“Me?” Emma laughed at his observation as she shoved wet strands of hair back from her face and tugged a black wool beanie over her ears. She used two gloved hands to push the bale of hay from the front, toward the cab.
“You were hoping for snow for the holidays,” Zach reminded her.
“I’m pretty certain that I never actually specified an amount. My order was for a few dazzling flakes. Something like a Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye movie was my plan. Then I could dance and sing around the pine tree in my front yard while wearing my red velvet dress and fur muff. You know, like Rosemary Clooney.”
“Who?”
Emma slapped a gloved hand to her forehead. “I have my work cut out for me with you,” she said. “Talk about Christmas challenged. There’s a holiday movie marathon in your near future, Zach.”
“Great and in the meantime, could you pull whatever strings you have and get the snow to stop?”
She looked at the sky with pure delight and raised a gloved hand to catch flakes that swirled down, blanketing everything in white. “This is more than I requested and it came out of nowhere. Blame the weatherman. He submitted the wrong snow order.”
Zach cleared his throat. “Ready?” he asked with a nod toward the bed of the truck.
She stepped out of the way and he tossed another bale in. Was it his imagination, or were the bales getting heavier? He used to be at peak condition. What happened? Three surgeries and a certain someone’s baking. That’s what. He’d gotten used to the treats Emma regularly offered the wranglers.
Zach did a double take when Emma picked up the bale he had just added to the truck and piled it on another. The pint-size Wonder Woman was showing him up.
When she stepped aside, he took a deep breath, sucked in his gut, braced his feet and tossed another bale onto the truck in one swift movement. Neat trick, except he nearly undid the last surgical procedure on his knee in the process. He stumbled backward two steps and caught himself.
“Maybe you should slow down,” Emma said.
“Naw. I got this.” He dusted off his hands attempting to salvage his ego. “What were you saying?”
“I said that we had great weather for fall calving and for getting the Holiday Roundup decorations up,” she said. “I’m grateful for that. This is a minor nuisance.”
“Freezing temperatures and blinding snow is a minor nuisance.” Zach frowned. “Is there anything you can’t put a spin on?”
She stopped and considered his words. “Probably not.”
“I appreciate your honesty.”
Emma pushed on the hay. “Life is all about choices, Zach. I choose to be happy.”
“Duly noted.”
“Oh, come on. Think of all the fun we can have tomorrow.”
“How’s that?”
“If the temperature doesn’t drop too much we can take the girls and Benjie and Mick and the triplets up to the hill behind the supply barn and go sledding. Build snowmen and practice our snow angels.”
“Yeah, okay, I concede that sledding with kids might be fun, but I’m having a hard time finding joy in that thought when I’m wet and cold.” Zach straightened and stretched his back.
“If you’d stop dressing like a California boy, it might help.” She peered over the edge of the truck. “For starters, you’ve got a denim jacket on and I wouldn’t be surprised if you were wearing flip-flops.”
“Not today.” Zach laughed. “You know, right about now, AJ and Travis are sitting in a trailer with a nice warm heater selling trees and smiling because we got herd duty.”
“Their time will come,” she said. “You and I are assigned the Christmas tree sales on Saturday.”
“I’ll bring the hot chocolate,” Zach said.
Emma straightened and grinned. “Okay, and I’ll bring my chocolate muffins.”
“Best offer I’ve had all day. Now I can’t wait for Saturday.”
Was it his imagination or did Emma’s face pink at his words?
He nodded toward the hay. “How’s it looking?”
“One more and we’re full.”
“How come Travis doesn’t have a bale processor?” He narrowed his gaze. “Maybe I should share my views on redundancy with him.”
“You’re a rancher’s son. You should know that a rancher’s life is nothing but redundancy.” Emma laughed.
“And the baler?”
“Maybe someday. For now, we aren’t even producing and baling our own hay at Big Heart. The operation is less than two years old and Travis only hired AJ last spring.”
“This is way too much work for an out-of-shape former navy SEAL.”
“It could be worse. Travis is split calving right now. So the herd isn’t as big as it could be.” Emma sat down on the truck bed and dangled her boots over the edge. “I’m exhausted.” She closed her eyes and put her head against a bale of hay.
Zach leaned against the truck and looked out at the fields where every inch of grass not covered by snow was stiff with frost. “Good to know I’m not alone.”
Emma chuckled. “Those cows complained all the way to the south pasture, didn’t they?”
“First snow of the year. They’re as annoyed as we are.”
“I tried to explain to them that there was protection from the wind in the south pasture, but they kept bellowing.” She sighed. “Now we have to feed them. They’re exactly like my children. Eat, sleep, eliminate and complain.”
“I guess we do have it easy today. No drifts yet.” He glanced at Emma, still tucked back against the bale of hay with her eyes closed. Her breathing had become even and regular.
The youngest Maxwell was beautiful, more so with a dusting of snowflakes. Dark hair framed the perfectly oval face. There was no one more beautiful inside and out than Emma. The pureness of her heart radiated when she smiled.
And she was going to be spitting nails in a minute.
Zach reached down, balled up snow in his glove and aimed for the hay bale next to her. The snowball hit and spattered.
“Hey!” Wild-eyed, she jumped to attention.
“Wake up, Miss Christmas. We aren’t done yet and I’d like to finish before it gets dark.”
“I was only resting my eyes.” Emma stood and stretched.
She took a long look at the pasture. “No picture can capture the beauty of the land. We were blessed when we were given all of this.”
“I agree. Now quit waxing poetic and let’s get moving so we can admire the beauty of the land from the house, sipping hot chocolate in front of a fire.”
“You’re a slave driver. Don’t you ever wax poetic?”
He shrugged but was silent. Only when I’m looking at you, Emma.
“Here we go,” Zach said, reaching for a bale. “Last one.”
Emma guided it into place and turned to him. “Do you really mind being out here?” She cocked her head and met his gaze. “Steve hated ranch life. He was happiest behind his computer working away.”
“I’m nothing like my brother. I’m guessing you figured that out a long time ago.”
She offered a solemn nod.
“And for the record, I’m giving you a hard time because I can.” He let a small smile slip past his lips. “I wouldn’t have signed up for wrangler duty if I minded. This is almost as much fun as swimming in subzero temperatures with my SEAL team buddies.”
“You said the word fun.”
“So I did.” He smiled. “Come on, let me help you down. We need to finish Big Heart Ranch cattle Meals on Wheels and get you home to the twins.”
Emma stepped closer to the edge of the flatbed and he put his hands around her waist through her thick barn coat. As if in slow motion, he lifted her through the air and eased her down to the ground. She weighed less than a bag of oats.
When he set her down, she stared up at him, t
he brown eyes wide and assessing. “You have snow in your hair,” she said softly. “I’m going to have to buy you a proper cowboy hat for Christmas.”
When she raised her arm to brush away the flakes, he caught her hand and pressed a kiss to her gloved palm, his eyes never leaving hers. Tucking her hand close between them, Zach was unable to resist lowering his head. It was a slow movement, allowing her the option to step away.
But she didn’t.
Zach’s lips gently touched Emma’s, and the world slipped away for a long moment.
When he released her, Emma remained in the circle of his arms while snow fell from the sky, cocooning them as they stood together.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” she murmured.
“Pretend it never happened,” he said. Because he knew that it shouldn’t have.
She met his gaze. Tiny crystals of snow rested on her lashes and cheek. “I mean, I didn’t expect to feel so much.”
“Emma, stop analyzing.” Zach touched a finger to her face to wipe away a crystal.
Then he turned and pulled the keys from his pocket. “Ready?” he asked.
“Yes.”
They drove to the pasture in silence. When they got to the paddock, Emma climbed out of the truck and jogged to the fence to open the gate. Zach drove in and she closed it again behind him.
He rolled down his window. “Can you get back up in the bed okay?”
“Sure,” she said. Her face revealed nothing. As usual, Emma put on a smile for the world, hiding what she was thinking and feeling.
“Stomp on the truck bed when they’re all dumped out,” Zach said. “I’ll park it and help you rake out the hay.”
It took a quarter of the time to dump the hay as it took to load the truck. When Emma had kicked all the bales to the ground, he stopped the truck and got out. Together they split the bales and loosened the hay. The cattle came running as though they’d heard the supper bell.
Emma leaned on a rake catching her breath and sending clouds of condensation into the air. “We’ve earned our paycheck today.”
“That we have.” He tossed his rake in the back of the truck.
For a moment she stared at him, a wistful expression on her face before she turned away.
“Emma. Look at me,” he said.
“Hmm?”
“It’s going to be okay. It was just a kiss.” He didn’t believe the words, but he said them anyhow.
“I know,” she said with a smile. “It’s just that I didn’t realize how much I would like it.”
Zach jerked back at the unexpected words and he laughed. “Get in the truck, cowgirl. Let’s go home.”
He was over his head right now and the potential for drowning was real. Time to step back and figure out what his next move was, and whether it would hurt as much as he suspected it would.
* * *
“Dutch, do you have time to help me cut a tree?” Emma called from Rodeo’s stall.
When there was no response, she looked over the gate. The weathered cowboy turned and stared at her as if she had lost her mind.
“It’s colder than a cast-iron commode out there, Miss Emma. And the snow looks like it won’t stop neither.” He stroked his silver mustache and gave a slow shake of his head. “Cutting a tree in this weather’s like trying to put socks on a rooster. Plain makes no sense.”
Emma stepped out of the stall, latched the gate and crossed her arms. “This is the warmest day we’ve had since Thanksgiving and it hasn’t snowed since yesterday.”
“Tell that to my joints. They ain’t what they used to be. I’m not a youngster, you know.”
“Fine.” She spun around and headed to the tack room. “I’ll do it myself.”
The cowboy laughed. “Not on my watch. Give me a minute to get my thermals and extra socks on.” He paused and glared at her. “You’re sure it has to be today, huh?”
“Weather calls for more snow on Friday. Tomorrow we move cattle again. It has to be today. You know I like to get my tree cut before Travis and Lucy.”
Fifteen minutes later, the big outer door creaked open and the sound of boots stomping in place echoed into the stables.
“Dutch, is that you? Can you grab the rope?”
“Nope. It’s Scrooge,” Zach said. “But I grabbed the rope anyhow.”
Emma grimaced and gave a wary laugh.
She had been avoiding Zach for a week. He knew it and she knew it. Now she peeked out of Rodeo’s stall and prayed that he would go away. Zach Norman had kissed her, and she was more than unopposed to the idea. How was she supposed to process that? She was confused and didn’t understand what the rules were for young widows beneath the age of...whatever. The topic had never come up in three years. Could she dare risk the crushing pain of loss again? Especially since Zach was leaving.
“I know you’re here, Emma. I can hear you thinking.”
“Is there something I can help you with?” Emma peeked out at him again. “Dutch and I are going to cut my Christmas tree.”
Zach chuckled as he looped the rope around his shoulder. “Dutch sent me here to help you. He’s on his way into Timber in that beat-up truck of his to catch a movie.”
“Remind me to put coal in his stocking,” Emma muttered. She sighed and grabbed her saddle.
“I’m here, ready and willing. Let me help.”
The sound of his footsteps said he was coming closer.
“Oh, that’s not necessary,” she returned quickly. “I can do it another time. No big deal. Christmas is a long way off.”
“Long way off, huh? Since when?” He snorted a laugh. “Emma, are you by chance avoiding me?”
She turned when she realized that he stood outside Rodeo’s stall. When her gaze landed on his mouth, Emma blinked and forced herself to stare at his left ear.
“Why would I do that?” she said sweetly.
“I can make an educated guess, but maybe you should tell me.” Zach turned around, a puzzled expression on his face. “What are you looking at?”
“Nothing.”
“What happened Saturday?” he asked. “We were scheduled to work Christmas tree detail. I brought the hot chocolate, and then I ended up sharing it with Dutch, not you. I got to hear eight hours of nonstop John Wayne trivia and instead of muffins I got teriyaki beef jerky and pork rinds.” Zach shuddered. “I’m probably traumatized for life.”
Emma sighed, knowing she was in the wrong. “Okay, I apologize for that.” She opened the stall, stepped out, and walked up and down the stables, checking beneath every single door.
“Are you even listening to me?” Zach asked.
“Yes. Of course.”
“What are you doing?”
“I don’t want anyone to know my business. Gossip spreads like a sneeze through a screen door around here.”
“Another Dutch-ism if I ever heard one,” he mumbled. “It’s like the language of the land at Big Heart Ranch.”
She put her hands on her hips and slapped her most sincere “I’m the boss” expression on. “Zach, it’s not wise for me to fraternize with a fellow employee.”
“Okay, yeah. That’s good.” He chuckled. “I like that. Rule twenty-seven in the Big Heart Ranch employee manual.”
Emma frowned. Not only was she out of practice at playing boss, but she was up against a navy SEAL. He was trained in intimidation.
“Is that really the best you can do?” Zach asked.
“I’m being serious.”
“Why not just admit you’ve been avoiding me because I kissed you?” He paused. “You weren’t opposed to the kiss at the time, as I recall.”
“There were extenuating circumstances. I was exhausted, hungry and sleep deprived.”
“Do you want to try it again to be sure? I’m not busy at the moment.”
She rais
ed a hand to her lips and stepped back. “No!”
Zach laughed. “Fine by me.”
“Look, I’m sorry you had to spend the day with Dutch, but it seemed a good idea to put a bit of distance between us and the situation.”
“Right. Until clearer heads could prevail.” He was silent for moments, simply looking at her. “It was a kiss. Albeit a very good one. Let’s forget it and move on.”
She brightened at his words. Yes, exactly. It was time to act like a mature adult instead of a teenager.
“I can do that,” she said.
“Terrific. Now, do you mind telling me why you’re cutting a tree when you have a tent full of perfectly good Christmas trees for sale?”
“Memories.”
“You’ll have to explain.”
“It’s one of the few things I remember about my parents. We went to the woods every year and cut down our own tree. I’ve kept the tradition up all my life.”
“I can respect that. Okay, sure. Let’s do it.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind? Though the wind’s eased up, the thermometer’s still sitting at thirty-two.”
“I’ve got a new coat to break in.”
“You do!” She stepped around him, assessing the dark blue faux shearling-lined barn jacket. “I like it. It looks...”
“Don’t say lovely.”
“Rugged and handsome.” She frowned. “You went all the way into town. Why didn’t you get a hat?”
“I went to town for Christmas shopping. The coat was collateral damage when it started snowing again and I figured out my denim jacket wasn’t doing the job.”
“Christmas shopping! Really? You did?”
“Yeah. Happens to the best of us.”
She tamped down her enthusiasm. No need to give him a hard time when he had voluntarily stepped into new territory. “So the hat? You were saying?”
“I tried a few, but...”
“A Stetson or a Resistol?”
“Both. I’m only here two and a half more weeks. Seems like a waste of money to me.”
“Two and a half weeks?” She swallowed the words and they settled in her stomach like a cement sandwich. Two and a half weeks. How could that be?
Christmas with the Cowboy Page 13