Romancing the Rancher

He’d still say no. But he’d at least think about it first.

“Which is why I need your help,” Nick pressed.

“But she’s also a grown woman,” Jarrett added, refusing to let his mind go where it wanted to go after those words. He didn’t need to be thinking how womanly Theresa was while talking to her overprotective cousin. “And she needs to prove she can take care of herself while she works things out. Which is why she’s staying out here. Which is why the answer is still no.”

No, he was not going to look in on Nick’s cousin. No, he was not going to go out of his way to make sure she was eating right and taking care of herself. No, he was not going to make another offer to take her riding or to show her around the property.

He planned on making that as clear to Nick as Theresa had made her disinterest in Jarrett’s offer clear to him.

Okay, so for a second, he thought he’d felt an answering spark of attraction when he’d caught her in his arms on the porch. Maybe he had; maybe he hadn’t. Either way, it didn’t matter when the woman came straight out and said she wasn’t interested.

Fine by him.

The last time she’d come to town, for Nick’s wedding, she’d brought her boyfriend along. A surgeon from the hospital where she worked in St. Louis. Theresa had a type—blond-haired, blue-eyed, educated and wealthy.

And it didn’t matter, he told himself again, that Theresa hadn’t brought him along with her on this trip. He didn’t want to know if she’d given the good doctor the same I-need-my-space speech or if the other man’s absence had something to do with the sorrow Jarrett had seen in her eyes.

Theresa was not there for him to rescue.

Stopping in front of one of the stalls, he reached out and ran a hand down Silverbelle’s forelock. The small mare stood passively beneath his touch, her soft brown eyes watching him with a hint of caution. Not long ago, the once abused and neglected animal wouldn’t have let him come within ten feet of her. Her first few weeks in the rescue, he’d left her loose in one of the corrals, not wanting to traumatize her further by trying to force her into a stall. It had taken time and patience, not to mention decent food and fresh water, to help bring the horse around.

Jarrett was always amazed by an animal’s ability to forgive, to move beyond the cruel treatment by humans in the past, and by their willingness to trust again.

Silver tossed her head and dislodged his hand from her warm and smooth hide, letting him know she’d had enough. She’d come so far, but that didn’t mean he didn’t still have work to do. She was still a little wary, a little standoffish—

Another pair of haunted eyes came to mind. A gorgeous blue instead of soulful brown.

And that was the real reason he wanted to stay away from Theresa. Her injuries went deeper than the physical damage done by the car accident. He could see the lingering shadows in her wounded gaze. Sadness, guilt, loss—he wasn’t sure what swirled in the blue depths. All he knew was that he’d felt the pull sucking him in like a whirlpool when it’d be best for both of them for him to stay away.

Healing a horse’s broken spirit—that he could do. Healing a woman—no. Not in his skill set. “Look, Nick, I’d like to help—”

“Great,” the vet interrupted, showing off that I’m-older-and-therefore-know-better judgment he was known for. “I knew I could count on you.”

But Jarrett had faced down one-ton bulls. He didn’t let anyone run roughshod over him. “Like to,” he stressed, “but I can’t. I’m not the guy for the job. Trust me on this, okay?”

“I’m not asking you to date her. Just check in on her once in a while.”

Jarrett clenched his back teeth. Not asking him to date her. Why? Did Nick think Jarrett wasn’t good enough for his cousin? Just because he wasn’t some fancy doctor or— He swore beneath his breath. What the hell did he care what Nick thought? He didn’t even want to date Theresa!

He stopped outside Duke’s stall, and the black horse shook his huge head with a short whinny—almost as if reading his thoughts and having a good old laugh. The gelding had technically been Jarrett’s first rescue, but he knew better. The one-time cutting horse had been his salvation.

“Fine.” He turned to face Nick. “I’ll look in on her, but that’s all. And if she tells me—again—to leave her alone, I’ll be sure to let her know it was your idea.”

“Now, wait a second.” Catching sight of the look Jarrett shot him, Nick raised his hands. “All right, all right. It’s a deal. We’re just...worried about her, you know?”

Suddenly, the past few years disappeared in a blink, and Jarrett flashed back to the hospital room where he’d landed after a wicked toss from a bull. A lonely hospital room. What would it be like, he wondered, to have family surround you when you needed them most?

The thought reminded him of the message his half sister had left on his cell phone the other day, but he shoved it aside. Too bad he couldn’t delete the memory as easily as he’d deleted the message. Summer wanted to come to California to help him with the rental cabins. He gave a silent snort of laughter. In his family, any offer of help always came with strings attached, and he was glad he’d cut all ties years ago—even if his half sister refused to accept that.

Theresa was lucky to have people around who cared about her for no other reason than the love they felt.

“I know. But your sister was here to bring Theresa groceries right after she arrived,” Jarrett pointed out. “And then Drew and Debbie stopped by yesterday.”

He couldn’t complain too much about their arrival when Debbie, the local baker, had brought along a dozen to-die-for chocolate cupcakes and assured him Theresa wouldn’t mind sharing. Which only meant Debbie gave him one of the miniature cakes. It did not mean Theresa would feed him with her slender fingers or that he’d get a chance to taste the rich, decadent chocolate straight from her lips—two images that had sprung to mind at the innocent comment.

“So?” Nick asked defensively enough for Jarrett to know he was well aware of where this was heading.

“So, if your cousin came here to have some time by herself, maybe you should give it to her and quit...hovering. You know as well as I do that the worst thing you can do with a skittish animal is hem her in.”

The other man’s scowl deepened into a glower. “My cousin is not a skittish animal.”

Yeah, Theresa probably wouldn’t think much of the comparison, either, Jarrett thought wryly. “All the more reason why I shouldn’t be the one looking out for her.”

* * *

Self-discovery, Theresa decided as she gazed at her reflection in the foggy medicine cabinet mirror hanging above the bathroom sink, sucked.

For all her talk about alone time and needing the opportunity to focus on what she wanted for the future, so far she’d come to only two conclusions. One, she didn’t really like being by herself. And two, all she wanted for her future was the life she’d had in the past.

She hadn’t expected staying alone at the cabin to be such a big deal. After all, she lived by herself. After a rough shift at the ER dealing with doctors, other nurses and patients, surrounded by a cacophony of sound—phones, pagers, voices over the intercoms, the beep of various monitors—by the end of the day, all she wanted was to go home and wrap herself in the peace and quiet of her cozy apartment. To enjoy the sweet relief from the stress and fast pace of the outside world.

Here, there was no outside world. At least, not a world Theresa was familiar with. She glanced at the window above the tub. Blue skies peeked through the softly swaying pines. Outside, the peace and quiet of the cabin was nothing but...more peace and quiet. So much of both that she was ready to scream. Just to give herself a break from it all.

And the sorriest part, she thought as she hit her wet, shoulder-length hair with the warmth of the blow-dryer, was that in the three days since she’d arrived, some member or another of her extended family had dropped by to visit, the most recent being her aunt and uncle.

They had shown up with the explanation that they wanted Theresa to have a vehicle while she was staying in the cabin. She was grateful even if she didn’t have anywhere to go, and the need to escape only increased the longer her aunt and uncle stayed.

Her uncle Vince was a younger, slightly mellower version of her father. Both men were dedicated to their families, friends and neighbors. But just like whenever her father looked at her, Theresa could sense the concern behind her uncle’s dark gaze. At least the older men in her family were the type to worry in silence. Not so much with her mother—or her aunt.

Vanessa had hovered over Theresa during the entire visit. How was she feeling? Was she sleeping all right? Did she have enough to eat? Was she keeping up with her exercises every day? Was she pushing herself too hard?

All that was bad enough. Worse were the questions she couldn’t answer.

“What are your plans for when you go back to work? Your mother says you have an opportunity to go back to school for a career in hospital administration. Do you think you’ll start classes soon?”

Following the accident, Theresa had been put on medical leave. That time would be up soon, and although she would be able to get an extension, she wondered what would be the point. Would a few more weeks make a big enough difference for her to be back to normal?

She shut off the blow-dryer and ran a brush through her hair. She caught the thick mass to one side and automatically reached up to start a simple braid, but the dark strands slid through the stiff fingers of her left hand. Sucking in a deep breath, she tried again. And again, and again.

She’d learned to braid her hair when she was seven years old and now—

Frustration tightened her body, and she clenched her jaw to hold back the urge to swear, to scream, to cry. Normal? Yeah, she didn’t think so, and clearly her mother didn’t, either.

Tossing her hairbrush back into the vanity drawer with more force than necessary, she left her hair loose around her shoulders and stepped into the bedroom to finish dressing.

Donna Pirelli had never been thrilled with her only daughter’s career choice. Oh, she was proud that Theresa was a nurse, but she’d never liked the idea of Theresa working the long shifts in a downtown St. Louis hospital. The atmosphere in the emergency room was undeniably stressful, with people brought in after car accidents or medical emergencies like heart attacks or strokes. And then there were the other patients—victims of gunshot wounds or stabbings, not to mention drunks and drug addicts so out of their minds they were a danger to themselves—and to others.

So, yes, Theresa understood why her mother would prefer her to have a desk job dealing with policy and procedure rather than patients. And she told her aunt the same thing she always told her mother. “I’m still thinking about it.”

Thinking how much she hated the very idea.

And just like her mother, her aunt hadn’t been satisfied with that answer. Fortunately, her uncle had taken the hint and had reminded his wife that they needed to get back to town.

She’d felt both grateful and guilty when they left—an awkward combination of feelings she was almost getting used to when it came to her family. But while their leaving meant she didn’t have to answer any more questions about her future, it didn’t mean the questions went away. If anything, they only sounded louder in the small cabin’s overwhelming silence.

“I have got to get out of here,” she muttered as she sank onto the bed and shoved her feet into a pair of already-tied tennis shoes to go with her worn jeans and St. Louis Cardinals sweatshirt.

Jarrett had meant what he said when he told her the bedroom and bath weren’t fancy. The furnishings were obviously new—from the queen-size bed with its neutral beige comforter to the matching oak nightstand and build-it-yourself dresser. But the stark walls and emptiness of the place were driving her crazy.

He’d also kept his promise to leave her alone, making her apology impossible to give.

She carefully pushed off the bed. One wrong move could still send white-hot bolts of pain shooting up and down her left leg, and she held her breath as she waited for the pull and protest of the weakened muscles. Was it wishful thinking or was the tightness easing just a little? She’d been keeping up with her exercises within the bare walls of the cabin, but a walk would do even more good, she decided as she left the car keys on the kitchen counter and stepped onto the porch.

It had rained sometime during the night, the fresh scent lingering in the damp morning air. Clouds hovered over the peaks of the distant mountains. Drops of rainwater clung to the pines and sparkled in the filtered sunlight. Sophia was right about the gorgeous scenery, Theresa thought as she walked carefully along the muddy pathway. Jarrett Deeks had picked a prime spot for his business.

She had the sudden thought that his choice hadn’t been so much a professional one as a personal one. This land was the perfect place for him. A little rugged, a little wild...a little lonely.

A small shiver raced down Theresa’s spine even as she scolded herself for ascribing attributes to a man she didn’t even know. She was letting her imagination get away with her. She was used to dealing with men, from doctors to physical therapists to orderlies. Not to mention her three brothers. Granted, Jarrett didn’t fit into any of those molds, but that hardly mattered.

Cowboy or cardiac surgeon, Jarrett Deeks was still just a guy, she reminded herself as she followed a path that led toward the stables. An ordinary, average—

Her thoughts, her entire body, came to a stop as she caught sight of the cowboy astride a gray horse in the middle of the corral. Her heart stumbled in her chest as she watched him circle the animal one way and then the other. Horse and rider worked as one, every movement fluid, effortless...and breathtaking.

Her pulse picked up its pace as she watched, the beat echoing the thunder of the pounding hooves against the hard ground. For a split second, Theresa swore she could almost feel the warm horseflesh beneath her, the rush of speed and excitement, of the cold air making her cheeks sting and her eyes water. The connection of horse and rider...

Or was it something else she was feeling? Something more?

Theresa wasn’t sure when it happened, but she suddenly realized Jarrett knew she was watching. He did nothing to acknowledge her presence. Didn’t dip the brim of his hat, didn’t lift a gloved hand in a wave. All his concentration, his entire being, was focused on the horse. And yet there was this...awareness like an electrical current thrumming between them, drawing her closer despite the “Danger—High Voltage!” signs plastered all around.

He knew she was watching—and knew just what watching him was doing to her.

Theresa swallowed hard against a suddenly dry throat. She didn’t even remember moving—and since the accident, that was certainly saying something—but before long, her hands were braced on the cold metal railing circling the corral. Vibrations trembled along the crossbar as Jarrett galloped by, and Theresa again experienced the breathless sensation of riding alongside him.

Gradually, he slowed the pace, but the horse was still breathing heavily when he came to a stop in front of her. Beneath the brim of his cowboy hat, his cheeks were ruddy from the cold and wind, and his chest rose and fell from the exertion and exhilaration of the ride. Swinging a muscled leg over the horse’s broad back, he dropped to the ground. His stride was steady and sure, but Theresa felt her own legs go weak as he approached.

He didn’t stop until he’d braced his hands on either side of hers, and Theresa had the inane thought that a fence meant to hold half a ton of horseflesh couldn’t come close to containing a man like Jarrett Deeks.

His deep voice scraped across raw nerve endings, and she couldn’t suppress a telltale shiver as he murmured, “Change your mind about that ride?”

Chapter Four

Jarrett didn’t know how many people he’d performed in front of during his days in the rodeo. From country fairs to packed arenas, he’d played to the crowd in the minutes leading up to the moment when he entered the chute. After that, everything disappeared. The sound of cheers, the scent of fried food from the concession stands, the burst of light from cameras flashing around him. All of it faded into nothing.

His focus narrowed to the bull he was determined to ride. Didn’t matter if a hundred thousand people filled the seats or if the stadium was empty of a single soul. Only after he hit the ground—hopefully on two feet—did he once again become aware of the screaming fans all around him.

Even then, he’d never been cognizant of a single pair of eyes watching his every move. Never felt the warmth of a look as strongly as a touch.

But damn it if that wasn’t how he’d felt with Theresa’s blue eyes on him. It was as if her gaze had wrapped around him like slender arms, and she was seated astride the horse behind him. He shrugged his shoulders as if he could throw off the sensation of her body pressed against his back, but it didn’t do any good. Not when she was standing in front of him, those eyes still focused on his.

“So...” he said, his voice sounding as gravelly as the road leading out to his place. “’Bout that ride...”

“Uh, no. Thank you.”

He swallowed a deep exhale of relief. He’d known she’d turn him down, but there was still a brief moment of— What? Hope? More like sheer insanity if he’d wanted, even for a split second, for her to say yes.

Soft pink highlighted her cheeks, either from the cold or something he’d best not contemplate, and her gaze cut away from his to Silverbelle standing calmly on the far side of the corral. He was lucky the mare had come as far as she had. If he’d tried riding her a few weeks ago and let his concentration slip as he had today, he probably would have ended up landing on his ass in the dirt. And wouldn’t that have given Theresa something to see?

“I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry for the other day. I was rude, and I apologize.” Her gaze came back to meet his as she spoke, and Jarrett was hit by her sense of integrity and strength. She might look like a fairy-tale heroine, but Theresa had a toughness her beauty couldn’t hide.

Of course, right in that moment, she didn’t exactly fit the princess mold. She was dressed as casually as he was in jeans and a faded-to-orange sweatshirt. Her hair was loose around her shoulders, a few strands blowing across her cheeks thanks to the morning breeze, her face free of makeup. But just like the toughness that was so much a part of her, so, too, was the beauty and grace that had nothing to do with what she wore and everything to do with who she was.

“You weren’t rude. You said what you wanted and—” he shrugged “—you’re the guest.”

“And the guest is always right?” A hint of disbelief lifted her words, but Jarrett wasn’t sure what she was questioning. His words or the very idea that he thought of her as nothing but a guest.

“Company policy,” he lied.

“Uh-huh.”

“So how’s all that peace and quiet treating you?” he asked before whistling for Silverbelle.

“I’m guessing you already know that my entire family has been out to visit me.”

“Yep.” Jarrett reached for the reins and started leading Silver toward the gate. On the other side of the fence, Theresa followed along. “So much for your alone time.”

She gave a soft laugh. “You’re pretty much the only one who paid any attention to that.”

Jarrett shot a sidelong glance at her elegant profile. If he didn’t know better, he’d almost think she was complaining. He swallowed a snort of laughter. His imagination had to be working some serious overtime to even come up with such a harebrained notion.

“They mean well,” she said defensively enough to let Jarrett know she hadn’t really minded their interruptions.

He shoved aside any thought that maybe he should have stopped by unannounced, too.

Opening the gate, he led Silverbelle through. By the time he had the latch secured behind him and turned around, Theresa was standing almost eye to eye with the horse. A protest rose in his throat when she reached up, but instinct held the words back. His breath caught in his chest as he waited to see what happened. He wasn’t sure what interested him more—the horse’s response...or the woman’s.

Theresa moved slowly, her voice a low murmur as she talked to the mare. If he hadn’t seen for himself just how shy and nervous Silverbelle could still be, he would never have known it by her reaction to Theresa’s gentle greeting. The horse lowered her large head as if seeking out closer contact as Theresa stroked a hand over the horse’s muzzle.

So much for his theory that Theresa had rejected his offer to take her riding because she was afraid of horses. So was it because she was afraid of him? Afraid of whatever the hell it was he’d felt while she’d watched him ride? Had she felt it, too?

“She’s beautiful,” Theresa said softly. “What’s her name?”

“Silverbelle. Silver for short. And you’ll want to be careful around her,” he said, well aware that his warning was coming too late and hardly seemed necessary. “She’s a rescue and can be kinda shy.”

“Oh, I had no idea. After seeing you ride together, I assumed she was one of yours.”

“She is for now, and she’s come a long way. Can’t say yet that she’ll ever be comfortable enough for trail rides or for riding lessons, but maybe.” He shot her a sidelong glance as the three of them started walking toward the stables. “Speaking of trail rides—”

“No, thank you.” Theresa crossed her arms over her chest. “I appreciate the offer, but I...can’t.”

Jarrett nodded, keeping his gaze straight ahead, but he couldn’t pretend he hadn’t noticed the way she cradled her left arm close to her body, tucking it beneath the right. He swore beneath his breath. He should have realized her reluctance might have been because of the injuries she’d sustained. But she’d pushed so hard to prove herself by walking to the cabin and then coming down to the stables that he hadn’t given it a thought.

Instead, he’d shoved the offer for horseback riding in her face—not once, not twice, but a damned three times. And he was the man Nick wanted to look out for his cousin? He’d been right to shoot the veterinarian down.

“I could still use your help with the horses,” Jarrett blurted out.

“I’m sorry, Jarrett, really, but—”

“You don’t have to ride,” he said as they reached the stables. “Just give me a hand with Silverbelle’s tack and brushing her down. You’re good with her, and she needs to learn that I’m not the only human she can trust.”

“You really think that will help?”

Longing filled her blue gaze as she looked at Silver. The same longing he’d sensed earlier as she’d watched him in the corral. The phantom memory of her body pressed against his taunted him, but he forced it aside. This wasn’t about the way Theresa made him feel. This was about putting the missing spark back in her eyes.

He was going to get her back in the saddle, Jarrett vowed. He didn’t know how, and he had just over three weeks to figure it out, but he was determined to see Theresa ride.

* * *

Theresa wanted to say no. She really did. To spend time around Jarrett’s horses, knowing she might never ride again—at least not the way she had before—would be its own form of torture. Just stepping inside the cool stables brought back too many memories. The building wasn’t as fancy as the riding stables back home, but the scent of horses and hay, the sound of metal shoes on concrete, were all the same.

And then there was being around the man himself—an entirely different kind of torture. He’d taken off his hat, and for the first time, she had the full view of his thick brown hair, cut short to the sides but with just enough length on top to make her fingertips tingle with the urge to touch. His face was as sculpted as his jawline with a wide forehead, eyebrows a shade darker than his hair and sharp cheekbones.