Forever's Affection (Forever In Luck Series Book 3)

by J. Darling

  Lightening flashed as he turned onto the main road. Good thing they’d gotten the crops in the ground. Now if they’d just get a little rain it would work out nice. They sure the hell didn’t need a deluge though. They’d already gotten a late start because of a long winter and spring flooding, and he didn’t want to lose that seed and have to plant again. His pickup swayed when it was hit by strong winds. Great, they didn’t need the wind to blow the seed away either. Big fat raindrops began to fall and splat onto the windshield.

  “Women,” he growled aloud to no one but himself. He liked them, but he sure the hell didn’t love them. Always out to manipulate and change a guy. Well, forget it, he wasn’t changing for any woman, and he told them that straight up. Not getting married, no kids, no commitment, just get together and have a good time. Period. That’s the way it was, and they’d go for it, hanging all over him, fawning, dolling themselves up and making a spectacle to keep his attention. Then it was always the same when they realized they couldn’t change him, they’d kick his ass to the curb. Oh well, he wouldn’t do commitment again, had no reason to, because in his book, all the women he’d ever met were all the same.

  Turning down 280th, he stopped when he heard a loud high pitched whine, then a loud crack. Hmmm, tree must have fallen, he’d check it out tomorrow. Stepping on the gas, he crossed over the Gandy Dancer Trail and headed towards the farm. Coming upon the end of the driveway, he could see all the lights on in the barn and outside. Heading into the yard, he pulled up as his dad was coming out of the house.

  Looking Kris over with a critical eye, then to his watch, his dad said clearly irritated, “It’s two thirty in the morning.”

  Ignoring the statement, hoping his dad would let it go, Kris asked, “What’s going on in the barn?”

  “It’s a good goddamn relief your mother isn’t alive to see you sneaking and sleeping around.”

  No luck, this had been one hell of a day. “I’m a grown man,” he answered, sounding tough but feeling a little bleak.

  Nodding, his dad said, “Yes, you sure are. So quit acting like a boy.” Then he turned and walked to the barn.

  Well, that was his third kick in the ass, all within twenty four hours. Heading in the house, he went up the stairs and into the kitchen. Seeing his sister Linnie, he tried smiling. “Hey, what are you doing up?”

  Stopping what she was doing and staring at him, taking him all in, she raised an eyebrow. “Maybe, I should be asking you that. Slow in the ER, just got home from work. Who is it this time?”

  “No one, it’s over.” Looking down to where she was staring, he saw that his shirt was on inside out. Great. He headed for the fridge. “How’s the baby?”

  “Kicking,” she said, rubbing her pregnant belly. “Kris, hate to break it to you, but you’re a mess. You need to let this thing with Vanessa go. It was years ago. There are a lot of good women out there, but you’re getting to an age where you’re going to have to go a lot younger to find one that isn’t divorced with children, and we all know how you feel about kids.”

  Laughing as he slapped a thick slice of ham on a bun, he answered her, “Kids are okay, as long as they’re not mine. Besides, it’s not a problem. I’m not going to get married, and don’t want kids, I’m going to be a bachelor forever. I’ll simply spoil my nieces and nephews,” he said with a mischievous grin and a wiggle of his eyebrows. “You better watch out, I’m buying them the noisiest toys I can find, then sending them all to your house. And what do you mean about my age? You make it sound like I have one foot in the grave, I’m twenty-eight not eighty-two. Besides, even if I was interested, which I’m not, there are only two good women in this world, you and Jules, and that’s a no go. So, there’s no hope for me,” he said with a shrug. “What’s going on in the barn?”

  “Famous last words, you’re impossible. You just wait, keep talking like that and I promise you, you’ll be eating those words,” Linnie answered with a shake of the head. “One of the heifer’s been laboring for a while and is having trouble. Jake and Dad have been out there all night. Nik’s sleeping. You better catch some winks yourself, because the two of you will need to pull double duty tomorrow, and with this storm, who knows what kind of clean up there’ll be. Oh, and Jules left a note on the fridge for you, something about new neighbors at the Luck-E ranch looking for hay.”

  Gulping down a glass of milk and finishing his bun, Kris grabbed the note and glanced at it. “Heading to bed now. Get to bed yourself, and give the little one a rest.”

  She grunted. “Yeah, right. It’s the other way around, the little one needs to give me a rest. Good night.”

  Grinning as he left the room, he took the stairs two at a time. In his room and crawling into bed, Kris thought about what Linnie had said. He’d let it go, sure had, a long time ago. Even had the satisfaction of laughing in Vanessa’s face when she came back several years later, unmarried with a child in tow, “missing him.” Hah, yeah right! So not into that scene, he thought as lightening flashed outside followed by a loud thunderous boom overhead.

  A woman would mean rearranging his life. Did that once, not doing it again, he thought. Besides, he liked to come and go as he wanted, sleep with whoever he wanted. Go hunting and fishing when he wanted, and then drinking with the guys if he wanted. He’d play cards, watch football, and spend money if he wanted, all without having to get permission from the little woman.

  Not to mention he hated chick stuff, the romantic dinners, the “aren’t I special” dance nights, the “you never buy me flowers” crusade, and then the sappy, make you want to poke your eyes out with a rusty fork, movies…hell no. No thanks, forget it, he’d take a rain-check and never redeem it.

  So yeah, he was destined to be a bachelor, because he was sure there was not a woman on the face of the planet that would go for even half of that and then some. Yep, he was one of the smart ones who stayed single and was a hell of a lot happier for it. Mmhmm, right, Nik’s voice went through his head.

  “…you can be a crabby, bossy, arrogant son of a bitch…”

  Irritated, he rolled over and punched his pillow a few times, refusing to think about it.

  *****

  Kris woke with a start. What the hell?

  “Get out…”

  Whoa, that was the second time in a matter of hours that he’d heard those words, except he was at home and in his own bed. “Hmmm?”

  “Get up!” Linnie demanded, as she shook his shoulder. “Get out there.”

  Huh? Rubbing his face, he tried again, “What’s going on?”

  “Big storm came through, fence is down in one of the pastures, and about a hundred cows are spread from here to the Gandy Dancer. It’s just getting light out. Jake’s trying to get them with the four wheeler, but they keep moving farther away and closer to the highway.”

  Sitting up, he shook his head, trying to get rid of the fog. “Okay, I’m coming, how about Nik?”

  “Getting dressed. Dad’s out there too.”

  Pulling on the clothes he’d had on the night before, he ditched the shirt because it had the nauseating smell of cloying female perfume on it. Ick. Why couldn’t they just be happy with plain old soap and water? Stumbling down the stairs, he stopped and slipped on his boots, then went outside. Standing in the yard talking were his dad and brothers.

  “They just keep moving west,” he heard Jake say as he came to stand with the group.

  His dad nodded. “I’ll take the truck and go south and around on 260th, then come at them from the west, see if I can get them to move back towards the farm. You three keep them moving to the downed fence area and we’ll work on getting them back in. We need—”

  Far off in the distance there was some shouting and a cracking sound. Standing on the hill of their farm in the dim morning light, they all turned to look out at the distance below. Cows were scattered from hither and yon in little batches. There was more yelling, some shrill whistles, then more cracking sounds, followed by barking from a dog. Becom
ing restless, the cows started to move, gathering together and turning towards the farm. Slowly, they began to make their way closer. Then more cracking sounds, more barking, more whistles.

  Nik about summed it up when he said, “What the hell?”

  Just then, the sun broke the horizon, and Kris saw what he would look back on as one of the most spectacular sights he’d ever seen. A woman on a golden horse, cracking a whip, as she and her dog rounded up the heifers. Fascinated, he watched her weave back and forth, cracking that whip and whistling commands to her dog, the two effectively gathering the herd and bringing them in.

  Now it was his dad who about summed it up when he said, “Well I’ll be damned, look at that.”

  Yeah, he was, and she was amazing. Were those chaps and spurs? And a…a…lasso? Whoa, more of the whip action. His eyes slowly went wide, not wanting to miss a thing as he watched her handle the horse with reins in one hand and the whip in the other, the length dragging along the ground.

  Oh man, up went her arm, then a little wrist arm action—CRACK! The noise sliced through the air with an electrifying snap. The thoughts in his head—CRACK—this was—CRACK—downright sinful—CRACK! Standing in awe and feeling like he’d just received some life giving shocks to the heart, he wondered if she knew how much power she had over man and beast right at that moment. Feeling himself drooling, he quickly lapped it up before he made a mess of himself.

  Nik let out a little whistle, clapped his hands together and rubbed them briskly, then made a point of cracking his knuckles. “Bet you wish you were a single man right now, huh Jake?”

  “Nope,” Jake answered, shaking his head while staring at the spectacle. “Happy man right here, but that whip does make for an interesting proposition, for sure.”

  “Hands off,” Kris barked with emphasis, as he stood watching the vision of her. “She’s mine.”

  “Maybe,” Nik said amused, clearly trying to push some buttons.

  Turning, he looked Nik in the eye. “I will take you down and beat you senseless.” Turning back and watching her, he said it again, “She’s mine.”

  His dad shook his head. “Well, quit being a Neanderthal then and go open the gate for her.”

  They all started moving to the gate.

  Nearing them, she waved and smiled, yelling a hearty, “Morning neighbor!”

  She had a nice smile, Kris thought, and the rest of her wasn’t bad either. Moving her horse back and forth, getting even closer as the last of the cows went through the gate—CRACK—went the whip as one of the heifers tried to go back the way they’d come. He and his brothers just stopped in their tracks and stared. Kris heard his dad chuckle, and saw him shake his head again out of the corner of his eye. He knew he should move, but simply couldn’t because he was frozen. His brothers must’ve been too, because his dad stepped up and closed the gate as the last of the cows went through.

  Whistling for her dog, she wrapped up her whip with a few snaps of the wrist and stuck it in a hold by her side, her saddle creaking with the movement. Coming closer, she stopped. “What a fantastic welcome to the neighborhood! I thought my days of being a Cracker were over. That was great. Beautiful morning, isn’t it?”

  “Sure is,” his dad spoke up. “I’m Karl Albrecht.” Then pointing with a smirk, he said, “And these here statues are my sons, Jake, Nik, and Kris. And you are?”

  She chuckled as she smiled, and Kris decided he found that sound about as intriguing as the whip’s.

  “Nice to meet you all,” she drawled, with a nod of her head. “I imagine you don’t see many cattle roundups around here, at least not by horse from what I’ve seen. I’m Danielle Reed, you can call me Dani, and this here is my horse Topaz,” she said, leaning and giving the horse a pat, “and my dog Coco.”

  Kris swore if a dog could smile, this one was. He, or she, was happy as can be, sitting pertly next to Topaz, tail thumping, tongue lolling.

  Stepping closer, his dad put his hand up. Hopping off her horse, she removed her leather work gloves and took his hand, shaking it. Well it was official, those were chaps, and she was definitely wearing spurs. They made an interesting jingling sound when she jumped down. That ought to be a crime, Kris thought to himself, figuring he’d never get another wink of sleep for the visions that were sure to be dancing through his head all night long.

  “Where you hail from?” his dad asked politely.

  “Wyoming, just south of the Montana border near Sheridan.”

  His dad nodded. “What’s your business?”

  Her tongue grazed the seam of her lips and she smiled a succulent smile. Answering with a gleam in her eye, she said, “Horses.”

  “Seems like it would be horses and cattle, the way you moved this bunch,” Nik interjected with a flirty grin.

  Kris was going to kick his ass.

  Widening her stance and putting her hands in her back pockets, she looked Nik straight in the eye, hers having lost their glimmer. She was having none of him. Oh boy, Kris swallowed hard. She wasn’t like other women, nope, not at all. He could tell in that instant, her mannerisms were more like a guy’s, and although she wasn’t overweight by any means, she wasn’t dainty, or wispy, or thank God giggly from the attention of a male. She was taller, bigger boned, solid, curvy in all the right places, and flat out serious.

  “Yeah, I’ve moved some cattle in my time,” she responded unimpressed.

  It was clear from the vinegar in her tone, she didn’t find Nik’s comment complimentary.

  Jake started laughing and her eyes zeroed in on him. “In your time? You’re not that old.”

  Looking down to the ground, she put a hand to the brim of her cowboy hat and pushed it back some, then looked solidly at Jake. Kris swallowed again, deciding she had the most interesting eyes, a piercing stormy blue-gray, silver almost.

  “Well, let’s just get straight to it, why don’t we? I know how this works, from a small town myself. I’m twenty four. Was on a horse before I even knew how to walk, been dealing with horses and cattle ever since. Lived on a ranch, raised and taught most of what I know by ranch hands and professionals. I’m known throughout Wyoming for my horsemanship. I’m single, never been married, and have no plans to be. Ever,” she spat. “I’m here, staying at the Luck-E as a favor, and my job and talent is in training horses. Which by the way, I’m missing one, had some fence down myself. Wonder if we can look around, see if it made its way over here.”

  Straight and to the point, and wanting nothing to do with men. Of course he’d want her, she revved his engine like no other. Kris felt like walking over and banging his head on the side of the barn. What the hell, women threw themselves at him all the time and he wasn’t interested but for one thing, and then there’s this one that wants nothing to do with men, and his mind says too bad, you’re mine. Go figure. He heard his dad answer her.

  “For sure, absolutely, take a look around, no problem.”

  With that, she made a little yip and her dog happily jumped to attention. Then giving a command, the dog took off like a bullet, running back down the way they’d come.

  Looking back to his dad, her disposition softened. “I’m in need of some hay and some muscle. You know anyone who’d be willing to sell me some?”

  His dad nodded. “We can probably help you out. How about you go look for your horse, and then come back in about two hours. We’ll be done milking by then. Let us feed you some breakfast, welcome you to the neighborhood, and thank you for your help this morning. We’ll iron out the details at that time.”

  A loud ruckus of barking started off in the distance and she smiled widely. That was one nice smile, Kris thought. Whistling for her horse that had grazed away, it instantly came trotting her direction. Watching as she ran alongside the trotting horse, she took hold of the saddle horn, gave a hop and a leap, and was up in the saddle in a flash, her spurs jangling the whole time. Reaching, she took her lasso from its hold, and Kris nearly groaned aloud. He so wanted to see her use that lasso,
bad. With the horse’s reins in one hand and the lasso in the other, she looked over her shoulder towards the barking. “Sounds like Coco found Ricochet. Damn good dog.” Turning back to them, she asked, “Can I bring anything?”

  His dad shook his head. “Just you, bring you. We’d love to have you come eat with us.”

  “Alrighty then, see you in two.” With that, she gave her horse a little click and a kick, rounded the yard gathering momentum, then hurdled the fence and took off down the hill at a gallop. Unable to move, Kris stood watching her retreating form. This was a whole new breed of woman, he thought, and he was most definitely up to doing a little “how do you do” with her.

  Nik clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on Casanova, let’s get the milking done. Then you can get to the house and get a shower in. You look like you just rolled out of bed after having had sex, which I presume you did because you got a big ole hickey on your neck.”

  Narrowing his eyes on his smartass of a brother, he answered him with warning. “I’ll kick your ass if you’re screwing with me.”

  Nik shrugged his shoulders and laughed. “Front and center, and flashing like a neon sign.”

  That explained why his dad and Linnie had given him a hard time. Well, it had been two thirty in the morning too, and his shirt had been on inside out. Damn it, just his luck. Meet the most interesting woman he’d ever seen, and he had the mark of another female on him. Turning, he headed for the barn.

  CHAPTER 2

  Showered and changed Dani, drove out of the driveway of the Luck-E, reflecting on her earlier visit to the farm. Holstein cows, cared for, about a thousand from the size of the newer built barn, good condition farm, plenty of land, lots of haying pastures, and abundant muscle from the looks of the men. The two brothers who’d spoken, no problem, the one was married, she knew that from meeting the little woman the day before. The other, flirty and loud, and obvious as the day is long. She could handle him, no problemo. It was the tall silent one she wasn’t so sure about. She felt a knot in her stomach with that one. He was like a bull, waiting and watching, and if there was one thing she knew, it was that the gentle, docile bulls were the most dangerous.