Cowboy to the Rescue

by Ann B. Harrison

  “All I’m saying is, don’t mess things up for Sadie. Last thing we want is her heading back to Denver because you broke her heart. Layla wants to offer her a partnership so she can spend less time at work and more time with her son, but don’t go spreading the word yet. She wants to do it herself once she has the paperwork sorted. I wanted to let you know what was on the line here so that if all you’re thinking of doing is having a love ’em and leave ’em kind of relationship—my advice is, don’t.”

  “Duly noted. On both accounts.”

  “Good. Now that I’ve said my piece, I’ll leave you to it.” He lifted the tailgate of the truck and locked it in place before he turned back to Jethro. “Those brothers of yours? Are they starting to pull their weight?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Nothing. Just asking.” He lifted a hand in farewell, got in the truck, and drove away.

  Clumsy leaned into Jethro’s leg. “What am I going to do? I can’t tell her, but I bet it would go a long way to helping her make up her mind if she knew she had a permanent place here.” Even if it wasn’t how she saw her future all those years ago.

  He stood gazing at the bull. What chance did he have of making this thing between him and Sadie work? It didn’t seem to matter to her that he was poor and she was better off with someone who matched her businesswise. Tyson and Layla had made it work. Sure, there were problems at first. They sorted them out before the baby came along, and Sadie was so much like Layla it gave him a surge of hope. Same background, same goals. They wouldn’t be the first couple in the world that had to work at a relationship. Nor would they be the last.

  Now all he had to do was make subtle suggestions and let her think that the ideas were all hers. He wouldn’t railroad her.

  *

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I had to come and see the great beast.” She slammed her car door and reached a hand out when Clumsy ambled toward her. It hadn’t taken long for her to get used to the old dog. Truth be told, she was rather partial to him. Sadie tried not to be bitter about the way her father manipulated her emotions when she wanted a pet of her own. That part of her life was done and there was no point chewing over what was lost.

  “Hey, fella. I missed you too.”

  “That dog’s been mooning down the drive for the last few days. I think he misses you more than I do.” Jethro gave her a lopsided smile that made her legs quiver.

  “Is that a fact? At least you both missed me. Makes a girl feel good hearing that. So…”—she strode over and slipped her arm through his after giving him a soft kiss on the cheek—“show me this massive, man-killing beast that’s going to woo your girls.”

  “Listen to you, sounding all of a sudden like you were brought up on the land. I like it. Does something to my heart.” He flapped his hand over his chest. “Goes all pitter-patter like.”

  “Oh, you!” Sadie swatted him on the arm. He made her feel normal, wanted, and oh, so pretty without all the trappings she was used to. Just the way he spoke to her as if she was a normal person and not someone clawing her way up the corporate ladder who needed to gather scalps along the way made her feel something she hadn’t felt before.

  The sense of calm swaddling her now was the closest thing to perfect she’d come to. Denver was crazy; she understood that. Her workday started early and finished late. If they had a big case, they worked through the night. Making it to partner was a cutthroat business, and Sadie had thrived on it, didn’t give a single thought to those who she nudged out of the way on the climb up. It was business, pure and simple. Any lawyer seeking partner did it.

  But now she found herself not as hungry as she had been. And it all had to do with this hunky cowboy who didn’t have an agenda to topple others and the warm community feeling she was getting from the good folk of Marietta.

  He walked her over to the fence and leaned on it. “There he is.”

  “Oh, my goodness. He’s huge.” Those horns and beady eyes scared the daylights out of her. How should she respond in a way that would make Jethro happy when all she wanted to do was run the other way? “That’s one big ball of muscle if ever I’ve seen one.” She placed a foot on the fence railing, rested her arms on the top. “How on earth Chance lived to tell the tale after having a tussle with that animal is beyond me.”

  “He’s beautiful. Look at the width of his shoulders; that roll of muscle over his hips. If his offspring are anything half as good as Bulldozer, we’ll be set. I’ll pick the best bull and keep him for breeding. Probably be able to sell the others for good money, too, and buy more cows.” He turned to her, took her face in his hands and smiled. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done for me?”

  She heard the wonder in his voice, and her throat closed over. All she could do was shake her head.

  “You’ve put us back on track to make something of this place. Grandpa would’ve loved you.” He leaned down, placed his lips over hers, and she lost herself. Her arms wound around his neck of their own volition, and she melted into his body. His hands came around her back and slid down to her hips where he held her close.

  When she came up for breath, she peeked at his face. His eyes were shut, and she smiled and went back for another kiss. A rumble and a roar broke them apart; Sadie squealed, gripping his arm. “What the heck is that?”

  Bulldozer scraped the ground with his front hoof and snorted, his lip curling as he sniffed the air, turning to amble toward a black and white heifer.

  Jethro laughed, pulled her face against his chest. “Oh, dear. I don’t know if you want to see this, but he’s found his first date.”

  Sadie glanced under his arm, horrified as the big beast circled the seemingly willing cow that stood flicking her tail in his direction. “I don’t think I need to see this. Buy me a coffee, point me in the direction of the dirty washing pile, anything but this. Please.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the house but Jethro stumbled because he was laughing so hard.

  “Wait. I want to see how this goes. You don’t have to look, but I want to make sure he’s working properly before I give them privacy. I think you should go in the barn with Clumsy and have a seat. Pretty sure he’d like the attention. I won’t be long, promise.” The look on his face was so cute. Like he had to protect her from the side of ranch life she wasn’t used to.

  She screwed up her face as he nudged her toward the barn and went back to watch the love match. Sadie shuddered and reached for Clumsy. “I don’t believe this. Watching cows do it seems kind of perverse, don’t you think? Like a Peeping Tom or something. Yuck.” Clumsy seemed to agree and closed his eyes as he leaned against her. She closed her ears to the mooing and stamping coming from the pasture and tried to keep up a line of chatter to drown out the sound, which, in turn, did little to keep the images out of her mind.

  When Jethro came strolling in with a big grin on his face ten minutes later, she jumped up to greet him. “It’s over?”

  “For that heifer, yes, but he already has his eye on plenty more. The animal has stamina like you wouldn’t believe.”

  “I don’t think I needed to know that.” She smoothed down her jeans and smiled at him. “Sorry. I know it’s your business and something you’re invested in, but it’s not something I’m used to.”

  He grinned at her. “I know.”

  “I want to fit in.” She stood up and stepped toward him. “I want to fit in with you.”

  “I know, and you will so long as you don’t forget who you are. I don’t want you to lose you in the process. I like you as you are.” He stepped closer and cupped her chin. “I like you a lot more than I thought I would.”

  A dash of feathers fluttered around her legs with a keening gobble of noise, and she screamed before leaping into his arms, clinging to him for dear life.

  Jethro held her up and shook his head. “Oh, boy, talk about being thrown in the deep end of ranch life. He won’t hurt you none.” Jethro let her slide down until her feet hit the ground, but she daren’t let go of
him. A turkey strutted around them with his tail fanned out and his head bobbing. Her heart raced. This was the first time she’d met one of these birds in real life, and if she had to be honest, she wasn’t keen to repeat the process. Beady little eyes and a sharp beak sent a shiver down her spine.

  She should’ve given this visit to the ranch a bit more thought. At least a nighttime visit would mean she could pretend all this animal stuff and dirt didn’t exist, purely because she couldn’t see it.

  The house was okay if not a little dated. It was clean and functional if not unlike her place. Some of the touches were quaint and made her smile. Like the photos of the three young boys swimming in a creek that hung on the living room walls, the hand-stitched cushions that now lay flat on the chairs after years of being pummeled into a comfortable shape. The mix of pretty plates with the more obvious newer Walmart products.

  Even the old wood fireplace in the living room was comforting, unlike the great outdoors she was experiencing now. And it was safe. Unlike being in the barn too close to animals.

  Today’s visit was going to haunt her sleep for weeks. Too much information, too many experiences she wasn’t ready for in one day made her nervous. “I told you animals dislike me. He’s looking like he’s going in for the kill.”

  “No. Not at all. He’s doing a dance for you, Miss St. Martin. Never seen old Christmas do that for anyone. Knew you were a special lady.”

  Sadie stared down at the turkey and winced. Jethro was going to think she was such a chicken behaving like this when, really, all the stupid bird had done was give her a fright. Jethro didn’t need to be babying her. She doubted the fainting female type would be something that would interest him. Step it up, Sadie, and get a grip. “You call him Christmas? What is wrong with you?” But while Sadie should’ve been focusing on how awful it was that he’d named a turkey Christmas, instead she found herself smiling over the fact he thought she was special.

  Chapter Eleven

  “I didn’t name him Christmas. Crease did. Damn bird was supposed to be our Thanksgiving dinner a few years back, but Crease did a sulk and called Grandpa out on it. Said he wouldn’t eat it if he had to kill it, so we ended up having steak instead.” He chuckled. “It was when he was going through the whole animal cruelty thing and went vegetarian for all of five days. Stupid bird got a leave pass and a new name ’cause Nate decided we’d eat him for Christmas instead, but he’s been free from the axe ever since. Kind of like the president pardoning him. Can’t say the same for his progeny though.”

  “You eat his babies?”

  He really did have a lot to teach her. That was if she stuck around long enough. “Yep. No point having them unless they either feed us or make us money. That’s the goal of a working ranch.”

  She peeked up at him, her lips twitching at the edges.

  “What?”

  “You think I’m special.”

  He did, probably more than he had a right to but didn’t want to jinx things just yet by speaking up. “Wouldn’t have taken you out if I didn’t like you a little bit.”

  He slipped his arm around her shoulders and walked her past Christmas, who continued to flutter his tail feathers like a Vegas showgirl. “How about a cup of coffee sitting on the porch and not looking at what the cows are doing? We can look at the wildflowers blowing in the breeze and talk about whatever you like.”

  “You don’t have work to do?”

  “I do but, for you, I can take a break. The boys are in town causing a riot no doubt, so it’s not like I’m holding anyone up.”

  “Okay, thank you.” She leaned into him and sighed. “This is nice, you know? Fresh air and sunshine, views of the snow-capped mountains. So different from the city.”

  “Don’t know how you do it, suck up all those vehicle fumes when you could have clean, crisp air off these hills every day, lock yourself away in some glass and steel office when you could have the fresh outdoors. Kind of bracing getting a lungful of cool air.”

  “It’s nice, I’ll admit it. I’m just not sure if I’m cut out for country living in a small town. I don’t know how long it would take before I got bored.” She gazed at the mountains, wonder in her eyes, and he doubted she’d get bored any time soon.

  He grinned, thinking of other ways he could keep her amused. “Once you start looking for things to do, pretty sure that would never happen. Life is what you put into it, pure and simple. If you’re gonna sit back and wait for everything to come to you, you’re gonna get bored real quick. But if you make the effort, I can’t see it happening.”

  She glanced up at him. “You’re such a positive person, which I find amazing after what life’s thrown at you.”

  “Don’t see any point being different. Only end up being bitter and twisted, blaming everyone else for your problems. No matter how poor we might be, it’s up to us to choose our future. Money doesn’t really come into it. Might make things harder than we like, but there’s always something we can do to get what we want. Just have to be creative, I guess.”

  “Maybe I’ll have to take a leaf out of your book, then.”

  “Any time you need help being distracted or want ideas of how to keep yourself amused, I’m your man. Lived here most of my life and know pretty much all the good places to hang out. I wasn’t always sitting behind a bar fighting with my brothers, despite what people say.”

  “Does it matter to you what the locals say about you?” They walked up the steps to the porch.

  “Not really. I made my peace with Grandpa, and he forgave me. Only one who matters, really.” He stared out over the front pasture. “Now all I have to do is make sure my brothers fall in line and make something of themselves. Not enough work here to keep us all going. Ranch is too small to support a decent wage for them, too, but at least they can get into the routine and maybe the good folk in town will notice and that might lead to a job for them locally.”

  She let go of his hand and sprang down the steps toward her car. “I almost forgot. I baked you a cake last night.”

  Which meant she was stressing out over her decisions for the future. Damn, he wished he could tell her about what Layla was conjuring up or at least hint at it, but he’d given Chance his word.

  He was duly impressed when she came back bearing her gift, a double chocolate devil’s food cake with white chocolate frosting. “Well, aren’t you the clever one?” His waistline was going to get a workout with her cooking for him. “Going to have to work off these calories the way you’re going.”

  She looked up at him with a twinkle in her eyes. “Maybe I can help you out with that.”

  *

  She fumbled for something else to take the focus off her terrible gaff. Jethro took the cake from her trembling hands, put it down on the table beside the old rocking chair, and took her face in his hands. He rubbed his work-worn thumbs over her bottom lip with such a gentle touch that she wanted to mewl like a kitten. Being stroked by this man wouldn’t be a hardship, despite his rough exterior. He had the touch of a saint, and her body screamed out for more. A sigh escaped her lips before she could bite it back.

  His eyes darkened, turning from warm brown to almost black, and she sucked in a breath. Had she started something she couldn’t rein in, and did she really care? It’d been so long since someone had touched her like they meant it.

  Oh, she’d suffered through the embarrassing dates where someone mooned up to her because she was on the fast track to success and they wanted to hitch a ride. Everyone knew when someone had “it” in the courtroom, and Sadie had it in spades. They all told her so. Her earning potential and the billable hours she would bring to the firm of her choice was practically set in stone.

  And once her father entered government, she drew still more notice.

  But none of the lawyers she’d dated made her heart flutter like Jethro did. None of them made her hormones sit up and sing like this unassuming cowboy could. He was the reason she was chewing over her choices about going back to Denver.
Should she tell him that she was falling for him way faster than she imagined and risk scaring him off, or should she just go with what they discussed, play it cool and see how things progressed? Because once those words were out, there would be no taking them back.

  The thought of sex with him made her blood race, leaving her in a light-headed swoon. Damned if she was going home without a decent roll in the hay or the sheets or wherever he pleased. So long as she got a good tussle with him naked, she’d be happy. If they weren’t compatible in bed, a relationship might not work between them. “Try before you buy” seemed like a good saying.

  Her breathing spiked and almost stopped as he lowered his mouth to hers. She focused on the sensation of his lips on hers, the smell of his skin. A mix of cattle, sunshine, and oh-so-sexy cowboy with the underlying hint of vanilla-scented soap. She took note of the way his five o’clock shadow hugged his square chin, darker over his top lip and faded to blond near his cheekbones. To feel those whiskers on her naked skin made her panties damp with anticipation.

  Sadie leaned into him, giving herself over to the kiss she’d been dreaming about. Not a playful peck on the lips or a stilted “kiss me quick before you say goodbye” kiss. A bone-melting, sexual-tension-building, all-encompassing need to get into his skin kiss. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled, her nipples puckered under her lace bra, and tsunami-sized waves rolled through her gut and down to her nether regions.

  They’d both soft pedaled around this for long enough. He turned her on, and there was no denying he wasn’t immune to her either. They could pretend for another few days or weeks they didn’t want each other, but Sadie couldn’t see the point of it. Not when she’d only go home and end up tossing all night in frustration. No. The time to take what she wanted was here, and she was damn well going to speak up.

  “Um, can we, I mean…” She should just go ahead and say what she meant. Jethro would be the last person to admonish her for the truth. “Shit, can we take this inside before I explode standing out on the deck?”