The Rancher’s Royal Bride (BBW Romance - Billionaire Brothers 4) (3 page)

Over the next couple of days, Ellie could barely make a move without Logan shadowing her. And it started to annoy her. The only times when she could get a minute to herself was if she went to the bathroom or turned in to bed at night. Alone.

Although, in other circumstances, she didn’t think she would mind sharing her bed with him. Tall. Handsome. Capable. More than capable. Sometimes his bossiness could be annoying, though.
Not that steaming up the sheets with him would ever happen
. Somehow she didn’t think he had a preference for curvy girls. But still … in bed with Logan Trask might become a nighttime fantasy when this situation was over and she’d gotten to the bottom of things.
And Dad was okay.
But right now, not being able to do anything on her own irritated her.
She couldn’t even go sketching alone.

On the third morning after breakfast, she decided to tackle him. She needed to do something to take her mind off things. Ellie called the hospital every day, but her father still wasn’t allowed phone calls. She tried not to worry, but not being able to speak to her dad herself, to see how he was, distressed her.

She had to focus on something, or else drive herself crazy with worry - about her father and about the alleged threat against her.

“I want to help around the ranch,” she announced as she watched Logan stack the breakfast dishes in the sink. She’d been surprised to discover that there wasn’t a dishwasher, but since it was only the two of them for meals, the dishes weren’t too much of a chore to do manually.

He quirked an eyebrow. “You have been.”

“Following you around the ranch because you don’t want to let me out of your sight is hardly helping. For instance, I could collect the eggs while you do the dishes.” She looked at him hopefully.

“Yeah, okay,” he acquiesced. “But I need to check on the cattle in the south pasture when you’re done. Can you ride? Otherwise we can take the SUV.”

“I can ride.” A smile lit up her face.

A non-committal expression crossed his face. “All right. Bring back the eggs and then I’ll saddle the horses.”

Ellie felt like saluting once more, but instead she hurried out the back door with a small wicker basket before he could change his mind. She’d discovered he had several cute fawn chickens scratching around the garden, and she thought collecting eggs might be fun.

Entering the coop, she peered around. A soft chuckling coo greeted her. A small hen waddled past, dipping her head as if to say hello. Spying an egg nestled in the straw, Ellie picked it up and placed it in the basket. Once she’d collected five eggs, she headed back to the house. Spying a wild red rose hiding among the bushes, she sank down, her fingers touching the soft, downy petals. She sniffed, a faint musky scent permeating her senses. What would be the best time of day to sketch it? Again, she wished she’d brought her paints with her.

Ellie entered the kitchen, placing the basket on the table.

“I was just about to look for you. What took you so long?” Concern sharpened his voice.

“Sorry. I was thinking of sketching a flower in the garden later.” Surely she’d only spent a few minutes admiring the rose? It wasn’t as if Logan had to punch a time-clock, although maybe the cows would moo incessantly if they weren’t fed on time.

He sighed, then looked at her assessingly. “Got any riding boots?”

She looked down at her outfit. Easy-fit jeans and a soft, aqua green three-quarter length blouse.

“No.” In her rush to repack her suitcase, changing her wardrobe from tropical Hawaii to Fall in Wyoming, she’d neglected to pack her riding boots. Besides, with the worry over her father, horse-back riding had been the last thing on her mind.

“I guess your sneakers will do.” Logan led the way to the barn, and picked up two rope halters. “I’ll bring the horses back and saddle them. Stay there.”

Refraining from rolling her eyes at his gruff tone, Ellie nodded. She watched him stride over to the horses, admiring his sexy, muscular butt in his worn jeans.
Too bad he was a bit grumpy.

Although, since he’d caught her borrowing his car, Logan hadn’t been too bad to live with really, she mused. From the little he’d said, it didn’t seem as if he’d had much company since he retired from the navy, and his social skills might be a tad rusty. Particularly when it came to women - especially curvy women. She shrugged. As long as they could rub along together reasonably well, staying here wouldn’t be too bad.

As long as Dad is okay.

Tamping down her anxiety for her father, she made herself watch Logan saddle the horses.

“This is Salt.” He gestured to the dappled gray gelding as he finished tightening the girth around the horse’s middle. “And the other one is Pepper.”

“Hi, Pepper.” Ellie held out her hand for the big black horse to sniff, before she lightly stroked his nose. Logan had saddled and bridled Pepper first. “Which one am I riding?”

“Salt. He’s good for beginners.”

She opened her mouth to say something, then promptly closed it. Wouldn’t it be fun to give Logan a surprise?

“Hi, Salt.” She stroked him along his neck, smiling when the horse whickered in greeting.

“Need some help mounting him?” Logan held Salt’s reins.

“No, I think I’m good.” Ellie placed her left foot in the stirrup and swung her right leg over the Western saddle. She couldn’t help thinking it might have been embarrassing if she had needed help; Logan’s hands on her hips or around her waist, hoisting her up into the saddle.

Surprise flickered across his face as she settled herself into the saddle. “Okay.” He handed her the reins. “We’ll walk to the south pasture.”

“All right.” She watched him mount Pepper, his easy motion having all the hallmarks of a natural horseman.

She and Salt followed him out of the barn, the horses’ hooves clip-clopping on the hard-packed earth. Feeling grateful she had a good, supportive bra on that minimized her ample breasts’ natural jiggle, she caught up with him so they rode side by side.

“How far is it?” She glanced at him.

“About five minutes. Maybe more if we only walk.”

“Why don’t we go a bit faster?” She hoped he couldn’t see the impish gleam in her eye.

“It’s my job to keep you safe.” He frowned. “I think we should keep walking.”

“I
have
taken horse-back riding lessons.” Hmm. Maybe it wasn’t going to be as easy to surprise him as she thought.

“For how long?”

She felt his eyes on her hands, her posture, as she remained easy in the saddle.

“Oh, years and years,” she tossed back, trying to hide a smile, knowing that although it didn’t sound like it, she
was
telling the truth.

“Can you trot?” Logan sounded doubtful.

“Uh-huh.” This was going to be so much fun!

“I guess we can try a gentle trot.” He encouraged Pepper to quicken his gait.

Ellie followed suit, relishing the slightly faster pace. But it wasn’t enough.

“Come on, Salt,” she murmured in the creature’s ear. “Let’s show him!” Nudging her horse into a lope, she passed Logan. The stunned expression on his face made her giggle.

A few seconds later, thundering hoof beats kept pace with her. “Told you I could ride,” she couldn’t resist calling, stifling the urge to flat-out gallop. She probably
would
be in trouble if she did that.

They rode side by side to a herd of cattle munching green grass. She halted Salt, her eyes sparkling. “That was fun.”

“That was
not
trotting.” He glowered at her, pulling up Pepper.
“Where did you learn to ride like that?”

She attempted to bite back a grin. “I’ve had riding lessons for years and go riding nearly every weekend.”

“You look good on a horse.” The words sounded as if they were torn out of his throat.

“Thanks.” A warm flush stole through her at his praise.

His gaze rested on her for a long moment, and she wondered what he was thinking. Right now, the only thing on her mind was his dark brown eyes that seemed to intensify even more as he looked at her, his straight nose, gorgeous cheekbones, and firm jaw. And how it was totally unfair that her breath skipped when she was near him.

“I’ll check the cattle. Stay here.” A hint of crimson stained his cheekbones as he abruptly turned his horse and opened the gate into the pasture.

Ellie watched him ride among the black cows - or were they steers, she wondered. She was pretty sure they weren’t all bulls. Until now, she hadn’t realized that her knowledge about cattle was sorely lacking.

Logan rode out of the enclosure and locked the gate. “We need to ride along the fence line and make sure there aren’t any holes.”

“Okay.”

Their horses ambled side by side alongside the pasture. She noticed Logan’s gaze flickered from the fencing to her. Conscious of his eyes on her, her tummy fluttering, she still managed to enjoy the fresh air, blue sky, and light breeze that whispered against her hair.

“The wire’s broken.”

His words pulled her out of her reverie. How his tall, fit body moved easily in the saddle. How his long, tanned fingers expertly held the reins. Halting Salt, she watched him dismount and tie Pepper to a fence post.

“Can I do anything to help?” she offered.

“Maybe.” He glanced up at her, then turned his attention to his saddlebag. Logan pulled out a small kit and hunkered down at the base of the fence. “If you can hold this section of wire
,
I might be able to repair it.”

Ellie dismounted and fastened Salt to a neighboring post. Joining him, she crouched down next to him. This close, she couldn’t help breathing in his scent, a mixture of horses, sweet smelling hay, and soap.

“Where do I hold it?” She hoped she didn’t sound as breathless as she felt.

“Here.” His forefinger tapped a piece of wire. “I should be able to fix it if you keep it still.”

“Okay.” She grasped the wire, aware that if he moved to the left, his shoulder would brush hers.

Logan efficiently snipped and clipped pieces of wire until the small hole in the fence was repaired.

“Move your thumb and I can cut this piece off.”

Ellie started to lift off her thumb at the same time Logan moved in with the wire cutters.

“Ow!” She stared in dismay at the bloody gash on her thumb.

“Did I hurt you?” He looked at her in concern, cradling her hand in his much larger one. “Let me see.”

“I … I don’t think it was you,” she said. “I think my thumb slipped on the piece of wire.” She squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to look at the smarting injury.

“When did you last have a tetanus shot?”

“A couple of years ago,” she murmured, trying not to wince at the stinging pain.

“Good.” He dug into his pocket and pulled out a small cloth handkerchief. “It’s clean,” he assured her, gently wrapping it around her thumb. “In case of emergencies.”

“Ever … ever had to use it on a guest before?”

“No, you’re the first.”

The heat of his hand lingered on hers. The tender way he’d attended to her thumb made her breath skip. She met his concerned gaze, hoping he couldn’t tell how much his touch affected her.

Ellie realized she much preferred looking into his dark brown eyes, edged with concern, than staring at her thumb. She disliked the sight of blood; either hers or someone else’s. Through the white fabric she could see the dull red color of blood seeping from the wound.

“We better take care of it back at the house.” Logan helped her to her feet and kept his hand under her elbow the few steps to the horses.

Tempted to lean into his warm strength, she resisted, not wanting to be a baby about a small cut.

“Can you mount okay?” He hovered next to her as she gripped the stirrup.

“I’ll be fine,” she replied, surprised at the fact that now she was reassuring him.

“No fancy riding,” he warned, swinging into the saddle.

In other circumstances she might have argued with him, but right now she wasn’t in the mood. Her thumb throbbed and all she wanted to do was get it taken care of.

Salt was an obedient horse, and Ellie found she could handle the creature easily, even with a thickly bandaged thumb. Logan set the pace at a fast walk. Before long, they arrived at the barn.

Logan hitched both sets of reins to a post. “I’ll unsaddle them once I’ve looked at your thumb.” He hustled her into the house, guiding her into the bathroom. After washing his hands, he held out his palm. “Let me see.”

She held out her thumb over the basin, closing her eyes as he carefully peeled off the cloth.

“Hmm,” he muttered.

The sound of running water filled the small room, then he placed her hand under a cool stream of water. She couldn’t help the small shiver running through her at his touch. The pain had dulled to the occasional twinge, but she still didn’t want to open her eyes.