The Ranchers: Destiny Bay Romances Boxed Set vol. 1 (Destiny Bay Romances - The Ranchers)

by Helen Conrad

  Shawnee opened her mouth to reply in kind, but David didn’t give her a chance. Before she realized what he was up to, he’d captured her chin with one strong hand and was holding her still so that his mouth could claim hers in a kiss that was as wild as it was sweet. The gurgling protest she tried to utter died in her throat and the hands that she threw up to ward him off ended curled against the warmth of his chest. His kiss caught and held her like a leaf taken up by a desert wind, tossing her higher, higher, until she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think—and then he drew away and she stopped in mid flight, plummeting back to earth.

  “That was by way of an apology,” he told her, still holding her chin in his grasp. His eyes searched hers for a moment, then narrowed as the humor returned to his gaze. “As well as a promise of things to come,” he added with a wink.

  She knew she should tell him, and quickly, that there would be no “things to come” if she could help it, but somehow the words wouldn’t form in her mouth. She was stunned by him, stunned and groping for a way to recover. As he pulled her close, hugging her, and then let her go, his arm still around her shoulders, leading her out of the barn, she didn’t say a thing.

  “I have to apologize for something else,” he added as they walked along. “Allison isn’t usually that inhospitable. She’s actually a rather nice person once you get to know her. But she’s got. . . problems. Her life is rather a mess at the moment. And she tends to fly off the handle at just about anything that crosses her path.”

  Allison. What did she care about Allison? Her emotions were too tangled from the way David made her feel. She had a lot of sorting out to do before she had any energy left to expend on Allison.

  “I understand,” she murmured, just to say something.

  The sun had fallen below the hills and the evening was a dusky violet. They were walking toward the house. Allison, on horseback, was arriving at the stables in the distance.

  “You see, she’s going through a particularly nasty divorce right now,” he went on. “And Santiagos don’t get divorced, if you know what I mean. She put up with a lot before she brought herself to this step. And now she feels as though she’s let down everyone, her husband, me, the Santiago family. And most of all, her daughter.”

  “Her daughter?” That surprised her. She hadn’t given a thought to any children who might be involved. “I didn’t know she had a daughter.”

  He nodded. “Petra is fourteen. She’s still with her father, in France. And that’s another misery for Allison to bear.”

  Shawnee didn’t want to hear any more. She didn’t want to feel sorry for a Santiago. It was bad enough that she seemed to have fallen under David’s spell. She didn’t need anything else to help complicate her life.

  But David wasn’t ready to drop the subject. “Allison’s all wrapped up in training for the horse-show,” he went on. “It’s keeping her mind off things.” His hand moved on her shoulder and she could hear the affectionate amusement as he added, “She seems to think that if she wins the horse-show, that will in some way pay us all back for what she’s supposedly putting the family through.”

  His laugh was low and indulgent.

  “I’ve tried to convince her that it’s unnecessary, but she’s determined. Maybe, when she stands there at the Californio Days ceremonies with the trophy in her arms, she’ll feel like her old self again.”

  Shawnee moved restlessly under his touch. Should she tell him now? Should she let him know how much she wanted that very thing herself? That beating his sister was her main goal, and would make her very happy? Maybe then he would see how impossible any sort of relationship between them was.

  She glanced up at his dark face, then looked down at her feet, striding along the dusty road. Not yet, she told herself silently. The sooner he knows, the more likely something might go wrong. Better to wait until the sign-ups. Then everyone would know.

  “I can call my brother-in-law for a ride,” she suggested as they came out onto the driveway. “That way you can go ahead to the hospital.”

  “Not a chance,” he countered cheerfully, pulling open the door to his car. “Get in.”

  The drive back to her house was uneventful, which was just fine with Shawnee. She sat on the edge of her seat, anxious to get home, to get away from David’s influence so she could think clearly and regain her sense of control.

  “Just drop me here,” she said as they came in sight of the rickety little house.

  David didn’t bother to reply, ignoring her request completely. He pulled up in front of the porch, stopping her before she could twist open the door handle.

  “Not so fast,” he said, his hand on her arm. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re trying to run away from me?”

  She swallowed, glancing towards the house, hoping Granpa Jim hadn’t heard the car drive up. There was a light on in the living room, but no one appeared at the door.

  “Because you’re such a perceptive person, I guess.” She tried to pry his fingers from her arm, one by one. “That’s exactly what I’m trying to do.”

  “Why?”

  That was a straightforward question. Too bad she was incapable of a straightforward answer.

  There were things she could tell him, but there were other things she couldn’t even explain to herself. She gave up on the fingers, but refused to look him in the face. Instead she stared at the moonless sky.

  “Because you’re the enemy. Can’t you see that?”

  “Ah. Yes, yes, I do see.” She could hear the grin in his voice. “You’re telling me that we’re destined to war against each other, the Carringtons against the Santiagos, for all time. Is that it? A sort of modern day version of the Capulets and the Montagues?”

  She hesitated for just a moment. After all those names conjured up visions of a Romeo and Juliet story that she didn’t have any intention of recreating. “A bit like that,” she ventured.

  “The Hatfields and the McCoys?”

  “Yes.”

  “The Indians and the cowboys? The cattlemen and the sheepherders?”

  He obviously thought it was a good joke. She’d been avoiding his gaze, but now she turned and looked at him. It was dark but she could make out his handsome features in the gloom. His eyes flashed in the starlight. She looked away again.

  “The city mouse and the country mouse,” she supplied impatiently. “Whatever. Irreconcilable foes. That’s exactly what we are.”

  “Doomed to fight forever.” His voice was low and husky and his hand was moving on the soft part of her inner arm. “What delicious battles we’ll have.” He leaned so close, she could feel his breath stir the tendrils of hair that fluttered about her ear.

  “To the victor belong the spoils,” he murmured, then dropped a tiny kiss at the side of her neck, sending a long, slinky shiver down the length of her nervous system.

  She closed her eyes, trying to gather the will to wrench herself away from him. Why did her muscles seem to turn to rubber whenever he came this close?

  “We’ll have to have a strategy session real soon,” he whispered, nuzzling into the small hollow just behind her ear. “Set up the rules. Draw battle lines.” His free hand was cupping her cheek. “Decide what to do about prisoners of war.”

  His lips were so close; she could feel the heat of his breath on her lips. But suddenly she gathered the strength to do what she had to. One hand rose to stop him, and she said in a strangled voice, “You make this sound like some sort of game, David. But it’s not a game at all. It’s a matter of life and death to me.”

  He paused and she could see his frown in the darkness. He wasn’t happy to have her interrupt his playful mood, or his lovemaking.

  Taking advantage of his hesitation, she pulled further from him. “Mainly—my grandfather’s life.” She managed to settle against the car door in a way that would make it very hard for him to follow. “What did you do to my grandfather the other day when you came over here and bullied him about leaving this land?”


  He shook his head as though to cast away something he didn’t like at all. “Bully?” Now he was getting angry too. “I didn’t bully him. Why would I have to bully him? All I did was present the facts . . .”

  “To an old man who lives in the past and didn’t have the slightest idea what you were talking about?”

  He gave a quick sigh of exasperation. “It’s hardly my fault if he doesn’t want to acknowledge the truth. He’s known about the lease for forty years. He had plenty of time to do something about it.”

  Anger was flaring through her, but she reined it in. After all, this was hardly the way to win anything. Sitting here and shouting at one another would only exhaust their energies. It wouldn’t do much to help her grandfather.

  David wasn’t about to give in on any point just because she’d argued him into it. She took a deep breath and tried to take another tack.

  “What do you need that land for, David?” she said quietly. “Rancho Verde is so huge. Why can’t you let him have his twenty acres? You surely won’t miss them.”

  He ran an impatient hand through his dark hair. “It’s not up to me, Shawnee. I told you that. My father made arrangements for the road to be put in before he died. I can’t change his plans.”

  “Can’t?” she shot back, gathering her things together, “or won’t?”

  “Both.” His voice was steely. “Don’t go yet.”

  “You’ve got a hospital to go to,” she reminded him. “And I have a grandfather.”

  He didn’t touch her, but she felt almost as though he’d taken her arm in his hand again. She hesitated, her fingers on the door handle, and he got out on his side and walked around the car. When he opened the door, he didn’t move back, and when she stood, it was right up against him. She had to brush his body with her own, and yet he didn’t try to hold her.

  Still, it left her quivering with an anticipation she couldn’t ignore—but she had to choke back.

  “May I see you again tomorrow?” he asked evenly, no emotion in his voice.

  “No.” She stepped around him and started walking towards the porch. “I don’t want to see you again. I can’t.” She strode up the steps and each step she took away from him seemed to stoke her anger higher and stronger. She opened the front door, then paused and looked back.

  “I can’t—and I won’t.” She stepped inside and let the door close with a slam, then leaned against it, holding herself tightly together with her arms. She didn’t move until she heard the sound of his car’s engine fade away along the road.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  REALITY CHECK

  Forgetting David Santiago would be a simple thing. After all, she’d really only known him for two days. He hadn’t become a part of her life. Forgetting him would be a snap.

  At least, that was what Shawnee tried to tell herself, over and over, during the next few days. Once in a while she could even convince herself it was true for whole minutes at a time.

  But not often.

  Somehow thoughts of David had woven themselves into the fabric of her mind and she couldn’t pull them loose. She couldn’t wash her hands without thinking about how they’d looked, curled against his chest. She couldn’t comb her hair without remembering how his breath had stirred it. When she went into town to shop for groceries, she saw him in every tall, dark-haired man who crossed her path, and when she rode Miki out across the hills, she thought she saw him in the saddle of every horse that appeared on the distant horizon. She was obsessed with the man, and it was driving her crazy.

  Even so, he seemed to have forgotten her easily enough. “May I see you tomorrow?” he’d asked, and she’d flung herself away from him, refusing, and yet she’d never expected him to give in so readily. Deep down, she was just a little disappointed that a week had gone by without another word from David.

  Still, it had been a busy week.

  She’d met with Reid Carrington at the Kit Kat, just as she’d planned. She’d gone into the retro diner, flashing back to days gone by when this had been the place to be after football games and Saturday night dates. She looked around, expecting to see somebody she knew, but only the waitress looked familiar.

  “Hi Doris,” she said. “Remember me?”

  “Shawnee Carrington! Haven’t seen you in ages. I thought your sister told me you’d moved up to Marin County for good.”

  Shawnee shook her head and smiled at the pleasantly plump woman she felt like she’d known all her life. “Couldn’t stay away,” she told her breezily.

  Doris gave her a look. “I know why you came back,” she said, her brown eyes warm as she looked at the younger woman. “You came back to take care of your grandfather, didn’t you?” She shook her head when Shawnee shrugged. “Good for you. You always were his favorite.” She gave her a hug. “So what’s your pleasure? You going to take a booth or do you want to sit at the counter?”

  “I’ll take a booth if you’ve got one available. I’m meeting someone.”

  Doris gave her what had always been her special booth, right in the corner where she could keep an eye on the street and the entrance at the same time. How many times had she sat there, watching for her girlfriends in one direction and keeping track of what cute boys were arriving on the other?

  But that all seemed like a lifetime ago. Now she had more weighty business on her mind.

  Looking up, she saw Reid enter the diner and a smile broke out across her face. Trust her serious, older cousin to wear a very beautiful Italian suit more appropriate to a big city than the overalls and jeans more prevalent out here in the Valley. There was nothing “country” about Reid.

  Still, his answering smile was warm and after they hugged and murmured greetings, they sat opposite in the booth and looked at each other.

  “So I hear you and Jennifer have twins,” she said.

  Reid nodded. “And another one on the way.”

  “Congratulations.”

  His lopsided grin looked almost abashed. “I’ve got to tell you the truth, Shawnee. I never thought I’d be this happy with family life. Who knew how much fun kids could be? I mean, when you’re young, they just seem annoying. But when you get a couple of your own…” He grinned. “It’s like a circus every night, but it’s great. You know?”

  No, she didn’t really. But she grinned back.

  They talked a few minutes longer, reminiscing about a huge family reunion they’d both attended at the beach in Destiny Bay ten years before. She and her sister had been sent to stay with Reid’s family for the whole week that summer. Lisa’d had a tremendous crush on him.

  “He’s your cousin,” Shawnee, a thirteen-year-old know-it-all at the time, had reminded her. “You can’t fall in love with your cousin.”

  Lisa had been tearfully candid with her. “I can’t help it. He’s just so gorgeous.” She’d frowned at her bratty sister. “And anyway, he’s not a first cousin. I looked it up and saw the charts and everything. Our grandfathers are cousins. So it’s okay.”

  Shawnee was skeptical at the time, but looking at what a handsome, upstanding man he’d become, she couldn’t say she blamed Lisa much.

  Luckily, he seemed as bright and clear-thinking as he was attractive, and he quickly looked over the paperwork she’d brought with her, jotting down notes and nodding.

  “So you’ve spoken to David Santiago about this?”

  She nodded. “Do you know him?”

  Reid smiled. “Sure. My father did some work on wills and incorporation structures for his father years ago and I helped him with some of the paperwork. So I’m pretty familiar with the lay of the land.” He leaned back, taking a sip of the coffee Doris had brought to the table. “I drove by your place on my way in,” he told her. “I’m glad you’re back to take care of things. It doesn’t look like Granpa Jim has got the energy to keep things up like he used to.”

  She nodded. She knew that. But what she wanted to know was—what were their chances? “So what do you think?”

  He sighed. “I hav
e to tell you, Shawnee, things don’t look so good. On the face of it, I’d say he doesn’t have a chance to fight this. But I’m going to go by the county records office and see what I can dig up. Who knows? There might be something.”

  She felt as though she had a rock in the pit of her stomach. “I really appreciate you looking into this,” she told him, trying to keep a stiff upper lip and wondering how much she was going to owe him. But that didn’t matter. What ever it was, she would find a way to pay him.

  They were standing by his car, still talking, when a silver Mercedes slunk into the parking lot and pulled into a nearby space. She didn’t have to turn and look to know it was David, but her heart started racing just the same. Great timing. The one person she didn’t want to see her with Reid—and here he was. She gritted her teeth.

  “Hey Reid,” he said as he unfolded his long, lean body from the low car. “How’ve you been?”

  Reid greeted him with a smile and a handshake. “Not bad. How about you?”

  David gave Shawnee a look and drawled, “So you called in the Marines, huh?”

  She lifted her chin. “Of course. You didn’t think I was going to roll over and play dead, did you?”

  “Oh no. Not you.” He smiled at her, then his gaze darkened. “Sorry I had to take you home early last night,” he told her softly.

  “No problem.” Her eyes flashed. “How’s that injured cowboy doing?”

  David hesitated. “Pretty good. Cuts and bruises. And he broke a leg. Won’t be able to walk for awhile.” His grin flashed back again. “But we figure we can lift him up into the saddle and tie him secure and he can be back at work in no time.”

  “Wow, you’re all heart.” She knew he was just teasing, but she glared at him anyway.

  “Okay, guys,” Reid cut in with a look on his face that said, “Oh, so that’s the way it is, huh?” Obviously, he could sense the electricity sizzling between the two of them. “I’ve got to get going. Shawnee, I’ll call you.”

  “Okay. Thanks Reid.”

  David looked like he was going to ask her to join him for whatever he was planning to do in the diner, and she backed away quickly, heading for her Camaro before he could say a word. With a wave to the two of them, she was off down the road, heading back home.