by Em Petrova
“Yeah. You and Ridge got a handle on that fence?”
For some reason, he and Ridge were always on fence duty, but today maybe hanging with his brother wasn’t such a bad thing. He’d get the low-down on Delaney.
“Yep. Catch ya later.” He grabbed the mug and went for the screen door.
“Don’t you dare walk on my clean floors, Lane Calhoun!” his mom yelled from within the house.
He paused with his boot midair. “How’d you know it’s me?”
“The way you walk.” She appeared, mop in hand and her hair trailing into one eye. She was still a beautiful woman even in her older years. Maybe someday she’d get over the loss of their dad and find someone to share her golden years with.
Strange thought, he mused. But he wanted his mom to be happy.
He held out the mug. She came forward and took it with a shake of her head.
“Wasn’t mine—West drank it.”
She narrowed her eyes, and he held up both hands. “It’s the truth. Tell Ridge I’m gathering the supplies if you see him.”
“He’d better not come in until my floors are dry, but I’ll tell him.”
Chuckling, he went off toward the shed. But he wasn’t able to keep from staring at the field and riders. They were doing jumps now, and it was impossible not to appreciate the lines of Delaney’s body as she directed her mount into each arc and landed with perfect grace and balance.
What was it about the woman? He’d been tossing and turning half the night trying to figure that out. She was sexy as hell, but that wasn’t all. He’d seen plenty of sexy women, especially since their rise to fame.
Delaney had a youthful look to her, a girlishness that she shared with Kashley’s mother. The women in that family aged well.
Maybe it was that Delaney had experience. One look at her and he knew she understood when to take life seriously and when to play. Like she was now.
He hitched a thumb in his jeans and watched as the two circled the field once more. A woman in her prime was far sexier than any silly girls his age. Even when he thought he’d found a serious one, she’d run off to Men’s Monthly and sold them a pack of lies.
His mom hadn’t been too damn happy with him, but she took it like she took everything these days—with a tight-lipped shake of her head. At least they had West, the official magazine incinerator. He took the pile weekly and they all had a merry time watching the flames eat them up. Wynonna usually brought marshmallows.
The riders disappeared, and he went into the shed to get the shovels and post hole digger. He carried them out to his truck and tossed them into the back. Then he walked into the barn looking for his gloves he was always laying down and forgetting where.
“Oh hi.” The feminine voice drove a spike of need straight through him. Delaney stood there, a light glow of perspiration on her golden skin and her blonde ponytail trailing out from under her straw cowgirl hat.
“Hey. Good ride?”
“Great.” She grinned, and their gazes locked. He swore he heard the tick of his pulse before she found a way to break the moment.
What the hell was that?
“I don’t get much of a chance to ride anymore.”
“That’s what a vacation’s all about. Having time to do the things you love and don’t have time for.”
When she smiled, her eyes twinkled and he couldn’t look away. He was probably making a fool of himself staring, but with Delaney, he didn’t seem to have any willpower.
“Have you eaten? There’s always sweet rolls or something inside.” He twitched a thumb toward the house.
“Yes, long ago.”
It suddenly occurred to him that she was alone. “Where’s Kash?”
“She went to talk to Ridge about something. I said I’d take care of the horses.”
How she’d done that in such a quick period of time surprised him. She was a real horsewoman. “Well, I’m heading out to take care of some fence. You wouldn’t want to help, would you?”
To his shock, she said, “Sure.”
He gave her a swift once-over, noting she had on the right attire and even a good pair of leather gloves. He decided some teasing would feel her out. Nobody could erect fence without a sense of humor.
“What does a midwife know about fence?”
She aimed a smile at him, and it was set to kill. He felt a judder in the place where his heart was. “I’ve been setting fence long before you were born.”
He grunted, nonplussed by her mention of their age difference. He was pretty damn sure she was feeling this attraction too. Her bringing up age again was a way to set him away from her, but she had agreed to help. That meant spending hours with him.
“Don’t midwives have herbs and stuff they work with? We won’t be needing that for this job.”
She laughed, a clear, rich sound that reminded him how throaty her voice could be. His Levis started to feel tighter.
“We aren’t shaman, Calhoun.” Her use of his last name gave him a brand new jolt. But he wasn’t certain he liked her calling him that. What he wanted was to hear his name, husky from her lips as he plowed into her tight pussy.
She went on, interrupting his self-torment. “We have the same skills as OBGYNs. I can prescribe the birth control pill to a young girl or take care of a woman’s menopause symptoms.”
“Do you get to do breast exams?” He couldn’t resist throwing that out to see how far he could push her.
She slapped him on the shoulder with a gloved hand. “Not the first time I’ve heard that, pervert. Are we standing here jawing or setting a fence?”
He led her to his truck. For a moment he considered opening her door for her but decided she wouldn’t appreciate the gesture. He got behind the wheel and took the driveway to the main road.
“Where are we going? I thought we were setting fence on Calhoun land?”
“We are, just taking another road rather than bouncing out across the field.” Damn, she looked pretty sitting there in his passenger’s seat. “Your work is impressive.”
“Thank you. It’s been my crazy life for so long that I have to admit it’s difficult to not think of phoning in to check on patients constantly.”
“How many babies have you delivered?” He took a right turn onto a road.
She sat up straighter. “Oh, countless. Nutcracker Road? Why is it called that?”
“You’ll see.” He shot her a grin as they hit the first pothole. Followed by a series of bumps that had him tensing his thighs to keep from getting the nutcracker treatment.
She held onto the holy shit handle, laughing as they hit each dip. “Who named this road?”
“My brothers and I did. We always called it Nutcracker Road and when the county said we needed to put a real name on it, there didn’t seem to be a reason to change it.”
“Where does it lead?” They hit another bump that made her curvy ass bounce in the seat.
“If you follow it all the way out, you’ll reach Ryder’s place. But he goes around the other way.”
“I can see why.”
“Too bad you don’t deal in any man parts. I’m sure to have some bruising after this.”
She shot him a look that said she could keep up with any comments he threw at her and find a sassy comeback. She didn’t disappoint. “I recommend you sit on some ice, Calhoun.”
The corner of his lips quirked as he took another turn, cutting right into the field. It was slightly less bumpy, but she didn’t release her grip on the handle. They reached the place they needed to be, and he was happy to see Ridge wasn’t there yet.
When they got out of the truck and he grabbed the tools from the back, Delaney dipped her head and then glanced up at him from beneath it, her blue gaze direct. “I’ll be honest with you. Ridge will be delayed, and I offered to come in his place.”
His brows shot up. “Why?” The stared at each other until she conveyed the message with a lift of her brows. “Ohhh. That’s fine. Not the first time he gets all th
e fun while we do his work.”
“Making babies can be hard work for some.” She kept up with his long strides.
“But lotsa fun.” He waggled his brows and gave her a shovel. She laughed again, and he couldn’t help but think she was enjoying his company, even though she’d volunteered for one of the shittiest jobs on the ranch.
“Tell me about your place.” He took a can of spray paint and started marking the fence lengths using three of his steps as guides.
“I bought it right after my divorce. I missed the land—Kashley’s mom and I grew up running wild on our own family ranch, you know. And I needed a good place where my son could run wild too.”
He smiled at the image. “Who tends to your animals? I’m assuming you work long shifts.”
She pushed out a sigh. He didn’t want to miss a thing about her, so looked closer. “At the start I only had a horse, a goat and some chickens. But through the years, Brant accumulated more livestock. He used to take care of them, but since he’s gone off to college, it falls on me.”
“You don’t have some hired help?”
“Just a neighbor who will come down and feed and water them in the event I’m gone too long.”
Lane shook his head. “Too much for a career woman like yourself to handle.”
A different kind of smile crossed her face, this time accompanied by a thoughtful look. “You’re right.”
“Why not sell some of the animals?”
“Brant would flip out. He likes to come home and take care of them.”
“If you don’t mind me saying, that’s not his call. You’re the one with the full plate.” He picked up the post hole digger and jammed the blades into the ground. They burrowed through the turf but not nearly far enough. He slammed it into the ground again, cutting deeper with each pass until he reached the needed depth.
She stood off to the side, but damn if he couldn’t smell her light perfume wafting his way. Once he pulled the tool out of the ground and tossed it aside, she stepped up, shovel at the ready. She scraped some dirt out from around the edge.
Her nearness was driving him crazy. If he took a plunge and asked her out, what would her answer be?
“I hope I didn’t upset you by speaking my mind about your son and your place. My mom always says I can be too forward.”
Delaney leaned on the shovel handle and met his stare. “Don’t be. You’re right.” Her tone sounded as if she might have just convinced herself of something she’d been worrying over for a while.
“You could always hire someone to do the work. Or get a live-in boyfriend.” He was fishing—he wanted to know if she was seeing anyone.
“No time for the latter. And with paying for Brant’s education, there’s not much left for hired hands.”
He went to the truck and got a post. As he slung it over his shoulder and carried it back, her attention never wavered from him. He’d seen plenty of women look at him this way—like she wanted to eat him up—but his dick didn’t often respond to them. For Delaney, it shot to full length, making his last few steps uncomfortable.
He set the post into the hole, and Delaney started shoveling around it. He tamped the earth with his boot, firming it up. Together, they stepped back to see what they’d done.
“Good work.”
“Looks straight,” she said.
He held out his fist to her, and she bumped knuckles. What he really wanted to bump was uglies—or pretties in her case. He’d imagined her nude over and over again since meeting her, and there was no way she didn’t live up to his fantasies.
“Okay, your turn,” she said as he started on the next hole.
He eyed her. “What do you wanna know?”
“I want to know alllll about the number 7.”
His burst of laughter rang out. “Hell, I’d like to know all about it too. Can’t rightly figure out the drawing.”
She laughed. “You didn’t really do those positions with that woman in the article?”
He snorted. “We only had sex twice, and it sure as hell wasn’t in ten ways. I’m a little pissed off, to be truthful.”
“I can see why. If the tables had been turned and you’d told a magazine her favorite sex positions, she’d sue your ass.”
He nodded and took out some of his frustration over the matter on the hole he was digging. He had it ready in seconds and collected another post. Delaney shoveled—they made a good team. “You’re good at seeing through the bullshit when it comes to me and my family, aren’t ya?”
She paused and looked at him. “What do you mean?” She had an adorable smudge of dirt on her cheekbone. He’d wipe it off, but hell, he really wanted to get her dirtier.
“You don’t only see the people we are edited to be on the show.”
She dipped her head. “I confess I don’t really watch TV.”
“Good. It’s garbage, and I’d like nothing more than to get out of this contract as quick as possible.”
“But the money must help.”
“I can make do. Hard work earns you what you need.”
She straightened, holding his stare. “You made me see that I need to do something about my ranch, Calhoun. That my son’s starting his own life, and I should take control of mine too.”
“Sounds like we’re both transitioning into something better. And we’ve struck up a friendship?” He arched a brow and gave her his cockiest grin.
She smacked him on the shoulder again, and this time he felt the touch clear to his boots. As they continued to work, they joked and talked about the rodeo and her job. By the time Ridge made it to the field, they’d grown close enough to joke about Nutcracker Road.
Ridge reached them and found them leaning on each other, laughing. “What’s so funny?”
Delaney pushed away from Lane. “Just having a laugh with my new buddy here.”
Lane took in her beautiful face, honey hair and great body. Fuck buddy sounds good.
Except he’d never settle for just being a passing fancy to a woman like Delaney. He had to find a way to see more of her.
* * * * *
Delaney had just settled her butt onto a split log bench in front of the bonfire when she spotted Malou coming down the porch steps carrying a tray of drinks, a bag of marshmallows and a box of graham crackers, her baby strapped to her front.
She jumped up. “Let me help.” She took the tray and box and returned to the gathering. As soon as the little ones spotted Malou, they lunged for her lap. She carefully set one of Asher Franklin’s girls on her knee, fitting her around the newborn snuggled down in her makeshift pouch.
“We wanna hear the moon man story!” Buck Jr. bounced up and down, his hands in the air.
“Okay, in a while, I promise.” Malou looked to Delaney. “Thanks for giving me a hand.”
“Sure thing.” She hadn’t gotten much of a chance to talk to this member of the Calhoun family, but she intrigued her. Kashley had told her that Malou was a doctor and herbalist. Delaney felt some unspeakable kindred with her, being rooted in the science of medicine as well as the homeopathic.
They struck up a conversation, and she was pleased to hear Malou had a line of oils coming out soon, to be used in conjunction with regular doctor practices. They spoke a little more on the subject before the dark-haired girl in her lap squirmed too much, and the baby squawked in rebellion.
The little girl’s eyes opened wide. “I hurt the baby!”
“No, you didn’t,” Malou assured her in a calm way. “Cho just woke up.” She popped the baby from her cocoon and held up the blinking, dark-eyed girl. West reached out for his daughter, and watching the new father warmed Delaney’s heart.
Her ex hadn’t been into kids, and when she’d gotten pregnant she’d been young and stupid enough to believe he’d change his mind. But a year after Brant’s birth, her husband had walked out and never looked back. Leaving her to raise Brant alone. As a result, she’d been made stronger—she knew she could handle anything. But it would have been n
ice to have a supportive man in her life.
As they all settled down around the fire, cameras moved into their places. She shook her head. She didn’t think she could get used to this lifestyle. Never any privacy.
There was a ruckus as Wynonna joined the group. All the kids flocked to her, and she placed a fat marshmallow on each stick. Movement off to the side brought Delaney’s attention around. Lane swooped in and placed a peck on his momma’s cheek before taking his place on a hard stump.
He looked across the fire straight at Delaney.
Her breath caught. A tall and handsome cowboy with a sense of humor and strong personality had her libido doing the Lambada. That dance had been out of style since before she’d become a mother.
He gave her the faintest tip of his hat, but it was enough to make her feel warm all over. Great, now she was having hot flashes. She sat back to get a few inches from the fire, but it didn’t help, especially when every time she looked up, she caught Lane staring at her.
Thankfully, Malou asked her a question about midwifery, and she was distracted.
During their conversation, she found it hard to concentrate. After being around a virile man like Lane all afternoon, she’d been reminded—vividly—that she was female. And that she hadn’t been with anybody in too long.
That man would not be Lane, of course. He was much too young. It would be like screwing one of her son’s buddies, and she drew the line there.
Even if Lane was sexy, smart and witty. And much more mature than his age.
Laughter sounded, and she looked up to see Buck Jr. hopping from boot to boot.
“I gotsta pee.”
His mother started to get up, but Lane beat her to it. “C’mon, short stuff. I’ll show ya how to pee in the yard like a man.”
As the pair sidled away from the fire some distance, they all took turns giggling at the spectacle. Delaney peered past the brightness of the flames into the shadows to see Lane’s straight, broad back. His legs were braced and Buck Jr. took the same stance. More laughs sounded.
She was aware of the cameras moving around to get into position behind them and cupped a hand over her mouth. Nothing was private in this family.