The Rancher (9 page)

She frowned then crossed her
arms over her chest again. Her defiant attitude was cute when she
was six. Now, it only spelled trouble for the future. As much as he
hated to admit it, Laurel was right where his daughter was
concerned. He couldn't let her continue to act the way she did and
knowing what he was about to do, Alex was going to be a handful for
weeks to come.

He took a deep breath, smiling
to lessen the blow. "I like her, Alex. I'm just going to ask her to
supper."

She tried to interrupt but he
held up his hand, stopping her. "In the hotel restaurant. I know
I'd be asking too much to bring her back here so for now, I'll go
to town when I want to see her."

That horrified look on her face
grew. "You mean this ain't no one time thing?"

He shook his head.

Her shoulders dropped, her arms
fell away from her chest and she looked as if he'd killed every one
of her beloved critters. "You're going to court her, ain't ya
pa?"

"If she'll let me." He grinned.
"And probably even if she don't."

Alex huffed out a breath and
turned, walking down the stairs, her steps heavy and forlorn. He
watched her cross to the front door and leave the house without
another word. He sighed and followed her.

She was sitting on the steps
when he walked outside, her head hung. Holden sat down beside her
and waited.

It took her close to ten minutes
before she looked up. Her eyes were glassy and he knew she was
fighting tears.

"I don't want no new momma."

"I know you don't." He smiled
and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to his
side. "If I had my way, your momma would have never left us. She'd
be in the house, fluttering around the kitchen and making a fuss
about something she'd burned." Kissing the top of her head, he gave
her a small squeeze. "But, we can't change the past, Alex. We just
have to move on and live our life to the best of our ability."

"You gonna ask Miss Montgomery
to marry you?"

He already had, in a round about
way, but didn't dare tell Alex. He smiled and stood up. "Let's not
get ahead of ourselves. I'm just going to ask her to supper. Talk
to her a little bit." He turned to look at her. "If you're lucky,
I'll realize I don't actually like her all that much and that she
turns into some foul creature when the moon is full."

Alex brightened and stood. "She
probably does. Some horrid beast with two heads."

"Let's hope not. Hard to tell
what she'd do to me if that was the case."

He left her standing on the
porch, worry etching her face in troubled lines. He knew the moment
he decided to head into town Alex would take issue with it but he'd
lived the better part of ten years doing nothing but seeing that
she had the best of everything he could give her. He'd stayed home,
tending to her while his brothers headed to town every weekend to
visit those ladies in the saloon and not once had he regretted it.
He'd do whatever it took to make Alex happy but he couldn't give on
this one thing.

Truth was, he'd watched so many
people happily go about their lives and envied most of them. He
envied his brothers, all married now and planning their futures,
making room for babies, and a part of him died every time he saw
how happy they were. He wanted that too. He wanted it for Alex. He
wanted to see her smile. To become the kind of woman her mother
would be proud of and he couldn't do that alone. He needed help and
the woman who could help him do that was an ornery piece of work
but she stirred his blood and made his long neglected body ache in
ways he couldn’t ignore anymore.

He wanted her. Plain and simple.
Waspish tongue and displeasing disposition that Laurel Montgomery
had, he wanted her. And he aimed to have her whether she liked it
or not.

* * * *

Laurel had just rounded the
schoolhouse when she saw him and tried to duck back around the
building. He smiled at her and she sighed. He'd seen her.

She took a moment to compose
herself, inhaled a few steadying breaths and wondered how she'd be
able to lash out at the man again. It killed her every time she
did.

Two full months in town and
everywhere she looked, there he was. She nearly sighed just
thinking of him. He was everything she'd ever thought she wanted in
a man. Someone strong and handsome. A hard worker with a gentle
smile and a pleasing tone of voice that didn't make her insides
shake at the mere sound of it.

He was also persistent and
borderline irritating. And she couldn't help the nervous
butterflies that were awakened at the mere sight of him.

She rounded the corner and
walked to the sidewalk, trying to think of something to say to him
but he beat her to it, giving her one of those little smiles she
liked so much and tipping his hat at her. "Mind if I walk with
you?"

"Will you go away if I say I'd
rather be alone?"

"Probably not."

"Somehow, I didn't think so." He
fell into step with her and Laurel clutched her reticule, pulling
her coat tighter against her, and tried not to notice how tall he
was, or how wonderful he smelled. Like fresh hay and sun dried
clothes. "I'm just going to the end of the street, Holden. I'm sure
I can make it there just fine on my own."

He looked down at her and smiled
again. "I'm sure you can but seeing how that's where I'm headed, it
seems a bit silly to walk on the other side of the road."

Laurel glanced up at him and
wished she hadn't. He was far too handsome for her good sense,
especially when he looked at her as if he was thinking things a
decent man wouldn't dare to think about a woman he barely knew.
Those butterflies were back and her pulse fluttered.

They reached the end of town,
the hotel with its newly painted exterior looking as spiffy as any
she'd seen. The diners filling the restaurant were clearly seen
through the window and even though she was near to starving,
walking inside that building was getting harder every day.

Holden walked to the door,
opened it and held it for her. She stared at him, wondering why he
still went out of his way to be nice to her after she'd plainly
told him she wasn't interested in anything more from him. "Why are
you here?"

He had the decency to blush
before letting the door swing back shut. "Well, to be honest,
Laurel, I'm here for you. I plan on courting you all proper like
whether you like it or not."

It was her turn to blush now.
She swallowed to moisten her throat and blinked at him. "Why? I've
already told you my feelings about it."

That grin was back. He tipped
the front of his hat up with one finger, meeting her gaze head on.
"Truth is, despite your surly attitude and your rude behavior
towards everyone in town, me especially, I just can't stop thinking
about you. You can fight me until you're blue in the face Laurel,
but I'm not going anywhere. I'll dog your every step until you see
I'm the man you're suppose to be with. We belong together."

Her face burned at his admission
and her heart was beating so hard she wondered if he could hear it.
She looked down the street, noticing the people still milling about
town on a Friday evening and wondered if her playing it safe, and
keeping her distance from everyone, was what was making life so
miserable. She hadn't always felt this way. In the dozen or so
towns she'd found herself in since leaving home, she'd been happy.
Now, happiness seemed an illusive creature and the man standing in
front of her was the reason.

Turning her attention back to
Holden, she released a pent up breath and met his gaze. He was
still watching her, the look on his face saying he wasn't going
anywhere, and if she were honest with herself, she'd know she
didn't want him to.

She shook her head at him and
smiled. "Fine. Since its obvious you're not going to go away, I'll
make a deal with you. Stop asking me for things I'm not ever going
to give you, and stop getting on my nerves, and I might let you
escort me to supper on occasion."

The smile he graced her with
would have lit a starless night. Her insides quivered as she looked
at him and when he crossed the space between them and took her
hand, her heart skipped a beat.

"All I'm asking for is a chance,
Laurel." He lifted her hand, kissed her palm so softly she barely
felt the contact before letting her go and reaching for the door to
the hotel.

He held it open for her as she
walked inside and when everyone saw her, their frowns grew when
Holden laid a hand on the small of her back and led her into the
dining room. The whispers started immediately and Laurel kept her
chin raised, ignoring those staring and her knees were wobbly by
the time they'd reached an empty table.

Holden was a perfect gentleman,
holding her chair for her, waiting until she was settled before
removing his hat and sitting down. The waitress wasted no time
coming to the table and the look of shock and curiosity on her face
wasn't missed.

They were quiet as they looked
over the evening menu and once they'd ordered, the waitress leaving
them alone, Laurel was at a loss of what to say.

She reached for her water glass,
noticed her hand was shaking and inhaled a deep, steadying
breath.

"I didn't realize having supper
with me would make you so uncomfortable."

Looking up, Laurel saw the
concern on his face. "I'd be uncomfortable if I were sitting alone.
You've not changed the fact that no one here likes me."

"You've not made it easy for
anyone to like you."

She hid a smile behind her
glass. "True."

The food arrived in record time
and Laurel knew the company she kept was the reason why. She wasn't
going to complain, not when the food on her plate was still
steaming and smelled so delicious she hoped her stomach didn't
rumble from the mere sight of it.

They ate in silence for long
minutes before Holden looked up at her. "So, rumor has it you're
from Arizona but I know for a fact you call Seattle home."

Laurel dropped her fork, the
noise alerting several other patrons who looked over at her. She
looked up, horrified and stammered like an idiot before closing her
mouth with a snap.

"Don't worry. Your secret is
safe with me."

He knew where she was really
from? How did he know? She narrowed her eyes at him, anger and
indignation coloring her face. "That brother of yours, the marshal,
he's been snooping, hasn't he?"

Holden leaned forward, his voice
a soft whisper when he said, "Snooping enough to know you never
stay in any one place for very long."

She blanched and leaned back in
her seat. "What else do you know?"

He smiled and went back to
eating. "Not much.

Laurel felt ill. The food on her
plate looked less appetizing by the second and she found it hard to
breathe all of a sudden.

"Hey, take a deep breath,
Laurel."

He took her hand, gave it a
light squeeze, and Laurel looked up. Concern clouded his eyes.

The many places she'd tried to
rebuild her life in all flashed before her eyes and each one left
behind such guilt and remorse, she was nearly overwhelmed. Her eyes
misted and she blinked to chase the tears away. Holden's hand,
still warm and comforting against her own, eased some of the pain.
"Don't tell anyone, Holden."

"Why?"

She looked down at her plate. "I
can't tell you."

He didn't respond and Laurel was
glad for it. She wasn't ready for anyone to know of her past,
especially him. She tugged her hand free from his, retrieved her
dropped fork from the table and smiled. "So, tell me, Holden, did
you sneak away from your ranch or did you have to leave, dragging
Alexandra along behind you when she found out you were coming to
see me?"

His laughter lifted her mood and
it wasn't until their meal was completed that she realized how free
she felt. She hadn't laughed in so long, she'd almost forgotten how
wonderful it felt.

They shared a dessert, a slice
of apple pie he said wasn't nearly as good as the one she'd baked
and Laurel blushed to her roots when he told her how much he'd had
to pay for it at the auction.

The stars dotted a clear sky as
they left the hotel restaurant and the air had a bite to it. She
tugged her coat closer as they walked back to the school. They both
seemed to be lost in thought and the trip was made in silence. When
they reached her door at the back of the school, Laurel was almost
afraid to tell him goodnight.

She'd been courted a few times
in her life and almost every one of those men had certain
expectations at the end of the evening. Those expectations caused
the butterflies she'd been fighting to control all night to swim so
dizzyingly she had to take a few deep breaths to calm them
down.

Holden was staring at her when
she finally got the nerve to turn and look at him. Her pulse
started racing the moment she did. Those expectations most men
thought were their due weren't so bewildering as she looked at
Holden. If truth be known, she'd say the nervousness she felt was
from the fact he wasn't formally courting her and wouldn't expect
any sort of goodnight kiss. She blushed when she realized she
wanted it, despite what she'd told him earlier.