At the Rancher's Request

“Ray and a couple of guys are headed out to see about our livestock. The men all have phones and walkie-talkies so they can keep in touch.”

“And you like this ranch life?” she asked.

He smiled. “Yes, the good outweighs the bad. Everything has ups and downs. There is something new every day and constant challenges.”

“And you like that?” she repeated, shaking her head. “Good thing you can keep calm. I’d hate to be headed out in the blizzard in the dark.” She wondered about his rugged life that was so different from everything she knew. She looked into the darkness and shivered, thankful to be in a warm car.

They passed a large hangar. Farther along, Savannah could see lights from houses set back long distances from both sides of the road. Next, outbuildings came into view and then two large barns and corrals. In seconds the road divided, the remaining truck turned and headed away from them.

“The guys are going home or to the bunkhouse. Some of them have houses and families here.”

She rode in silence as they passed more outbuildings and an eight-bay garage. Beyond it was a fence and a sprawling three-story ranch house. Mike punched buttons on his phone and lights came on in the house. The drive circled beneath a porte cochere.

“I guess I won’t have to sleep on the floor,” she said, startled by the size of his home and outbuildings. She turned to him. “All this from raising cows?”

“All this from having ancestors who were the first cattle barons who settled here. Each generation has built on that. We’ve been fortunate. We still raise cattle.”

With a hiss the rain changed to sleet and Mike’s smile vanished as he swore quietly. “This we don’t need, but I’m thankful it held off until now.”

She nodded and looked up. He gazed into her blue eyes and she gazed back. The low dash lights bathed her face in a pink glow, revealing rosy cheeks, big blue eyes and smooth skin. As he looked into her wide eyes, he became aware of her as a woman. A current sparked and he saw her eyelids flutter at the same time he felt electricity ignite between them. Startled, he stared at her while his surprise held him immobile. He hadn’t been aware of another woman since losing Elise to cancer almost two years ago, a year after Scotty’s birth. Shocked by his reaction, Mike forgot how he was staring at Savannah. He looked away, turning to gaze at the rain.

She glanced over her shoulder. “Lucky boy. He’s still asleep.”

“I’ll carry him in and come back to get your suitcases,” Mike said.

“Don’t worry about my things tonight. I’ll get the bag I need and the rest can wait until tomorrow. You take care of your son.”

“His nanny is away right now or she would come help. Her daughter has a new baby and Nell, Mrs. Lewis, has gone to help for a few weeks.”

“I’m in no rush,” Savannah said, slipping on a backpack and gathering her laptop, purse and a suitcase.

Mike unbuckled Scotty and picked him up, carrying his sleeping son in his arms.

“He’s a sound sleeper,” she whispered.

Mike smiled. “Thank heaven.” He opened the door and held it wide for her. She stepped inside and turned to hold the door out of his way while he carried Scotty inside and switched off an alarm.

“Scotty is growing up in a comfortable, beautiful home,” she said as they walked down a wide hall that held green plants, oil paintings of landscapes and Western scenes in ornate frames, Queen Anne chairs and tables along the walls. Doors opened onto rooms they passed, giving her a glimpse of a formal dining room with a massive table that had to seat twenty. She passed a library with ladders and an open beam ceiling.

“Mike, that’s an enormous library. Do you read constantly?”

He smiled and nodded. “It’s the family library. Many of the books are very old. Scotty has his own bookshelves in his room, so he doesn’t try to pull out valuable first editions from the family collection.”

“I don’t know how Scotty finds his way around this house.”

“This house seems large because it’s new to you. You’ll know your way around in no time.”

“Which means you think I’ll be snowed in for several days.”

“Don’t sound so glum. You didn’t mention having a deadline and we’ll find some way to pass the time.”

He smiled at her and she had to laugh. Was he flirting with her? She didn’t know him well enough to know. They branched off into the front hall with a sweeping staircase and she went upstairs beside Mike.

“This ranch is my whole life. My brothers have other interests, but my world is here. My sister is like me and has a ranch close by. I also have a house in Verity that I never use and a condo in Dallas that I’m rarely in. Do you live in town or in the country in Arkansas?”

“Definitely in town,” Savannah answered. “I don’t know anything about country living much less life on a Texas ranch.”

They walked down another wide hall. “My suite of rooms is at the end of this wing. Any of these bedrooms are empty along here. You might as well be closer so you don’t feel isolated. Scotty’s suite adjoins mine and his nanny has a suite adjoining his on the other side. Here’s where you can stay.” Mike entered a room and switched on a light. She looked at a sizable sitting room with a large-screen television, a wide glass desk, bookshelves along one wall, chairs and two sofas. The room had appealing turquoise-and-cream decor with a hardwood floor and thick area rugs. “There’s a bedroom beyond this room. If you need anything, just let me know. Make yourself comfortable. As soon as I get Scotty in bed I’ll come back and we can go have hot chocolate or a drink or whatever you would like.”

“That sounds wonderful.”

“See you in a few minutes,” he said.

She watched him walk out, his son in his arms. He looked like a typical cowboy, his black hat squarely on his head and his jeans hugging his long, slender legs. Boots gave an already tall man additional height. Once again she was thankful he had been at the station when she had turned in.

Glancing around the sitting room, she thought of the rooms they had passed. Mike was not an ordinary cowboy to afford a house such as this. She walked through the sitting room into a bedroom that was warm, pretty and welcoming with antique maple furniture, a four-poster bed, a rocking chair, another large television and a tall cheval glass. Savannah put her bags on her bed and sent a text, including a photo of her temporary room, to her mother to let her know where she was and why.

She freshened up, then changed into jeans, a blue sweater and her knee-high leather boots. Undoing her braid, she brushed her hair, which fell across her shoulders. She thought about the moment beneath the porte cochere before they stepped out of the truck when she had become aware of Mike as a desirable man. When she had looked into his dark eyes, she had been certain from his intense expression he had felt something. She shook her head. Attraction had no place in her life at this time and it had surprised her that she even had such a reaction for a brief moment, although Mike Calhoun was a good-looking man and his calm in the storm gave him added appeal.

No matter how attractive Mike was, after what she had just been through, she knew better than to go from one problem of the heart straight into another one.

Two (#ulink_0982be5f-642e-5a2d-9818-f611bbd82477)

Mike stood over Scotty’s bed and looked at his son. His insides tightened with pain. He still missed Elise and he missed her for Scotty. She should have been there to comfort Scotty in the car this afternoon, although Savannah had done a great job of taking the boy’s mind off the storm. Mike walked through the connecting door to his bedroom, tossing his hat on a desk and raking his fingers through his hair.

Thinking about Savannah, he turned to go see if she needed anything. He headed toward her bedroom when she stepped into the hall and started toward him.

Surprised, he drew a deep breath. A tall, beautiful blonde approached him. She had brushed out her hair and it fell across her shoulders. The oversize sweatshirt had been replaced by a blue sweater that revealed lush curves. Jeans clung to long legs and she still wore her suede knee boots. His heartbeat quickened and again shock stabbed him that he reacted to her—something he now had done twice this night, a startling response he had not felt for several years. His gaze raked over her once again before she was close and then he made an effort to look into her eyes. His heartbeat raced and even though unwanted, his desire was hot and definitely part of his life once again.

“You don’t look as if you’ve had a harrowing drive,” he said, smiling at her.

“Thanks to you,” she said, smiling in return. Her winning smile caused another response as his insides tightened. She had full pink lips and even white teeth and when she smiled, her eyes twinkled. “How’s Scotty?”

“He’s in bed asleep now,” Mike answered, her warm, enticing smile drawing him. “Did you have enough dinner? I’ve got steaks, casseroles in the freezer, an array to choose from.”

“I did have dinner. But I’d love something warm to drink.”

“How about hot chocolate and popcorn? Or if you want something stronger, we have drinks from wine to whiskey.”

She laughed as she walked beside him. “I’ll take the hot chocolate and popcorn. Right now that sounds just the thing for a cold, winter night.”

“I agree,” he said as they headed to the kitchen. As he made the hot chocolate and got the popcorn going, he was aware of her moving around him. Her perfume was light, barely noticeable, yet inviting. While he waited for the popcorn, he realized he was staring at her full lips and wondering what it would be like to kiss her. Again, the attraction startled him. It had been a long time since he had wondered any such thing. He didn’t welcome those feelings back into his life yet. He didn’t need any more complications for either Scotty or himself.

He still lived with a constant, dull pain over Elise. He missed her every waking hour. At least there was no danger of any complications with Savannah because she was leaving for California as soon as Ed repaired her car. By that time the weather shouldn’t be a factor, so she would be gone in days. For all he knew, she was married, although she wasn’t wearing a wedding ring.

Finally, they moved to the family room that adjoined the kitchen. Mike placed two cups of hot chocolate on a coffee table while she set down a big bowl of popcorn. He picked up the table to move it closer to the hearth.

“Let me get a fire going,” Mike said, adding a few logs to the fireplace. In minutes they sat on the floor in front of the blaze with the popcorn and hot chocolate on the nearby table. As Savannah looked around, he glanced at the familiar surroundings. He never gave them any thought: brown leather furniture, a game table and chairs, a large, wall-mounted flat-screen television, thick area rugs and a stone fireplace that dominated one wall. Adjacent was a glass wall with doors that opened onto a covered patio that now had snow blowing over it.