“You’d better believe it. You should have seen App instructing me how to saw and measure. I ran over to the lumberyard in Ranger yesterday and picked up some railroad ties for them. He decided he wanted to make it more substantial.”
She shot him a smug look. “So maybe I should pass that tidbit of information along to my superiors.”
“Now, c’mon. That wouldn’t be right. Here I am having a nice conversation with you, and you’d betray that trust?”
She arched a brow, teasing him. “Shouldn’t have volunteered it.”
“Better watch out.” He grinned. “I might have been giving you bad information just to foul you up.”
“I figured you for a double sneak like that.”
He laughed and they continued their teasing for a while, walking the horses down the road, then along the trail. It felt strange and wonderful at the same time. Tacy was enjoying herself more than she could imagine. She was attracted to everything about Brent. His looks, the way he sat in the saddle, the patient way he worked with a horse when it wasn’t totally sure about having him on its back. But she was captivated by something in his eyes most of all. Something that seemed to reach inside her every time their gazes met…maybe it was knowing the intense way he cared about the mistakes he’d made that got to her. He went much deeper than she’d first thought. Something elusive but powerful caused her pulse to grow skittish and made her feel reckless every time those serious eyes touched her—not a good thing.
“So when do you start breaking the next one?” she asked, finally catching him looking at her. In his eyes, she could see that his thoughts were heading into the same churning waters as her own.
“In the morning,” he said, tension tightening his tone.
She pushed. “You know I want to help.”
“No,” he said immediately.
She sucked in a breath and held her temper. Temper tantrums wouldn’t solve anything…. It sure was tempting, though.
Brent shifted in the saddle and the colt, feeling his rider’s unease, sidestepped and fought the bit momentarily. He welcomed the distraction as he settled the animal down. He wished settling his own mood was as easy. Spending time with Tacy was dangerous. He knew this line of questioning would come up. But he hadn’t been able to stop himself from asking her along. He’d missed seeing her yesterday and had found himself thinking about her all day long. It had been one of the reasons he’d timed his training of the colts when he knew she’d be working at Sam’s.
“So how about that statement you made the other day?” He’d been thinking about what she’d said on Saturday, that she thought God had brought them together. “What was with that?”
She halted Rabbit and stared at him. “I believe it’s true. I’ve been placed in your life for a reason.”
“And what would that reason be?” he asked, startled by her words, but not by her frankness. His attention was distracted by the beauty of her smile and the way her eyes twinkled warmly. He swallowed hard and found his gaze resting on those perfect lips—then forced himself to look back into her eyes, which danced with laughter. If God had sent her to distract him, then she was doing a bang-up job of it.
“That, my handsome buckaroo, is something I’m still trying to figure out. I mean, you make me mad enough to chew nails because you can’t see I’m good at what I do but—Hey, I’ll race you back to the corral!”
Before the exclamation was finished, she whirled Rabbit around and took off back the way they’d come. Laughing, he gave the colt the go-ahead and raced after her. Rabbit was fast and Tacy leaned low over the saddle horn and rode as if she and Rabbit were one, thundering down the path and back onto the soft road. When the colt nearly caught them, Tacy glanced over her shoulder and laughed into the rushing wind. Her eyes sparkled and his adrenaline surged as they challenged each other. Then she laughed, nudged Rabbit and sent the horse into overdrive. Instantly, the distance between them widened. Rabbit was no slouch, and neither was his rider.
Brent gave the colt a nudge and the race was on. By the time they made it back to the yard, there was no doubt about it: the girl could ride. He was pretty sure this was exactly what she wanted him to conclude.
But he wasn’t thinking about that as much as he was thinking about chasing Tacy. Laughing into the wind as they went, it was the first time in two years that he’d felt a sense of joy. She was beautiful and so alive—and driving him crazy!
In the yard, she hopped from the saddle before Rabbit had fully stopped and stood waiting, hands on her hips, breathing heavily from the exhilaration of the chase.
He felt it, too, and swung out of the saddle, slapped the reins around the corral post and stomped toward her. She was smiling broadly, eyes sparkling with life. He wasn’t thinking clearly now and he knew it. He’d never wanted to pull a woman into his arms and kiss her as much as he wanted to now—he halted a mere breath away from her, so close she had to tilt her head back to look up at him. She knew exactly what he was thinking.
“You’re having fun, aren’t you?” he asked, furious with the electricity crackling between them.
“Oh, yeah, cowboy,” she said, placing a hand lightly against his jaw. “And I think I can help you if you let me.”
His focus wavered from what she was saying because he wanted to kiss her so badly. “You can’t help me—” he said, and before he could stop himself he lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. His hands wrapped about her arms and he tugged her close. He expected her to pull away—maybe slap him even, but she didn’t. She felt right in his arms, her lips felt right against his as she returned his kiss. Regaining some semblance of sanity, knowing he wasn’t feeling rational, Brent pulled back. He was not the careless idiot he’d been two years before. This was too important—Tacy was too important—for him to go too fast.
He rested his forehead against hers, his fingers tightening against her back. This was crazy. There were so many reasons he shouldn’t let this happen. But oh how he wanted it, wanted her.
“I really do think I’m here to help you,” she said softly, breathlessly. “I’m not Tina.” Pulling back, she looked up and held his gaze. “Our names both start with T but other than that we are not the same. I’m an expert when it comes to riding and understanding the feel of a horse. All I’m asking you for is professional guidance as I try a breaking technique I’ve been studying for months. I’m going to step into the stirrup of an unbroken horse with or without your help. What I’m asking you for is assurance that I’ve done my homework when I put my boot into that stirrup.”
He dropped his hands and stepped away.
“I’m not judging Tina, because I don’t know her reasons for wanting to get on that horse—but for me this is no game. I can do this. You have blinders on, and it’s not good. Not good for you or me.”
“Not happening,” he said tersely. What had he been thinking, letting his head get messed around? That kiss wasn’t her caring about him. It was all about her getting her way. About her getting on the back of one of those horses.
“Teaching me could help you get over your phobia. And it could be fun.”
“No, Tacy.”
Her expression tensed. “You are so stubborn.”
“Yeah, I am. I have good reason to be. We went over this already.”
She took hold of Rabbit’s reins and stormed inside the barn.
Birdy lifted her head from where she’d been watching them and thumped her tail. She looked as if she knew he was a mixed-up man. “You’re exactly right. She makes me crazy,” Brent growled, spun on his heel and strode back to the corral.
The man was making her crazy!
Tacy had to force herself to calm down as she removed Rabbit’s saddle, not wanting to scare or hurt the poor horse. But boy, she sure would like to wring Brent’s neck.
Her lips still tingled from his kiss. The kiss had been perfect…but a kiss was not going to help her face facts. Oh, no. That kiss was just going to confuse the issue all the more.
Easier said than done. She had never, ever been kissed like that before and somehow it seemed like so much more than just a kiss. “Enough,” she growled at herself, grabbing a brush and pulling it along Rabbit’s coat. “He probably thinks I’m a blooming idiot—” she said, looking Rabbit in the eye as her hand trembled.
She flirted, teased and generally enjoyed giving guys a hard time. She was always in control as far as men were concerned. But she’d felt totally out of control just now—and several other times she had been with Brent. There was something between them that was undeniable.
Frankly it scared her. It would only complicate things.
Right!
After all, she didn’t want to get involved with any guy right now.
She had plans. Goals that had to be achieved, or at least set into motion, before she allowed her heart to get distracted with…with—men. Right!
She would keep her head on straight.
She would keep her eye on her goals—she wanted to break horses. And she would.
But…She stopped brushing and stared into the grazing area outside Rabbit’s stall. She also wanted to see that hollow look disappear from Brent’s eyes when he talked about his family. She couldn’t deny it.
Drat! And double drat! Things were really mingling and mangling inside her head, and she wasn’t sure at all what to do about it.
Goals or no goals, she was falling for the handsome, haunted cowboy.
Chapter Ten
Brent had been in a foul mood for the last three days and as he loaded feed into the back of his truck at Pete’s Feed and Seed not even the happy color of the canary-yellow building was helping. Especially since he’d seen Tacy enter the salon across the street as he’d gone into the feed store. Knowing she was over there only upped his irritation at himself. He’d kissed her, and now he couldn’t stop thinking about it. Or the fact that he was a darn fool—the words of his dad rang in his head.
He looked up from his work when Pete came out of the store. A large man with a balding head and an easy manner, Pete crossed his arms over his oversize chest and smiled. “How’s the horses comin’ along?”
“Good.” Brent was glad he’d asked about the animals and nothing more.
A truck pulled into a parking space across the street and Norma Sue climbed out. The heavyset ranch woman wore blue overalls and a red, long-sleeved shirt, and on her head sat a red cowboy hat. Her wiry gray curls stuck out from under the brim. If it had been white hair, like Adela’s, Norma would have looked like a Texas Mrs. Claus. Then again, he guessed she still did, even without the snow-white hair.
Even in his bad mood he couldn’t help but wave back at the jovial woman when she lifted her hand in greeting. She started to step up onto the sidewalk, heading to the salon, when she suddenly spun around and headed his way.
“Heads up,” Pete warned. “You are on the radar.”
“Maybe it’s you, not me.” Brent grabbed a sack of feed and tossed it onto the others in the truck.
“Nope. You’re the one helping App and Stanley build that punkin chunker. She’s been asking everyone she sees what it looks like, so I’m pretty sure you’re the one she’s comin’ ta see. Afternoon, Norma,” he greeted as she crossed the yellow line in the road.
“Same to you, Pete. It’s a nice one, that’s for sure. How are you today, Brent?”
Brent grabbed the next bag, noting that he had four to go. “I’m fine, Norma Sue. How are you?”
“Fine. Just fine. So, is y’all’s chunker finished yet?”
Pete was standing off to the side of Norma Sue, so she couldn’t see his face as he raised his brows at Brent and grinned real big. Brent started to answer when he heard what sounded like a herd of cattle rumbling along the sidewalk behind him. Norma Sue’s eyes widened, and he turned to see Applegate and Stanley thundering toward them.
“Norma Sue,” Applegate boomed as he came to a halt. “Sam said Adela said y’all got yer machine almost ready to test.”
“Well, why would she go and tell him a thing like that?”
“Maybe,” Stanley drawled, situating his bag of sunflower seeds more securely in the crook of his arm, “because he’s her husband.”
Brent glanced across toward the salon and saw Lacy and Tacy watching from the window. He could see them grinning even from this distance.
“Well, I was just asking Brent here if y’all got yours ready to test.”
Brent shot her a look but was smart enough to keep his mouth shut. He didn’t want to get in the middle of this. He had horses to train and other more important things on his mind.
“You didn’t tell her nothin’, did you?” App asked, sharp eyes squinting at the cowboy.
Brent scowled. “No. But I’m not sure I see why it would hurt anything to admit it.”
“Oh, so you admit that it’s finished.” Norma Sue beamed triumphantly while Applegate and Stanley scowled like he was a traitor.
“Well, no, ma’am, I didn’t say that—”
“Yes, you did,” she said. “So when are y’all testing it?”
“You didn’t have to go and tell our secrets,” App accused. “We got you on this team ’cause we thought you could keep yer mouth shut.”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Stanley agreed, spitting a sunflower seed at Brent’s feet.
Pete chuckled. Brent glared at him. This was getting entirely out of hand. “What is the big deal?” he snapped. “And for the record, I said no such thing.”
“It don’t rightly matter,” App said. “Cat’s out of the bag now.”
Brent grabbed two bags of feed and tossed them into the truck. “Look, I thought this was a friendly competition.”
“Well, it is,” Norma Sue said. “Whatever gave you the idea it wasn’t?”
Huh? He looked from her to his teammates. “Are you telling me this is friendly?”
Stanley scratched his bald spot and grinned. “We tend to get a bit carried away.”
Brent tossed his last two bags of feed into the truck. “Yeah, you do.”
They all stared at him. “What?” he asked, feeling ill-tempered.
“Are you mad?” Norma Sue asked.
“Ain’t no call to be mad,” Applegate said.
“Shore not,” Stanley agreed and tossed a few more seeds into his mouth. “We’s jest havin’ some fun.”
“Fun?” Brent said and found himself staring at the salon with anger in his eyes. Maybe if Tacy didn’t have him all tied in knots he’d see some humor in all this, but as it was he wasn’t laughing yet. He yanked open his truck door and climbed in.
“You comin’ to the Thanksgiving dinner at church?” Norma Sue asked, walking over to stand by his window. “It might help you get over your bad temper.”
At this point he wasn’t sure anything would help. “Fine, I’ll be there,” he said, feeling a touch of remorse at having lost his temper.
She gave him a wide grin and tipped her red hat at him. “Good. You take care now.”
What had just happened? Here he thought he was going to have to step in and stop a real fight, and he’d ended up agreeing to attend Thanksgiving dinner with all of them. The townsfolk of Mule Hollow were certainly strange. Strange, but nice, he had to admit.
“They’ve got him so turned around he doesn’t know which way is up and which way is down,” Lacy Matlock said, laughing, from the window of her salon. “Poor cowboy.”
Tacy couldn’t help feeling sorry for Brent. From what Lacy had told her, this so-called feud between Applegate and Norma Sue was just the two of them having a little fun. She had to admit she had thought they were genuinely furious at each other, too. “You mean to tell me they aren’t really at each other’s throats?”
Lacy led Tacy back to the cutting chair so Lacy could finish her haircut.
“Oh, they’re perturbed at each other, and each is bound and determined to beat the other. But they’re having fun. They’re just competitive.”
“Brent looked as if
he thought they were about to try to kill each other.”
Lacy chuckled. “Yes, he did. So how’s it going with you two out at the ranch?”
“Not so good. What was Sheri thinking? I mean, I came here so Pace could teach me, and then he leaves and sends in his place a rodeo star who would rope and hog-tie me before he’d let me on the back of an unbroken colt.”
Lacy slid the hot-pink comb through a section of hair, then combed it straight up and held it between her fingers. “Well, I don’t really like to talk, but I’m going to let you in on something because I feel like you have a right to know.”
“Anything you can tell me that would help me understand what this is all about would be great.”
“Pace was worried about Brent. You see, when he took the job out there in Idaho, he was angry about something that had happened in his life. Family issues.”
“Yes, I know that.”
Lacy grinned. “He told you.”
Tacy hesitated at Lacy’s obvious excitement. “Yes,” she said cautiously.
“Great, then they were right.”
“They were right about what?”
Lacy waved the scissors. “No, hang on. I’m getting ahead of myself, but I was just so excited to hear that he opened up to you. This is good. Very, very good. Anyway,” she said, snipping off the tips of the hair sticking up between her fingers, “you see, Pace says the Great Basin is such a vast space that a man can tend to his work and have almost no contact with anyone all year long if he wants it that way. Pace worked out there because he loved it. He is such a throwback to the old West cowboy that, for him, it was a love affair with the land and the life. For Brent it was a different story. Brent was running away from something. He wasn’t there because he loved it, but to punish himself. Pace told Sheri that just wasn’t right. Ever since Pace moved here, he said the Lord kept putting Brent in his mind.”
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