Page 11 of Wrangling Hearts
Beau looked like the same boy I spent my summer afternoons swimming in the creek with, but he also looked like a man who was a complete stranger. I’d seen him around town, of course, but that was from afar. Now, he only stood about five feet from me, and there was…a lot to look at.
“You can pet me, too, if you want.”
I let out a sound of disgust. “Oh, fuck off.”
He smiled ear to ear, pleased with himself. But when was he not? He shoved his gloves into his back pocket. “What brings you to Circle M, Claire?”
“I take it you haven’t read the paper yet.”
“I’ve been a little busy runnin’ a ranch, so no, I haven’t.”
I almost said something about the ranch hand thinking Mount was in charge, but I decided to be the bigger person. I held the paper out to him. “Look at theWhispers.”
“Didn’t pin you as the type to read theWhispers. I guess your wish to be like other girls came true after all.”
“Just read it,” I snapped. “That’s if you know how to read.”
He skimmed over the article, and I couldn’t help but notice how blue his eyes were. I must’ve forgotten over the years. I glanced down at my boots, grimacing. Why did I care?
When he was finished, he looked up at me vacantly as if he couldn’t understand why I’d given it to him.
“Is it true? Did you apply?”
He let out an amused huff, tossing the paper on the hood of my truck before crossing his arms. He somehow appeared bigger standing like that. I swallowed, looking away. “Of course, I did.”
My eyes snapped back to him. I already knew it, but hearing it from his mouth made me livid. Why couldn’t he let me have this? After what his family did to mine, it was the least he could do. He didn’t need more land or more money; he just wanted it to say he had it, to say he beat me, that his family beat mine again.
My hands balled into fists. “You don’t even have horses here!” And there went my maturity. “You don’t know the first thing about taking care of them, let alone training or breeding them!”
“Exactly. I don’t have horses, but I want horses, and this partnership will give me horses,” he said slowly, like I was stupid. I wrenched my jaw, letting out an angered breath. “God, Claire, did you mess your brain up spinnin’ ‘round those barrels for all those years?”
Everyone knew why I had to quit barrel racing, so for him to throw it in my face was my final straw. I shoved at his chest with a grunt, making him stagger. “Ihateyou.”
Beau laughed, the sound thick and rich like honey.
I rounded my truck, stopping short at the door. “You couldn’t just give me this after what your family’s done to mine?”
He was still smiling, but I caught his slight falter before he buried it. “Didn’t know the Hayeses were ones for handouts. Nothin’ worth having comes easy, Claire.”
My upper lip curled with a snarl. He was one to fucking talk. He didn’t have to work for a damn thing a day in his life. He got to sit pretty on his massive ranch that was handed to him with allhis little gadgets. It took everything in me not to shoot his drone out of the sky every day.
I stood on the side step of my truck, glaring at him over the door. “You know, they don’t even recognize you as the one who runs things here. I asked for the boss, and that cowboy thought I meant Mount.”
Beau’s smile fell instantly.
“Yeah. So you might wanna get your shit in order before you have Cavendish here.” He scowled, and I grinned. “Nice talking to you, Beau,” I said in a sickly sweet tone and slammed my door shut.
“At least I have people working for me, unlike you at that sorry excuse of a ranch you run!” he yelled as I sped off.
I held my arm out the window, giving him the bird.
This was real now. Beau and I were competitors. The rivalry had spread to another generation. It wasn’t the first time I wiped the floor with a McLeod—Anna always fell second to me at the rodeos—but it’d certainly be the last if I had anything to say about it.
When I got inside after unloading the feed and taking care of my chores for the day, the house was dark and silent. Mama got migraines from her chemo, and even though she stopped treatment, some of the symptoms still lingered.
Her room was quiet as I peeked in the door, and she looked like she was napping. Only after her chest rose and fell did I let out a breath of my own. There was no telling what I’d walk into these days. I was in a constant state of walking a tightrope where she and the ranch were concerned, and it was just a matter of time before I wobbled and fell off.
I was about to shut the door when she cleared her throat. “Is that you, bear?” Her voice was raspy and weak and absolutely devastating. It was one of my greatest heartbreaks to havewatched a woman as vibrant and strong as Charlotte Hayes wither into what she was now.
