A Cowboy's Heart (Hitting Rocks Cowboys) (5 page)

“Here.” He broke the bar in half and handed her a piece. “Partners in sin.” Between the adrenaline rush he’d given her and the sugar, she’d be awake for the rest of the night. “Good, huh?”

Liz’s mouth was full of chocolate. She made a sound of assent.

“As you can see, I not only have form and substance, I can eat, too.”

“I’m convinced!” she finally managed to say.

“Then I’m making progress.”

Yes. Way too much.

“Good night, Connor.” She jumped down before he could stop her. One more second up there...

She didn’t dare think about it. Her father had commented that it would be good for them to travel together because they knew what it was like to be in each other’s skin.

But once under the covers, she had one more thing to add to this day of revelations. He’d almost charmed her right out of hers.

* * *

S
MOKEY
’
S
S
TEAK
H
OUSE
in St. George, Utah, lay straight ahead. Connor looked over at Liz. “Hungry?”

“Starving.”

“So am I. They serve a great steak. I’ve been here dozens of times.”

After being on the road all day with stops to take care of the horses, they needed a hot, filling meal. Because of the snow, they’d gotten away from Kemmerer later than he’d wanted. The highway had looked like a snow-covered pasture instead of a road in spots, which had cost them a couple of hours in time. However once they got past Cedar City, Utah, the highway was clear.

They could make it to Las Vegas tonight, but it would be eleven at night before they pulled in. Connor preferred to spend the night at an RV park here and arrive tomorrow during daylight. Reva was probably at the Mirage now, expecting he would break down and come to the hotel, but that wasn’t going to happen.

To his surprise, for the first time in years he felt as if he was on a real vacation and wanted it to go on and on. The ten days of competition coming up hadn’t caused his stomach muscles to cramp. Maybe there was something wrong with him to feel this relaxed.

Liz had brought a couple of books on tape that they listened to during the drive. It was a nice change from music he got tired of listening to. He’d enjoyed both books very much and had finished off another Snickers bar during their lively discussions about the new theories behind Kennedy’s assassination. There was always another version of what really happened.

When he’d parked their rig, Liz excused herself to use the restroom inside the restaurant, and he watched her walk toward it. Cowboy boots on the right pair of long shapely legs along with hips encased in jeans were a sight to behold all on their own. Her braid swung back and forth against the back of her fitted suede jacket. He noticed she’d drawn the eyes of several interested males in the parking area.

The temperature here was sixty-one degrees, so he didn’t bother with a coat. His sweater would do. Putting on his hat, he walked back to check on the horses. Their ears pricked the moment they heard noise.

“Hi, guys. How’s the romance coming?” More nickering out of both. He smiled. “After our dinner, we’ll take care of you.”

He closed the door and headed into the crowded restaurant. Liz had found them a booth by a window. Cozy, just like the trailer. Their eyes met. “I’ll wash my hands and join you.”

“Take your time. How are the children?”

“They told me to hurry.”

She laughed. “I think they can’t wait to be outside together.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me.” His good mood stayed with him until he was returning to their booth and saw a couple of guys talking to Liz. One of them turned in his direction.

“Connor! We saw you pull up in your rig.”

If it wasn’t the Porter brothers from Rock Springs, tough competitors on the circuit in team roping. As siblings they had instincts that guaranteed them another championship. Both were friends of Wade’s from their college days and had spent part of an evening with Connor and Reva in Las Vegas after they were married.

“Hey, guys.” They shook hands. “I take it you’ve met this year’s soon-to-be barrel-racing champion, Dr. Elizabeth Henson.”

“We’re working on it,” Monty said with a grin.

Derrick asked, “You mean, besides chasing the cans, you’re a doc? I’ve got a sore leg I’d like you to look at.”

“She’s a vet,” Connor inserted before Liz could. Odd that he felt so territorial.

“That’s good, too,” Monty commented. “Our horses need a good going-over.” His brows lifted. “Is Reva still out in the trailer?”

Time to get this over with. “We’re divorced,” he said.

“Whoops.” Monty looked embarrassed. “I’m afraid we didn’t hear about that,” he murmured.

“How could you have known?”

They probably hadn’t because they competed in the Mountain States circuit. But the fact that Wade hadn’t gossiped about Connor’s private life to other people raised the man even more notches in his estimation.

“We were going to ask if you wanted to join us, but under the circumstances we’ll find ourselves another booth.”

“Thanks, Monty.” Connor didn’t feel like sharing Liz. “Good to see you, too, Derrick.”

“Going for your sixth title has already made you a legend. Good luck, Connor.”

“The same to you. This could be your third.”

“We’re hoping.”

He turned to Liz. “Ma’am. If Connor says you’re a winner, then you can believe him.” They tipped their hats to Liz, their eyes lingering on her before they walked off.

The moment he sat down across from her, the blond waitress came to take their order.

“They were nice,” Liz said after the woman walked away.

“Wade met them in college.”

“I saw them in action at the arena in Oklahoma. They’re fast.”

“In a lot of ways,” he informed her. His comment produced another chuckle. “If you want, I’ll find them. They wanted to join us, but I didn’t know how you’d feel about that.”

“I’m glad you didn’t take them up on it.”

He squinted at her. “I bet you get hit on all the time.”

“I don’t get the attention
you
get. So far, every waitress in here has passed by our table, even when it isn’t their area. They all know who you are. Ours was salivating over you. No doubt she’ll serve you a free dessert and invite you for drinks later.”

Connor started to laugh. “The things you say, Liz Henson, and the times you pick to say them.”

“If the truth fits... Please do what you want.”

His jaw hardened. “I don’t party or drink except for an occasional beer with Jarod or Wade. Ned’s alcoholism cured me of that problem early in life.”

Her eyes softened. “I didn’t mean to upset you, Connor. I just wanted you to feel free to do whatever you want.”

“You’re too good to be true, you know that?”

“Is
that
what I am? I thought traveling with you in your trailer was a pretty daring move on my part.”

“How could it be daring when you only think of me as an entity?” He hadn’t forgotten how she’d shocked him when she’d jumped down from his bed last night before he could think.

“With substance, form and an appetite for candy bars,” she added with a twitch of her lips, enticing him. “At this point I have to add deep-seated feelings to the list I’m making on you.”

“A list?” Connor liked the sound of that.

His cell phone rang, intruding on his personal thoughts. Much as he wanted to ignore it, he didn’t dare in case something was wrong with his grandfather. He reached in his pocket and pulled it out to check the caller ID. One look and he put it back.

By now, their dinner had arrived. He thanked the waitress without looking at her. He’d been happy until they’d come into the restaurant. Now everything felt out of kilter. They ate in silence. When he saw the waitress coming again, he asked Liz, “Do you want dessert?”

“Oh, no. That steak did it for me.”

“Then let’s get going.”

He pulled out his credit card and handed it to their server without waiting for her to talk. She’d looked as though she was about to say something, then thought the better of it. “I’ll be right back.”

A glimmer of amusement lit Liz’s eyes. “You disappointed her.”

“She’ll get over it.”

“Connor—you can’t blame a gal for trying.”

“How come you didn’t have that compassion for me when you turned me down flat in Missoula?”

A shadow broke out on her face. “That was different. I thought you were a married man, but you already know that.”

“It still hurt. We were neighbors.” He wrote the tip on the receipt the waitress had brought back with his credit card. When she left the table he pocketed it.

Liz got to her feet and put on her jacket. “Have you forgotten you were a Montague and I was the closest thing to a Capulet?”

He put his hat on. “I haven’t forgotten anything about that nightmarish situation.”

“But it’s over now.” They left the restaurant and headed for the truck. “Do you want to know something Sadie told me? It’s very sad.”

“I’m all ears.”

“When she was writing the obituary on Daniel for the paper, she said she almost wrote, ‘Ding-dong, the wicked witch is dead.’ Her own father...”

They’d reached the passenger door side. He looked down at her. “That’s tragic.”

“Isn’t it?” Her eyes had filled with sorrow. She climbed in the cab. He walked around and got behind the wheel to start the engine.

“Thank God everything came right in the end. My brother would never have come back to life otherwise. Sadie’s his whole world. Always was.” They took off and headed for the RV park, where he’d made reservations.

“All the time she was in California she was in mourning for Jarod. I think she sobbed through half our phone conversations over those years. Theirs is a great love.”

Connor supposed that if he envied his brother anything, it was that. Connor hadn’t been so lucky and had missed the mark. He and Reva had been a mismatch. He knew it as surely as he was sitting there, and nothing would ever change it. “I guess you know that since Sadie’s successful heart operation they’re trying for a baby. She doesn’t keep anything from you.”

“There are a few things, I’m sure.” Liz’s eyes closed tightly. “Oh, I hope they get pregnant soon. That nursery they built in their new house needs a little body in it.”

“I have a feeling Grandpa is going to hang on until it happens. He can’t wait!”

“I can’t, either. Mom and I are crazy about Sadie’s half brother, Ryan. Can you imagine having two little angels to squeeze and love?”

Connor had been in an emotional abyss for a long time. But looking over at the radiant face turned to him, he could imagine it and a lot of other things. Before he did something that would shock her senseless and get them in an accident he said, “Let’s go take care of
our
lovebirds.”

“Good idea.”

Once they’d parked for the night, she entered the trailer and grabbed two bananas. “They love these, skins and all.”

He grinned. “I prefer my Snickers.”

“I’ve found that out.”

They walked back to the end of the trailer. “I’m sure they can hear us talking,” she said before going inside. When they led the horses out of their stalls, Sunflower nibbled her with affection, causing her to laugh gently. Connor wouldn’t mind doing that to her himself, but he’d have to wait until the time was right.

“How’s my buddy?” He rubbed Firebrand’s forelock before giving him a banana.

His horse snarfed it down. When he looked over, he could see Sunflower was making short work of her treat. They walked their horses away. Then an amazing thing happened. Firebrand moved next to Sunflower, who rested her head on his neck.

“Do you see what I’m seeing?” Liz whispered.

“I bet you can’t wait to get this down for your article.”

“I’m going to title it ‘Lovebirds at the Arena.’”

He threw back his head and laughed into the air. It was a mild winter night in St. George. There was no snow here and it was pleasant beyond words. Then his cell phone rang again. The horses’ ears pricked in response. He was sure Liz’s did, too, but he let it go on ringing.

A half hour later they’d put their horses to bed for the night and could go themselves. His phone rang again as they entered the trailer. Liz turned to him. “Whoever is trying to get you isn’t going to go away until you answer. I’ll shower first to give you privacy.”

He didn’t need privacy. Once she’d disappeared in the bathroom, he listened to his voice mail. Reva was at the hotel waiting for him.

He texted her that he wasn’t in Las Vegas. When he arrived tomorrow, he’d call her at the hotel.

By now he should be feeling some rush of excitement at the thought of seeing her again, but nothing could be further from the truth. He resented her intrusive phone calls. Something had been happening to him since Liz had agreed to come to Las Vegas with him. Tonight he felt as though he’d been spirited away to a different place and point in time with nothing to do with his past life.

Concern for his grandfather prompted him to phone the older man he loved. He wondered how Ned’s visit had gone. Once he got him on the line, Connor told him about the horses and Liz’s speculation about them experiencing romantic love.

“That girl’s a horse whisperer. If anyone can figure it out, she can.”

“Well, so far they’re acting sweet on each other. Now, tell me about Ned. Did you see him?”

“No. He went straight to his parents’ house and spent time with the family. Your great-uncle Tyson called me and told me what went on. It wasn’t good. They’ve got Ned on a medication that has calmed him down, but he’s not himself and very quiet. He’s going to need a lot of therapy, but at least he was able to come home for a first visit.”

“That’s something. As you’ve always told me, time is the great healer.”

“Yup. How’s that working out for you?”

When he looked around, Liz was just coming out of the bathroom in a different pair of pajamas, this time in a green print. In a moment of gut honesty Connor answered, “It’s working, Grandpa.”

It’s working.

Chapter Four

Before Liz went to bed, she reached into her purse and wrote out a check. After signing it, she handed it to Connor, who was sitting at the kitchen table with the phone still in his hand.

He glanced at it. “What’s this?”

“Before you give me trouble, I want you to know I already added the word
generous
to that list I’m keeping on you. You wouldn’t know how to be anything else, but I wouldn’t have accepted your offer to ride with you if I couldn’t reimburse you every few days for my expenses.”

She saw him hesitate before he folded the check and put it in his shirt pocket. “Thank you.”

“I’m the one thanking
you
for not giving me a hard time about it. I like to pay my own way as much as possible.” She walked over to the sofa and pulled out the bed. Once she got in, she finished braiding her hair. “How’s Ralph tonight?”

“Good. Ned came for a visit.”

“Did he see him?”

“No. He spent all his time with his parents. It’s too soon for anything else.”

“At least the doctor said he could visit them. That sounds like progress to me.”

“Maybe.” He got to his feet. “I’ll grab my shower now.”

“I tried to leave you plenty of hot water.”

He stopped at the door to the bathroom. “Like I said earlier, you’re too nice.”

Liz frowned. He’d said that before in so many words. His words struck her like a backhanded compliment. He’d been in a relaxed mood until now. While she’d been showering, he’d had time to make other calls. Something had upset him. She didn’t think it had anything to do with Ned.

After finishing her hair, she reached for the phone to call her parents. She told her dad what Connor had said about waxed reins. He told her Connor had a point and she should try the knotted kind when she practiced. See which one she liked better, since it was a personal preference. Maybe it would make a difference to her, maybe not.

They chatted a few more minutes before she hung up and returned Doc Rafferty’s call. He wanted to talk about a difficult case.

“Thank goodness everything turned out all right in the end, Sam. Talk to you soon.”

Connor had just come back in the room in a pair of gray sweats. “Was that Dr. Rafferty?”

“Yes. He thought he would lose a cow giving birth today. She had a closed uterus, but he got the farmer to help him roll her to untwist it. Then they had to wait for her to dilate. When that didn’t happen, he had to perform a Cesarean in the freezing cold. But the little heifer is fine and so is mom. I should have been there to help.”

“You can’t do it all, not when you’re on your way to winning a world championship.”

“The way you talk, you make me think it’s possible. I wish I could work the same magic on you.”

He turned off the lights and climbed into the niche in one easy movement. “Why do you say that?”

“Because there’s something disturbing you. If my desire to pay you back offended you in some way, we need to talk about it.”

She heard a sigh. “You’re way off base, Liz.”

“Good. Since my check wasn’t the reason, I can go to sleep with a clear conscience for tonight.”

“A clear conscience. What would that be like...?”

“I said
for tonight.
You think I don’t have demons driving me mad, too?”

“Name one.”

“Out of which group?”

He looked down over the edge at her. “You mean you put them in groups like animal, vegetable and mineral?”

“No. My demons fall into other categories altogether. There’s the bad, the awful and then the downright ugly.”

Connor’s rich male laughter rang throughout the trailer.

“Judging by your mood on the way to the bathroom, I’d guess tonight’s demon has you rattled, but since you can still laugh, I’d only put it in the bad category.”

He lay back down. “I have a dilemma, but it could involve you, so I’m going to tell you what has me worried.”

“Go ahead.” Connor had her full attention.

“Though we’ve talked on the phone a few times, I’ve only seen my ex-wife twice since our divorce two years ago. Last evening she phoned and left a message that she was coming to Las Vegas for a few days hoping to see me. She’ll be staying at a hotel and is there now.”

Liz cringed. “I see.” Like she’d told her mother, Connor was still in love with his ex-wife and she with him.

“She knows the RV park where I always stay. Because she’s a journalist and very tenacious, there are times when Reva doesn’t care about crossing boundaries. She might show up at the trailer trying to find me. While we’re in Las Vegas, the truck and the trailer are yours as much as mine. I just wanted you to be prepared ahead of time for any surprises.”

“Thanks for the heads-up.”

“I didn’t know she was going to do this, Liz. I swear it.”

“It’s none of my business, but in case you’re worried, I believe you.”

“Thanks for being understanding.”

“I’m glad you told me.” She didn’t need to ask him if he was all right. Hearing from his ex-wife had rattled him. “Since you’re probably wide-awake now, do you want me to turn on the TV for you?”

“Thanks, but no.”

On impulse she said, “Want to play a little five-card stud? I brought a couple of decks with me. I don’t know about you, but cards have a way of settling me down when I’ve got stuff on my mind.”

He’d reached the floor before she could blink and turned the lights back on. “You’re exactly what the doctor ordered.” Excitement lit up his brown eyes.

Pleased by that positive reaction, Liz reached into her suitcase for the cards and walked over to the table. “That’s because I
am
the doctor. Here. Take this pill. It will help.” She threw him a Kit Kat bar.

Connor let out a happy yelp before they both sat down and started playing. After a dozen rounds they turned to Pineapple and then Crazy Pineapple, both variations of Texas Hold’em poker.

“You’re good at this.”

“Same to you. If nothing else, waiting around for a rodeo event to start has produced a ton of crack poker players. We could be dealers in Las Vegas after we’re through with the rodeo.”

Connor squinted at her. “Does your daddy know about this surprising side of his daughter?”

“Between my parents and your grandparents, who do you think taught me and Sadie how to play in the first place?”

He sat back so the front legs of the chair were off the floor. “I didn’t know that. We’ll have to get up a game after we’re back from finals.”

“Then you’re asking for it,” she teased to contain the rush his suggestion produced. “Sadie told me she outbluffs Jarod all the time.”

He sat forward. “I have news for you. He lets her win to keep her happy, except when it comes to his favorite poker game.”

The way he was staring at her brought out the heat to prickle her face. She put her hands palm down on the table. “Speaking as your doctor, I can see our card game has put you in a better frame of mind. We both ought to be able to sleep now.”

Connor’s grin was wicked. “You keep thinking that, sweetheart.”

That image of him stayed with her long after she’d scuttled back to bed and put the covers over her head.

Soon it was dark and quiet. Her thoughts turned to the woman who still anchored for a television show out of Los Angeles. Did his good-looking ex-wife still go by the name Mrs. Bannock when she wasn’t in front of the camera?

Liz knew nothing about her and had formed no opinion of her. Liz had been away at vet school during that year he’d been married. As she’d told him earlier, she’d had no clue that he’d gotten a divorce until months after the fact.

But tonight she decided Reva Stevens had a fundamental selfish streak. Even if they still loved each other, it was cruel to call Connor with the kind of news she’d sprung on him right before his first round of competition to win a sixth world title.

That insensitivity proved to Liz that his ex-wife didn’t value his former achievements or what he was hoping to achieve now. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have dared interfere with his concentration.

According to Connor, his ex didn’t recognize boundaries if she wanted something. It sounded as if she wanted him back. Liz had no way of knowing if Connor wanted the same thing.

But couldn’t Reva have waited until the pro rodeo finals were over? Ten crucial days out of his life to accomplish what no other bulldogger had done before? Liz decided his ex-wife didn’t deserve Connor.

But in all fairness, Liz couldn’t rule out physical attraction and chemistry, those potent forces a person might wish to escape because of other problems, but couldn’t. Was that the case with Connor and his ex-wife?

In turmoil, she turned over on her back.

Before you start finding fault with Reva, better take a good look at yourself first, Liz Henson.

* * *

A
LATE
-
MORNING
SKY
of high wispy clouds over Las Vegas greeted them as Connor pulled into the RV equestrian park at eleven. The temperature registered fifty-nine and was climbing.

This was his fourth year bringing Firebrand. To make things more familiar, every year he reserved the same spot closest to the arena and barn, and the same stall, in order to cut down on any tension for his horse.

Luckily the manager of the park had arranged to get him the stall next to Firebrand, as well. The surroundings might be new to Sunflower, but she’d grown used to being around Firebrand. As long as they weren’t separated, both ought to do fine.

After he turned off the ignition, it occurred to him he hadn’t awakened this morning with that sense of dread over the unknown that was coming once the finals were over. He could blame this elevated change in his mood on the attractive woman seated next to him.

He turned to her. “Shall we exercise the horses first?” To his amusement, she asked him the same question at the same time. They both chuckled before Liz jumped down from the cab first to walk back to the end of the trailer. In the side-view mirror he admired the way her feminine figure moved until she was out of sight.

He shoved on his cowboy hat, thinking this had all been too easy. Something was wrong for everything to have gone so smoothly this far. But as Connor got out of the truck, he realized that if there was a problem, it was because he was looking for one. It had become a pattern of his.

The other morning, after they’d stopped to visit his grandfather, Liz had picked right up on it and had gotten after him for it. That was the moment she’d come alive, treating him to a fiery side of her nature he hadn’t witnessed before.

Last night he’d tensed up before telling her about Reva. But whatever reaction he’d feared, Liz didn’t even blink. Instead, she’d made the rest of the night so much fun, he hadn’t wanted to go to bed.

He rebelled at the idea that their road journey down here was over. The only thing helping him was the fact that they’d be living together for the next twelve days, and then there’d be the trip back to Montana. Though they’d been neighbors all their lives, he’d only started getting to know her on this trip. Connor was already looking forward to the drive home with her.

Together they backed their horses out of the trailer and took them on a walk before heading for the barn. With the finals starting on the fifth, the place was packed. Some of the competitors stayed here with their rigs. When they recognized Connor they shouted to him and tipped their hats to Liz.

The two of them led their horses into the barn and found their stalls. Connor emptied some bags of soft shavings around both stalls.

“This is really a nice setup, Connor. Every facility we need is here!”

“On the fourth we’ll trailer the horses to the rodeo grounds and stall them there if you want, but for now this is a perfect place for them.”

“I agree.” She patted her horse’s neck. “You like it in here, don’t you, Sunflower? You’ll have to thank Connor for these fabulous accommodations.”

“She has already nickered at me. That’s all I need.” He put out the buckets for water and filled the hay nets. Buckets were a good way to measure the amount of water their horses were drinking.

“They’re both nickering. Did you hear that?”

Connor smiled. “Firebrand’s happy they’re together.”

“I think they’re both pleased. Come on, little lady. Let’s get your boots off and give you a good rubdown. Then I’ve got to get over to the center and take Polly around the arena. I’m afraid she’s already feeling neglected.”

Liz treated her horse the way she would a child. He watched her over the partition. It was touching to see and hear how she loved Sunflower. Given this kind of treatment, that horse would do anything for her. Never in his life had he wanted anyone to win a championship more.

“When you’re through over there, doc, Firebrand needs a thorough going-over, too. I think he’s jealous of all the attention you’re giving his girlfriend.”

Her gentle laughter was like an unexpected breeze on a hot day, refreshing him.

Within a half hour they left the barn and cleaned out the stalls in his trailer. The first rule with horses was to take care of them before you did anything else. Liz understood that. They worked side by side while he unhitched the trailer from the truck.

“After we’ve driven to the center to check out our other horses, let’s go buy you some reins. When we get back here, you can try them out. I’m curious to see if you feel any improvement with them.”

“Our minds must think alike. I was just going to ask if I could take the truck later to buy some.”

“Would you rather go alone?”

“No—” She sounded surprised.

“Good.” He’d wanted to go with her. “I know a reputable place to get what you need.”

Her eyes swept over him. “For a change, why don’t you shower first?”

“Do I look that bad?”

She grinned at him. “Even in a foot of muck you couldn’t look bad, and you know it, Connor Bannock.”

He swept his hat off his head. “Well, thank you, ma’am. That’s the sweetest sweet talk I ever heard.”

“Well, don’t get too used to it. Your head’s going to swell right up after your next championship. You’ll be too heavy for Firebrand to prance around the arena with you in front of your thousands of screaming fans.”