The Rancher And The RunawayBride: Part 2

by Susan Mallery

  She was such a mass of contradictions. All soft and giving with Princess and her cats. She’d responded to his kisses with enough heat to leave him burning and hard for days. Then, when he’d apologized, she’d brushed his words aside, saying she’d enjoyed the kissing as much as he had. Did she want him? Did she think about being with him?

  He brushed the mud from the gelding’s legs and hooves, then straightened. Did it matter what Rita wanted from him? Her past stood between them. How could he care about or trust someone so obviously on the run from something? He’d shared some of his secrets, but she hadn’t responded in kind. She’d run off, and maybe that was why. She wasn’t prepared to expose herself to him.

  He leaned against his horse and exhaled slowly. He was in way deeper than he’d first thought. Based on his previous experience with women who dropped into his life, he might very well be headed for another heartache.

  “You hiding out here?”

  Brady turned toward the sharp voice and saw Tex walking toward him. “I’m grooming Captain. That’s not hiding.”

  “You think I haven’t noticed you moping around, but I have. You wanna talk about it?”

  “There’s nothing to say.”

  “Uh-huh.” Tex reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a slice of apple for the gelding. “This wouldn’t have anything to do with Rita, would it?”

  Brady had bent over to brush the gelding’s rear legs. He was glad the ex-marine couldn’t see his face and know he was lying. “No, why?”

  “I thought you might be thinking about her as something more than just the groom. The way you two have been talking and such.”

  Brady knew Tex was hinting around, trying to find out if there was any “and such” to discuss.

  “Your point is?”

  “You’re not involved, are you?” the cook asked.

  That Brady could answer honestly. “No.”

  “Good.” Tex sucked in a breath. “I guess it’s none of my business, but I’m going to tell you, anyway. I thought you were the one she was interested in. I’ll admit I was more than a little worried. She’s not as coldhearted as Alicia, but she could be just as dangerous, even more. Anyway, I was all set to warn you off, but that’s not necessary.”

  Tex had Brady’s full attention now. He straightened and stared at the older man. “What are you talking about?”

  “I had it wrong,” the ex-marine said. “It’s not you she’s interested in. It’s Ty.”

  Brady gripped the brush he held. “Ty?”

  Tex nodded. “I left the dance a little early. When I came back to the bunkhouse, I saw them in his truck, and they weren’t just talking.” Tex’s gaze narrowed. “That bother you?”

  About as much as getting a leg cut off, but Brady wasn’t about to admit that. Nor would he acknowledge the sudden coldness in his body or the hollow ache in his chest. “No. Should it? If their relationship starts to cause trouble around the ranch, then I’ll speak to them. But until then, it’s their business.”

  Tex studied him for a moment, then nodded. “That’s what I figured, but I wanted to make sure. I thought you might have had some feelings for the girl.”

  “Sorry, no.” He even managed a smile.

  Tex continued to talk for a few minutes, but if tortured, Brady couldn’t have said what the conversation was about. His mind was occupied elsewhere. Rita and Ty? Was it possible? Was it true? What about the kisses he and Rita had shared? What about their dance, when her body had melted into his? What about their conversations, the things they’d shared? Hadn’t that meant anything to her?

  Disappointment, hurt, anger and confusion ripped through him. He wanted to track Rita down and demand to know what the hell she was doing with the cowboy. He wanted to beat Ty until his employee’s handsome face was reduced to a bloody mass. He wanted—“Where’s Rita?” he asked, trying to act casual, hoping he hadn’t cut Tex off in midsentence.

  “She went to town. With Ty.”

  “Okay, thanks.”

  Tex said a couple more things and strolled off. Brady finished grooming the gelding, put the animal in its stall, then headed for the house.

  But there was no escape in the place that had always been his sanctuary. Rita’s presence filled the old house until there was barely room left for him. He paced, alternatively listening for the sound of a truck and telling himself he didn’t care if she never came back.

  She wasn’t his business. He had no right to her. He didn’t care about her, and even if he did, what did it matter? He couldn’t trust her, not with so many secrets between them. So there was an attraction—it happened all the time. It didn’t mean anything. Wanting and love weren’t the same thing at all. Wanting was about sex, and loving was about forever. He’d given up on forever the day Alicia had left him standing alone in the church.

  So Rita was interested in Ty. Fine. Good. He wished them well. He would put any thoughts of her from his mind and get on with his life.

  As he said the words, he meant them. Really. Which didn’t explain why he crossed to the window every few minutes, listening for the sound of a pickup truck returning to the ranch.

  * * *

  “Are any of them calicos?” Felicia, the owner of a hair salon, asked. “I adore calicos.”

  “There are a pair of sisters,” Rita told her, meeting her gaze in the mirror. Felicia worked at the next station, teasing an older woman’s gray hair into a sizable coiffure. “They’re very sweet. About a year old. They’re not big cats, maybe ten pounds a piece.”

  Felicia, close to forty and with a figure that would make Dolly Parton blink, sighed. “Two little calico girls. You know what? I’ll take them. You give me a call next time you’re coming into town so I can have time to buy the supplies they’ll need. They should have plenty of room. I’ve got the whole upstairs.” She pointed to the ceiling of the shop. “They can play down here during the day.” She smiled. “Calico cats, just like I’ve always wanted.”

  “They’ve already been fixed,” Randi said.

  Felicia laughed. “Good thing. There are a couple of tomcats running around town, acting as wild as any cowboy I’ve ever met.”

  Mary Alice, the young woman working on Randi’s hair, gave her a shy smile in the mirror. “You just want the ends trimmed, right?” she asked as she combed Randi’s freshly shampooed hair.

  Randi nodded. “My hair is impossible, so that’s about the best you can do. At least long enough so I can tie it back. I cut it short several years ago and it was a disaster.”

  Felicia winced. “Don’t cut it, honey. Your hair is beautiful. If you knew the ladies who come in here begging for a perm that will make their hair look like yours. You can’t even imagine. I can try, but the best stylist and the best products don’t even come close to that natural curl. You be grateful. Besides,” she added with a sly smile, “some men really like hair like yours.”

  Everyone joined in the laughter except for Randi, who got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. “You have beautiful hair, Felicia,” she said, desperately hoping to change the subject.

  Felicia touched her blond waves. “I work at it, honey. Two hours every morning. But then a girl in my position has a certain reputation to uphold.”

  Mary Alice picked up a pair of scissors from the table in front of Randi’s adjustable chair and began trimming. Conversation drifted from Felicia’s reputation for beauty, to who was currently pregnant, and to a debate over whether or not there would be any fall weddings. Randi closed her eyes and let the words flow over her.

  She was pleased Ty had come by the stable and offered to let her join him on his way to town. Another day on the ranch and she would have gone crazy. There was only so much tension she could survive without exploding. Not that she had anyone to blame but herself. She was torn. Part of the time she wanted to be with Brady so badly she could taste it. She thought about him, dreamed about him, went out of her way to see him and talk with him. When she wasn’t dying to be with him, s
he was anxiously planning how to get away from the ranch. Twice she’d packed up her duffel, only to unpack it. Fortunately she didn’t have a lot of things, and all the packing and unpacking didn’t take much time.

  Her feelings fluctuated like a pendulum, falling out of the rational zone at each end. She was acting like a crazy person, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

  The facts were very easy to understand. She really cared about Brady. There were some feelings she wasn’t ready to explore, at least not yet, but for now she felt comfortable admitting to caring. But—and here was the bad news—whatever he might think about her now, as soon as he found out the truth about her past, he was going to despise her. There was nothing she could do about changing what she’d done, and there was no way to justify her actions. So they had no future. The best thing for both of them was for her to leave.

  The problem was, she didn’t want to go. She wanted to stay and pretend it was all going to work out. At least for now. Eventually she would have to do the right thing and move on. Maybe she would even head back home. It was almost time.

  “Speaking of weddings,” Felicia said, then winked at Randi. “I saw you dancing with Brady Jones last Saturday. You looked very involved with each other.”

  “Gee, Felicia, you saw me dancing with everyone last Saturday night,” Randi said calmly, hoping her cheeks didn’t blush and betray her discomfort. “If I had to pick the person most interested in me at the dance, I’d say McGregor, although he’s a little old.”

  “I don’t know.” Felicia finished smoothing her client’s gray hair, then reached for a can of hair spray. “I’ve known Brady all his life and I think he was showing some interest in you.”

  Randi was torn between wishing the other woman was right and knowing that their attraction would only cause heartache. “Brady’s a gentleman,” she said lightly. “He doesn’t date the help.”

  Felicia scoffed. “Most of his help are guys, honey. Don’t sell yourself short. I’d bet my last can of hair spray that you’ve got his attention in a big way.”

  Maybe, Randi thought. For now.

  An impulsive act had brought her to the only place she thought she might be able to call home. That same act made it impossible to stay.

  Mary Alice put down her scissors. “That should do it. Nice and even.” She fluffed the drying curls.

  “Hey, gorgeous.”

  She glanced up and saw Ty standing in the entrance to the shop. All conversation ceased as every woman’s attention focused on the tall, dark cowboy.

  Ty didn’t seem to notice. He strolled in, tipped his hat to the ladies and stopped behind Randi’s chair. “You about ready?”

  Randi glanced at Mary Alice. “How much do I owe you?”

  The young woman blushed bright red. “Tw-twenty dollars,” she stammered, gazing at Ty as if she’d never seen a man before. Maybe she hadn’t, at least not one that good-looking.

  Randi paid the woman and left a large tip. On her way out, she promised to give Felicia a couple days’ notice before bringing the calico cats to her.

  “What’s it like to do that?” she asked when they were on the sidewalk.

  “Do what?” Ty asked, falling into step with her.

  “Stop traffic, reduce intelligent women to incoherence, that sort of thing. You know, be gorgeous.”

  He shrugged uncomfortably. “Sometimes it’s a pain in the butt.”

  “I notice you’re not denying the statement.”

  He grimaced. “I’ve had it happen enough times to figure out that for some reason, many women find me physically appealing. When I was younger, I used that to my advantage. One day I grew up.”

  She wanted to ask more questions about the lessons he’d learned along the way. Were his looks the reason he had lost Denise? But she didn’t ask. For one thing, it wasn’t her business. For another, she understood all about wanting to keep secrets.

  “I finished what I needed to do in town,” he said. “You want to head back?”

  “Sure.”

  They walked to Ty’s truck, then drove back in companionable silence. But the closer they got to the ranch, the more her mood changed for the worse. Tension filled her. If only there was a simple solution for her problem.

  As they turned off the main highway, Ty glanced at her. “You’ve fallen for him, haven’t you?”

  She didn’t have to ask who the “him” was. “Looks that way.”

  “I think he’s hot for you, too. Is there a reason it can’t work out?”

  Brady hot for her? She glanced at Ty, torn between wanting to ask him why he thought that and wanting to act unconcerned. “I, um, have a few other things going on in my life,” she finally said, settling for the truth and avoiding the dangerous ground of Brady’s feelings.

  Ty turned into the driveway in front of the main house and stopped the truck. When she went to leave, he put a restraining hand on her forearm. “For what it’s worth,” he said, staring out the front window, “My advice is to give it a try. There are few things worse than regrets. They kill you slowly, eating you alive from the inside out.” He stared at her. “I know.”

  For once she could read his emotions in his dark eyes. Raw pain flared out. She caught her breath, wishing there was something she could say or do to ease his discomfort.

  “I’m sorry,” she murmured.

  “Don’t be sorry, just don’t do what I did. Love is worth it, Rita. Take a chance. If you don’t, you have to live with the memory of what could have been. Regret is forever. Trust me, it’s no way to spend a life.”

  He leaned close and kissed her cheek. She closed her eyes briefly and wished there was some hope for him. But who was she to offer advice?

  “Thanks,” she said. “For everything.”

  “You bet, kid.”

  She slid out of the truck and slammed the door shut behind her. Poor Ty. Was that her destiny, too? Was she going to be caught up in a past she couldn’t change and couldn’t forget? That’s not what she wanted, but did she get a choice?

  When she walked in the house, she was surprised to see Brady standing at the foot of the stairs. At the sight of his familiar face, the warm brown eyes and the dimple hovering on his left cheek, her heart picked up its cadence. She had the strongest urge to throw herself in his arms and beg him to make love to her. Fortunately, she managed to bite back the words.

  “Hi,” she said, and smiled.

  He didn’t smile back. It took her a couple of seconds to register the tension in his body. “Rita.” He nodded.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “Nothing. I would like to have a moment of your time, if that’s not too much trouble.”

  She swallowed. Had she done something wrong? Had he guessed her secret? “Go ahead.”

  He shifted his weight, then stared at a point just beyond her right shoulder. “You’re relatively new to the ranch,” he said. “As your employer, I feel a certain responsibility toward you that goes beyond your job performance. Therefore I feel obligated to say something I wouldn’t normally mention.”

  She’d never been very good at double-speak. “I don’t understand.”

  “Then let me be more plain. Ty is a good man and an excellent leader. But he’s a loner by nature. What you do with him on your own time is your business. However, as a—” He hesitated. “As a friend, I feel obligated to warn you he’s not the kind of man you can count on to be there.”

  She half wanted to turn around to see if there was someone else he was talking to. “None of this makes sense,” she said. “Ty and I aren’t involved. He gave me a ride into town, but we weren’t spending time together. I went shopping and got my hair trimmed.” She frowned, thinking. “I don’t know what he did.”

  Brady brushed off her comments with a wave of his hand. “I don’t want to know the details of your relationship. I just wanted you to know what you were getting into.”

  “There’s no relationship. I’m not getting into anything.”
<
br />   He took a step toward her. “I saw him kiss you.”

  “On the cheek.”

  “Tex saw you kissing after the dance.”

  She felt as if she were fifteen and had been caught necking with a boy her parents had forbidden her to see. “Also on the cheek. He was talking about his past. If you must know, we were sympathizing with each other and the rotten luck we’ve had in the game of love. He’s just a friend.”

  “I don’t want to hear this, Rita. You don’t have to explain.”

  “I know that. I want to.” She shifted her packages to her left arm and planted her right hand on her hip. The sensible action would be to thank him for his concern and go up to her room. However, she couldn’t bear to have him think she was interested in someone else. “I appreciate that you’re concerned about me, but you have it all wrong.”

  “Why won’t you admit you’re seeing the guy?”

  His obvious annoyance made her temper flare. “Because I’m not. We’re friends. Nothing more. Yes, he’s good-looking and he’s been very nice to me. So what? I’m not the least bit attracted to him. If you’re worried about me making a fool out of myself over a man, then you’re way off base with Ty. If I was going to act on my feelings with anyone it would be with y—”

  She clamped her hand over her mouth, as if the physical action would draw the sound back into her throat. It didn’t. The half word hung there between them, echoing until the confusion in Brady’s eyes faded and comprehension dawned.

  Heat flared on Randi’s cheeks. The sensation was so strong, she didn’t need a mirror to tell her she was bright red. She dropped her hand to her side and raced for the stairs.

  “Rita?”

  She didn’t respond to his call. She kept running until she reached her bedroom and slammed the door shut behind her. Once safely alone, she sank to the floor and buried her face in her hands. No matter what, she was never, ever going to be able to face Brady Jones again.