Wrangled and Tangled (5 page)

That’d shocked him. “Why didn’t you just tell me that?”

“Because you jumped in and told me why I said no. Why should I explain myself to you when you’ve already made the worst assumptions about me, my character and my business acumen?”

Renner’s too blue eyes searched hers intently. “Tierney—”

“You can’t claim you didn’t do that, because you did exactly that.”

“I know. I’m an asshole sometimes.”

“No argument from me.”

He smiled. A wide, gap-toothed smile packed with pure roguish charm and damn if she didn’t catch herself smiling back. He touched the left side of her mouth. “Whoa. Lookit that. You’ve got dimples. Never noticed those before. Is this really the first time you’ve ever smiled at me?”

“Probably.”

His phone rang and he backed away to fish it out of his front pocket. “Jackson.”

Tierney watched the blood drain from Renner’s face.

“Where is she? Is she all right?”

“What happened?”

He snapped, “Hush for a second,” and turned away. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Renner hung up and booked it to the door.

But Tierney grabbed the back of his coat. “You can’t just leave without telling me what’s going on!”

“Janie’s been in a car accident. Abe’s at the hospital with her in Rawlins.”

“I’m coming with you.”

He whirled around. “Now why would you do that?”

Instead of saying,
because I’m worried and I might be useful for a change
, she tossed her head and retorted, “Because you need someone to keep you from driving like an idiot.”

Renner snorted. “I’ve driven that road in my sleep.”

“But—”

“No buts. And no way will I listen to you nagging me all the way to Rawlins. Jesus. That’s my worst nightmare.” He leaned in until they were nose to nose. “I go. You stay. End of discussion.” Then he hustled out the door.

Right. Like she’d start listening to him now.

Tierney waited until she heard the roar of his truck; then she grabbed her keys, her coat and followed him.

Chapter Four

R
enner put the pedal to the metal. Christ. Poor Janie. After what that woman had been through in the last three years . . . and now this? If she’d been sentient enough to insist Abe call him, he felt encouraged her injuries weren’t life threatening. Given Janie’s past, he couldn’t help but wonder if this had been an accident.

Think of something else or you’ll go crazy with worry and drive like an idiot.

He glanced at the speedometer. Ninety-five. He eased up on the gas, but his hands still white-knuckled the steering wheel. He tried to focus on practical matters. His thoughts kept circling around the question: What was he going to do without Janie on opening week?

She was an integral part of his operation. She’d helped him with the concept for a ranch and resort. A place where he could feed his social nature and share his love of the Western lifestyle. The process hadn’t been as easy as he’d imagined—and now he worried he’d devoted the last two years to creating something with no guarantee it’d ever truly belong to him.

As much crap as he’d taken from his buddies in the rodeo world about the Split Rock being a resort, he intended it to be as much a working ranch as an upscale hunting lodge and retreat.

Hunting. Right. His brain raced a million directions. With Janie possibly being out of commission, good thing he’d already planned for the week ahead. Hunting permits had been secured. He’d laid in an extra supply of ammo. The ATVs were tuned up. The hunting guides were ready to switch off.

Since Renner wasn’t much of a hunter, he’d hired two ranchers familiar with the lay of the land. The guys loved hunting so much they’d been happy to serve as guides in exchange for unlimited hunting rights. That’d been a cheap solution in the scheme of getting the Split Rock up and running.

The only cheap thing so far. The land hadn’t been that pricey. He’d saved enough cash to purchase an additional two thousand acres alongside the first parcel. He would’ve been in good financial shape to fund this entire enterprise himself had the stock market not crashed and wiped him out. At that time he’d already had the building plans drawn up. Paid the hefty retainer for the specialized contractors that were scheduled a year out. Hell, he’d even had the building sites leveled and concrete footings poured.

Then financial disaster struck.

He didn’t remember where he’d initially gotten the name of Pratt Financial Group. Gene Pratt owned a variety of small businesses in the hospitality industry, as well as a finance company loosely tied to his interests. It hadn’t occurred to Renner until too late that the reason Pratt owned so many companies was because those businesses had defaulted on loan repayment. Pratt Financial Group—PFG—boasted enough equity that Renner was surprised when Gene Pratt agreed to meet with him personally in Kansas City.

If Pratt had played coy or spun tales of instant financial security Renner would’ve walked away. But Pratt set him straight; chances of obtaining the funds from a traditional source, such as a bank, were less than five percent. He’d gone on to explain the real estate market was in the toilet, especially in the areas of luxury homes and private retreats. But Pratt admitted the potential of the Wyoming property interested him and he was willing to lend Renner the money—with a few conditions, which would be spelled out in the contract.

A contract Gene Pratt just happened to have with him.

PFG number crunchers projected a fifty percent chance of success and a ten percent return on investment if the resort could capitalize on hunting season, the holiday season and ski season. So PFG’s stipulation for lending Renner the money? The Split Rock Ranch and Resort had to be fully constructed, fully operational and fully staffed by October first.

Renner knew meeting the criteria was a Herculean task, but he was so damn desperate for the capital he’d signed on the dotted line. After construction was under way, Tierney Pratt called on her father’s behalf, announcing she’d be on-site as PFG representative to ensure the resort opened on time.

In the past few months the woman had dug in her high heels like an Old West homesteader with the promise of free land in exchange for proving fortitude. Since she was Gene Pratt’s daughter, Renner’s hands were tied. She’d invaded half his office space, a clear indication she wasn’t leaving anytime soon. And she’d gotten under his skin like a sand burr. It was more than her snippy attitude when she questioned him on every damn thing under the sun. It was more than the mesmerizing way her ass swayed in body-hugging skirts as she haughtily flitted away from him.

She annoyed him. Frustrated him. Challenged him.

Turned him on.

How fucked up was it that the uptight woman did it for him in a bad way? He’d been stupid enough to fall for a rich daddy’s girl once; he had no intention of repeating that mistake.

Keep telling yourself that.

Renner continued to brood about Tierney because it kept him from thinking about Janie. Tierney had garnered his interest so completely he’d barely paid attention to Harper and Bran’s wedding last night; he’d been too busy watching her. Expecting to see boredom or derision, signs to remind him that she was a privileged, overeducated pain in the ass who’d look down on a small country wedding.

But she’d blown that perception all to hell with her tears.

His thoughts backtracked to the moment the minister had pronounced the couple husband and wife. Bran had said, “Finally,” before kissing Harper with such tenderness and wonder, Renner felt a little choked up. He’d glanced over to see Tierney crying hard enough to fog up her sexy smart-girl glasses. He’d never pegged her as the sentimental type. And that fascinated the hell out of him.

So he’d kept up his covert study of her during the reception. Tierney might not know how to work a room, but she sure knew how to rock a suit. Damn. He’d considered slathering her with compliments in case flattery would thaw the frosty void between them. But when she’d railed on him at the wedding reception about empty stalls and full haystacks, which weren’t her concern, he’d lashed out at her. And what had he found out? The woman’s aim was as sharp as her tongue.

A fact she’d proven again today. Yet, there’d been a couple of moments when she’d actually seemed sweet. Shy. Wanting to reach out to him, but unsure how he’d respond. Maybe it was an assholish thing to do, refusing to let her accompany him to the hospital. Being enclosed in his truck with her would be hell. Not because they’d argue the entire time, but because he’d lose his train of thought whenever he caught a whiff of that sweet fragrance she wore.

No, he had to be a jerk to her to make her stay put at the Split Rock. He’d apologize later.

A flash behind him caught his attention and Renner glanced in the rearview mirror just as a car signaled to pass. A familiar car.

Tierney’s car.

Sonuvabitch.

She gave him a little finger wave as her Land Rover sailed past him.

So much for her staying put.

Chapter Five

A
be’s sister-in-law broke off her conversation with the elderly lady manning the desk at the hospital when he entered the emergency room doors.

From the back, Lainie didn’t look pregnant at all. But from the front, she definitely had a baby bulge under her scrubs.

“Abe. Your wife”—she stressed the
wife
part and her eyes begged him to follow her lead—“is about finished with the CT scan. I’ll take you to where you can wait.” Lainie led him down the hallway to a room with a curtain that bisected one space into two.

As soon as they passed the patient on the left side, Abe said, “Is Janie all right?”

“Enough to insist she was fine and didn’t need anything but a couple of aspirin.”

“She’s a little headstrong.”

“Ya think?”

“So what’s up with the
your wife
lie, Nurse Lawson?”

Lainie’s mouth quirked. “Not a lie. She
was
your wife. She’s just not your wife now.”

Abe’s gaze dropped to her hand stroking her belly. “How’re you feelin’, Mama?”

“Like there’s a bowling ball jumping on my bladder.”

“Is my brother takin’ good care of you?”

“He’d wrap me in cotton batting if I let him. But yeah”—she smiled a bit dreamily—“Hank is beyond awesome.”

He knew how much Hank worried about Lainie working the last three months of her pregnancy. But Hank’s constant overprotectiveness didn’t dim Lainie’s glow when she spoke of him and the baby. “He worries because he adores you. And he’s gonna be just as bad with baby Lawson. Worse than ever, probably.”

She smirked. “I know. I’ll check back later.”

Abe stared out the hospital window. The town and the landscape became a blur as he tried to rein in his jumbled thoughts. Who’d run Janie off the road? Why hadn’t the person stuck around to help her out? He turned it over and over in his mind, but it didn’t make sense.

Finally the
squeak squeak
of rubber on linoleum alerted him to a nurse wheeling Janie into the room.

Christ. She looked about fifteen years old, wearing an oversized hospital gown and an ill-tempered scowl. But he was damn glad to see her feisty instead of frightened. “Why can’t I go home now?”

“That’ll depend on the CT scan results,” the nurse said. “You might as well rest. Once you get settled, you can ask for something to help you sleep.”

A sour look distorted Janie’s face. “No drugs.”

When Abe took a step closer, Janie held up her hand. “Stay right there, buster. Turn around. This gown doesn’t cover my rear.”

“I’m sure your husband won’t mind,” the nurse soothed.

“But he’s not—”

“At all put off by seein’ those delectable bare buns,” Abe inserted with a sly grin. “In fact, since my
wife
is a little shy, I’ll help her into bed if you have someplace else to be.”

“Knock yourself out.” Then the nurse was gone.

“I cannot believe you lied and told her you were my husband, Abe Lawson.”

“Hey, I’m just following Lainie’s murky logic that I
was
your husband, not that I
am
your husband.” He held his hands out. “Up you go.”

Janie batted away his offer of help. “I’m not an invalid. Turn around so I can climb on the bed.”

“So damn stubborn.” Abe faced the curtain and muttered, “Ain’t like I haven’t seen it before.”

The bed frame clanked and rattled as she wiggled to get comfortable. Just as he was about to suggest she swallow her pride and let him help her, a commotion stirred the curtain and Renner stormed to Janie’s side.

How had he gotten here so damn fast?

“Jesus. Are you okay?”

“Banged up. Mad. But yeah, I’m okay.”