Saddle Up (10 page)

“They don't kill 'em, if that's what you fear,” Mitch reassured her. “It's illegal—in this country anyway. Most'll be shipped out to long-term federal holding facilities. You're welcome to follow us to Palomino Valley. It's only three hours south of here, just outside Reno, which won't even be out of your way.”

Keith suddenly glanced her way. “I'll drive you back to Bruno's,” he volunteered. “You can just follow us from there.”

“Are you sure you don't mind?” Miranda asked.

He shrugged. “Not at all.”

“Great.” Mitch tipped his hat. “I guess we'll see you both in a few hours.”

After Mitch pulled out with his last load of horses, Miranda followed Keith to his truck.

“So what happens after this job is done?” she asked. “Are you all heading back to Wyoming?”

“No. Mitch is doing a nuisance gather in Tuscarora.”

“What's a nuisance gather?”

“It's usually removing horses that push over fences and invade private property. Sometimes they present a hazard in residential areas as well, wandering onto highways and such. Mitch and his boys can handle it without me. I'm going to be busy hauling a load of horses to the Warm Springs Correctional Facility in Carson City.”

“Correctional facility? Why are you taking horses to a prison?”

“It's a special program,” he explained. “There are several prisons around the country that let the inmates work with the horses, gentling them for easier adoption, but the prisons can take only a handful of horses at a time. In the meantime, the BLM keeps culling the herds, even though they've run out of places to put them.”

“What do you mean ‘run out of places'?”

“At last report, they have about fifty thousand mustangs they're managing, and there's at least three more gathers scheduled over the next month in Nevada alone.”

“Did you say
fifty thousand
?” she repeated incredulously. “That isn't management. It's insanity!”

Keith shook his head ruefully. “That's government bureaucracy at work.”

“What's going to happen to them all?” she asked.

“Who knows? The BLM is so desperate, they've even begun turning to private ranchers for help.”

“That's got to be less expensive than keeping them at holding facilities, and better for the horses too,” she said.

“It still doesn't fix the problem,” Keith said. “The entire mustang program is a total fuck up—a waste of time, money, and resources.”

Keith opened her door, and she climbed into the cab. They drove in a strained silence, with Miranda casting him only occasional sidelong glances. His cynicism about the horse gathering surprised and disappointed her. Until now, she'd even begun to see him as the romantic lead in her own Wild West adventure, but his bitterness had tarnished some of the hero gleam.

“Something on your mind?” he prompted once they reached the end of the road where her car was parked.

“Yes. There is. I don't understand you, Keith. If you don't believe in this, why are you doing it?”

He cut off the engine and turned to face her. “Do you comprehend the term ‘necessary evil'?” he asked.

“I suppose so.”

“That's what this is. Most of those horses back there would have died if we hadn't gathered them.”

“So you've saved them,” she said. “Isn't that a good thing?”

“Yes, we saved them,” he replied. “But that doesn't mean they'll have a good life.”

“Why would you say that?”

“Because the ones that were gathered will be separated and never live as families again. Wild horses don't live in large herds, but in small family bands—usually one stallion with a few mares and their offspring. They have very strong bonds. These horses are much like us. They are not dumb animals. They feel emotions. They get pissed off just like we do. They fear. They show affection. They even mourn. It's a cruel practice to tear them apart.”

“So you really do care,” she said softly.

“Of course I care!” he exclaimed. “And I see far too many parallels between how the government is handling mustangs and how they ‘managed' the Native American population.”

“I never would have thought of it like that,” she remarked.

“Because you have no connection to it. I do. Much like these horses, my father's people were taken from their homes, families fractured, gathered up and trekked across the country to their ‘long-term pastures.' Have you ever been to a reservation, Miranda?”

“No, I haven't.”

“The rez is a depressing and dispiriting place. The people have mostly lost hope. Abject poverty has broken many of them. Drugs and alcohol are rampant, and life expectancy is less than fifty years. So you see, our designated ‘pastures' didn't turn out to be so green.”

“If you feel so strongly about the mustangs, why don't you try to do something about it?”

“Do something? Like what?” he asked. “Look, Miranda. I learned a long time ago that some problems can't be solved. And there's no fixing this one. None of us here like the system, but there's not a damned thing we can about it.”

“That's not true,” she insisted. “You
could
do something. You just told me there are thousands of mustangs that need gentling, and you have a God-given talent with these animals. Why aren't you using it for the greater good?”

“Simple,” he replied. “Because I've been around long enough to know that the ‘greater good' rarely pays off.”

“Looks like we're about done here,” Mitch said after they'd freeze branded and immunized all of the gathered horses. Watching the crew, Miranda had been impressed by the speed and efficiency of the process. “Did you get everything to satisfy the court order?” he asked her.

“I got everything I came for,” Miranda answered. “But I'd really like to hang around with you a little bit longer.”

“Are you staying in Reno tonight, or heading back to L.A.?” Mitch asked.

“I hadn't really decided yet,” Miranda replied. “It's a really long drive, and I'm pretty whipped.”

“If you're thinking about staying in Reno tonight, we get a special rate at JA's Nugget,” Mitch said. “It's the only place the boys ever want to stay.”

Beth looked to Mitch with a snort. “And it isn't for the buffet.”

“Then why?” Miranda asked, glancing from one to the other. “I'm afraid I don't get the joke.”

“They have bikini bull riding every weekend,” Mitch explained.

“It's nothing but a shameful exhibitionist display, if you ask me,” Beth added with a shake of her head.

“There ain't no harm in just lookin',” Mitch teased.

Beth flashed her husband the evil eye. “Oh yeah? I promise you'll suffer plenty of harm if
you
go lookin', ol' man.”

He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck. “You should know by now that I only have eyes for you, 'Lizbeth.”

“Don't you dare try to cozy up to me now, Mitchell West.” She batted his hands away with a mock glower. “I'll have you know we'll be getting two double beds tonight.”

Miranda watched them with a vague feeling of wistfulness. Beth and Mitch had been together at least thirty years and had a comfortable, playful, and obviously passionate relationship. She wondered what it would be like to have that with someone.

Her mother and stepdad mostly ignored each other. They rarely conversed and hadn't even kissed in years. It was sad to see a couple living together in isolation—people who shared their lives but never their hearts. Maybe that's why she hadn't been able to commit to Jason. He was a great guy, but he hadn't shared her dreams and aspirations. She wondered if she'd ever find that—someone she could share her dreams with.

Though she and Keith were worlds apart in so many ways, somehow they'd shared a connection. Was it only transitory lust? Or could it have been something more. She wished they could have had a chance to find out.

“What about you, Keith?” Beth inquired, darting a sly look from Keith to Miranda. Had she picked up on the vibe between the two of them? “Are you staying in Reno tonight too?”

Keith tipped his hat back to glance at Miranda. “I was planning to drive down to Warm Springs today, but by the time we get another load on the trailer, it'll be near dark. I don't suppose that's the best time to deliver a load of wild horses to a prison. Maybe it'd be better to wait and go tomorrow.”

“Probably would be best,” Mitch agreed with a sly look.

So he'd be staying in Reno tonight too? Miranda's gaze riveted back to Keith. Was he thinking what she was thinking? His casual tone and blank expression gave nothing away.

“If that's the case, would you mind if I went also?” Miranda asked, looking from Keith to Mitch.

“To the prison?” Mitch asked.

“Yes,” she said. “If we left early in the morning, maybe I could spend a couple of hours there and still get back to L.A. at a reasonable time.”

Keith shrugged. “I don't mind as long as Mitch can arrange it.”

He had hardly spoken to her from the time they'd arrived at the processing facility. Although he'd been busy sorting and loading horses, it felt like he was intentionally keeping his distance from her. She wondered why.

Mitch scratched his chin. “Don't see why not. You'll need authorization from the warden, but we've been working with that facility for years. I 'magine you'll be barraged with forms to sign, but I'll make the call if you want to go.”

“Yes. I would.” She beamed.

“If you're going to stay in town tonight, I hope you'll join us for some supper,” Beth said.

“Thanks for the invitation,” Miranda replied. “But to be honest, after sleeping on the ground last night, I'm seriously craving room service, a long, hot bath, and a nice soft bed.”

* * *

With me.
Keith wanted to blurt. He hadn't planned to overnight in Reno, but her decision to stay had changed everything. If they had a second chance to be together, he wasn't about to pass it up. “If you're ready to go, I'll give you a ride back to your car,” he offered.

“Thanks,” Miranda replied, but her smile held an uncertain edge as she packed up her gear.

He placed his hand on the small of her back, noting the slight shiver even at this light contact. There was a new tension between them now, an uneasy and unspoken anticipation. They drove in silence until reaching the end of the gravel road that marked the entrance to the Palomino Valley Wild Horse Adoption Center. Pulling up to her car, Keith put the truck in park. “Are you going to call the hotel for a room…or are you going to stay with me?”

“Stay with you?” She looked up in surprise. “That sounds a lot like a proposition.”

“Is that what you'd call it?” He asked with a grin. “I thought it sounded like a really good idea.”

“Or a really bad one,” she blurted. “I don't get you. You were almost chilly toward me all day. Why this sudden about-face?”

“I was trying to make it easier on both of us, but it wasn't easy,” he said. For the past few hours he'd tried to keep his mind focused on work, but couldn't get the thought of her out of his mind—or ignore the ball-aching frustration he still felt every time he looked at her. “I couldn't stop thinking about you, about last night.”

“Last night was one thing,” she replied, her expression wary. “But this is something else.”

“Last night was different for me too,” he said. “
You
are different.”

“Different how?” she asked, her gaze searching his.

He paused, not knowing exactly how to answer her. “I don't deny I've been with a lot of women, Miranda, but I haven't wanted anyone like this in a long time.” His eyes shuttered. “Too long. I still want you, and I think you still want me.”

“Last night the circumstances drew us together. In the heat of passion it's always easy to throw good sense to the wind, but things tend to change in the light of day.”

“So what are you saying?”

“That I know this thing between us can't go anywhere.”

“Does that really matter?” he asked.

“I don't want to be another conquest, Keith. I told you before that I don't do hookups. I dated my last boyfriend for almost a year before we were ever intimate, and here you and I met only two days ago.”

“Not true,” he said. “We first met over a year ago.”

“But we're still virtually strangers,” she insisted.

“Time and intimacy are irrelevant,
Aiwattsi
. There are people who spend a lifetime together as strangers, and others who connect as if they'd known each other in another life. Why do you think it's wrong to be with me?”

“Wrong? No, I don't really feel that way.” Her gaze darted away. “Maybe I should, but I don't.”

“We all have a need to be touched,” he said. “It's in our very nature. I want to be with you,
Aiwattsi
. Tell me you want this too.” He ached to touch her, to be inside her, but the attraction was more than just strong sexual chemistry. He hoped she felt it too.

Desire and hesitation mingled in her eyes. “Part of me does, but the other part just doesn't know if I can do this,” she said.

“Then I think the second part of you needs a little convincing.” Palming the back of her head, he claimed her mouth in a long, hungry kiss. Her arms came around his neck as she melted into it with a little moan. He drew her in deeper, kissing her hot and fierce, invading her mouth with his tongue, before reluctantly breaking away. His body screamed for release, but his truck wasn't the right place, especially when a comfortable room waited.

Keith held his breath, his gaze silently probing hers.

Her eyes met his, soft with desire. “Yes, Keith,” she whispered. “I want to be with you too.”