To Court a Cowgirl (16 page)

“So I'm just going to stand by while you head out into the bovine danger zone.”

“Yes,” she said shortly.

Her ranch. Her rules.

Jason didn't like it, but he stayed put near the gate while Allie started across the field in her flat dress shoes and floral skirt, carrying the brandishing pole in one hand. She stopped several yards away from the cow, who put her head up high and moved so that the calf was on the opposite side of her from Allie. The calf then struggled up off its side and the mother turned back to it and began licking vigorously.

That was apparently good enough for Allie. She took a few backward steps, and then turned and headed toward the gate, glancing over her shoulder every now and again as if worried about being attacked from behind.

Jason felt better when the mama cow took her baby and headed toward the creek. Allie dropped the brandishing stick close to the gate, which Jason held open for her.

“Okay. Only a few more to go.”

“What's the deal there?”

“No idea, but it's moving now, so I'll monitor until it gets dark.”

“I don't want you going out there when I'm gone.”

“All right. I won't.”

He narrowed his eyes at her and Allie smiled at him, touching his face briefly with the palm of her hand. “Honest. If I sense something's wrong, I'll call the vet.”

“I've never seen you give in so easily.” Jason started walking with her toward her car, which was still running.

“Long day. How's Zach?”

“Pissed off, but all right. Liz picked him up about an hour ago.”

“She's making him see the counselor.”

“Might help...if he feels like listening.”

Allie opened her door. “Yeah. That.”

She started to get into the car when Jason asked, “Is your ex still bothering you?”

“I think he's finally starting to figure out that I'm not going to answer my phone.”

“Good,” Jason said. “Stay strong.”

“Will do.” She closed the door and rolled down the window. “You guys only have another day or two.”

“At the most.”

She stared through the windshield, then looked back up at him. “I may have to come up with more for Zach to do.”

Jason gave a nod. “That'd be a good thing for both of you. And Allie?” He waited until she met his eyes again and then said, “Please leave that cow alone.”

* * *

I
T
WAS
HARD
not to be touched by the fact that Jason was worried about her. Allie was just damned glad that he hadn't ventured near Bahama Mama to see if he could help the calf.

Bahama was not a friendly cow. Allie would have gotten rid of her long ago if she hadn't always thrown such beautiful heifer calves. And sure enough, when Allie checked later that evening, the cow had a perfect little girl by her side. The herd of keepers had increased by one. Jolie would be happy when she got the news.

After feeding, Allie went back to the house and got out the sketches she'd made of Jason, laying them out side by side. The nose was off in one, the mouth in another. She'd nailed the eyes every single time, though. And by putting the three sketches together, she'd have the basis for a painting.

For the first time in forever, she felt a stir of anticipation.

Most of her acrylic paints were beyond saving, so she'd work in oil. She was more comfortable with a water-based medium, but it was time to push her comfort zone. To stop staying with the tried and true. She set a frozen dinner in the oven and then went upstairs to get the box of paints she'd left there and to see if she could find a blank canvas.

She found not one, but three blank canvases—two small and one larger. She was going to start on the large canvas. Go big or go home.

She primed the canvases and then leaned them against the wall to dry, marveling at the fact that even now, with Kyle long gone out of her life, she felt the familiar twist of guilt at doing something just for herself.

Damn it, Kyle
.

No...she was to blame. She'd allowed herself to believe his bunk.

Allie sighed and headed out the door to check her garden spot. She'd planted kale, kohlrabi and spinach. Next week she'd put in beets, peas and radishes. Her area of Montana always had late frosts, so she steered clear of anything susceptible to an unexpected cold snap. She leaned down and pulled a weed. Garden started. Canvases primed. She was moving forward. Finally.

So, if she could reclaim the two things that had seen her through hard times, why couldn't she learn to love the Lightning Creek?

Because bad things happened there.

She didn't trust the ranch. Not one little bit. While she'd lived there, she'd woken up every morning with a rush of anxiety, wondering what was going to go wrong that day. What repair would be needed, which animal would get sick? What financial crisis would rear its ugly head?

She had good memories of the ranch, but they weren't strong enough to supplant the bad, to quell the anxiety.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Z
ACH
SEEMED
A
touch friendlier when he arrived at the ranch, actually giving his mom a quick wave before she drove away. Maybe it was because he was no longer hung over, or maybe because he'd come to terms with the fact that drinking too much wasn't going to heal the broken bond with his dad. Whatever the cause, Jason took pains to not alienate the kid.

Most of the foundation was in pieces and instead of bringing in a loader, Zach and Jason put the rocks into wheelbarrows and transported them to a ditch on the other side of the driveway that Allie wanted filled. One of his favorite things about the ranch was that there was always something that needed done, a plan to be made, a goal to achieve.

When they settled on their respective tailgates for lunch, Jason mopped his brow before opening his lunch box. It was getting unseasonably hot and dry for mid-May.

“I've got to leave early today,” Zach said. “Meeting with the judge.”

“That works for me, too. I'm about to counter a counteroffer on some acreage and I want to look at it one more time.” Zach appeared interested, so Jason said, “It was a working ranch once. I'm thinking of hiring a manager and turning it into a working ranch again.”

“Which property?”

“The Bella Ridge Ranch.”

“That will take a shitload...a whole bunch of money.”

Jason stopped unwrapping his sandwich. “How so?”

“They lost their wells about ten years ago. They drilled another, but it was dry.”

“Ah.” And didn't he feel stupid for not knowing that? Or that it was even something he should have asked about.

“You didn't look into that?” Zach asked curiously.

“I wasn't thinking of that aspect of the place when I talked to the real estate agent.”

“Then you probably shouldn't be buying a ranch.” Zach took a bite of a cold burrito. The kid had a stomach of steel.

“I like the lifestyle.”

Zach laughed. “Well, it won't make you rich, so you gotta love the lifestyle.” The less-than-friendly look returned to his face. “Although, I guess you don't have to worry about the rich part, huh?”

“Not if I manage my business as it should be.”

“Must be nice.”

Echoes of Allie. “I worked for it.”

Zach took another bite. “Not saying you didn't.”

“If it makes you feel better, I've been trying to get a job with my former university and not having any luck.”

“Why would that make me feel better?”

A smile spread across Jason's face. “Good answer.”

Zach shrugged and went back to eating.

They worked in silence for the next hour. How could he, who paid attention to details, have missed the fact that the ranch had lost its wells? He assumed Zach meant irrigation wells, since the house had a water supply—although, he might want to look in to that, too.

He looked up at Zach. “What do I need to know about wells?”

The kid shrugged. “I'd start with gallons per minute.”

“All right.”

“You might find out how deep it is. When it was drilled. Who drilled it.”

Jason tilted back his hat. “You seem to know a lot.”

“Naw. I'm just making it up.” He smiled a little as he shot Jason a sidelong look. Jason frowned at him and the smile widened.

“You're cruising for some retribution,” Jason said sternly.

“Yeah?” he answered on a disbelieving note.

“No. Really.”

Zach fought it, but his smile broke through again. He shook his head. “About this ranch thing... I'd steer clear of the Bella Ridge if you want to actually have a ranch. And before you settle on something, you need to have an expert look at it. It wouldn't hurt to check local gossip, too. Ask questions and don't just trust the real estate guy.”

Jason shook his head. Schooled by a seventeen-year-old and schooled good.

* * *

A
LLIE
PASSED
L
IZ
'
S
car on the way home. She'd run errands and shopped for groceries, which meant she was late getting home, which meant not as much time to work on the portrait.

Liz waved, and to Allie's surprise, Zach waved, too—an unsmiling two-finger salute, but a wave all the same. Maybe the day had gone better. She hoped so for Liz's sake. Jason was waiting by his truck when she drove by the work site, so she stopped and turned off the engine.

“Wow,” she said. “You're all but done.”

“And the ditch is all but full.” He nodded at the tractor with the loader parked next to the arena. “I assume that runs.”

“I sure hope so. It ran when Jolie and Dylan left.”

“Zach wants to use it to fill the remainder of the ditch and he said something about cleaning corrals for the material.”

“I'm good with that.”

Jason shifted his weight and Allie instantly said, “What?”

“What happened yesterday has been weighing on me.”

Allie frowned, having no idea what he was talking about.

“You had to arm yourself to check the calf? Remember? I hate the thought of you doing things like that when no one's here.”

“These are not usual circumstances,” Allie said. “Usually there's more than one person living on the ranch.”

“Yet you're living alone.”

“Like I said, circumstances.”

“If there were someone living here full time, then the circumstances would be different.”

Allie's heart jumped. “Did you get kicked out of the house again?”

“Not yet. But I was thinking of Zach.”

“I can't share my house with a teenage boy,” Allie blurted. “And the bunkhouse is in no shape for anyone to move in.” Although he did have a valid point. One that she'd downplayed when her sisters expressed concern. Mel had been injured by that cranky mother cow, and she'd been the hardest of the three to convince.

“I thought maybe I could get him a trailer to live in—”

“No.”

He cocked an eyebrow, as if to say, “Really, Allie?” Instead he said, “My dad has construction trailers. Some are ready to be decommissioned. It wouldn't cost anyone anything and once your sisters come back, it can go back to the site or be sold or whatever.”

She looked down at the ground, lips pressed together. She hated getting hit with ideas that seemed reasonable, yet not. Yes, it was safer to have someone on the place with her, and she wouldn't even mind some company. But a teenage kid?

“I don't know about having a kid here alone all day. Even if he is almost eighteen and a ranch kid.”

“This is where part B of my plan comes into play. I was thinking of volunteering my time.”

“Volunteering how?”

“I want to learn the rudiments of ranching and I thought that maybe I could be Zach's intern—at least until I get another job.”

“So...you'd keep coming here, like you are now, and work with Zach.”

“Until either Zach or I get a job elsewhere.” He waited for the idea to sink in, then said, “It makes sense. You know it does.”

“You're starting to convince me,” Allie said slowly. “I might call Liz tonight and see what she thinks about it.”

“Call Zach.”

“He's a minor.”

“He's the one you're hiring.”

“You're right.” She pulled in a long breath. “Guess I'll see about doing that.”

“It'd make me feel a hell of a lot better.”

“I'm not your concern, Jason.”

His lips curved into a smile that made her breath catch. “Then maybe you can explain to me why it feels as if you are?”

Allie shook her head and made to move past him, but he reached out to take her arm. Allie looked down at his fingers, then her eyes flashed up to his face.

“I think about you, Allie.”

“Jason...”

“Can't help myself.”

The same thing he'd said when he'd slipped his arms around her when they'd made dinner. Allie swallowed against the sudden dryness in her throat and did her best to ignore the heat building down below.

“I appreciate your concern, Jason.”

“You said you needed a friend and not a lover.”

“Yes.” Allie wasn't foolish enough to try to add anything to the single-word reply. She probably wouldn't have gotten any more words out.

Jason released his grip, letting his hand fall back to his side. “You have no idea how much it's killing me to abide by that.”

* * *

W
HEN
J
ASON
DROVE
out of the driveway a few minutes later, Allie was still standing on her porch, replaying his words in her head. He thought about her. It was killing him not to get physical.

She hadn't dared say that she felt the same, even though she did. Her body kept trying to convince her brain that getting close to Jason was a good thing. A very good thing.

Her brain, however, had been hardened by adversity. No more mistakes for her. She was going to know exactly what she was getting into before she dove in. Caution was her friend.

After dinner that evening, instead of starting her painting, Allie called her sisters, one after the other, caught up on their news, then told them the Zach plan. All three had been fully in favor, and Jolie had even mentioned the possibility of buying the trailer and using it as a guesthouse. “No hurry there,” Allie told her. “Jason will let us keep it as long as we want. We have time to make a decision.”

And the decision would then be Jolie's, because she and Dylan would be the people living on the ranch proper. After receiving her sisters' approval, Allie called Liz and asked to speak to Zach.

“All right,” Liz said warily, obviously wanting to know why her friend wanted to talk to her son.

When Zach came to the phone, Allie asked him if she could hire him full-time—at least until her sister came home, unless of course he'd changed his mind about college.

There was a long silence, which wasn't the response that Allie had thought she'd get. Finally Zach said, “Is this my mom's idea?”

“She doesn't even know.” Allie let out a breath. “If you don't want to do this, just say so. I can hire someone else.”

“No. I'll do it.”

“Would you consider living here on the property? In a trailer? So that you can handle the calving and stuff?”

“Uh...yeah. Sure.”

“Great,” Allie said. “Why don't you talk to your mom and we can iron out details tomorrow.”

“Sure.”

Twenty minutes later, Liz called, just as Allie had expected.

“What do you think?” she asked.

“I felt a little blindsided,” Liz confessed.

“Jason thought it was important to call Zach.”

Liz gave a small sigh. “He's right. I think this will be great—as long as Zach isn't sneaking off the place and drinking.”

“He can stay at your place at night, if you want.”

“No.” Liz let out a sigh. “I still hope he might decide to go to college this fall. This'll be good practice. For me, I mean.”

* * *

Z
ACH
WASN
'
T
AS
thrilled with a full-time job as Jason had expected him to be, but it soon came out that it wasn't the job that he had a problem with, but rather the fact that people were getting together behind his back and planning his future. Even though Allie had technically called him, Zach had figured from the get-go that he wouldn't have much say in the matter. It wasn't like he could afford to turn down the job, but he hadn't found it himself. It had been, in essence, thrust upon him.

“Did it ever occur to you that I don't want to do this?”

“Did it ever occur to you to give your mom a break?”
Or that once you broke trust you might not get as much say as if you hadn't?
“You're mad at your dad and you take the shit out on your mom.”

“I thought we were watching our language.”

“We're friends now,” Jason growled. “If you don't want to do this, then what do you want to do? Sneak out of the house and drink while your mom is asleep?”

A flush worked its way up Zach's neck.

“I'm not trying to hurt her.”

“It doesn't matter what your intentions are. It's the result that matters. If intentions counted, I would have been on a championship winning team every year.” Jason pushed back his hat. “Look. Here's the deal. Allie needs someone to take up the slack and I don't know what I'm doing. I thought maybe you could teach me some stuff.”

“Teach you.”

“That's what I said.”

Zach frowned down at the ground as if trying to figure the catch. Jason knew that at his age, he might have done the same thing, although Jason hadn't partied at Zach's age because he'd been serious about his athletics.

“I want to help Allie and I want to know enough to not be clueless about my own place, when I find one to buy,” he added when Zach's gaze came up. “I nixed the deal on the Bella Ridge.”

Zach dug the toe of his boot into the dirt as his features twisted into a scowl. Finally he looked up at Jason. “All right.”

“Allie will meet with you every morning so that she can line you out and then—”

“I line you out?”

“Pretty much.”

Zach gave a slow, considering nod. “Fine. I guess that'll work.”

“People are bending over backward for you, so it'd better work.”

* * *

T
RUE
TO
HIS
WORD
, Jason had a construction trailer at the ranch within a day of Zach agreeing to live and work on the Lightning Creek. When Allie had left in the morning, the area next to the bunkhouse had been an equipment parking area. When she returned, the equipment had been moved to a different locale and there was a boxy trailer in place.