The Rancher's Promise

“You don’t have a car, do you?” Justin stalked closer. “That’s why you rode Copper over here. No clothes, no vehicle and no money. That’s my guess.”

Shame scorched her face. She scrambled to hold on to her dignity. “I really don’t feel comfortable discussing this with you.”

“That fancy big-city fellow you married left you without a care.” Anger dug into the corners of his mouth, making his high cheekbones appear like merciless slashes beneath his sun-browned skin. “You didn’t deserve that.”

“That’s not what I expected from you.” She stared at the grass at her feet to avoid the pity in Justin’s eyes—pity for her. She couldn’t blame her circumstances on anyone but herself. No pity needed. What she had to do was to wise up. Reach inside and find the tough, country girl she’d once known.

“Why don’t we let the past stay where it belongs? Behind us.” Justin hiked backward toward the barn. “It’s gone. Done and over with. We’ll just go on from here.”

“Employer and employee, you mean?”

“That’s it.” He gave her a slow grin, the one that used to make her heartbeat flutter in adoration.

Maybe there was a tiny hint of a flutter—just old memories, nothing more as she watched him go. Looked as if she had a chance for this job after all. With any luck, there would be enough groceries in the pantry to whip up a supper the Grangers weren’t likely to forget.

She hurried back to the house, glad to find Justin’s dad holding a box of recipe cards left behind by his aunt Opal. It was nice to have some inside help.

“Is that Copper?” Autumn skidded to a stop in front of the corner stall. “Did Mr. Cornell bring him over?”

“Nope.” Justin circled around her in the barn’s main aisle, hefting his working horse’s saddle. “Rori rode him over.”

“Rori? You mean she’s in town?”

“No need to look so excited about it.” He’d done his best not to think about her all afternoon long. His work was tough and demanded all of his attention, but somehow she’d remained at the front of his mind. Patching up a calf, checking on his herd, hauling feed and playing vet, all the while bothered by the image of Rori Cornell in a hand-me-down shirt and sadness deepening her violet eyes.

He mentally hammered up a barricade around his heart. Sure, he might feel sorry for her. She’d obviously come on hard times. But that was all he intended to feel for her. Ever.

“She’s up at the main house.” He shouldered through the tack-room door and plopped the saddle onto a saw-horse. He would wipe down the leather this evening. Not that he was in a hurry, but he knew if he didn’t show up for supper, Dad would come out looking for him.

Frank had always thought the world of Rori. Probably because she had always been honest from the get-go. She’d always had bigger plans than settling down in small-town Wyoming. He figured she was always meant for something better.

“I can’t believe it! Rori came back for the wedding, didn’t she?” Autumn deposited her saddle, dancing in place. “I can’t believe no one told me. Then again, considering the men around here, maybe I can.”

“I can feel your gaze boring a hole in the back of my head.” He gave Copper a nose rub on his way outside. “I’m not the reason she didn’t call up and tell you she was back in town. Don’t blame this on me.”

“Who else?” Autumn padded after him. “Besides, that’s what big brothers are good for. Taking the blame.”

“Funny.” He rolled his eyes. “And before you say it, I’m over Rori. It doesn’t matter to me that she’s here.”

“There was a time when I would have called you a liar if you’d said that, but now I know it’s true.” Autumn caught up with him, the heels of her riding boots crunching in the grass. A sign of her determination. “You’ve become a cold, hard man, Justin. I’m worried about you.”

“Nothing new there.” He’d been like this a long time. It had taken him a while to learn the important lessons about women, but he’d finally done it. “No need to worry about me. Go on up to the house and catch up with your old friend.”

“My old friend?” Autumn sounded as if she was going to correct him but then decided better of it. “Aren’t you coming, too?”

“Got a mare I need to check on first.” He climbed through the board fence into a grassy paddock. A small band of expecting mares looked up from their grazing and wheeled in his direction. “I won’t be long.”

“Need any help?”

His sister stood there, the sun at her back, the only female he could count on. She did a man’s work without complaint day in and day out come blizzard cold or blistering heat and still he couldn’t trust her with the truth.

Help? He would need a ten-gallon bucket of it if Rori ended up working for the family. Yet how could he object? She wouldn’t have left behind the city life she’d chosen if she had any other option. He wanted to keep his distance, but that didn’t mean he wanted to see her hurting.

God had a way of keeping a man humble. Justin tipped his hat brim lower to keep the sun off his face, held his hands out to show the mares he’d come without treats and went on with his work.

Chapter Three

“Mighty fine grub, Rori.” Mr. Granger—Frank—dug his spoon into the big bowl of chili in front of him. “We haven’t eaten this good in months.”

Judging by the look of satisfaction on his face, he was telling the truth instead of tempering it with kindness. Relieved, she turned back to the sink. She wasn’t the most accomplished cook, since she and Brad had employed a maid who’d done most of the food preparation. “I’ve gotten rusty, but being home with Gram and Gramps has given me some practice.”

“If this is rusty, I can’t wait to eat what you fix when you’re back in practice. Autumn, where did Justin get off to?”

“He had to check on a mare.”

“He missed grace, and if he’s not careful he’s going to miss supper.” He didn’t look all that happy with his son. Probably it was disappointing work being a matchmaker.

“Do you want me to stick around, or should I take off?” She’d tidied the kitchen and put all the prep dishes into the dishwasher. “I can stay, but my grandparents—”

“Are expecting you.” Frank nodded. “Sure, go ahead. It’s Justin’s turn to do dishes, since he left the lunch mess.”

“Serves him right,” littlest sister Addison piped up from her side of the table. It was hard to get used to her being so grown up. When Rori left town, Addison had been eight. Now she had just finished her junior year of college. The girl with the ponytails and freckles was only a memory replaced by a tall beauty. Addison frowned, wrinkling her perfect complexion. “Justin looks down on kitchen work.”

“He does, and it’s our job to keep him in line,” Autumn added with a wink.

What Rori wanted to do was to get out of the house before Justin walked in. Not that she felt compelled to avoid him, but her dignity was bruised. He pitied her. No doubt, that wouldn’t change. She grabbed her ball cap from the hat hooks by the back door. “Thanks. Have a good evening, everyone.”

She slipped outside listening to the three Grangers at the table call out their goodbyes to her. The sunlight had tempered, the blazing heat kicked down a notch to hint at a beautiful early summer evening. She hopped down the steps and hurried across the lawn, the grass fragrant beneath her flip-flops.

The hills, the stretch of the high prairie and the rim of the breathtaking Tetons in the distance surrounded her. She trudged toward the barn, keeping a lookout for Justin. Best to avoid him if she could. That wouldn’t always be possible now that Frank had offered her the job, but it was likely. Justin had changed, and she hated to think she had played a hand in that.

What I would give to go back and do it over again, she thought, half prayer, half impossible wish. If she could turn back time, she never would have accepted his offer for their first fateful milkshake together. She would never have trusted or married Brad.

“Rori!”

She heard the wind carry her name. Through the lush green fields she saw Justin in the knee-high grasses, his hat shading his face and a gloved hand raised up to her. More than distance separated them. She waved back, hurrying to the barn, and freed Copper from a stall. The white-muzzled gelding nickered a warm welcome and pressed his face in her hands with unmistakable affection.

Warmth filled her—emotions she’d been battling since she’d come home. Copper’s steadfast friendship, the sweet-scented grass and the earthy hint of dust in the air, the endless blue skies, it all overwhelmed her. Life may have led her away but her roots remained deep in this land. The days of long ago felt so close she could almost hear them. The sound of the radio in Dad’s truck, running up the back steps to the whir of Mama’s mixer in the kitchen, the carefree head toss Copper used to greet her with when he was young, bounding up to the fence.

“I missed you, too, old buddy.” She leaned her forehead to his, her best friend. “C’mon. Let’s ride home.”

By the time she’d saddled and bridled him and mounted up, the yard was empty of all signs of Justin. He was probably inside finishing up the chili and corn-bread she’d made. Maybe he was seated at the table and facing the windows overlooking the backyard and the mountain view.

Was he watching her now? she wondered as she reined Copper toward the driveway. Or was he doing his best to avoid her? She sat straight in the saddle, glad when the curving road took her out of sight. It was sad how much had changed between them, when they had once been so close.

Of course, that was her fault, plain and simple. She drew her cap brim over her eyes and, squinting into the light, rode the low rays of the sun home.

“How is Wildflower?”