The Cowboy's Million-Dollar Secret

“You’re early. Trying to score points with the boss?”

She smiled up at him. “Would it work?”

He couldn’t help but grin back. “Nope. Beating me to work makes me look bad.”

She scratched the dog behind his ragged, partially chewed-off ear and cupped the mutt’s face. “Rico won’t tell. Will you, boy?”

You had to like a gal who’d befriend a butt-ugly dog. He dug in his pocket for his key and unlocked the door.

“Brooke said you’d give me keys and introduce me to everyone.”

Evidently, Brooke and Caleb had made him social director before they’d left last night. Brooke wasn’t handling mornings well in the first trimester of her pregnancy and preferred not to travel early in the morning.

“Should be a set of spares inside.”

Leanna unfolded in increments as if her muscles were stiff. He thought it a little odd considering her age—or lack of age. “You look like you’ve been ridden hard and put up wet.”

As soon as the words came out of his mouth an image formed in his mind—an image that had nothing to do with mistreating a horse. Down boy. He shoved open the door and motioned her to go ahead.

“Uh…no, just a strange bed. Do you mind if I make coffee?”

He followed her into the kitchen, wondering if the lack of caffeine was causing his mind to wander in the wrong direction. “Go ahead.”

She searched through the cabinets looking for the fixings. Each time she reached up, the strip of skin between the waistband of her baggy pants and the hem of her loose butter-yellow T-shirt widened.

His hormones obviously realized he was fixin’ to hang’em out for a long dry spell and were already rebelling.

With enormous effort he yanked his gaze away and reached past her for the coffee. His chest brushed her shoulder. Her hip nudged his. By the way his body reacted, she might as well have jumped on the kitchen table and started a bump-and-grind strip show.

Damn, he needed coffee. And a cold shower. He shoved the can into her hands and hustled across the room before he gave in to the urge to see if her skin felt as warm and smooth as it looked.

“Thanks.” Her voice sounded a little husky.

He squinted at her. Was she having as hard a time catching her breath as he was? Get your head outta the gutter and back on business, Lander. “You and Brooke handled all the paperwork yesterday?”

She scooped coffee grounds into the filter and smiled at him. “Yes, and she explained the dude ranch schedule. Guests arrive on Saturday and stay through Wednesday afternoon. The staff has Thursday and half of Friday off.”

“Why’re you early?”

Her cheeks looked flushed, but it was probably just a reflection of the sunrise coming through the window. “I need to familiarize myself with where everything is before we get caught up in the guests’ arrival.” She stretched to put up the coffee.

He caught another glimpse of skin and inhaled, but it wasn’t coffee he smelled—not unless Brooke had switched to a prissy vanilla-scented brew. Suddenly it struck him that he and Leanna were the only ones in the house. Clearing his throat, he wiped a hand across his face. The bristles reminded him that in the rush to avoid another argument with his father he’d forgotten to shave.

“She gave you the uniform?”

“Yes, but she said I didn’t have to wear it until tomorrow and then only for the first two days to help the guests identify me as an employee. Can you tell me where Rico’s food is kept?”

“Laundry room.”

She called to the dog and walked out of the room. Patrick caught himself tracking her—or rather the hip-rolling motion of her tight, round hind quarters, and shook his head. Label the gal off-limits, and danged if he didn’t develop a one-track mind.

Quit thinking about her and get back to work, dammit. It wasn’t like he didn’t have a truckload to do. He snatched up the computer printout Caleb had left him and scanned the information about the incoming dudes. Most were families with kids, but there were a few couples and singles. He’d learned the hard way to keep his eye on the singles.

He heard the splash of coffee into a mug and turned. Leanna had returned so quietly he hadn’t heard her. She lifted the pot in his direction and arched a brow. He nodded and she filled his cup.

Leaning against the counter, she asked, “Brooke said you had two brothers besides Caleb. Are you close?”

He jerked his gaze away from the freckles splashed across her nose and discovered a toe ring on her sandaled foot. Different. Sexy. Heat curled in his belly. Aw, hell, did he have to discover a foot fetish now? “As close as most, I guess.”

“Do you help Caleb and Brooke with the dude ranch often?” She pursed her lips and blew on her steaming coffee, and he almost forgot her question. She’d painted her pouty mouth today. Red. Ripe. Ready.

Wrong. Man, he needed to go back home and start this day over. He rubbed the back of his neck. She’d asked him a question. What was it? “Brooke’s only owned the place a few months, but Caleb and I used to help the previous owner regularly.”

“You live next door with your father?”

“Yeah.”

“How does he feel about you working here?”

Where was the line of questions leading, and why did he feel as if he were being interviewed? “Probably glad to have me out of his hair.”

“You don’t get along?”

It could take him all day to answer that one. “Not as good as we could. Why?”

He thought she smiled into her coffee mug. “Just curious.”

“Right. If we’re playing twenty questions then why’re you here?”

She stilled and slowly lifted her gaze to his. “I needed a job.”

“In Texas?” He sipped his coffee and discovered Leanna made a danged good brew. It wasn’t strong enough to put hair on a man’s chest, but it came close. Had to like that.

She gnawed her lip and lifted her chin. “I’ve been fascinated with Texas since I read about it as a teenager, and this job seemed like the perfect opportunity to fulfill a dream. Brooke interviewed me over the phone and hired me.”

“So you decided to pack everything you own in the back of your car and satisfy your curiosity?”

“Yes.”

He couldn’t imagine loading up his truck and leaving his family behind. This patch of land in McMullen County, Texas, was his home. Two of his brothers had left home, but they’d had good reasons. Brand had traveled the rodeo circuit for ten years because they’d needed his winnings to hold on to the ranch. Cort had gone all the way to North Carolina for college because he’d had a partial scholarship at Duke.

Why had Leanna left home? Uprooting herself for a temporary job didn’t make sense. “Are you on the run?”

Her face paled, and her eyes widened. “From what?”

“Or whom.”

“I’m not running from anything or anyone.” She sounded pretty defensive for somebody who had nothing to hide.