The Cowboy's Pride and Joy

by Maureen Child

  “It’s beautiful,” she said, throwing another glance at the gorgeous house.

  “It is,” he agreed. “Too much house for a man on his own, though.”

  “On his own?” She frowned a little. “Don’t you live there, too?”

  Ben laughed. “No, I live there.”

  He pointed at one of the smaller buildings, and she noted that it did look older, somehow more settled, than the newer structures around it.

  “It’s the original ranch house and for me, it’s home.”

  They approached a corral and Ben took her elbow to steady her as she stepped off the gravel onto soft dirt. Her heels sank and she grimaced, but her gaze was caught on the cowboy riding a big black horse around the interior of the corral.

  The cowboy looked as comfortable in the saddle as she was in a desk chair. Animal and man moved as one and Cassidy stepped closer to the rail fence, mesmerized as she watched their progress. There was a cold wind blowing, yet she hardly noticed the chill as she kept her gaze fixed on the man on the horse.

  “That’s my grandson, Jake,” Ben told her. “I’ll let him know you’re here.”

  Ben walked off but Cassidy didn’t see him go. Instead, she studied the cowboy even more closely. And she realized why it was that her boss hadn’t been able to convince her son to move to the city. A man that at home on a horse would never be happy in a city of concrete and cars. Even from a distance there was a wildness to him that intrigued her even as her mind whispered for caution. After all, she wasn’t here to admire her boss’s son. This visit was not only going to be brief, but strictly business as well. Which didn’t mean, she assured herself silently, that she couldn’t admire the view.

  Ben whistled, sharp and short. Jake looked up, then looked to Cassidy when his grandfather pointed her out. She saw his features tighten and she told herself it didn’t matter. But as he rode closer to her, she took a single step back from the corral fence.

  Were all horses that big?

  Jake Hunter swung down and leaned his forearm on the top rail of the fence even as he rested the toe of one battered boot on the bottom rung. Cassidy swallowed hard. Close up, he was even more intriguing.

  Black hair, mostly hidden beneath his hat, curled over the collar of his brown leather jacket. His eyes were so blue and so hard, they looked like chips of ice. Black beard stubble covered his jaws and his mouth was thinned into a straight line. His jeans were faded and worn, and over them, he wore a pair of soft, light brown chaps that seemed to hug what looked like very long, muscular legs.

  A swirl of something warm and intimate rushed through her and Cassidy took a deep, deliberate breath of the cold mountain air, hoping it would help. It really didn’t.

  “You’re not what I was expecting,” he said and his voice was a low rumble.

  She could have said, yeah, same to you. But she didn’t. This was ridiculous. She was here to do a job. This was her boss’s son for heaven’s sake, and standing there ogling him like an idiot was so not the kind of impression she had planned to make.

  “Well, I’m pleased to meet you anyway,” she finally said and held out one hand.

  He glanced at her outstretched palm for a long second or two, then reached through the fence and took her hand in his. An instant zing of electricity shot up her arm to settle in her chest and send her heartbeat into a wild, hard gallop. Oh my. Only here for ten minutes and I am using horse metaphors.

  Releasing her, Jake took off his hat and speared his fingers through his hair. Which only made things a little worse for Cassidy because really, did he have to have such beautiful, thick, shiny hair?

  “Mike!” His shout jolted her out of her thoughts, thank heaven. When another man answered, Jake called out, “Take care of Midnight, will you? I’ve got some business to see to.”

  “Sure thing, boss,” the man said.

  “Midnight’s your horse?”

  “That’s right,” Jake told her just before he climbed over the corral fence to jump to the ground right beside her.

  There went that little warm bubble of something dangerous, she thought and tried to get a grip. She was not the kind of woman to idly daydream about a gorgeous man. Usually. Jake Hunter seemed to be an exception. He was so tall, she felt dwarfed as he loomed over her, even counting her heels, which were now slipping farther and farther into the dirt.

  Frowning, he looked down, then met her eyes and asked, “You wore high heels? To a ranch?”

  “Is that a problem?”

  “Not for me.” A ghost of a smile curved his mouth so briefly, she couldn’t be sure it had actually been there at all. Then he turned and headed to the house.

  She watched him go, those long legs of his striding purposefully across the graveled drive. He never looked back. Didn’t bother to help her as his grandfather had. She opened her mouth to shout after him, but snapped it shut before she could. Fuming silently, Cassidy drew first one heel then the other out of the dirt and started clumsily to the ranch house. Her first impression had gone fabulously badly. Now he thought she was an idiot for not dressing appropriately.

  Well, that was fine, because she thought he was a troll for walking off and leaving her when he knew darn well that walking across that gravel in heels was practically a competitive sport. So much for those warm, intimate thoughts, she told herself. For a woman to have a decent fantasy going, the hero of said fantasy had to at least be civil.

  Which seemed like too much to expect from Jake Hunter.

  * * *

  Jake headed straight for the great room and the wet bar. Usually it would be too early to have a drink, but today was different. Today, he had looked into a pair of cool fog-gray eyes and felt a stirring of something he hadn’t even thought about in more than two years. Hell, if he’d had his way he never would have felt that deep-down heated tickle of anticipation again.

  The only other time he’d ever experienced anything like it had led to a marriage made in hell.

  “Good times,” he muttered, and tossed his hat to the nearest chair. He shot a quick look out the wide front windows to the sprawl of gravel and grass beyond the glass. Damn woman was still coming, heading to the house with short, wobbly steps that almost made him feel guilty for leaving her to manage on her own.

  Almost. Yeah, he could’ve helped her across the uneven ground, but he would have had to touch her and that buzz of something hot and complicated was still fresh enough in his mind that he didn’t want to risk repeating it.

  “I didn’t ask her to come here,” he whispered and poured a shot of Irish whiskey into a crystal tumbler. Lifting the glass, he drank that shot down in one gulp and let the fire in its wake burn away whatever he might have felt if he were any other man.

  His gaze fixed on her through the window. Behind her, the wide sky was filling with heavy gray clouds that could bring rain or snow. You just never knew in Montana. Wind lifted her dark blond hair off her shoulders and threw it into a wild halo around her head. Her short red jacket clung to impressive breasts and stopped right at her narrow waist. Her black slacks whipped in the wind, outlining her legs—short but definitely curvy—and those stupid high heels wobbled with every step.

  A city girl. Just like the last woman he’d allowed into his life. And even as his body felt interest surge, his mind shrieked for some semblance of sanity. Why in the hell would he let himself be interested in the same kind of woman who had carved out a chunk of his soul not so long ago?

  He thought about pouring another drink, then decided against it as his mother’s gofer finally made her way onto the porch steps and followed him into the house.

  “Mr. Hunter?”

  “In here.” He heard those heels first, tapping against the bamboo flooring, and as those relentless taps came closer, he stepped out from behind the oak bar to meet her.

  She p
aused in the open, arched doorway and he watched as her gaze swept the room. He saw the pleasure and the approval in her eyes and felt a quick jolt of pride. When he moved to the ranch permanently, he’d wanted to build a new, bigger ranch house. Something that would house the whole family when they came to visit. Something that would mark the land as his. He wanted this place stamped as his, and Jake’s grandfather had given him free rein.

  He’d done a good job on this house. He’d designed it himself, working with an architect to build just the right place—something that would look as though it had always been standing here, in the forest. He had wanted to bring the outdoors in and he had been pleased with the results.

  The support beams had been built to look like tree trunks. The windows between those beams showcased the lake below them and the miles of open country, forest and sky that made Montana the best place in the world to live. Dark brown leather couches and chairs were arranged around the huge open space, and a river-stone fireplace stood on the far wall, flames inside the hearth dancing and snapping as a sharp wind chased across the top of the chimney.

  “Wow,” she said, stepping slowly into the room. “Just...wow.”

  “Thanks.” He smiled in spite of everything, enjoying her reaction to the home he loved. “Pretty great, I admit.”

  “Oh,” she said, shaking her head as she turned in place, taking in everything, “it’s better than great. It’s so gorgeous I’m even going to forgive you for being a jerk and leaving me out there to make it into the house on my own.”

  Surprised, he snorted a laugh. “Jerk? Is that the way to talk to your boss’s son?”

  Cool gray eyes slid over him. “I have a feeling she wouldn’t blame me.”

  He thought about it, imagining his mother’s reaction to how he’d left her assistant standing in the yard, and had to wince. “No. Probably not.”

  “Is there some reason in particular that you’re not happy to see me?” she asked. “Or is it women in general you disapprove of?”

  One corner of Jake’s mouth quirked. “Let’s answer that with another question. Are you always this forthright?”

  “Usually,” she said, nodding. “But I probably shouldn’t be. So maybe we should consider ourselves on even ground and start over. Deal?”

  He looked at her for a long moment and tried not to notice that her eyes were the very color of the fog that lifted off the surface of the lake. Or that her hair looked soft and tumbled, as if she’d just rolled out of bed. Damn, it really had been too long since he’d had a woman.

  “All right,” he agreed, to end his train of thought before it went even more astray of the subject at hand. “Deal. Now, you’ve got some papers for me to look over and sign, correct?”

  “Yes. They’re in my bag in the car.”

  She actually turned as if to go lurching out across the gravel again to retrieve her bags. Jake stopped her by saying, “One of the guys will bring your stuff in. You’re probably beat from the flying and the drive up the mountain...”

  “Actually,” she admitted, “I would love a shower and change of clothes.”

  Oh, he wasn’t going to think about her in the shower. He’d been prepared for her to spend the night, though. It was a two-hour drive from the airport, and by the time he finished going over the papers before signing them it would be too dark for her to safely drive down the mountain. So she’d be here overnight and gone in the morning. The earlier the better.

  “My housekeeper has your room ready for you,” he said abruptly. Leading her across the room, he pointed to the staircase directly opposite the front door. “At the top of the stairs, turn right. Third door on your left.”

  “Okay,” she said, already heading for the stairs. “And thanks.”

  “Dinner’s at seven,” he told her. “So come down whenever you’re ready.”

  She laid one hand on the heavily carved banister and turned her head to spear him with one long look. “I’ll see you in an hour. We can go over the paperwork before dinner.”

  “Fine.” Good idea. Remember that this was all business. His mother hadn’t sent him a woman to warm his bed. She’d sent her assistant here to finally give Jake what he’d wanted for years. Freedom from the Hunter family conglomerate.

  Freedom to live his life the way he wanted.

  The fact that his mother’s messenger was more than he’d expected...well, that wouldn’t matter once she was gone.

  Two

  A few minutes later, Cassidy was trying to relax in a bedroom fit for a queen. She was tired, and she wanted a shower and something to eat. But first, she grabbed her cell phone and checked for coverage. Not surprising to find that she was good to go. Heck, Jake Hunter probably built his own cell tower on the mountain.

  Shaking her head, she hit speed dial and listened to the phone ring until her sister answered. “Hey, Claudia,” Cassidy said, smiling. “Just wanted to let you know I got here safely.”

  Her younger sister laughed. “Yeah, Montana’s not on the far side of the moon, so I figured you were okay when I didn’t hear any news about a plane crash.”

  “Ouch.” Cassidy plopped onto the edge of the bed and let her gaze wander around the bedroom she’d been given for the night.

  As spectacular as the rest of the house, the room was as large as her entire studio apartment back in Boston. And furnished better, she added silently. Again, there were floor-to-ceiling windows offering that tremendous view of water surrounded by pines bending and twisting in the wind. There were colorful rugs strewn across the gleaming wood floor, a fire burning cheerfully in the hearth and two overstuffed chairs pulled up in front of it, looking cozy enough to be on a Christmas card. On a narrow table against the wall sat a crystal decanter of what was probably brandy, considering the two bulbous glasses beside it. But there were also two bottles of wine. Red and white and accompanying glasses—which she would so take advantage of as soon as she was off the phone.

  The bed she sat on was huge and covered in a silky quilt in varying shades of green that made her think of the forest beyond the house. The mattress was so soft and welcoming, it practically begged to be napped on.

  “So how did your test go this morning?”

  “Aced it,” Claudia retorted quickly and then laughed with glee. “I’m going to be the best damn doctor in the country by the time I’m done!”

  “You will. And so humble, too,” Cassidy said, smiling at her sister’s enthusiasm. Since she was a child, Claudia had wanted to be a doctor, and now that she was taking premed at college, she was just unstoppable. Thanks to scholarships and the hefty salary Elise Hunter paid Cassidy, they wouldn’t have to worry about college expenses and Claudia could pursue her longtime dream.

  “So what’s it like in the Wild West?”

  Cassidy chuckled. “No stagecoach holdup if that’s what you mean. It really is gorgeous even though Elise’s son is kind of...” Hmm. How to explain that rush of attraction combined with the troll attitude?

  “Ooh,” her sister said, “I sense intrigue. Cass is interested in an actual living, breathing male.”

  “I’m not interested.” Okay, that was a lie, but she wouldn’t admit to it. Besides, interest and attraction were two different things, right? Interest would imply that she was looking at Jake Hunter as more than simply a great-looking man with a crappy attitude. Attraction was an involuntary biological imperative for the survival of the species and—oh for heaven’s sake, she sounded like one of Claudia’s professors.

  To her sister, she said, “I’m just here to get him to sign some papers and then first thing tomorrow I’m on a plane home again.”

  “Uh-huh. First thing tomorrow means you’ve still got all night tonight.”

  Yes, she did. Funny, but the thought of spending the night at the ranch hadn’t bothered her at all until she’d gotten her f
irst look at Jake. Now, it was different. That buzz of sensation she’d felt just shaking his hand left her feeling oddly off-balance and she didn’t really enjoy that at all. Not that she would tell Claudia any of this, of course.

  “Is there some reason my baby sister is trying to shove me at a man she’s never even met?” Cassidy scooted off the edge of the bed and walked across the room to the window.

  “Because my big sister has been living like a nun for way too long,” Claudia countered. “You haven’t been on a date in like forever. Do you even remember what fun is?”

  Stung, Cassidy dropped onto the window seat, leaned against the cold glass and said, “I have fun all the time.”

  “Doing what?”

  “I like my job—”

  “Work is not fun.”

  “Fine. Well, I went to the movies just...” She had to think about that, and when she realized how long ago it had actually been, her scowl deepened. “Fun is overrated.”

  “Uh-huh.” An all-too-familiar sigh of exaggerated patience sifted through the phone. “I’m all grown up now, Cass. You can stop throwing yourself on the altar of substitute motherhood.”

  Her gaze locked on that amazing view, Cassidy let her sister’s words rocket around her mind for a second or two before she said, “Claud, I never thought of it like that.”

  “Oh sweetie, I know.” Claudia sighed again. “Cass, you’ve been great. You’ve always been there for me but I’m grown now—”

  “Yes,” Cassidy interrupted wryly, “nineteen is practically aged.”

  “—and I’m in college,” Claudia went on as if her sister hadn’t said a word, “and you should really start concentrating on your own life.”

  “I have a life, thanks.”

  “You have work,” Claudia corrected. “And you have me. And Dave. But our brother’s married with kids of his own now.”

  True. It had been the three of them for so long, it was hard to realize that her younger brother and sister were grown and didn’t need her hovering all the time as they used to. Especially Claudia. She had been only ten years old when their mother decided to follow her current “soul mate” into the sunset. So at nineteen, Cassidy had taken over. She’d been both mother and father—since their illustrious sperm donor parent had disappeared shortly after Claudia’s birth—and if she had to say so herself, Cassidy had done a great job of parenting. Maybe that was why it was so hard to stop.