Pursued by the Rich Rancher

Cody scuffed his little boots in the dirt, his mouth moving, repeating, “Rodeo man, rodeo man.”

The cowboy dipped his head, then nodded. “Back in the day, I was. Not any longer.”

Cody went silent, and Nina scrambled for something to say. For her son’s sake, of course, not because she wanted another taste of that Southern Comfort drawl saturating her senses. “Then what was that show all about?”

“Just doing my job, ma’am. This was actually a low-key session,” he said, his voice washing over her as he sat astride the horse, his muscular thighs at eye level...and his hips. Diamond Gem shook his head up and down, shaking the reins, a reminder that the horse, although calm now, was still unsettled. “Diamond Gem and I have been working together for a couple of weeks.”

That was an easy session?

“Do you miss the rodeo days?” she found herself asking, unable to stop herself from thinking of all the regrets Warren had lamented over after settling down.

The dusty cowboy scratched under his hat, then settled it back in place. “Let’s just say these days I prefer to spend my time communing with the animals rather than performing for people.”

“And this horse? You were communing?”

“This fella was confiscated by local animal control for neglect and...” He glanced at her son. “And for other reasons. Releasing him into the wild where he would be unable to fend for himself wasn’t an option. So he came here to us where we can socialize him. He’s a little green and gun-shy, but we’ve made progress.”

So he’d used the old skills to help this horse. Was he playing on her heartstrings as a part of some camp gimmick or was he as genuine as those blue eyes? She settled on saying, “That’s admirable of you to risk breaking a rib—or worse—to help the horse.”

The dimple twitched at his cheek again. “I may have enjoyed myself a little bit...” His eyes dipped down to the name tag stuck to her shirt. “Nina.”

Her skin prickled and heat flushed through her at the sound of her name coated in those whiskey tones. What harm was there in indulging in a light flirtation with a regular guy? No risk. She was only here for a week. Although she could be imagining his interest.

It was probably just his job as an employee to be polite to the customers.

“Well, my son certainly enjoyed it, as well. Thank you.” She backed up a step. “We should start unpacking or we’ll miss the lunch kickoff.”

“Wouldn’t want that to happen.” He touched the brim of his hat. “Y’all have a nice time at the HorsePower Cowkid Camp.”

Her skin flushed, heating at the sound of his low and rumbly voice soothing ragged nerves. How strange to be lulled and turned on all at once. But God, how she craved peace in her life. She treasured it in a way she never would have guessed a decade ago.

And watching the lumbering cowboy ride away, she had a very real sense of how smooth and sexy could coexist very, very well in one hot package.

* * *

For the first time in months, Alex McNair was stoked about the possibility of asking out a woman. He’d been telling himself for months he needed to move on after his cousin got engaged to the only woman Alex had ever wanted to marry. But the one-night stands he’d been having lately didn’t count as moving forward with his life.

He slung the saddle off Diamond Gem’s back and passed it over to a stable hand. Diamond Gem looked sideways at Alex from the cross ties and let out a long nicker. He preferred to brush and settle his own horses, but his responsibilities overseeing the Hidden Gem Ranch interfered more often than not with that simple work these days. He missed free time in the saddle, but his MBA was needed here more than his equestrian skills.

And the number-one priority today? He was due to meet his grandmother for an early lunch. That took precedence over anything else. He didn’t know how many more meals they would share, since she had terminal brain cancer.

With his grandmother’s illness, he had to step up to fill the huge void left by their McNair matriarch. Which probably made this a bad time to think about starting a relationship, even a short-term one, but the woman—Nina—intrigued him. Her curly red hair and soft curves snagged his attention, and the memory of her berry scent lingered in his senses.

And the protective way she watched over her son drew him in at a time when his emotions were damn raw. He didn’t want to overanalyze why she pulled at him. He was just glad as hell for the feeling.

It had taken him a long while to get over the fact that his cousin would be marrying Johanna. But he’d gotten past that. He had to. She would be in the family forever now. Family was too important for any kind of awkwardness to linger.

The family needed to stick together, especially with their grandmother’s cancer. They needed to support her, and had to make sure the McNair empire ran smoothly through this time of transition. Giving their grandmother peace during her final days was their most important task.

Still, he couldn’t stop thinking about the woman—Nina. He didn’t even know her last name, for God’s sake, but he sure intended to find out. He could see asking her to accompany him to his cousin’s wedding. How far did she live from here? People came from all over for the camp, but the bulk were local.

Regardless, distance didn’t really matter. Not to a McNair. He had the family plane at his disposal. And yet all that money couldn’t give them the one thing each of them really wanted.

Their grandmother’s health.

He strode toward the main house, veering off to the family’s wing where he was to meet his grandmother on the porch. His boots crunched along pine straw, children’s chatter and a banjo playing echoed in the distance. Branches rustled overhead. Some of those oak trees were older than him and he’d climbed those thick branches as a kid.

He neared the family porch where his grandmother—Mariah McNair—already sat in a rocking chair. A tray of sandwiches and a pitcher of tea waited on the table between the two rockers.

His gut knotted with dread over the day that rocker would be empty.

Her favored jean jumper and boots fit her more loosely these days. And her hair was shorter now. For as long as he could remember, she’d worn it long, either in a braid down her back or wrapped in a bun on her head. But she’d undergone a procedure to drain blood buildup in her head a few months ago. Her hair had been cut short and shaved away at the surgery site.

That made it real for him. She was going to die sooner rather than later, and not of old age. That damn tumor was going to steal her from them.

“You made it,” she said, clapping her hands. “Come sit beside me, load up a plate and let’s talk.”

“I’ll clean up and be right back down.” He worried about her getting sick on top of everything else.

“Now is better. A little dust and dirt isn’t going to make me keel over. Besides, I’ve seen you messier.”

“That you have.” He swept off his hat and hunkered down into the rocker beside her, resting his hat on his knee, thinking of how cute that kid Cody had looked passing it back to him. “How are you feeling, Gran? Do you want more tea?”

He reached for the pitcher, noticing she’d only nibbled at the corner of a sandwich.

“I’m fine, Alex, thank you. I have the sunshine, a glass of sweet tea and one of my grandchildren here. All is right in my world.”

But he knew that wasn’t really true. She didn’t have long to live. Months. Maybe only weeks. She’d been getting her affairs in order, deciding who would inherit what. Not that he cared a damn thing about the McNair wealth and holdings. He just wanted his grandmother.

He reached for a plate and piled on sandwiches, more to make her happy. His stomach felt as if it had rocks in it right now. “Thanks for lunch. It’s a chaotic day with all the campers coming in.”

“Stone surprised us all by starting that camp instead of taking over the jewelry enterprises, but in a good way.”

Alex touched his hat on his knee. “That he did.”

“His new life fits him. Johanna helped him see that path while she helped him with his inheritance test.” Mariah set her plate of uneaten sandwiches aside. “Alex, I want to talk to you about your test.”

“My test?” The rocks in his stomach turned icy. “I thought that was just a game to get Stone and Johanna back together.”

At least he’d hoped so as time passed and his grandmother didn’t bring up the subject of putting her three grandchildren through an arbitrary test to win their portion of the estate.

It wasn’t about the money. It was about the land. A mega-resort developer simply could not get a hold of Alex’s portion of the land. That, he definitely cared about.

“Well, Alex, you thought wrong. I need to feel secure about the future of what we’ve built. All three of you children have a stubborn streak.”

“One we inherited from you.”

“True enough.” She laughed softly before her blue eyes turned sad. “Much more so than my two children.”