Bet You'll Marry Me (17 page)

A few minutes later they moved into the front half of the group, but her mind wandered back to Nick.

Her heart had nearly leapt out of her chest when he'd called to her. After not seeing him for an entire week, he'd come. And called out her name. If the start whistle hadn't blown when it did, what would he have said to her? Would he be there, waiting for her, when the race was over?

It's true he hadn't been truthful with her about his identity. His intentions hadn't been honorable. But he'd worked hard to help the ranch succeed. He'd saved her Uncle Harry's life, her life, and the lives of her horses. If he cared for her, didn't he deserve a second chance?

If only she could be certain he
did
care.

Amid the thunder of hooves the sharp crack of a whip rang in her ears and Travis Koenig drove Kastle straight in front of her. Starfire veered. If she hadn't kept a firm grip on the reins, the thoroughbred could have slipped off the steep embankment.

She readjusted her seat, and would have called Travis several of the names she'd heard Billie use, except he was already too far ahead to hear.

“Go after him, Jenny.” Kevin Forester rode Blue Devil up on her left. “You can do it. Take the bull by the horns.”

Easy to say, harder to do.

As the elevation increased, so did the number of sharp turns up the craggy hillside. The switchbacks made it difficult once again for anyone to pass, and to her dismay, Travis remained more than six riders ahead.

A rumble sounded above and she glanced at the cliff on her left.

“Rockslide,” someone shouted.

Jenny's adrenaline shot into high gear as she and Starfire raced to avoid the onslaught of stones tumbling down the mountain. The ground was loose from the forest fire. Without the trees and bushes to hold the rocks in place, the slightest disturbance could initiate a slide. For one fateful second she cringed and thought they'd roll to their death. Then the roar of the avalanche fell away from her and echoed across the valley below.

“That was close,” Kevin yelled from behind.

It was indeed. She looked back over her shoulder and drew in a sharp breath.

Four feet of debris blocked the path and brought the race to a premature end for half the riders entered.

To win, she needed to reach the band of riders in front of her who vied for first place.

The trail widened and the trees parted to reveal an open field. Jenny loosened the reins and leaned forward in the saddle. Starfire gave a shrill whinny and picked up his pace from a canter to a full run.

They passed three riders, a fourth, a fifth. Travis, racing against her on her own horse, was fifty yards ahead.

Nick, too, had always been one step ahead. He'd challenged her, drawn her out of her self-imposed hermit status, and reintroduced her to the world again.

She'd told Wayne that Nick and Billie were on an insatiable quest for fast cash, but then again, wasn't
she
? Isn't that the reason she accepted the bet with Nick? To get some “easy money”? Maybe if she'd stopped thinking about the money for one moment, stopped being so materialistic . . . but wasn't it right to want to keep one's home?

What if she lost the race? Lost the ranch? Where would she go? What would she do? Would she meander down to California and try surfing with her cousin Patrick? What about Uncle Harry? Her thoughts swirled so fast she couldn't think straight. Good thing her horse knew what to do.

Starfire jumped over a fallen log, raced around a fire-damaged bridge, and splashed straight through a network of shallow streams. They passed more riders whose mounts had begun to tire. She lost sight of Travis when they rounded the curve, but he and Kastle had to be close.

She'd been on this trail dozens of times with Levi and her father when they hunted elk. A half mile remained and she couldn't waste a single second. Every moment, every step, from this point on, mattered.

And yet, she continued to think of Nick, his silver-gray eyes upon her, his expression earnest, as he asked her to trust him.

Her need to see him intensified her need to cross the finish line. Jenny squeezed her legs and pushed Starfire past two more riders. Both Kastle and the finish line beside Harp Lake came into view at the same time.

Starfire was exhausted. She could feel the tension in his muscles. He wouldn't be able to last much longer.

“C'mon, boy,” she whispered. “You can do it.”

Starfire gained speed and caught up with the gray mare. The noise of the horse's hooves drummed in Jenny's ears and chest.

The terrain dipped and when they crested the next hill, Jenny saw the large fallen tree sticking out across one side of the path. Blackened trunk. No branches. Two and a half feet high. No problem for her to jump. Starfire rode English.

What would Travis do? A jump in a western saddle would hurt, the horn would gouge his stomach, but it
could
be done.

Jenny glanced with concern at Kastle's legs. The mare's prior injury remained unnoticed, but it could still be tender. Too tender to attempt a jump. If she could get Travis to follow her, Kastle might refuse to go over the log and allow her and Starfire to win.

When Travis glanced at her she gave him a sweet smile and steered Starfire toward the left making it clear she intended to jump. Just like she hoped, Travis gave her a smug look and did the same. His ego would never allow him to let her have the upper hand. He planned to beat her and win with style.

He was also smart. He knew riding around the tree would cost precious seconds. Time he didn't have with her and Starfire riding beside him.

Kastle tried to pull the reins out of Travis's hands, but the former rodeo star held on and refused to relinquish control. He smacked his crop against the mare's hindquarters.

“Travis, no! Don't force her!”

Travis ignored the protest and headed straight toward the log.

Faster. Faster.
Starfire snorted, his eye on Kastle as the gray mare widened the distance between them by several feet.

The fallen tree drew closer. Travis crouched over the mare's neck.

Jenny held her breath, dread already rushing into the pit of her stomach as Kastle's muscles flexed.

Drat! She'd been right. Kastle
was
the horse to win the race. After Travis and Kastle made it over the jump, there would be no way to catch up with them. They'd already be too far ahead.

Then Kastle pulled up short at the last second. Pitched Travis sideways. Starfire's muscles bunched and a second later she and Starfire soared into the sky. Sun kissed the top of her head. Wind blew back her hair. They rose higher and higher as if lifted by a giant hand. Jenny laughed. Giddy. She was
free
.

Incredibly, deliriously, unbelievably free!

The bank would never be able to take her land away from her now. The horses, the house, the fields, everything she loved that hung in the balance of this jump would finally be free of outside threat.

Tears filtered down her face as Starfire's hooves met the ground. Harp Lake beckoned like a beautiful unspeakable mirage. Loud cheers and spontaneous applause greeted them as they crossed the finish line.

They did it. They won.

Jenny wiped her face with her hands, broke into a smile, and wrapped her arms around her beloved horse.

“That's my good boy,” she whispered.

Starfire's ears twitched at the sound of her voice, and he whinnied his acceptance of the praise.

Jenny walked him in circles to give him a chance to catch his breath and the frenzied photographers an opportunity to take a picture. The other riders continued to come in. Several of them nodded to her. Kevin saluted. Travis eyed her with contempt.

She'd never know why Kastle refused the jump. Maybe the mare's leg was still tender. Maybe the horse remembered the accident that gave her the scar or didn't have much experience. Or maybe Kastle just didn't like Travis.

No matter the cause, Davenport's abrupt acquisition of her horse prior to the race had worked to her advantage.

Harry chuckled and gave the thoroughbred an affectionate pat. “See? Old age doesn't mean you're out of the race. I think we both have a bit more life in us.”

Billie ran forward. “Wow! That was great. We saw you win from the top of the hill.”

Wayne lagged behind, his walk slow and his face pale.

“What's wrong with him?” Jenny asked.

“I don't know.” Billie frowned. “He's been like that ever since we passed the lake.”

“Did you say anything to him?”

“I told him I heard harps.”

“Harps?” Jenny slid out of the saddle and grinned. “Give him time. He'll get over it.” She paused, afraid to ask. “And Nick?”

Billie shook her head. “I haven't talked to him.”

Levi, David, and several others also came to offer their congratulations.

“I knew you could do it, girl.” Levi's old wrinkled face beamed as he handed her a bag filled with money. “You might need an escort to keep you safe with all that cash.”

“The bank closes in a half hour,” said Harry. He took Starfire's reins. “You have to hurry.”

Jenny glanced from her truck at the far end of the parking lot to David Wilson's, fifteen feet away.

“David, can you give me a ride?”

The rancher whipped his keys out of his pocket. “You bet I can.”

 

Chapter Eighteen

D
AVID
W
ILSON SHOULD
have been arrested for the way he sped into town. The truck shot around turns, spit gravel, and squealed louder than a wayward missile.

Jenny braced one hand on the dashboard while the other gripped the edge of her seat. She didn't know whether to be scared or thankful, but her need to get to the bank had her leaning toward thankful.

The clock above the building read 12:20. Jenny looked through the large bay window as David squealed to a stop, and saw the financial manager still at his desk.

She'd made it just in time.

The bank closed 12:30 on Saturdays. A fact she'd forgotten when Stewart Davenport bumped up her deadline to this date. The bet didn't end until 1:00 and if the prize money from the race wasn't raised, she wouldn't have been able to save her ranch.

She and David hopped out of the front of the truck, while Wayne, Billie, Kevin, and Levi, who hadn't wanted to be left behind, climbed out of the back.

Jenny hurried to the bank entrance.

“
Jenny, wait!
”

She hesitated. Turned around. “Josh?”

The twelve-year-old ran toward her. “Nick's in a fight! Seven men pulled him out of a big black limo and one of them punched him in the stomach. Pete Johnson called the sheriff but by the time he gets here it will be too late! They are really big. I've never seen such big men. Bigger than Ted Andrews!”

Billie fell to the ground on her knees, her eyes wide. “They're going to kill him!
Oh, no!
No! No! No!
What should I do? I can't go over there. If I go over there they will kill me, too!”

Wayne put a hand on Billie's shoulder. “I won't let anyone harm you.”

“You don't understand. I owe Lucarelli a hundred grand. It's all my fault. Everything that's happened is all my fault. I never should have gambled, never should have cheated. Now the guy I owe is
here
with his men and they're going to make Nick pay.”

“I won't let him stand alone,” Wayne said, his voice firm. “Where are they?”

Josh pointed down the street. “Behind the Bets and Burgers Café.”

Wayne ran off and Jenny moved to go after him, when David placed a hand on her arm. “What are you doing?”

The ranchers stood stock-still and tombstone quiet as they waited for her reply. Even the breeze died down as if it, too, wanted to listen.

Jenny glanced down at the bag in her hand, more money than she'd ever held in her entire life, and her stomach twisted in knots.

“I—I can't let them hurt him.” She eyed each of the ranchers as if daring them to protest. “Could you?”

The ranchers hesitated, and then slowly shook their heads, their expressions grim. Levi pulled at his whiskers. David scuffed the dirt with the toe of his boot. Jenny looked at Billie and a multitude of sad unspoken words conversed between them.

Turning, Jenny hurried toward the café.

When she rounded the corner she saw them. Seven men, dressed in various shades of black and blue, one of them grasping the front of Nick's shirt.

“
Stop!
” she shouted. “I have the money Billie owes you.”

The men all looked at her with surprise, including Nick, as she stepped forward and placed the bag of money into the nearest man's hands.

The man glanced around at his comrades, turned back to her, and smiled. “Thank you, but the debt has already been paid.”

“It has?” Jenny gasped as he handed the money bag back to her. “How?”

The man holding Nick by the front of his shirt released him and Nick brushed himself off. “I gave him N.L.C. Industries.”

She saw the heartbreak in Nick's eyes. Knew how much the company meant to him and how much it hurt to let it go. She glanced at the first man who had spoken, the one who seemed to be in charge.

“Then what is all this about? Why did you bruise Nick's face if he already paid you?”

The lead man grinned. “This is for the interest.”

“Well, are you about finished?” she demanded, raising her own fist toward him.

The seven men looked at her and laughed.

“I think we are,” the lead man said, and the other men began to step away.

Wayne hurried to Nick's side and Jenny was about to do the same, when she looked down and realized she still had the bag of money in her hands. She gasped, turned on her heel, and bolted back to the bank as fast as her legs would carry her.

But it was too late. The bank had closed. And she had missed her deadline.

Jenny stood there, in front of the door for several long minutes, looking at her reflection in the glass.

She didn't know where she would live now, but as long as she was with Nick, she'd be okay. Because she loved him and love wasn't tied to a place. It resided in the heart. Stewart Davenport could take away her ranch, but she'd keep her past memories and the love of her family safe in her heart forever.

Crossing the street, she stepped through the café's open door. The room was packed. Tales spread faster than wildfire in a small town, and Jenny figured the people couldn't wait to see Nick any more than she could.

Where
was
Nick?

The broad shoulders of two big burly men blocked her view of the back counter, but her heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice.

“I'm flying back to New York tonight,” Nick said to the crowd.

“What about Jenny?” Levi called out. “You still have a few minutes left to win the bet.”

Jenny dug her toes into the tips of her boots, listening, but still unable to see.

“No,” he said, his voice strained. “I blew it. Jenny will never marry me now.”

Never marry him?
No!
Her heart hammered as she squeezed past the two big men and stepped into the open space before them.

“Ten thousand dollars says she will.”

Jenny waved a stack of green hundreds in the air and the crowd hushed.

She didn't look at them. Her attention was fixed solely on Nick, whose gaze locked on to hers the moment she spoke.

“You want to marry me?”

“Yes.”

Jenny studied his face. The large purple welt on his left cheekbone and the laceration on his upper lip looked horrendous.

But worst of all, Nick's expression remained guarded. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. Did he really care for her or had the light in his eyes, the passion in his kisses all been an act? Her stomach clenched as she waited for a sign.

“Jenny,” Nick said, his voice low and even, “I traded Charlie Pickett my three land parcels for his early fire-insurance money. I used it to pay off your bank debt right before the race.”

She stared at him, and it took a few moments for his words to sink in.

“You mean the ranch is still mine?”

“Forever and ever.”

Jenny gasped. “And you?”

The taut muscles in Nick's face relaxed, his silver-gray eyes sparkled . . . and the wide smile he gave her dispelled every fear that had hovered at the edge of her heart.

Jenny wasn't sure who moved first, but a moment later she was wrapped in a fierce hug, and she was laughing and crying at the same time. Warmth flooded over her and she became light-headed, as if she'd sipped too much of Levi MacGowan's home-brewed whiskey.

“Why?” Nick asked. “Why would you try to trade Windy Meadows for me?”

Jenny pressed her cheek against his chest, the truth never more clear. “I could never love a place as much as I love you.”

Nick pulled back with a start. “What did you say?”

“I love you,” she repeated, her whole heart behind each word.

Nick grinned. “Will you marry me right now?”

“Yes.”

“Don't do it, Jenny!” Charlie shouted. “It's almost one o'clock. If you wait eight more minutes, you'll win the bet.”

Jenny shook her head. “I don't want to wait another second.”

Nick looked at the man sitting on the bar stool behind him. “Reverend Thornberry, did you hear that?”

The preacher furrowed his brows. “I'm afraid I did.”

Nick took her hand and gazed down at her with more passion than she'd ever believed possible.

“I love you, too, Jenny.”

Reverend Thornberry began to recite the traditional marriage vow passages. Then he looked at his watch, rolled his eyes heavenward, and threw up his hands.

“May God help you, I now pronounce you husband and wife.”

Nick drew her close and kissed her, his lips warm and tender, and full of promises for the future.

“Fifty dollars says their first kid is a boy,” Levi called out.

Cheers soared into the air, and empty drink glasses smashed wildly around them, as more and more wagers began to be placed.

Nick smiled against her lips and Jenny couldn't help but laugh. She was more than willing to be part of
this
bet.