- -
- 100%
- +
www.millsandboon.co.uk
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Judy Christenberry has been writing romances for fifteen years because she loves happy endings as much as her readers do. A former French teacher, Judy now devotes herself to writing fulltime. She hopes readers have as much fun reading her stories as she does writing them. She spends her spare time reading, watching her favorite sports teams and keeping track of her two daughters. Judy is a native Texan.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Prologue
Suzanne McCoy stepped out on the front porch, closing the door behind her, and drew a deep breath. The air was quite different than the air in Dallas, where she’d lived until six days ago. That was when her life had drastically changed. Her cousin Mary Lee and her husband had been killed in a car accident; an elderly man had had a heart attack at the wheel of his truck and crashed into them.
Mary Lee and Rodger had moved to Cactus, a small town in west Texas, a year ago. Suzanne had missed them so much. Josh, now four, had been three years old. And Mandy had only been one, just walking and talking. She’d changed so much in a year.
Suzanne leaned against the railing on the porch. Mary Lee had left the children to her to raise. It hadn’t taken much time for Suzanne to decide to give up her life in Dallas and come here. Pushing papers at an insurance company didn’t seem important compared to helping Josh and Mandy deal with their loss and helping them grow up. She’d always wanted children, but she hadn’t been nearly as interested in marriage. That involved men, and every man in her life from her father on had betrayed her.
Since everything seemed peaceful inside the house where the children were sleeping, Suzanne moved off the porch to walk slowly toward the bunkhouse. Until today, she’d scarcely had time to think about, much less do anything about, their situation, other than care for the children. Now she had a couple of questions. She figured the best person to answer them would be the manager Rodger had hired.
A soft breeze blew this evening, sending a shiver or two up her spine. As she got closer to the bunkhouse, the peace went away, too. She could hear voices. There was even laughing. She hadn’t laughed since she’d gotten the news about Mary Lee and Rodger. She paused outside the door, not wanting to interrupt. She heard someone banging on something, as if calling everyone to order. She relaxed, until she heard a man declare, “We’re all going to be rich! We’ve made a good start. And we’ll get more ’cause the boss lady don’t know nothing about ranchin’. She’s too busy with those kids.”
Suzanne froze. Then liquid heat bubbled through her, past any logical thought or careful planning. She threw back the door and stomped into the room, marched up to the man at the head of the group and slugged him as hard as she could. Then she looked at the rest of them. “This boss lady catches on fast. You’ve got fifteen minutes to clear out. The sheriff will be here by then and I’ll be pressing charges!”
Pandemonium reigned. As her anger receded to a more manageable level, she realized it would’ve been better to creep away and call the sheriff first. But it was too late for that now.
When the dust settled, only an old man sat in the corner of the room, whittling on a piece of wood.
“Aren’t you scared about the sheriff’s arrival?” she asked with disdain.
“Nope. Haven’t done anything wrong. I’ve been working here since I was fifteen. I didn’t rob you, ma’am. I told them I’d have nothing to do with those shenanigans.”
“Why didn’t you warn me?”
“I was thinking about it. They didn’t get away with too much. You’ve still got a herd left. Just won’t have as much profit as you might’ve had. But you’ve got a real problem.”
“What?”
“Who’s gonna do the work?”
“Better that I do it than to let them get away with robbing those two children blind!”
“Yes, ma’am. But I don’t think you know anything about cattle…or ranching.” He turned and spit tobacco juice to the side. Since there were already a few stains on the floor, she didn’t stop him. Besides, she was beginning to realize he was right. She had a real problem.
“How many cowboys do I need to run this place?”
“Well now, if they were trained like Ryan’s men, you could manage with four or five. But his men are a mite above average.”
“Who is Ryan?”
“Ryan Walker. Neighbor to the west.”
“Then I probably met him at the funeral.”
“Mebbe. He knows ranching better’n anyone.”
“Do you think he’ll loan me some help?”
“Nope. He has a big place.”
Suzanne sighed in frustration. “Then what am I going to do?”
“Go talk to the sheriff, first thing in the morning.”
Chapter One
“Come along, Josh,” Suzanne said, looking down at the boy. Though he held her hand, he was pulling back every step of the way.
The door opened and a big man came through it, obviously in a hurry. He grabbed her shoulders to stop from knocking her down.
“Sorry, ma’am. I didn’t see you.”
Before she could pull herself together, he tipped his hat and was gone.
“Well! He was certainly in a hurry.” She tightened her grip on Mandy. “Are you all right, sweetheart?”
The child nodded her head and then hid it in Suzanne’s red-brown hair.
“How about you, Josh? He didn’t step on you, did he?”
“No, Susie.”
With a sigh, she stepped into the office. “I need to see Sheriff Cal Baxter, if he’s in.”
“Sure he’s in. Those Mary Lee and Rodger’s children? Poor babies. Who shall I tell him is calling?”
“Suzanne McCoy, guardian to Josh and Mandy.”
“Well, now, you just have a seat. My name’s Gladys. I’ll be right back.”
With a sigh, Suzanne took one of the chairs. She released Josh’s hand and patted the chair next to her. “Sit down, honey. I know you’re still sleepy.”
The little boy slumped against the chair. He hadn’t smiled once since Suzanne had gotten to Cactus. She was worried about him. Mandy had cried for her mother every morning so far, though she forgot her tears quickly. But when she slipped and called Suzanne Mama, Josh reminded Mandy that her name was Susie. That’s what Mary Lee used to call her.
Gladys reappeared with another tall cowboy behind her.
“Morning, Miss McCoy. Come on in the office. Do you want Gladys to look after the little ones?”
“No, they’d better come with me.”
When they were settled in the chairs before the sheriff’s desk, she explained about the thieving that had been going on and what she’d done about it. “I realized in the middle of confronting them that they might not react well, so I told them I’d already called you. I know I should’ve told you first and followed your directions. I lost my temper,” she added, her voice dropping.
He smiled. “You’re not the only one with a temper in Cactus. One of your neighbors just came in to tell me he thought something was going on. I was going to come see you.”
“Oh, that’s nice of him.”
“Yeah.”
“The old man said he was thinking about telling me,” she said in disgust.
“I reckon you mean old Al.”
“Yes, I think his name was Al.”
“Well, you’ll have to forgive old Al. He’s in his eighties and that’s been his only home. He doesn’t move too fast these days.”
“I see. But he pointed out that I’d need some hands to run the ranch. I—I don’t know anything about ranching.”
“Best you talk with Ryan Walker. He’s your neighbor who just came in to warn me. He knows the most about ranching around here. And being next door will be convenient. Or you can visit the farm agent, but he’s…new on the job. He may not be able to offer much.”
“And you’ll catch those cowhands?”
“I’ll keep my eye out for them, me and my deputies, but I imagine they’ve left the state. I’ll talk to Al about what they did.”
“Thank you, sheriff.”
Once she and the kids were outside, standing on the sidewalk, she debated her next option. She found the farm agent’s office and noted that it didn’t open until eight. Then she spotted The Lemon Drop Shop across the town square. A quick look at Josh made her decision. “Josh, let’s go have a lemonade and a cookie or something while we wait to see the farm agent. Okay?”
The boy perked up a little, but not much. He shrugged, though he followed her a little less reluctantly. When they got inside, she found they were serving sausage rolls and sweet rolls. She made the choices for all three of them and moved to the cash register to pay.
“Hello. You’re the guardian of Mary Lee and Rodger’s children, aren’t you?”
Suzanne looked up in surprise. “Yes, I am. I’m sorry, I don’t—”
“No, of course you don’t. I’m Katherine Dawson. Most people call me Katie. Why don’t you pick a table and I’ll bring over your order.”
“Oh, that would be so nice of you.” Suzanne relaxed a little. She stepped outside and chose an empty table. Josh crawled up into a chair and she sat Mandy down in the one next to him. Then she took the third seat. Katie appeared with a large tray holding their lemonades and the rolls she’d ordered.
“Mind if I sit with you a few minutes?” Katie asked.
Suzanne shook her head no and introduced herself. “I’ve moved from Dallas to take care of the children.”
“Oh, good. You’re going to stay. We were afraid you’d take the children back to Dallas.”
Suzanne shook her head, then added, “Maybe I should. I don’t know anything about ranching and—” she paused and then explained what had happened the previous night.
“Oh, no, how awful for you.”
“What’s wrong, Katie?” asked an older woman standing with a friend behind their table.
“Oh, good morning, Mabel, Florence. Have you met Suzanne McCoy?” She looked at Suzanne. “Do you mind if these two ladies join us?”
“No, of course not,” Suzanne automatically agreed, though she wasn’t sure she wanted to tell her story to everyone.
It was Katie, however, who told her friends what had happened. Then she turned to Suzanne. “What are you going to do?”
“Well, the sheriff—”
“He’s my son,” Mabel Baxter inserted proudly.
“Oh, well, he said he would look for the troublemakers, but he doubted any of them would hang around.”
“So?” Florence asked.
“I’ve got to find someone who knows about ranching, some cowboys to take care of what herd we have left.”
“See Ryan Walker,” Mabel said with a determined nod of her chin.
“That’s what your son said.”
“He’s right. Ryan is a great rancher,” Florence agreed. Then she looked as if an idea had struck her. She looked at Mabel, then Suzanne. “Tell me, dear, are you—involved with anyone?”
Suzanne stared at her blankly. The sudden switch of subject surprised her. Finally she said, “No. I don’t know anyone here.”
“So you didn’t leave any broken hearts in Dallas?”
“No. But about my ranch—”
“Yes. I was thinking, you see, Ryan needs a baby-sitter,” Florence said, again surprising Suzanne.
“He does?”
“Yes. Beth is—how old is Beth, Katie?”
“She just turned three. Her mother didn’t like the ranching life and ran away with a city man. Ryan has raised Beth by himself since she was six months old. Only now she’s getting too big for him to take her everywhere he goes.”
“And you think if I offered to baby-sit Beth he’d help me?” Suzanne asked skeptically.
“It would be better if you married him,” Mabel said clearly.
Suzanne stared at her as if she were crazy.
Katie hurriedly said, “Mabel is teasing you. But you should talk to Ryan. You also have a good water supply on your place. Ryan might make a deal for some split water rights.”
Suzanne nodded and dropped the subject, urging the children to eat their rolls so they could visit the farm agent. When she left the shop, she saw the two older women hurrying off in another direction.
The farm agent was no help at all, except to suggest she talk to Ryan Walker. She thanked him and took the kids home.
The rest of the day, she thought about the suggestions she’d received in town. She drafted Al to baby-sit when the sun went down. He told her Ryan wouldn’t come home until then. It occurred to her that the man who’d almost knocked her down might be Ryan Walker. If he was, he was a very intimidating man.
As the sun set, she checked her appearance in the mirror. She’d put on one of her business suits, hoping to impress him with her professionalism. She’d pulled her long red-brown hair back to a knot on her neck. She wanted to look cool and calm. Okay, she was ready to face the best rancher in the county.
With a deep breath, she made sure Al was happy with the kids. She’d made popcorn and poured some soda for them. She thought things went better when they had something to eat. “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” she said, faking cheeriness.
“Are you sure?” Josh asked, frowning.
“I’m just going to our neighbor’s house, Josh. I won’t stay long.” Their parents had just gone out for a little while and they’d never come back. Josh didn’t trust her promise.
He nodded and looked the other way. Suzanne thought she saw tears in his eyes, but Al waved her off and asked Josh to change the channel on the television. Having something to do helped Josh. Amazing that Al understood that.
She carefully drove in the direction Al had shown her. He said it was the next ranch, just a little ways down the road. She kept looking for a house, or at least a driveway. After twenty minutes, she wondered if she’d gone in the wrong direction. Then she saw a house. The mailbox on the side of the road said Walker, so she guessed she’d finally found the infamous Ryan Walker. She pulled up to the porch and got out of her car.
She dusted off her black suit and climbed the steps to the porch. She couldn’t see any lights on in the house, but maybe the kitchen and den were in the back of the house and couldn’t be seen from the road. She knocked, but there was no response. She knocked again, louder this time. The third time she pounded.
She wasn’t going away without talking to the man. She climbed down the steps and walked around to the back of the house. There were no lights visible back there either. She returned to the front porch and sat down on the top step, wondering what she should do.
Then she saw lights coming down the road. Maybe he’d run into town for a few minutes and was now returning. She hoped so.
She stood, tucking a strand of hair into place as a black truck pulled in, passing her car and continuing on past the house. She walked to the side of the house to see if it stopped in the back. When it did, she drew a deep sigh of relief.
RYAN WALKER was tired. He’d spent a long day in the saddle. Then he’d gone into town to pick up Beth, his three-year-old daughter from his cousin Millie. He didn’t want company, especially company dressed like a city woman. In fact, when he’d first seen the woman on his porch, he’d been afraid it was Tiffany, his ex-wife. He sure didn’t want to see her ever again.
He had things to do that night. Especially after what Millie had told him. The first thing he needed to do was to talk to Mabel and Florence and make it clear he wasn’t interested in getting married. Millie told him they had visited her, telling her she’d be doing him a favor if she stopped taking care of Beth. Then he’d marry the new lady in town. Fool women!
“Daddy? What’s the matter?” Beth asked, staring at him.
“I’m too tired for company, sugar. There’s a lady at our front door.”
“Why?”
He thought of several answers, but Beth was only three. He didn’t want to upset his beloved daughter.
“I don’t know. I’ll find out while you wash your hands for dinner.”
“Are we going to eat those hamburgers?”
“We sure are.” He’d driven through a fast-food place after he’d picked up Beth. He was too tired to cook tonight.
He parked the truck and took his daughter into the house. “Go wash up. I’ll be right back.”
Then he walked through the house to the front door, seldom opened because his friends always came to the back door. He clicked on the porch light as he spoke. “Hello.”
“Oh! Mr. Walker. You are Mr. Walker, aren’t you?”
Damn it! The woman was the one he’d almost run down this morning. Her vibrant red hair was all tied up tonight, but he’d noticed it this morning. She was dressed in city clothes.
“Yeah. What do you want?” He knew his voice was gruff, not inviting, but he didn’t believe in spending much time around beautiful city women. They didn’t fit into his world.
“I understand you’re the authority on ranching in the county.” Her voice was cool, skepticism in it, which he resented.
“Yeah, probably.”
“I’m your neighbor to the east. My name is Suzanne McCoy. I’m guardian to Mary Lee and Rodger Howe’s children.” She waited, as if she expected him to say something, but he only nodded. “I have a problem.”
“What?”
“I don’t have any employees except for old Al.”
“What happened to them?”
“I fired them because they were stealing from the children.” She held her chin up as if she expected him to tell her she’d made a mistake.
“Good. I wasn’t sure you knew.”
She looked down. “I didn’t until last night when I heard them bragging. And I fired them before I called the sheriff. They quickly left the ranch, and now no one knows where they are.”
“And?”
“I need some cowboys, Mr. Walker. And I know nothing about what they do or how I can tell if they’re good, honest men. Everyone I talked to in town told me to speak to you. Please, will you help me?”
“Did you talk to Florence and Mabel?”
“Well, yes, I did.”
“Well, Miss McCoy, I’ll loan you a couple of hands for a week. That’s the most I can spare. But no matter what Mabel and Florence said, I’m not going to marry you, no matter what you say!”
Chapter Two
Suzanne took a step back, her mouth gaping open. Was the man crazy? “What?”
“You heard me. Those women are always trying to match people up, but I’m not that desperate!”
Her cheeks flamed and her temper boiled. “Neither am I!” she snapped.
“Why do you look so surprised? Didn’t they suggest it?”
She started to say that no one in their right mind would suggest such a thing, but then she remembered Mabel’s comment. “Mabel mentioned something about marriage, but I assumed she was joking.”
“Well, now you know she wasn’t. And I’m not interested. Okay? Doug and Hinney will be over in the morning.” He started to close the door and Suzanne stopped him.
“What Mabel and Florence suggested was that we barter.”
“Barter? I don’t think you have anything I want.”
His words were insulting, and she almost gave up. But she needed help. Clenching her teeth, she muttered one word. “Baby-sitting.”
“Daddy?” Beth asked as she pushed past his legs to stand in front of him, looking at the woman.
“Beth, go back to the kitchen. You can go ahead and start eating, okay?”
Suzanne noted that his voice gentled when he spoke to his child. She squatted down. “Hello, Beth. My name is Suzanne. How are you?”
“Fine,” Beth said with a big smile.
“Beth, go to the kitchen at once!” This time his voice wasn’t gentle. It was harsh and threatening. His daughter looked at him in surprise and then scurried back down the long hall.
“I wasn’t going to hurt her,” she protested.
“You don’t know anything about her, and I’d like to keep it that way. Even for baby-sitting, I’m not going to take over your ranch. That’s what you wanted, wasn’t it?”
She drew herself up straight, throwing back her shoulders. “They also mentioned water rights.” She waited for his reaction.
“Yeah. You’ve got good water and I don’t. Congratulations. My two men will be there in the morning. Figure out something before the week is up.” Then he closed the door in her face.
Suzanne was furious at his rudeness. But she didn’t dare bang on the door again. He might cancel the two men coming over tomorrow for a week. They were better than nothing. Maybe with Al to help them, they could take care of things for a week. Surely by then she’d find some cowboys who were looking for work. She had to. One way or another she would preserve Josh and Mandy’s heritage.
SUZANNE WAS UP before daylight the next morning, wanting to greet the two cowboys Ryan Walker had said he would send over. She’d told Al the night before of Ryan Walker’s offer of temporary help.
“I’m going to do the cooking today for the three of you. I’d like you to do what you can to help them.” She knew such work would be hard on the old man, but he readily agreed.
Just as the sun first peeped over the skyline in the east, she heard a truck pull in to their place. She looked out the window and saw the horse trailer behind it. This had to be Doug and “Hinney.” What an odd name.
She hurried out and welcomed them. “Have you had breakfast? I can cook something quickly.”
“Yes, ma’am, we had breakfast.”
“All right. I’ll have lunch ready at one.”
They both seemed embarrassed, but she gave them a bright smile and went back inside. She wanted Mr. Know-It-All Walker to know that she could provide for the men as well as he could. She spent the morning baking a cake for lunch, mixing up a special beef casserole, and calling every person she could think of who might be able to help her find some cowboys.
Unfortunately, she heard the same thing over and over again. “Call Ryan Walker. He’d know if there are any good ones available.”
After the fifth such response, she quit trying. She’d had the children coloring some pictures at the kitchen table while she worked, but she wanted them to eat before the men came in. She had them clear the table and go wash their hands.
Once they had eaten their lunch, she put Mandy down for her nap and reminded Josh that it was quiet time. He was supposed to remain in his room, preferably on his bed, reading or looking at picture books.
Then she cleared the table and set it again for the three men. Even though it was early spring, it was warm outside during the day, so she had tall glasses of sweetened tea, ice cubes floating in them, waiting for the workmen.
“Wow, Miz McCoy, this looks good,” Doug told her as they came in.
She took the casserole out of the oven and the salad out of the refrigerator. She also had a bowl of corn, because she’d been told by her cousin that hearty food was important for hard-working cowboys. Hot rolls completed the lunch menu. When she served them big chunks of chocolate cake after they’d finished off the casserole, they groaned with pleasure.
“I just want you to know I appreciate your work.”
“Yes, ma’am,” they agreed enthusiastically.
She repeated the process that night for dinner.