scanned the gravel floor and galvanized tin ceiling. “It has a charm all its own.”

  A scream erupted behind them.

  Chase shielded Landry as a little girl did a wild, panicked dance, her hands flailing around her head.

  “It’s gone, punkin.” A man scooped the child up. “Calm down. You’re okay.”

  “Are you sure it’s gone?” she whimpered, her face pressed into the man’s chest as he walked away, comforting her.

  Chase pointed to a sign.

  Landry scanned it. Bee Careful! A warning and pun in one, alerting customers to watch for honey bees. “So they let them hang out in the store.”

  “They have a hive outside and sell fresh honey here. They won’t hurt you unless you mash them.” Chase grinned. “Which can happen real easy if you dance around, waving your arms. The best thing to do is just be still until they go away.”

  “What can I get you, ma’am?” the clerk asked.

  “Landry!” exclaimed a child’s excited voice.

  She turned in time to catch her former boss’s daughter as she hurled herself at Landry. “Kayla? What are you doing here?”

  “We’re visiting Grandpa Warren. Mama said we’d come see you while we’re here.”

  “I think you’ve gotten taller since I left.”

  Kayla beamed. “I’m almost—”

  “Seven. I started working for your folks right after you were born, Munchkin.”

  “Didn’t this work out well?” Rayna approached, followed by Clay.

  “Rayna. It’s so good to see y’all.” Landry hugged her, then Clay, remembered Chase. “Chase, meet Rayna and Clay Warren, my former bosses. And their daughter, Kayla.”

  “Clay Warren.” Chase’s jaw dropped. “As in four-time World Champion Bull Rider Clay Warren?”

  “That was a few moons ago.” Clay ducked his head. Always humble.

  Chase turned to Landry. “Why did you never mention the dude ranch you worked for in Aubrey belonged to Clay Warren?”

  “She never did pay me no mind.” Clay shot her a wink.

  “This is Chase Donovan, my business partner.” She squelched a giggle as Chase did his level best to play it casual. Slack-jawed, shifting his weight back and forth. So unlike his usual calm, cool and collected self.

  Rayna sized him up. “You two seem cozy.”

  “You’ll have to forgive my wife.” Clay put his arm around her. “Once she landed me, she turned into Miss Matchmaker.”

  Landry’s cheeks flushed. “Chase and I have struck up a friendship.” Is that what it was?

  “Eat lunch with us, Landry.” Kayla bounced up and down. “Please. Please. Please.”

  “Do you mind, Chase?”

  “Lunch with Clay Warren?” His grin widened. “I think I can manage.”

  “I’m buying.” Clay clapped him on the back.

  “Now, that’s not necessary.”

  “You’re coming to Ally’s wedding.” Rayna linked arms with Landry. “Right?”

  “I wouldn’t miss it.” But her tone fell flat, even though she’d tried to sound excited.

  She loved her cousin, was happy for her, but weddings left a bad taste in her mouth these days. Especially one in her hometown. Especially after seeing Kyle again.

  But even more worrisome than the wedding, she could tell by the way Rayna was scrutinizing them, she wasn’t buying that they were only friends. By tomorrow morning, it would be all over Aubrey that Landry had a new boyfriend.

  A rumor would convince everyone she’d moved on. But it wasn’t true. And come time for Ally’s wedding, she’d show up alone. And everyone would feel sorry for her all over again.

  * * *

  Chase opened the truck door for Landry. “I still can’t believe you never mentioned who your former boss was.” He’d read where she worked when he’d Googled her. But hadn’t put it together.

  “To me, he’s just Clay.” She shrugged as she strolled toward the ranch house.

  “So, who’s Ally, and why don’t you want to go to her wedding?”

  “She’s my cousin, and I do want to go. It’s just that...”

  “What?” He settled on the porch swing, patted the seat beside him.

  “There I was.” Her sigh resonated from the top of her head to her polished toenails as she settled beside him. “On the brink of what I thought would be my happily-ever-after.” She closed her eyes as if she could see it all playing out again. “Kyle was in the middle of his vows when he just stopped.”

  “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want.”

  “Maybe it’ll help get it off my chest.” She picked at the hem of her blouse and continued her story. “When he leaned over and kissed my cheek, I thought—how sweet. But then he whispered an apology and bolted. Left me standing there alone with my entire hometown in attendance.”

  What a jerk. Kyle must have known he wasn’t going to marry her before then. Why not call it off before the ceremony? Instead, he’d made her humiliation a public ordeal.

  “And everyone feels sorry for you?” He willed himself not to put his arm around her. To offer comfort and protection. “Did y’all have a fight before the ceremony?”

  “No.” She shrugged. “We never even had a disagreement. Whenever I didn’t see eye to eye with him, he always sidetracked me.”

  “You have no idea why he bailed?” He grimaced. “I mean, why he—”

  “Bailed works.” Her small hand fisted. “He humiliated me on center stage, then waltzed off and found someone else. Like nothing ever happened. Like I never mattered.”

  “You matter. And he’s a jerk.”

  “I’ve forgiven him, but forgetting is harder.” She looked up at him, her eyes glossy.

  But he needed to tread carefully with her. So she wasn’t a scammer, a player or a gold digger. But she was obviously still hung up on her ex. Never mind what a busted romance with his business partner would do to the dude ranch.

  “I can’t stand to even think about going back home.” She hung her head. “Especially in light of his engagement, to attend a wedding with everybody watching to see how I handle it.”

  “No one would blame you if you didn’t go.” He tried to fill his tone with empathy, not pity.

  “True.” She traced her fingers over the chain of the swing. “But if I don’t go, the whole state of Texas will figure getting dumped at the altar
scarred me so badly I couldn’t attend my own cousin’s wedding.”

  “The whole state, huh?”

  “All of the twenty-five hundred or so in Aubrey, anyway.” She blew out a shuddery breath. “He ruined everything. I can’t even go home and hold my head up.” She leaned against him ever so slightly, her shoulder against his.

  He’d kept his distance as long as he could and rested his cheek against her temple. With her tangle of waves soft against his jaw, his pulse ratcheted up a notch.

  A Christian, outdoorsy, didn’t-mind-getting-dirty, low-maintenance-yet-beautiful woman sat right next to him. One that loved and missed his sister as much as he did. How much more perfect could Landry be?

  But she was hurting over another man, and rebound relationships never worked out. Yet here he was—getting too close.

  His family legacy was in jeopardy, as he’d learn the extent of the tree damage tomorrow. Yet the most pressing thing on his mind—was Landry. He’d fought his feelings for her tooth and nail. To no avail.

  She straightened. “I better go freshen up for Bible study.”

  “It’s not my turn or I’d go with you.” Did she hear the regret in his voice?

  “See ya.” She waved her fingers at him and stepped inside.

  Maybe he should give up. Stop fighting it. Win her heart. Make her forget all about the man who’d broken it.

  * * *

  A dozen foresters teemed at the dude ranch property line as Landry’s nerves buzzed. Chase had tried to ditch her on his way out of the ranch house that morning, but she’d managed to catch up with him just as he was leaving. Had he intentionally tried to give her the slip? Or was he just flustered?

  Try as she might to be calm, cool and collected, she could feel how keyed up Chase was, too. The dark circles under his bloodshot eyes told of his sleepless night.

  “It’s gonna be okay.” She rested her hand on his arm. “I’ve been praying about it.”

  “Me, too.”

  The only serene property owner was Resa. “It really will be okay.” She gave them a thousand-watt smile.

  Men and women dressed in tan shirts and olive pants inspected the stricken trees along with their surroundings on both sides of the fence.

  Landry tried to see what they saw. The three live oaks on their side had patches of brown, but she saw a few brown leaves on at least five trees on Resa’s side. Was that oak wilt or just lack of rain?

  One of the male foresters headed their way, and she heard Chase suck in a deep breath.

  “We’ve concluded our inspection. You have a total of five diseased trees, and Ms. McCall has seven.” The inspector handed them each an invoice.

  Bigger numbers than what she’d hoped for, but not as bad as Chase had imagined.

  The inspector went on to explain how much the forest service would cover. Since Resa was responsible for her share, what was left was manageable.

  “Thank you.” Chase shook the inspector’s hand as the workers gathered their testing supplies.

  “That’s not too bad.” Landry linked arms with him, relief unwinding the knot in her gut. “We won’t have to worry about a loan.”

  “I can cover y’all.” Resa grabbed the invoice from him.

  Landry let go of him and snatched it back. “You most certainly will not.”

  “But you heard them—this originated from a tree on my property. And I’m just thankful Chase caught it early.”

  “You’re not paying for our part.” Chase nabbed the invoice from Landry. “It’s not your fault some insect carried a diseased spore to one of your trees instead of ours.”

  “What if I front y’all the funds?” Resa scanned the trees. “Y’all could pay me back.”

  “We’re okay, Resa.” Chase’s tone was firm. “We can handle this. It’s not as bad I expected.”

  “All right.” Resa shaded her eyes. “But if y’all get in a bind, please let me know.”

  “We’re good.” Chase folded the invoice, shoved it in his pocket. “Landry implemented a special rate for the summer, and we’ve had a guest boom. And there’s no telling what she’s got up her sleeve for the off-season.”

  “No pressure.” Landry let out a wry chuckle.

  Resa pointed at her. “You still haven’t called me for lunch.”

  “I will. We’ve just been busy.”

  “Let her loose for an hour, slave driver.” Resa hugged Chase, then Landry, and strolled to her car.

  Chase ran his hands through his hair. “This won’t hurt the business account.”

  “I have a nice nest egg.”

  “There’s no need for that.”

  “The business account has been built up by your family. I haven’t contributed until recently. I insist on covering half the cost.”

  “You’ve got it—without putting you between a rock and a hard place?”

  “I have it.”

  “All right. If you insist.” He steered her toward his truck. “I’m so relieved it wasn’t worse.”

  “I knew it would work out. You need to be more positive, Johnny Rain Cloud.”

  “Hey, I’m the one with the ‘Happy Trails’ ringtone.” He blew out a big breath. “It’s just that Eden was so much better at this.” He kicked at a dust clod. “Making big decisions stresses me out. Running the dude ranch was never my dream. It was hers.”

  She’d known it. Had tried to ignore it since she’d gotten to the point of liking him. “Do you regret coming home when you did?” Her voice barely a whisper. Afraid to hear his answer.

  “I can’t cut out on my family legacy. Either run it or sell it, and I don’t want either choice.”

  “Or have someone else run it for you. You could be my silent partner.” Since she’d arrived, she’d gone from trying to win him over to liking, respecting and relying on him. If he left, she’d miss him.

  “I’ll be fine.” He opened the truck door for her. “Don’t worry about it. Maybe things will settle down now.”

  She climbed up, watched him go around to get in.

  How long could he stay and be so unhappy? And if he left, what would she do without him?

  Chapter Nine

  It was Chase’s favorite part of the day. A fine Friday morning, before anyone else stirred. Especially now, since his nerves had been in a jumble lately. But with the tree problem settled now, he’d slept soundly last night. He grabbed his coffee, locked his cabin door and strolled to the ranch house.

  And Landry was already there. In his spot, slowly swaying on the porch swing. It wasn’t the first time. It used to frustrate him when she invaded his space. Now he was glad to get to spend time with her.

  “Mind if I join you?”

  She scooted over to make room for him. “Morning.”

  Birdsong ushered in the day. The quiet chatter of ranch hands mixed with whinnies and the clop of hooves came from the barn.

  “I’m leaving for my cousin’s wedding tomorrow.” She sipped her coffee, looked up at him. “Under extreme duress.”

  “Mom mentioned we’d be shorthanded.” He’d miss her. And not just her work ethic. But maybe he didn’t have to... He could escort her, support her through it. A great way to make himself indispensable to her. Better yet, he could save her day.

  “About that.” He waggled his eyebrows at her. “I might have a brilliant idea.”

  “Pretend I have the flu.”

  He chuckled. “Better. I could take you.” He ducked his head, afraid to watch her reaction. “Act like we’re a couple.”

  “What?” She snorted.

  “You said half your hometown probably thinks we’re a couple by now.”

  “True.”

  “We’ll go to the wedding and let everyone think what they want.” He set the
swing in motion again. “If I’m your plus one, you won’t have to field questions about your love life. You can show them you’ve moved on—that you don’t need their pity.”

  “I have moved on. I left Aubrey, and I’ve proven I don’t need a husband to be happy.” She stood, propped her hands on her hips. “But apparently you think I’m so pathetic, I need a pretend boyfriend.”

  “That’s not what I meant. Will you sit down and listen?” She might not think of her hair as fiery, but her temper sure was.

  “You feel sorry for me, just like everybody else.” She spun away, headed for the door.

  “I don’t. If I feel sorry for anyone, it’s what’s-his-name. He’s the pathetic one for letting you get away.”

  That stopped her. “Really?”

  “Scout’s honor.”

  “Thanks.” She blew out a shuddery breath, faced him again. “Sorry. Sore subject.”

  He patted the seat beside him.

  “I really am over him. It was just so humiliating.” She reclaimed her spot. “Weddings are supposed to be such a joyous occasion. But after Kyle—and Eden...since then, the thought of weddings makes me sad.”

  “I’m right there with you.” The muscle in Chase’s jaw tensed up. “For the longest time, I avoided the backyard. I had to work at reminding myself of how happy Eden was on her wedding day.” How happy she must have been on her honeymoon.

  “Sometimes when I look at this tree-shaded expanse of green, I can still hear her laughter.” She closed her eyes.

  “Me, too.” He twined his fingers with hers. “Listen, weddings are tough for you. And this one will be especially brutal. Let me support you through it.”

  “We’re talking a six-hour drive.”

  “Isn’t stuff like this what friends are for?”

  “That’s really sweet.” She squeezed his hand. “Tell you what? We’ll check with your folks. If both of us going won’t leave them in a bind, I’ll take you up on the offer.”

  He stood, strolled to the back door and stuck his head in the kitchen where neither of his parents looked up from their work. “Can y’all do without me if I go to Aubrey with Landry?”