Best of Cowboys Bundle

by Vicki Lewis Thompson, Barbara White Daille, Judy Christenberry, Christine Wenger, Shirley Rogers, Crystal Green, Nina Bruhns, Candance Schuler, Carole Mortimer

  He tweaked his hat with his thumb and index finger. “Cowboy beefcake shots?”

  If she lived to be a hundred, she’d never forget the way Buck took his shirt off. The knowing smile, the tease in his eyes, his big, rough, sun-darkened hands dislodging the white buttons that seemed too tiny for such big fingers.

  He pulled the shirt out of his jeans and her breath caught. With several more flicks of buttons, it hung loosely at his sides.

  “Gee, it’s hot out here,” she blurted, before she could stop herself.

  “It’s the desert.”

  She smiled at his old standby saying, trying to look casual. She tried to make herself look away, but this was something she wanted to remember long into those cold, lonely Boston nights.

  “There’s a hose in the garden,” he said.

  “For what?”

  “I thought you wanted to spray me with water.” His eyes sparked in amusement. He seemed to be enjoying this, or at least her discomfort.

  Trying to control her breathing, she waited for what he was going to do next.

  In one smooth movement, the shirt was off and he tossed it toward the fence. It hung over the rail neatly like a blue flag.

  “Maybe the hose isn’t really necessary,” she said weakly.

  “Whatever you say, but if you’ll give me a couple of minutes and let me muck the stalls like I need to do, I can work up the genuine article in no time…real cowboy sweat.”

  Merry could feel her blood running hot through her veins. Buck was teasing her, and he knew exactly how he was affecting her.

  She’d better get her mind back on business. She’d worked on shoots with male models a million times before, and she never usually blinked an eye.

  But none of them were Buck.

  He cleared his throat. He was standing with his hands on hips. She looked at his wide chest, his washboard stomach and muscular biceps. She wanted to run her hands over the smooth muscles of his chest and arms, wanted to know if his skin was as warm as she knew it’d be under the desert sun.

  Whew!

  She glanced down at the clipboard in front of her. It just had a smattering of notes, but her eyes couldn’t focus.

  It sure was hot in the desert.

  Buck watched as Merry fussed with setting the old picnic table under the cottonwood tree. Even he could tell that the little touches she added to the picture portrayed the essence of the ranch.

  She used a serape as a tablecloth, his mother’s dishes, and the way she positioned the Pima blankets and pottery was something his mother might have done.

  Tim kept his camera clicking from all angles. First, he had to stare at the mountains, holding a pitchfork over some hay. Then he had to stand with a saddle slung over his shoulder.

  Merry had made a pot of chili and some corn bread for the table display and he had to admit that it smelled good enough to eat. She directed Tim to make sure that he captured the steam that came from the pot in his pictures. Then she said it was time for Buzz to film as they walked the grounds and talked.

  She was damn easy to talk to. They leaned against the corral and he talked about the ranch. Then against the porch railing and told her how he wanted to buy some rodeo stock. On another occasion, they sat in front of the beehive fireplace, and he told her the story about the day that he and his dad designed it and then made it. Then they walked around the barn.

  Finally, they were done. Merry suggested that they invite the ranch hands over to eat the “props.”

  So Cookie and the rest of the boys came running. Buck wasn’t getting any work out of them, anyway, since they were too busy watching. They might as well eat and be in Tim’s pictures and Buzz’s movie.

  “What’s different about this chili?” Buck finally asked Merry after his third bowl. “I can’t put my finger on it.”

  “It’s turkey chili. I found a turkey breast in the freezer and—”

  “Turkey?” Buck almost choked. “I’m a cattle rancher! Cattle. That means beef. Chili is made with beef.”

  The ranch hands laughed, with Ty laughing the loudest, but they didn’t stop eating.

  “But turkey is lower in fat and cholesterol,” Merry argued.

  He noticed Cait actually smiling.

  “Low-fat turkey chili,” he said to her, crossing his eyes. “Can you believe that, Cait?” He shook his head.

  He twirled one of Cait’s ponytails like a jump rope, and she didn’t pull away from him. A little laugh escaped her throat. Finally, a happy sound from his little girl!

  “Gobble…gobble,” mocked Ty.

  Cait actually giggled. He hadn’t heard her do that since her mother had left.

  Wanting to share his happiness with Merry, he looked over at her and noticed she wasn’t laughing with them. Her shoulders were slumped and her eyes were lowered. He hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings—it was all for Cait’s sake.

  But damn, turkey chili?

  He had the urge to get Merry away from all this Hollywood stuff and talk to her in private. He wanted to thank her for all she had been doing for Cait, and to tell her that he was only joking about her food.

  He needed to sit for a while on the bank of the Rattlesnake. That’s where he did his best thinking.

  He looked at Caitlin. Whatever light had entered her eyes was now gone. She’d withdrawn once again.

  His gut churned and he excused himself from the table. He walked into the barn and saddled Bandit.

  As far as he was concerned, he had done all the modeling that he was going to.

  Chapter Eight

  H e’d just mounted Bandit when Merry walked into the barn. “Buck?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I didn’t think about the turkey. I—I—”

  “Don’t apologize. I was kidding. Cait made a little noise like she was going to laugh, and I hoped to get more out of her. She actually smiled, Merry. That meant a lot to me, but I’m sorry it was at your expense.” Bandit walked closer to Merry, and Buck reined him back. “Hey, do they need you anymore?”

  “I guess we’re done.”

  He kicked off a stirrup, leaned over and offered his hand to Merry.

  She hesitated, confused, but he could tell the exact second when she understood what he couldn’t form into words.

  She put her foot in the stirrup, and he swung her up behind him.

  Her arms went around him naturally and he could hear her heavy breathing. This was no doubt her first time on a horse, and she probably was scared.

  “Relax, Merry,” he said. “Just relax. I won’t let you fall. Put your arms around me and hold on.”

  He nudged Bandit forward, out the barn door and over to the table where everyone was still sitting. “Ty, would you mind keeping an eye on Caitlin?”

  Ty raised both eyebrows. “Sure. No problem, big brother.”

  He noticed Cookie grinning. Some of the other boys whistled. Joanne, Merry’s publicist, looked mortified. Tim grabbed his camera and started flashing. Buzz had his movie camera trained on them.

  Buck trotted the big horse for a while, then slowed him down to a walk. Neither he nor Merry said a word until they reached the bank of the Rattlesnake.

  He could have gone on forever with Merry’s arms around his waist and her breasts pressing against his back. She was as stiff as steel at first, but he could tell when she finally started to relax and enjoy the ride.

  A few days ago, he had wanted nothing more than to put her back on the plane to Boston. Now he was thinking that he wanted her to stay awhile.

  “Whoa, Bandit,” he said.

  The horse stopped and immediately dipped his head to the thick green grass along the riverbank. Bandit liked it here as much as he did.

  Buck never tired of the glittering river that snaked through the ranch. It was his little oasis in the desert. A place where he could just lie in the sweet-smelling grass and watch the clouds go by. A place where he had fond memories of a happy, carefree childhood spent with his family.

&n
bsp; Yet it was a place where his dreams never materialized. He’d always dreamed of building a place of his own by the river. He’d wanted to see a half dozen of his kids fish and swim in the sparkling, clear water; ride their horses and laugh like kids should.

  But it just wasn’t in the cards for him.

  Twisting in the saddle, he was just about to help Merry off, when she mumbled, “I can do it,” and proceeded to fall in a heap on the ground.

  Quickly, he swung off Bandit to help her up. “Shoot, Merry. Why didn’t you wait for me? Are you hurt?” He ran his hands over her ankles.

  “I’m perfectly fine,” she said. “It’s not your fault, my butt fell asleep, and I think my legs did, too. Just give me a minute.”

  Her khaki pants were stained from the grass and her pretty pink blouse was wrinkled. She’d lost a sandal, and her golden hair was mussed.

  She was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.

  She pulled her hands up from the grass and looked around. “Are there snakes around here?”

  “If there are, we probably scared them off by now.”

  That seemed to satisfy Merry, probably until she had time to think about it.

  “What a gorgeous setting,” she said, looking out at the river.

  “This is one of my favorite spots on the ranch. I come here to think. I’d miss it like hell if I had to sell it for a golf course and condos or whatever Russ Pardee, my less-than-neighborly neighbor, wants to do with it.”

  He helped her up. She was still wobbly, so it seemed natural to wrap his arms around her and hold her close.

  She smelled of expensive perfume, coconut shampoo and fresh air. He looked down into her emerald eyes and at her perfect lips. He wanted to kiss her, to taste her.

  So he did.

  His lips met hers, gently at first. Then when Merry seemed willing, he deepened the kiss. Her lips parted with a soft moan. He heard her sharp intake of breath, then she leaned into him, running her fingers through his hair, knocking his hat off.

  He kissed her again, harder, slanting his mouth against hers. He felt like he just found an oasis in the desert, a lifeline in a storm. His body hummed with the long-forgotten feelings of a sexual rush, and he wanted more—much more.

  “Buck,” she breathed, but it seemed more like a warning, instead of consent. Her eyes fluttered open, and she looked ready to bolt.

  He knew the moment was over. She had come to her senses and remembered that he was a cattle rancher and not someone who ran in her society circle.

  Try as he might, Buck couldn’t see Merry ever being happy on the ranch.

  He wasn’t stupid. There was no doubt in his mind that Merry would bolt like the other females he fell for. It was just as well she’d stopped him, or he would have made love to her right on the bank of the river.

  She looked at him as if she wanted to say something, then turned and walked toward the water, ever watchful for snakes or whatever else she might want to be rid of, including a long, tall cowboy from the Rattlesnake Ranch.

  Buck’s kisses sent Merry’s senses to heaven and back, and if her heart rate didn’t calm, she was going to have a heart attack right here and now and tumble into the sparkling river. Her body would float clear down to Mexico. No doubt Joanne would think of an attention-getting press release: Meredith Bingham Turner Accidentally Falls Into River While Picking Southwestern Herbs For a Special Dish.

  No other man’s kisses had affected her like Buck’s just had. The power of her reaction shocked her. She was shaking and she could hardly stand, could still taste him on her lips. In another second she would have been tearing at his clothes to touch his warm, tanned skin. In spite of everything she’d said about not getting involved with men, she’d wanted him.

  But why was she so attracted to Buck?

  Maybe it was because he didn’t seem to want anything from her, at least not that she could tell. Actually, he wanted her to go home and not touch his ranch.

  But what did she really know about him? She knew he cared for his siblings. He worked hard and was very proud of his ranch. She liked the way he filled out his jeans—and how he had looked with his shirt off. She liked his sense of humor, how he kept trying to win over Cait. She liked a lot of things about him.

  And Merry knew she would have found out a lot more if she’d let their kisses run their natural course.

  She wanted him.

  But she couldn’t have him.

  She had to constantly worry about the press, more now than ever. Right now her publicity machine was cranking out stories to deflect the George situation. She’d seem too flighty if she were photographed with yet another man.

  She couldn’t deny that she was attracted to Buck, but she was realistic enough to know they had no future together. She had a job to do and a business to run.

  He belonged in the rugged, untamed desert.

  She belonged in Boston.

  She walked over to where he was sitting, and he looked up but didn’t smile.

  “I shouldn’t have kissed you.”

  She had thought that she’d be the one to regret their kisses, but she didn’t. It saddened her that he did.

  “Why not?” she asked.

  He hesitated, then answered slowly, as if he were trying to come up with a suitable explanation. “You’re a good friend of my sister, and I don’t want you to think that it could lead to anything more.”

  “More?”

  “Like anything long-term, if that’s what you’re looking for. We’re just too different, and you’ll be going back to Boston soon and your TV show and all.”

  “That didn’t seem to bother you a minute ago.”

  “Didn’t think of it a minute ago. I had other things on my mind.”

  “Like what?”

  “The ranch, Caitlin, Karen, bills, wondering if I should sell this parcel or not—the usual things I think about. And you.”

  “So now I’m complicating things more?” she asked, holding her breath. “Why?”

  “Because I want to make love to you.”

  She let her breath out in a big sigh.

  “And I think you want the same thing,” he added. “Am I wrong?”

  She sat down next to him and stared at the glittering water going by. “That’s complicated to answer.”

  “So, I’m complicating things for you, too?”

  How could she answer him? He was right. She did want to make love with him. She’d been hot for him ever since she saw him riding toward her on Bandit. But there was her image to consider and the fact that she’d be leaving soon. They were worlds apart—Boston and Lizard Rock.

  She wasn’t the type to sleep around, either, no matter what the press thought.

  His blue eyes looked up at her, and she couldn’t help thinking of what a physical relationship with Buck would be like. Would he kiss and tell, too?

  Buck certainly wasn’t like that. Then again, that’s what she’d thought about George Lynch.

  Would she ever trust anyone again?

  Her emotions were churning. There was something about Buck—something warm and kind, yet battered and bruised. He was trying to push on in spite of the obstacles that were thrown in his path. In that way, they were two of a kind.

  “I think it’s better that we don’t get involved,” she finally said.

  “You can’t deny that you aren’t interested in me.”

  “I—I—” Feeling her cheeks flame, she just couldn’t admit how attracted she was to him. “Don’t flatter yourself, Bucklin Floyd Porter.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “I must have misunderstood your interest, then.”

  No. You didn’t.

  “Back in Boston a man wouldn’t be as blunt as you. There’d be flowers and dates and some flirting and then…”

  “And then he’d finally get you into bed. We don’t have the time for all that. If you’re willing, let’s cut right to the best part with no strings attached.”

  He smiled. It was a charmin
g smile, a mischievous smile. When he added a wink, she decided he was kidding, just like he was about the turkey chili.

  He held out his hand to her, and she took it and sat next to him on the grass.

  “Buck, it was just a couple of kisses. It was no big deal.”

  He put a hand over his heart. “Ouch. That’s a blow to my masculinity.”

  She chuckled. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

  “So let’s change the subject.” He pointed toward her feet and her sexy sandals. “I’d like you to wear cowboy boots around here instead of those little leather things. It’s for your own safety.”

  She should be flattered that he cared, but he was probably worried that Karen would kill him if she died from a snake bite.

  “I don’t have any cowboy boots.”

  “On our way to the hospital tonight, I’ll take you to the feed store. They sell boots.”

  She had to laugh. She couldn’t help herself. Shopping for boots at a feed store? What a far cry from Boston.

  “I know it’s not what you’re used to, but—”

  She laid a hand on his arm, and felt him tense, so she removed it quickly. “You’re right. It’s not what I’m used to, but that’s okay.”

  “But this is—”

  “The desert. I know.”

  She looked around at the beautiful landscape, ripe with wildflowers. It was so different from the cement and high-rises of Boston. “Buck, tell me what it was like living on the ranch and having a large family.”

  He nodded, then focused on the glittering river meandering by as if he were going back in time.

  “It was wonderful—everything a kid would want. Horses to ride, tractors to drive, roundups in the spring. What exactly do you want to know?”

  “Whatever you want to tell me.”

  He leaned back on his elbows. “We all worked hard together, but there was always time for fun. We each got a pony of our own when we were old enough to sit in the saddle. My grandfather insisted on it. Gramps lived with us for a long time after my grandmother died. He was quite the character.”

  “That must have been fun. I never knew my grandparents.”

  “He gave me a Harley Panhead when I turned sixteen. It was the best present I ever received, bar none. Every day after school, I rushed through my chores. Then I’d hop on it and tear up the desert until the bell rang for supper.”