Roping the Rancher (Harlequin American Romance)

by Benson, Julie

  Right. Even Meryl Streep couldn’t pull off that performance.

  Jess glanced between her father and Stacy. A knowing grin spread across the teenager’s face. “I guess I interrupted something.”

  “No, I just got home,” Colt muttered as he shifted his stance like a kid caught in a lie.

  “I was asleep on the couch. I woke up when the front door closed. I’m a light sleeper. Then I wanted to talk to your dad about what happened at the police station, so we were sitting here talking.”

  So much for playing it cool. Shut up, Stacy. You’re rambling and making the situation worse.

  “I’d have to be blind to believe that bunch of BS.”

  Stacy cringed and refused to meet Jess’s gaze.

  Great acting job.

  “What was or wasn’t going on here is none of your business.” When Jess opened her mouth to say something else, Colt shook his head. “Don’t push me. My patience is wearing thin.”

  “I can’t believe this, Dad. After the lecture on dating you gave me the other day? I guess this is one of those ‘Do as I say, not as I do’ moments.” Then she walked over to her father, kissed him on the cheek and darted out of the room, her dog trotting behind her.

  “I didn’t think there was anything more embarrassing than my parents catching me making out with my first girlfriend. I was wrong.”

  “I can’t believe—” Stacy paused, wanting desperately to fan her heated face. I can’t believe we acted like a couple of horny teenagers. “You’re right about that.”

  He shoved his hands in his jean’s pocket and shuffled his feet. She stood, not knowing quite what to do now. Finally she said, “I’ll wake Ryan so we can go home.”

  “Let him sleep. Not point in closing this door now that the horse has gotten out of the barn. You can either sleep here on the couch, or I can bring Ryan home when he wakes up.”

  This time she listened to her common sense. “Dropping him off tomorrow would be great.”

  * * *

  AS STACY PARKED by the Healing Horses barn, she told herself she could do this. She could face her fear of horses. Then she almost laughed. Today facing Colt seemed scarier than facing a horse.

  She’d kissed him last night. Not he kissed her. Well, not at first anyway. No, she’d been the aggressor.

  How would she face him? Pretend last night never happened.

  Like you pretended nothing happened when Jess caught you two making out? Because that worked so well.

  When she walked into the barn, instead of finding Colt, she discovered Jess. Please don’t let her bring up the other night. “Where’s your dad? He agreed to train me to be a sidewalker so I can help with Ryan’s therapy. I don’t want him thinking I’m late.”

  “Yeah, that’s one of his pet peeves.” Jess crossed her arms over her chest, and Stacy braced herself and resisted the urge to squirm. This was not good. “What are your intentions with my dad?”

  She’d known whatever Jess had been going to say would be something she didn’t want to hear, but never in her wildest nightmares had Stacy’s thoughts gone to “What are your intentions?”

  Beam me up, Scottie. Where was a good Chief Engineer with a transporter when a girl needed one?

  Stacy’s tongue stuck to the roof of her dry mouth and her mind raced to come up with a plausible answer. Intentions? As in for the future? Damned if she knew. While she might not know that, she’d sure known what her objective had been last night. She wanted to get hot and heavy with Colt.

  She couldn’t exactly tell his daughter that.

  Honesty. They say it’s the best policy. She could tell Jess the truth about the future at least. “I’m not sure what’s going on between your father and me. We’re so different, but when you and Ryan were in the game room last night we talked. I enjoyed his company. He’s a nice guy, but we barely know each other.”

  “That’s not what it looked like in the living room.”

  “It’s not—”

  “I’m not stupid. You two were getting pretty cozy.”

  Anyone over the age of five could’ve figured that out. “I won’t lie to you. We were kissing, but that was it.”

  Only because you showed up.

  “He hasn’t dated anyone since my mom died almost three years ago.”

  “Her death had to be hard on you both.”

  “You have no idea. You can’t tell him I told you, but I think you need to know. My mom didn’t like it when Dad was in the military. She said she was sick of moving all the time. So he left the Air Force, joined the National Guard Reserves and we moved back here where he grew up.”

  “But he went to Afghanistan recently, didn’t he?”

  Jess said he’d been in the National Guard Reserves until a year ago. “Him joining the Reserves was their compromise, but Mom wasn’t happy with that, either, or with living here. Then one day she left me a note. She said she was in love with someone else. She said she was sorry to leave me, but she had to take this chance to be happy. She hurt Dad so bad. He tried not to let me see, but I could tell. He was different. I don’t know how to explain it.”

  Colt’s wife had an affair and ran off with her lover?

  Stacy’s heart cracked for both the teenager and the man. The woman had left not only her husband—from what she’d seen at Halligan’s, a wonderful, caring man—but her child, as well? A daughter who needed her, who loved her, who counted on her mother to be there for her. Didn’t she have any idea of the pain and trauma that caused?

  Jess stood there, her arms crossed over her chest, her brown eyes hard as she fought to hold back her tears.

  I thought my mother was bad, but she at least stuck around. The woman was a fool and didn’t deserve Jess and Colt. She’d been given two precious gifts, and she’d thrown them away with the wrapping paper.

  “It wasn’t your fault she left.”

  “I know that.” Tears sparkled in Jess’s eyes. She bit her lower lip. “The last thing I ever said to her was what a terrible mother she was and that I hated her. Then she died in a car accident.”

  Jess would never have the chance to take back those angry words. She’d never be able to repair her relationship with her mother, or even find closure. Such a huge burden for such a young woman.

  The crack in Stacy’s heart widened as Jess’s pain reached out to her. She wrapped her arms around the teen, but Jess stiffened and pulled away. “I know you feel guilty about what you said to your mother, but I’m sure she knew it was the anger talking—anger you had every right to feel, by the way—but you’ve got to let it go.”

  “But how?” Tears now rolled down Jess’s pale cheek.

  Damn Jess’s mother. How could she do this to her child? How could she choose a lover over this wonderful young woman? “I wish I could tell you. All I can say is that my mother and I haven’t always gotten along, but she knows I love her. I’m sure your mom knew that, too. Focus on the good memories you have of her, of the special times you had together.” Please, Lord, let there be some good ones this dear girl can hold on to. “Your mom wouldn’t want you to be feeling guilty. You’ve got to forgive yourself for what you said. Don’t let what happened between you rule the rest of your life.”

  Like my mother’s ruling mine.

  No. Don’t think about that. Focus on Jess.

  Jess swiped her sleeve over her eyes. “Because of what happened with my mom, I’m a little protective of my dad. That’s why I asked about what’s going on between the two of you. I don’t want him getting hurt again.”

  Which was exactly what Stacy would do if she and Colt got involved. There was no avoiding it since she was only here for a few weeks. On top of that, she couldn’t handle a romantic relationship. Hers invariably ended badly, and she was barely staying sane dealing with her current responsibili
ties. Even if they agreed up front to keep things casual and fun, she wouldn’t risk them getting attached—either her to them or them to her. She refused to leave him and Jess like his wife had.

  “You’re a pretty great young lady. Your dad’s lucky to have you.”

  “Yes, he is, and if you hurt him, you’ll answer to me. Got it?”

  “Message received. I have no intention of hurting your dad. We come from such different worlds. All I can ever see between us is friendship.”

  Chapter Seven

  Colt walked into the barn and heard the tail end of his daughter’s conversation with Stacy. The last thing I ever said to her was what a terrible mother she was and that I hated her. Then she died in a car accident.

  His daughter’s words sliced through him. He’d never known about Jess’s last conversation with her mother. She’d been carrying so much guilt, and he’d been clueless. He almost charged forward, but then Stacy’s words stopped him. It wasn’t your fault she left. He could tell Jess all day long not to feel guilty, but she needed to hear that from someone else.

  As he listened to Stacy talk to Jess he realized for someone who lived in Hollywood where honesty and being real could be deadly to a career, Stacy did a damn fine job dealing with Jess. Unless this was an Oscar-worthy performance, Stacy truly cared about his daughter.

  He and his daughter had both kept secrets. The day before Lynn died she’d called him, too. Things weren’t going so well with her lover now that they were playing house. She thought she’d made a mistake. Could she come home?

  His first reaction had been to tell her hell, no, he wouldn’t take her back, but then he thought about Jess, and he changed his mind. Instead he told Lynn he’d think about what she said and call her in a couple of days, but he never got the chance.

  He’d often wondered if he’d told her she could come home would she still be alive. Even if their relationship hadn’t worked out, Jess would have her mother. His fear of getting hurt again, of looking like a fool robbed his daughter of that opportunity.

  And now she was protecting him.

  All I can ever see between us is friendship.

  His male pride stung knowing that Stacy could so easily dump him into friends-only status, but that was for the best. Considering what Lynn leaving had done to Jess, he wasn’t sure he ever wanted to bring another woman into her life. Maybe once she went off to college he could find someone to share some time with, but not now. He wouldn’t risk Jess getting attached and getting hurt if his relationship fell apart.

  If Jess wasn’t attached to Stacy before today, she probably was now.

  He shut the barn door hard enough to alert Jess and Stacy to his presence. “You ready to get started on your training?”

  “Absolutely.” Stacy posed and pointed to her boots. “See, I remembered to get boots.”

  Gazing at her standing there in jeans, a simple white blouse and cowboy boots—not fancy ones with lots of color and handwork like he’d expect her to wear, but simple sturdy ones—got his motor running. She looked so blasted cute and proud of herself. Standing there before him she looked so right here, her bright smile lighting up the barn.

  Keeping his mind on business was so much easier when she wore fancy rhinestone jeans, an expensive silk blouse and those skinny little heels. Then it was easy to remember she belonged in California. Now, not so much.

  He smiled at the memory of the strappy heels she’d worn. Those weren’t so bad. They had a way of making her hips sway in a way that mesmerized a man. He swallowed hard.

  “It’s good to know you can follow directions.”

  Her bright smile faded, and damned if he didn’t feel as if he’d stolen a kid’s Halloween candy.

  “I think she looks great,” Jess said. Then her cell phone rang. When his daughter stepped away to answer the call, he and Stacy stared at each other for a minute, before he said, “You ready to get started?”

  “No, but let’s get going anyway.”

  “Ryan’s on the phone,” Jess said when she returned. “He and I talked about the volunteer work I do at Aunt Avery’s shelter, and he wants to go with me for my shift today. Is that okay with you, Stacy?”

  “It’s fine with me if your dad doesn’t mind waiting to start my training until I get Ryan and drop him off.”

  “You don’t need to take him to the shelter. My aunt’s picking me up, and we’ll just swing by and get him.”

  After Jess went outside to wait for her aunt, Colt said, “We’ll work with Babe. She’s a sweet little Haflinger cross pony we use with young riders.”

  “I’m not sure I can do this. I couldn’t sleep last night because of the nightmares.”

  “I think it was Mark Twain who said, ‘Courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the mastery of it.’ We’ll start slow.” He led her down the row of stalls. “Weird noises, or loud, excited voices can make the horses nervous. Keep your movements slow and deliberate.”

  They stopped at a stall about halfway down a long hall. “Hey, Babe. Come here and show Stacy what a sweet girl you are.”

  The pony trotted over to the bars. He rubbed the golden animal’s head. “There isn’t a horse that doesn’t like having its head caressed. Come here and give it a try.”

  Stacy shook her head, her eyes wide, her chest rising and falling with her rapid breathing. He stepped away from the horse and moved closer to Stacy. “Relax. Breathe with me.”

  His gaze locked with hers as he breathed deeply and evenly, until she started calming down. “She’s still in the stall. The bars on the door and windows are sturdy, and I’m here. Nothing is going to happen.”

  “You promise?”

  The words hung between them. He couldn’t do anything but nod. Hell, he could barely breathe.

  She turned away from him and inched forward toward the stall. He scooted closer, needing to offer support. Her delicate fragrance teased his senses. She always smelled like the bouquet of spring flowers his mom used to put in a recycled can vase he made her in first grade art class. He leaned closer and whispered in her ear. “Talk to her.”

  “Hi.” She reached out, her hand shaking. The horse whinnied, and she jumped back, bumping into him. His arms wrapped around her waist to steady her. Physical awareness slammed into him, strong and potent.

  He released her as if he’d grabbed a barbed wire fence. Get yourself under control. You’re not a horny teenager.

  No, just horny.

  Abstinence was going to kill him.

  Lord, don’t think about that.

  What was he doing? Oh, yeah, getting her comfortable with the pony. “Babe was just saying hello. See how her ears are forward, but relaxed?”

  “If you say so.”

  “That just means she’s interested in what’s in front of her. You’re someone new and she’s curious. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

  At least for her. Him, he wasn’t so sure of. His body was running hotter than a thoroughbred after a mile run. “Talk to her like you would a friend.”

  She inched forward, a look on her face as though she was heading to the dentist for a root canal, but damn, the woman had guts. For him that was far more intoxicating than her beauty. Looks faded. Character lasted.

  “Hi, Babe. I’m Stacy. Go easy on me. I’m a little nervous.” This time when she reached out, she rubbed Babe’s forehead. The animal leaned into her, and she relaxed.

  “See, she won’t bite your arm off.”

  “That’s good to know.”

  “If you’re good to a horse, he’ll be your friend for life. They’re pretty easy to please.”

  Just like me.

  He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a carrot. “Give her this.”

  Stacy stared over her shoulder at him. “I don’t know. You sure she won’t bite?�
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  Babe wouldn’t, but he wasn’t so sure about him. The urge to nibble on that spot on her graceful neck where her pulse throbbed as fast as hummingbird wings nearly overwhelmed him.

  Instead, he placed the vegetable in her hand and then covered her hand with his. He stood beside her as they held the treat out to Babe, who snatched up the carrot.

  “If you’re anxious about working with a horse, it never hurts to bring a treat.”

  “I’ll stop at the grocery store on my way home.”

  He let go of her hand, and stepped away. Friends. Remember? That’s what she wanted to be. That’s where he needed her to stay—safely in the friendship zone. He cleared his throat and returned to why she’d come today—her training. “Because of your issues, we won’t have you do anything to get the horse ready for the lessons. I’ll take care of that. I want you to feel comfortable around the animals, but your job during therapy will be to help Ryan with his balance and reinforce instructions. You’ll walk beside Ryan. If you sense he’s struggling with his balance, you place a hand on his ankle or his belt until he’s steadier.”

  Before he could say anything further, her phone rang. She grabbed her cell out of her back pocket. “I should check and make sure it’s not Ryan.”

  Colt nodded. “We’ll take a short break.”

  Maybe then he could cool off. He almost laughed. Cool off? Only if he took a second cold shower.

  * * *

  STACY’S HEART SANK when she glanced at her phone after Colt walked away. Her mother. She considered letting the call go to voice mail, but Andrea would keep calling until she answered. Better to deal with whatever molehill her mother had turned into Mount Everest as quickly as possible. “Mom, this isn’t a good time. Can I call you back later tonight?”

  “This can’t wait.” Her mother’s high-pitched, frantic voice jumped across the phone line. Stacy closed her eyes and sighed. Nothing ever could with Andrea.