A Cowboy For Christmas (3 page)

Her head turned. When her
gaze locked with his, the truck cab grew suddenly smaller. Talk
about one determined lady.

He saw her Nez Pierce
heritage in her high, proud cheekbones and skin the color of red
baked clay. She had a face someone could stare at for
hours.

But not him.
Right?

Brent knew she had her own
agenda, not a relationship, on her mind. Well, she wasn’t the only
one.

Chapter Two

“
So this is the reality
behind the mystery,” she said as she threw another shovel of dirty
hay, and then watched her breath puff away in the frigid evening
air.
Smelly
cold
air, since it carried the smell of the animal’s waste.

“
What’s that?” Brent’s face
came into view over the wall that separated the stalls they worked
in. “What mystery?”

“
I’ve just never seen
cowboys in movies doing this stuff.” Although, she didn’t remember
watching too many westerns.

“
Mucking stalls is
mysterious? So, what do you know about horse breeding?” He went
back to work, but she saw his smile before his face
disappeared.

“
Stop right there. I’ll
stick to this for now.” She liked his smile. That friendly smile
shocked her. He had a cleft chin, something she liked in men, back
when she was interested in them. The only thing she wanted with
Brent was friendship, and a working partnership.

Working was the operative
word. They’d been busy all day. Here it was evening already, and
they were still cleaning horse stalls. He’d told her they wouldn’t
normally do this so late, but he’d spent the day showing her
around.

At least they’d formed an
unspoken truce and found a way to work together. His remarks
weren’t as cutting as when they’d first met.

She rested her shovel on
the ground for a minute to rub the small of her back. All this work
had almost been worth the view of him on a horse
yesterday.

Tall and long and wearing
his cowboy hat. She’d gawked at him from around a corner, amazed by
his control and grace as he moved around the corral. She liked how
he held his back straight when he rode.

“
Did you read those books I
suggested?” he asked while he worked. Hello reality, she chided
herself.

“
Yup.” All that knowledge
sure did help with this particular job, too.

“
Ready to try riding
tomorrow?”

She popped up this time to
look at him. “Riding horses?”

Straightening, he turned to
look at her. “No, a four-wheeler,” he said with a forced serious
face.

She huffed at him and
finished her job, betting he smiled now that she wasn’t watching
him. She needed a hot shower to warm her up, a good dinner, and a
good book to read.

Her body wasn’t used to
this kind of work, but she welcomed the experience. She also liked
how busy it kept her. And boy, did he keep her busy. Not only did
he work her till the daylight faded - around five o’clock thanks to
old man winter - but he kept her mind busy with fantasies of what
his lean body could do for her.

Not that she’d ever let
that happen, but he was just too incredible. Too hot. He looked
like he would know just what to do and where to do it.
Missy!
Cool it. She
needed to get out of there before she moaned at her
thoughts.

“
Okay, I’m done here,” she
said with finality in case he had some other chore in mind. Since
he wasn’t finished, she watched him work for a minute, expecting
some kind of answer.

Good thing he wasn’t
interested in women, because he could seduce her if he had the
right personality. Nice long legs, nice butt. She was more of a
face person, and he had one great face. Long and narrow. Startling
eyes in a unique blue color. She liked his sandy hair and secretive
expression, too. He often got a gleam in his eyes that dared her to
break him.

“
Missy,” he said as he set
aside his shovel. He leaned against a rail to wipe his brow with
the long sleeve of his shirt. “Are you settled in?”

Thinking of the messy cabin
she now called home, she said, “I thought you didn’t want me to
stick around.”

“
No need for you to be
uncomfortable while you’re here.”

“
But it won’t be long,
right?” Shocked at herself, she took a step toward the
door.

“
Hey, just trying to be
nice.” He looked perplexed, maybe even annoyed at her. He had one
eyebrow lower than the other in what she already recognized as his
scowl.

“
You’re right. We don’t
need to be so mean to each other. I’m used to competing with
everyone around me.” She wanted to rub her sore shoulders, but she
couldn’t let herself in front of him. “Yes, I’m settled in some.
See you tomorrow, Brent.”

Touching his hat, he
called, “Your first riding lesson.”

She couldn’t wait, she
thought, but she stopped by the doors and turned. Maybe she could
try acting human for a minute. “I’m sorry about Ben, that you lost
a good friend.”

That shouldn’t have been so
hard, or taken her so long, but she felt her nerves act up while he
stared at her.

“
Thanks, goodnight.” He
turned away, moving onto another task. She felt uneasy as she left,
wondering how he was dealing with the loss.

The night seemed more black
than any other night of her life. The ever present clouds blocked
the moon and starlight, while sending the thinnest ocean mist into
the air. The place was majestic, she had to give it that. Not
anything like the small, dry town where she grew up in Nevada.
Wouldn’t Brent laugh if he knew she wasn’t the city girl she
looked?

She’d even caught herself
slipping into the easy talk she’d worked so hard to remove from her
speech. After hiding her past for so long, it baffled her that she
wanted Brent to know. She didn’t like him thinking she was some
snob who looked down at his country lifestyle.

But why did she
care?

She walked on the road back
to Ben’s place, thankful for the pole lights at the edge of the
corral. She quickened her pace, pushing her hands down into her
coat pockets.

“
Missy!” She heard his
footsteps crunching on the gravel as he ran toward her. She turned
and waited for him to catch up. Those long legs could move,
couldn’t they? Her body tingled even while she cursed
it.

“
Is everything okay?” she
asked and tried her hardest to hide her relief at seeing him. He
slowed and pulled in a deep breath.

“
I can’t let you walk home
by yourself.”

So he wanted to walk her,
big deal. They started off together, and she asked, “Are there
cougars out here?”

“
I haven’t seen any this
close,” he said. She didn’t like the uncertainty of that answer,
but he didn’t sound worried. “So what did you do before you came
here?”

“
I married old men for
their money,” she said with a sly smile. Ducking her head didn’t
hide it, even in this dim light.

“
I deserved that.” His
voice sounded like he grinned. “But I want to know.”

“
Advertising. I spent three
years with the same company, building my clientele list, and I was
promoted twice.” She’d still be there if it weren’t for the lies
and her ruined reputation. She thought of going back, applying at
another firm in another city, but Russ, her former boss, would
never give her a good reference. “My career might be
over.”

That hadn’t been the best
thing to say. He didn’t ask about it, so she hoped he either hadn’t
heard or didn’t care. They took several steps in silence.
Unbearable silence, but she couldn’t find her tongue to
speak.

“
Do you want to go back to
that?” he asked softly, his head tilted. Apparently he had heard
her loud and clear, and now his eyes were trained on her
face.

She tried to laugh. “Yeah,
yeah. You don’t want me here.”

“
I didn’t mean that, and
you know it,” he nudged her arm. Shrugging, she left the question
unanswered.

They were about to her door
when she said, “So you’ve been around horses all your life, but did
you grow up in Oregon?”

“
West Coast born and
breed,” he said. “I can’t live without the ocean, the mountains,
and streams all over the place.”

“
You don’t mind the rain
and fog?” She gestured around them.

“
We do have dry summers.
Nice autumns, too.” He looked amused. “But I like the rain, keeps
the tall trees watered.”

“
Don’t cowboys belong in
Texas?”

“
Lots of people ride out
here. Just wait till you get a horse down on the sand. The trails
are great, too, with the view of the ocean.”

Did her cold cowboy just
warm up to her? Instinct almost made her jump for a smart remark,
but another part of her - the bigger part - was tired of keeping up
the front.

“
Thanks for walking me.”
She paused at the door and looked at him in the porch light. He’d
pushed his hands down in his jeans pockets, but pulled one free to
nudge his hat back. She didn’t want him to go just yet. “I’ve been
wondering . . . What are your plans for this place?”

A sudden smile brightened
his face. “I could talk on that all night. Ben and I used to talk
about it while we rode over the property, about buying more horses,
maybe more land later on.”

His excitement dimmed. She
felt his loss then, remembered at the same minute that Ben wasn’t
here for those future days. They nodded before she went in. Inside,
she leaned against the closed door and heard his first steps as he
left.

* * * *

The picture seemed off . .
. she leaned against the corral rail, but the ground wasn’t dusty
and the sun didn’t beat down on her.

Instead, tall cedars
surrounded them, with graceful limbs bowing as they leaned out.
Wispy clouds lay up in the sky like streaks of whipped cream while
the sun warmed her skin. She smelled salt in the air, mixed with
forest scents. The oddity was completed by the seagulls that called
out to each other. She looked down from the birds just as Brent led
Jeffery out of the stable entrance.

Brent’s jeans hugged his
legs all the way up. Then his shirt molded to his trim waist before
stretching across his shoulders. She looked at the horse as he drew
closer so he wouldn’t see the way she admired every inch of
him.

“
I’m going to ride your
horse?” Could it be a good sign? Or did he plan a big joke on her?
She hated uncertainty worse than anything, and he put her on shaky
ground time and time again.

“
I trust him, and believe
me, you’ll want a horse we can trust.” He motioned for her to come
over. That authoritative gesture sent hot licks of want up her. The
sensation shocked her senseless for a minute. He motioned
again.

“
Okay, okay.”
Keep your senses about you,
girl
. The speckled monster pawed the ground
and looked her over. She joined Brent on the horse’s left
side.

“
Offer your hand, like you
did before.” Brent instructed. “He senses your fear.”

Fear? She wanted to argue,
but she wasn’t much of a liar. After she looked at Brent, she held
out her hand and Jeffery rubbed his soft nose in it.

“
All right, boy,” Brent
soothed. “This lady needs to learn how to ride, and you’re just the
horse to do it.”

After he reassured the
horse, he turned to her. “I’m putting you on the fast track to
riding. We could put you up there bareback so you could learn to
lead, but you said you’re fast learner, right?”

Was that a dare? “I
am.”

“
We’ll get you up there,
then you can get used to how it feels. Next you’ll practice leading
him with the reins. Now watch.” He grabbed the saddle, put his foot
in the stirrup, and swung up. After he dismounted, he nodded for
her to try.

Just like that,
huh?

“
Hand here.” He took her
hand and pulled it up. She jumped at his touch. A small jump, but
she felt it all the way through her.

His hat threw shade over
his eyes, but she was pretty sure he’d seen.

“
Foot there,” he said. She
nodded and pretended not to hear the amusement just begging to slip
through his steady voice. She did as instructed and placed her foot
in the stirrup.

“
Up and at ‘em.” He swatted
her bottom as she started up.

“
Ahh!” Her foot came back
down hard, and she spun around to stare at him, open-mouthed. No
other man had ever made her body tingle like this. Did she feel
frustration or heat for him?

“
Sorry, ma’am, just messing
around.” His dazzling smile faded into a remorseful grin. She
licked her lips and tried to make it look like an angry gesture.
Brows scrunched, she placed her hands again and tried to do what
he’d shown her. She made it halfway up before the thought of him
behind her, so close, sent her right back down.