Loe raamatut: «Reunited with the Cowboy»

For Lula Gelderman, faithful and steadfast.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

About the Author

Title Page

Bible Verse

Dedication

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

Epilogue

Dear Reader

Extract

Copyright

Chapter One

She saw the truck a split second too late.

The snow swirling up from her tires and the sun shining directly in her eyes blinded Heather Bannister as she crested the hill. The pickup was coming right at her and there was nowhere to go.

So she did what any self-respecting country girl would.

She swerved, then stepped on the gas.

The back end of her car fishtailed on the icy patches of gravel as she fought to get it away from the truck, praying her tires would grab something. Anything.

She caught a glimpse of a panicked face behind the wheel of the pickup as her tires spun on the road. A half second before she would have been hit, she gained enough traction to move her car past the vehicle, missing it by mere inches.

And sending her directly toward the ditch. This time Heather slammed her foot on the brake and madly turned the steering wheel.

But with a crash and a heavy thud, the side of her car slammed into the bank of old spring snow. The impact spun her around, so that the front of her vehicle plowed into the bank.

Dazed and confused, Heather sat without moving for a moment, the whine of her engine and the ringing in her ears the only sounds she heard.

A heavy ache radiated from her shoulder, across her chest and up her neck, surprising in its intensity. For a stunned moment Heather wondered if the airbag had even done its job, but it lay deflated across her lap, proof that it had, in fact, deployed.

Hands still clenched around the steering wheel, she sucked in another breath and coughed on an exhalation. Her arms shook and her legs felt suddenly rubbery.

She had come within inches of a serious accident.

Her heartbeat thundered in her ears as reaction set in. Her legs were trembling now, adrenaline being replaced by a chill coursing through her body as her mind called up images of twisted steel and horrible injuries.

She shook the thoughts off. She couldn’t allow herself to think of what-ifs. She hadn’t hit the truck head-on. She had avoided a collision that would have had far worse consequences.

As she laid her head back on the headrest, trying to pull herself together, tattered prayers fluttered through her mind.

Thank You, Lord. Forgive me, Lord.

The same feeble petitions she had sent heavenward for the past few years. That was all she’d been capable of in the aftermath of the mess that was her married life with her ex-husband, Mitch.

An insistent banging on her door made her jump, adding to the piercing pain in Heather’s head.

“You okay in there?”

The muffled voice outside the car and the continued thumping made her wince again as she painstakingly found the clip for the seat belt, then released it. But when she tried to open the door, it wouldn’t budge.

She didn’t need this, she thought, allowing herself a moment of self-pity. Stuck in the ditch only five miles from home, with a cell phone that was out of juice and some stranger banging on the window.

Then she pulled herself together. City life may have softened her, her ex-husband may have tried to beat her down, but this wasn’t her first rodeo. She was Montana born and bred, and had once been a championship barrel racer. She had been thrown off horses, chased by ornery cows and she’d raced across rodeo arenas on an out-of-control horse. As her father always said, you can take the girl out of the country but you can’t take the country out of the girl.

So she took a deep breath, turned in her seat, lifted her booted foot and gave the door a mighty kick.

Heather wished she had her sturdy riding boots on instead of these flimsy, high-heeled ones. But she created an opening and, grabbing her purse, slithered through it.

Her first step was onto the icy snow, and she would have stumbled forward had not the man outside her car caught her by the arm.

She found her balance, then looked up at her would-be rescuer.

And her heart plunged.

John Argall.

Son of the Bannisters’ foreman and the man she had broken up with to move to New York. One of the people she had most dreaded seeing on her return to Refuge Ranch.

His blue eyes, fringed by thick lashes, stared down at her. “Hello, stranger,” he said, but his voice, usually warm and friendly, was as cold as the snow under her feet.

Not that she blamed him. She was the one who had broken up with him. Who had ignored his warnings about Mitch and his big plans. Heather could have saved herself a world of hurt and regret had she listened to him. Had she not impulsively chased after what she’d thought would solve her problem.

Just like her biological mother always did.

“Hello, John,” was all Heather could say, pushing the traitorous thought back. She hadn’t returned to Refuge Ranch to indulge in might-have-beens. She was here only to help plan a bridal shower for her sister, Keira—an event Heather wouldn’t be able to attend. She was off to Seattle to interview for an important job. A step in a new direction. Her debts were finally paid, her obligations fulfilled and she was ready to start a future on her own, free from any ties or romantic entanglements. She had made enough bad decisions the past few years; she was ready to look ahead.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Better than my car.”

“Good to know, but you’re right about your vehicle.” He turned back to her car, buried up to the hood in the snowdrift. “Why don’t you get into my truck and warm up while I find a tow rope?”

“I can help,” she said, lifting her chin, her tone holding a defiant edge. Anger had been her defense the past few years; she deployed it now.

His eyes grazed over her knee-high boots, short skirt and thin wool jacket with its pleats and tiny buttons. She knew the designer clothes were more suited for the fashion runway than Montana spring weather, but they were the only type of clothes she had after years of living in New York. “You’ll just fall in those heels,” he said, with a deprecating tone that stung. “Besides, I wouldn’t mind if you would check on my daughter, Adana. She’s in the truck all by herself.”

Heather couldn’t stop the clench in her stomach as she looked back at John’s truck, parked to one side of the road. The engine was still running, exhaust wreathing around the cab. Through the fogged-up window she could see a little girl sitting in a car seat. From the occasional notes and texts from her family, she had heard about John’s marriage to her old friend Sandy, and the birth of his little girl, two years ago, two days before Sandy died of internal hemorrhaging.

The toddler’s head bounced back and forth, the bright pink pom-pom on her winter hat bobbing with each movement, as if she was dancing in her seat. She waved mittened hands as she caught John and Heather looking at her.

John’s daughter. Sandy’s little girl.

Heather swallowed down her apprehension, then gave him a cautious smile, buying herself a few more moments. “By the way, I never had a chance to tell you that I was sorry to hear about Sandy’s death. I know it was almost two years ago, but...well...I’m still sorry. It must have been hard for you.”

John just looked at her, his expression unchanging. If anything, the set of his jaw seemed more grim. “Yeah. It was, but like you said, it was a while ago. We’re coping.”

His harsh tone cut, but Heather knew she didn’t deserve anything more. She should have written or called. Sandy had been a dear friend to her, but she’d been dealing with her own problems at the time. Still, in spite of Heather’s history with John, she’d known she’d owed her childhood friend the courtesy of sending him a sympathy card.

“Sandy was a good person, and at one time, a good friend,” she said quietly.

His only reply was a tight nod, which made her feel even worse.

So she turned away, taking a careful step, trying to find her footing on melting snow. She faltered, almost losing her balance again, but John caught her.

Even through the thickness of her coat, she felt the solid grip of his hand on his arm, steadying her.

“You sure you didn’t get hurt?”

“I’m okay,” she said, surprised at her reaction to his touch. She pulled away, but then almost fell, her arms flailing as she struggled to regain her balance.

“Always were too stubborn for your own good,” John muttered, catching her again and helping her to the road.

Heather shot him an annoyed glance, but didn’t pull away until she found her footing on the gravel road.

“Go warm up,” he said, pointing to the truck. “I’ll need to attach a tow rope.”

Six years ago she would have teased him about being so bossy. But that was when they were dating. When the foolish decisions Heather would make would result in a gentle reprimand from him and a smart remark from her.

Instead, she wrapped her coat around her, ducked her head against the gust of wind that had started up, and walked to the truck. She slipped a couple times on ice patches, unable to get the proper purchase in her high-heeled boots, but she finally made it. As she pulled open the door, cheerful music, Adana’s happy chatter and blessed heat washed over her.

She climbed into the raised cab and pulled the door closed behind her, shivering as she turned to Adana, who was sitting in her car seat on the passenger side.

The little girl grew suddenly silent and stared back at her, eyes as blue as John’s, curls of blond hair sticking out from under her winter hat.

Adana had John’s eyes, his arching eyebrows. But she had her mother’s delicate nose and generous smile. An ache settled in Heather’s stomach as she looked at a child who was the same age as her own child would have been.

* * *

Six years they’d been apart, six years since she’d broken up with him, left Montana and him for Mitch and the high life of working as a model in New York City, and she could still make him feel like an idiotic teenager.

John yanked open the jockey box in the bed of his truck, the lid obscuring the occupants of the cab. He paused a moment, gloved hands resting on the edge of the box, trying to get his bearings. He’d known Heather was coming. Her arrival was all her adoptive parents, Monty and Ellen Bannister, could talk about. Every time he’d picked up Adana from the main house, where she spent time while he worked, he heard Keira and her mother laughing and talking about the bridal shower Heather would help them plan.

He thought he’d been prepared, but facing the reality of Heather was harder to deal with than the idea of her.

She had always been a stunning beauty, back when they’d dated. But now her face was narrower, her cheekbones more pronounced, her green eyes more wary, her hair even longer than when she’d left. Her expensive clothes were a far cry from the Wrangler jeans she used to favor. Altogether, they combined to give her an elusive beauty that had sucked the breath right out of him when she’d squeezed out of that car.

John pulled the coiled rope out of the box, his hands still trembling from the rush of adrenaline after almost hitting her with his truck, then seeing her again.

Though her car was buried nose deep in the ditch, Heather seemed unhurt. As for the other reason his heart was still pounding, well, she hadn’t been a part of his life for a long, long time. When she broke up with him, he’d thought he was over her.

Guess not.

Her timing wasn’t the best, though.

To the Bannisters, Heather was their adopted daughter, a wounded soul who needed extra protection. To him, she was a huge complication in the plans he’d been putting into place for the past few months. He just hoped her presence wouldn’t jeopardize his business dealings with Monty, Heather’s father.

Buying into a partnership on Refuge Ranch with Monty Bannister, his father’s old boss, was all John had ever wanted since he was a young boy growing up there. Now, after months of methodical plans, calculations and deliberations, he had brought a solid proposal to Monty, just last week. He’d hoped the rancher would make a decision before Heather came home.

She could prove to be an unwelcome distraction. John knew Monty and Ellen hadn’t been crazy about him dating Heather when they were in high school. He had always suspected that was the reason they’d encouraged her to go to college. Which had resulted in their breakup.

Just bide your time, he told himself as he slammed the lid of the toolbox. Heather will be gone soon and Monty will give you his answer.

John grabbed a shovel as well, then stepped onto his truck’s bumper and dropped to the road. He started to dig up the snow Heather’s car was buried in, taking his frustration with his unwelcome reaction to her out on it.

Ten minutes later he had to concede defeat. The spring snow was hard, packed and icy. There was no way he was getting the car out on his own. There had been damage done to the wheels.

He found the tow truck number in his cell phone and dialed. Dwayne answered on the first ring.

“Yeah, I got a car in the ditch up here on the road to Refuge Ranch,” John said as he walked to his truck. “Can you come and pull it out?”

“I’m actually right at Keith McCauley’s place delivering an old truck,” Dwayne told him. “I can be there in fifteen.”

“We’ll wait.” He ended the call, then opened the truck door, and heard Adana chattering away.

“Pwetty earring. Like your earrings. I have earrings.” She showed Heather the piercings in her ears that Sandy’s mother had gotten for her last month.

But Heather, still sitting in the driver’s seat, wasn’t looking at his daughter.

“Do you need me?” she asked, clambering out of the cab, as if grateful for the distraction. She almost slipped on the ice yet again in her hurry to get away from the vehicle.

He was about to steady her again, but she found her balance, pulling away from his outstretched hand.

“I can’t budge your car out of the snow, and one of the tires is popped off its rim. I’ve called Dwayne to pull it out. We may as well wait in the truck till he comes.”

Heather folded her arms over her chest. “Sure. Okay.” With a tight nod she climbed back into the truck, then moved over, closer to Adana, so he could swing in beside her.

It was a little too close for comfort, he thought, as he shut the door. You’ll have to help me through this, Lord, he prayed as he turned up the fan in the truck. Help me remember that Adana is my priority. Help me to remember Sandy and my promise to her to keep our daughter safe. Help me not to be distracted by Heather and her crazy life.

It had happened too many times in the past. He hoped by now he had learned his lesson. Heather was like candy. Sweet, attractive, but with no staying power. And as he glanced over at his daughter, he caught her watching him with her bright blue eyes, so like Sandy’s it made his heart ache. Adana was his responsibility and she was all he needed in his life.

He felt Heather’s arm brush his as she settled into the seat, her arms crossed, eyes resolutely ahead.

She couldn’t look more uncomfortable if she was on her way to an execution.

He shifted closer to the door, reminding himself that Heather was a complication he just had to deal with until she was gone. Because she would leave. In spite of how excited her sister and mother were about her returning home, he knew she wouldn’t stay as long as they believed she would. Leaving had been the story of her life and the refrain of their relationship. She couldn’t have changed much in six years.

Chapter Two

Heather tried not to panic as she stood on the road watching her car, resting on the flat deck of Dwayne’s tow truck, head back to Saddlebank.

It’ll be okay, she reminded herself. How damaged could a car get from hitting a ditch? She chose not to think about the whine she’d been hearing since Rapid City, South Dakota. The car would be fine.

She was staying at the ranch until the weekend. That should give them enough time to fix it. Then she could head out to Seattle for her job interview.

A prayer hovered on the periphery of her thoughts, a remnant of a youth spent going to church. But she brushed it aside. She’d sent out many prayers the past few years. None of them had been answered, and she doubted any would be now. She had learned the hard way that she was on her own in this world.

A quick glance back showed her that John had already moved Adana’s car seat to the middle of the cab, putting the little girl between the two adults.

As Heather got back in the truck, Adana reached out to her dad. “We see Grammy?” she asked.

“No, honey. We’ll see Grammy another time,” John said as he started the engine and made a U-turn on the road.

“Wanna see Grammy,” Adana whined. “See Grammy.”

“Sorry, honey.” He gave Heather an apologetic look. “We were on our way to Sandy’s parents for dinner. They’re leaving on a trip and had hoped to see Adana before they went.”

Heather felt guilty. She remembered all too well the first time Sandy, taking pity on the new girl at school, had taken her home with her. Kim Panko, Sandy’s mother, had been friendly enough, but Heather had an innate ability to read people—a necessary skill developed as a result of the constant moves she and her natural mother, Beryl Winson, had made the first ten years of Heather’s life. Over the course of the two girls’ friendship, Sandy’s mother had reminded Heather often how fortunate she’d been to be taken in and adopted by the Bannister family. She suspected Kim wouldn’t be pleased to find out her return to Saddlebank was the reason John and Adana hadn’t come for supper.

“I could have called my dad to pick me up,” she said. “Or Keira.”

“And it would have taken them half an hour to get here. It’s fine.”

Heather folded her hands in her lap, looking directly ahead, wondering if waiting in the chilly wind would have been preferable to riding with John and his daughter, feeling guilty because her mistake had prevented them from visiting Sandy’s parents.

“Your mother is excited to see you,” John said, his own eyes on the road. “That’s all she’s been talking about since she found out you were coming.”

“I’m excited to see her and Dad, too. It’s been so long.”

“So why—” John stopped himself there. “Sorry. None of my business.”

“Why was I gone so long?” Heather blamed the sharp note in her voice on the delayed reaction to plowing her car into the ditch. It had nothing to do with seeing her old boyfriend again.

John gave her a direct look, his blue eyes seeming to bore into her. Then he glanced away.

“I couldn’t get the time off. I would have come if I could.” The words sounded lame, even to her.

“Pwease, have earrings,” Adana said, reaching for the feather-shaped baubles tangled in Heather’s long hair.

“Those are too dangerous for you to play with,” she replied.

“And probably too expensive,” John added. He was smiling, but Heather caught the faintest hint of reproach.

She could have told him that she’d picked these up on the cheap from a street vendor at Herald Square as she’d been hurrying to an interview for yet another low-paying job. But saying so would require an explanation as to why she was forced to work in a retail job—any job, actually—when she’d made so much money modeling. Which would mean delving into the sorry state of her finances and her relationship with Mitch.

Your new job is the start of your new life, she reminded herself. Only if you can get to Seattle. Only if your car gets fixed in time.

Adana yawned loudly, then laid her head back against her car seat, blinking slowly. She looked tired, but turned to Heather again, softly smiling and reaching out to touch her arm.

Sorrow lacerated Heather’s soul at the contact, and she felt as if her breath was sucked out of her body. Seeing this little girl up close brought back painful memories of her own loss.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” John asked her. “You look like you’re in pain. Did you get hurt when your car hit the ditch?”

Heather fought for composure, slowly breathing in and out. “No. I’m fine.” The aches in her body would go away. The one in her soul would be with her always. She’d thought she had buried it, but Adana was a reminder of what she had lost.

“I hope she sleeps a bit,” John was saying. “She’s been out of sorts the last few days. Getting shuffled around too much.”

“My mom takes care of her when you’re working, doesn’t she?”

“She did. But after your mom broke her neck, your mom’s friend Alice has been helping out. She’s a good person, just...” John stopped there.

“Not the same as her mother,” Heather finished for him.

He nodded at her comment. “No. And I can’t give Adana that.”

Heather heard the sorrow in his voice and felt a glimmer of envy for the person he was grieving.

“Your daughter looks a lot like Sandy,” she couldn’t help saying.

“That’s what everyone tells me,” John replied, his features softening as he smiled at his little girl. “Thankfully, she has Sandy’s sweet personality, too.”

“Lucky her. Sandy was a wonderful person and a good friend. I’m sure...I’m sure you miss her.”

John laid his hand on Adana’s legs, curling his fingers around them, as if reinforcing the connection between them. “Thankfully, I still have Adana.”

Heather knew his comment was a simple statement of fact, but she couldn’t help feeling a gentle reprimand. She should have sent a sympathy card after Sandy’s death, but Heather and John had had a complicated history. Too many missed opportunities.

Too many wrong choices.

Heather stopped herself from delving into the past as she stared at the road ahead. This visit to the ranch was a chance to catch her breath. Connect with her family before she headed out to a job that she felt would give her some control over her runaway life.

She glanced at John’s profile. In spite of the tension that seemed to have settled between them like a silent visitor, she felt that curious twinge of attraction that was always between them.

His features were even, well proportioned. His narrow nose, angled cheekbones and strong chin with the faintest hint of scruff all combined in perfect harmony. Even his tousled blond hair added to the look of a man who commanded attention everywhere he went.

Aware of her scrutiny, he sent a puzzled glance her way. “What’s wrong?”

She laughed. “Nothing. I was just thinking you’d make a good model.”

His eyes narrowed. “That’s not the kind of life I’d like.”

The harsh note in his voice seemed like another reprimand of her previous lifestyle.

Modeling had made her a lot of money, but had also brought her a lot of grief. It had created a false sense of what had value and what didn’t. And from the frown on John’s face, it had caused an even larger chasm between them.

“It isn’t for everyone,” she admitted quietly.

“Did you enjoy it? Modeling?”

She easily heard his unspoken questions.

Why did you quit college? Why did you choose Mitch over me?

“I don’t think I would have chosen that career if it wasn’t for Mitch,” Heather responded, trying not to sound defensive.

“He got you your first job, didn’t he?”

She gave a curt nod, remembering too well Mitch’s promises of big money that had made her quit college when things got hard. And the money had come those first few years. She had been able to repay the Bannisters the sum they had put up for her college expenses, which had made her feel she’d repaid her debt to them. But even as she’d experienced some success, it all came to a crashing halt when Mitch had made some bad investments. The first thing he lost was the fancy apartment, the second, his control over his temper.

Regret, Heather’s constant companion, shivered through her.

“I was sorry to hear about your divorce,” John said. “I’m sure...it’s been hard.”

“It’s okay. I’m over the worst of it,” she told him, with a careful shrug.

Which was a lie, she thought, unable to keep herself from glancing at Adana again. Heather had thought she was over the worst, until she saw John and his perfect little girl—both stark reminders of what she had given up to seek a life she’d thought she’d wanted.

She looked ahead, drawing on old survival skills, tricks she’d learned to get through whatever faced her.

You’re on your own, Heather, she reminded herself. Only you can take care of you.

* * *

“Thanks for bringing our girl home,” Monty said, taking one of Heather’s suitcases from John as he stepped off the back of his truck. “How badly is Heather’s car damaged?”

“Not sure. Dwayne said he would tell Alan to call you and let you know,” John said as he set a second suitcase on the ground. “But from what I could see, the front end was badly dented up and the tires had come off the rims.”

Monty frowned as he digested that information. “Well, we’re glad she’s okay.”

John nodded, then glanced past him to where Heather stood, hugging her sister. The lights from the ranch house spilled out, casting them in stark relief.

Ellen stood to one side, her arm around Heather’s shoulder, her neck brace preventing her from doing more than that.

When the two girls drew apart, Heather kissed her mom carefully on the cheek. Then John saw Ellen gently wipe her adopted daughter’s face, her own features looking pained. “Oh, baby girl,” he heard her say. “We missed you so much.”

“I missed you, too.” The broken note in Heather’s voice troubled him. She had never been one to share her emotions. To see her so vulnerable created a push-pull of tangled emotions. He shook his head, then turned back to Monty.

“I better get going. Adana is still sleeping, but she’s probably hungry. Never did make it to Saddlebank for dinner with Kim and Rex.” His in-laws were leaving on a cruise and had hoped to see him and Adana before they left tomorrow. It was too late to go back now.

“Would you like to join us?” Ellen asked.

Heather’s head swung toward him the same time he looked her way. It wasn’t too hard to see the alarm on her features. Seemed as if she was as anxious about spending time with him as he was with her.

“It’s okay,” he said, holding up a gloved hand. “I’m sure you have lots to catch up on with Heather. I don’t want to impose.”

“Oh, since when are you imposing?” Ellen protested. “You eat here plenty.”

“And that’s why I should let you have some time alone.” Sitting with Heather in the truck had been harder than he wanted to admit to himself. She was part of his youth, his past. She’d only ever been his girlfriend, unlike Sandy, who had been his wife.

“Thank you for that,” Monty said. He leveled John a steady look, and behind that gaze John sensed an unspoken question.