Winning the Rancher's Heart

by Arlene James

  “I hope you won’t be too cold out there,” he finally said. He just couldn’t think of anything else.

  “I’ll be all right,” she told him, pulling a long red muffler from a coat pocket and draping it around her neck. She held up her hands, showing him the leather palms of her matching red knit gloves. “See? All toasty.”

  He reached behind him and pulled out his own gloves then held up them up to show them off. Made of thick, supple leather with slit cuffs that could be rolled down, they were the best work gloves he’d ever possessed.

  “Stark turned us on to this brand. The linings can be removed for washing. Or for summer.”

  She nodded but said nothing. So much for putting her at ease with conversation. He pulled on his gloves in silence.

  Wyatt opened the door and got in. He slowly guided the rig into the pasture, making sure to clear the horses before putting the transmission into Park again.

  Ryder opened his door. He wanted away from Jeri Bogman for a few moments to clear his head. He couldn’t figure out what to make of her. She looked as sweet as cotton candy, but she had a certain coolness about her that he found puzzling. “I’ll close the gate.”

  At the same time, she said, “Let me get it.”

  She opened her door and bailed out just as he attempted to pass by. They collided. She bounced off him, reeling backward. He caught her before she could hit the truck, his hands clamping onto her upper arms. She looked up, her eyes huge in her sweet face. Something hot and electric flowed between them. Gasping, she jerked back as if he’d burned her.

  “S-Sorry!” She made a face as if to say, “I’m such a klutz.” Then she turned toward the gate and trotted away.

  Frowning, Ryder got back into the truck.

  “That woman is dangerous,” Wyatt muttered.

  “You’re telling me,” Ryder said with a chuckle.

  She was the most dangerous woman he’d ever come across.

  With the gate safely closed behind them, they drove through pasture after pasture, passing big round hay bales. Wyatt stopped the truck and got out to set down mineral blocks, stripping them of their plastic covers and tossing the resulting detritus into the back of the truck for disposal later. They’d put out water troughs at the sites with windmills next to the fenced plots where their late uncle, Dodd, had started growing sod, which had turned out to be a major cash crop for the ranch. As long as the water was pumping, they didn’t have to worry too much about ice forming, but it was safer to lock down the windmills in cold weather like this. Ryder used a ball peen hammer to break up the ice on the surface of the troughs so the cattle could drink.

  At every stop, Jeri checked the horses and surveyed the surrounding land with curious eyes. She had lots of questions, which Wyatt answered, succinctly at first and then with growing detail as he responded to her enthusiasm. It was obvious that cultivating grass as a cash crop intrigued her.

  “Raising cattle is a risky business,” Wyatt told her. “You have to hedge your bets any way you can. How Dodd came across this idea, I don’t know, but it’s a good one if you’ve got enough land and the right soil compositions.”

  Ryder noticed that Jeri became much more relaxed and animated when she was talking about ranching, animals or grass. She warmed to each subject as it arose, engaging happily with Wyatt, but she ignored Ryder pointedly. He didn’t know whether to be glad or sad about that.

  When they got to the ravine that would serve as their staging area, they parked the truck and got out to load the hay and remaining mineral blocks onto the sledges, which they lined up side by side. Ryder worked to secure the load on the middle sledge with rubber tie-downs while surreptitiously watching Jeri struggle to do the same on another sledge to his right. She reached across with her left hand to secure the hook at the end of the tie-down in a small metal loop on the sledge, but the loop popped free, allowing the rubber strip to snap back in Jeri’s direction.

  Instantly, Ryder lurched to the side, knocking her out of range of the rebounding tie-down and the metal hook attached to its end. She hit the ground with an “Oof!” and Ryder landed right beside her, the heavy rubber strap snapping over his head.

  For a moment, nothing and no one moved. It was as if the world simply stopped for the space of a heartbeat. Then suddenly, fear hit Ryder. He knew too well how quickly tragedy could change everything. He scrambled to his knees, shaking off his gloves, and laid hands on Jeri to make sure the metal hook hadn’t somehow caught her. As stunned as he, she stared at him while he checked her head and shoulders for injuries. He found no lump or gash, but before he could explore further, she rolled away.

  Suddenly, Wyatt was there, reaching down a hand to each of them, his face set like stone, lips taut as he hauled them up.

  “Anyone hurt?”

  They both shook their heads while dusting themselves off.

  Wyatt closed his eyes and sucked in a deep, calming breath. For a moment, Ryder feared that his big brother was about to blow his stack. Of all the Smith brothers, Wyatt had the hottest temper, though he kept it under control. He could, in fact, be exceedingly patient. Tina’s pregnancy, the coming storm and the biting cold had combined to fray his nerves, however, and Ryder wouldn’t have been surprised if any little thing pushed Wyatt over the edge.

  “Are you two trying to maim each other?” Wyatt growled.

  Jeri shook dust from her hair and bent to snatch up her hat.

  “The anchor came loose,” Ryder said quickly, picking up his own hat and gloves. He paused to watch her slap cold, red dust from her clothing. “You sure you’re okay?”

  She nodded and sent him a wry smile. “Guess it’s my day for accidents.”

  He chuckled and reached out to sweep away a blot of dust that she’d missed on her sleeve. Her eyes widened. The next instant, her face hardened, as if a mask had slipped into place, and she jerked back. Ryder dropped his hand as Wyatt started beating the dust off him. Embarrassed, Ryder brushed off his brother’s hands. He wasn’t five years old anymore, and Wyatt had no reason to treat him as if he was. Besides, a little dirt never hurt anybody.

  Muttering, “I’ll get the harnesses,” Ryder trudged over to the truck bed while Wyatt helped Jeri secure her load.

  With the load safely tied down with rope, Wyatt took a harness from Ryder and went back to his own sledge and horse. Ryder helped Jeri hitch up her horse.

  “This is an ingenious rig,” Jeri commented, stepping up beside him as he went to work on his big red dun, Handy. “Simple. Efficient. Best of all, I see no way this could harm the horse.”

  “It’s a good system,” Ryder agreed. “Our uncle invented it. There was talk of a patent, but we’re not sure he ever did anything about that.”

  “Maybe you should,” she said. “I think you could manufacture and sell this.”

  “Worth considering,” he commented, grinning.

  Abruptly, as if she’d just remembered something important, she strode to the Perlino’s head, abandoning Ryder and the conversation.

  Ryder lifted his eyebrows. What a strange female. Strange and lovely.

  He tightened the girth on the dun’s saddle before securing the load on his sledge. While he hooked the tie-down into place, Jeri efficiently tightened the girth on Pearl’s saddle. Wyatt swung up onto his big gray, Blue Moon. Pearl’s reins in hand, Jeri shifted around to the side, as if preparing to mount. She paused to watch Ryder stand and give his load a final check.

  “Watch it!” Wyatt warned.

  Ryder looked up in time to see Pearl, who was something of a clown, curl her neck and throw her head, butting Jeri right between the shoulder blades. Ryder straightened as Jeri launched toward him, the reins falling to the ground. Pearl placidly faced forward again, the equine equivalent of feigned innocence. Ryder, meanwhile, found himself clutching an astonished female with curves not even a down coat could disguise. M
outh agape, eyes wide, she stared up at him from beneath the brim of her hat. He tightened his arms and smiled to let her know she was safe. She hadn’t, after all, hit the cold, hard ground this time. He realized that he was staring at her lips when her gaze dropped to his.

  Ryder didn’t know what might have happened if Wyatt hadn’t burst out laughing. At the sound, Jeri jerked away, flouncing off to gather Pearl’s reins. She trod on Ryder’s foot in the process, the uninjured one, thankfully. He grimaced but kept his groan inside.

  Jeri climbed onto Pearl. Shaking his head, Wyatt led off. Ryder gestured for Jeri to follow then limped around to mount. As he and Handy fell in behind her, Ryder knew exactly what his big brother was thinking. But dangerous didn’t scratch the surface of the peril that Jeri Bogman brought with her.

  The woman was positively lethal.

  In more ways that Ryder dared contemplate.

  Chapter Three

  Guilt and regret washed over Jeri as Wyatt stalked back to shut the gate behind the truck, trailer and horses, muttering that they were returning to the house over two hours later than they should’ve been. Their tardiness was, of course, her fault. After her unexpected reaction when she’d found herself in Ryder’s arms, she’d purposefully made every “mistake” she could while “helping” the Smith brothers provide for their cattle. She’d been hoping for an angry outburst from Ryder to remind her why she was right to hate him—and why it was wrong to find his arms around her so very appealing.

  It wouldn’t have been an easy morning even without her interference. That being the case, something should have set off Ryder’s temper. Obviously, he was on his best behavior in front of company. Still, she reasoned that she was at least nettling him, priming the pump, so to speak. Eventually, given enough provocation, he’d surely lose control. Wouldn’t he?

  Unfortunately, the only one she’d managed to upset thus far was Wyatt, and she couldn’t be happy about adding to the weight on his shoulders. He was a man with a lot on his mind.

  Wyatt had called his wife to be sure she was okay and let her know they would be late for lunch. Jeri noticed that Ryder had calmly, gently tried to reassure his brother. Though he addressed himself to Jeri now, his words were clearly aimed at Wyatt as the older brother climbed back into the truck.

  “Takes a lot of strength to carry twins, but that’s Tina for you. No challenge too big for her. Why, you should’ve seen the state the house was in when she first came. And, of course, she’ll do anything for the sake of her husband and kids, even put up with his lazy brothers.”

  “And which brothers would those be?” Wyatt asked, putting the transmission into gear and starting the rig forward again. “You and Jake have worked your fingers to the bone getting the place in shape.”

  “That reminds me,” Ryder said. “Now that the B and B and the shop are fully operational, I’m going to help Jake do some work around his and Kathryn’s place after the weather warms up. They want to add an office and a third bedroom.”

  “Sounds good.”

  Wyatt pulled the truck up to the small door on the stable end of the barn. Ryder got out and went to untie the horses. Jeri went to help him. She didn’t intend to apologize, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.

  “I’m sorry if I made us late.”

  “Aw, no,” Ryder said, tossing her that shy, boyish smile so at odds with his muscular build, heavy beard shadow and deep voice. “We’d have taken even longer without your help.”

  “I’m not sure Wyatt would agree.”

  “Wyatt knows you didn’t intentionally slow us down.”

  Except she had, and that knowledge shamed Jeri even as she rationalized it in her mind.

  They got the horses to their stalls. Jeri volunteered to open the big, central barn doors while Ryder began unsaddling. She left Wyatt backing the truck and trailer into the barn and went to help Ryder brush down and feed the horses. After unhooking the trailer, Wyatt came to help bring in the other mounts and lend a hand with stowing the tack.

  As they worked, the two men discussed the proposed renovations to their brother’s house. Jeri listened with fascination and no little envy as they mulled ways to get Jake to accept their assistance, monetary and otherwise. These brothers obviously cared for one another and supported each other wholeheartedly.

  The temperature had risen several degrees while they were out, leading everyone to unbutton their coats and peel off their mufflers as they’d worked. Now, with all the horses again inside the draped stable area, the place soon felt toasty warm. Ryder removed his coat and hung it on a recessed hook. Jeri did the same, but Wyatt kept his on.

  “Hurry it up,” he ordered as he went to pull the truck out of the barn and close the big doors. “Otherwise you’ll be eating dinner instead of lunch.”

  “Be right behind you,” Ryder called. He shook his head, chuckling.

  “Did I miss something?” Jeri asked. She hadn’t heard anything funny in Wyatt’s tone or words.

  “I was just thinking that Wyatt can’t stand being away from Tina for any length of time. It was that way even before he started worrying about her and the babies.”

  “What’s to worry about?” she asked. “Women have been having babies since the Garden of Eden. Is there cause for concern?”

  Ryder shrugged and dropped the curry brushes into the work bucket. “She’s been having some cramps, I think. Doctor says to just keep an eye on it.”

  Jeri couldn’t help wanting to put him at ease. “Way I hear it, that’s pretty common in the last months of pregnancy—it’s the body’s way of getting ready to deliver.”

  Ryder looked at her, his brow creased with concern. “The babies aren’t due until April.”

  In other words, the first week of January was much too soon to deliver a healthy baby, let alone twins. Jeri nodded, now sharing his concern.

  “I’ll pray for them.”

  The smile he sent her was so sweet that she had to shut her eyes against it. He picked up his jacket and the bucket. She grabbed her own coat and followed him as he carried the curry bucket into the tack room. He came out a heartbeat later, shrugging into his jacket, but when she swung hers around to do likewise, he caught it by the shoulders and helped her into it.

  Why that felt like such an intimate gesture, Jeri didn’t know. It wasn’t as if she’d never before been helped into her coat by a handsome cowboy. She told herself it was just because she was predisposed to dislike him but somehow couldn’t. Not yet. Not until he showed his true colors. Once the man who had killed her brother came out, it would be different. Wouldn’t it?

  They walked across the dusty yard in silence. As soon as they stepped up into the carport, Ryder peeled off his gloves and stuffed them into his coat pockets. They reached the back door. Ryder opened it and stood aside to let her enter first.

  Warmth hit her in a wave, letting her know just how cold it really was out there. As she shucked her gloves and coat, hanging the latter on the back of a chair at the table, she saw that Wyatt hadn’t waited for them before starting to eat. Tina fluttered around, dishing seconds onto his plate from an enormous potpie in the center of the table and then calling Jeri and Ryder over to eat. They obeyed, washing their hands side by side at the kitchen sink before picking up plates from the counter. Ryder dished food onto Jeri’s plate before helping himself. Jeri set her plate in front of the chair with her coat.

  Another man occupied a chair at the table. Even if he hadn’t been holding Kathryn Smith’s hand, Jeri would have known he was the middle Smith brother. Jake was as tall as his brothers and had the same dark eyes and heavy beard shadow, but his hair was more brown like Wyatt’s than black like Ryder’s, and he wasn’t as heavily built as the other two. Ryder set his plate on the table and introduced them.

  “Jeri, this here is our brother Jacoby. Jake, Jeri Bogman.”

  Jake nodded at Jeri but
spoke to Ryder. “Heard you’ve had quite a day already.”

  “Nothing much out of the ordinary,” Ryder said lightly, pulling out the chair for Jeri.

  She glanced around, feeling surprised by that small gesture and foolish for the surge of pleasure it had given her. Ryder stood with his hand on his own chair while she took her seat, aware that everyone was looking at her. Only after she was seated did Ryder pull out the chair next to her and drop down into it.

  “How come you’re so late then?” Jake asked. “I thought I was gonna have to go looking for y’all.”

  Ryder calmly started eating. “No need for that. So, how’s business? This storm going to put a kink in things?”

  “Already has.” Jake talked about charging batteries at two different farms that morning. “The cold weather zaps a weak battery. But I wound up hauling in a broken-down Jeep for restoration. Thing must be sixty years old.”

  “Which means you can’t wait to get your hands on it,” Ryder said, grinning.

  “Mechanics make house calls here?” Jeri asked.

  Everyone else laughed. “Mechanics, veterinarians, doctors, even the grocer if the need is great enough,” Ryder said.

  “The grocer in town kindly delivered for us a few times after Mom first came home from the hospital,” Kathryn said softly, “but he’s so limited in what he can offer.” A brief explanation of the accident that had paralyzed Kathryn’s mother followed.

  “Folks have to be real neighborly when most conveniences are thirty or forty miles away,” Ryder commented.

  “I don’t mind driving out to help someone,” Jake said, glancing at Jeri. “Good way to scope out the surrounding area.”

  Obviously, he’d been told that she was shopping for property.

  “If this storm is as bad as they’re predicting,” she said, “I may have to wait a few days to start looking around.”

  Jake rose then. “Speaking of the weather, I better get back to the shop while I can.” Grinning at Ryder, he added, “Unless the roads ice over, I’ve only got an hour or so to tear into that Jeep before Dean drops off his grandmother’s car for new brakes.” Kathryn quickly rose and followed her husband to the door, where the two whispered farewells and briefly kissed.