Phone still at his ear, his brows dipped. “How’s that?”
“You let me get up. Let me get on the horse. Then wait for me to ride away before turning that horse-spooking Honda back on.”
“It’s a Harley. I’m sorry about the horse, but I’d still like you to stay put until a professional sees you.”
Now that she was sitting upright and breathing easier, she took a moment to look at the leather-clad stranger. Not exactly a suit of armor, though he certainly had a streak of male chivalry suitable for a knight rescuing a damsel in distress. That was, if she were in distress. “I’m fine. If it makes you feel any better I promise to call my cousin myself and let him know what happened as soon as I get home.”
The stranger pulled the phone away from his ear and stared down at it. “Doesn’t look like I’m going to reach anyone this way.” He dropped it into a breast pocket and looked around as though wishing a car to amble by.
“You are stubborn, aren’t you?”
A shock of surprise flashed across his face. “Let’s just say this isn’t sitting well with me.”
None of this was sitting all that well with her either. “Okay.” She shoved her hands down on the ground and pushed upright. “Enough is enough.” No sooner had she straightened than the ground shifted beneath her.
“Whoa.” Stretching forward, strong hands gently grabbed her arms. “See? And unfortunately, putting you on the back of the bike isn’t going to be any better than you riding that horse off into the sunset. How far are we from town?”
“You mean the way the crow flies?”
“That far?” He ran one hand roughly across the back of his neck.
She dared a nod, relieved the knot at the back of her head hadn’t objected, and the ground beneath her saw fit to remain stable. “Yes, and you can let go of me now. The world has stopped spinning.”
By now Starburst had made her way over and was gently sniffing at Hannah’s shoulder. “Sorry, girl. Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Scare her?” The stranger’s eyes rounded.
Hannah scratched under Starburst’s jaw and took in the animal’s unexpectedly calm demeanor. “Maybe you’ll work out after all,” she cooed, “as long as we keep you away from two-wheelers.” She lifted her gaze to meet both the cause of her current dilemma as well as her rescuer. “I promise I will be fine but I do need to head back or people are going to start to wonder if I decided to ride all the way to Dallas.”
“If you insist on riding home, I’ll follow you.” The way he looked from her to the saddle and back with such concern in his eyes, she couldn’t very well say no.
“Fine.” Moving in front of the saddle she lifted one foot into the stirrup, grabbed hold of the saddle horn, and just as she started to pull up stars danced in front of the horizon. Prepared to land once again flat on her back, instead she found herself cradled in the stranger’s arms.
His dark eyes were heavy with concern. “I’m still not so sure about this idea of yours.”
To tell the truth she was starting to have some doubts herself, but there weren’t a whole lot of choices because she sure as hell wasn’t going to get on the backend of that motorcycle, nor was she willing to leave Starburst standing in the field by herself. The only choice she had was to pull up her big girl panties and get herself home, but first she’d have to extricate herself from this man’s arms and prove she could stand on her own two feet. “You can put me down now.”
Of all the possible thoughts crossing his mind, cooperation didn’t appear to be one of them. For just a moment or two she thought he might actually refuse and simply carry her all the way home. Another long pause hung between them before he slid one hand out from under her, letting her feet touch the ground, then cautiously eased the other hand away as well. Taking in a deep breath, she stuck her foot in the stirrup to climb up again, only this time his hands were at her side just in case.
Swinging her leg over, she straightened in the seat and blew out a grateful breath, relieved to be perfectly balanced. “Better give me a head start. I don’t need Starburst spooking again. When I’m almost out of your sight it’ll probably be safe for you to start that contraption up. Agreed?”
Another moment of hesitation passed but he had to be as aware as she was that they had little other choice. “Agreed.”
Grabbing hold of the reins she tugged left, turning Starburst in the direction of the ranch. The unexpected and almost absurd encounter had her glancing around looking for any sign of a mysterious dog. Nothing in sight. Too bad. Would’ve made one hell of a story to tell her grandchildren.
****
There wasn’t a single thing about the unfolding scenario that rubbed Dale the right way. He felt terrible if it had indeed been his motorcycle that spooked the horse, but he couldn’t help but think horses shouldn’t spook that easily. Then again, what made him an expert on horses?
Waiting longer than he would have liked, and not nearly as long as he probably should have, he knocked the kickstand up and gave the engine a start. The Harley beneath him roared to life. Maybe he really should’ve just gone east on I-20. Keeping her figure ahead in his sights, he shook his head. Or not.
Riding slower than he’d ever gone on a motorcycle in his entire life, including when he learned how to ride one in the first place, he followed behind the young lady at a safe distance. More than once he’d been tempted to inch up a little closer, but fear of watching her fly off the horse again kept his impatience at bay. Sort of.
The fence along the side of the road shifted to whitewashed wood that blended easily into a large stone wall under an impressive metal archway. Capaill. Most likely the tiny house in the distance wouldn’t be so tiny once they pulled up closer. If he remained by the gate he could see that she made it inside. The fewer people he dealt with the better, but there was no way he could drive off without seeing that she was safe. And personally, handing her to… Who? He hadn’t even gotten her name. Didn’t know if she lived alone, with a husband, with her parents, or the doctor cousin that she promised to call.
Once she’d stepped onto the front porch, he picked up speed to arrive more quickly, but not so fast as to spook the horse again. Just because she was no longer in the saddle didn’t mean that he wanted to upset the animal. He was nearly to the front of the house before cutting the engine and walking the rest of the way in.
The gal had spunk. Arms crossed and toe tapping, she greeted him. “As you can see I made it home just fine.”
The front door opened wide behind her and a tall dark-haired man with an air of familiarity stood filling the doorway. “We were starting to wonder if we should send out a search party.” The man’s eyes drifted to the bike and then back to the woman. “I see you’ve made a friend.”
“Yes. Connor, this is…” Her words trailed off as she pointed at him. “So much for southern hospitality. I don’t even know your name.”
“Da…vid at your service, ma’am.” The fake name was improvisation, but the polite exchange left him with an inexplicable urge to click his heels and bow at the waist. How stupid would that have looked?
Arm extended, his damsel in distress smiled. “Nice to meet you, David. I’m Hannah.”
“Connor Farraday.” In turn, the man on the porch extended his hand.
Farraday? So he’d reached Farraday country. Of course. The doctor cousin—Brooks. Now it all made sense. “You may want to have a doctor take a quick look. She fell off her horse.”
“You what?” Connor’s head whipped around in Hannah’s direction, his alarmed gaze scanned her quickly from top to toe.
“This isn’t the first, nor will it be the last time my derrière has hit the ground.”
Connor turned to face him. “She does have a point. But look at us standing here on the porch like a couple of city folk. Please come in. I’ll get my wife.”
Dale wasn’t in a hurry exactly, so there was no reason to object, but somehow he felt this wasn’t his decision. Meeting Hannah
’s gaze, he waited a second for her to nod slowly before raising her hand to the back of her neck.
“Let me see.” Without waiting for approval, he took a step closer and stretching out his arm, placed his hand beside hers, gently touching the affected area. “You’ve got a nice bump there. Better get some ice for that while we wait for the doctor.”
“Doctor?” An attractive redhead now stood in the doorway where Connor had been moments before. “Are you okay?”
Hannah rolled her eyes and blew out an exasperated breath. “Oh brother. It’s just a bump on the head.”
Panic quickly filled the redhead’s eyes. “Head? Connor’s on the phone with Brooks. I suspect he’ll be here very quickly. In the meantime we’d better get you inside and off your feet.” As an afterthought, she turned and looked at him over her shoulder. “Are you hurt too?”
“No, ma’am. You might say I’m the reason she fell off her horse.”
Confusion mangled with distrust stared back at him.
“What he means is,” Hannah drew the redhead’s attention away from him, “the sound of his motorcycle spooked Starburst. She bucked like a bronc and sent me flying.”
“I see,” she said cautiously. “And it’s Catherine, not ma’am.” A curly haired little girl came running up to them, stopping short at the sofa. Her inquisitive little gaze transferred from the redhead to Hannah to him and back. “Are you sick, Aunt Hannah?”
Smart kid.
“No, sweetie. I’m just fine.”
He noticed she failed to mention falling off the horse, and the redhead didn’t add to it.
“Is Starburst okay?” the little girl asked.
“Yes, she is. But I bet she’d like a treat from her favorite girl.”
The little girl beamed up at them, nodded, and spun about, running in the direction she’d come from, calling out, “Daddy, I need a carrot for Starburst.”
“Hold up there.” Connor nearly collided with the child. “She’s out front still. Get a carrot from the fridge and take it to her. I’ll be out soon and we’ll take her back to the barn and clean her up.”
Still grinning, the little girl nodded and rushed past her father into what he could only guess was the kitchen. Hannah dropped gingerly onto the sofa, the muffled sound of movement drifted in from the kitchen and before anyone moved, the little girl came rushing back in, waving a carrot, and hurried out the front door without a word.
The redhead winced as the little girl slammed the door shut behind her and turned to Connor. “Do you think there will ever be a day when I’m not worried about Stacey and the horses?”
“Deep down,” Connor smiled at his wife, “we all worry just a tiny bit about everything our children do out of our sight.”
The redhead smiled back at him. “I suppose you’re right. Soon it’ll be boys then cars that make me nervous.”
“You mean cars, then college, then work, then boys. Because we all know she’s not dating till she’s thirty five,” Connor deadpanned.
The words may have been said as a joke, but Dale knew deep down, there was probably more truth than jest in the father’s statement.
“Did you get a hold of Brooks?” Catherine asked.
“He and Toni are actually already on their way to the ranch to pick up some pans Toni needs to borrow from Aunt Eileen. Apparently she’s in baking overload. He’ll be stopping here first.”
“Ah, nesting,” Connor’s wife confirmed.
“Yeah, well, soon Brooks will tell you I’m just fine and everything can get back to normal around here.” Lifting her hand halfway to the knot on her head, Hannah seemed to think better and dropped her arm to her side.
“It might be a good idea to give her a bag of ice for that bump she’s got. My guess is it’s going to be a real goose egg, which is way better than a hematoma, but she might want a couple of aspirins to go with the ice pack.”
“I’ll get it.” The redhead turned to face him. “I’m sorry, where are my manners? Can I get you something to drink while I’m in the kitchen?”
“No, thank you, ma’am. Just passing through. I won’t be here that long.” There was at least one thing he was sure of—it was in everyone’s best interest for him to keep moving.
CHAPTER THREE
“It’ll take a lot more than a bump on the head to take down a Farraday.” Brooks Farraday stuffed his stethoscope into his bag.
“Told ya.” Hannah flashed her cousin a toothy grin. The way this family was fussing about, you’d think she’d never been around a horse in her life. Every single member of the Farraday clan had fallen off a horse more times than they could count on both their hands and feet. Well maybe at least both their hands. Why they were making such a fuss now she had no idea.
“At least you can give her a ride back to the ranch.” Catherine shifted her attention from Brooks to the guest still in the living room. “And I’m sure Aunt Eileen will want to thank you for watching out for Hannah. It’s getting close to supper and she’s probably cooked enough for an army.”
“I’d say more than just the Army. Throw in the Navy and the Marine Corps too.” Normally Hannah would’ve been just as glad to get rid of this guy. Put the whole incident behind her. Certainly not give her aunt any more excuses to worry about her. But for some reason, Hannah liked the idea of getting to know a little bit more about this stranger besides his first name.
Now that she had a chance to sit and look him over, she realized she must have been hit harder in the head than she’d thought. That was the only possible explanation for not spotting those twinkling caramel eyes right off the bat. Not to mention the guy was built like a man who knew his way around hard work. Or a gym. Or perhaps both.
“Absolutely.” Toni sat beside Hannah, waiting with baited breath for her husband’s conclusions. “Aunt Eileen will be annoyed with all of us if we let you get away without at least feeding you.”
“That won’t be necessary.” David briefly flashed a tired smile.
Hannah hadn’t given it any thought, but he’d probably ridden a long while, which would explain why he’d been standing by the side of the road. Finding her sprawled out in the middle of the field probably had taken its toll on him as well. “Have you got a place to stay tonight? We have plenty of guest rooms.”
The varied reactions in the room to her suggestion almost made her laugh. Toni patted her leg as though it had been a brilliant idea. Catherine cast a glance at the stranger again and gave an almost unnoticeable shrug. Brooks on the other hand looked like an owl with his claw stuck in an electric socket. She wasn’t sure if David noticed or not, but she thought she saw the corner of his lip twitch with the hint of amusement.
“That’s very thoughtful of you, but there’s no need. I’m heading to a bed and breakfast in Tuckers Bluff that looks like a good spot to bunk for the night.”
“Meg’s place,” Catherine said enthusiastically.
“Meg?”
“She’s married to my cousin Adam.” Hannah pushed to her feet. “I say we debate this over supper. I’m hungry, I’m tired, and did I mention I’m hungry?”
Brooks shook his head. “Tell us something we don’t already know. Are you ever not hungry?”
This time David definitely smiled. A killer smile. “I should really,” his words caught as he stood from the old recliner, rubbing his thigh and grimacing, “be on my way.”
Frowning, Brooks moved toward him. “Cramps?”
“No. Just stiff.”
“How long were you on the bike?”
David straightened into his full height and pressing his lips tightly together, stretched his back before retreating a step. “Not long. A couple of hours. Maybe three. Maybe more.”
“More?” Brooks’ gaze narrowed, focusing more intently on the man in front of him. “Where’d you come from?”
“East.”
The crevice in Brooks’ forehead deepened. “I see.”
Hannah had to agree with what she knew was running through he
r cousin’s mind. East was an awfully vague answer. Especially since more than half the country was east of West Texas. “Sounds like a walk to stretch your legs and loosen your back would do you some good. If you join us for supper, maybe the doc here can give you some exercises to help ease the discomfort.”
“You probably know just as much about that as I do.” Brooks flashed her a bright smile.
David’s hands fell quickly to his sides. “You a physical therapist?”
“Not even close. Equine assisted therapist. As a matter of fact, if the doctor says it’s okay, and you’re sticking around a while, a little time on the horse could help strengthen your back.”
David shook his head. “Just a little stiff. Besides, that kind of therapy would take a lot more time than I have to spare.” Almost as if trying to soften the blow of the rejection, he flashed her a bright grin.
“You can leave the motorcycle here,” Catherine offered. “It will be more comfortable riding over to the ranch in the Suburban.”
“That won’t be—”
“Bike will be waiting here after dinner. By then you should be up to the ride into town.” Catherine turned to the rest of the family. “All right, let’s get moving. Now we’re all hungry.” She waved her arms, encouraging everybody to move forward. Without an argument from anyone, the adults fell into a single file line out the door.
Falling in line behind Catherine, Hannah leaned into her in-law’s side, lowering her voice. “You handled that just like Aunt Eileen.”
Catherine beamed at her, a slow steady smile spreading across her face. “I did, didn’t I?”
“Yeah, you did.” Following their guest to Brooks’ Suburban, Hannah swallowed a smile of her own. Life in West Texas Farraday country sure was turning out to be a hell of a lot more interesting than she’d ever imagined.
****
In only a few hours the picture of the Farraday family had become very clear in Dale’s mind. He couldn’t have been in the house more than fifteen minutes before Aunt Eileen had him relaxed on a recliner with a heating pad behind his back. Once assured that Dale wasn’t on any additional medication, she’d insisted he have one beer. Thirty minutes later she had him up walking around the room stretching before letting him sit back down with the heating pad again. His brief stint at the hospital hadn’t come close to the care this woman was giving him.
Farraday Country Page 2