Landon ran his hand through his hair, tousling it. “Come to think of it, I was even a bit irked when I came across the two of you talking in the feed store. So now I’m wondering if part of the reason I was so mad on the cattle drive was that, even back then, I knew you were something special.”
This was news. All the time they’d spent together as kids, she’d never thought Landon saw her as anything but immature and silly. She settled back beside him on the couch. “I doubt you were interested in me when I was fifteen.”
He laughed at her surprise. “You were sweet, funny, and had turned into a beauty. But I was smart enough to know I needed to wait for you to grow up.” He traced a finger along the side of her face, as though admiring the curve of her cheek. “You never came back.”
She couldn’t have moved if she wanted to. She was captivated by the feel of his touch. “I came back this year. And I’ve grown up.”
“That you have,” he agreed, and kissed her again.
Chapter Eleven
The next day, Kate managed to do her chores faster than normal. They didn’t seem as hard or bothersome when she had an evening with Landon to look forward to.
As she was putting on her makeup for their date, her parents called. “We just wanted to see how you’re doing,” her father said. “Have your hands healed?”
Her manicure was a wreck, but she’d given up any hope of nice fingernails on the day she’d decided to stay. “They’re getting better. I’m sure I’ll have calluses in no time.”
“You sound pretty cheerful about calluses,” her mother said.
Kate brushed bronzer against her cheeks. “I’m just in a good mood. Landon asked me out. We’re going to dinner and then dancing.”
Silence filled the line. Finally, her mother said, “Do you mean he’s showing you around and you’ll be dancing with other people? Or is this an actual date, as in, there’s a chance he’ll be kissing you at the end of it?”
Chances were very high. She wasn’t about to tell her parents that she’d already done her fair share of kissing Landon. It would be better to ease her parents into the idea of her and Landon as a couple if she left out those details. “It’s an actual date. Since I’ve been here, Landon has been really nice. He’s letting me borrow his baler, and I told you how he came over and helped me spread manure.”
Her father grunted. “Oh, I can tell he’s been spreading more than manure and laying it on thick.”
“The guy could be playing you,” her mother said. “You can’t get romantically involved with him. You can’t even trust the advice he gives you on ranching. He wants to take Coyote Glen from you.”
Kate should have expected that reaction. After all, her parents didn’t know Landon like she did. Each summer when they’d dropped her off, they’d only stayed a few days before going back to Washington. They’d hardly spent any time with the Wyles. “Landon isn’t like that. He isn’t trying to take the ranch from me. He’s already told me he thinks we can reach a financial agreement. He’s working on getting a loan approved so he can make us an offer.”
Landon was undermining his own plan by asking her out. At the moment, she had no desire to leave Arizona.
“He’ll most likely lowball you,” her father said. “And then he’ll pressure you into accepting it. I bet that’s why he wants to date you—so he can manipulate you into agreeing to his terms.”
The words stung. “You think that’s the only reason someone would want to date me?”
Her father sighed. “That’s not what I’m saying. You’re a beautiful, talented, intelligent woman. If Landon is truly interested in you, he should understand the position he’s putting you in. He should be willing to wait until after the land isn’t an issue anymore. Then if the two of you want to date, you’ll know he doesn’t have ulterior motives.”
“Exactly,” her mother said. “Tell him you need to wait until the financial matters are taken care of.” She said this as though the matter was settled and Kate ought to agree.
Problem was, Kate didn’t want to wait for weeks or months for another kiss. She was already going into withdrawals. Besides, if they couldn’t agree on a price for the land, Coyote Glen’s ownership wouldn’t be settled for a year. Telling Landon to wait until then would be tantamount to telling him she didn’t trust him—that she suspected his motives. Still, she couldn’t ignore her parents’ concerns. “I won’t consider any offer the Wyles make without consulting you first. You don’t need to worry about him pressuring me into anything.”
“Steer clear of Landon’s advice on running the ranch,” her father emphasized, like she might have missed his earlier opinions. “Dewayne has worked for your grandfather for years. Get his advice before doing anything, and that includes borrowing equipment from the Wyles. What would happen if they loaned you something and then claimed you damaged it? Unless you have them sign something that says you’ve returned the equipment in good working order, they could sue you for the price of a new baler. You have to be careful of anything that might put you into the red.”
Kate brushed mascara on her lashes. “Landon wouldn’t do something like that.” And she wasn’t about to ask him to sign documentation after she borrowed his equipment. Not only would it be insulting, the Wyles would never let her borrow anything else. “Weren’t you listening to all of those stories Grandpa told about how upstanding Landon and his brothers are?”
“When millions of dollars are at stake,” her father said, “even upstanding men do some bad things.”
She couldn’t keep arguing that point with her parents. Pretending to acquiesce was the next best thing. “Maybe you’re right. I’ll talk to him.” Technically, her words weren’t a lie. There was always a minuscule chance her parents were right, just as there was a minuscule chance that Landon was a vampire. And she did plan on talking to him—while they ate dinner and danced.
What this conversation really meant was that Kate would have to keep any dates with Landon a secret from her parents. That wouldn’t be such a bad thing. If the relationship went nowhere, then her parents wouldn’t be the wiser. And if things went somewhere, then she’d find a way to break the news to them. No point fighting that battle right now.
Her mother’s voice took on a cheerful encouraging tone. “I’m sure you’ll find plenty of other handsome men around.”
“I’ve already run into plenty, but since they’re all Landon’s brothers, I assume you won’t like them either.”
“Five thousand people live in Bisbee,” her father said. “A few must be eligible men. If not, I hear internet dating is big with your generation.”
Kate would’ve been very depressed at that moment if she’d decided to give up Landon, but she wasn’t planning on it and didn’t want more of her parents’ advice. Instead of commenting, she changed the subject and told them that Dewayne had suggested she sell all the cows and heifers that weren’t pregnant.
“Dewayne’s probably right,” her father said. “I’ll give him a call and talk about your options.”
Which brought up another issue. If Kate was going to keep Landon a secret from her parents, she’d have to keep her relationship a secret from Dewayne too. Otherwise, he’d probably say something about it to her parents. Luckily, Dewayne didn’t seem all that interested in her personal life and turned in for the night around five. He wouldn’t know what she did in the evenings.
Cue a double life.
That night Landon picked her up at six. He wore a black button-down shirt that accentuated his broad shoulders. Ranch work was good for keeping a man in shape. She couldn’t help but compare him to the men she knew back in Seattle. They all seemed so thin and pale next to him, so insubstantial.
Kate wasn’t sure how to break the news that they needed to keep their relationship a secret from Dewayne. The Wyles had been nothing but helpful to her since she got here, and now she was going to have to admit to Landon that her parents thought he might be manipulating her.
She got into
his truck, a white dually that was surprising clean, and they headed toward Bisbee. On the way there, they talked about the moisture content in alfalfa. She wouldn’t have thought a conversation about hay could be interesting, but now she tried to remember everything Landon said as though studying for a test.
When they neared Bisbee, he suggested a couple of restaurants. “The steak at the Double P Roadhouse is good.”
The thought of any sort of beef was no longer tempting. “I’ll have to pass on steak.”
“You don’t like it?”
“I used to love it, but I’ve been looking into the cows’ big brown eyes for nearly three weeks. How could I eat one?”
“I guess the same way you ate hamburgers at our barbeques when you were a kid.”
She slumped in her seat. “But now they’re my cows. They depend on me for everything. It’s like I’ve become their mother, and stop shaking your head. This is different than killing pigeons.”
“Right. Pigeons don’t taste good. Which reminds me, do you want me to come over and take care of the ones in your barn?”
The answer to that question wasn’t going to reassure him. “You don’t need to. Right now they’re not stealing the animals’ feed because I’ve sprinkled the outside of the barn with stuff from the pantry that I’m never going to eat.”
“You’re feeding the pigeons?”
“Do you know how many boxes of expired frosted shredded wheat my grandfather had in his house?”
Landon paused. “So a vegetarian place for dinner?”
“I can still eat chicken. I don’t like them all that much.”
He laughed and shook his head.
She turned in her seat to better see Landon. “Do you think I’m too soft?” Her grandfather had. After she’d come into the house sniffling after the pigeon incident, he’d told her grandmother, “Heaven help us if the younger generation had to fight a war. They’re too soft to shoot a bird, let alone a combatant.” Her grandmother had been the one who comforted her and pointedly told Grandpa that the world didn’t need more combatants.
Landon reached over and squeezed Kate’s arm. “I think you’re about the right amount of softness. Although, to be certain, I’ll have to do a more in-depth analysis.”
That was an analysis she’d look forward to. She wanted to take hold of his hand and keep it in hers, but supposed he had better keep both hands on the wheel.
“Later when you’re not around,” he continued, “I’ll come over, take care of the pigeons, and you’ll be none the wiser.”
“Well, I wouldn’t be, except you just told me your plans.”
“Don’t fret about it. When I said I’d take care of them, I meant I would relocate them to some kindly pigeon farm where animal lovers will feed them all the frosted shredded wheat they like.”
Kate made a tsking sound. “Liar. I can see I’m going to have to put spikes along the beams in the barn, or I’ll have more pigeon carnage on my hands.”
“I’ll come over and help you.” He grinned. “In fact, I reckon you’ll need a lot of help at Coyote Glenn. I might need to come over several times a week to see you.”
She liked that idea, and then remembered the need for secrecy. “I definitely want to see you several times a week, but Dewayne can’t know about us. He’ll tell my parents and…” She still didn’t know the most tactful way to explain the situation. “They… don’t think I should date anyone while I’m here.”
Landon glanced at her, eyebrows cocked up. “Anyone or me in particular?”
He’d cut to the heart of the matter quickly enough. She didn’t bother denying the implication. “They’re worried that if I date you, it will cloud my judgment.”
He clenched his jaw, then let out a slow breath. “I guess it’s only natural for your parents to worry about you. But what’s your opinion? Are you afraid I’ve got ulterior motives?”
“I wouldn’t be here if I did.”
He relaxed a bit. “Good.”
She nudged his leg with hers. “Did you think I came with you tonight just for the kissing therapy?” She looked upward, considering. “Although that is a big draw.”
The comment earned her a smile, but it fell from his lips quickly. “You want our relationship to be a secret?”
“Just from Dewayne.”
“If anyone in town knows we’re dating, it will get back to him. So if you don’t want him to know, we shouldn’t be seen together at a restaurant or out dancing.”
She hadn’t thought about that. Back in Seattle, the chances of running into someone you knew at a restaurant were slim. Recognizability: one more perk to small town life. “That sort of puts a damper on the evening.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to tell your parents about us than to have to sneak around?”
“You either had really understanding parents or you’ve forgotten what lectures and guilt trips are like.”
“Maybe a little of both,” he allowed.
More likely, he was the sort of son who’d never given his parents a minute’s worth of grief. He tapped the steering wheel with his thumb, a sign he was irritated.
“We can still see each other,” she said. “We’ll tell Dewayne you agreed to help me out with a few things on the ranch in exchange for me redecorating your place. Then I’ll have an excuse to be over at your house too.”
More tapping on the steering wheel. Judging by the crease in his brow, you’d think she’d asked him to do something illegal. “It’s not that we’re being dishonest,” she emphasized. “We’re just being private. That’s okay, isn’t it?”
“I suppose so.” The eyebrow crease disappeared. She’d hit upon the right angle. Landon didn’t want to be anyone’s dirty little secret, but he understood the value of privacy. “I guess no one else has to know our business right now.”
And that is how they ended up having a late-night picnic of take-out lobster while sitting in his truck bed underneath a full moon. The stars were bright, the food was good, and the kissing was even better.
Chapter Twelve
“So you’re saying you’re ashamed to be dating Kitty?” Dillon asked, head cocked. “That’s why you don’t want us to tell people about the two of you?”
Landon sat at the table with Dillon, Jaxon, and Preston eating breakfast before church. Landon had just explained the need for secrecy to his brothers, but he must not have done a good job.
“No, I’m just saying you can’t tell people about our relationship.” His gaze slid to his niece. She lay on the couch, her attention riveted to the TV. Audrey especially shouldn’t know anything, since six-year-olds weren’t known for keeping secrets. “Kitty’s parents are worried I’ll influence her in our favor.”
Jaxon nodded. “I actually think that’s a good idea. I mean, you influencing Kitty in our favor.”
Landon rolled his eyes. “What sort of man would that make me?”
“One who still has a job.” Preston skewered some eggs on his fork. “One who cares about his family.”
Before Landon could respond, Preston plowed on. “I haven’t read a single one of the classics assigned in my English classes, and I laughed at all my friends who were plodding through Walden, because I always knew what I was doing after high school—and it didn’t involve writing some hyped-up college application essay. I was going to run cattle. Now I’m wondering what I should do with my life because we might not have this ranch for long. And all because you’ve got the hots for the wrong woman.”
Landon put down his fork. “You haven’t been reading your English assignments?”
Preston huffed. “That isn’t the point.”
“Oh, it is,” Landon said. “You’re reading Walden as soon as we get home from church. I’m making that a point right now.”
Preston looked to Dillon for help. “Make him see sense.”
“You don’t need to worry about him dating Kitty,” Dillon said, ever the calming voice of reason. “Landon never gets serious about anyone or sticks
with one woman too long.”
Jaxon swiped butter across his toast and nodded sagely. “That’s true. He’s got commitment issues.”
Landon straightened, offended. “I don’t have commitment issues. I just haven’t found the right woman yet. And I’ve been busy. I’ve had my hands full with running the ranch and raising Preston and Audrey.”
Jaxon grunted. “I’m pretty sure I’ve done most of the Audrey-raising.”
“And I’ve always been your backup.” At least Landon had since their parents died. Jaxon hadn’t had anyone else. Ethan and Dillon had both been at college.
Preston finished a bite of eggs. “You don’t have to stay single on my account. In fact, I’d rather you get married. Maybe having your own kids would keep you from breathing down my neck all the time.”
“I don’t breathe down your neck all the time. And that reminds me, I’m checking your grades today. If they’re not all considerably close to the front of the alphabet, you won’t be hanging out with your friends for a while.”
“See?” Preston lifted his arms as though offering proof of his suffering. “This is exactly what I’m talking about. I’m being suffocated by your neck-breathing.”
Dillon silenced Preston with a wave of his hand. To Landon, he said, “He’s a teenager, and that means he’s required to be moody and obnoxious, but he’s also partially right. After Mom and Dad died, you put your life on hold. Maybe we all needed that back then, but it’s been five years. Neither the ranch nor the family will fall apart if you have a serious relationship.”
“Although they both might,” Preston mumbled, “if you have a serious relationship with the woman who could ruin our ranch.”
Landon didn’t want to hear any more from his brothers about commitment issues or his decision to date Kitty. “You don’t have to worry about our ranch. At least not yet. Kitty seemed open to the idea of selling her claim on Coyote Glen to us. Come Monday, I’ll look into real estate agents who can give me quotes on what the place is worth.”
The Cowboy and the Girl Next Door: (A Clean, Enemies to Lovers Romance) Wyle Away Ranch Book 1 Page 11
