Page 39 of Christmas with the Cowboy
Her wild young cowboy had been tamed. And she’d had no part in it.
Crazy that it bothered her, but it did.
*
When Trenna headedto her car, she caught sight of Daniel leaning on the fence, watching his colt eat. On impulse, she crossed the driveway, and he turned as she approached, her shoes crunching on the frozen gravel.
“He’s a beauty,” Trenna said. As if sensing that she was talking about him, the colt lifted his head. Hay stuck out of both corners of his mouth, but he still looked magnificent.
“He is,” Daniel said on a note of satisfaction. “The image of Ralph in his younger days, don’t you think?”
Trenna and Reed had been a couple when Ralph had come to the ranch as a five-year-old.
“Very much so.”
The silence that followed was surprisingly taut, and Daniel smiled a little, keeping his eye on the colt. “His temperament is different. I’m aware of that, even though I don’t think Reed thinks I am. He seems to be of the mind that I’m an old man blinded by sentimentalism.”
“Then why don’t you let him put in the first few rides?”
Daniel shook his head as if he didn’t have an answer. Then he said, “Maybe I don’t want him to get hurt.”
“That makes no sense at all.” But it did underscore the cause of the major battles between the two men. Daniel didn’t want Reed to take the chances he’d taken as a young man, and Reed was too much like his dad not to take chances.
“Hey,” Trenna said. She waited until Daniel turned his dark eyes toward her before saying, “I’m really sorry about what my dad is stirring up. I talked to him—”
“I appreciate that.” Daniel cut her off. “But this is our issue, soon to be handled by men in suits.”
“After you get done refencing?”
“Pretty much.”
Trenna focused on the horse. “Thank you.” Daniel gave her a curious look and she added, “Thank you for not holding my dad’s”—Asshole behavior?—“dealings against me. I enjoy working with Audrey.”
“I don’t hold your dad’s actions against you. And this project is something Audrey has wanted to do for a long time. I’m surprised she started, because with a job that big, tomorrow is always an option.”
She wondered if he accepted her presence on the ranch for that reason, or if he truly didn’t hold the sins of her father against her. Did it matter?
“About Reed.”
A jolt went through her. “What about him?” she said in a casual voice, thankful that teaching had prepared her to sound relatively normal when confronted by the unexpected.
“He’s…” Daniel frowned, reminding Trenna that he was no better at addressing emotions than his son. “He’s trying hard to keep everything on an even keel for Lex.”
She bit her lip thoughtfully as she studied the man’s face. “Are you warning me off?”
“Maybe I’m just warning you.”
“About?” She was going to pull the rest of whatever it was out of this reticent man come hell or highwater; and she wanted to know if Daniel thought she was going to stir up trouble, because if so, that was insulting.
“He’s not over you.”
Another shocker, and this time, Trenna’s teaching voice failed her. As did her ability to maintain a poker face. “What makes you say that?” The words sounded choked and slightly outraged, as if he’d said something she wasn’t ready to hear. Because he had.
Daniel turned toward the colt again, cupping his hands as he rested his forearms on the rail. “I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. I’m just saying that you might want to be aware.”
“Are you protecting him from the coltandme?”
“No.” He didn’t look at her, but his big hands tightened. “I thought it would be best if you had all the facts.”
