Hill Country Redemption

by Shannon Taylor Vannatter

  Had she become like her dad during her years in the city—never expecting Rance to amount to much? Did she think he was destined to be hired help for the rest of his days? If only she knew Remington blood ran through his veins. And it was boiling right about now.

  He should have revealed his family tree back when her dad had tried to get rid of him. That was years ago, but it stung just the same. No one would ever think he was after her money—or anyone else’s—again.

  “Know somebody who needs a stock contractor?” He caught up with her in a few strides.

  “Me. Maybe. I was thinking of starting a rodeo on the ranch.”

  “A rodeo? Here in Medina?”

  “I’m rethinking things.” Her steps sped up.

  He stayed right with her in spite of her attempts to escape. “Because I’m the stock contractor?” It was kind of fun watching her squirm.

  “I’m just undecided on what to do with the ranch right now. I should think it over before making any rash decisions.”

  “Because anything to do with me would obviously be rash.” Sarcasm coated his words.

  She stopped, whirled to face him. “Definitely.” Her chin went up a notch. “I doubt you’ll stick with this new venture for long since you can’t seem to commit to anything. Or anyone. If I start a rodeo, I won’t be calling you.” She stalked down the driveway.

  “Good,” he hollered after her. “You know me, I probably won’t even be here by then anyway.” Now why had he said that? Because she’d gone all snooty on him, and under no circumstances did he want her to think he was still pining for her.

  Same silky blond hair, fire and ice eyes, slender build. Same temper. Wrapped in a tiny, mesmerizing, exasperating package.

  The last thing he needed was to live next door to the only woman who had the ability to rearrange his heart into a million jagged pieces. He couldn’t possibly work with her. Could he? Since he’d just bought the business from his former boss, he badly needed a rodeo to boost his résumé.

  He trudged back to the house. As he entered the yard, Gruff innocently munched on the last crunchy brown vine trailing up the porch column.

  “I think you’ve caused enough mischief, mister.” He slipped a rope around the goat’s neck and led him out the gate toward his smallest stock trailer. “Next time I need yard work, I’ll borrow one of your lady friends. You’re officially fired and going home.”

  He got the typical “baa” in response. Surely Larae wasn’t planning to live here. She was a city girl now—had been for years. She’d get her rodeo up and running, then waltz back to her fancy Dallas life and let her ranch hands run it for her.

  Tomorrow, he’d go over there, make peace and land his first official gig since striking out on his own. He couldn’t let this opportunity pass—Larae or no Larae.

  * * *

  Monday morning, Larae strolled toward the barn, where a tall man with a wiry build chatted with Denny. Low murmurs, the laughter of ranch hands, cattle moos and horse nickers echoed around. Sounds she hadn’t realized she missed. Until now.

  Her little girl was still twisted among the sheets, sound asleep when Larae had left. Jayda knew the rules. Stay in the house or yard, no opening of gates or going inside the cattle fences. If she awoke with Larae gone, she’d end up in the kitchen with Stella, Denny’s wife.

  With Rance right next door, Larae couldn’t possibly stay. Her insides coiled. Should she tell him about Jayda? He was obviously just as selfish, carefree and likely to run off to the rodeo as he’d been back in school. Something her daughter didn’t need. She couldn’t let him reject Jayda the way he’d rejected her. He had the right to know, but he didn’t deserve to know.

  “Morning.” Denny’s drawl greeted her as soon as she was within hearing distance. “The metal building guy I told you about is here.” He waved her over. “You remember Carson Glover.”

  “I do.” Wow. Denny didn’t waste any time in his campaign to convince her to stay. “I remember when he was twelve, trailing around after his daddy mucking stalls for us and pulling my ponytail when nobody was looking.” He was five years her junior with a full-on crush on her.

  “Guilty as charged. But I’m all grown-up and married with a baby on the way now.” Carson shook her hand. “Good to see you. Heard you’re considering starting a rodeo in the old arena and building an indoor facility on the property.”

  “I’m still in the thinking stage.”

  “Where were you thinking of putting it?”

  She scanned the property and blew out a breath. “I haven’t even thought that far. Where do you suppose would be a good place?” She pointed to the field with rolling hills behind the barn. “Maybe there?”

  “Could be done. But it would take a lot of foundation work. The more level the ground, the better.” He gestured to the field that was left of the barn, beside the outdoor arena. “We could build a concession stand and bathrooms for the outdoor arena and eventually incorporate them into the indoor building.”

  “That could work.”

  “What size?”

  She shrugged. “Typical indoor arena size.”

  He grinned. “Tell you what... I’ll do some research and find out what size that is, draw up some specs and get back with you.”

  “That sounds perfect.”

  “Thanks for coming.” Denny shook Carson’s hand.

  “Thanks for thinking of me.” He turned toward his dust-coated once-black Cadillac in the drive.

  The rodeo could work whether she stayed or not. She could get it going, then go back to Dallas.

  To do what? The rodeo in Mesquite was out of the picture. It was fully staffed and comfortably set up, and it ran only three months each year anyway. Besides, she couldn’t let Rance think she was running away because of him. He needed to think he didn’t matter to her one way or the other.

  But she couldn’t hire him. Her heart couldn’t survive working with him. And she had to keep him away from Jayda. Maybe she was right about him, that he wouldn’t stick with stock contracting for the long run. He’d leave, and this constant pressure in her chest would dissipate.

  “Here comes just the guy you need.” Denny gestured behind her.

  As if on cue, Rance strode down her drive, headed straight for her. Had he gotten even better looking in the past eight years? Definitely. A shadow of dark hair edged his cowboy hat, bottle green eyes sparkling in the sun, cleft chin. Oh, if only a sinkhole would open up in the baked earth and swallow him whole.

  He and Carson spoke in passing as she tried to come up with a reason to escape. What if Jayda woke up and came outside looking for her? What if Rance saw his daughter?

  Calm down. Jayda didn’t look like him, and everyone assumed she was five or six instead of seven. Her secret was safe.

  * * *

  Rance’s steps stalled a few feet away from Larae. Even after all these years, she still held him captive. “Since Carson was here, I assume you’re going ahead with the rodeo.”

  “He’s getting me some stats to help me decide.”

  “Well, I’m here to convince you to hire me if this thing gets real.”

  “Why would I do that?” She hooked her thumbs in her pockets and peered up at him.

  “Because I’m guessing all the stock contractors you know are in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Using them would cost more. I’m right next door—willing and able—at a lower price. And you’re in the thinking stage of this rodeo to make a profit, right?”

  “I know it’s none of my beeswax, Larae.” Denny propped his boot on the fence rail. “I know you want an experienced contractor and Rance is just getting started. But he knows his stuff. You’re shooting yourself in the foot if you don’t hire him. There aren’t any other stock contractors outside of San Antonio.”

  Way to put her on the spot. “There you have it, Denny’s stamp of approv
al.”

  “Just my way of watching over you, like your daddy would want.” Denny headed for the barn. “I best get to work.”

  “Thanks, Denny.” Larae leaned her elbows on the fence and kept her gaze on the foreman’s retreating back, instead of looking at Rance. “How did Denny become your biggest fan?”

  “Several men from the area eat breakfast at the Old Spanish Trail just about every morning. Tex Warren, my dad, and Denny included.”

  “So he thinks you’re awesome because your dad does?”

  “Tex Warren is Ty’s dad and Clay’s granddad. Both Warrens won the Championship Bull Riding title four times apiece. Tex was impressed with some of my bulls.” But no matter who his bulls awed, Larae would remain unconvinced. “The rodeo is a great idea. I want the job. Do you have any idea of how much stock you’ll need? You do your marketing and publicity thing. I’ll handle the livestock.”

  She faced him and propped her hands on her hips. “How do you know what I do?”

  “I trained under the stock contractor who supplied the rodeo you work for.”

  One eyebrow lifted. Aware of how smoothly his old boss’s stock operation ran for her rodeo, she couldn’t help but be impressed. Could she?

  “I can check with Carson on the arena sizes he’s running, then give you numbers, cost and prospectus for each.”

  “You can?”

  “What? You didn’t think I knew big words like prospectus?”

  “Actually.” She pursed her lips. “I must admit I’m impressed. I didn’t know you handled the business end of things. I figured you tended to the cattle and let somebody else crunch numbers.”

  A compliment? “Listen, can we call a truce and work together on this? I really think your rodeo could be successful here. Area businesses could use a new influx of tourist dollars. Keeping costs low would allow the competitors a bigger purse, which would line the cowboys’ pockets and put your rodeo on the map. Everybody wins.”

  She blew out a sigh that ruffled the long layers framing her face. “I’m sorry for the way I acted yesterday. I just wasn’t expecting you, and I lashed out. If we’re to work together, we need to forget the past and focus on the rodeo.” Her glance strayed toward the house as if she had somewhere to be...or was waiting for someone.

  Was she married? His gaze dipped to her left hand, then back to her face. No ring. “I’m in. I’ll run some numbers and get back to you. Tomorrow?”

  “Sure. Just give me a call. We still have the landline, and I’ll give Carson a heads-up on working with you.” Her gaze snagged on something, and her eyes widened.

  He followed her line of vision. A little girl skipped in their direction.

  “I have to go.” Larae bolted toward the child.

  Chapter Three

  Rance frowned. A child?

  Denny entered the arena with a bay mare as Larae hustled the little girl back to the house.

  “Who’s that?”

  “Larae’s girl. Spitting image of her mama, that one.”

  He swallowed hard. Could the child be his? If so, she’d be a little over seven years old. This child looked smaller. “How old is she?”

  “Five or six from the looks of her.”

  His insides stilled. Larae would have told him if the child belonged to him. This meant that while he’d been mourning his first love all those years ago, she’d moved on to someone else. To be honest, he wasn’t sure he’d ever really moved on from her at all. “Who’s her daddy? Is Larae married?”

  “I don’t rightly know.”

  “You’ve worked for her dad forever, and she’s your daughter’s best friend. How could you not know?”

  “They were both closemouthed about Larae after she left, and I’m not one to pry. I didn’t know about the youngun’ until they showed up here a few days ago.” Denny gave him the once-over. “Why are you so interested?”

  “I’m not. Just curious.” Denny didn’t have a clue they’d been an item back in high school. No one had because she knew her dad wouldn’t approve. “I didn’t know she had a child, that’s all. I’ll see you later.” With his heart in his boots, he trudged toward home.

  The thought of her with anyone else put a painful twist in his gut. He’d given her up for the sake of her relationship with her dad, but he’d never thought about her falling for someone else.

  His phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket, saw the name on the screen and accepted the call. “Hey, Dad.”

  “How’s the stock contracting business going, son?”

  “Slow. I might have a job, but it’s complicated.”

  “Complicated how?”

  He filled his dad in on the Larae situation.

  “I see.” His father let out a long whistle. “Hence the complicated maybe job.”

  “It was like I was seventeen again.”

  “You still love her?”

  “Now, I didn’t say that.”

  “Yet you did, by not saying it. Go get the job and the girl.”

  “Even if I wanted her, there’s more to it than that.” But he couldn’t get into it, since he’d never told his parents why they broke up. If he had, his dad would have confronted Ray Collins, and the whole town would have heard about it. Even Larae.

  “Is she involved with someone else?”

  “I’m not sure.” A tight band settled in his chest. “She has a child.”

  “Hmm. Well, find out if the father is still in the picture and go from there. But be careful, son. I was there the first time Larae Collins broke your heart.”

  “It wasn’t her fault, Dad.” Rance opened the gate to his yard, now free of tangled vines thanks to the attack goat he’d borrowed yesterday.

  “You keep saying that, but you won’t say anything else.”

  “It’s—”

  “Complicated. I know. Keep me in the loop, will ya? Your mom wants to talk to you. Here she is.”

  “Hi, Mom. I’m eating fine. I fixed a pot of chili last night.”

  “Well, you won’t starve, but that’s not very healthy—all that red meat.” Since learning that her husband had high cholesterol, she’d become a health food expert.

  “I used venison.” Only because he liked it better, but maybe it would satisfy her just the same.

  “Oh, good. You can’t imagine how much fat a lean meat can cut. You can try ground turkey if you run out of venison.”

  “I’ve got a freezer full, so I’m good.”

  “All right. You’ll come visit soon, right?”

  “I will, Mom. And y’all are welcome here anytime. Love you.” He slipped the phone back in his pocket, stomped his boots on the slatted wood porch and stepped inside. He loved his parents, but he couldn’t concentrate on his mom’s chatter right now.

  Larae had a child. His brain kept looping back to that.

  What if there was a man in her life? His heart stilled at the thought. It might just fix everything. It would hurt to see her with someone else. But if she was married, he’d have to get over her.

  * * *

  “I sure hope Lexie moves back soon.” Stella wiped down the kitchen counters. She hadn’t changed a bit. Still tall and thin, with warm laugh lines around her eyes.

  “Me, too.” Seated at the breakfast bar, Larae finished off her eggs.

  “Our Lexie?” Jayda asked, pushing a stalk of broccoli around her plate.

  “Remember, I told you Denny and Stella are her parents.”

  “But I didn’t know she was gonna move here. I’m excited.”

  “Me too, Little Miss.” Stella winked at Jayda. Denny’s wife had happily cooked for staff and watched their children for as long as Larae could remember.

  The knocker sounded at the heavy front door.

  “It’s awful early for visitors.” Stella pushed a strand of hair away from her f
ace and tried to secure it back in the bun at the nape of her neck. “And the hands don’t usually knock.”

  “I’ll get it.” Larae got up from her perch at the granite-lined breakfast bar and pointed a stern finger at Jayda. “You stay put and eat the rest of your omelet. It’s good for you.” The cheese sauce probably took away from its benefits, but broccoli wrapped in egg was the only way to get veggies down Jayda.

  “I’ll make sure she does.” Stella shot her a wink.

  “Thanks.” She hurried to the front door and swung it open. Carson stood on the threshold with a thick folder under his arm.

  “Is this a good time? I have numbers for you.”

  “You’re fast.” She gestured him toward the great room so she could keep an eye on Jayda in the adjoining kitchen. “Come on in.”

  “I’ve got specs on three different sizes.” He settled on the cowhide sofa and set his folder on the coffee table. “We’ll call them Building A, B and C. A is small, just meets the regulations. B is the most common. C is more your Fort Worth or Mesquite size.”

  “So I’d need to go with C if I wanted to get pro certified?” Nerves danced through her.

  “Definitely C.”

  “I figure go big or go home.”

  “Alrighty then.” He flipped past several papers.

  She scanned the spreadsheet to the bottom total. Not as much as she’d expected. “If we do this, how soon are we talking?”

  “We could break ground in a few weeks and have your building ready in two months.”

  “And what about the arena part?”

  “That’s out of my line of expertise, so I’m afraid I can’t help you there.”

  “Well, this is encouraging.” She was well aware of how much revenue a good rodeo could bring in, especially if she could get certified for pro events. It would be enough to permanently keep the ranch well in the black.

  “Thank you for putting this together, Carson. I’ll look over it some more and get back with you.”

  “Not a problem.” He stood, and she followed him to the foyer.