Wrangling Wes

by Thomas, Jacquelin

  Chapter 6

  Seated at the desk in her hotel suite, Lydia pulled her attention away from the laptop screen long enough to answer the telephone. “Hello.”

  “Hey, this is Maggie.”

  A smile spread across her face. “It’s so nice to hear from you, Maggie. What are you up to?”

  “Since you’re new in town, I was thinking that I should take you to lunch. Are you free to join me this afternoon? There’s a place in town called Las Margaritas, and it serves the best Mexican cuisine in the state of Montana. I remembered that you said it was a favorite of yours.”

  “My schedule’s open,” Lydia responded. Maggie had great timing. Wesley was working and she didn’t relish eating alone.

  “Good. Why don’t we meet downstairs around noon?”

  “I’ll see you then,” she told Maggie.

  Lydia returned her attention to the project at hand: responding to media requests for interviews and appearances. Samara did not enjoy dealing with that aspect of her celebrity, so she expected Lydia to take care of it.

  She put away her laptop shortly before she had to meet Maggie.

  Lydia freshened up and then headed down to the lobby.

  Maggie was dressed in a pair of skinny jeans, cowboy boots and a rhinestone-studded tunic.

  “Don’t you look charming?” she told Lydia. “I love that dress.”

  “Thanks,” she responded. At the last minute, Lydia had decided to change into a black linen dress. She chose a pair of silver sandals to match her necklace and bangle bracelets.

  The restaurant was two blocks away, so they walked from the hotel.

  “Maggie, it was really sweet of you to invite me for lunch,” Lydia stated once they were seated.

  “I’m glad you accepted,” Maggie responded with a smile. “I hate eating alone. I came to town to do some shopping, and when I was driving past this hotel, I thought about you.”

  Lydia picked up the menu.

  “How are you enjoying our quaint little town?” Maggie asked after ordering two glasses of wine.

  “I actually love it,” Lydia responded. “I may do some sightseeing later this afternoon if I have time.”

  “If you have time?”

  “I have some work to do,” she explained.

  Maggie looked puzzled. “I thought you were on vacation.”

  “It’s more of a working vacation.”

  “Oh, that’s no fun,” Maggie uttered.

  Lydia nodded in agreement.

  Maggie leaned forward and said, “I have to tell you...you sure set tongues wagging at the auction. That was some bid for Granger’s most eligible bachelor.”

  “It was all for charity,” Lydia said.

  “Uh-huh...” Maggie uttered before picking up her menu. “You know...I like you, Lydia. You have gumption. I have a feeling you and I are going to become great friends.”

  Lydia smiled in response. “I think so, too.”

  “So why did you really come to Granger?” Maggie asked. “Does it have something to do with Wes?”

  “No,” Lydia responded quickly. “Not really.”

  “C’mon, sugar, you can tell me,” Maggie said with a grin.

  Lydia decided to be honest. “I came here to do some research for the person I work for, Maggie. She’s a high-profile actress, and she has an upcoming role in a Western.”

  “How exciting,” Maggie exclaimed. “Is it someone I would know?”

  “I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you her identity,” Lydia responded. “Not right now anyway.”

  “Well, poo...” Maggie huffed, sparking laughter from Lydia.

  “Wesley is a good choice if you’re looking to research a role. I can tell you that he’s one of the best cowboys here in Granger. He really knows his stuff.”

  Lydia took a long sip from her glass of wine. “He came highly recommended.”

  “I’m sure he did.”

  She seized this opportunity to deflect the conversation. “Maggie, where are you from? I’m detecting a southern accent.”

  “I’m from Georgia. My husband, Dane, and I met when he was traveling with a rodeo. That man swept me right off my feet from the moment he jumped down off his horse and removed his hat. Girl, I was in love. Not that puppy-dog mess. I’m talking big-dog love.”

  Lydia chuckled.

  “We got married three months later.”

  “Your husband’s family owns the second-largest ranch in Granger, right?” Lydia asked.

  Maggie nodded. “It’s been in Dane’s family for years. It hasn’t been around quite as long as the BWB Ranch, but close.” She shifted in her chair. “You obviously come from a privileged lifestyle. Tell me about yourself.”

  “There’s really nothing to tell,” Lydia stated. “I’m really not that interesting.”

  Maggie took a sip of her wine. “Humble as pie, I see.”

  Their food arrived.

  Lydia felt as if she’d dodged a bullet just then. Thankfully Maggie didn’t push for more information on her background while they ate. Her question had caught Lydia off guard, but it was a good thing. She had been truthful with Maggie. There really wasn’t much to her life.

  Lydia never discussed her childhood with any of her associates—only a few people in her inner circle knew the whole story. Many would be surprised to find that she grew up in a very poor household. Her father abandoned Lydia and her mother when she was just two years old. After that, she had only seen him maybe four or five times since then.

  Lydia’s life changed once she landed the job with Samara. This position afforded her entrance into the entertainment industry, thus opening the door wide enough to get her foot inside. Her ultimate goal was starting her own business in entertainment management.

  Her job was demanding and Samara wore on her nerves at times, but her checks never bounced. Lydia had a strong work ethic, and she knew that jobs did not come easy. Besides, there were some perks to working with Samara. She never would’ve met Wesley if it had not been for the woman.

  Lydia pushed away all thoughts of her leaving Granger and Wesley behind. She decided to enjoy every minute she had with him instead, however fleeting.

  * * *

  “I can’t believe you didn’t want to share your popcorn,” Wesley said as they left the movie theater later that evening.

  “You ate all of yours,” Lydia countered with a short chuckle. “At the beginning of the movie. I wasn’t going to let you eat mine.”

  “I see how you are.”

  “C’mon...don’t be like that.”

  “I should be saying that to you,” Wesley teased as he took her by the hand.

  Lydia glanced upward at the moonlit sky. “It’s a really beautiful night.”

  He agreed.

  “This was a good night to walk to the theater,” she stated. “If I lived in a town this size, I would walk everywhere.”

  Wesley wrapped his arm around her midriff. “Do you think that you could ever survive in a town like Granger?”

  Lydia nodded. “I can live just about anywhere. I’m able to adapt to my surroundings.”

  “I see,” he murmured.

  “In a good way,” she interjected.

  When they arrived at the hotel, Lydia turned to him. “Would you like to come up?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  They walked past the front desk.

  “Did you see the way the desk clerk looked at us?” she asked in a low voice.

  Wesley laughed. “She goes to our church. I believe I’ve just compromised your virtue.”

  Lydia met his gaze straight on. “Then I suppose you’re going to have to marry me.”

  They laughed as they waited for the elevator.

&
nbsp; Upstairs in her suite, Wesley pulled her into his arms without preamble. First he kissed her forehead, then her eyes, and finally, he kissed her on the lips.

  Lydia’s lips were warm and sweet on his, causing his pleasure to radiate outward.

  Wesley kissed her hungrily, as if each kiss was the last.

  She locked herself into his embrace as he explored the hollows of her back. “I can’t put into words just how much I want you,” he whispered.

  “I want you, too,” she murmured. “But as much as I want to make love with you...Wes, we can’t.”

  He pulled away from her slowly to look Lydia in the face. Wesley was fairly sure that he had not heard her correctly. “Why can’t we?”

  She took him by the hand and led him over to the sofa. “Wes, I have a rule when it comes to making love.”

  “Which is what?” Wesley inquired. He wasn’t sure he really wanted to know. Women and their rules.

  “I have always made it a habit not to rush into bed with anyone. I have to see where the relationship is going before I even consider intimacy. I hope that you can respect that.”

  “I can,” he told her. “It’s not what I expected.”

  “You aren’t too disappointed, are you?”

  Deep down, Wesley did not like it, but he had no choice except to respect her decision. “I guess I’ll take a cold shower to go.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  He smiled at her. “Don’t apologize. It’s fine.”

  “All I can say is that I’m worth waiting for, Wes.”

  “I certainly can’t argue with that,” he responded as he headed to the door.

  She hugged him. “Thanks for understanding.”

  “It’s good I have a thirty-minute ride to the ranch. Maybe by then my ardor will have cooled down.”

  Lydia held back a smile. She did not admit it to Wesley, but she was experiencing the same struggle. Her body was warm with her desire for him, but Lydia was determined to hold true to her word.

  * * *

  The next morning, Lydia was up bright and early.

  She showered and dressed in a pair of designer jeans and a crisp linen blouse in a tangerine color. A pair of jeweled sandals matched the color of her top.

  She ran her fingers through her curls, fluffing them.

  Lydia decided to do something for herself instead of staying cooped up in her room with the laptop. Before he left her room last night, Wesley mentioned that he had to travel to Helena with his brother and would be gone until tomorrow, so she was on her own.

  She missed him, which came as a bit of a surprise although it shouldn’t, Lydia reasoned. Her skin still tingled where Wesley had touched her. When she closed her eyes, she could feel his kisses as they burned a searing path to the pit of her stomach, igniting sparks of ecstasy. No man had ever had such a long-lasting effect on her.

  Lydia reluctantly returned her attention to her work. She was not about to spend the rest of her day in this hotel suite. She wanted to see more of Granger.

  Two hours later, Lydia strolled out of the hotel and climbed inside a rented automobile.

  The crystal blue waters of the Fork River beckoned to Lydia as she was driving by, prompting her to park the car.

  She resisted the urge to strip down to her underwear in a secluded area and take a swim beneath the big, aquamarine Montana sky. Lydia had happened upon this area nestled near what residents considered a popular fishing stream. She snapped a few pictures before returning to the rental car.

  Lydia drove farther down the road where people longing for the daring side of life were kayaking, rafting or canoeing. She watched from the banks for a while.

  Lydia reveled in the beauty of her surroundings.

  She never considered living anywhere else outside Los Angeles, but now being in such a beautiful and tranquil place as Granger... I could actually live here, she silently acknowledged.

  Chapter 7

  The pale purple sky glowed on the eastern horizon and the stars still sparkled, although they were fading fast as night transformed to early dawn. Wesley sat atop his horse, stroking the animal gently.

  “Today is a good day, Spartan,” he murmured. After two days in Helena, Wesley was thrilled to be back at home, listening to meadowlarks as they sang from the sagebrush. From the cattails along the stream, red-winged blackbirds were starting their morning chorus. Just over the ridge, a pack of coyotes commenced their plaintive howling.

  Beyond the road, Wesley observed a deer prancing about without a care in the world. It was a picturesque morning and one he suddenly had a desire to show Lydia. He knew instinctively that she would appreciate the beauty.

  One of the qualities that attracted him to Lydia was the freedom she exhibited. Wesley wondered what life must be like for her. He had never been the type of person who could just let go like that. Could she give up all that Los Angeles offered and live in a town like Granger?

  It was too soon for him to have such dangerous thoughts. He cautioned himself to avoid getting carried away where his feelings were concerned.

  Wesley forced himself to concentrate on his work. As much as he liked Lydia, he could not allow her to monopolize his thoughts. After all, he really did not know anything about her. She was not from Granger—a complete stranger, but one that he found intriguing.

  “C’mon, Spartan,” he said as he patted his horse. “Time for me to get back to work.”

  He caught up with Jameson. “Morning.”

  “I missed you at breakfast in the main house this morning.”

  “I got up and ate a bowl of cereal.”

  “Hey, did you hear about Grandpa’s date last night?” his brother asked.

  Wesley shook his head no. He had decided to have dinner at home alone last night after he and Jameson returned home from Helena.

  “Turns out that Patti Weir had plans to set him up with her grandmother all along.”

  He burst into laughter. “Are you serious?”

  Jameson nodded. “Yeah. Her grandmother was dressed and ready when Grandpa arrived.”

  “So what did Grandpa do?”

  “He said they went out and had a nice dinner. Grandpa said he had a good time.”

  Wesley climbed off his horse. “This may turn out to be quite interesting.”

  Jameson followed suit. “That’s what Grandpa said, as well. He didn’t seem to mind the bait and switch.”

  “Dad’s out here,” Wesley announced. His father was over near the fence talking with two of the men who worked the ranch.

  Wesley thought of his father as a strong self-starter whose vision for the family ranch had made them all very wealthy. His father knew ranching like the back of his own hand, and it was his life’s work. He was a man more comfortable in a pair of faded jeans and cowboy boots than a suit. Wesley thought himself quite the opposite.

  He was not afraid of the physical labor involved with ranching, but Wesley believed his strengths were more on the business side of things. He enjoyed purchasing land and smaller ranches. He had bought a property that was in shambles and renovated it into a working dude ranch. Wesley sold it for nearly three times what he paid for it.

  “Why don’t we go up to the office?” his father suggested when Wesley walked up. “There’s a pile of new orders on the desk.”

  “I’ll be there shortly,” he responded. “I want to check out the regrowth on the north pasture. If it looks good, the cattle can be taken there to graze tomorrow.”

  “Okay. See you soon.” Steven walked briskly toward his horse and climbed into the saddle.

  He was in great physical shape for being in his sixties, Wesley acknowledged. He watched his father ride off before heading down to the north pasture.

  Jameson had disappeared. No doubt he wa
s checking on the Galloway cattle grazing on the south pasture.

  I’ll see him back at the office.

  An image of Lydia formed in his mind, prompting a smile. Wesley wanted her so badly that his flesh seemed to burn for her body. It was as if she was his life source, and his soul hungered for her. He had never expected to feel such emotions where Lydia was concerned. Wesley had never been one willing to have a long-distance relationship, but he was not sure he could let her go so easily. He did not want her to go back to Los Angeles.

  * * *

  Memories of Wesley elicited a shiver of want in her. Lydia reminded herself that sex was not part of the equation—she was here to do a job. Still, Wesley was tall, gorgeous, with neatly cropped hair, brown eyes and a smile that seemed both sexy and charming at the same time.

  The telephone rang, interrupting her thoughts.

  Lydia dismissed the tantalizing images from her mind in favor of her reality—dealing with her boss. She answered her phone. “Hello.”

  “How are things going?”

  “Great,” Lydia responded. “Wesley has invited me to spend a day experiencing ranching from his perspective.”

  “That’s a good sign. You two must be getting really close.”

  “I think he’s just being nice.” She decided it was best to keep her growing relationship with Wesley a secret from Samara. Lydia did not want to upset the temperamental actress unnecessarily.

  Lydia picked up Wesley’s photograph. “He’s a nice guy.”

  Her words were met with cold silence.

  “Samara,” she prompted.

  “The reason I called is because I’m in desperate need of a full-body massage,” Samara blurted. “I need you to get me in to see Marlee today. After three, if possible. I want only Marlee to work on me. She’s the best.”

  Lydia released a long sigh as she hung up her phone. Samara wanted her to court Wesley and stay on top of her spa treatments, as well. She wasn’t about to let Lydia forget that she was nothing more than a lowly personal assistant to one of the top actresses in Hollywood.

  Pushing the temperamental actress could lead to her being replaced in a heartbeat. There were days when Lydia questioned her career choice, but she was using this experience with Samara to land a job in entertainment management.