Page 35 of The Soldier and the Cowboy

“Want to take a turn, little bit?” Cal offered, coming to lean on the fence beside her. She hadn’t spoken to him all morning, and she wasn’t sure if he was avoiding her or merely busy. Was he the type to hold a grudge? Apparently not if the friendly way he was looking at her was any indication.

“You mean brand a calf?” she asked with no small amount of trepidation.

“You can beat a man half senseless, but you draw the line at hurting a cow?”

He grinned and, have mercy, the picture he made was alluring—dusty, dirty, sweat-stained, the hard muscles of his chest straining at his t-shirt. The only white parts of him now were his teeth and hat, which despite the hard day’s labor remained remarkably untouched. She had never wanted anything before like she wanted him, and he’d placed himself completely off limits. Bailey was used to going after what shewanted, regardless of the obstacles. But the obstacles in this instance were his principles, his very integrity, something she wouldn’t touch because she respected him. It was a vicious circle of honor and desire he’d sucked her into, and it was driving her crazy.

“If men were as cute and innocent as cows, I’d have a harder time beating them. Does it hurt them, really?”

If he noticed the way she was looking at him, he pretended not to. “Their hides are pretty thick, much like my head.” He reached out to flick her ponytail. “And we use freeze branding now. It’s less painful.”

“All right.” She hopped off the fence and followed him into the pen. They used chutes to hold the frightened calves and tip them on their sides, but Cal wanted to show her the old-fashioned way. He caught a calf and held it while she pressed the frozen brand into its hide, exactly where he showed her. The calf bellowed and fought, but it seemed more fearful than pained. Continuing to follow his instructions, she gave it the inoculation and tagged its ear before he let it go. The calf jumped up, bucked, and would have double kicked her if Cal hadn’t picked her up, moving her out of harm’s way.

“You’re quick,” she noted. If her voice sounded shaky, it was from his touch and not the near miss with the cow. She hoped he wouldn’t know the difference, but of course he did.

“You’re cute,” he returned, giving her a slow smile as he set her down.

“What’s it worth to you?” she asked.

“More than you know. Ready for another?”

“How many are there?” she asked, tearing her gaze from him so it could rest on the pen full of calves.

“Four thousand,” he said and laughed when she did a comic double take. “We break it up, doing about five hundred a day.This is round one. We’ll continue until it’s finished, taking a break for Sunday.” He paused. “So, I think you should stay, at least through calving. Then things will calm down, and we can assess where we are. In terms of security, I mean. But the next few days,” he gestured helplessly to the pen behind him. “This is my life, from before sun up until after sundown.”

He was a married man. Regardless of whether it was in name only, he was still married. She should go, should flee, should run home and forget she’d ever met him. “What can I do to help?”

“Your normal job. With all of us centered here the next few days, there’s going to be lots of room for mischief on the rest of the ranch,” he said.

“All right,” she heard herself agree.Weak, Bailey, you’re so weak.He flashed her another smile again and, though they were standing in the center of the hub of activity in full view of the entire ranch staff, it took everything within her not to reach for him, not to stand on her toes, pull him close, and kiss him hard. He was so…capable, so strong, so good and deep. He was everything a man should be. And, like it or not, she was in love with him.

She didn’t know what his thoughts were as he stood a foot away from her, hands clenched at his sides, but she figured they were along the same lines. She took a step back and then another. “Think I’ll do a quick patrol. Let me know if there’s something you think of I can do here. Otherwise, I’m probably in your way.”

“Not in my way, never that,” he said softly. He swallowed hard and took a breath. “Check in when you’re done with your patrol. You’re really on your own out there until this is done.”

She nodded once and made herself turn and walk away from him. When she was in the air, everything seemed soclear. She needed to go. Staying put was like prolonging torture. Cal wasn’t in the right frame of heart or mind for them to work. Why had she said she’d stay? She couldn’t; she wouldn’t. When she landed, she would tell him and then she would stick to her original timeline and leave in a few days.

But when she landed and went to find him, he was still in the midst of hard, manual labor. She stood on the fencepost and watched again, admiring him while he worked. The muscles and sinews in his arms and back were impressive, but more than that she enjoyed his work style. He was a man other men looked to, and that meant something to her. She had grown up with a strong father, a leader of men. She wouldn’t be able to accept anything less in someone she desired. Cal was that kind of person, the sort who made those around him want to work harder, be better, give more of themselves.

He caught sight of her on the fence and tipped his hat to her, tossing her a smile.Maybe I could stay a few days more,she found herself thinking as her eyes followed him. Then she turned away with a groan of frustration. “So weak, Bailey.” At the very least she could make herself useful. After a word with Estralita, she grabbed the keys to a truck and drove herself to town.

Chapter 15

The next day Bailey worked in the kitchen. Her morning patrol was complete. The ranch was quiet, minus the activity now taking place at its center. She could neither stomach another day of boredom nor a day of staring at Cal, mooney-eyed, as he worked. So she asked Estralita if she could make supper. Estralita’s reaction had been a bit more insecure than Bailey would have imagined, as if she thought maybe Bailey was trying to take over her kitchen. Bailey put her mind at ease by asking if she would handle dessert.

“I can cook okay, but I’m hopeless at baking,” she confessed to the older woman.

“I can make peach cobbler, it’s theSenor’sfavorite.”

Bailey hugged her. “Estralita, you are worth your weight in gold.”

“I’ll show you how sometime, yes?” Estralita replied, returning her hug.

“You can try, but I’m kind of hopeless when it comes to anything that involves flour,” Bailey told her.

But now, in the kitchen and working on supper, she felt soothed and at peace. Cooking always had that effect, regardless of how little she did it. She was often too busy to bother but, as with everything she did, she gave it a thousandpercent. She hadn’t stopped trying until she’d perfected the recipe she was making tonight. It was her showstopper. As it was likely the only meal she would ever cook here, it had to be amazing.

She made the rice, assembled everything, and left it to stew before heading outside. Sully arrived as she reached her spot at the fence.

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