His Cowboy Heart

by Jennifer Ryan

  “I think a hot shower will help.”

  “How about a hot bath? I’ll wash your back and give you a back rub.”

  “I must be dreaming, because you’re too good to be true.”

  Ford stood and took the chair back to the front of the desk. He came back and held his hand out to her. “Do you need help up?”

  “I got it.” She rose, but a tremble of pain quaked through her shoulder and back.

  Ford ushered her out of the building and to his truck. He helped her inside and buckled her in. “Stay put. I’ll go get Zoey, say goodbye to my family, and take you to get your meds.”

  “But Ford, don’t you want to stay with your grandfather?”

  “Rory and Colt will stay with him. They’ll call me if his condition changes. Granddad will want me to go with you.”

  “I really don’t want to take you away from your responsibilities and your family.”

  “I told you, you need me, I’m there.”

  Ford helped Jamie into his truck, closed the door, and ran back to the clinic.

  Bell stopped him in the hall with her hand held out. “Dr. Porter called and said his session with Jamie went well and that she needed these.” Bell dropped several pills in his hand.

  “Thank you. You have no idea the kind of agony she’s in.”

  “That should take the edge off and get her home. She needs to sleep.”

  “She’ll get it, I promise. How is Granddad?”

  “It’s what I suspected, he took his blood pressure medication twice by accident. His blood pressure dropped too low, which made him dizzy and lethargic, so he tried to go home. I told Rory and Sadie to set up a system where he can keep track of the pills and they can monitor to be sure he doesn’t make this mistake again.”

  “His heart is okay?”

  “Still ticking. No signs of blockage or irregular arrhythmia. I’ll keep him overnight to monitor his blood pressure and make sure it’s stable. He’ll probably go home tomorrow.”

  “Great. Thanks.”

  Bell went to see her next patient and he walked into his grandfather’s room. Everyone looked at him expectantly and all their faces dropped when they didn’t see Jamie with him.

  “She’s in my truck. She’s in a lot of pain because she forgot her medicine.” He held open his hand. He didn’t want his grandfather to know she’d hurt herself helping him. “Bell helped me out with that, but I need to get her home.”

  “Go on, son, take care of your girl. I’ll be fine.” Grandpa Sammy still stroked the puppy, who tried to bite off the armband the clinic had put on him.

  “Thanks for understanding, Granddad.”

  “You need anything?” Rory asked.

  “Time. We worked out our problem. She knows what she needs to do and she’s trying, but it’ll take time.”

  “Bring her around our place soon,” Colt coaxed. “When she’s ready, we’ll talk to her about the equine therapy program.”

  Ford clamped his hand on Colt’s shoulder. “I’m going to talk to her about that soon. I think that’s a stepping stone she needs to good health.”

  “I like her, Ford. We’ll work something out,” Luna promised.

  “Bring her by the house for dinner once Grandpa Sammy is home,” Sadie suggested. “She’ll want to see that he’s okay.”

  “You guys are amazing. Thanks for the support.”

  “We’re your family,” Rory said, explaining it all.

  Ford picked up Zoey, making his granddad frown. “Maybe I need to get you an emotional support dog,” Ford teased.

  Grandpa Sammy gave a lopsided frown. “It’s not a bad idea. I like that little one.”

  “She’s Jamie’s, but I’ll see what I can do. My nephew might like a dog around the house.”

  Sadie smiled and rubbed her hand over her protruding belly.

  Ford ran back out to the truck, climbed in, set Zoey on the seat between him and Jamie, and held his hand out to her. “Bell sent you some relief.”

  Jamie snatched the pills from his hand and popped them in her mouth, crushing them once with her teeth and swallowing them with a swig of water from the bottle he handed her from the console.

  “Hold on, Jamie. Just a little while longer and I’ll have you settled in for the night.”

  “It’s barely past lunch.”

  “Does it matter? You probably haven’t even eaten anything.”

  “Zoey needs to eat.”

  “I’ve got her food at my place, but I’m stopping by yours to get your pills.”

  “Tobin is there.”

  “You don’t even have to get out of the truck, baby. I’ll handle him.”

  Ford didn’t mind the quiet drive to her place. She fought the pain, waiting for the meds to kick in and give her some relief. He’d not only make sure Rory took care of monitoring Grandpa Sammy’s meds, he’d make sure to check in with Jamie to ensure she took hers on time. It had worked up until last night. She’d found a steady balance between the pain and the acceptable intervals for taking the meds. Yes, after a hard day in the stables working her muscles she sometimes needed an extra dose, but those days were becoming few and far between the more she strengthened her body.

  He turned into her driveway, unhappy to see Tobin’s black Camaro still parked in the same spot. Zoey lay on Jamie’s lap. She lazily pet the dog and stared at her place dispassionately.

  “You okay?”

  “Tired. Meds are starting to work.”

  “Give it another ten minutes and maybe you’ll stop clenching your teeth.”

  She gave him a halfhearted smile, all she could manage right now.

  He leaned over and kissed her softly. “Be right back.”

  It cost her, but she reached over and grabbed his arm before he got out. “Ford. Just get the meds. Remember how I am when I’m in a flashback. He told me he suffers from them, too.”

  “Where’s the gun?”

  “Last I saw it, on the kitchen table, but you took the clip and bullets.”

  “But you have another hidden in the house, right?”

  She ducked her head. “Maybe.”

  Ford growled out his frustration and walked toward the door, stopping next to the Camero when he spotted the rental papers on the dash. He read the date. It didn’t make sense that Tobin rented the car weeks before he arrived at Jamie’s last night.

  Tobin probably watched him from the windows the second they pulled into the driveway, so Ford didn’t linger by his car. He went in through the front door and stopped just inside, eyeing Tobin as he sat up from what looked like a nonchalant lounge on the sofa.

  Ford didn’t believe it for a minute.

  “Where is she? Is she okay?”

  “If you cared one bit about her well-being, you wouldn’t have pushed her last night and plied her with drinks.”

  “She needs to let off steam. A couple of drinks isn’t going to set her back.”

  “That’s how little you know about her condition. Your little stunt hurt her because she thought she lost me, but I’m not going anywhere, asshole. So get used to it, or get out.”

  Tobin stood and faced off with him, the couch between them. “Fuck you.”

  Ford rolled his eyes. “I don’t have time to do this with you right now. Jamie needs me, so stay out of my way, and we won’t have a problem.”

  Tobin’s eyes narrowed into a feral glare, but he was smart enough to read that anything he started, Ford would finish. Ford had several inches on the guy and a clear head, not fogged by a long drinking binge. Ford was stronger, faster, and smarter. He could take this guy, no problem, but he didn’t want to cause one more worry for Jamie by going after her “friend.”

  Ford gave Tobin a dismissive shake of his head, not giving Tobin the opportunity to test him, walked down the hall to Jamie’s room, and grabbed her bottles of pills. He walked back to the kitchen, grabbed the gun off the table, stuffed it down the back of his jeans, and walked out the front door, slamming it behind him, hop
ing that Tobin had the same hellish hangover Jamie nursed and the loud bang made his head feel like it would split in two. He didn’t worry about Jamie. She’d taken her pain meds. Nothing close to what Tobin might have taken, unless he’d stolen some of Jamie’s stash.

  He jumped back into his truck, gave Zoey a pat to get her to stop jumping on his shoulder, and started the truck.

  “Any trouble?” Jamie asked.

  “None. He’s watching TV and drinking beer on the couch.” A little hair of the dog. Tobin had a hard night and morning.

  “Did you know Tobin’s been in Montana for a couple of weeks?”

  “What? No.”

  “According to the car rental agreement, he’s been here a hell of a lot longer than last night.”

  Jamie’s eyebrow shot up. “An awful lot has happened at your place the last few weeks. Including the fire.”

  Ford didn’t argue or deny his thinking followed that same train of thought.

  “Let’s get out of here.” Jamie sighed and sank back into her seat.

  Tobin would never fess up to anything, and beating it out of him would only get Ford arrested, so he drove her to his place. Jamie was in no shape to confront Tobin and toss him out. They’d take care of it when she had her head straight and her strength back.

  He stopped just behind her truck with the driver’s door wide-open in the drive.

  “I’ll move my truck,” she volunteered, trying to sit up without showing how stiff and sore she’d become over the last few hours.

  “Leave it. I’ll close the door and drive us up closer to the house.” He didn’t want her to have to walk any further than necessary.

  He hopped out of the truck, spotted the damaged bark on the tree his grandfather hit in the accident. His grandfather’s near death experience hit him all at once again with a punch to the chest. Jamie saved him. It amazed him and made him love her even more.

  About to shove the door closed, he spotted her duffel and purse on the seat and grabbed both. He closed up the truck and went back to his. “You brought a bag?”

  “I hoped to make things right with you and to stay here to show you that I want to be with you, not him.”

  He gripped the steering wheel, hung his head, and sighed out his frustration. “I know you want to be with me. Last night, things got muddled, but I never thought you’d . . .”

  “But it looked that way this morning and I don’t blame you for believing the worst.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t stay and talk to you. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. I didn’t answer your call because I didn’t want to say something I’d regret.”

  “We’re okay now, right?”

  He turned and stared at her. “Yes. We’re okay. If you hadn’t come looking for me, you wouldn’t have found my granddad. We would have been over at Colt’s place and we would have lost him.”

  Jamie reached over and squeezed his hand. “I’m glad that, for once, I helped.”

  “You help me all the time. You insisted I hire help even though I know how hard it is for you sometimes to be around them. I am catching up around here. That’s because you work harder and harder every day, not only with the horses and the odd jobs you do around here, but by accepting the guys’ presence and doing your best to work with them. Some days are harder than others, but you fight through it because you want to help me.”

  “I want you to be happy, Ford.”

  “Just being with you makes me happy, Jamie. Believe that. Believe in us, and we’ll get through this.”

  Ford drove them up to the house, took her bags, and picked up Zoey, closing the truck door behind him. Jamie eased out of the truck and joined him at the front. They walked up the steps to the front door together, him feeling a growing sense of eagerness to get her inside where she belonged. Where he wanted her to stay. They hadn’t really talked about their living arrangements. He got that she wanted to go home each night after a long day working here on the ranch. She needed familiar things. Her space. He didn’t mind spending his evenings and most nights with her there. But he really wanted her here.

  They stepped into the house. Ford set Zoey on the floor. She ran for her bowl of water in the kitchen. Since he and Jamie had lunch here every day, Ford had set Zoey up to do the same. Jamie followed her through the living room, into the kitchen, and filled her bowl with kibble from the bin beside the counter.

  “I’ll put your stuff in my room. Come on back. You can take a bath and crash for a few hours while I take care of the horses and get dinner ready.” Ford went straight back to the master bedroom and set Jamie’s bag on the bed. She’d never come down to his room. She’d never stayed the night here. He didn’t know why.

  He wanted her in his bed every night.

  Jamie walked in behind him. “Ford. Are you sure about this?”

  He turned to face her, the confusion he felt no doubt showing in the frown that drew back one side of his mouth without him even thinking about it. “Why would you ask that?”

  “This is your home.”

  He tilted his head, trying to read her. “I stay at your place all the time.”

  “It’s different.”

  He didn’t get it. “Why is it different?”

  “Because this is the place I always thought we’d be.”

  He felt the same way. “And here we are, Firefly.”

  “I know. It kind of feels unreal.”

  Drawn to her, he closed the distance between them, cupped her face in his hands, and kissed her softly. “It actually feels a bit more real now that you’re here.” He kissed the soft smile on her lips, falling into her and the moment, pouring all his love for this beautiful woman into the sweet caress.

  She tried to raise her arms up over his shoulders, but she winced in pain, and fisted her hands in his shirt at his chest. He kissed her one last time, melding his mouth to hers as he dug his fingers into her tight muscles between her shoulder blades.

  She sighed, but he didn’t think it only had to do with the searing kiss they shared. He tore his mouth from hers, shut down every dirty thought he had about laying her out on the bed two feet behind him, and stepped toward the bathroom with his hands covering hers tangled in his shirt. “Come on, baby. You need a bath.”

  He pulled her shirt up and over her head, dragging it forward toward his chest instead of straight up to keep her arms from going over her head. He cupped her breast in his palm and swept his thumb over her tight nipple. “I am going to do something that is going to make you feel so good.”

  He went to the tub and turned on the water. He turned back to her, unzipped her jeans in one slow drag down, shifted his hand, and cupped her in his palm, rubbing softly against her. Teasing. Tempting. Distracting her from everything else but her and him and this moment.

  He pulled her jeans down her legs slowly, kneeling as he went and brushing soft kisses on the silky skin he exposed down her thighs. Shoes, socks, jeans out of his way, he slid his hands up her legs, hips, and stomach as he rose and covered her breasts with his hands.

  “Get in the tub.” He turned her in his arms and held her hand to steady her as she stepped into the tub and sank into the steaming water.

  Eyes closed, a soft smile on her face, she let the warmth sink into her sore body.

  “God, you’re beautiful.”

  “I’ve been dreaming of soaking in a tub for a long time.”

  He stripped with her heated gaze locked on him and tossed his clothes aside. He slipped into the tub behind her. Not much room for the both of them, but he’d make it work. He used the bar of soap all over her back, set it back on the shelf, then massaged her slippery shoulders. She melted under his hands working all the tight muscles and scar tissue she told him sometimes pulled and always ached. He’d seen the pain in her eyes in Bell’s office earlier. Every tiny movement hurt, but she’d held it together. Such strength under all her beauty and in her small body. His heart both ached and swelled with love for her.

  “Oh God, that
feels fantastic.” Not an ounce of self-conscious hesitation in her voice that he was not only staring at but touching her back.

  “I make good on my promises.”

  Her hands rubbed over his thighs in soft circles and caresses. It felt so damn good to have her hands on his bare skin and his body swelled with wanting her, his aching cock pressed hard against her bare bottom.

  “You have something else for me.” The smile in her words made him smile behind her.

  “That’s for later. Right now, I’m going to work on this.” He rubbed his thumb hard up the muscles bracketing her spine, all the way to her neck.

  “Mmm.” Not even coherent words anymore.

  He took his time working his hands over her whole back, concentrating on her bad shoulder a little longer than the rest. She sat quietly, enjoying the attention. The more she did, the more he wanted to pamper her. He managed to snag the bottle of shampoo off the shelf with the tips of his fingers. He poured some in his hand, then washed her hair, working his fingers over her scalp, continuing the massage.

  He raked his soapy fingers through his own hair and gave it a scrub. Jamie was so tired she didn’t even move, just sank down, her knees coming out of the deep tub, and let the hot water wash the suds away. She came back up with her head back, the water sluicing down her back. She scooted forward just enough for him to copy her dunking. He settled back against the tub and Jamie lay against his chest, letting the heat relax her even more.

  They sat like that, her fingers softly caressing his thigh, his brushing over her silky belly. They enjoyed the closeness they both needed until the water cooled.

  He helped her out of the tub, tugged a towel off the nearby bar, and wrapped it around her. He made her stand there and let him softly dry her. He pulled the towel over her head and dried her hair until it stuck up in all directions. She laughed and smiled up him, her face soft and innocent.

  He dragged the towel over his body in quick sweeps up his legs, over his torso, and down his arms. Jamie grabbed his brush off the counter and ran it over her head. He leaned over, letting her brush his hair for him. Done, he grabbed the bottle of lotion out from the cupboard.

  Her sweet smile warming his heart, the meds and bath easing her pain, he picked her up into his arms, making her giggle.