"Wonderfully," she said very sincerely. "I haven't been this excited about my work in a long time. I think coming here was just what I needed. I want to thank you again for allowing me to stay here and paint parts of your ranch."
"I'm glad to hear it's going so well. How soon will I be able to see your painting?"
"You can see it now if you want, but I'm not sure how impressive it will be. When I'm zoned into a picture, it usually doesn't look like much until the end when I bring all the parts of it together."
"Really? If I looked at it now, it wouldn't look like the meadow?"
"Probably not so much, no. I guess I can't really answer that, because I see what I'm working on as part of the whole thing. I picture it all in my mind. I'm not really sure what you'd see."
"I know how to solve that; how to answer that question."
"How?"
"I'll escort you back out after lunch and look at it. I'm really anxious to see it. Now that you say it doesn't really come together until the end, you have me curious. Do you mind if I watch the various stages as you work on it?"
"Not at all. I know some artists don't want anyone to see it until it's done, but that never bothered me. With mine, I don't think people quite get it, what it's going to look like until the end, but I don't care if you want to follow along with it. It'll be kind of interesting to get your take on it."
"Then it's decided. I'll walk you back out after lunch and take a look at it."
She listened then as the cowboys discussed their day. She'd come to enjoy this part of their meals. Listening to these two big burly men talk about what they were going to do, both of them so obviously knowledgeable and quite capable, always grabbed her interest. She still didn't know what they were talking about much of the time, but was slowly beginning to understand their language and some of the things that go on around a ranch, and she was finding it fascinating.
True to his word, after lunch, Dalton escorted her back to her work. She removed the protective casing she put on the canvas to protect it while she was gone, and watched Dalton's facial expressions. It was obvious to her that he was confused, curious, but also guarding his expression carefully so as not to hurt her feelings. That didn't surprise her a bit. The Dalton she was getting to know would never want to hurt her feelings.
"So was I right? Is it hard to follow my thought process?"
He squinted as he looked at it again. "Let's just say I'm anxious to look at it tonight after supper, and see the difference."
Lilly laughed, which made Dalton smile. "That was such a nice way of saying you think I've either lost my mind or am lacking in the talent department." Before he could object, she said, "And I thank you for that. Please just keep an open mind until it's done, okay?"
"I will definitely do that," he promised. "Now, I've got work to get to. Good luck with your painting this afternoon. I'll see you at supper. Are you sure you have plenty of water for this afternoon?"
"I'm sure. You just brought four more bottles out for me, and I still had two left from this morning."
"Okay. Make sure you keep drinking. It'll get hot this afternoon."
When he left this time, she didn't feel as though he'd just bossed her around or told her what to do. She smiled at that thought. She was getting to know him better, and although he may sound bossy to other people, she now realized it really was just because he cared. What's worse, she had to admit she rather liked knowing he cared. Again, that thought bothered her a bit. It was too soon.
She pushed that thought away and got back to her painting. This time she let herself become one with the painting, and she felt like she was part of it. She knew this was one of her best pieces, but she didn't allow herself to stop and dwell on it. She just kept painting.
In fact, she didn't stop to think about anything until she heard a deep, rather angry voice in the background. She blocked it out and kept painting, until she heard it again. She turned around to see what was going on and looked directly into Dalton's eyes, and they didn't look happy!
Unfortunately, when she whirled around quickly to see what the noise was, her brush turned with her. Dalton's angry-looking eyes became even angrier when her brush put a nice stroke of sky blue across his arm and about chest high on his shirt. Without thinking she mumbled the first thought that crossed her mind. "Oh, shit."
Chapter Four
Dalton's eyes got bigger and even angrier. As he took his handkerchief out to wipe his arm off, he asked, "That's what you have to say for yourself? Really, that's what you want to say right now?"
"No, it's not. I mean, I'm sorry. I just—why are you here? I mean, I know this is your ranch and you're allowed to be here, but why are you here now? I mean, why did—I'm sorry. I didn't know you were here and I didn't mean to –" She was flustered, and the look on his face scared her. She was afraid he was going to tell her to get off his ranch and never come back. That, together with the very emotional day she'd been having, knowing this was going to be a really good painting, was too much for her. She started crying and no longer seemed to be in control of anything. "Damn. I finally get my mojo going again and I screw it up. Damn it all to hell! I screw everything up. What is wrong with me?"
Her knees were suddenly too weak to hold her and she slid to the ground. To her surprise, though, she'd no sooner hit the ground than she felt herself being lifted. She opened her eyes and realized Dalton was sitting on the ground next to her and had lifted her into his lap. He gently directed her head to lean against his chest, and his arms were wrapped around her. She didn't understand what was happening or why, but she knew she felt safe. She laid her head on his chest and cried. She wasn't sure why exactly she was crying, but she knew she couldn't stop.
Dalton seemed to know what she needed, though, and was encouraging her. "It's okay, Lilly. I have you and you're safe. You seem to have been needing a good cry for a little while now. Go ahead and let it out. I'll hold you while you do."
His soft, gentle words were her undoing. She cried. She cried for the relationship that had recently ended badly, and she cried because she thought she'd ruined her chances of staying on the ranch. She cried for the mother she'd lost almost a year ago and for how alone she'd felt since then. She cried for the father she'd never known; who had left her and her mom to fend for themselves when she was a baby. She cried for how good it had felt knowing Dalton cared, but she was afraid that was coming to an end.
And the whole time she cried, Dalton held her tightly and softly encouraged her. "Take as long as you need to. Get it all out now and you'll feel a lot better. I'll be here when you're done and we can talk if you want to. You're not alone. Daphne and I are here for you."
Lilly heard his soft, encouraging little comments, and wondered how he seemed to know what she needed to hear. This man was truly something else. There was no way he could know how good his arms around her felt, but she wished she could stay right here, just like this forever. Eventually, though, her tears ended and she managed to pull herself together a little bit.
When she looked up at Dalton tentatively, trying to judge how upset he was, she was surprised to see him smiling down at her. "Feeling better?"
At first all she could do was nod her head, and he acknowledged it with a little squeeze. After a few moments, she was able to find her voice. "Thank you. How did you know?"
"How did I know you needed a good cry?" She nodded. "Daphne used to do that, too. She'd hold things in and not talk about them. I'd try to get her to talk, but she wouldn't. It would finally get to the place that one simple thing proved to be one simple thing too many, and she'd break down. She always felt so much better afterwards. I never could understand why she'd hold it all in like that, when talking about it or having a good cry about it would have made her feel so much better. Maybe it's a girl thing." He shrugged. "But did it work; do you feel better?"
"Yes," she admitted. She thought about how good his arms around her felt, and she blushed. "Thank you for holding me. You didn't need t
o do that."
"Honey, I wanted to do that."
She looked up at him, with an obvious question in her eyes. As much as he wanted to tell her he'd become attracted to her, he knew he shouldn't. She and Clay had started spending a little time together here and there, and he had no business having feelings for her. Even if he could have feelings for her, he wouldn't want her to feel pressured into it. "Every girl needs to have a safe place to cry. Remember that. If you have a problem and need a good cry, come talk to me. I'll always listen, help if I can, and, at the least, I'll hold you and keep you safe while you have that cry you need."
Lilly knew she was starting to have feelings for Dalton already, even though her brain told her not to. Apparently he didn't have any such feelings for her, though, so she'd have to do her best to tamp those feelings down. "Thank you." If he didn't return her feelings, she had no right to sit on his lap, soaking up the warm feelings, so she pushed herself up. He surprised her again by standing up and taking her with him, so they were both on their feet.
She refused to look into his eyes, afraid he might be able to tell she had feelings for him, and she did not want to embarrass herself. Instead, she pulled herself together and asked, "So what did you come out here for?"
He had a puzzled look on his face as he asked, "Do you know what time it is?"
"No. My watch was getting in the way, so I took it off. My painting kind of carried me off and I guess I forgot to check the time. Why; what time is it?"
"About a half hour past supper," he answered, watching her expression.
"Oh, my gosh. I'm sorry. I didn't realize."
He watched, amused, as she started to panic, which started her babbling again. "I'm sorry, Dalton. I didn't realize. I should have left my watch on. Or maybe I could have put it somewhere that I could see it. I know you said to be back for supper. I meant to, I really did. Are you really mad at me? Are you going to make me move out tonight? I'd really like to finish at least this one painting first. Oh, what am I saying? I messed up and I don't have the right to ask for that. I'm sorry. I just—"
He felt sorry for her and put his finger to her mouth. "Ssshhh, it's okay, Lilly. I'm not angry, and I'm not going to make you leave."
"You're not?"
"No. Well, I may have been a bit angry when I came out here, but I can see now that you really did get so involved with your work that time got away from you, and you didn't do it on purpose. I'll let this first time go with a warning."
"A warning?"
"Yes. Next time you're out here, or anywhere else, you need to pay attention to the time. When I came in for supper and you weren't there, I was worried. Luckily, I knew where you were this time, so I looked and saw you were still out here working. If I don't know where you are, I won't know where to look. That's why I want you to make sure you don't go any further from the house than where I can see you. That way if you're at the house, I'll be able to go up on the deck off my bedroom and I should be able to see you."
"Okay, I'll remember that. I really am sorry, Dalton."
"It's okay, I understand what happened. There is one thing I want to talk to you about, though, young lady."
She saw the serious look in his eyes and whispered, "What's that?"
"Your language when you turned and saw me."
"Why; what did I say?"
"You said a couple things that weren't very becoming for a pretty young lady like yourself. You're a better person than that, Lilly, and I don't want to hear that kind of language from you."
Her eyebrows shot up. "I'm sure you hear that kind of language all the time among your men."
"Not as much as you'd think. They know I don't like to hear it, so they refrain from it somewhat. But what I do hear from them is different because they are men. I hate to hear that language from anyone, but especially from a pretty little lady. So here's your second warning; don't let me hear you talking like that again. Okay?"
"Okay."
"Good girl. Now, let's go eat. Let me help you carry this stuff back to the house until the morning."
As they neared the house, Dalton suggested, "If you want to go up to your room and freshen up a bit and wash your face before supper, go ahead. I'll tell Stella and Clay you're washing the paint off your hands."
"Thank you." Lilly went to her bedroom and did just that before going down to supper. No one said a single word about her being late, and she assumed it was because of something Dalton had said. As they were having dessert, Clay asked, "Are you ready for another riding lesson, Lilly?"
Not wanting to hurt his feelings, she tried to look and sound enthusiastic.
Dalton watched as Clay held her hand as he led her to the barn. They were talking and smiling, and Dalton told himself he needed to be happy for them..
But he wasn't, and he wasn't proud of himself. He was attracted to Lilly. He didn't want her to be happy with Clay; he wanted her to be happy with him. He forced himself into his office to try once again to get Lilly and Clay off his mind by trying to get some work done.
***
Lilly went into the kitchen the next morning to grab some water and head back to the meadow, but was surprised to find Dalton waiting for her. "I have a proposition for you," he said.
"What kind of proposition," she asked curiously.
"Yesterday I saw just how wrapped up you get in your work, and I thought about that last night. You said you often do that when your painting is going well?"
"Yes."
"I'm glad to hear your painting's going well, and I don't want to interfere with that. Would you normally stop for lunch when you're painting?"
"Not if it's going well."
"Don't you get hungry?"
"Actually, when I'm painting and it's going really well I don't even think of food. I kind of get lost in my work."
"That's what I thought. Here's the thing. I think it's important to eat regularly so your body has the fuel it needs. I understand what you're saying, though, so I packed you a lunch of sorts. There's a sandwich, but more importantly, there's some trail mix and some high energy bars, along with lots of water. If you tell me you'll at least snack on the energy bars or trail mix and keep a bottle of water open and handy so you'll keep drinking, you don't have to stop and come in for lunch. I'll check and make sure you're okay, but I can see you from the house, so you won't have to come in today. I do want you to stop for supper, though, so I know you've had at least one good meal."
Without stopping to think about what she was doing, Lilly threw her arms around Dalton's waist and hugged him. "Thank you, Dalton. This means a lot to me."
He gladly hugged her back, but was a little confused. "Not stopping for lunch means that much to you?"
"No, it's not that. It's that you listened to what I said, and you get me. You understand what I'm saying about how I get when I'm working. That means a lot to me."
His eyebrows shot up in surprise. This little lady was very smart and alert, but it was also obvious to him that she needed to know someone cared. Her mother, for whatever reason, may not have shown she cared, but he wasn't about to make that same mistake.
He gave her another quick hug. "So can I have your word that you'll eat this breakfast bar now and at least do some snacking during the day, along with drinking plenty of water?"
"I promise. And thank you."
"You're welcome. I'll come out and get you for supper again so I can help you carry your supplies back in. I'll get to see how your painting's progressing that way."
"That sounds wonderful."
He helped her get her things out to the meadow again, and left after checking to be sure she had her phone and it was charged. "Call me if you need me," he said as he turned and walked off to the barn.
She watched the big man as he left, looking so sexy in his cowboy hat and boots. She had to get her feelings for him under control, but he wasn't making it easy by doing these extra little things for her.
She got out some water and snacks because she knew
if they weren't out where she'd see them, she wouldn't think of them. She forced her attention off of Dalton and onto her painting, and was soon lost in her work again.
After what seemed like a couple hours, Dalton startled her. "You got a lot done today, Lilly. I can see the picture it's becoming now. You do good work."
She turned to study his face and could see he was sincere. "Thank you. If I have another good day or two I think it'll be done. So what are you doing here? Don't you have work to do, whatever cowboys do during the day?"
Dalton chuckled, knowing she had no idea what time it was. "How long do us cowboys have to work in one day? I came to get you for supper, unless you don't think I did enough work yet today?"
"Huh? What time is it?"
"Supper time," he answered, showing her his watch. "Ready to stop for the day?"
"I guess," she said a bit reluctantly. "It's going well and I kind of hate to stop, but the sun is lower than I like for this painting, so I think I better wait until tomorrow. I might be able to finish it then."
"Does it usually take three or four days to paint one of your masterpieces? I had no idea how long it takes an artist to paint."
"It all depends. It generally takes a little longer, but I've been really inspired the last couple of days. I'm so glad you let me come here."
He stopped helping her put things away for a moment to smile at her. "I'm glad I did, too. It seems to be a good thing for you, and I'm enjoying having you here." He turned back to what he was doing and said, "But let's go eat. I'm hungry."
After supper, Clay again took Lilly out for another riding lesson, and Dalton holed up in his office, trying not to think of what the two of them were doing.
The next day went much as the previous day. Lilly wasn't able to finish her painting, but was close. Dalton was genuinely impressed with her work, which made her proud.
A Beautiful Ranch Page 5