The Texan's Tennessee Romance / The Rancher & the Reluctant Princess

“Smile,” she said from the other side of the prong.

Posing in the middle of the bridge, he grinned as she snapped his picture.

“Man, these trees are huge,” he commented a few minutes later as the trail wound between massive trunks. Gnarled roots snaked across the worn path, waiting to snag a carelessly placed foot or twist an ankle. Patches of moss added to the challenge, which was why, he supposed, the guidebooks rated this hike as strenuous. That, and the increase in altitude.

Natalie placed her hand on the rough bark of a tree that had to be twelve feet in diameter. “Yellow poplars. This is virgin forest. Beautiful, isn’t it?”

Frowning at some initials clumsily carved into the bark of another massive tree, he nodded. “Wonder why some people can’t appreciate nature’s beauty without making their own marks on it.”

“Or leaving their trash behind,” she agreed with a look of distaste. “Nothing makes me madder than to see a beautiful place soiled with beer bottles and aluminum cans.”

They pulled water bottles out of their packs and took a few sips while they looked around. “How far do you think we’ve walked?” he asked, guessing at a couple of miles.

“About two and a half miles, I think,” she hazarded, confirming his own guess. “A little over halfway.”

Capping her water bottle, she returned it to her pack, then raised the camera and focused on a tangle of roots with wild fern growing among them. He’d noticed that she had a flair for photography; she’d taken some interesting shots during their walk so far. He would have to ask for copies.

“Natalie.” He nudged her arm and pointed to where two wild turkeys strutted across the path.

She swung the camera in that direction, snapping a couple of shots before the big birds fluttered into the woods. “Cool,” she said, lowering the camera with a smile.

He took the camera from her hand and stepped back. “Stand in front of those two black cherry trees,” he instructed. “Right between them. Yes, there.”

He took the picture, then glanced at the screen on the back of the camera. “Nice. Now move over there, by the water.”

She shook her head, but obliged, anyway. “I didn’t bring the camera so I’d have a lot of pictures of me.”

“I don’t know why not. You’ve been taking shots of natural beauty all day.”

She groaned and snatched the camera away from him, leaving him grinning as they started walking again. He was almost sure she’d had to struggle not to smile in response to his corny quip.

They crossed another log bridge and walked between two more large poplars, where they encountered a doe quietly foraging for vegetation. She looked up at them, waited politely for Natalie to snap her picture, then bounded away in graceful leaps, leaving her human admirers smiling. A squirrel barked in a tree above them, and Casey looked up to see it watching them and twitching its tail. “The wildlife out here is certainly accustomed to people.”

“Considering how many thousands take this hike every year, it’s no wonder,” Natalie replied. She zipped the front of her bright red vest. “It’s getting cooler as we climb higher, isn’t it?”

“Are you cold? You can wear my jacket.”

“Thanks, but I’m fine. This vest is actually pretty warm. We’ve only got about a mile to go before we reach the falls.”

He stepped carefully over a pile of somewhat slippery rocks. “I’m really glad we decided to do this. It feels good to get away from everything for a while.”

She took the hand he extended to help her over the rocks. “It does feel good,” she acknowledged, and then smiled ruefully. “I have to admit I’m a little out of shape. Too much desk time, not enough gym time the past couple of years.”

It might have been a good time to slip in a question about what she’d done at that desk, but Casey decided to let the moment pass. All he wanted to do now was to enjoy this day. This moment. And he suspected Natalie felt the same way.

“Your shape looks good to me,” he said, earning himself another groan—and another fleeting glimpse of dimples.

She glanced down. “You’re still holding my hand,” she pointed out.

He tightened his fingers just a little. “I know. It’s a very nice hand.”

Lacing her fingers with his, she smiled. “You’re flirting.”

“So, you noticed this time.”

She looked up at him through her lashes, which made his pulse rate flutter a little in response. A typical male response to a very feminine look, he thought, even as she murmured, “I’ve noticed before.”

His face was close to hers now, their lips only a few inches apart. “And did you like it?”

With a laugh, she disentangled their hands and took a step away, lifting her camera to snap his picture. “Let’s keep moving,” she said, turning to head up the trail again.

Grinning in intrigue, he followed her.

The trail narrowed again and rose even more steeply as they neared the end. They’d been accompanied almost all the way by the sounds of water—rushing, tumbling, spilling over small ledges, gurgling in pools—but now Casey could hear a distinctive waterfall roar, as he thought of it. They climbed over a few more fallen trees, hopped across a couple more rocks, and then they were at their destination. And it was everything Natalie had promised it would be.

“Wow,” he said, raising his voice a little to be heard over the noise. “This is amazing.”

Breathing a little hard from the challenge of the last part of the trail, she smiled. “I told you.”

The cascades, formed by the joining of two separate creeks at the top, tumbled ninety feet downward over a series of rock ledges into a clear pool at the bottom. Signs were posted around the area warning hikers not to try to climb the ledges, as several people had died trying to do so. Feeling the cold, breeze-borne spray on his face, Casey wasn’t even tempted to do anything so foolish. Just seeing this place was reward enough for the strenuous hike.

He turned to Natalie, who’d found a flat-topped boulder on which to rest. Her cheeks were red and she was still breathing a bit more quickly than usual, but she seemed to be rapidly recovering. She gazed at the falls with an expression that made him think she was seeing it both in the present and in her memories of earlier hikes with the late cousin she had obviously loved.

Sensing that he was looking at her, she met his eyes with a slight smile. “It didn’t take me as long to catch my breath when I came up here as a kid,” she admitted, wrinkling her nose in a way that he found very appealing. “And don’t think I haven’t noticed that you aren’t even breathing hard.”

He shrugged. “I’ve been doing a lot of manual labor lately.”

“Not to mention that you’re almost four years younger than I am,” she grumbled.

Laughing, he settled beside her on the boulder. “Like that’s enough to matter.”

She made a sound he couldn’t quite interpret, and then she swung her little backpack around in front of her and pulled out her water bottle again. “Are you hungry?”

“I could eat.”

She dug in the pack and started pulling out the food she’d brought along. They spent the next half hour eating in the damp, chilly air beside the cascades, enjoying the scenery and the companionship. Casey doubted that they’d have been lucky enough to have the site to themselves had it been a weekend, or a summer day. Which made him even more glad that he and Natalie had chosen a November Monday morning for their excursion. He liked being alone with her here.

They stuffed their trash into a plastic bag Natalie had brought for that purpose, then put that back into her backpack, making sure they left no trace of their visit behind. Fully rested now, Natalie took some pictures of the cascades and of Casey posed in front of them, and then he returned the favor, snapping several shots of her.

“That’s enough,” she said when he’d taken the third picture of her. “We’d probably better head back now.”

She started to move toward him, but her left foot slipped on a wet, mossy rock. She stumbled forward, then fell, landing solidly on her right hip.

Casey had tried to catch her, but he just hadn’t been fast enough. He reached her almost the moment she made contact with the ground. “Natalie? Are you okay?”

Looking thoroughly embarrassed, she nodded, reaching for her cap, which had fallen off in her tumble. “I’m fine. Just lost my footing. Stupid.”

“It could have been worse,” he said, his pulse rate still a bit too fast. “You could have fallen backward.”

She glanced at the falls behind them and made a face. “That would definitely have been worse.”

“Can you stand?”

“Of course. I’m fine, Casey, really.”

“Here, let me help you.” Setting the camera aside, he took her left arm and supported her while she rose unsteadily to her feet. The way she winced when she put weight on her right leg told him that she was hurt a bit worse than she wanted him to know, but a few tentative steps convinced him that nothing was broken or even sprained.

He kept his hand on her arm until she was on more even ground. She glanced up at him with an awkward smile. “I really am okay,” she assured him again. “I’m going to have a very colorful bruise, but that’s the extent of it.”

“Probably going to be sore, too.”

She shrugged. “That was already inevitable after the hike.”

She’d put her cap back on a bit crookedly. He reached up to straighten it, tucking her honey-blond hair away from her face. The gesture brought him closer to her and she tipped her head back to look at him from beneath the brim of her red cap. She stood very still as he traced a fingertip down her jawline, wiping a smudge of dirt from her chin.

“Bet you thought I’d be the one to wipe out today,” he teased quietly, hoping to make her smile again.

She did. “I guess we’re both a little accident-prone.”

He chuckled. “Maybe.”

“Of course, the hike isn’t over yet. You could still ‘wipe out.’”

“I do have a tendency to press my luck,” he admitted, his hand still touching her face. He spread his fingers until his palm cupped her cheek. “Gets me in trouble sometimes.”

She made a slight sound that might have been a swallowed laugh. “I can see that.”

“Sometimes it’s worth it,” he murmured, lowering his head. Holding her gaze with his own, he said, “You never answered my question earlier.”

“Which question?” she asked, tilting her head back a little more.

“Do you like it when I flirt with you? Because, you know, I’ll stop if you don’t.”

She gave a little shrug. “There’s no need to stop. I like it well enough.”

Amused by her nonchalant tone, he said, “Let me guess. I’m a pleasant diversion.”

“You could put it that way.”

Grinning, he spoke against her lips. “I’ve got no complaints about that.”

Chapter Six

Rationally, Natalie knew this was risky. The timing was terrible, and she wasn’t the vacation-fling type, anyway. But the truth was, kissing Casey felt too darned good. As she had suspected it would.

He lifted his head slowly, his gaze locked with hers. “Going to push me into the water now?”

She slid her hand around the back of his neck. “Maybe later,” she said and pulled his mouth to hers again.

He smiled for a moment against her lips, until the kiss deepened and amusement faded into something very different. Natalie felt her breathing start to quicken again, but this time she couldn’t blame it on exertion or altitude. This reaction was due totally to Casey.

The sound of voices mingled with the rush of water, seeping into her consciousness. Someone laughed, and she and Casey broke apart, staggering backward as if caught doing something they shouldn’t. Rubbing her sore thigh, she looked toward the trail just in time to see two couples in their late teens or early twenties climb into sight. They were chattering and laughing and roughhousing a little, and seemed to be having a great time. And not one of the fit-looking foursome appeared to be at all winded by the climb, Natalie noted with a frown.

The newcomers greeted Natalie and Casey with friendly nods, then moved to the side of the cascades to exclaim excitedly over the view. Natalie and Casey shared a glance, then moved in unspoken unison toward the trail.

The return drive to the cabin was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. Natalie sat back in her seat, watching the passing mountainsides, occasionally looking at Casey. He caught her gaze at times and smiled. They talked about how much fun they’d had, the beautiful trail, what a joy it had been to reach the falls. They didn’t specifically mention the kisses they had shared, but she had no doubt that he was thinking about them, just as she was.

Casey parked in front of her cabin and turned off the truck. “I’ll put the furniture back on the deck before I leave.”

“I’ll help you.”

“Thanks. I could use your help with the table, especially.”

They went inside only long enough to freshen up and for Natalie to make a pot of coffee. They drank half a cup each, just for the energy boost, and then she poured the rest into an insulated carafe for drinking later. Casey went out to get started on the deck, and she followed him after changing from her hiking boots into more comfortable sneakers.

They had just replaced the last chair when Casey looked past her and smiled. “The dog’s back. Want to bring some fresh water and a bowl for the food I brought?”

She’d almost forgotten about the dog. “I’ll be right back.”

The dog waited by the edge of the woods, watching them with the now-familiar wary anticipation. Casey set the bowls on the ground, talking in the quietly reassuring voice he used with the stray. “It’s dry food today, not fancy meat, but it’s better for you. More of the nutrients you need. So try it before you turn up your nose, okay?”

Natalie smiled. The dog wasn’t in a position to turn up its nose at any kind of food. It attacked the dry food as hungrily as it had the meat loaf and pot roast, crunching noisily as it gulped down the meal.

“He is a boy,” Casey murmured, having caught a glimpse of something Natalie couldn’t see because of all the matted fur.

“So you guessed correctly.”

“He just acted like another guy. Right, buddy?”

Still chewing, the dog glanced at Casey and gave a quick wave of its tail.

Natalie and Casey looked at each other in surprise. “Did you see that?” he asked.

“I did. He wagged his tail. I think he’s starting to respond to you.”

“Maybe he is, a little.” Taking a step closer to the dog, Casey crouched and held out a hand.

The dog glanced at that hand, then at Casey’s face. He stretched out his head a couple of inches and sniffed the air around Casey’s hand. His tail wagged a couple more times. Natalie held her breath. She didn’t think the dog was in any way aggressive, but she still felt as if Casey was taking a risk reaching out that way.

The dog looked up at Casey from beneath what, to Natalie, looked like beetled brows. As if it were trying to gauge Casey’s motivations. And then it took a step closer to him.

Very carefully, moving very slowly, Casey touched the dog’s head. He spoke in a low voice, “That’s a good boy. We’re getting to be friends, aren’t we? You just need to learn to trust me a little.”

The dog wagged its tail once more, before moving back. He eyed Casey for another minute, glanced at Natalie, then turned and trotted away. Natalie couldn’t imagine why the past few moments had left her with a lump in her throat.

Straightening, Casey smiled at her, and she thought she saw a hint of her own emotions in his eyes. “He’s getting there,” he said.

“Yes, I suppose he is. How long do you think it will take until he’s ready to be placed in a home? Or at least a shelter for the winter?”

“I’ll give it another couple of days, while I finish up the work here. In the meantime, I’ll ask Kyle if he knows anyone who might be interested in taking the dog in.”

“It’s starting to get dark. I have some food ready to heat. I thought you might be hungry early since we had such a light lunch.”

“As a matter of fact, I’m starving,” he admitted. “I could almost eat a bowl of that kibble.”

She laughed. “You won’t have to resort to that. I’ll heat one of Aunt Jewel’s famous chicken casseroles.”

“Sounds great.” He turned with her toward the house, each of them carrying one of the bowls in which they’d served the stray food and water. “I’ve got to wash my hands. Our dog needs a bath.”

Something about the way he said “our dog” took her aback. That sounded just a bit too cozy for her comfort, though she doubted that he’d meant it quite that way.

They talked about Casey’s work schedule during dinner. He would be over early the next morning, he said, to begin caulking, a job that would take at least a full day. Window washing and the hot tub installation were also on his To-Do list for the week.

“That sounds like a lot,” Natalie commented, trying not to sound envious that he had worthwhile things to do.

He shrugged. “I like to stay busy.”

“So do I,” she murmured, looking away from him.

He waited a beat, then asked casually, “How’s the job search going?”

She couldn’t meet his eyes as she replied, “I’m waiting to hear from some people.”

“I see. Well, I hope you find what you’re looking for soon.”

“Yes, so do I. Would you like some more coffee?”

He shook his head. “No, I’ve had plenty. I guess I’ll head home.”

Home. Though she knew it was just a figure of speech, she found it rather odd that he referred to his temporary cabin that way. Didn’t he miss his life in Dallas? His family and friends? He certainly didn’t talk about his life there much, not that she had exactly encouraged discussions about their lives before they’d met.

She stood, then winced when her bruised thigh protested the movement. She should have known Casey wouldn’t miss that telltale expression.

“Are you hurting?”

She shook her head. “Just a little sore from my fall. It’s nothing, only a bruise.”

“Bet you wish that hot tub was already installed, don’t you?” he teased.

She smiled. “It would probably feel good tonight. But I suppose I’ll make do with a hot bath, instead.”

He had followed her to the sink, carrying his plate and utensils from dinner. When she turned, he was right there, standing so close they were almost touching, his gaze locked with hers in a way that made her breath catch.

“Am I going to get my face slapped if I say I wouldn’t mind joining you in a hot tub sometime?” he asked, his tone somehow whimsical and serious all at the same time.

“I don’t slap,” she replied a bit huskily. “I punch.”

He laughed. “Of course you do.”

And then his smile faded as he reached up to touch a corner of her mouth. “Have I mentioned how much I like these dimples?”

“You’re flirting again.”

He grinned. “I do have permission.”

She rested her hands on his chest. “So you do.”

He kissed her lingeringly. Her fingers clenched in his shirt. The man definitely knew how to kiss. Flexing her fingers, she noted the strength of the muscles beneath his shirt. Maybe he didn’t do a lot of manual labor, but he certainly stayed in fine shape. If a woman happened to be in the market for a vacation fling with a good-looking, great-kissing, charmingly entertaining young stud, Casey Walker was darn near the perfect choice.

Lifting his head very slowly, he smiled down at her, his eyes gleaming in a way that made her wonder if he was more talented at mind reading than maintenance work.

“I’m sure you’re tired,” he said. “I should probably go.”

Though feminine instinct urged her to detain him longer, she moistened her well-kissed lips and nodded with some reluctance. “That’s probably a good idea.”

She walked with him to the door. “Good night, Natalie,” he said from the open doorway. “I really enjoyed the hike. Thanks for letting me go along. Oh, and thanks again for dinner.”

“You’re welcome. For both.”

He looked at her mouth, then back up at her eyes. And then he gave a firm little nod, and closed the door behind him, refusing to give in to the temptation that she hoped had been as strong for him as it was for her.

Hearing his truck engine fade away down the mountainside, Natalie lifted a hand to her mouth. Oddly enough, she felt as though he had kissed her good-night with just a look.

Casey Walker was definitely proving to be a distraction. Much more than she had planned on, she was afraid.

Because it was still relatively early, Casey stopped by to talk to Kyle after leaving Natalie. He’d called first to make sure it was a good time, and Kyle had assured him that it was. Molly opened the door to him, greeting him with a smile and a kiss on the cheek. “Come in. Kyle’s reading Olivia her bedtime story. He’ll be down when he’s finished. How was your hike today?”

“We had a great time,” Casey replied, taking a seat in the living room with his cousin. “Beautiful scenery. Have you been up to the cascades?”

“Yes, Kyle and I went there once. It was breathtaking.”

“Really is. Well worth the trek up.”

“Did Natalie have a good time?”

“She seemed to.”

“Good. She needs to have little fun. She just seems so sad.”

Sad. It was a good word for what Casey, himself, had sensed in Natalie from the start. “I think she enjoyed the outing,” he said again, not knowing what else to say, since he had assured Natalie he wasn’t asking questions behind her back.

“Good. And maybe she’ll find a new job soon. I don’t know what happened, exactly, but Jewel was always talking about what a great position her niece had with that fancy law firm in Nashville. It must have been a bitter split for Natalie to be taking it so hard.”

As much as he had told himself he wouldn’t ask any questions, Casey couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Wait—Natalie worked for a law firm?”

“She’s a lawyer—like you. I, um, thought you knew that.”

“No,” he said grimly. “No, I didn’t.”

“Oh.” Molly bit her lip. “Maybe she didn’t want to talk about it. Maybe since you’ve still got that great position with the firm in Dallas—”

“We haven’t talked about jobs. She might not know what I do. Unless you’ve told her?”

“No, it never came up.”

“Well then, unless her aunt has mentioned it—”

“Jewel doesn’t know what you do for a living. You said you didn’t want to talk about work while you were here, so I just didn’t mention it.”

“So I guess Natalie doesn’t know.”

“No, probably not.”

“So, maybe we should just keep it that way for now.”

Molly lifted her eyebrows. “You don’t want to tell her?”

“I don’t want anyone else to tell her,” he corrected. “I mean, if she’s lost her position and is still upset about it, she’s probably not going to want to hear that the maintenance guy is an attorney with a big firm in Dallas.”

“Oh. Well, I guess that makes sense. I’ll tell Kyle to be sure and let you be the one to bring it up with her.”

“Thanks.”

“Speaking of your job, and I don’t mean the maintenance work…”

“Don’t you start, too,” Casey warned with a frown.

She blinked her big green eyes at him in a patented innocent-Molly look. “Start what?”

“Nagging me about going back to work. Mom calls every morning, Dad calls at night. Jason, Aaron and Andrew take the tag-team approach, and most of the aunts have checked in at least once while I’ve been here. Everyone’s afraid I’ve had a meltdown or something, and they all want to pipe in with advice before I ruin my life. The only ones who don’t seem concerned that I’ve taken a long vacation are my superiors at the firm.”

“Your superiors are hoping the vacation will help get your head together so you can come back in top form again. They know they have a potential gold mine in you, and they don’t want to give up on it too quickly.”