by Donna Alward
“My what?”
Duke looked anything but pleased, and Rylan saw him exchange a look with Carrie. A look that set Rylan’s teeth on edge. Uh-oh, it said. What’s Rylan gone and done now?
“Rylan. Where on earth did you get this horse?”
“At Mack Rigden’s place outside Dickinson. Mack’s thinking about retiring soon. I heard a rumor that he was going to take some stock to auction, so I made a detour on the way home.”
“Why on earth... Did it occur to you to run this past me? Or Quinn?”
Rylan held his cool. He’d expected some resistance, after all. “We all know what you need to keep the program going is a good sire. One that others will pay stud fees for.”
“And it’ll take a long damn time for him to earn his keep! What were you thinking, doing this without consulting me? Forget upkeep, there’s no way we could afford this right now.”
He’d expected Duke to be mad. He looked at Lacey and saw hope on her face. Things didn’t really change, did they? Duke was the oldest and figured he should have the final word on everything. And Lacey was the tenderhearted one who believed in him even when she shouldn’t.
He hated the thought of letting them down. He’d avoided putting himself in this position for a lot of years. He’d hated the idea of coming back here, facing all the old hurts, irritated that Grandpa Joe was yanking them around like puppets on a string even after his death. If he had to be here, he was going to do it his way. At least some of the time, anyway.
“I knew what you’d say.”
“For Pete’s sake, Ry. Lacey’s been trying to trim some costs since she came on, and we’ve both got families to support.”
Ouch.
“Duke,” Carrie admonished quietly.
But Duke was well and truly irritated. “Well, it’s true. Rylan’s been going wherever the wind takes him without a care in the world, and now Lacey and I both depend on this ranch to support our spouses and children. Meanwhile, he can blow in like a tornado and leave again just as quickly.”
Ry’s temper flared, and he struggled to measure his words. He didn’t ask for this. He was trying to help, for God’s sake. But clearly his brother had some issues he needed to get off his chest.
“Crooked Valley isn’t on the hook for a red cent, so don’t get your panties in a twist.” Ry lifted his chin. “Rattler’s mine. I bought him with my own money.”
Duke’s jaw dropped. Lacey stared. “Your own money?” she asked. “But, Ry, you said before that a good stud horse would be expensive.”
“How expensive?” Duke asked, an edge to his voice.
Carrie and Quinn remained silent, as if sensing this was between the siblings.
“Seventeen and a half.”
Duke cursed. Carrie’s eyes widened. Even Quinn let out a low whistle.
“You’re going to ask, so I’ll save you the trouble. I’ve had a good year. And I’ve been working for years. My last place, my board was covered in the winter and in the summer I stayed in the RV. My only expenses were my truck and the clothes on my back. I managed to put some away. Then when I sold the camper and bought the smaller one I still had money in the bank.”
Not only in the bank. He’d never been much of a spender, kept things simple rather than extravagant. He’d actually taken the step of investing some of his salary every payday. If he told them how much, they’d never believe him. He wasn’t even thirty yet and he had a nice little nest egg.
Duke ran his hand through his hair. “You should have come to me. We should have talked about it.”
“I was trying to do something good here. The opportunity came up and I seized it. Yeah, I paid a good price for him, but I would have been on the hook for more if I’d waited for him to go to auction.”
The fire in Duke’s eyes was starting to mellow.
“Look, Duke, here’s the deal. For all intents and purposes, Rattler is part of Crooked Valley. We can use him to breed our mares. He’ll earn his keep with breeding fees. He’s going to be in demand, I promise you. And all the money will go into ranch coffers. The only thing I ask is that his ownership stays with me.”
It felt like a big step. Owning Rattler tied him to Crooked Valley in a bigger way than he cared to be, but he also knew it was the only way Duke would agree to the purchase.
“I don’t know, Ry.”
“Trust me,” he entreated. “I’ve been doing this a long time, Duke. Hell, if you don’t trust my judgment, trust Kailey’s. Have her come over and give her opinion.”
He thought about it for a moment and took it a step further. “I’ll make you a deal. If Kailey comes over and says I made a mistake, I’ll take him to auction.”
He looked at all of them. Quinn’s gaze held a glimmer of respect and even Duke looked uncomfortably resigned to the idea. It was an impulsive suggestion, and things were hot and cold with Kailey, depending on the situation. But he trusted her horse sense. Brandt’s stock was top-notch. He also trusted her to be honest—even if she didn’t like it.
Hmm. It had been quite a while since he’d really trusted anyone that much. And that included Duke and Lacey.
Quinn stepped forward. “I think that’s a fair idea, Rylan. Kailey’s been helpful with advice for me over the past several months and there’s no question she knows what she’s doing. What do you say, Duke?”
Duke gave a short nod. “I’ll agree to that. I’ll hear what she has to say before making any decisions.”
Rylan bit his tongue, knowing he had to choose his moments. And he realized that Duke had taken on the bulk of the day-to-day operations of the ranch. But, dammit, they each owned a third. They each had equal say. He looked over at Lacey, who was now looking uncomfortable, probably because she was caught in the middle. He knew if it came down to it, she’d go with whatever Duke wanted. Duke, the natural leader. Not Rylan, the baby of the family.
Meanwhile, Ry went to the truck and retrieved an apple from a bag he had on the seat. He applied just the right pressure to break it in half, and he took a bite, crunching into the white flesh while holding the other half on the palm of his hand.
All he had to do was hold his hand over the top of the fence for about two seconds and Rattler started trotting over. Hide glistening and eyes bright, he lipped the fruit from Ry’s palm and chewed contentedly, bits of apple and juice flying.
“Atta boy,” Ry soothed quietly, rubbing his hand along Rattler’s neck. “The ladies are gonna love you.”
Quinn interrupted the moment. “Kailey says she can come over after supper.”
“Thanks, Quinn,” Ry said. He got the sense that Quinn was an ally and was actually relieved someone had stepped up with the stock program. But maybe the ranch manager wasn’t saying much because he didn’t want to put himself in the middle of a family issue. Couldn’t hate a guy for that.
While Quinn and Duke went to do evening chores, Carrie and Lacey headed to the house. Ry stayed behind, watching Rattler become accustomed to his new surroundings. There was a particularly big stall at the near end of the barn that he could claim, though for right now what the stallion really needed was to be turned out to pasture. That was something Ry would have to talk to Quinn about, since they had a number of open mares and the last thing Ry wanted to happen was some unplanned breeding.
He skipped the family dinner and instead parked the trailer, cleaned it out and unloaded his stuff in the camper. Then he went back out and took a good look at the brood mares. If Kailey was on board, if he could get her to hold true to her promise to use a new stud for Brandt’s stock, it would be a big boost for Crooked Valley’s reputation.
He’d like to breed one or two of their own mares, too. Like Candyfloss, an Appaloosa with some Clyde blood in her. She had a size and attitude that Rylan liked to see in a horse. Manageable and friendly when not in the chute, but a natural bucking instinct that he thought would work well with Rattler’s temperament. With her strength and Rattler’s high spirits, he figured there was a chance of breeding
a good saddle bronc.
After Rylan had gone through the barn, he went back to the corral and leaned on the fence, watching as Rattler stood in the sun, his hide twitching now and again.
And swallowed against a lump in his throat.
When he’d been little, he’d loved this ranch. He’d loved the horses and the cows and Grandma Eileen’s cooking. He’d wanted to run through the fields and pastures all day long, climb on the huge, round bales of hay, pick up garter snakes in the grass. He’d ridden his pony every opportunity he’d had, and when he wasn’t doing that he’d nagged Duke to play rodeo with him. It usually had involved lassoes and some sort of mock calf Grandpa Joe had set up for them behind the barn. Duke, if Rylan remembered correctly, had done it grudgingly. At first Ry had thought it was because Duke didn’t want to be saddled with a younger brother. But now, Rylan realized something important: Duke had always wanted to be a soldier. Out of all the kids, it had been Rylan who’d missed the ranch the most.
When they’d moved to Helena, Rylan hadn’t fit in anywhere. In his ideal world, he was back on the ranch, with the horses and the cattle, currying Daisy’s coat and feeding her carrots. Not in a city school where kids teased him if he wore his boots and hat. Even the week or so in the summer that they’d used to visit hadn’t been fun, because it only served to remind Rylan that he had to say goodbye and go back to the city he’d hated.
Rattler wandered around the corral and Rylan sighed. He’d put off coming back here because it hurt too much. Because he resented being ripped away from it in the first place. He wished it didn’t feel so much like home again. Wished he could stay detached. But he knew that his biggest fear had already come to pass.
He was going to hate leaving again.
Chapter Six
Kailey thought about taking her truck over to Crooked Valley, but it was too nice of a night. She was bone-tired from haying all day, but the before-supper shower had felt heavenly and the beef roast and mashed potatoes her mom had made for dinner had perked her up considerably. What she really wanted was to enjoy some peace and quiet rather than feel rushed from place to place. She saddled one of the geldings and went cross-country in the soft evening, the rhythm of being on horseback soothing and familiar and far preferable to sitting on tractors all day long.
Rylan was standing at the corral, his elbows on the fence. He didn’t seem to hear her approach, and she frowned. He was usually quick to smile, but right now his body language suggested he was lost in thought. Tough thoughts. His shoulders hunched and his head drooped a little as he rested his weight on the fence rail.
“Hey, Duggan,” she called out, realizing she’d assessed the situation accurately when he jumped in surprise.
“I was looking for your truck,” he said, flashing a smile that erased the troubled expression from his face. Whatever thoughts had been dogging him, he’d pushed them aside. She was starting to realize he was very good at that.
“This was more relaxing. I’ve been haying all day.”
“I just got back this afternoon.”
She dismounted and tied her horse to a nearby fence post. “So I heard,” she answered, crossing the yard, moving toward him. “Caused quite a hubbub with your cargo, too.”
His gaze warmed. “Come see.”
She stood beside him at the fence and gave a whistle. The horse’s ears perked up at the sound and he turned his head. He sure was a beauty. Heavily muscled, strong hindquarters, broad chest and standing seventeen hands or more if she was any judge.
“He can buck?”
“I certainly hope so.” Together they watched as the horse caught wind of something and lifted his head before trotting to the opposite side of the corral. “Previous owner retired him from competition a few years back. He was becoming valuable from a breeding standpoint.”
“And he sold him why?”
“Retiring. You probably know him. Mack Rigden.”
“I know Mack. Good guy.” She narrowed her eyes. “He selling off more of his stock?”
Rylan laughed then. “You interested?”
“If they look anything like this big lad, I might be.” She hesitated. “I’d have to look at the bloodline, but I’d say there’s a little draft horse in there somewhere. Percheron, maybe. You breed him with Candy and you’ll have a horse like a tank.”
He chuckled. “I was thinking the same thing.”
Kailey kept her eyes on the stallion as she pondered the question on her mind. “Ry, I don’t know how to ask this delicately, so I’ll just come out with it. I didn’t think Duke would approve an expenditure this big. Not now. What changed his mind?”
“He didn’t change his mind. That’s why Quinn called you.”
Her face must have looked shocked because Rylan started to laugh. “You should see yourself,” he joked. “You look horrified. Don’t worry, Kailey. I didn’t rip off Crooked Valley funds. I paid for him myself.”
She thought about that for a moment. First of all, there was the surprise that he had enough money for a really good stud horse when he was living out of a tiny camper. More than that, though, she thought about how this marked an interesting step in his involvement at Crooked Valley.
So much for no ties. He had the horse. He had already mentioned one potential pairing. Did he realize he’d just made an investment in the family bucking stock business?
“I take it you live below your means, then,” she said quietly, resting her arms on the fence.
“Not hard to do. My needs are pretty simple.”
She looked over at him, surprised. This was a different side to Rylan she hadn’t seen before. She’d always had the impression he didn’t take things very seriously. That he was...impulsive. Despite what Duke might have thought, this wasn’t an impulsive purchase.
He’d asked her before what she thought. Asked if she’d consider helping him out. He’d been planning this. Looking for the right horse. He’d had money put aside.
It was completely opposite from the man who’d thrown his cash down for a custom-made saddle at the Valentine’s Day auction, who’d danced with her and propositioned her to something outrageous...
“Who are you, Rylan?”
She didn’t realize she’d asked the question out loud until she heard him sigh. “I just am,” he answered, avoiding the question. “No sense trying to dig too deep with me. What you see is what you get.”
“Oh, I don’t think so.” She looked at him, examined the firm set to his jaw, the tightness of his lips. He didn’t like talking about himself much, did he?
“Come on,” she prompted. “You like this place more than you’ll admit. You came back here. You’ve gotten yourself involved in this part of the operation... Why do you fight it so hard?”
He turned his head and met her gaze, though he kept his emotions shuttered away so she couldn’t really read his face. “I never said I hated this place. I probably love it the most out of the three of us. So don’t you question that, Kailey.”
“Then why are you so determined to leave?”
His lips thinned further. “Just because I care about the ranch doesn’t mean I want to come back. Doesn’t mean I belong here. So get that out of your head, okay? I get enough of that from Lacey and Duke. I don’t need it from you, too.”
“Sheesh. Sorry.” He was so touchy about it. “Did something happen to drive you away? I’m just trying to understand, Ry. Things just don’t add up.”
“Well, that’s life,” he replied bitterly. “And for the record, I wasn’t driven away. I was taken away. Big difference.”
She would have asked more, but the screen door slammed up at the house and both of them turned to see Quinn and Duke coming down the driveway to the barn. Just the men. Carrie and Lacey didn’t join them.
“Hey, Kailey,” Duke called out as they approached. “Thanks for coming over.”
“No problem. Ry and I were just talking about this guy here. What’s his name, Ry?”
“Rattler.”
She grinned. “I like it. Strikes fast and a little bit dangerous. Just like you want.”
Quinn smiled. “Well, the problem is we can’t really take him at his name, you know?”
Duke nodded. “You’re a good judge, Kailey. What do you think of Rylan’s purchase?”
She looked at Rylan. Saw defiance in his eyes, but something else, too. Hope. He really wanted this to work. And she wanted it, too. For Crooked Valley. And, on a more unsettling note, for him.
“Well, at face and name value, he’s great. I was just telling Rylan that if you bred him with Candyfloss, you’d have a horse like a tank. But the bigger question is bucking ability. I’d like to have a look at his papers. Ry says he competed for a while until he became too valuable as a stud. That natural bucking ability is important. I’d like to see someone get on him. Try to stay on.”
Ry’s eyes lit up. “It’d give us a chance to see him in the chute, too.”
Duke looked his brother in the eye. “You’re dying to get on him, aren’t you?”
“He hasn’t competed in a few years. But yeah. I’d like to see what he’s made of. That instinct doesn’t just go away.”
“Let’s do it,” Quinn said.
Kailey was usually right in the mix back at her own place, but tonight she stood back and watched, just for this once. She wanted to get a good look at how Rattler handled, his temperament, how he was in the chute. She and Duke went to the small arena and stood at the rails as Quinn and Rylan prepared horse and rider for the main attraction.
“You really think this horse was worth the money?” Duke asked. “Because it’s a hell of an impulse buy. Rylan can be so reckless.”
It scared her how quickly she wanted to leap to Ry’s defense. “Time will tell, Duke. But he didn’t buy some old nag, I can tell you that. If I were in the market I would have given him a second look. And I can guarantee you he would have gone for more at auction. If this ride is anything at all, your brother just brought home a bargain.”
Duke’s jaw dropped a little. “You think so?”
“You need to have more faith in your brother, Duke. He’s a pro rider. He knows what he’s doing. And it wasn’t nearly as impulsive as you might think.”
