The Cowboy's Christmas Bride. Patricia Johns

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СКАЧАТЬ yes, he’d harbored a few grudges against his perfect brother, Chet. This cattle drive was a favor to his brother, nothing more, and the last thing he needed was a distraction. He’d messed up and he didn’t need a four-day-long reminder of that in the form of Dakota Mason, but Chet had asked her to lend a hand before Mackenzie’s pregnancy troubles, and Andy was just filling Chet’s shoes until he got back. This was all very temporary.

      “Changed your mind about helping out?” Andy asked. “My brother isn’t going to be back for a while, so you’d have to deal with me, whether you like it or not.”

      “Thanks to you, we need the extra money,” she retorted. “So, no, I’m in.”

      Working with a woman who couldn’t stand him was a bad idea. He knew that plain enough, but he couldn’t shake the feeling he owed her. Just like the rest of this blasted town. He had a debt hanging over his head that he’d never be able to repay. Andy glanced at his watch. Two drovers had quit on Chet, and they needed two replacements to get the job done. After Dakota, there was only one other applicant to the job posting he’d placed. He wasn’t exactly in a position to turn down help.

      “Have you done a cattle drive before?”

      She shot him a sidelong look. “Are you seriously asking me that?”

      It wasn’t a completely inappropriate question. Andy hadn’t gone on more than two cattle drives in his life. His brother had always been the one who cared about ranching operations—and was the consummate favorite—so their father had taken him along most years. Andy needed drovers who knew what they were doing, because while he was the face of the family for this drive, he didn’t have the experience, and he knew it. Getting the job done was going to rely on the expertise of his team. Which brought up an important question.

      “All the other drovers are men,” he said. “Can you handle that?”

      “If I can handle cattle, I can handle men.” She narrowed her eyes. “Can you handle a woman on your team?”

      Andy shot her a grin. He’d never been one to shy away from women. He’d managed to garner a bit of a reputation for himself over the years. In fact, he’d even dated his brother’s wife back when they were in high school—and when he’d been dumb enough to cheat on her with another girl. Not his proudest moment. But while Hope might remember him as the flirt no one could nail down, the last few years had changed him in ways he’d mostly kept to himself. Seeing Chet and Mack fall in love, get married and now start a family made him realize what he wanted—the real thing.

      “I have no problem working with a woman,” he replied. “But if we’re going to be working together for the next four days, maybe we could drop the personal vendetta. Like a truce.”

      She met his gaze without even a hint of a smile. “I can be professional.”

      Professional. Yeah, he’d had his fill of professional at the dealership. And if he had to spend the better part of a week with a group of people, he’d rather not feel their icy disapproval the entire time.

      “I was actually aiming for friendly,” he said and caught a flicker of humor in her direct gaze. “I’m not your favorite person, I get that. I hadn’t realized how bad it was—” He swallowed, weighing his words. “You aren’t the only one with a grudge around here. Do you know what it’s like to order breakfast at the truck stop and have everyone there, including your waitress, glare at you? I think my eggs tasted funny, to boot. Goodness knows what they did to them. So I get it. I’m the bad guy. I’m the jerk who sold you all out, but I do have a job to do, and this isn’t for me, it’s for Chet.”

      Some of the tension in her shoulders loosened at the mention of his brother. That’s the way it always was around here. People liked Chet. They respected him. They sided with him, too.

      Her direct, cool expression didn’t flicker. “I’ll meet you halfway at civil.”

      “I’ll take what I can get. If you want this job, we have to be able to work together. You know what it’s like out there, and if we can’t count on each other, we’re wasting everyone’s time.”

      “I’m not going to be your problem,” she said, and he knew what she was talking about—the rest of the team.

      “Leave the other guys to me.” He wasn’t exactly confident in his ability to lead this team of drovers, but if he could bridge the gap with Dakota, it would be a step in the right direction.

      “So, what are the plans?” she asked.

      “It’s four days in total. I haven’t done this particular ride before. It’s to the far side of what used to be the Vaughn ranch. We’re driving back four hundred head, so it’s no small job.”

      Dakota nodded. “When do we start?”

      “Monday morning.”

      “Okay, I’ll be here bright and early.” She rose to her feet and turned toward the door. Her jeans fit her nicely and he found himself having to pull his eyes away from admiring her shape.

      “Dakota—”

      “Yeah?” She turned back, brown eyes drilling into him, and he felt the urge to squirm.

      This was the hard part—this was where he had to reveal that he needed help—and his stomach tightened. He didn’t like admitting weakness, but needed an outside opinion, and she was the most qualified person in the room.

      “You sold Chet some horses last spring,” he said.

      “What of it?” She raked a hand through her hair.

      “I need to choose my horse for this drive, and I thought you might have some advice.” More than advice. Dakota was something of a horse whisperer, able to calm even the most spirited animal, and while he knew she didn’t much like him at the moment, he did trust her instincts. There was a horse he’d warmed up to over the last couple of days—Romeo. Chet thought Romeo wasn’t ready for a cattle drive, but there was just something about that horse that Andy couldn’t dismiss. Maybe he and Romeo were alike—not exactly ready but still perfectly capable. He wanted Dakota’s take on it. Maybe she’d see something Chet hadn’t.

      When Dakota didn’t answer right away, he added, “I know I’m not in the best position to ask you any personal favors, but it’s been a long time since I worked a ranch, and Chet is counting on me to take care of things. Once I’m done this job, I’ll go away and never bother you again. That’s a promise.”

      She sighed. “Do you have time now? I’d need to see the horses again to see where they’re at. They all needed work when they left my stables.”

      Andy shot her a grin and rose. “You bet. I have an hour until my interview with another potential drover.”

      “Who?” She frowned.

      “Harley Webb. Heard of him?”

      She shook her head. “No. He from around here?”

      “Doesn’t seem to be,” he said. “I’ll find out later, if he shows.”

      She gave him a curt nod and pulled open the door. There was something about this woman, her slim figure accentuated by morning sunlight, that made his mind stray into territory it didn’t belong СКАЧАТЬ