Melissa And The Cowboy (Western Night Series 1)

by Rosie Harper

  “Will she be visiting often?” Chris asked hesitantly. Money Bags took in a deep breath of the fresh air and shook his head.

  “Honestly I’m not sure. I’m hoping that she’ll get excited about this and start planning the house we want to build on the property. Don’t worry, we’ll keep it a good distance from you and the stables so as not to interfere. Maybe we’ll building it an acre or two over that way.” He said, pointing off to the west at a small, grassy hill. Chris nodded, not really caring but glad to hear that at least the husband had no intentions of interfering with his work. Perhaps he could pass that along to Mrs. Money Bags.

  “Alright. I’m just trying to get a feel for who all might be coming or going.” Chris said. Money Bags smiled and nodded.

  “Well I’m going to try and convince her to come out and take a look while I’m in New York for the next couple of weeks. Maybe then she’ll understand why I bought this place for us.” He said. Chris forced a smile and nodded. Great, that means I’ll have a pissed off housewife staying with me. He thought bitterly.

  “Well okay! I’ve got the papers put together for your contract already, I’ll just need you to initial and sign your name.” The man said, walking over to his little sports car and pulling out a stack of papers. Chris’s eye widened a little and he briefly wondered what he was getting himself into.

  “This just states everything we already discussed as well as hold you to employment for a minimum of two years unless there is grounds for immediate release of employment such as theft, neglect of duties, drug use, misconduct, etc. Sign here.” He explained, handing Chris the pen. Chris skimmed the document, adding his initials behind each clause. At least he was guaranteed work and housing for the next two years provided he did his job. That won’t be a problem, he thought. He finished reading the document and signed his name at the bottom.

  “Excellent! You are free to move in and start immediately. I’ll tell my wife to give you a couple of days to settle in before coming down to check it out. I’m so glad we can work together Mr. Harper.” The man said, shaking Chris’s hand again. Chris nodded.

  “Me too, Mister, uh…” Chris trialed off, trying to remember the man’s actual name.

  “James, but please call me Carl.” Carl said smiling at Chris. Chris nodded again and shoved his hands in his pockets.

  “Alright, Carl.” He said tersely. He watched Carl get into his car and speed away. He let out a sigh and turned back to his beat-up truck. Might as well start moving in, he thought with a smile. Finally, a stroke of luck. Hopefully, the housewife wouldn’t be unbearable and would just keep to herself in her big city mansion.

  ***

  “So what do you think?” Carl asked excitedly. Jennifer rolled her eyes and then refocused her attention on the road.

  “I’m not there yet, I’m still driving. This is out in the middle of freaking nowhere.” She said. Carl chuckled on the other side of the phone.

  “Well yeah, you can’t have a ranch in the middle of a suburb.” He teased. Jennifer shook her head and gave him an obligatory laugh. She wasn’t as mad at him as she had been, but she was still upset with him for not consulting her. It was her money, too. She may not work for a big corporation like him, but it was with the sales of her paintings that they were able to put their kids through college.

  “Are you there yet?” Carl asked again. Jennifer debated hanging the phone up on him and just stared blankly at the road.

  “You’re like a child.” She said. She took the next right onto a thin, dirt road. Rolling hills and grassy knolls stretched out for miles on both sides of her and her heart swelled at the sight. There was a small cluster of trees on the south side that looked like a tiny forest and she could hear a creek babbling nearby.

  “Alright, this is gorgeous.” She admitted. Carl gave a celebratory yelp and Jennifer couldn’t help the smile that came to her face.

  “I knew you’d love it! See, it wasn’t totally irresponsible.” Carl said. The happy feeling that was starting to fill Jennifer turned cold at his comment and she was back to being upset with him.

  “Yes, it was.” She said coolly. She could tell that Carl was trying to organize his thoughts to say something else that wouldn’t make the situation worse. Jennifer pulled up to the small house which, she hated to admit, looked cozier in person than it did in the pictures.

  “Well… I—” Carl started, struggling to form a good sentence.

  “Don’t bother. I’m here. I’ll call you in a couple of days once I’ve had enough time to form an opinion.” Jennifer said, cutting him off. Carl sighed in relief and she could picture him nodding enthusiastically on the other end.

  “Yes, yes. That sounds good. I love you.” He said and his tone held a hint of pleading. Jennifer looked down at her phone and pursed her lips.

  “I love you, too.” She said back and then hung up. It was true, she did love him—she just didn’t like him very much right now. He was always doing things like this to her. Their whole lives together he’s gotten to be the one to go off and have fun and make impulsive, crazy decisions while she got stuck with cleaning his messes up. It wasn’t the way their marriage was supposed to be; it wasn’t the way her life was supposed to be. Heaving a defeated sigh, Jennifer got out of her car and looked around. Carl had said he’d hired someone to work the ranch and told him to move in already but she couldn’t see him anywhere. His truck was parked in front of her car so she assumed he was on the property somewhere but first glance didn’t reveal him. Carl had told her that she could stay in the second bedroom of the house while she got to know the place but Jennifer refused. Not only did she not want to stay in the same house as some strange man, but she didn’t want to invade his privacy. This was his home now and it wasn’t her place to intrude. Walking over to the front door she knocked loudly, waiting for someone to answer. After a couple of minutes she knocked again and the door was flung open. Jennifer tried her best not to gape, but she was not prepared for what she saw.

  Standing in front of her was the most beautiful man she’d seen since the day she met Carl. His short blond hair was darkened by the water dripping from it and his skin was a rich bronze from spending hours in the sunlight. Jennifer watched a drop of water drip from his hair and slid along his square jaw, his thick neck, and down the contours of his bare chest before getting absorbed by the towel around his waist. Jennifer’s eyes snapped up, knowing that she had been staring speechlessly for far too long. Her eyes met his blue amused ones and he just watched her admire his body silently.

  “Sorry, I-I’m Jennifer. Jones. My husband owns the land.” She stammered lamely. Jennifer closed her eyes and shook her head, her words sounding incredibly stupid even to her own ears. Chris raised his eyebrows in surprise. This was the housewife? She was stunning. Her hazel eyes were sharp and held the most incredible mixture of browns and greens he had ever seen. His eyes raked down her amazing body in shock. She was petite but he could tell she was incredibly fit and toned. Her long black hair fell straight to the middle of her back and her naturally olive skin tone seemed to glow in the sunlight. Chris cleared his throat and stood a little straighter.

  “Chris Harper. I’m the new ranch hand your husband hired.” He said, mentally stressing the word “husband” and holding out his hand to shake hers. Jennifer took his hand and shook it, trying to be as professional as she could after just ogling her new employee.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Chris. I’m just going to have a look around the property and get familiar with it. I’d love if you’d show me the stables a bit later when you’re able to.” Jennifer said, trying to stop her eyes from taking in his beautiful physic again but was unsuccessful. She felt instantly aroused and had to clear her throat. She tried to push the inappropriate thoughts from her mind and turned away. He’s your employee! And probably about twenty years younger than you. She chastised herself

  “Sure, I can meet you outside in a couple of minutes. Let me just get dressed real quick.” C
hris said, watching her reaction to his words carefully. He saw her visibly stiffen and was rewarded with her gorgeous eyes looking him up and down again before quickly glancing away.

  “That would be great, thank you.” She said briskly. Chris suppressed a smile and closed the door. His blood felt hot and he was certain that she wanted him as badly as he wanted her. He needed to be careful though, seducing his boss’s wife was more than unwise. But he’d set his sights on her the second he opened the door and saw the beauty, and he wasn’t sure he could stop himself from taking the opportunity if it ever arose.

  ***

  “Are you very familiar with horses?” Chris asked, walking beside Jennifer as they made their way to the stables. Jennifer shook her head and gasped as the creatures came into view.

  “No, I know very little about them besides what I’ve read. I love horses, always have, but I’ve never lived somewhere where I could have one.” She explained. Chris nodded, unsurprised. That’s why they hired me, after all. He thought. The conversation was strained between them, but she was genuinely polite and respectful which he admired. She may be a wealthy housewife whose husband just bought her a bunch of horses which she knew nothing about, but at least she wasn’t an unpleasant bitch he was going to have to deal with. He watched Jennifer run toward the first stall where a mare was eating.

  “She’s beautiful!” Jennifer exclaimed. Chris smiled as she began to stroke the horse. Her smile was beautiful and lit up her face. He took a deep breath and shifted his weight to distract himself. She was genuinely eager and seemed to appreciate the animals. He watched her croon over the mare, looking in her big black eyes and stroking her mane.

  “Yeah, she’s one of the breeders. She’s very mellow.” Chris said, stroking the other side of the mare’s neck. Jennifer smiled at him and he sucked in a breath. She looked at least ten years younger than she probably was when she smiled and it lit up her eyes. Oh he wanted her badly.

  “She’s wonderful. How much experience do you have with horses?” She asked. Chris shrugged and walked over to the next stall where another mare was also busily eating.

  “All my life, I guess. My parents owned horses and I grew up on a ranch. It’s the only thing I really know how or want to do.” Chris said. He waited for her reaction, concerned this was about to become a conversation about his qualifications or ability to care for the property.

  “That’s good, I’m glad my husband hired someone with experience and love for the work. It’s important you love what you do.” She said. Chris tried to mask his shocked expression but he knew he wasn’t successful so he just looked away. That was probably the best compliment he’d ever received from an employer.

  “Do you love what you do?” He asked, looking back at her. Jennifer glanced up at him and smiled softly.

  “I do. It’s hard, and it requires a lot of patience but if I wasn’t painting or helping my kids I don’t know what I would be doing.” She said, all of her anger and frustration with Carl leaving her. Being here was very peaceful and, she looked around at the picturesque landscape, she could paint some beautiful landscapes here. Chris cleared his throat and gestured toward the mare.

  “She’s also a breeder. I like to turn out all the other horses at once but turn them out separately when they’re in heat so that we don’t get any unplanned colts. I’ll bring the other stallions back in here soon and turn them out about midafternoon.” Chris explained. Jennifer nodded, understanding his logic.

  “That makes sense, it must make it easier to care for them. Do the other females get aggressive when these two are in heat?” Jennifer asked. Chris chuckled and shook his head.

  “These are the only two we have because they can get aggressive. They’re hard enough to handle.” He joked. She laughed and looked into the mare’s big eyes.

  “They seem pretty sweet.” She said, stroking the horse’s nose.

  “Do you want to ride her?” He asked. Jennifer’s face lit up and she nodded enthusiastically.

  “That would be amazing.” She said. Chris opened the stall and began to prepare the mare for riding. He took the saddle off of where it was hanging on the wall and put it on her back. Jennifer watched excitedly as he put the bridle in her mouth and laced everything up. When he was done, he held out his hand to her and helped her into the saddle. Jennifer swung up easily, holding onto the saddle for support while Chris handed her the reins. He gave her some quick instructions of basic directions, how to stop, and how to get her moving again. Jennifer listened intently and nodded along, feeling confident that she could do this. Chris stepped back and Jennifer lightly kicked to prompt the horse forward. It was a strange sensation to sit on the back of an animal while it moved. She could feel the flanks of the horse move beneath her and it was exhilarating. She was going to have to call Brenda and get her to get down here. Her eldest daughter shared her love for horses and would go crazy for it. Jennifer smiled and directed the mare back to the stall so Chris could help her off. He reached up and wrapped his hands around her waist to lower her from the horse. His hands felt like they were burning her and her eyes flicked to his lips. They were parted slightly and his breathing was heavy making his lips seem all that more enticing. She looked up into his eyes and saw the same desire lurking there for her that she felt for him. But it wasn’t right, she couldn’t do that to Carl. Even though he did it to you all those years ago, a little voice in the back of her mind said. She closed her eyes and pushed the little voice away. It didn’t matter what he did, they worked through it and he’s been faithful the last twenty years; he didn’t deserve that. Jennifer looked away and Chris released his hold on her, recognizing the moment had passed.

  “I think I’m just going to take a walk around, get to see the rest of the land a little bit. I’ll let you get back to your work, thank you for showing me the horses.” She said, taking a step back from him. Chris nodded and watched her leave. Jennifer climbed over the hills and pulled out her phone when she was a ways away from the house and the stables.

  “Hey mom, what’s up?” Brenda asked, picking up after only one ring. Jennifer smiled at the sound of her daughter’s voice. Brenda was her first and only daughter and while she loved her sons, there was nothing like having a daughter to share interests with.

  “Bre, what are you doing this weekend?” Jennifer asked. There was a contemplative silence on the other end while Bre shuffled through somethings.

  “Umm… it looks like not a whole lot. I just have a presentation on Monday that I have to prepare for but other than that I’m free.” She said. Jennifer could barely contain her excitement and just avoided squealing.

  “Great! Your dad bought a ranch and while I’m still pissed about it, it is a gorgeous place and you should come see it. There’s horses…” Jennifer taunted. Brenda sucked in a breath on the other line and Jennifer knew she had her.

  “Really? Where is it, I’ll come over Saturday morning.” She said. Jennifer gave her the address and some directions.

  “I’m staying at a hotel in the town a few miles away, so meet me there and we can share a room Saturday night. I’m booked for the next four nights so we can just check out together on Sunday.” Jennifer said. Brenda agreed and they hung up so that she could get back to work. Jennifer looked around, the gentle breeze on her face. She closed her eyes and felt a peacefulness wash over her. It seemed that everything might work out after all.

  ***

  Jennifer walked back to the house when the sun started to make its decent and the sky started to change from a bright blue to a rich cornflower. Just as she was approaching the house her phone started to ring and she looked at the caller ID to see that it was Carl. With a smile on her face she shook her head and answered. He just couldn’t wait for a few days, could he?

  “Hi Carl.” She answered joyfully.

  “So you ARE enjoying yourself!” Carl accused. Jennifer laughed and ran a hand through her long hair.

  “Maybe. This place is amazing and Chris really
knows what he’s doing. I hate to say it, but you did good.” She told him. Carl laughed on the other end and made a victorious whooping sound.

  “I’m so glad you think so, dear! I knew you’d come around.” He said. Jennifer smiled wider and nodded her head.

  “Yes, but you sure are cutting it close. I said six days, you gave me six hours.” Jennifer teased. Carl chuckled on the other line.

  “I know, I know. I was actually calling because I had more good news! Since we have two breeding mares and we really only need one I sold one in exchange for a racing stallion. Isn’t that great? We have a race horse!” He said enthusiastically. Jennifer stopped breathing and her heart pounded heavy in her chest. One of the breeding mares? She glanced over her shoulder in the direction of the stables and her stomach dropped. That meant he just sold one of the lovely horses she got to know today. She only had two mares, she didn’t want another stallion. Tears prickled the corners of her eyes and she took a deep breath. Here he was making decisions without her again.

  “Honey?” He asked timidly. Jennifer felt something inside her snap and her rage with him came back full force.

  “Did it ever occur to you that I might not want that?” She hissed. The other line was silent for a moment and she was sure Carl was floundering. No, he didn’t consider that because he never considered what she wanted above his wants. It was always all about him. He said he bought this place for her—that was laughable. He bought this place for him so he could raise race horses to gamble. She felt like an idiot for believing he did this for her—for them.

  “W-what do you mean?” He asked. Jennifer rolled her eyes and shook her head vehemently.

  “We have only two mares, Carl. You could have traded any of the ten stallions but no, you trade one of the only two mares. What’s worse is that you did it yet again without talking to me. If this ranch is for us then include me in the decision processes!” She shouted, pacing back and forth in front of the house. She looked up and saw one of the curtains move and a shadow walk away from the window. Something burned within her and she no longer cared what was right. She was sick of being treated like she didn’t count.