by Desiree Holt
Mrs. Rogers met them at the door before Evan could drag him across the threshold and the woman immediately wrapped them both in a giant hug. “It’s so good to see you boys!” She transferred the majority of her attention to Dare. “And thank you so much for bringing my boy closer to home. Do you know that since he moved to Seattle, I only saw him once? For one Christmas? You boys are planning on spending part of Christmas with me, aren’t you? I don’t care if it’s Eve or morning or whatever. Just a celebration for the three of us.”
She pinched Dare’s spare middle and hummed a displeased note. “You need food. Both of you do. I made meatloaf. You’re not a vegetarian are you? Or a vegan? I made mashed potatoes, but I didn’t add the butter just in case. Evan never tells me these things. Men. I don’t mean you, dear. I’m sure you are much better than my son. Just let me go finish up some things and then we can all sit down for some food, yes?” She kissed Dare on the cheek and then turned to do the same for Evan.
Dare turned to Evan with a stunned expression. The taller man was turning red with the effort of not laughing, and he quickly lost the battle as Dare’s eyes focused on him.
“You jackass,” Dare said, prowling toward him. “There was never anything to worry about, was there?”
Evan shook his head, bent over with laughter and unable to speak. Dare tackled him, knuckling his head. “You so owe me. Two months of anticipation. You said it was payback for the twenty-four hours of angst I put you through. That was nothing compared to this.”
Evan finally caught his breath to break from Dare’s grasp and kiss him quickly. “It was so worth it. And I’ll make it up to you. I told you something else then.” Evan reached in his pocket and kneeled. “I said if you liked it then you should put a ring on it, but I changed my mind. You’ve already put your mark on me. Will you wear this as my mark on you? Will you marry me?”
Dare’s eyes flashed gold and he tackled Evan with an extended kiss.
When Evan was able to break away for a moment, he said, “I take that as a yes?”
“I take that as a yes for Christmas,” Evan’s mother yelled from the kitchen.
Dare remembered himself, but Evan pulled him back in a kiss and Dare managed to growl out a yes before claiming his mate and soon to be husband’s lips once more.
About the Author
Hazel Boyer finds it hard to put down roots after living in the same town her parents grew up in, in the same house, for her entire “growing up.” (Though she really hesitates to claim she’s all grown up.) Home is where her heart (that is to say, her husband, son, and dogs) is.
www.hazelboyer.com
Bear Faced Lies
Merryn Dexter
A roaming bear gathers no strings, and that’s just how Tobias Langstreet likes it. A chance meeting with beautiful, lonely Harriet Mills might just change his mind. Can he trust her with his secrets and unwrap the web of lies around her?
Chapter 1
“Damn it. God damn it to hell and back. Get in the trailer, you stubborn bitch.” The feminine voice rose in desperation, accompanied by a volley of indignant moos and the banging of metal.
Not my problem. Tired and filthy after a long day mucking out stalls at the cattle auction, all Tobias wanted was a hot shower and a cold beer. The order in which he got them didn’t much matter. He had enough cash in his pocket to keep his room in the boarding house for a week, but he needed to be on the lookout for something more regular. There was a notice board with “help wanted” ads at the entrance to the auctions. Resolved to check the board on his way out, Tobias turned on his heel.
“Why me?” The wailed words segued into a flurry of sobs she quickly stifled. Tobias sighed. He could shrug off most things, but not a damsel in distress. His mother would skin his hide for a hearthrug if she thought she’d raised any of her sons to walk away from a woman in need.
Rounding the corner of the stalls, he found himself next to one of the smaller outdoor pens. A pick-up truck with a trailer stood next to the open gate, and a small herd of cattle milled around the entrance. Catching the halter rope of a pretty white-faced Hereford, he led the runaway back inside the pen, nudging a few of the others back in the process. His scent would spook them if he wasn’t careful, so Tobias moved slowly among the animals, talking in soothing tones and offering strokes and pats of reassurance. The little heifer he still led turned her face into his shirt and snorted, leaving a delightful combination of spit and half-chewed cud on the thick cotton. She looked inordinately pleased with herself. “Thanks, darlin’,” he muttered, brushing the worst of it off.
A soft thud drew his attention, and he approached the low ramp at the back of the trailer. Slumped against the wall, he found the woman he’d heard. She stared at him with red-rimmed eyes. Unruly strands of blonde hair spiraled from what had once been the makings of a neat plait. Her jeans and plaid shirt were no cleaner than his own, and a huge smudge of dirt marked one of her pale cheeks. The look of defeat in her eyes about broke his heart. “You okay there, miss?”
She laughed; a bitter bark of sound. “If being abandoned by your last ranch-hand, making not one sale today, and getting trodden on by your livestock qualifies as being okay, then yes. I’m just peachy, thanks.” Pulling off a well-worn leather glove, she scrubbed her hand across her face. “Sorry. That was rude.”
“If that’s your idea of rude, sweetheart, you need some more practice.” Tobias tugged the halter, and the heifer followed him up the ramp and into the trailer.
A couple of the other cattle began to follow and the woman scrambled to her feet, staring in amazement. “What are you, some kind of cow whisperer?”
“I have a way with animals.” He shrugged, not really sure how else to describe what he was without sending her screaming. She followed him down the ramp, watched him nudge a few more of the small herd toward the trailer for a moment, before she joined in. Between them, they had the group corralled, and the ramp up in minutes.
He studied her carefully. She moved with confidence now, securing the locks with practiced ease, her meltdown seemingly shrugged off. “Do you have someone to help you at the other end?” He couldn’t detect anything he’d classify as a claiming scent upon her. All he got when he drew in a deep breath was cattle, clean sweat, and a faint hint of eucalyptus. Nothing flowery, or feminine about her. She turned her back to him. Apart from an ass a man could eat his supper off.
It had been easy to ignore her shapely figure, hidden beneath the baggy shirt and well-worn denim. The heels of her boots lent her a couple of inches, but the top of her head barely reached the middle of his chest. The Langstreet men bred big and broad—but their human size was nothing compared to the black bears they shifted into.
Her shoulders stiffened. “I’ll be fine.”
“That’s not what I asked.” Tobias didn’t know why he needed to push his point. The lady had been helped and his conscience eased, leaving him free to walk away and track down the cold beer his throat begged him for.
The plait of blonde hair whipped over her shoulder as she turned to stare at him. “What’s it to you anyway?”
He didn’t have an answer, other than the niggling sensation something was wrong, and the notion his coming across her wasn’t entirely coincidental. Damn mama and her superstitious talk. “You mentioned something about your last ranch-hand leaving, and it made me wonder if you needed someone to help out for a day or two.”
She frowned, the darker blonde of her eyebrows shadowing her jade-green eyes. “I don’t know you.” Not a refusal.
He held out his hand. “Tobias Langstreet.”
She stared at his outstretched hand with about as much enthusiasm as if it had been covered in shit; which, given he’d spent the last eight hours in the animal stalls, wasn’t far from the truth. “That’s not what I meant.”
She didn’t want his help, that much was clear. What someone wants and what someone needs are rarely the same thing. How many of those damn sayings had his mother drilled i
nto his head? “I can get you references about my work. I’ve been helping out around the area for the past few weeks. I was over with Davey Johnson’s crew a few days ago, lending a hand because his foreman came down with the ‘flu.” A flash of recognition passed through her eyes at the name.
“How is Tim doing now?”
Nice try, honey. He bit his lip to avoid smiling at her overly casual question. “Samuel is doing much better. His Amy didn’t seem to mind he’d lost a few pounds, either.” The foreman’s wife had been kindness personified, and Tobias could have happily stayed at the Lazy Q ranch for a spell. Times were tough all over though, and Davey Johnson had let him go, with regret, as soon as Samuel was back on his feet.
The pretty blonde worried her lower lip between her teeth. Tobias had to look away before he acted on the fool notion to place a kiss on the raw-looking spot. “Clyde could probably do with the help,” she muttered. It sounded like she was trying to convince herself, so he decided to back off a bit and let her come to her own decision. Moving away to give her a bit more personal space, he began to examine the exterior of the trailer.
The faded green vehicle was an older model, but he could tell from the small patches of darker paint it had been well-maintained and kept free from rust and corrosion. Resisting the urge to glance over his shoulder at the woman, he carried on his inspection, checking the tires, underneath the wheel-rims and around to the hitch attaching it to the back of a sturdy pick-up. The truck was equally well-worn, but scrupulously clean, apart from a very fine layer of dust.
He completed the circuit, refusing to hurry, ignoring the mental nudge from the beast inside him, who wanted to get back to the intriguing-smelling female. The bear’s interest surprised him. Tobias had the same needs as any other man, not counting his younger brother, Tanner, who needed a woman in his bed like he needed oxygen, but his bear had rarely paid attention to whoever he was stepping out with.
She stood on the same spot, still nibbling away at the plump bow of her lower lip. His bear pressed closer beneath his skin, and Tobias held his breath to stop the deep rumble building in his chest. The cattle stirred, a couple of them knocking against the sides of the trailer, and he reached through a small gap to pat the closest one on the rump. “It’s all right, darlin’,” he murmured, not sure whether his gentle words were aimed at the animal or the woman just a few feet away.
“You’ll have to sleep in the bunkhouse. And it will only be for a couple of days, a week at most.” She offered him her hand, and he took it, conscious of how his wide palm engulfed her delicate bones. “Harriet Mills,” she said as they shook hands.
It was an effort to break the connection between them. He didn’t like the wary expression in her jade eyes. She looked exhausted, and a sour smell of defeat tinged her fresh scent. The bear snarled in his head, and the man understood the creature’s anger. Life had been unkind to this woman, and the bear wanted to fix it. To fix whatever she’d experienced to put such sadness in her eyes. Not our problem. The bear snorted in disgust and raked mental claws through his mind.
“The bunkhouse will suit me perfectly, Mizz Mills. The boarding house I’ve been staying in is just a couple of blocks away, if we can swing by there on the way to get my things?”
She nodded hesitantly, then gave a firmer bob of her head, as though she’d made up her mind. “Yes, of course.” She dug under the corner of her plaid shirt to retrieve a set of keys from the front pocket of her jeans. The motion as she withdrew her hand lifted the side of the shirt, flashing a half-inch of lightly-tanned skin above her waistband.
Tobias adjusted the brim of his hat to tug it over his eyes, swallowing hard as his thoughts strayed far from the bunkhouse she’d mentioned. An image filled his head, of soft white curtains billowing in the breeze and a wide wooden bed with crisp linens. Lying in the middle of the bed, blonde hair spilling across the pillows, he pictured a very naked Harriet Mills. The bear growled in approval, and the man was in complete accord.
Chapter 2
“I just don’t understand what you were thinking, Harry.” The sharp admonishment might have echoed the words she’d been saying to herself all the way home, but it still grated.
“I was thinking about trying to unload a trailer full of cattle with only Clyde to help me, settling the horses in the barn, feeding the rest of the livestock, making dinner and getting to sleep before dawn,” she snapped into the phone.
“I’m only thinking of you, Harry.” The hurt in Shane’s voice stabbed spears of guilt into her gut. Shane had been her best friend for as long as she could remember, had always been there when she needed him and here she was yelling at him.
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I just didn’t know what else to do at the time.” She sat on the edge of her bed and raised one leg to tug off the thick sock she wore to cushion her feet from long hours in her boots.
“You should have called me.” Accusation tinged the hurt in his words, and she bit back a sigh. Shane had been her rock from the moment her father had died six months previously, and she owed him better consideration. Of course, he would worry about her bringing a stranger to the ranch.
“I spoke to Amy over at Lazy Q while I waited for Tobias to collect his things. She had nothing but praise for him.” She’d known Amy and Samuel as long as she had Shane. When you grew up in and around a small town like Fairlane, you knew pretty much everybody.
“And Amy is such a great judge of character,” he grumbled.
Harriet frowned at the phone, Shane had every right to criticize her, but Amy had done nothing wrong. She thumbed the speakerphone button and tossed the handset on the bed beside her, so she could carry on talking and get undressed at the same time. She wanted nothing more than a hot shower and to fall flat on her face for a few hours.
She fiddled with a couple of buttons on her shirt, decided it was too much effort and tugged the whole thing over her head, getting her braid caught in the process. “Shit, ow!” She yanked herself free of the offending item and tossed it in the vague direction of the laundry basket in the corner of her room.
“What’s wrong, Harry? Damn it, I’m coming over!”
She grabbed up the phone. Shane had enough on his own plate, what with taking over his father’s veterinary practice due to Doc Watkins’ failing health. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Please stop worrying, I just got my hair caught.” She laughed, hoping to ease his worry for her. “I can’t even take my clothes off without getting in a muddle.”
“I could always come over and help you with that,” he murmured, affecting a deep sexy tone.
She laughed again. “Ew, Shane. Behave yourself.” He was only messing around, they were like brother and sister.
“Hey, just trying to cheer you up, is all. I’ll come over and see you tomorrow, Harry.” He paused and she bit back a sigh, knowing what would come next. “You don’t have to keep doing this, you know. Your daddy would hate the idea of you trapped out there on your own.”
Her best friend might not like seeing her struggle to keep the ranch going, but it was her life. Shane had grown up around animals, having spent his formative years accompanying his father to the local ranches on his calls, but raising livestock wasn’t in his blood. The land didn’t call to him the way it did to Harriet. No matter how tough things were, she would sell her soul before she sold the Happy T.
“I’m not trapped, Shane,” she chided him, keeping her voice gentle. “Things have just been difficult, is all. Once I shake off this run of bad luck, then I can get things back on track.” Pete walking out on her at the auction had been the latest in a long line of set-backs. Surely no one could be this unlucky forever?
“I’ll come over tomorrow,” he repeated.
“Don’t you have appointments? Clyde will put Tobias through his paces, and if he has the slightest doubt about him, then he’ll send him on his way.” She doubted her father’s foreman would be sending the new hand away. There was something so solid and reassuring about the big, qu
iet man. His presence had calmed Harriet almost as much as it had the restless cattle.
She put him out of her thoughts. Tomorrow would be soon enough to reassess her spur-of-the-moment decision to take him on.
“Harry, please. Stop pretending you can cope with everything and let me help you.” She ground her teeth at his snippy tone. Shane might mean well, but he was starting to annoy her. I’m just tired.
“I’ll call you in the morning, okay?” Heavy silence met her offer and she sighed. “Look, Shane. I know you want to help, but it’s not fair to keep taking time away from your own work to prop me up. I’m a big girl now, and I need to do things for myself.”
A soft sigh gusted into her ear. “I just want you to be happy, Harry. I’d do anything for you.”
“I know and I appreciate it.” Most of the time she appreciated it, but just lately her friend’s need to help her was becoming a little stifling. She cracked a yawn, exaggerating the motion in the hopes he would get the hint. “It’s been a long day. We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay,” he agreed. “I love you, Harry.”
“Love you too, Shane. Good night.” She ended the call and tossed her phone onto the bedside cabinet. The plain, white pine furniture was more functional than pretty, but she loved it. Her father had made it, spending all his free time in the barn making it as a wedding gift for her mother. Harriet smiled at the memory of her mother smoothing her hand over the large table in the kitchen as she told her about her joy at first entering the house and seeing all the new items her father had made. He’d blushed and muttered into his apple pie, the broad grin on his face at odds with his claims she’d been making a fuss over nothing special. A wave of sadness followed the happy remembrance.
She missed them both so much.