by Francis Ray
“What?” Unfolding his arms, he quickly descended the steps. Raven had to back up to keep him from plowing into her. “You can’t be the one I’m expecting.”
Raven had heard it before. People tended to look at her face and quickly decide there was nothing but air in her head. She’d fought the battle repeatedly in her collegiate days and throughout her academic career. She’d fight again if needed. This was too important.
She needed an edge to put her on the fast track to tenure at St. John’s College. The goal of obtaining one had brought her to the Double D.
“I assure you, Mr. McBride, I am. I am very interested in—”
“Mrs. Grayson said the woman she was sending had experience,” he said, cutting her off once again.
Patience, Raven reminded herself. This is your chance. “I might be young, since I earned my Ph.D. at twenty-two, but I’ve been a professor at St. John’s with Ruth Grayson for the past year. Before I accepted the position there I was on several digs in America and Europe.”
“Doing grunt work no doubt,” he hurled. “I wanted someone capable of getting the job done.”
Raven’s blunt-tipped nails dug into the palms of her hands. Condescending men irritated the hell out of her. “My credentials speak for themselves. I don’t plan to stand here and argue with you. According to Mrs. Grayson, you were pleased to learn that someone of my experience was free and willing to come here. You wanted the authentication done quietly and secretly.”
Black eyes narrowed on her face. “That was then.”
Raven’s chin jutted. “Think what you will about me, but you’ve given your word that I could study and authenticate the find, and that’s exactly what I plan to do. If you don’t want me staying at your ranch as planned, that is your right. I’ll get a room in town and be back at eight in the morning to start. Good-bye.”
Spinning on her booted heels, Raven stalked back to her Jeep. With an irritated flick of her wrist, the motor ignited. Shifting the vehicle into gear, she spun around in the wide driveway, lamenting she wasn’t on dirt so the tires could spit dust in Duncan’s condescending face.
He’d just thrown a monkey wrench into her plans. She’d counted on staying at the ranch to conserve time and money. That was out of the question now, but she had no intention of leaving Elks Ridge. If the drawings were authentic, and they certainly looked that way from the sketch he’d sent to Ruth, it was important that they be preserved and studied.
The fly in the ointment was that she needed the owner’s permission to study them. The government jurisdiction didn’t extend to private property unless there were human remains.
Raven’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. She refused to think he might be a big enough jerk not to show her the cave. Ruth had spoken highly of him. Just goes to show that a man could fool even the most intelligent woman. That was one lesson Raven had learned the hard way and didn’t need a refresher course.
The Jeep had barely straightened before Duncan whirled to stalk back up the steps and into the house. He didn’t stop until he was in his office, the phone gripped in his calloused hand, dialing the home of Ruth Grayson. He had always trusted Mrs. Grayson’s judgment, but not this time.
He’d accidentally discovered the drawings a couple of months ago and wanted them authenticated, but not at the expense of disrupting the ranch’s routine. Last year vandals had destroyed another find in the area. His mother had called shortly after he’d returned to the ranch the evening he’d found the drawings and he’d mentioned it to her.
She called the next day and recommended Mrs. Grayson, a longtime friend of the family and the mother-in-law of his sister, Faith. Mrs. Grayson was a woman he respected and admired, so he called her. She in turn recommended a “renowned archeologist” who was on the faculty at St. John’s with her. At the time, he’d been busy with calving and hadn’t paid much attention to a name.
“Hello.”
“Mrs. Grayson, this is Duncan McBride.”
“Duncan, what a coincidence! I planned to call this morning and thank you for allowing Raven to authenticate the cave drawings you discovered. She has literally been counting the days for the semester to end so she could drive up to your place. So much so that she turned down a position to teach this summer and is doing this at her own expense.” Light laughter floated though the phone.
“I don’t have to tell you that the salary of a teacher at a small college isn’t much. Offering her a room at your ranch was a godsend. Then, too, I won’t have to worry about Raven being alone and unprotected, since she is with you.”
Duncan plopped into his chair behind his desk. Trapped. He couldn’t see how to ask for a replacement after Mrs. Grayson had painted him in such a good light. What reason could he give? Raven made him hot and horny?
Groaning, Duncan swiped his hand across his face.
“Duncan, are you all right?”
No, but he’d get there. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Forgive me for running on and not letting you speak,” Ruth apologized. “I’m almost as excited as Raven. It’s important that the history of The People be preserved, but you know that or you wouldn’t have contacted me.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“There I go again not letting you tell me why you called.”
Stuck, Duncan hesitated.
“Everything is all right, isn’t it?”
“Yes, ma’am. I just wanted to let you know that Raven arrived this morning.”
“Wonderful. She promised to call, but I guess she’s just excited. She told me her Jeep would make the trip, but I was still worried,” Ruth said. “Can you please ask her to come to the phone?”
”She’s busy,” Duncan said, wincing at another lie. He normally prided himself on his honesty.
“Of course. Just ask her to call me later when she gets a chance.”
“I will.” As soon as he found her. “Good-bye, Mrs. Grayson.”
“Good-bye, Duncan.”
Hanging up the phone, Duncan headed for the kitchen and grabbed the keys to his truck. Slamming the truck’s door, he spun off. Just as he’d suspected, Raven hadn’t been on the ranch five minutes and she’d managed to disrupt his routine. Instead of bringing in calves for branding, he was wasting precious time going after a woman he didn’t want on the Double D in the first place to talk her into coming back.
Trouble with a capital T.
Raven needed to clearly map out her plans, but first she needed to get something to eat. She thought better on a full stomach. There wasn’t much in the small town of Elks Ridge to choose from, so she pulled into the first restaurant she saw.
Grabbing her shoulder bag, she got out of the Jeep. The bell over the door of Duke’s Place jingled as she entered. The sign on the podium read: Please wait to be seated.
“Be with you in a minute,” called a dark-haired woman in a pink waitress uniform. In her hands were two plates with tall pancake stacks.
“Thank you,” Raven said, sliding the strap of the satchel bag back over her shoulder. She didn’t like changing bags, so she had one that was large enough to carry everything from a notebook to bottles of water.
Smiling, the woman approached. “Sorry about the wait. Nell is out sick today.” She grabbed a menu encased in plastic. “One?”
“Yes,” Raven replied, and followed the woman to a booth near the back of the restaurant that had no more than twelve tables. Sliding in, Raven heard the bell ring again.
“Oh my,” the woman sighed, thrusting the menu at Raven. She barely missed poking her in the eye. “I’ll be back.”
Sweeping her hand over her hair, the waitress took off at a fast pace. Raven shook her head. Knowing there must be a man involved, Raven opened the menu. Men weren’t high on her list; gaining tenure at St. John’s College was.
And her one big chance to do that was tied into authenticating the cave drawings on McBride’s ranch. If the pictographs were as old as she believed and she was the one to authenticate them
, it would up her value and prestige at the college.
At the end of three years, her department head would inform Raven whether she was on-track or he thought she should start looking for another job. The position she presently held was due to a teacher being fired. Raven had no intention of letting that happen to her. She had moved for the last time. When the day came for that meeting, she wanted no doubt that she would remain.
The interim president had let it be known in more than one faculty meeting that he wanted a staff that brought recognition to the school. If Raven succeeded in her quest, she’d be secure at last and have a place where she was wanted, a position that couldn’t be taken away from her.
Most of her life she’d yearned to achieve permanence and failed. Finally, it was within her grasp, and that was more important than any man. An annoying voice whispered that if that man was Duncan she might change her mind.
“Not bloody likely,” she muttered, her hands tightening on the elongated menu.
“Mind if I sit down?”
The low, rumbling voice washed over her like a hot summer breeze. Her head snapped up, well aware that she’d see Duncan. To her annoyance, he was even more handsome than the first time she’d seen him. The unsmiling face added to the appeal rather than detracted. It was a direct challenge to a woman to put a huge grin on his handsome face.
Standing next to him, the waitress clutched the menu to her chest, a mixture of pique and fascination on her thin face as her gaze bounced from Duncan to Raven. Another woman at a table across from them wore the same rapt expression.
They can have him.
“We have nothing to talk about until in the morning.” Raven lifted the menu higher to blot Duncan out. To her increased annoyance, she heard him slide into the booth across from her. He probably wanted to tell her not to bother coming the next day. His expression certainly didn’t bode well for her.
“I talked with Mrs. Grayson. She was worried about you.”
The menu came down. A huge mistake. Duncan stared across the table at her with the most intense eyes she’d ever seen. It was almost as if he were trying to see her thoughts. She felt a faint stirring of response in her body and ignored it.
Men were off her list, had been for years, and especially this one. She had a hunch that getting over a man like Duncan McBride would be next to impossible, and she had already traveled that road once in her life. It wasn’t something she wanted to experience again.
“I apologize for this morning. You caught me off-guard,” he confessed.
“That makes two of us,” Raven replied.
His Stetson dipped slightly. “I respect Mrs. Grayson. She’s family. I’d hate to disappoint her, or make her feel that I can’t keep my word. As agreed, we can tell people you’re here to do research for a book.”
“Then you still plan to let me study the cave?” she asked, watching him closely.
“I do. No one else knows of its existence.” His expression hardened. “As you said, I want to keep it that way. I don’t want a lot of people tramping over my ranch, disrupting my routine, especially during one of the busiest times of the year.”
She wanted to ask about staying at the ranch, but considering her body’s reaction to him, she wasn’t sure that was a good idea. However, she probably didn’t have enough money to stay at a hotel while she was there.
His black eyes narrowed at her continued silence. “You’ve changed your mind?”
She fought to keep from squirming under his penetrating stare. “Not exactly.”
“You—,” he began just as his cell phone beeped. “Excuse me.” He jerked the phone from his belt loop. “McBride.” He listened, then muttered under his breath, “Saddle Black Jack. I’m on my way.” He closed the phone and stood. “The offer is open if you want. Your choice. I have work to do.”
Without another word, he tipped his hat and hurried toward the door, his long-legged stride quickly carrying him out of the restaurant. For a big man, he moved with elegant grace. Raven leaned back against the booth, noticing she wasn’t the only one watching Duncan. And he hadn’t paid attention to any of them.
At least she wouldn’t have to worry about him walking in his sleep . . . if she decided to stay at the ranch. Being ticked at Duncan was one thing; being foolish was another. He wouldn’t ask again. She could accept the olive branch he offered or be stubborn and find a place in town to stay and use up what little money she had.
“Are you ready to order?”
“I’m sorry. I’ve changed my mind.” Digging in her bag for a couple of dollars, she laid them on the Formica-topped table and stood. It looked like she had some grocery shopping to do.
Two hours later, Raven pulled up in front of Duncan’s ranch house. It was as restful and as beautiful as the first time she’d seen it. Two stories with a stone and wood façade, it would last for generations.
It was exactly the kind of house she wished she could live in, instead of the cramped quarters she’d grown up in as her father moved his family from one place to another for his job with the Army Corps of Engineers.
Not once in all those years growing up had she ever heard her mother or her sister or brother complain. Their nomad existence was exciting to them. Raven hated it but kept her thoughts to herself. She loved her father, but she craved stability. She wanted to know where she’d lay her head each night. Instead, she was afraid to make friends because what was the use? She’d soon move again anyway.
Today her sister was an international flight attendant and her brother, who had followed their father into the army, was currently stationed in Germany. Raven wanted to keep her feet on terra firma in the US of A.
Getting out of the Jeep, she slung the wide strap of her handbag over her shoulder and grabbed a bag of groceries. Giving her a place to stay was generous of Duncan, but that didn’t mean he had to feed her as well.
Going up the steps, she knocked on the door that was at least eight feet tall. In fact, while shopping she’d come to the conclusion that the less she and Duncan saw of each other, the better. She seemed to rub him the wrong way. And as annoying as it was, he excited her as no other man ever had.
A bad combination.
Shifting, she knocked again on the solid door, then considered going back and honking her horn when the door swung open. Standing there was a stern-faced man about five-feet-five—two inches shorter than she was—with a frown on his gray-bearded face. “You were in a dang hurry for me to answer the door, so spit it out.”
Seemed she was batting even so far with the men on the Double D. Two wanted to flirt; two wanted her gone. “Good morning; I’m Raven La Blanc. Is Mr. McBride in?”
“You don’t see him, do you?”
Her eyebrow lifted. “No, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t in.”
“At ten in the morning, it ain’t likely. The boss ain’t the kind of man to let others do his work,” the man said, still standing in the doorway.
“I don’t suppose he mentioned that he had a houseguest coming?” she asked.
“Sure, but you ain’t her,” he said, looking her over.
Raven recalled Duncan’s surprise on seeing her. “I’m afraid I am.” Shifting the bags, she extended her hand. “Professor Raven La Blanc.”
Black eyes narrowed under bushy eyebrows. He peered at her a long moment before he whistled, finally taking her hand. “You’re sure you’re her?”
The man certainly didn’t take things at face value. Just like his boss. “According to my birth certificate, driver’s license, and multiple degrees, the one and only that I know of.”
“I’ll be. Come on in.” He reached for the bag of groceries. “Phenias Higgins, but everyone calls me Rooster. I take care of the house for the boss.”
Raven stepped inside and found the house as inviting as the outside, with a mixture of leather and overstuffed furniture in warm earth tones of brown and green. “Thank you, Rooster.”
“Pardon me, Miss Raven, but I thought you were one o
f them women trying to pester the boss.” He shook his graying head. “They try every trick, but the boss is too smart for ’em.”
Since Raven had seen the attention Duncan attracted, she could well imagine. “I have some other groceries and my luggage. If you have time to show me to my room, I’ll let you get back to work.”
He waved her words aside, continued down a hall, and entered a spacious kitchen—where the smell of burnt food permeated the air. There was an open window over the sink. He placed the bag on the cluttered counter.
“I got time. Don’t have to start supper until later. Boss makes up his bed and keeps his room clean.”
She couldn’t help but ask. “You do the housekeeping and cook?”
“Yep,” he said proudly. “When Effie Faye left two weeks ago to go stay with her daughter in Billings and keep her first grandbaby, I took over to help out. I can tell you the boss hated to lose me as one of his top hands, but somebody had to do it.” He leaned closer. “The boss tried to talk me out of it, but I know he needed someone to help out.”
Raven just bet he had. Apparently, Duncan had his good points. “I’m sure he values you. If you’ll tell me where my room is, I’ll get my things.
“Upstairs, the last room on the left. Boss’s on the right.” Rooster’s eyes narrowed. “You married?”
“No.”
“Engaged?”
She had a good idea why the questions. “No, but I have no intention of bothering your boss. I’m here to do research on a book I’m writing,” she said, using the cover story they’d come up with.
Rooster rubbed his whiskered chin. “I have my own little house. I’ll ask the boss if he thinks he needs me to move in to temporarily chaperone.”
Raven stuck her tongue in the side of her mouth to keep from laughing. “That’s very thoughtful of you, but since we’re on opposite sides of the house, we’ll be all right.”
“I reckon,” he said, but he didn’t look convinced.