Buch lesen: «Her Rugged Rancher»

Chapter One

Of all the damned luck!

Noah Crawford muttered the words under his breath as he rounded a curve of the narrow dirt road and spotted a slender young woman with long dark hair walking in the same direction he was traveling. A saddled bay mare followed close on her heels.

He jammed on the brakes and dust billowed as the truck and trailer came to a jarring halt. Up ahead, the woman quickly took herself and the horse off to the side, then with a hand shading her eyes, turned to see who’d made the untimely stop behind her.

Bella Sundell.

Her name shivered through him like an unwanted blast of cold wind. Hell’s bells, what was she doing out riding in the middle of the afternoon? Why wasn’t she in Carson City, practicing law with her brother?

He’d worked on this Nevada ranch for seven years and during that time he’d never seen this woman on horseback. Nor had he spoken more than two dozen words to her. In fact, he often went out of his way to steer clear of her.

Too bad there wasn’t some way to dodge her now, he thought, as he snatched up his gloves and climbed out of the truck. But she was his boss’s sister. Besides, he wouldn’t ignore anyone who needed help.

Striding across the hard packed dirt, he called out to her, “What’s wrong?”

“Thanks for stopping, Noah.” She pointed to the horse’s front right foot. “She slipped on a rock and jerked a shoe loose when we were riding in the canyon. I thought I’d better lead her the rest of the way home. I didn’t want to take the chance of damaging her hoof.”

Trying to look anywhere other than her lovely, smiling face, he sidled up to the mare, then bent over to examine her foot.

“Riding in the canyon,” he remarked. “That’s a little risky for a woman alone, don’t you think?”

Silence followed his question, but that hardly surprised Noah. She didn’t have to answer to him. He was just the ranch foreman of the J Bar S, hardly her keeper.

Reaching into the front pocket of his jeans, he pulled out a Leatherman tool and quickly went to work jerking out the remaining nails of the loose shoe.

Behind him, he could hear Bella clearing her throat. “In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s the middle of May and the weather is already hot. It’s shady and cooler down in the canyon. Especially along the creek bed.”

“It might be cooler,” he reasoned. “But it’s rough terrain and a fair distance from home. Anything could happen to you.”

“Anything could happen to me right here on the road,” she politely pointed out. “A cowboy not watching where he’s driving could run over me and Mary Mae.”

Like him? To argue the point with her would only end up making Noah look like a fool. A lawyer’s job was to give advice, not take it. And this one was clearly no exception.

Turning his attention to the loose shoe, he levered off the piece of iron, then lowered the mare’s foot back to the ground.

“Hang on, girl,” he spoke softly to the horse. “We’ll get you fixed.”

After giving Mary Mae an affectionate pat on the shoulder, he forced himself to turn and look directly at Bella. The result was a familiar wham to his gut. The first time he’d met this woman, he’d been bowled over by her appearance. Creamy skin, long hair just shy of being black, warm brown eyes and soft expressive lips all came together to make one hell of a sexy woman. So much of a woman, in fact, that the passing years hadn’t dimmed his reaction to her.

“When we get to your place I’ll see about putting her shoe back on.” He gestured to his truck and trailer. “Climb in. I’ll get the mare loaded.”

She hesitated and he realized she must have sensed his reluctance to become involved in her problem. Even though, to Noah, the loose shoe was a reasonably small problem. Bella was the big one.

“I’m sorry to put you out like this, Noah. If you’re in the middle of doing something I can walk Mary Mae on home. It’s not all that far.”

“She doesn’t need to keep walking on that bare foot. And I’m not in the middle of anything, except helping you,” he said curtly.

Not waiting for her permission, he snatched up the mare’s reins and led the animal to the back of the long stock trailer. Once he had the mare loaded, he returned to the cab to find Bella already seated on the passenger side.

Climbing behind the wheel, he fastened his seat belt and started the engine. “Better buckle your seat belt.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Are you kidding? Here on the ranch?”

He slanted a glance in her direction, but the brief look was enough to take in her lush curves hidden beneath a pair of tight-fitting jeans and a white shirt left unbuttoned to a tempting spot between her breasts.

He let out a long breath. “That’s right. Anything—”

“Can happen,” she finished for him. “You’ve already said that. Is that your motto or something?”

Noah shoved the truck into gear. “If we had a wreck before we got to your place, you might be inclined to sue me for damages. With you being a lawyer and all,” he added dryly.

The sound she made was something between a laugh and a groan. “Jett’s a lawyer, too. Are you worried he might sue you if you ruin a piece of equipment or lose a calf?”

“No. Just making a point. It’s better to be safe than sorry.”

When Noah had first come to work on the J Bar S, Bella had been living up in Reno with her husband. But the marriage had fallen apart and Jett had convinced her to move in with him here on the ranch. She’d been working as a paralegal, but that job apparently hadn’t been enough to suit her. In the past few years, she’d gone on to finish her education and pass the bar exam. Now she shared an office with her brother, Jett, in downtown Carson City. He could say one thing for the woman, she certainly didn’t lack ambition.

“Okay. To make you happy.” Shrugging, she stretched the belt across her shoulder and locked it in place.

Noah let out a silent groan. He wouldn’t be happy until he was finished with this woman and out of her sight. Just being this close to her bothered the hell right out of him.

“You’re probably wondering what I’m doing out riding instead of practicing law,” she said.

Was he that transparent? “It’s none of my business.”

She went on as though she hadn’t heard his curt reply, “It’s all Jett’s doing. He urged me to take the day off and go shopping.” She let out a dreary little laugh. “He thinks I’ve gone to Reno to buy dresses. I decided I’d rather go riding.”

She probably had five or six closets stuffed with dresses and all the other fancy things a woman like her considered necessary. Noah figured she spent more money on one dress than his whole month’s salary. But that was none of his business, either.

“I see.”

She turned a curious glance on him. “Do you? I doubt it. Jett has this silly notion I’m sad because my old boss got married last weekend. He thinks I need to get out and get my mind off Curtis. Ridiculous. I’m not sad. And I never had my mind on Curtis in the first place. Not like that.”

So what man do you have your mind on now, Bella?

The question was so heavy on Noah’s tongue it was a struggle to bite it back. Hearing about her personal life was the last thing Noah needed or wanted. Of all the women he’d encountered since he’d left Arizona, she was the only one he’d ever given a second thought about. And though Jett sometimes casually mentioned his sister in conversation, Noah had never used the opportunity to ask his boss anything directly about Bella. No, Noah had learned the hard way that it was best to keep his distance from women and his thoughts to himself.

She said, “I suppose you never just ride for the fun of it. Your job forces you to spend a lot of time in the saddle.”

His job was his fun, he thought. It was his whole life. With his eyes fixed on the narrow road, he asked, “Do you ride often?”

“Every chance I get. That’s why I begged Jett to let me keep Mary Mae and Casper at my place instead of stalling them back at the ranch. Whenever I get the urge, I can saddle up and ride without having to drive back to the ranch yard.”

Four years ago, Noah had been the only man working for Jett on the J Bar S. At that time his boss had owned only a small herd of cows, and a few using horses. But then Jett had met and married Sassy Calhoun and everything had changed. The couple had immediately started adding to the herd and purchasing adjoining land to support more livestock. In a matter of a few short months, the ranch had quickly grown to be too much for Noah and Jett to handle themselves. Especially with Jett still working as the Calhoun family lawyer and doing part-time private practice in town. Since then, five more ranch hands had been hired and Noah had been elevated to the position of ranch foreman.

“Yeah, Jett asked me about taking the two horses out of the working remuda. I told him we could manage without them.”

From the corner of his eye, he could see her head turn to look at him and the smile on her lips struck a spot so deep inside Noah, he hardly knew what had hit him.

“Hmm. When I first came to live with Jett, he only owned two horses. My, how things have changed,” she said with wry fondness. “Now he has a whole string of horses, herds of cattle, and a wife and three kids.”

When Bella had moved into the J Bar S ranch house with Jett, her brother had been single and trying to recuperate from a failed marriage of his own. The situation had worked well for the siblings until Jett had married Sassy and started a family. After the third baby arrived last year, Bella had decided her brother and his family needed their privacy. She’d had her own house built about a half mile from the main ranch house and almost within shouting distance of Noah’s place. A fact that he tried to forget, but couldn’t.

“Things around here have been growing all right,” he finally replied.

The road grew steeper as it wound up the side of the mesa. Noah shifted the truck into its lowest gear and the motor growled as it climbed the switchback curves. Behind them, the trailer gently rocked as the mare braced her legs for the rocky ride.

When the vehicle finally crested the last rise, the land flattened and they entered a deep forest of ponderosa pine. After traveling a hundred yards under the thick canopy of evergreens, they reached the turn off to Bella’s house.

A graveled drive circled in front of a two-story structure made of rough cedar and native rock, shaded by more pines. Since she lived alone, Noah had often wondered why she’d wanted so much space. To fill it with a bunch of kids, or was the huge structure just to impress her friends?

Pushing away both annoying questions, Noah parked the truck and trailer in a favorable spot to unload the mare, then killed the engine. “I’ll fix Mary Mae’s shoe and unsaddle her for you. Do you keep her stalled at the barn?”

She pushed aside the seat belt and reached for the door handle. “No. I have a little paddock fenced off for her and Casper. I’ll show you.”

He opened his mouth to assure her that he could handle the task alone, but before he could utter a word, she was already climbing out of the cab.

Cursing to himself, he left the truck and quickly strode to the back of the trailer. Bella was already there, shoving up the latch on the trailer gate.

Instinctively, he stepped next to her and brushed her hands aside. “That thing is heavy. Let me do it.”

Thankfully, she moved back a few steps and allowed him to finish the task. But even that wasn’t enough space to give Noah normal breathing room. Something about Bella made him forget who he was and why he’d turned his back on having a woman in his life. That was reason enough for him to get Mary Mae fixed as fast as he could and get the hell out of here before he started staring at her like a moonstruck teenager.

She stood watching, her hands resting on her hips. “Just because my job requires sitting at a desk doesn’t mean I’m helpless and weak. I have muscles and I know how to use them, too.”

“You can use them when I’m not around.” He let the trailer gate swing open and immediately the mare backed up until she was standing safely on solid ground.

Bella immediately snatched a hold on Mary Mae’s reins and Noah realized she had every intention of hanging around until this job was finished. So much for losing her company, he thought hopelessly.

“Do you have tools with you to deal with her shoe?” she asked.

“I have tools. Just not a big assortment of shoe sizes. This one I just took off still looks pretty straight. I can reset it,” he told her.

“I didn’t realize you were a blacksmith.”

His gaze fixed safely on the mare, he said, “I’m not.”

“What are you then, a farrier?”

“No. Just a guy who’s taken care of horses for a long, long time. But if you’d feel better about waiting on a real farrier to fix Mary Mae, that’s fine with me. He’ll be coming by the ranch in a couple of weeks to deal with the remuda.”

She didn’t answer immediately and Noah glanced around to see she was looking at him with surprise. “Why would you think I’d want to wait?” she asked. “I don’t want her going without a shoe for that long. Besides, I trust you.”

She said the words so easily, as though she didn’t have to think about them, as though she considered Noah worthy of handling any task she could throw his way. The idea caused a spot in the middle of his chest to go as soft as gooey chocolate.

“I’ll get my things.” He gestured to a flat piece of ground a few feet away. “If you’d like, you can take her over there in the shade of that pine.”

Because he’d been helping the other ranch hands brand calves today, his shirt was still soaked with sweat while his caramel-colored chinks and blue jeans were marked with dirt and manure. No doubt he stunk to high heaven, but there was nothing he could do about sparing her the unpleasant odor. Except keep his distance. Something he’d do even if he smelled as fresh as a piece of sweet sage.

* * *

Beneath the cool shade of the pine, Bella stood near Mary Mae’s head, keeping a steady hold on the reins, while her gaze remained fixed on Noah. With the mare’s foot snug between his knees, he was bent over the upturned hoof, carefully hammering nails into the iron shoe.

While he was totally absorbed with the task, Bella used the opportunity to study his big hands. The backs were browned by the sun and sprinkled with black hair. The fingers were long and strong. Just like him, she couldn’t help thinking.

Six years ago when Bella had first come to live on the J Bar S, her brother had introduced her to Noah. At the time, he’d been the only man helping Jett take care of the sprawling ranch. In spite of her being numb from a fresh divorce, she’d found Noah’s presence striking and unforgettable. But even then it had been obvious he wasn’t a sociable man. He’d said little more than hello to her that day and since then she could count on one hand the times he’d spoken to her. Until today.

A few minutes ago, when he’d stopped along the road to check on her, she’d been totally surprised. Not that he was the type of man who’d ever say no to a woman in need of a helping hand. But this morning Jett had told her the men would be branding calves on the far side of the ranch today. She’d not expected to see Noah or any of the ranch hands on this section of the property.

The fact that Noah had been the one to happen by secretly pleased her. Of all the men Bella had encountered since her divorce, he’d been the only one who’d intrigued her. And to be totally honest with herself, he was the only one who’d turned her thoughts to the bedroom. She realized part of the reason for having such a sensual reaction to the man was his strong, sexy appearance. Yet he was also elusive, full of secrets and determined to keep his distance from her. Just the sort of man a woman liked to undress.

Funny, she thought, how Jett had believed she was besotted with Curtis, the lawyer she’d worked with for a few years before she’d passed the bar exam. True, she’d liked Curtis and admired his skills in the courtroom. And more than likely she would’ve gone on a date with him, if he’d ever felt inclined to ask. But he’d not asked and in the end, she’d been okay with that.

As for Noah, she’d never tried to catch his attention. He clearly didn’t want to be her friend, or anything else. And she wasn’t one to push herself on anyone. Besides, Jett had told her long ago that Noah was a very private man, who enjoyed the company of a horse far more than that of a human. There’d been many times she’d felt like that herself.

Pulling her thoughts back to the moment, Bella saw he was working quickly to snip off the excess ends of the nails he’d driven through the shoe and were now protruding through the outer wall of the mare’s hoof. Using a big steel file, he smoothed away the residual bumps, then placed Mary Mae’s foot back on the ground.

“All finished.” He straightened to his full height and turned to face her. “The shoe should stay in place for a couple more weeks or so. By then she’ll need four new ones anyway.”

Bella nodded that she understood. “I’ll make sure Jett sends the farrier up here to take care of her and Casper.” She gestured toward the barn located several yards beyond the house. “I don’t think you’ve seen my barn. After we get Mary Mae unsaddled I’ll show you around.”

As she waited for him to make some sort of reply, she lowered her lashes and slowly studied his face. For years a black beard had been a trademark of his appearance, but last spring Jett had commented about Noah shaving off his beard. A few days later, as she’d driven by the ranch yard, she happened to spot him from a distance. The change in his appearance had been dramatic, to say the least. And now that Bella could see him up close, she could admit she was mesmerized.

Noah was not a handsome man. Not by conventional standards, anyway. His craggy features were set in a wide, square-jawed face with a nose that was too big, and sun-browned skin that resembled the texture of a graveled road. Yet there was something about his dark blue eyes and strong quiet presence that oozed sexuality. And right now it was seeping out of his tough work clothes and going straight to her brain. But he clearly wasn’t getting the same vibe from her. The taut look of discomfiture on his features said he wanted to excuse himself and run for the hills.

After a long stretch of awkward silence, he finally said, “Let’s go.”

With the mare following close behind her, Bella started toward the barn. The evening sun was beginning to wane and the air had cooled somewhat. The breeze whistling through the branches of the pines felt good against her face, but it couldn’t do anything about the heat that Noah’s presence was stirring up inside her.

Bella, you’re a fool for having erotic thoughts about Noah Crawford. He’s a loner. For all these years he’s been content to live in a line-shack. He doesn’t want a conventional life. And he especially isn’t looking for a woman who wants a family of her own.

Disgusted at the nagging voice sounding off in her head, she mentally swatted it away and glanced over at the object of her thoughts.

“I imagine Jett told you that he tried to talk me out of building the barn.”

“He mentioned it.”

“Hmm. I’ll bet he’s done more than mention it,” she said with a short laugh. “But as you can see, I don’t always take my brother’s advice. I wanted a place to keep my horses or whatever animals I might take a notion to get.”

“What other kind of animals would you want?”

The doubtful tone of his voice didn’t surprise her. People had all sorts of strange ideas about lawyers. He was probably thinking she considered herself above doing barnyard chores. Or maybe he thought the only things she knew about were depositions and plea deals.

“Oh, I think I’d like to have a few goats. I love the milk Sassy gets from her little herd. And I want to keep a few yearling colts around. Just for the fun of teaching them about being haltered and saddled—you know, basic training stuff.”

“You know about dealing with yearlings?”

There was more disbelief in his voice and Bella refrained from shooting him an exasperated look. Except for what he probably heard through Jett, this man couldn’t know much about her.

“Noah, I’m thirty-two years old. I know a little more than filing my nails and curling my hair. I’ve been around horses all my life. One of my best childhood friends lived on a horse ranch. We spent hours watching her father train and sometimes he allowed us to help. It was always fun. Now Sassy has the mustangs and I help her with them whenever my job allows me the free time.”

She glanced over to see a stoic expression on his face. Which wasn’t surprising. The few times Bella had been in his presence he’d not just kept his words to himself, he’d also hidden his emotions behind a set of stony features.

He said, “You might know the fundamentals, but exposing a yearling to a saddle and bridle is not for the faint of heart. It’s dangerous.”

“Dear Lord, Noah. The way you talk, simply living is a dangerous task.”

“Maybe it is,” he muttered.

She wondered what he meant by that, but knew better than to ask. Instead, she remained quiet and thoughtful as they walked the last few yards to the barn. Along the way, she listened to the jingle of his spurs and the faint flap of the leather chinks against his jeans. The sounds were those of a hardworking man and they comforted her in a way she’d never expected. She had no doubt that if he ever had a woman in his life, he’d certainly be able to take care of her, to protect her in all the ways a man could protect a woman.

When they reached the big red barn, Bella opened the double doors, then gestured for Noah to lead Mary Mae inside.

Once they were standing in the middle of a wide alleyway, Noah looked around him with interest. “You must’ve had the barn built of cinderblock for fire purposes.”

“That’s right. I’m sure that you know as well as I do that up here on the mesa, water is a scarce commodity. And we probably live at least twenty miles from town and the nearest fire department,” she reasoned.

“I didn’t realize the barn was this big,” he remarked. “From the road it looks smaller.”

“Jett says I went overboard. But I wanted plenty of room.” She pointed to a hitching rail made of cedar posts. Beyond it was a room with a closed door. “There’s the tack room. Let’s take Mary Mae to the hitching post to unsaddle her.”

At the hitching rail, he gave the mare’s reins a wrap around the post and proceeded to loosen the back girth on the saddle. While he worked, Bella decided to talk more about the barn. Hopefully, the subject would distract her from the sight of Noah and the way his broad shoulders flexed beneath the blue chambray shirt.

“Besides the tack room, there’s six horse stalls and a feed room,” she said, while thinking she sounded more like a real estate agent than a woman trying to make conversation with a sullen man. “The loft has plenty of space for several tons of hay, too.”

“Very nice,” he said.

Did he really think so? Or did he think she was just a girl with too much money to spend on things she knew nothing about?

The answers to those questions hardly mattered, she thought. She might have erotic fantasies about Noah, but he’d never be anything more than a ranch employee to her. After six years of ignoring her, he’d made it fairly clear he wasn’t interested.

“Thanks. I’m proud of it.”

It took only a few moments for him to finish unsaddling the mare. While he stored the tack and saddle away, Bella grabbed a lead rope and looped it around Mary Mae’s neck.

“There’s no need to put a halter on her. She’ll lead like this,” Bella explained. “Come along and after we put her out to pasture you can join me for coffee.”

Even though she didn’t glance his way, she could feel his eyes boring a hole in her back. As though she’d invited him into her bedroom instead of her kitchen.

“Uh, thanks, Ms. Sundell, but I’d better be getting on home.”

Impatient now, she said, “My name isn’t Ms. Sundell to you. It’s Bella and furthermore, you know it. As for you getting home, you live not more than five minutes away. And there’s still an hour or more before sundown. What’s your hurry?”

Not waiting to see if he was going to follow, Bella headed down the alleyway until she reached the opposite end of the barn. There, she opened a smaller side door and urged the mare through it.

Once the three of them were outside, walking beneath the shade of the pines, he answered her question, “I have a busy day scheduled tomorrow. I need to rest.”

A loud laugh burst out of her and from the corner of her eye, she could see the sound had put a tight grimace on his face.

“Rest? Right now I imagine you could wrestle a steer to the ground and not even lose your breath. You need to come up with a more believable excuse than that.”

He moved forward so that he was on the right side of the mare’s neck and a few steps away from Bella. “Okay,” he said, “here’s another reason for you. I’m nasty and sweaty. I don’t need to be sitting on your furniture.”

She laughed again. “It’s all washable. Besides, I made a rhubarb pie before I went riding. I’ll give you a piece.”

“I’ve never eaten rhubarb.”

“Good. You’re in for a treat.”

“I don’t think—”

She interrupted, “It would be impolite for you to refuse my invitation. Besides, the pie and coffee will be my payment for the shoe job. Fair enough?”

“I wasn’t expecting payment.”

No. He seemed like the type of man who didn’t expect anything from anybody and it was that cool sort of acceptance that completely frustrated her.

Holding back a sigh, she said, “I realize that.”

Bella hardly thought of herself as a femme fatale, but she figured most any single, red-blooded man would be happy to accept her invitation. For the pie, if no other reason. But Noah wasn’t like most men. She expected if there was such a thing as a loner, he was the perfect example of one.

A short distance away from the east side of the barn, the pines opened up to create a small meadow. After she turned Mary Mae in the pasture to join Casper, she fastened the gate safely behind her.

“How do you water the horses?” he asked curiously.

“In spite of what I just said about water being scarce, I found a small spring with a small pool not far from here on a ledge of the canyon wall. The horses can access it easily and the pasture fence includes it. I try to check it daily to make sure it hasn’t dried up.”

“You’re fortunate.”

Bella knew he was talking about the water supply, but she couldn’t help thinking that he was right in so many ways. After her divorce from Marcus, she’d not been able to see much of a future. Oh, she’d not given up on life by any means, but she’d certainly been bitter and disillusioned. Coming to the J Bar S, and living with her brother, had helped her get past the failure of her marriage. She might not have the family she always wanted, but at least she had a home of her own and a blossoming career as a lawyer.