Memories for Eternity: Taming Clint Westmoreland

“That’s awful,” she murmured and he knew she was deliberately lowering her voice to keep out the anger she felt. It was the same with him every time he thought about it.

“Yes, it is. So I’ve established the foundation as a way to save as many of the wild horses as I can by bringing them here.”

He felt they had gotten off track, and had put on the back burner the subject they really needed to be discussing. “So what are we going to do, Alyssa, about our marriage?”

She frowned. “You make it sound like a real one when it’s not.”

“Then tell that to Toner. And maybe it’s time to accept that regardless of where we want to place the blame, legally we are man and wife.”

Alyssa opened her mouth to deny what he said, but couldn’t. He was right. They could sit and blame others but that wouldn’t solve their problem. “Okay, you have a full stomach, what do you suggest?”

“You’re not going to like it.”

“Probably not if it’s what I’m thinking.”

He sighed deeply. “Do we have a choice?”

She knew they didn’t but still... “There has to be another way.”

“According to Hightower, there isn’t. You heard him for yourself.”

“I say let’s fight it.”

“And I say let’s just do what we have to do and get it over with.”

She nibbled on her bottom lip. “Fine, but there’s still the issue of where we’ll stay. Here or Waco.” Each knew how the other felt on the subject. Alyssa knew she was being hard-nosed. To handle his business properly, he would have to be on his ranch, whereas she could operate just about anywhere, as long as she had her computer and server.

“Alyssa?”

She glanced up at him. “Yes?”

“I’m sure you prefer handling your business from Waco, but is there any reason you can’t do it here if I help get things set up for you?” he asked, evidently thinking along the same lines as she had earlier.

She decided to be honest with him. “No.”

“All right. Then will you?” he asked. “My ranch isn’t all that bad. It’s pretty nice actually. And with the hours I work, I’d barely be home most of the time so it will be as if you have the place to yourself. I won’t be underfoot.”

She tilted her head to study him. In other words they really wouldn’t be under the same roof for thirty days—at least not all the time. In a way, she would prefer it that way. Being around Clint 24/7 would be too hard to handle. But she knew he was right. They had to do something and since it was easier for her to make the change why sweat it. That didn’t mean she had to like it. At least the two of them were working together and doing what needed to be done to get their lives back on track and end what had been the agency’s screwup and not theirs. But still...

“What about a steady girlfriend?” she decided to ask.

“Don’t have one, steady or otherwise. Don’t have the time.”

She lifted a brow. When did men stop making the time for women? She thought they lived for intimacy.

“What about you?” he asked her. “Is there a steady man in your life?”

She thought about the occasional calls she got from Kevin as he tried to make a comeback, as if she didn’t know that he and Kim were still messing around with each other. Kim took pleasure in making comments every once in a while to let her know she and Kevin were still seeing each other now and then. “No, like you, I don’t have the time.”

He nodded. “So, there’s really nothing holding us back to do what we need to do to get the matter resolved,” he said.

If only it were that simple, she wanted to say. Instead she said, “I need to sleep on it.” She preferred not to make a decision right then.

“Okay. In that case would you mind doing your sleeping at the ranch?” Clint asked. “That way, you can check out the place to see if it will work for you.”

She’d rather not stay at his ranch tonight but what he’d said made sense. She was used to living in the city. She wasn’t sure how she would handle being out in such a rural setting. “Okay, Clint. I’ll spend the night at your ranch and will give you my decision about things in the morning.”

He tilted his head and looked at her. “I can’t ask for any more than that.”

Chapter 3

“Can you ride a horse?”

Alyssa glanced over at Clint. Sunlight streaming in through the windshield seemed to highlight his features. It had been bad enough sitting across from him at the diner trying to eat. Now they were back in the close quarters of his truck and everything male about him was out in the forefront again. She moved her gaze from his face to the strong, sturdy hands that were gripping the steering wheel, and then lower to his lap where the denim of his jeans stretched tight across muscular thighs.

“Alyssa?”

She nearly jumped when he said her name again, reminding her that she hadn’t answered his question. “Yes and no.”

He glanced over at her and frowned. “You either can or you can’t.”

“Not necessarily. There’s another option—can and don’t. Yes, I can ride a horse, but I choose not to.”

He gave her a strange look. “Is there a reason why?”

“Yes. What if I say that horses don’t like me?”

He gave a half laugh. “Then I’d say that if you feel that way it means you haven’t developed your own personal technique of dealing with them. A horse can detect a lot from people. Whether you’re too aggressive, too nice, sometimes both. A horse is the most easy-going animal that I know of.”

“Yeah, you would say that since you tame them,” she said, glancing out the truck window and thinking how beautiful the land was getting the farther they got away from the city.

“I’d say it even if I didn’t tame them. If you stay at the ranch I guarantee you will develop a liking for horses.”

“I never said I didn’t like them, Clint. It’s just I’ve been thrown off one too many times to suit my fancy. I know when to give in and quit.”

He chuckled. “I don’t. And if I stopped riding based on the number of times I’ve been thrown, I would have given up riding years ago. That’s part of it. Learning to ride with the intent of staying on.”

Alyssa heard what he was saying but it wouldn’t change her mind. The truck had come to a stop and she glanced over at Clint. He was staring at her in a way that had her pulse racing, was making her feel breathless. A brazen image formed in her mind. “What?” she asked in a low voice.

It was as if that one single word made him realize that he’d been staring and when the truck began moving again, he muttered, “Nothing.”

It was there on the tip of Alyssa’s tongue to say yes, it had been something and she had felt it, too, in the cozy space surrounding them. As she glanced back out the window, she thought that living on a ranch with him wouldn’t be easy. The only good thing was that he’d said he would be gone most of the time. That was good to know for her peace of mind.

“Will your family have a problem with it?”

She glanced back over at him. He was staring straight ahead and she thought that was good. Every time he looked at her, sensations she hadn’t felt in a long time, or ever, seemed to unleash inside of her. “A problem with what?” she asked, thinking she liked the sound of his voice a little too much.

“Living with me for a while at the ranch. That is if you decide to do it.”