THE COWBOY SHE COULDN'T FORGET

by Patricia Thayer

  He zeroed in on those big eyes that had mesmerized him for years. No wonder blue was his favorite color. Ana blue. He shifted his gaze to her full mouth, and quickly his hunger grew.

  The sight of her delicate jaw and long slender neck had him recalling how he’d trailed kisses down her body, raising goose bumps on her heated skin. He treasured the memories of their nights together, with her pressed so close to him. How she’d given herself so freely, never asking for anything back. Yet he wanted all of her.

  Ana raised her gaze to his, her cobalt eyes as cold and unwelcoming as a mountain stream. She didn’t look happy to see him. Somehow he had to change that, get her to forgive him.

  She said something to the other person, then walked out into the hall. “Vance. What are you doing here?”

  “You wouldn’t take my calls, so I came here to see you.”

  “That’s because we have nothing to talk about.”

  It hurt that she could so easily ignore what they had. “Yes, we do, Ana.” He took a step toward her. “So either we discuss it here or go inside to your office. But we’re going to talk.”

  Ana worked to stay calm, hating that Vance could cause such a reaction in her. She didn’t need to spend any time with him. She still hurt. She might never get over his deception.

  She moved away from the doorway and let him inside. She closed the door, though there wasn’t much privacy, which was a good thing. So why did it feel so intimate?

  He sat down in the only chair besides hers, and she caught his familiar scent, a mixture of soap and pure Vance.

  He placed an envelope on her desk. “It’s the loan papers.”

  “Loan papers?”

  “The bank came through with our building loan.”

  She tried not to appear surprised. “They’re giving us the money?”

  Vance nodded. “And since we’re still joint executors of Colt’s estate, we need to make a decision. Do we move ahead with the lodge?”

  Ana didn’t know what to do. She hadn’t told her sisters any more because she’d doubted they were going to get the loan. “I need to talk to Tori, Josie and Marissa.”

  He nodded. “What about Colt? He’s still head of the family.”

  She stared, openmouthed. Had they really been a real family? She was more doubtful now than ever before.

  * * *

  It took two days before Ana got the nerve to go to the rehab center and see her father. She thought it would be better to wait until some of her anger subsided. There had been so much hurt over the years, but nothing compared to this. Every glimmer of hope she’d had these past weeks about reconciling with her dad began to fade away. She had to let it go.

  She blinked back the tears as she made her way down the hall to his room, knowing this discussion should have happened years ago. It was time to figure out where she stood with the man. She wasn’t going to beg Colt Slater for his love.

  She knocked on the door and looked inside. Colt was seated in his wheelchair, staring out the window. She felt her pulse pounding and her stomach tighten, but she refused to leave. They had to deal with this problem.

  Colt was a handsome man for his age. Of course, fifty-four wasn’t old by most standards. His rough-cut jaw was cleanshaven and his thick graying hair trimmed neatly. His eyes were deep set and a brilliant blue. His shoulders and chest were broad and his stomach flat. She had no doubt that the ex-rodeo star could still attract women.

  Ana crossed the room, sat down in the chair beside him and glanced at the view of the Rocky Mountains. The two of them sat in silence for a few seconds, then Ana said, “We got the loan to start building the lodge and cabins.”

  She threw it out there to see how her father would react, good or bad.

  “Good.”

  She was a little surprised. Colt had always been a private man. He’d never wanted anyone on his land.

  “So you’re okay with this business venture? There will be anglers and other guests on the ranch.”

  He nodded.

  “You want me to go ahead with this?”

  Colt turned and looked at her. “Y-yes, Ana, I w-want you there v-very much.”

  She blinked, surprised at the clarity of his speech. “You’re talking.”

  He nodded again.

  “How long?”

  “It’s b-been getting b-better every day.”

  She smiled. “Oh, Tori and Josie and Marissa are going to be so happy.”

  He shook his head. “No, p-please don’t tell them. Y...yet.”

  “Why?”

  “They won’t c-come back.”

  Ana was confused. “You want them to come home?”

  There was a flash of sadness in his eyes before he glanced away. “’Cause, I m-miss you all.”

  Ana felt angry, though tears gathered in her eyes. She shook her head in disbelief. “No, don’t say that if you don’t mean it.”

  Her father reached for her hand. She could feel the strength, the calluses on the pads of his fingers. “I m-made m-mistakes. I need to fix them.”

  Part of her wanted to run, but the other wanted to embrace this man. “Why now? You never seemed to want us around when we were growing up. We did everything to try and please you, but it wasn’t enough. It was never enough.” She jumped up and moved to the other side of the room. “And now you suddenly want us to act like we’re one big, happy family.”

  “No!” he said, his voice strong. “I w-want to make it up to you.” He held her gaze. But there was so much emotion showing on his face she had to look away. Why was he doing this to her?

  “Ana, I’m s-sorry. I wasn’t the f-father I sh-should have been to you girls. Please give me a second ch-chance to make it up to you.”

  Her chest hurt so badly she couldn’t breathe, but Ana wasn’t about to cry. The last thing she needed was to let him see how much she cared that he’d finally said the words she’d ached to hear all those years. Could she forgive him? Would her sisters? She pushed that aside as more hurt surfaced.

  “If you loved us so much, why did you give away our land to Vance?”

  Colt looked startled by her words. “Ana...I—”

  “No, don’t say anything.” She waved her hand. “I’ve got to go,” she said, and hurried from the room. She didn’t want to deal with any of the men in her life.

  * * *

  The next day, Ana realized she couldn’t handle everything on her own. She picked up the phone in the ranch office and called her sisters.

  “Slater Style,” Josie answered.

  “Hi, Josie, it’s Ana.”

  “Hey, I was about to call you. Wait, let me get Tori and put you on speakerphone.”

  After about thirty seconds, Ana’s other sister came on board. “Okay, Ana, tell us what’s going on,” she said. “You have any news from the bank?”

  Ana was sad that they hadn’t asked about their father. That was when she realized that telling them of his speedy improvement wouldn’t bring them home anytime soon. And that was top priority.

  “Yes, they approved our loan.”

  There was a pause, then Josie said, “That’s great. So when do you and Vance break ground on the project?”

  “I’m working with Vance as little as possible.”

  “Wait a minute,” Josie began. “I thought you and he were the ones Colt put in charge.”

  Ana wasn’t sure she wanted to tell them about the land. “Let’s just say we disagree on a lot of things. That doesn’t mean we can’t go ahead with this project.”

  “Are you sure?” Josie asked, concern in her voice.

  “Yes, G. T. Construction is ready to break ground next week.” Ana prayed her sisters wouldn’t ask any questions about the contractor. “We can’t delay it much longer or we’ll run in
to bad weather. I want you all involved with this.”

  There was silence again and Ana knew the twins were trying to decide what to say next. “How involved do you need us to be?” Tori asked.

  “I’ll appreciate any and all of your input and support, because there will be a lot more decisions to make. Next week, I go back full-time to my job at the high school. I won’t be here 24/7 to oversee things.”

  “Wait a minute,” Tori interrupted. “What about Vance? He’ll be around, won’t he?”

  Ana closed her eyes and released a breath. “Yes, he’s here, but he’s also busy with the ranch business. Right now, he’s cutting the alfalfa crop.” She released another breath, relieved he wasn’t around. She’d seen him on the mower in the field when she drove out to the ranch this morning.

  “Isn’t he going to help you supervise this project?” Josie asked.

  Ana wasn’t sure of much anymore. “Vance will be acting as the ranch foreman. That’s his job. I’ll oversee things with the contractor.”

  “So you can handle this by yourself?”

  “I don’t have a choice. We need the revenue or we lose the ranch, and we all agreed that this was a good way to bring in more money. Even Colt agrees.”

  “Colt?” Josie said. “How did you get him to agree with the idea?”

  That had been more of a courtesy than their father had given her when he deeded away Slater land. “I just told him something needed to be done.” Ana couldn’t help but think about how much of an improvement he’d made. “Speaking of our dad, he’ll be released from the rehab center and be coming home soon. That means we have to think about hiring some help, or one of you needs to come home.”

  That got the twins stammering about how their businesses needed their full attention at the moment. They promised they would take it up with their youngest sister.

  Ana finally let them off the hook and told them she would handle things. After she hung up the phone, she realized what a job she’d taken on. And unlike before, she would be handling it alone.

  She got to her feet, deciding she was hungry. It was already after one o’clock and she needed some nourishment to face her meeting with Garrett. She walked into the kitchen, expecting to find Kathleen, but instead saw Vance looking in the refrigerator.

  With him in that position she got a good look at the jeans pulled tightly over his rear end. His shirt was sweat streaked and clinging to his muscular back. Her pulse started racing and her mouth went dry. Great. All she needed was an out-of-control libido.

  She’d started to back out of the room when he turned around with his arms full of sandwich makings. He raised his dark eyes to hers. Then, surprisingly, he smiled at her.

  “Hi.”

  “Hi. I was looking for Kathleen,” she fibbed. “Is she around?”

  “She’s off today. If it’s important, she’s at her sister’s in town.” He put everything down on the counter. “Can I help you with something?” He came around the island and crossed to her.

  Ana refused to back up. “No, thank you. I’m handling it.” She decided to change the subject. “I saw you cutting the alfalfa.”

  He nodded. “I think the crop should bring in enough money to cover the rest of the lease money.”

  She shook her head. “It’s not all Slater land. Part of that crop is yours, since it’s on one of your sections.”

  He shook his head. “No matter what’s on paper, Ana, it goes into the same pot.”

  She didn’t want to discuss this. “Were you planning to be here as foreman all your life?”

  Vance couldn’t get enough of looking at Ana. He’d missed her over the past few days. “No. I was going to have my own place.”

  “And I expect you to continue with those plans. You have your land and your crop. I’d say that’s a pretty good start on a new life.”

  Her rejection hurt. Ana had that power over him, especially now that she’d given him a glimpse of a life he’d only dreamed about.

  Well, she wasn’t going to walk away from something they both wanted, without feeling what he was feeling. He took a step closer to her and inhaled her sweetness. “Sometimes things that seem perfect are far from it, especially when no matter what you do, you still can’t have the most important thing.”

  He reached for her and drew her against him, causing her to gasp. He took advantage of that and covered her mouth with his. In an instant the heat was turned up. He had this one chance to let her know what a good thing they had. He cupped her face and tilted her head so he could deepen the kiss. When she breathed a sigh, his tongue slipped into her mouth, tasting her addicting sweetness.

  Ana’s arms slipped around his waist in surrender to the kiss, and he took advantage again, pressing his body against hers. He was fighting dirty, but he was about to lose everything. This was all he had.

  She finally broke off the kiss with another gasp. He looked down at her eyes, laced with desire. He could continue the seduction, but she’d only end up hating him more. He had to walk away or lose his mind.

  “Goodbye, Ana.” Vance turned and headed out the door. He didn’t need to be hit over the head to realize how crazy it was to think he could fit into her life. He’d always be the kid who was outside looking in, looking for a place to belong.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  THE NEXT DAY started out with problems. Ana not only thought about Vance most of the night, she overslept, and had to begin her morning rushing to her appointment at the bank to sign papers. When she finally arrived, she found Wade waiting for her. Her father’s lawyer explained that he was taking over as executor. Vance would no longer be her partner for the project.

  Ana couldn’t hide her surprise. Something was going on, and no one was telling her anything.

  “Isn’t this what you wanted?” Wade asked her.

  She thought about Vance’s deception, but for him to walk away... “Maybe, since I can’t trust him.”

  When Alan walked out of the room to make copies, she asked Wade, “Why didn’t you tell me Dad had given land to Vance?”

  The lawyer frowned. “That choice was your father’s. I’m sorry he never discussed it with you.”

  “But those sections were an important part of the ranch.”

  Wade gave her a confused look. “That may be, Ana, but they were Colt’s to give away. And although your father recently had a stroke and is temporarily incapable of running the operation, he had every right back then to deed that land to Vance.”

  In her head Ana knew Wade was correct, but her heart was broken over it. “You’re right, Wade. Colt can do whatever he wants. He’ll be home soon, so he can take over again.”

  Wade sighed. “You know, Ana, you can be as stubborn and bullheaded as your father. And I’m going to tell you the same thing I told Colt. To take this time and try to build a relationship.”

  Tears blurred Ana’s vision. “I’ve tried.”

  Wade hugged her. “Oh, darlin’, I know you have, and that old cuss is more to blame than anyone.” The lawyer stepped back and she wiped her tears away. “Colt might not deserve this chance, but life is too short not to try and work this out. Not just with your dad, but with Vance.”

  She nodded. She didn’t want to think about Vance, but her heart had other ideas.

  Thirty minutes later, the loan money had been put into an escrow account so they could start the construction. So why didn’t Ana feel excited about the project?

  She walked outside with Wade, who hugged her again, then said, “Don’t be too hard on Vance. He’s a good man.” He smiled. “And I think you’ll learn that sooner or later. Hopefully, not too late.”

  Before Ana could say anything, Wade started back to his office, leaving her confused about so many things. But she had to put all that aside for now.

  She walked acr
oss the street toward the Big Sky Grill for her meeting with Garrett. Then she had to return to the ranch and help set up the downstairs guest room for her father’s return home. The living room needed to be stripped of furniture, which would be replaced by physical therapy equipment. Jay would come by three days a week to help with Colt’s workouts.

  Ana was excited and nervous about her father’s homecoming. Was Wade right? Was Colt ready to build a relationship?

  She walked through the door of the restaurant and a flash of memory hit her. Vance had brought her here and they’d shared a hamburger and fries like a lot of other couples. Had they been a couple? Whether they had been or not, her problem now would be to turn off her feelings for the man. Seeing him every day was going to be hard, so she hoped he’d concentrate on the cattle operation and stay out of her way.

  She didn’t need be reminded of what they’d had together, or what she thought they’d had. Their kisses, their nights together. She wanted to hate him, but yesterday in the kitchen he’d looked lost. She shook away any sympathy. He still had lied to her. He had to know how much she loved that section of land.

  She heard her name called and looked toward the booth in the corner. She put on a smile and crossed the restaurant.

  “Sorry I’m late.” Ana slid into her seat. “It took longer at the bank then I thought.”

  Garrett smiled back. “Not a problem.”

  He got the waitress’s attention and ordered coffee. “Is everything okay with the loan?”

  She nodded. “I signed all the papers, so do you want to talk about a starting date?”

  “I sure do.” He leaned toward her. “I can have a crew there by next week. If the weather cooperates, we can get those slabs poured before the end of the week.”

  Good. Colt would be arriving home then. “That fast?”

  “As they say, time is money. And my guys want and need the work.”

  She released a breath. The way it looked, she was handling this project alone. “Okay, let’s do it.”

  Garrett stood. “I’ll have a crew there in the morning.” He checked his watch, then made a quick phone call on his cell and finalized the arrangements. He hung up. “It’s all set. How about some lunch to celebrate?”