Riding Hard

“No, ma’am. I know it’s not very Southern of me, but I like mine plain.”

“I’ll have some, then. Thank you.” She sat in the easy chair. “Tracy would kill me if she knew I’d come over here.”

Drake took a couple of tall glasses out of the cupboard and filled them with ice. “I won’t tell her, but good luck keeping a secret around here.”

“You’re right, but I’m going to attempt it. Jack’s the only one who knows I rode over, because I needed someone who could watch little Archie without throwing a hissy-fit about me coming. Three of my potential babysitters are Regan’s sisters, and they would not approve.”

“I’m sure.” He poured tea in both glasses. “Wait a minute. You rode over here from the Last Chance?”

“It’s closer to go cross-country, and doing that made it less likely I’d be seen. My horse is out back, tied to a tree.”

“I’ll be damned.” He walked over and handed her one of the glasses before sitting on the sofa with his own drink. “You’ve infiltrated enemy territory.”

“Something like that.” She took a swallow of her tea. “This is excellent. Thanks.”

“It’s one of the few things I know how to make.” He settled back, his glass balanced on one knee. “So you’re here on a secret mission to make sure the big bad wolf doesn’t have designs on the fair maiden Tracy?”

“That about sums it up.” She studied him. “You’re charming. I assumed you would be.”

“Back in Virginia, it’s the law. Anyone who fails the Southern-charm test is shipped up north.”

“Oh, boy.” Josie sipped her tea. “This could be trickier than I thought.”

“It won’t be tricky.” Drake met her gaze. “I’ve already thought this through. I’ll admit that I find Tracy very attractive, but I—”

“I knew it. Unfortunately, she’s fascinated with you, too. You should hear the way she carries on about your dastardly behavior, to the point where I finally realized she was into you.”

If having that confirmed thrilled him, he didn’t want to let on. “But she doesn’t want to be.”

“Exactly. Do you know why?”

“Sure. Like everyone else around here, she doesn’t like what I did to Regan.” He took a long pull on his iced tea and concentrated on the cool liquid running down his throat. God, but he was sick of this topic. Maybe someday in the distant future his indiscretions wouldn’t be the main thing folks wanted to talk to him about.

“It goes deeper than that, and I decided it might help if you understood a little more about her.”

Now this he did want to hear. “Shoot.”

“Her father was a married man who claimed he was single and that he’d had a vasectomy.”

“Oh.” At one time Drake would have offered a comment on that kind of behavior, but he no longer felt qualified to pass judgment.

“That’s why infidelity is such a complicated issue for Tracy. She hates it, but without it she wouldn’t exist. Her dad sent a few checks, but by then he was back with his wife. When the checks stopped coming, Tracy’s mom didn’t go after the bastard because she’s not well educated and didn’t think she could get anywhere, legally.”

“Is Tracy’s mother still around?”

“She eventually married some old cowboy from Idaho and she lives over there, now. But Tracy’s roots are here, so she stayed. Most of us feel as if we helped raise her.”

Drake nodded. “She probably feels that way, too.” Setting his tea on the coffee table in front of him, he leaned back and blew out a breath. “I’m glad you told me all that, although I’d already decided after going over there today that I’d—”

“Going over there?” Josie straightened. “Was there a problem with the animals?”

“Not exactly.” He gave her a brief rundown on what had happened with the pregnant Appaloosa.

“Okay. That’s not so terrible. Regan and Lily will have a good time with a foal running around, and maybe they’ll decide to hire this Rankin fellow. If not, Jack might have a spot for him at the Last Chance.”

“His mare’s in decent shape, so he’s probably good with horses, but that’s all I can vouch for.”

“Jack can ask around about him. I just hope the mare will wait until Regan and Lily get back before she delivers.”

“Me, too.” He planned to be strong in the face of temptation, but he’d rather not be tempted by Tracy at all.

“You were saying something about a decision after going over there today. I didn’t let you finish.”

Drake wasn’t sure he wanted to finish. They’d finally left the topic he was so sick of, and that was a relief. But he supposed he might as well say his piece. “I plan to keep my distance from Tracy. I already have one woman on my conscience who got involved with me against her better judgment. I don’t need to make it two.”

“You’re talking about Regan’s ex-fiancée.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“For what it’s worth, I don’t believe in laying all the blame on you, but people are probably doing that because you’re here. You’re the sacrificial goat, the one who showed up to take the flak. I happen to think that half the responsibility is hers.”

“I can’t say that’s true.” Drake had gone over the night’s events a million times, and he always saw himself as the one who could have stopped it. Should have stopped it.

“Noble of you. Egotistical, too, I might add.”

He blinked. “Excuse me?”

“Do you really consider yourself so irresistible that a woman loses her ability to think for herself when you display your manly charms?”

He stared at her, and after the shock wore off, he started to laugh. Then he laughed until his sides hurt. Finally, he wiped his eyes and cleared his throat. “Thanks for that. You’ve lightened my load quite a bit.”

She regarded him with amusement. “I wasn’t prepared to like you very much, Drake. It’s disconcerting to find out that I like you a lot.”

“Good. I like you, too.”

“The problem is, I’m not even supposed to be here, so I can’t go around telling people that you’re actually a pretty nice guy if they’d only get to know you.”

He shrugged. “That’s okay. Regan keeps telling me to give everyone time.”

“Yeah, well, there are a few around here who are world-champion grudge holders, so don’t expect a miracle. But now that you mention it, that’s something I’ve been very curious about. What are your plans? Are you staying? Are you going back to Virginia? Regan’s always been vague about your next move.”

“That’s because I’m vague about it. I don’t want my old life back, but I’m not sure what my new life should look like, or where it will take place. I’m at a crossroads.”

She studied him quietly for a moment. “There’s this spot out on the ranch, a big flat piece of granite laced with quartz that’s sacred to the Shoshone Indians, although they really don’t go out there anymore. Some say that if you’re having trouble deciding what to do, standing out on that rock helps.”

“What do you think?”

“I’ve never personally used that rock to make a decision, but some of my loved ones have. It couldn’t hurt.”