Never Tell. Karen Young

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СКАЧАТЬ Hank said, paging through to find the article. “She designs quilts and stuff and she’s good. I bet Lily would appreciate something from her shop. You’ve been traveling between those two jobs day in and day out. Not twenty minutes out of your way to detour over to the Village and choose something.”

      Theresa had risen to stand at Hunter’s elbow and study the article. “Hmm, anything in that shop’ll be pricey, count on it.”

      “He can afford to spend some money on his mother,” Hank said testily.

      “I’m not arguing that,” Theresa said, then pointed to an item in the window. “You want my opinion, go for one of the jackets. The quilts are probably gorgeous, but not exactly Lillian’s style. Now, if those jackets are as elegant as they appear in this picture, I think she’d be thrilled to get one.”

      “I’ll check it out.” Hunter got up, taking the Zest article with him. He was relieved not to have to spend time he didn’t have browsing in the Galleria. Clapping a hand on Hank’s shoulder, he moved toward the door. “Thanks. I appreciate it, Hank.” Passing the sideboard, he took a couple of apples from a bowl and headed for the door to get his hat.

      Once out of the house, he took a deep breath and followed the path leading to the barn. The air was sweet, the sky was already as blue as only a Texas sky can be and the birds were singing. The sun, high now on the east horizon, had burned off traces of morning mist. A perfect day for what he had in mind. Near the barn, Cisco, one of the two regular ranch hands on the payroll, was climbing onto the seat of a tractor hooked up to a trailer loaded with hay bales. Hunter raised his hand in greeting as Cisco headed out to pasture.

      The noise faded as Hunter entered the barn. Taking in the familiar smells of hay, horses and manure, he welcomed the hush. A soft whicker came from the first stall. Jasper, an Appaloosa stallion Hunter had bought a year ago, lifted his head and flicked his ears back in recognition. Hunter pulled one of the apples out of his jacket pocket.

      “Hey, boy. Ready for a ride?” Standing outside the stall, he fed the apple to the horse, rubbed him behind the ears, then reached for a bridle hanging on a hook. Jasper crunched the crisp apple and blew out a soft, gentle sound, stamping a foot. Hunter grinned, recognizing impatience as he slipped the bridle into place. “Looking forward to a good workout, huh? Well, me, too. Just let me get that saddle and we’re outta here, buddy.”

      The gear was in the tack room at the rear of the barn. As soon as he saddled up, Hunter planned to spend the next few hours skirting the perimeter of the ranch. Cisco and Earl were paid to see that the fences were in good shape, but Hunter liked to check himself from time to time. After the week he’d endured, he looked forward to a few hours to himself.

      “I knew I’d find you here.”

      Hunter turned with the saddle in his hands. Kelly Colson stood in the doorway. Blue-eyed, slim as a boy in boot-cut jeans and a baseball hat on her auburn head, she looked more like a teenager than a thirty-three-year-old veterinarian. “I thought you’d be sleeping in this morning,” he told her, hefting the saddle onto his shoulder.

      She stepped aside to let him pass. “Is that why you didn’t call me?”

      “I drove in early. Hank hit me at the door with paperwork. I only escaped ten minutes ago.” He hadn’t thought to call her, but he wasn’t about to admit it. “You’re up early, too.”

      “I never went to bed,” she said. “Tom Erickson called around midnight. His prize bull got out and was hit broadside by a teenager in a pickup. I didn’t get away until a few minutes ago. I spotted your car as I was passing on my way home.”

      “Not that bull he imported from Colorado?”

      “Uh-huh.”

      Hunter pushed Jasper’s stall door open. A man could buy a whole ranch for what some prize bulls cost. “Were you able to save him?”

      “Luckily nothing was broken, so he’ll survive.” She caught Jasper’s bridle as Hunter put the saddle blanket on his back. “He won’t be doing his job for a while, but when he’s called on to perform in a week or two, he’ll do his duty.”

      “Poor baby.”

      Kelly specialized in large animals, which is why she’d chosen to set her practice outside Houston. There was opportunity galore to practice in the city, where there were plenty of youngsters whose parents could afford the expense of a horse, but like Hunter, Kelly preferred breathing country air. It was one of many interests they shared. They had a lot in common, from a love of horses and country living to family history.

      She watched him pull the cinch tight around the horse and then reach to adjust the stirrup. “Looks like you’ve got plans for the day.”

      He glanced over at her, picking up something in her voice that made him proceed with caution. “At least, for most of the morning,” he told her. He and Kelly had drifted into a relationship of sorts lately. She’d stayed overnight at his condo once in a while when she was in the city, and they were often together on weekends when he made it out to the ranch. But today he craved a few hours by himself. “I thought I’d check the fence line,” he said, and bent back to his task, hoping she wouldn’t want to mount up and go with him.

      They’d been friends since childhood, which was understandable seeing the close connections of their parents. It was when Kelly finished her training and returned to establish her practice near the ranch that he realized she wanted them to be more than friends. She was an up-front, direct kind of woman who went flat out for whatever she wanted. And she made it plain that she wanted Hunter. He admitted he hadn’t put up much resistance; even so, he’d felt a little uncomfortable the first time they’d wound up in bed. Not that the sex wasn’t good, it was. Kelly didn’t seem to feel any qualms and had settled happily into their affair. What he couldn’t quite figure out was why—to him—something didn’t feel exactly…right.

      “Isn’t that Earl’s job?”

      “Riding fence?” He’d almost forgotten what they were talking about. “I do it for the fun of it. He indulges me.” When she failed to smile, he reached for the reins and she let go. “I’ve been fighting traffic and breathing interstate exhaust night and day for two weeks, Kell. Once I’m out of the barn, it’s just me and Jasper and open air. You know the feeling.”

      “I guess that means you don’t want company.”

      He had Jasper out of the stall now. He put his foot into a stirrup and mounted up. The stallion danced and snorted, eager to be moving, but Hunter held him in check for another moment. “You’ve been working all night. Get some sleep. I’ll come over later. We’ll drive into Brenham and get something to eat.”

      “Did you even think of calling me, Hunter?”

      Since he wasn’t sure in his own mind why he hadn’t, he wasn’t in a mood to admit or discuss it now. “See you around seven tonight.”

      Three

      Erica’s Art was the name of her shop and Erica loved it. She loved stocking it with her designs and watching customers pick and choose from the collection of quilts and jackets and then leave pleased to own something she’d created. It surprised her that she was a good merchant. As an artist, she preferred solitude to produce her creations, and she was shy when she had to assume the role of salesperson. That was Jason’s thing and he was so СКАЧАТЬ