by R. C. Ryan
The animal’s limp, Jake noted, was pronounced.
He watched as the boy led the colt in a wide circle. When they were close, Jake ran a hand along the animal’s neck. “He’s a real beauty.”
The faintest flicker of a smile touched the boy’s eyes before he looked away.
“Has he always had this limp, or is it a recent injury?”
The boy shrugged.
Jake decided to try again. “Was he born with this problem, Cory?”
The boy shook his head.
“So, this happened recently?”
“Yeah.” The boy sighed, as though the weight of the world rested on his shoulders.
“Okay. It’s a start.” Relieved that the boy could speak, Jake glanced toward Meg.
She covered her mouth with her hand to hide the slight trembling, and he thought for a moment she might cry in relief. Instead he saw her suck in a quick breath and compose herself.
Jake bent to the animal’s leg and began gently probing. When he touched one particular spot the colt flattened its ears and sidestepped.
“Tender. Did your horse take a fall?”
The boy shook his head. “No.”
“Was he hit by something?”
The boy shrugged his thin shoulders.
“Maybe by a stone thrown by a truck?”
Seeing that the boy didn’t intend to reply, he added, “Maybe he was attacked by a flying saucer?”
That had Cory smiling before he ducked his head.
Jake glanced at Meg, who stood with her arms crossed, watching the interaction between the two with quiet intensity.
“All right. Let’s try something else. Walk him again, Cory.”
As the boy did so, Jake moved along beside the colt and probed not only the leg but the animal’s underbelly as he took each step.
When he straightened, Meg asked in a low voice, “Will you be able to take him with you?”
Jake shrugged. “I’d like to try treating him here.”
“Treating? I thought…” She looked at Cory, then away before whispering, “I thought vets had to put down a horse when it was lame.”
“I guess that was the treatment of choice back when women didn’t have the vote, and ranchers chewed tobacco and played poker in the town saloon. Nowadays, ma’am,” he added in his best drawl, “you wouldn’t believe the miracle drugs we have.”
She had a rich, throaty laugh. “I guess I deserved that. All right, Dr. Conway. I’ll leave you to your patient. I have work to do in the house.”
When she walked away Jake watched until she’d climbed the steps. Turning, he saw the boy staring at him.
He winked. “You’ve got a pretty sister, Cory.”
The boy hung his head and absently patted the colt.
Jake touched a hand to the boy’s shoulder. “I’m sorry about the loss of your dad.”
Cory glanced up at him. There was an eager, almost hungry look in his eyes. “Did you know him?”
Jake shook his head. “Not really. I knew who he was, and saw him in town a time or two, but other than that, he was a stranger. I guess he kept to himself a lot.”
The eager look in the boy’s eyes was gone in the instant before he looked away. “Yeah.”
After a pronounced silence, Jake sighed. “While you take this little guy back to the stall, I’ll get my bag of tricks.”
He walked away and retrieved his supplies from his truck. Spying the plate of brownies, he took them along.
In the barn he took his time, examining the colt while trying to find ways to engage the boy in conversation.
“How old are you, Cory?”
“Seven.” His gaze followed every movement of Jake’s fingers as he touched and probed the colt’s leg.
“That would make you a second grader?”
The boy shrugged. “Don’t go to school.”
“Yeah. I never did either, when I was your age. Too far to town.” He looked over. “So, you’re homeschooled. Did your dad teach you?”
Another shrug. “Now that I can read, I get the lessons out of books and do my class assignments online.”
“Who checks your homework?”
“I scan it and send it to the teacher assigned to me.”
“Did anybody live here on the ranch with you and your dad?”
“Yancy. But he doesn’t live with us. He stays in the bunkhouse.”
Jake heard the warmth in the boy’s tone and nodded. He’d heard that Yancy Jessup had taken over some of the ranch duties after Porter’s young wife died. Yancy was one of the last of a dying breed. A cowboy with no desire to own his own spread. An old man who preferred living in a bunkhouse with other cowboys. A drifter who loved tending other rancher’s herds, until the itch to move on became too great. Yancy Jessup had worked ranches all over Montana and Wyoming, and his work was universally praised. Nobody had ever had a bad word to say about him.
“I suppose Yancy’s up in the hills with the herd?”
“Yeah.”
“Does he know about your dad?”
The boy looked stricken, and Jake realized that the cowboy had no idea that his boss had passed away.
Jake pulled out his cell phone. “Give me his number and I’ll see that your sister calls him as soon as I’m finished here.”
As Cory spoke the numbers, Jake programmed them into his phone. “I’d call Yancy myself, but I think this call should come from a family member.” He looked over. “Do you have a cell phone?”
Cory nodded.
“Good. While I’m thinking about it, why don’t I give you my number? That way, if you need me, just call.”
He spoke the numbers and watched as Cory punched them into his phone.
“Now give me yours.” Jake added the numbers as Cory said them aloud.
For the next hour, while Cory soothed the colt, Jake applied ointment and wrapped the injured leg. When he was finished, he closed his bag and got to his feet.
“That’s the best I can do for now. I’ll look in on him tomorrow and see if he’s improving.”
The boy kept an arm around the colt’s neck. “His name is Shadow.”
Jake paused. “That’s a good name. And you’re a good friend to Shadow, Cory. I can see that he trusts you. Now I’d better report to your sister.” He offered his hand. “Thanks for your help.”
The boy looked surprised before giving him an awkward handshake.
Jake pointed to the plate of brownies. “I’ll leave those for you and your sister to snack on.”
“You mean it?” The boy’s gaze fell on the food like one who hadn’t eaten all day.
With a thoughtful look Jake turned and made his way from the barn.
It was plain that the boy was feeling scared and confused. And he was probably in a lot of pain. And why not? In a matter of days he’d lost his father, gained a sister who was a stranger to him, and had to watch his colt going lame. It must have seemed as though his whole world had toppled. To make matters worse, his future would be decided by a woman who apparently didn’t know much about the care and feeding of a seven-year-old, one who couldn’t wait to get away from here and back to the life she’d left behind.
But Cory Stanford wasn’t the only person in pain. His sister was, too. She might have spent her childhood on this ranch, but after so many years away, she had become a stranger in a strange land. That city woman looked as out of place as a designer dress at a rodeo.
A week. Did she actually believe she could contact an auction house to dispose of a ranch, a herd, and an entire way of life, in the time it took to vacation at some tropical beach?
Jake paused on the porch and watched through the screen door as Meg struggled to pry open a metal box with a rusty screwdriver. Several other metal boxes, empty and misshapen from forced entry, littered the floor around her feet.
Taking a deep breath, he knocked and stepped inside. “Would you like a hand with that?”
Meg’s head came up sharply. “Sorry. You startled me. I
’d appreciate any help you can give.” She handed him the screwdriver. “There are probably dozens of tools around here, if I knew where to look.”
Jake nodded toward the door. “Probably the equipment barn, up the hill. That’s the usual place to store tools.”
“Of course. I’ll check it out later.” She gathered up a pile of papers and documents, clutching them to her chest. “It looks as though my father’s filing system was a lot like his life—careless. When I was a kid he never would have dreamed of just throwing things into boxes with no apparent rhyme or reason.”
“Maybe, as you sort through them, you’ll discover some sort of order to them.”
“Not likely.” She deposited the papers on the kitchen counter before returning to stand beside him as he pried open the metal box. A haphazard stack of papers spilled out, littering the tabletop.
“See what I mean?” She eyed the papers before turning to Jake. “What have you decided about the colt?”
“There’s a small wound with swelling and redness that suggests infection. I’ve given him an antibiotic and wrapped the wound. I’ll look in on him tomorrow and see if there’s any improvement. If there is, I’ll continue the treatment. If not, I’ll try something else.”
“I’m so relieved that you were able to get Cory to speak to you. From his reaction to me, I was really afraid he might be deaf and mute.”
“He hadn’t spoken at all?”
“Not to me. But he opened up to you right away.”
Jake gave her one of his devilish smiles. “All part of my charm. Kids and animals just can’t resist me.”
She glanced at his ring finger. “I see that you can’t make the same claim about women.”
Seeing the direction of her gaze he chuckled. “It’s been tough, but so far I’ve managed to resist their advances.” He winked. “I keep a club in my truck, just in case I run into a really aggressive female who won’t take no for an answer.”
He was rewarded with her deep, throaty chuckle, which transformed her from pretty to absolutely gorgeous.
“Thanks for my laugh of the day. I needed it.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped a nervous foot. “I’m at a loss as to what to do about Cory. And I get the distinct impression that he isn’t about to give me any help at all.”
“He’ll come around. You’ve already learned that he can talk.”
“To you. But I need him to open up with me about what he’s feeling, and what he wants to do going forward. So far the only thing I’ve heard from him is silence.”
“Give him a little time. In his short lifetime he’s lost his mother and his father. And the colt he loves is suffering. The kid is scared. I’m betting he’s convinced that all the really important things in his life are going to be taken away from him.”
“I’m his half sister, not his enemy.”
“He doesn’t know that. He knows only that a stranger will be the one to determine his future.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.” She frowned. “I guess I’ve been so busy dealing with my own feelings, I was overlooking all the things he must be going through.”
“Does he have any family other than you? Grandparents? Aunts?”
Meg’s lips turned into a pretty pout before she chewed her lower lip. “I’ll ask him. I would’ve before but I didn’t think he could speak. So far I’ve found no documentation of any other family. That’s why I’m so desperate to find all my father’s legal documents. I have a frightened little boy, a sprawling ranch, and who knows how many debts I might encounter, and I don’t have a clue what to do with any of them.”
“I hate to add to your burden.” Jake saw the way her eyes narrowed slightly. “Cory tells me that there’s a wrangler up in the hills with your father’s herd. His name is Yancy Jessup. A good man. Folks around here will tell you that he’s someone you can trust. But right now, he doesn’t even know that your father has passed away.” He handed over his cell phone. “Cory gave me Yancy’s number. I think you’d better give him a call.”
She plucked a cell phone from her pocket and deftly added Yancy’s name and number before extending her hand. “I’ll call him. Thank you. I appreciate your help.”
“You’re welcome.” Jake accepted her handshake, while keeping his gaze steady on hers.
She’d probably intended it to be a purely businesslike handshake, but it had become something else entirely. At least for Jake.
Was she feeling that same searing pulse of heat that he was?
He couldn’t help smiling at the startled look that came into her eyes before she removed her hand from his and stared pointedly at the floor.
It would seem that she and Cory shared another family trait. Neither of them was very good at hiding their feelings.
With a last look at her bowed head Jake turned away. With his hand on the door he paused. “My family’s ranch is just over those hills. We’re your nearest neighbor.”
She shot him a startled look. “The Conway ranch? Of course. Jake Conway. I was a little distracted when you introduced yourself.”
His smile grew. “I gave my cell phone number to Cory. So if you need anything, just call.”
As he made his way to his truck, he glanced toward the barn and felt a wave of sympathy for the boy caught up in all of this. He knew what it was to lose a parent at a very young age, and he could clearly recall the pain and confusion of those early days as he’d struggled with grief and fear of the unknown, and an unreasonable sense of loss and emptiness that had never gone away.
As his truck ate up the miles to his home, Jake decided that he would make the Stanford ranch his first stop in the morning. Not just to soothe a frightened little boy’s fears, he realized, but also to indulge himself with another glimpse of the boy’s gorgeous, pouty-lipped sister.
The thought of tasting those lips ought to be enough to fuel his dreams all through the night.
Chapter Two
Meg climbed the stairs and stepped into her old bedroom. Not that it resembled the room she remembered from her childhood. Then, it had been painted pale pink, and the walls had been plastered with pictures she’d cut out of magazines. Photos of horses had littered not only the walls but the top of her dresser and her desktop, and had been taped to her vanity mirror. She’d been totally horse crazy.
The floor had been hardwood, with a pink fuzzy rug under a canopy bed. A princess bed, her father had called it. And she was the princess who ruled all the land that could be seen outside her window.
Now the room was painted a dull shade of pale green, and the sparse furniture consisted of a bed, a dresser, and a bench under one window.
Not that it mattered to her what the room looked like. She wouldn’t be here long enough to settle in. It was merely a place to park her things until she could take care of business and get back to the life she’d left in D.C.
She undressed quickly and pulled on the sea foam night slip she’d tossed into her suitcase before leaving home. The sexy, tissue-silk fabric seemed as out of place here on her father’s ranch as she felt.
She pulled out her ponytail band and made her way to the bathroom carrying the overnight case that held her bath essentials. A short time later she turned out the light and climbed into bed.
After the day she’d put in, she expected to fall asleep instantly, but there were too many things weighing on her mind, dragging her down.
Her father—her big, strong, tough-as-nails father—was dead. It just didn’t compute. Not that she hadn’t faced death. But the loss of her mother and stepfather in a boating accident, though shocking, hadn’t been nearly the jolt to her system that this news had been, delivered over the phone by Everett Fletcher, chief of police in the little town of Paintbrush.
Instead of tears, her legal training had kicked in, and she’d calmly, dispassionately, made her plans to fly here and handle the burial of her father and the disposal of his estate. Clean. Simple. Final.
What she hadn’t counted on was Cory. She had
n’t even known about him. And now that she did, she had more questions than answers. Burying a long-estranged father was one thing. Dealing with a scared, angry little boy was simply outside her realm of expertise. Would he go willingly to a big city, or would he fight her every step of the way? If he did go, how would he fit in? What sort of schooling had he had so far? She could easily afford a tutor, but school was only one small part of the equation. How would he fit into her lifestyle? She was single, by choice, and deeply involved in her career. She often brought her work home with her and spent endless hours prepping before a trial. What was she supposed to do with a frightened, lonely little boy? A nanny? Boarding school? She’d been saddled with both as a girl, and she found herself rejecting them out of hand.
As she pondered all this, she tossed and turned, willing herself to relax. It was impossible. She felt…twitchy. Uneasy.
To distract herself from her unsettling thoughts, she focused instead on Jake Conway. That cowboy had been one of the sexiest men she’d ever met. And that was saying something, since in her line of work there had been no shortage of handsome, successful guys, all of them eager to impress her with their wealth, their success, their…educational and social pedigrees, she thought with a smile.
What set Jake apart was the fact that he was so down to earth, despite the fact that his family ranch was one of the most successful in the country. In those faded denims and a plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled to the elbows, he’d exuded more sex appeal than the men in her firm in their custom-fitted suits and Italian leather shoes, smelling of expensive cologne and sporting razor-sharp haircuts, fresh from their workouts with their personal trainers.
She rolled to her other side and clenched a fist. The minute he’d started examining that colt and she saw those muscles flexing, she’d been mesmerized. And when he’d dazzled her with that killer smile, she’d actually felt her heart do a slow, dizzying flip.
It was a good thing she wouldn’t be around long enough to actually get to know Jake Conway. He could be a real heartbreaker.
Still, while she was here, he would certainly make things a lot more interesting.