“Okay....” Keep the horse under control? Who does she think she’s talking to, Annie Oakley? “But I’ve never ridden before, either—”
“Tell me...” Ignoring Courtney’s protestation, Angela pivoted slightly in her seat, holding her arms out mannequin style. “How do I look?”
“F-fine.” Courtney rolled in her lips. No wonder Angela commanded somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 million a movie—she was stunning. Flawless skin, perfect white teeth, eyes the color of emeralds. Her platinum hair fell in soft curls from under the black rhinestone-studded cowgirl hat that had been overnighted from Texas for an astronomical price and was a perfect match with the Austrian crystal-drenched belt with the rhinestone buckle.
Poor Adam didn’t stand a chance. Courtney blinked back a surge of emotion she felt reluctant to admit to.
As the car rolled down the long drive past the ranch house, Courtney glanced up. Adam led two beautiful brown horses out of the barn and lifted his chin toward the car in greeting.
The driver eased into the area next to the corral, then got out to open the door for Angela. Languidly, she swung one black hand-tooled-leather-booted foot out of the car, then the other. The rest of her body followed, as though she were stepping onto a red carpet instead of a gravel driveway.
“Hello, handsome.” She jutted out a hip as Adam approached the car.
Courtney unobtrusively slipped out the other side. Adam’s eyes met hers, confusion flitting across his face. No doubt he was thinking three’s a crowd and wondering what she was doing on his date with the rodeo princess. If only she could explain that she’d disappear later, allowing the privacy he’d no doubt been counting on.
“I hope you have a horse for each of us.” Angela looked coyly at the animals in the yard next to them.
“Oh, so you’re both riding then?” His tone was hard to read—puzzled, but maybe a little amused.
Courtney chimed in as she made her way around the car. “It’s just that Angela’s never ridden before”
“N2M is my first Western.” Angela tossed her hair over her shoulder in a well-rehearsed move that had probably clinched the deal in more than one audition.
The corners of Adam’s eyes crinkled as he looked from Angela to Courtney. “I don’t mind giving lessons.” Looking again at Angela, he gestured toward one of the horses behind them. “We’ll put you on Miss Molly. She’s gentle as a lamb.”
“Oh, I just love lamb.” Angela guardedly glided toward the fence and held out her hand in the direction of the horses.
Clasping her elbows, Courtney inched closer to Adam and leaned in. “Sorry about this, I—”
“No worries.” He held up a hand. “I totally get your situation.”
She forced a little smile. He got it? She didn’t even completely get it herself.
“She likes you,” he called over to Angela, as she tentatively allowed Miss Molly to nuzzle her hand.
Angela looked unsure.
Adam bent down and grabbed a hunk of long grass, then crossed to Angela. “Try feeding her this. She loves it.”
Eying the grass as if it might bite her, Angela took it. She held it up to Miss Molly, who enthusiastically gripped it in her teeth. Angela looked startled, then eased into an uncertain smile.
Though he still addressed Angela, Adam gave Courtney a wink. “You two just keep getting acquainted while I get another horse ready.” A grin crooked one side of his mouth as he glanced at Courtney and tipped his head toward the barn.
Courtney double-checked that Angela was occupied with the horse, then followed Adam. Inside, he went straight to a wall filled with horse paraphernalia and grabbed a big brush.
Her gut knotted. She’d better take advantage of her minute alone with him to explain the situation. “Ms. Bijou is used to having me with her—”
“Don’t even worry about it.” He nodded toward one of the stalls. “I’ll have you ride Pepper. All the other horses are out with my hands rounding up the cattle.”
“Pepper?” She looked at the gorgeous black animal. “Isn’t she the one I saw you with the other day? The one with the attitude?”
“She’s a bit of a handful.” He winked as he opened the gate to the stall. “But, hey, if anyone knows how to deal with a prima donna, it’s you.”
A smile crept across her face as she watched him brush and saddle up the horse, her self-consciousness about being there slowly melting away.
Chapter 8
An hour or so later, Courtney felt totally at ease with Pepper. Adam had given her a few pointers and left her to ride around the corral while he worked with Angela, who wasn’t faring quite so well.
“Are you sure I’m not going to fall off?” It was hard to tell if the tremble in her voice resulted from fear or Miss Molly’s lively gait.
“You won’t fall.” Adam’s strong voice reassured her.
As if on cue, Miss Molly stopped abruptly, sending Angela lurching forward. She made an oooph sound as her eyes bugged to twice their normal size.
Adam’s face creased with restrained mirth. “You okay?” As he glanced Courtney’s way, she couldn’t help sending him a sly smirk.
“I’m fine.” Angela raised her torso and blew a wayward strand of hair off her forehead. “I’m just not used to doing my own driving.”
Courtney giggled to herself as poor Angela struggled. Her hands clenched the reins so tightly, she looked like she might cut off her own circulation.
“Just pretend you’re riding a bicycle.” Adam tossed Courtney a wink.
Angela huffed. “Do I look like a woman who would ride a bicycle?”
Miss Molly rolled her head, as if to express her own amusement. Angela shot the horse a look that implied she wasn’t pleased at having to deal with a creature so ill-equipped to obey her every whim without question.
The sound of crackling gravel caught Courtney’s attention, and she turned to see a large and impressive bronze-colored pickup truck kicking up dust on its way down the driveway.
Adam turned serious. “’Scuse me a minute, ladies.” He left the corral, meeting the truck as it pulled up next to the house.
Courtney was vaguely aware of Angela battling to get Miss Molly to move as a man got out of the truck and shook Adam’s hand. Courtney’s pulse instantly accelerated. She couldn’t believe it.
Ever since high school, she’d dreamed of working with Travis Bloom. He was one of the world’s most important directors, as big as Spielberg. She’d plotted a hundred different ways she could “happen” to meet him, and here he was, not fifty feet away. What in the world was he doing here?
“How do I get off this thing?”
Courtney glanced at Angela, then encouraged Pepper to close the gap between them. “Well, I—”
“Do you know who that is?” Angela spoke in an urgent, hushed tone. “That’s Travis Bloom. The Travis Bloom.”
“I know. Do you have any idea why he—”
“All he had to do was have his people call my agent and set up lunch at the Ivy. He didn’t have to come all the way out here to the edge of the middle of nowhere.”
Courtney quirked a brow. Judging from the intense conversation Mr. Bloom was having with Adam, she doubted he had come here just to meet Angela.
Clicking her tongue, Courtney prodded Pepper to move to the fence. To her amazement, Miss Molly followed.
Adam looked up as they drew closer, the somber expression on his face taking Courtney by surprise. He said something to Mr. Bloom and the two of them approached the fence.
Dressed in tan khakis and a periwinkle polo shirt, Mr. Bloom looked even more distinguished in person than in print. He wore his salt-and-pepper hair cropped short, and his beard neatly trimmed. He looked good for a guy who’d suffered the stress and strain of putting together more than t
wenty-five blockbusters in as many years.
“Ladies—” Adam’s voice was more subdued than it had been earlier “—this is Travis Bloom. Mr. Bloom, I’d like you to meet Courtney—”
“—Jacobs, sir. Courtney Jacobs.” Her heart pounded so hard, it felt as if a marimba band had invaded her chest. She started to stick out her hand, then realized she was too far away to expect him to shake it, and jerked it back.
Mr. Bloom smiled cordially. “Ms. Jacobs.”
Adam gestured toward Angela. “And this is Angela—”
“Help me down, Adam.” Angela’s impatience showed through the patina of her well-practiced smile.
Adam went through the gate, then reached out a hand to help her.
She took a moment to get her footing on the soft ground, then sauntered out of the corral, her hand outstretched. “Travis. I’m so pleased to finally meet you. Your work is genius. Simply genius.”
He looked surprisingly humble. “And I’ve long been an admirer of yours as well, Ms. Bijou. It’s a pleasure to cross paths.”
Her eyes dropped to the muck under their feet. “Perhaps we should go over there, where our paths aren’t quite so...fragrant.”
Mr. Bloom looked to Adam, who nodded as if to signify their conversation was complete. Angela took the older man by the arm and walked with him toward his truck.
Courtney bit her lip. No wonder Angela had gotten so far in this business, with moxie like that. Courtney was way too self-conscious to attempt that kind of schmoozing.
She looked down at Adam whose mind seemed to be elsewhere.
“Umm...I think I’m going to need your help, too.”
His gaze slid slowly upward. “Oh. Right. Sorry.”
As he held out both hands, she grabbed hold of the saddle horn and swung her leg to the ground. Once both feet were secure, she turned to face him. “That was fun.”
He smiled, though his jaw still seemed a little tight. “You’re a natural.” He looked over at Mr. Bloom’s truck, where Angela was speaking to him animatedly. “It looks like the riding lesson is over.”
“She’s pretty excited to meet him. I guess she just got distracted.”
“Seems like it.” He paused. “So, do you think she’ll want to hang out, or—”
“Oh, I’m sure of it.” This was awkward. “Hang out. Or something.”
He gave a slow nod. His face had softened, but was still hard to read.
Courtney shifted uncomfortably. Of course he wanted her to get lost, but she couldn’t leave without Angela’s permission. Since she didn’t dare interrupt her boss’s conversation with one of the most important men in show business, there she was—sandwiched between a rock and a hard place.
“So—” the lightheartedness tried to return to his tone “—it looks like maybe this would be a good time for you and me to—”
“Excuse the interruption.” Mr. Bloom walked toward them like a man who had important things to do. He offered his hand to Adam. “Thank you for the information, son. I’ll have my lawyer get back to you in a day or two.”
His lawyer? Courtney sent Adam a glance, but sensed she’d be out of place in asking.
“Ms. Jacobs.”
Eyes widening, she stared at the hand Mr. Bloom now extended to her. Jolting to her senses, she grabbed it a little too exuberantly. “It was a pleasure, sir.” Why had she just called him “sir”? It wasn’t as if he were that old. Had she just insulted him?
After Mr. Bloom headed for his truck, Courtney noticed the driver opening the door to the backseat of the Town Car for Angela. What was going on?
Courtney spoke to Adam over her shoulder as she started toward the car. “Excuse me a sec.”
She arrived just after Angela had gotten in and rolled down the window.
Angela’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “He has a script he wants to discuss. I’m meeting him for dinner.”
“Oh.” Courtney’s stomach pinged. “But, you were supposed to have dinner with Adam.”
Angela raised her thin, blond brows. “Courtney, this is Travis Bloom. Just tell Mr. Gorgeous I’ll have to give him a rain check on dinner. He’ll understand, I’m sure.”
Courtney suppressed a smile. She only hoped that Adam wouldn’t be too disappointed.
“Hurry up and tell him.” Angela waved her toward Adam. “I need to shower and change before dinner.”
“Right.” Courtney fairly skipped back to where Adam tended to the horses.
He looked up. “She decided not to stick around?”
“I guess Mr. Bloom wants to talk to her about a script. She doesn’t want to miss the opportunity, so...”
“I see.” He nodded. “She’s pretty career driven.”
“That’s what got her where she is.” She glanced toward the car. “Look, I’m really sorry about dinner.”
His brow furrowed. “Don’t tell me she expects you to leave, too?”
“Oh. Well...”
“It is your day off, right?”
She looked again at the car. “I suppose so.”
“So, unless you have to leave for some other reason, let’s go for the trail ride I planned.”
Courtney’s mouth froze around her compulsory refusal, leaving her lost in those dazzling brown eyes. It was her day off, and she was having fun. What would be the harm in soaking up some local color? Especially when the local in question was so charming and appealing.
She gave up a restrained smile. “I’ll just let Ms. Bijou know.”
* * *
As Adam led the way up the trail on Rocky, he glanced back at Courtney, who seemed to be handling Pepper like a pro. He chuckled to himself. Movie people were a different breed, that was for sure, but Courtney seemed normal. Almost as if she belonged here.
They shared a comfortable silence as they rode. He still didn’t quite get why Angela had come with her on their date, but it didn’t matter now. He might as well add “distracting Angela from playing chaperone” to the growing list of things for which he was grateful to Travis Bloom.
He angled his head slightly so Courtney could hear him. “We’re just about there.”
“Where’s ‘there’?” Her manner sounded carefree.
He lobbed a grin over his shoulder. “You’ll see.”
As the horses clopped up the trail, the distant sound of birds calling to each other echoed through the woods covering the mountainside above and below. Evening sun flickered between limbs of ancient pines, the scent of which hung in the air.
They rounded the final bend and the expanse of the valley opened up before them. The mountains rolled from green to a distant faded blue, where they met the softening pink of the horizon. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. This was a view he would never get tired of.
Courtney gasped. “Oh...it’s so beautiful.” She stopped her horse beside his. “I’ve never seen so much nature.”
He laughed. “You don’t have nature where you live?”
“Some, but it’s mostly covered in golf courses and housing developments.” She tipped him a glance. “Why hasn’t that happened here?”
He swung off his horse. “Well, for one thing, the Bar-G covers a good six thousand acres. Beyond that, you’re seeing some other ranches and private property. That mountain range is protected by the federal land act, so no one’s going to build on it except birds and tree squirrels.” He tied both horses’ reins to a fallen tree and stepped over to help Courtney dismount.
Her feet on the ground, she gave a long stretch and rubbed her back.
Keeping an eye on her, he crossed to Rocky. “You doing okay?”
“Oh, great.” She sent him an unhurried smile. “I’m more relaxed than I’ve felt in days. It’s been a rough week.”
Adam reached for his s
addlebag, pulled out a blanket and spread it on a level patch of ground. “You enjoy working for such an unpredictable boss?”
“I enjoy what I do.” She paused, as if choosing her words with care. “Angela’s a challenge.”
He clucked at the obvious understatement. Placing the saddlebag down on the blanket, he gestured for her to sit.
She obliged. “What’s this?”
He sat next to her. “Dinner.”
She watched as he removed a few plastic containers and set them on the blanket in front of them. “Wow. Don’t tell me you know how to cook?”
“Hey, we work up an appetite out on the range. It can’t hurt to know a few basics.”
Lifting a corner of one of the lids, she peeked in. “So, corn bread, and...” Picking up another container, she eyed it warily. “What’s this?”
“A local delicacy.” He grinned. “Ever had fried rattlesnake?”
She dropped the container and held her hands up in surrender.
He chuckled. “I’m kidding. It’s fried chicken.”
Relief washed over her pretty face. “Well, I have to say I’m very impressed. You really went all out here.” Her nose scrunched. “Sorry the date didn’t go as expected.”
He smiled, pleased that she had thought of it as a date, but treading lightly. “Hey, all that matters now is that you’re getting away from the stress of your job.”
Her glance shifted sideways. “I hope you didn’t mind giving us a lesson.”
“Naw. It’s been a while since I taught anyone to ride.”
“From what I can tell, you’re a natural teacher.”
“Thanks. I’d do it more if I had time. The ranch keeps me so busy I’m scrambling to get all my work done as it is.” He stopped himself, not wanting to complain. His gaze traveled across the valley. “I can’t imagine a more relaxing place in this whole world.”
Leaning back, she grabbed hold of her knees. The little lines that had creased her forehead earlier in the day had smoothed. He smiled to himself.
“Oh, I almost forgot.” Reaching out, he took a thermos from the saddlebag, then unscrewed the cup and handed it to her. “May I pour?”
Lights, Cowboy, Action Page 5