by Karen Rock
“Are you okay, Uncle Cole?” Emma tugged on his plaid shirt.
Pain edged Cole’s smile, and dark unease filled Heath. “I’ve had better days, but your pretty smile sure makes things better. That and some Percocet.”
The unease turned into balls of dread, settling heavily in Heath’s stomach. Cole never took pain medication. His arm must be seriously injured. Water overflowed the coffeepot Heath held beneath the faucet before he switched it off.
Emma giggled. “You always say that, Uncle Cole.”
He lightly tapped the tip of Emma’s nose. “That’s because it’s always true.”
“Can I draw on your cast?” Noah tugged Cole’s sling. The dread exploded in Heath’s gut like buckshot, and his gaze dropped to the white plaster encasing Cole’s left arm. He’d broken it. “Josh has one and he let everyone sign it but me.”
“He’s mean,” Emma griped. “Who wants to sign stupid-head’s stupid old cast anyway?”
“Be nice,” Sierra chided, her raised hand hiding her smile.
As Heath stared at Cole, his heart cracked open. What did this mean to his Nashville tryout? He poured the measured water into the back of the coffee maker and flicked on the machine.
It was a selfish thought. Shameful...considering his brother was hurt. Heath breathed in the brewing coffee’s rich roasted aroma and strove to settle his racing pulse. He opened the fridge and paused before pulling out the milk, letting the cool air wash over his flushed face.
“What happened?” Sierra retrieved mugs. When the gurgling coffee maker quieted, she filled them and added milk.
Cole’s stance appeared casual, but he was coiled tight, hiding the pain. “Wasn’t paying close enough attention while fixing the bull pen fence. I got pinned when Diesel charged.”
Heath winced. Few survived the force of a two-ton raging bull. With a grateful nod, Pa curled his fingers around the warm mug Heath passed him.
Daryl whistled. “Could have been a heck of a lot worse.”
Cole accepted Sierra’s coffee and dropped into a seat. “Pa pulled me out.”
“Why were you in there, anyway?” Travis clasped his hands behind his back and frowned.
“Thought Diesel was secured in his pen. Must not have latched the gate last night.” Cole dropped his head in his hand.
“I’m just so thankful you’re both okay.” Joy reached across the table and managed to pat both Cole and their pa. Despite the late hour, their new stepmother looked stylish—and matching—as always in a blue polka-dot blouse tucked into a blue skirt that complemented her silver bob and hazel eyes.
“How long do you have to wear the cast?” Heath’s temples were starting to ache. The scalding coffee burned his tongue, but he kept sipping anyway.
“Six weeks.” Pa’s expression was pale and strained.
“Which is why Joy and I are canceling our honeymoon.”
Heath’s jaw hit the floor. Coffee splashed over the rim of his mug when he set it down. They needed every hand, but Pa couldn’t cancel his special trip with the woman he’d waited for all his life. They had to figure out a way to make this work. “Daryl and I can handle things, Pa.”
Pa shook his head, lacing his fingers with Joy’s. “We need at least three full-timers. Maverick’s on his bull-riding tour. Travis used up his vacation last week for the wedding, Sierra’s running her practice, and we can’t afford to hire another hand.”
A weight landed on Heath’s shoulders as he rubbed his fingers along his temples. He couldn’t leave his family ranch when they needed him. Couldn’t try for the record deal after all. The feeling that his dreams were slipping through his fingers cut deep into him, making misery of his bone and tissue.
Heath clenched his jaw and dragged in a deep breath. The contract was a long shot anyway. No sense pining for it. Instead, he’d work around the clock to ensure things ran smoothly during their cattle drive while his father honeymooned. Staving off foreclosure mattered most. Heath’s life had never belonged to him anyway; it’d been stupid to think otherwise, even for one night.
Cole lifted his head slowly. “Sorry, Pa.”
“Stop me if I’m overstepping, but...” Joy’s mouth pursed. “Maybe one of my kids could lend a hand? We have plenty of help with my nephews visiting this summer. We could spare someone experienced.”
Everyone sat perfectly still. No one spoke or even appeared to breathe. A Cade working Loveland ranch? Unthinkable...yet they had to consider it.
“Forget it.” Joy pulled off her frameless glasses and cleared the fogged lens with a napkin. “I shouldn’t have interfered.”
“You’re part of the family, darlin’.” Pa smiled tenderly. “It says Joy Loveland on our marriage certificate, don’t it?”
“Yeah.” Sierra threw an arm around Joy. “You’re one of us. I’m proud you’re my stepmother.”
“Me, too,” Heath, Daryl, Travis and Cole chorused.
“And our grandma!” shouted Emma and Noah, whose simultaneous attempts to climb on Joy’s lap went from shoving to a WWE match before Daryl banished them to opposite sides of the table.
“Sorry, Joy.” Daryl stared down his kids until they apologized, as well.
“After raising six kids, five of them boys, I don’t break easy.” Joy’s hands shook as she wiped beneath her eyes. “I couldn’t be prouder to call you my stepchildren and grandchildren. Hopefully, once the trial’s over, we’ll all become a real family, too. I want that more than anything.”
Heath spied his doubt in his siblings’ eyes. They’d never get along with the Cades, not with so many years of bad blood between them, no matter how the feud started, especially with their face-off in court next month. Joy was the exception.
In the week since she’d moved in, Heath had noticed subtle improvements. Family dinners happened every night. Baskets of freshly laundered clothes appeared on their beds daily. And the moment anyone mentioned a food preference, the item materialized in the fridge the following day.
Is this what having a mother is like? Heath had caught himself wondering since the wedding. He’d devoted his childhood to pleasing his real mother, to smoothing things over and making others happy. Having someone else take care of him and his family left him unsettled...and feeling almost unneeded, if that made any good sense.
“Let’s not talk about the trial for now,” Pa said, gruff. “Joy, who should we ask to help?”
She tapped her chin. “Jack’s working across the state as a sheriff’s deputy. James is ranch manager, so we can’t spare him. My nephews are learning the ropes and don’t have enough experience. Jared’s touring with Amberley so that leaves either Justin or Jewel.” No mention of Jesse, of course, the son she’d lost to violence related to his opioid addiction.
“Justin?” Cole exclaimed. “Heck no, not unless you want the place burned down. Remember the Fourth of July when he decided to light fireworks from the church steeple and set the roof ablaze?”
Joy smiled widely at that, and Heath’s stomach plummeted. If not Justin, then the rancher assisting him would have to be...
“Who would you pick, Pa?” Daryl wiped fudge from Noah’s chin.
“I’ll let our range boss decide. He’s in charge of ranch operations while I’m away.” All eyes turned Heath’s way.
Heath’s stomach twisted something awful, and he opened his mouth, but he didn’t know what to say. Jewel’s dogged determination to free the spare, her no-nonsense efficiency in mounting the new tire and her dry, quick wit had impressed him.
Her challenging, irritating and obnoxious personality, not so much. She was a tough, experienced, capable cowgirl, whose mouth would be a constant source of aggravation. Kelsey had given him until summer’s end to agree to a wedding date, and he needed time, space and peace on the open range to stop bucking his future...something he’d never get riding alongside the brash re
dhead.
Worse, the connection he’d felt with Jewel last night, the way his thoughts kept straying to her today, warned him of trouble ahead if they spent too much time together.
“Heath?” Pa prompted.
Time to pry his tongue off the roof of his mouth. There was nothing for it. “Jewel.” Heath scraped back his chair. “If you’ll excuse me?”
He trudged to the porch and leaned over the railing, soaking up the fresh air. Twilight was still at the stage where it was more lavender than onyx, with the fireflies just beginning to turn on and off in the yard. Standing there with the birds chirping in the trees, the crosscut-sawing of the crickets and a cattle dog snoring at the top of the stairs, was usually restful.
Heath shoved his hands in his pockets, yanked them out again, then laced them tightly behind his back, unable to settle his mind. Spirit. Heart. All around him, broad-shouldered mountains rose, penning him in, pinning him down.
Goodbye, Nashville.
He squeezed his eyes shut as a burning knot of emotion formed in the back of his throat. Without other prospects, he’d have to accept Kelsey’s father’s offer to become a partner in the supply business.
He’d have to set a wedding date.
Give up gigging.
Music.
He sucked in a sharp, stinging breath, then blew it out. He heard a fluttering overhead and then the hoot of an owl, which for some reason struck him as menacing.
At least his new, lucrative job meant he could help keep Loveland Hills on secure financial footing. It wasn’t the life he’d dreamed of, but it was the one he’d been dealt.
Best he accepted it.
Besides, he loved Kelsey...didn’t he? They’d been together for so long he wasn’t always sure. Their relationship was comfortable, like a pair of worn slippers...and just as boring. But that was typical of people who’d been together as long as he and Kelsey had, he’d heard.
The door banged open behind him, and Pa clapped him on the back. “Jewel will be a whole lot easier on the eye than Justin.”
Heath shifted from foot to foot and swatted away something feathery, a moth. Looks weren’t everything. He’d watched Jewel at local rodeos through the years; she was a talented roper and rode as well as any man. The question was: Would she listen to him and take orders? Between her and Justin, he’d wager her daredevil brother would be easier to handle, despite what Cole said. This year’s herding had to go off without a hitch. The stakes were too high for mistakes.
“You sure you’ll be okay handling the cattle drive while I’m away?” Pa asked. “Joy’s fine canceling the trip.”
Heath jerked his lips into a smile big enough to ease his father’s concerns. Pa deserved to be happy. “You bet, Pa.”
His father’s tense expression softened. “Never thought I’d have this second chance with Joy. I appreciate it, son.”
“No thanks needed. It’s what family does. We’re always here for each other.”
Pa nodded. “So, what was the important thing you wanted to tell me?”
Gnats whined in Heath’s ears and tree frogs piped. He stared at the distant moon and shook his head. “It wasn’t that important.”
Which was true.
Nothing was as important as keeping his family happy and at peace. Now he just needed to make peace with it himself...
And manage antagonistic Jewel Cade while driving cattle through one of the worst droughts in his state’s history.
His fingers clenched around the rail once his father strode back inside. What had he just signed up for?
CHAPTER THREE
JEWEL INHALED THE comforting vanilla scent of Ma’s neck as she hugged her tight in the Lovelands’ circular drive. The morning clouds were a deep, ominous gray. They churned like muddy waters stirred up from the bottom of a lake, mirroring her mood.
She dropped her head on her mother’s shoulder and closed stinging eyes. How had her plan to become Cade Ranch’s range boss crashed and burned in less than twenty-four hours? She’d be working Loveland Hills for the next month, her chance to prove herself to James gone. Despite a sleepless night, she still hadn’t completely processed it all.
“I’m going to miss you, honey.” Ma’s hazel eyes searched Jewel’s when she stepped back.
Above her earnest face, the stately poplars surrounding the Lovelands’ homey ranch house swayed. It reminded Jewel of a Hallmark Christmas ornament, with its white-spindled, wraparound porch, a honey-colored porch swing and wide front steps. Lacy, leaded-glass transoms were open above every ground-floor entrance to let the breezes flow through. Yet none of its tranquility made her feel welcome...or at home.
“Are you sure you’re all right with this?” Ma probed.
The collective gazes of the Cade and Loveland siblings, gathered to see their parents off on their honeymoon, pressed Jewel like invisible hands. Judging, weighing, testing... She shoved back her shoulders and snapped up her chin. “Of course. Heath could use a lesson on what real ranching looks like.”
Her brothers’ guffaws rang out. Beside a clump of large-leafed hostas, Heath and his siblings shifted in their boots, stone-faced and tight-lipped. Typical, obstinate Lovelands. They didn’t even flinch at her jab. How was she supposed to spend a month with them? Concrete had more personality.
At least the children got along. Javi darted around flowering bushes with Daryl’s son and daughter, screeching, “Tag, you’re it!” Everything was in bloom on the expansive property. Daisies, trumpet lilies and purple coneflowers mingled in raised beds while brightly colored petunias lined a flagstone walkway.
Her eyes clicked with Heath’s, and her heart added an extra beat. In a black cowboy hat pulled low over his lean, handsome face, his brilliant blue eyes piercing beneath the brim, he was rugged, gorgeous and—she gave herself a shake—off-limits.
When Ma begged her to help the Lovelands last night, Jewel reluctantly agreed. Her mother always sacrificed for her family. She deserved the honeymoon of her dreams. Would Jewel lose her range boss spot to Justin if he impressed James in her absence?
Boyd stood behind Ma and spanned her waist with his hands. His features settled into stern lines as he scrutinized the group. “All y’all are gonna get along while we’re gone, right? No dustups.”
Sierra stepped forward and kissed her father and Ma. “Of course.” She shot them a wide smile, turned and narrowed her eyes on her siblings until they grinned, too, the entire group joining so they resembled a bunch of crazed clowns, no doubt. “We’re family now.”
Boyd and Joy exchanged a worried glance.
“Sierra’s right.” Heath ambled over to Jewel. His unhurried, loose-limbed grace turned his Wranglers, black boots and fitted white T-shirt into something like poetry...the easy-to-memorize kind that branded itself inside you. He set his palm on her back in a gesture halfway between a clap and a hug. Her body tensed in awareness. The subtle scent of his clean skin, salty and slightly smoky, made her breathe deep. “We’re family. Right, sis?”
“Right, little brother.” Her cheeks ached with the nonstop grinning. Technically, she was only a day older than Heath, but she’d exploit the age difference for all it was worth.
“Little, huh?” He arched an eyebrow and stared down from his great height. Like all Lovelands, he was mountain-sized and tree-tall, even bigger than her brothers. She squirmed slightly in his hold. If she couldn’t impress James this month, she’d sure as heck prove herself equal to any Loveland and hopefully, in the process, find a way to still be named Cade Ranch’s range boss.
“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight...” she murmured beneath her breath.
“It’s the size of the fight in the dog,” Heath finished, a twinkle in his luminous eyes. “Is this our first fight?”
“One of many to come.” Overhead, birds sang in the poplars and small white butterflies flit
ted in a small patch of sage. Jewel’s stiff cheeks eased, her grin becoming genuine until she caught herself. What was she doing smiling, for real, at a Loveland?
“Hey!” Justin catcalled. “Whatever you two have going on over there, can you save it for after Ma and Boyd leave?”
Jewel jerked away from Heath, and his hand dropped. Red stole up over the collar of his T-shirt, the same type of heat bleeding into her cheeks. “Knock it off, Justin.” Her fist shot out and Justin danced back, rubbing his shoulder.
“Truth hurts, don’t it?” His white teeth flashed inside his dark beard.
“I’ll show you what hurts.” Jewel advanced, scowling, fist cocked.
“Jewel!” Her mother’s horrified gasp stopped her dead. Her arm fell. Heath’s disapproving expression made something inside her wither and curl into a tight ball. Fine. She wasn’t a lady. Didn’t measure up to his standards of womanhood, just like her father believed. Well...she didn’t care. She lived by her own standards and was doing fine.
Just fine.
“Use your words, Aunt Jewel,” piped up Daryl’s little girl.
Okay...maybe she wasn’t doing fine when an eight-year-old lectured her about behavior.
“Time for us to go or we’ll miss our flight.” Boyd held open the pickup’s passenger door. “If we have to come home early on account of any mischief, you’ll wish we hadn’t.”
Jewel rolled her eyes and Heath’s mouth twitched as they exchanged a swift, secretly amused look that meant nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
“No mischief, Pa, promise. Like Sierra said, we’re family.” Heath caught everyone’s eye until they nodded along, heads bobbing like a clutch of chickens.
“I have faith.” Ma’s mouth curved into a smile. “You’ll do just fine without us. Love you!” And with that, she gripped Boyd’s hand and stepped up into the truck’s cab.
Boyd angled his head toward the pickup. “What she said.” He hopped in behind the wheel and slammed the door shut.
“Goodbye!” everyone hollered as they drove away, returning Joy’s wave through the rear window.