To Tempt a Cowgirl

“Yes. One of the few things I do know.”

“So...you’re going to buy a horse and have her train it.”

“Yes.”

“And somehow not let her know you don’t ride.”

“I’ve ridden.” In fact, some of the happiest days of his life had revolved around a big brown gelding of uncertain breeding, owned by the only foster family who’d treated him like one of their own kids.

Serena made a disparaging noise. “When?”

“A long time ago. Okay?”

“So what are you going to do? Ask her to give you brush-up lessons?”

“She prefers horses to people.”

“And therein lies your problem,” Serena said on a note of amusement.

“Maybe I could flip the horse.” The idea struck him out of nowhere, which was why he needed to talk to actual human beings sometimes. “Then my rusty riding ability won’t be an issue.”

“Is horse flipping like cow tipping?”

Gabe frowned, wondering what the hell she was talking about. “It’s like flipping houses. I could buy a young horse, have Dani train it and then sell it at a profit.”

“Not a bad idea,” Serena said slowly. “Except I kind of wonder how cost effective that would be. And flipping horses might sound kind of mercenary to a horse lover.”

“Okay, forget flipping. Maybe I had a traumatic horse incident as a child that I want to get over.” And maybe he needed to be careful not to stack up too many lies. Or any lies for that matter, other than those made by omission, which really weren’t lies in this case. Stewart needed the land. Dani and her sisters had once been on the brink of selling. Timberline personnel couldn’t find out about the prospective purchase. Given all those factors, omission was the only sane course of action.

“From what I hear from Neal, your entire childhood was a traumatic incident.”

“I overcame,” he said darkly, and then he smiled as the perfect answer struck him. “I’m going to give the horse to you.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes. I am. You can keep it here. Sell it. Whatever. That way I can have it trained and not have to ride it.”

“Well, this has been a great hypothetical conversation. Would you keep me posted so I don’t have to call and not ask about business?”

“You bet, Serena. Enjoy the rest of your time off.”

“I hope I can,” she said softly. “Bye, Gabe.”

“Bye.”

Gabe pocketed his phone and started the car, waving at the horse owner, who’d started toward him and was possibly wondering if Gabe had changed his mind about the nasty beast he’d advertised as being the perfect mount for the right person. The right person apparently needed to be able to mount a horse that skittered sideways and reached back to try to bite the rider’s knee. Granted, the owner had been suitably embarrassed by the animal’s performance, but Gabe had no doubt that the guy would sell to anyone just to get rid of the horse.

He turned onto the main highway and started following the GPS directions to the final place on his list. Now that he had a plan, as in giving Serena a horse whether she wanted it or not, he felt better. More confident.

More honest.

He didn’t like lying to people and now he wouldn’t be lying to Dani. He just wouldn’t be telling her the entire truth. And if he didn’t owe Stewart a debt of gratitude, he didn’t know that he’d be doing any of this.

CHAPTER FIVE (#ulink_ca123e13-afce-5e2f-8419-4c147f9d1d72)

DANI HAD THOUGHT it would take time to grow her business, but less than a week after putting out her advertisement, she booked her last training slot. Feeling a deep sense of satisfaction, she finished the notes she’d made while talking to her client, then shoved her feet into her boots and headed for the door. Later that evening she’d make up an official work schedule, and in the future she’d have to stagger her clientele. She was okay right now because she had four thirty-day clients, three sixty-day clients and one that wanted a two-week tune-up. That filled eight hours a day and when she added on care and feeding...yes. Full schedule. And the best part was that she wouldn’t need to touch her severance pay for living expenses. If things continued like this, she could probably take on a few more horses and hire a part-time assistant until Jolie moved back home to join the business.

Marti Kendall wasn’t going to like this one bit. Oh, well. As far as Dani was concerned, she was due. She’d always had to work pretty damned hard for everything she’d ever gotten and even then she had a way of catching things at the tail end of success. SnowFrost was an excellent example. It had been a thriving business when she’d first been hired, but the owners were slow to change and the market had passed them by. Other more nimble companies had filled the available niches and left SnowFrost in the dust, which was a lesson in itself. She needed to pay attention to the business end. Sudden success could evaporate at any time, leaving her struggling to make ends meet.

Jolie would have smacked her for thinking like Allie, but Dani couldn’t help herself and Jolie didn’t need to know.

The day was hot and sweat was trickling down her back between her shoulder blades when she finally brushed down the piebald filly, her last horse of the day. All in all, she was satisfied. Exhausted, but satisfied. She tossed hay and scared a few mice out of the grain barrel. They practically ran over Gus’s feet and the dog watched them go by with a bemused expression. Small rabbits, perhaps? Dani made a mental note to check the Humane Society for cats, then closed the barn door. She was halfway across the drive when she heard a vehicle pull into the drive and stopped dead in her tracks.

Kyle.

Great.

Calling Gus close, she waited under the poplars that edged the front yard until Kyle pulled to a stop and got out of his vehicle. Gus pushed his big body closer to Dani’s legs and lifted his head, zeroing in on the man crossing the drive. He made no sound, but there was no mistaking the fact that he was in full protection mode. Kyle, smart man that he was, stopped a few yards away.

“How’s it going?” he asked casually, glancing around as if looking for changes before bringing his attention back to Dani. He still had his golden-boy good looks, but they were somewhat marred by the grim set of his mouth.

“Going well,” she said noncommittally. Now that he was here, she couldn’t help but flash on the standpipes. The horse escape.

“Good.” He attempted a smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Hear from Allie lately?”

“I have,” she said, the same noncommittal note in her voice.

“Is she doing okay?”

“Starting school is an adjustment, but yes. I’d say she’s doing okay.” She and Kyle had gotten along just fine until Allie had become so unhappy with her marriage. After that, things had gotten awkward. And now that she was wondering if he’d been vandalizing the ranch out of spite, she wanted him off her property. Now.

“She did say that you were bringing the tractor back soon,” Dani said, pushing back a few strands of windblown hair as she tipped her chin up at him.

His face started to go pink as it always did when he was confronted on an issue. “I’ll bring it back this weekend. I’ve been on vacation at the Washington coast.” He spoke with an edge of challenge in his voice, making her wonder if he expected her to question his whereabouts. It also made her wonder if she was in for more retribution via property vandalism if she crossed him. “I heard you made a call to Dispatch while I was off.”

“A week ago.”

“Today was my first day back and when I heard, I thought I’d stop by and check out the situation.”

The fact that he was doing that made her wonder when exactly he’d left and if he’d stopped by the Lighting Creek on his way out of town to stomp a few standpipes, let a few animals go. It’d be a passive-aggressive way to give Allie grief...or maybe to take out his frustrations on the ranch he wasn’t going to get a piece of.

“Nothing to check out,” Dani said. “A neighbor helped me with the problem and he was the one who suggested that I make a report.”

“A neighbor?”

“Yeah.” She turned to point across the field. “A guy who designs parks is renting the Staley house for a vacation.” As if Kyle wouldn’t already know this. Sheriff’s office personnel knew everything in this county. “Long story, but we’d met a couple of times and when I found the standpipes broken off, I called to see if he could help me find the water main.”

Kyle frowned in the direction of the house for a few thoughtful seconds before turning his gaze back to Dani. “You don’t think that’s a little suspicious?”