Southern Spice (Southern Desires Series Book 1) (6 page)

People had left as soon as the sun had started to set. One thing about Texas: the days are hot, but the nights could be cool. It didn’t take her long to clean everything as many had helped before leaving. As she finished the last few dishes, she heard a knock on the door. Casey hobbled over to the door and hesitated a moment before opening it.
Why am I acting like this is my house? I am not even a guest here.

Not answering it was also going to be rude. For all she knew it was one of the townsfolk who had forgotten something. When she opened the door, she found a man equally as tall as Derrick standing there.

“Hello, can I help you?”

The man grinned and tipped his hat to her. “Howdy, ma’am. I’m the foreman. I run the ranch for Nash.”

“Nice to meet you. Derrick, I mean, Mr. Nash isn’t here right now.”

McLean laughed. “With all those folks here from town, I didn’t reckon he would be.”

So her guess was correct. Derrick wasn’t just avoiding
her
, but everyone. That made no sense. The people here were so friendly or had been to her at least. Why would anyone be so cold and distant to them? “Is there something I can help you with Mr. . . .”

“Sorry, ma’am. My name’s McLean. I met Sissie as she was driving out, and she told me about all the leftovers you had from the meeting you put on.”

Sissie was one person she had met today she probably wouldn’t ever be able to forget. Not only did she have a laugh that made you join in even if you didn’t want to, but apparently she also ran the local bar. That made her very popular, which Casey was sure included the ranch hands.

“There is enough food here to feed an army. Please, come on in and I’ll fix you something to eat.”

She watched McLean look around as though looking for something or better yet, maybe someone. Eventually, he removed his hat and accepted her offer. He didn’t strike her as the type of man who would be intimidated by what the boss was going to say, but he did come across as uneasy for some reason. Could Derrick truly be as bad as everyone was making him out to be?
No way. If he was, he would have left me in that ditch. Nor would he have been so gentle when tending to my knee. His touch had been electrifying despite the pain I’d been in.

There was no use standing there trying to figure any of it out. Her assignment was short-term, and before she knew it, she would be in a different part of the country altogether. That was what she loved about this job: she wasn’t stuck in one place very long, and she met some very interesting people along the way.

McLean followed her to the kitchen, and she told him to have a seat.

“Maybe I should be serving myself. You seem to be limping. Is it from the accident last night?”

Truth be told, her entire body ached, but her leg was the worst of it. At times, the pain was so bad it was like a knife jabbing her right knee. When everyone had been there, she’d been so busy concentrating on getting them information she hadn’t had a minute to think about herself. But right now the throbbing was almost as bad as it had been last night.

Casey wished she would have brought the horse ointment downstairs. Then she could at least come up with some excuse to leave the room and reapply it. There was no way she was going to be able to make it up the staircase without assistance. And admitting how bad it felt was also acknowledging how stupid she was for getting lost in the first place. This wasn’t Derrick, but he worked for him, so she already knew where his loyalty would be.
Play it off, Casey. It’s only a week then you can get it checked out.
“Only a small bump on the knee. It’s really not that bad.”

Her acting skills must be much better than she thought because he didn’t question her response.

“Ma’am, you’re lucky you didn’t drown in that ravine. We had a colt stuck down there once that couldn’t get himself out. I can’t figure how such a tiny thing like you managed all by yourself,” McLean said as he sat at the table.

“Lucky, I guess. So how long have you worked on the ranch?” Casey asked, trying to change the subject.

“A little over five years now.”

Casey pulled out a few containers from the refrigerator, and McLean’s eyes opened wide. “Would you like to pick what you want or just a bit of everything?”

He laughed. “One of my men cooks for us every night. Same damn boring shit every day. The only time we get to change it up is when we go into town. But the tornado took out the diner a few days ago, and with all these heavy rain storms after, we’ve all been stuck eating his food.”

“How many men work here?” Casey asked. She did say she had food for an army, which was an overstatement, but she was sure she could feed several hungry men easily.

“Four besides myself.”

“I can’t eat all this, and Derrick doesn’t seem to be around. Do you think the others would like to join us for some leftovers?”

McLean pulled a two-way radio from out of the pocket of his jean coat. “If you guys want some real food tonight, head to the main house. We eat in ten.”

Casey held back her laughter as she heard the hooting and hollering of the others on the radio. She turned back to the refrigerator and pulled out even more food. She might be hurting, but she was glad to have some company. Even before all the food was heated and ready, the others began to arrive. The house was soon filled with loud bellowing voices.

“You boys better be on your best behavior, or you’re out on your ass,” McLean warned. “And y’all would be wise to remember whose house you’re in.”

All four looked at each other then simmered down.
Oh, Derrick. Even when you’re not here, you’re here.
But it wasn’t necessarily respect she saw in their eyes. They’d seemed in good humor before his name was mentioned. Once referred to, they lost some of their openness and jesting.
Does he treat them like he treats me? With contempt and lack of interest? Who would work for such a man?

She served heaping plates of food and watched them devour it. It reminded her of being home with her brothers. “Bottomless pits,” her mother called them. Casey liked being on the move most the time, but at times like this, she missed being home with family.

“Save room for dessert. One of the ladies brought strawberry rhubarb pie.”

“Always room for dessert, ma’am,” the one called Bubba said.

She had spent enough time in the south to know better, but she hated being called ma’am. Maybe it was because she was going to turn thirty in two days, but ma’am was making her feel old today. “There’s ice cream, too, if you guys agree to call me Casey.”

“Sure thing, ma’am, I mean, Miss Casey.” Bubba laughed.

Casey smiled. Miss Casey was at least better than being called ma’am.

After their pie, she made a fresh pot of coffee, and enjoyed time sitting around the table chatting. She knew nothing about horses but these men didn’t seem to mind. They told story after story about a new foal, or breaking the wild one. She smiled and humored them.

She’d only been on one horse, and that was yesterday. A day she’d never forget.

The actual accident was a blur. It had been so dark, and her vision had been poor due to the lashing rain against the windshield. When the lightning struck so close to her she felt as thought she’d been zapped with a small current of electricity. If it wasn’t for that jolt, she never would have swerved the way she had. It started the chain reaction of what now was the most terrifying ordeal she’d ever faced.

When her tires lost traction and she began slipping down the bank, she froze in fear, more terrified than she’d ever been. She wasn’t one for small spaces, and being trapped in her truck was her worst nightmare.

It seemed as though she had been trapped forever, unable to free herself from the seatbelt. When she’d first noticed Derrick, she had screamed. It had been so dark; the only time she could see his face was when the sky lit with another bolt of lightning. How he managed to pull her out and what happened next she couldn’t really recall. One moment she was trapped, the next she was on his horse. But she remembered his warmth. The solid beat of his heart against her back. She should’ve been paralyzed with fear, but she’d felt calm. She should have been a mess earlier when the sheriff had proclaimed her purse, clothes, and laptop all beyond help, but due to Derrick’s no-nonsense presence, despite his bitterness and anger, she again had felt calm. Incensed, but calm.
How could I feel that way around him? A complete stranger.

“Are you okay, ma’am? You look—”

“I’m fine. It’s been a long day,” Casey answered Bubba. She could feel the flush of her cheeks.

A gruff husky voice came from the doorway. “Then maybe you shouldn’t have invited the entire town to
my
ranch.”

The four men jumped from their seats. Only McLean looked at Derrick then back to Casey. “Casey, we appreciate dinner and the company.” Then he got up and turned to his men. “Head ’em out, men.”

As they protested under their breath, she heard Derrick say, “If you don’t have enough work on the ranch, I’ll find you some.”

McLean only shook his head. “We have plenty for tomorrow.”

“You should have plenty for the week,” Derrick said, glaring at McLean.

McLean turned back to Casey and said, “Casey, if you find you need anything, you can always reach me on the two-way on the wall over there. I’m never far.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Derrick clench his fist.
Why was he so angry?
He was acting like he was jealous. But of what? She was only feeding
his
crew. Did he expect her to sit in the house and not speak to anyone?
I guess so.

Casey didn’t want to stand there and be told what she could or couldn’t do. She was no child, and he was not her boss. As she got up to walk out of the kitchen, the pain in her leg shot all the way up her thigh. She grabbed the chair for support but couldn’t hold back the scream that escaped her lips.

Derrick flew to her side and once again swooped her up into his arms. McLean must not have left yet as he came rushing back into the kitchen.

“What the hell are you doing to her, Derrick?” McLean shouted.

“One warning only. Get out of my house, McLean,” Derrick barked.

She could feel the tension ripple through his body as he held her against him. Surprisingly, McLean didn’t budge nor did Derrick.

The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Never before had she had two men protect her. If she wasn’t in so much pain she might have even enjoyed the attention, but right now she needed their egos to calm down so Derrick would put her down. “It’s okay. I just twisted my knee. That’s all.”

“Do you need to go to town to see the doc?” McLean asked.

“She said she’s fine,” Derrick said angrily.

She wanted to smack Derrick for not taking her to one that morning. He had made it seem like there wasn’t anyone to give her immediate medical attention. As though the doctor was tied up with other patients. Why would he mislead her like that? What did it gain him? “No, thank you, McLean. Derrick is taking good care of me.”
I hope my acting skills are holding up because that’s complete bullshit. And McLean probably knows it too.

He assessed the situation then said before heading back out of the kitchen, “Have a good night then.”

Once alone she turned her attention to Derrick. “If you don’t mind, I would like you to put me down,” she demanded.

Derrick ignored her request again. Instead, he carried her up the stairway to the room he had taken her to last night.

“You have two choices. Take those pants off yourself, or I’ll rip them off like the last pair. Either is fine with me.” His voice was cold and hard.

Casey felt her stomach flip-flop. Maybe she was too quick to dismiss McLean. “Why?”

“Because your stubborn little ass is doing your knee more damage than good by spending the day on your leg. If you don’t let me wrap it again, you might not be walking on it for months.”

She wasn’t sure if he was doing this out of kindness or if he just didn’t want her there any longer than a week. Either way, Casey could not stand the pain much longer and reluctantly unbuttoned the jeans and slid them over her hips until they dropped to the floor. She tugged the edge of the T-shirt as far down as she could.
Thank God it’s long or this would be even more embarrassing than it already is.

“Lie on the bed, and for God’s sake, don’t look at me like that.”

Like what?
“I’m not afraid of you, Mr. Nash.”

He laughed softly. “You think that’s fear in your eyes? I wish it was that easy.” She watched as he made his way to the door.

Is this some kind of game? See if he can get me back in his bed then leave me there?
“Where are you going?”

“I need to get the salve and a new wrap. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll be here when I get back.”

Casey knew what was good for her, and being in this house with him surely wasn’t it.
If you know what’s good for you, you’ll be here when I get back. Who does he think he is?
He was arrogant and demanding and grumpy as all heck. No matter how tempting it was to get off the bed to show him he was not in control of her, she knew pushing his buttons to prove a point wasn’t going to be worth the price.
One week, Casey. That’s all it is. You can do this.