—NINE—

 

"Are you sure you've never been on a horse? You're doing awesome." Dane narrowed Kerri in his sights. She was sitting on Buckshot, as he had promised. She was clearly a little nervous but he was trying his best to make her more comfortable. Today was a day that reminded him how much better he was with horses than people.

Ever on his radar, Ren was riding Roxy nearby in small circles. He'd given her a quick rundown on brakes and steering and she was working out the mechanics of it all on her own. Though he'd done his best to persuade him to sit this one out, Gage trotted one handed around the whole lot of them on Chessy. Kerri, however, needed a little confidence booster. She was sitting hunched forward, having a hard time anticipating the movements of the horse.

Gage and Chessy lapped by Buckshot and the old horse's pace at the walk hastened just a half a step.

Kerri panicked. "Whoa!" Crumbling forward on herself, she grabbed the saddle horn and forgot about the reins. The horse immediately came to a stop. Ren pulled up to observe and Kerri's fearful eyes met Dane's.

"You told him to stop!" Gage called. He hadn't slowed even a bit in his trek around the ring.

"He's right. Buckshot's the kind of horse that's gonna take care of you. He felt you were off balance and when you said 'whoa', that was his signal to stop." Dane stepped forward, patted the horse's neck and then tapped Kerri's knee affectionately.

She straightened almost immediately, the knowledge that Buckshot wouldn't be galloping away with her hanging on desperately seemed to bolster her confidence.

"Give it another try, one more circle around the arena and then you two can help me feed."

Gage let out a celebratory whoop as Kerri nodded and squeezed her legs on the horse's side, giving him the signal to move forward. Dane took a few steps back to give her some space to turn, tucking his hands in his pockets.

For all Ren had told him about the last four years of their life, Kerri had turned out to be a pretty good kid. So far, she had proven to be respectful and polite. She was kind to Gage even if she still wasn't sure what to make of his blatant admiration for her. Every minute Dane spent with the Maddock girls made him believe he'd made the right choice to hire Ren and invite them into his home.

Ren steered Roxy toward Dane and came to a stop in front of him. He smiled up at her—she was a sight on a horse. She looked right at home up there. Maybe she wasn't an accomplished rider yet, but he'd make one of her, and there wasn't much sexier in his books than a good woman on a good horse. She was comfortable and not afraid and those were two of the more pressing factors in becoming a competent rider. He wondered if there was any challenge he could throw at her that she wouldn't meet bravely with a smile on her face.

"So. I have the brakes, gears and steering down so far. It's the dismount I'm not so sure about."

"Same as mounting up, just backwards." He chuckled.

"Except the potential to land on my ass is doubled." Her tone was sarcastic, but her face said she was teasing.

He approached, putting a hand on the horn of the saddle and standing parallel to the horse's side, creating a safe landing space for her.

"I won't let you fall on your ass. Now tip forward, swing your right leg over her rump and step down. I'll be right here to catch you."

She did as he told her, stepping down and a touch too far back. Losing her balance, she toppled backwards into him. He drew a sharp breath at the feel of her whole body pressed against him and she took an abrupt step forward to right herself as if she'd backed into a hot wood stove. He had made an effort not to touch her, not even a casual brush, since the night he'd held her on the couch, and it was like electricity coursing through him when they made contact just now. She took a moment to turn around - she felt it, too.

Goddamn, but she was like a magnet. He wanted to be close to her, to touch her. He realized too late that he was standing too close for comfort, mere inches between his body and hers, and finally stepped back, not without effort, clearing his throat.

"Told you I wouldn't let you fall on your ass." His teasing tone cut the tension crackling through the air and lightened the mood. He slipped the leather reins over Roxy's head and handed them to Ren. "Now you get to learn how to untack. There's no falling involved in that part."

*

So maybe she hadn't fallen on her ass, Ren thought, but she was clearly falling for this man. Mere days into her employment at the Baylor Ranch and she was already longing to put her hands on Dane Baylor's body, imagining what he would taste like, wondering what it would feel like when that storm his eyes kept promising came on.

She had the kitchen to herself since Dane had the kids feeding stock with him. A roast had been in the oven all afternoon while they'd been trying out the horses, and she busied herself with potatoes and carrots for the stove top, keeping watch out the kitchen window for the trio she was beginning to feel was her little family.

Though she told herself the reason she shouldn't feel anything at all for Dane was because he was her employer and she was his employee, it went so much deeper. Setting down any kind of real tie in Three Rivers meant that when the inevitable happened, and Anita found them, the departure would be much more complicated, that much more painful. Ren had just about had it with unnecessary pain.

She sighed, putting the finishing touches on gravy from the roast drippings as she heard Dane, Kerri and Gage come tramping up the steps, laughing and chattering. Dane took off his hat and swatted Gage playfully on the behind.

"You two go wash up for dinner, you smell like you were playing in the manure pile."

Gage wiggled his bottom cheekily in the door of the kitchen and scooted forward with a squeal towards the bathroom when Dane stomped playfully toward him as if to swat him again.

When the kids left, he settled himself with his hips against the counter, watching her for a moment. As far as Ren was concerned, he was always too close. Being in the same house was too close. She was always acutely aware of his presence, his proximity to her. The only relief she had was when he was out in the barns, and she hoped, as she settled into her role, that would be more frequent.

Now she could feel not only his presence but his eyes on her as she stirred the gravy. Finally, she looked up and met his gaze. She couldn't spend her whole life skittering away from him or frozen with a racing heart.

"What are you doing this weekend?" The smile on his face gave away his intentions.

She cocked her head, narrowing her eyes at him.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling you're about to tell me." She turned the heat on the stove down and wiped her hands on a dish towel.

"How'd you know?" He chuckled.

"You're the boss." Her tone teased but she hoped it got the point across. He was only deterred for a moment.

"I'd like to take you to the dance hall on Friday. Give you a chance to meet some folks, get a feel for the community. Have a little bit of fun."

Despite her resolve to feel nothing, a whole mess of butterflies took flight in the pit of Ren's stomach. She gave him a dubious look.

"Do I have a choice in the matter?" It wasn't that she didn't want to spend an evening dancing with him. It was that this was more unnecessary pain—spending time with him outside of her employment, giving herself a taste of what she knew she couldn't have.

"I'm the boss." He tipped his head with a playful smirk. His teasing manner and good mood were infectious and she found a small smile slanting the corner of her lips.

"Okay, okay. What about the kids?"

"Mama will come take care of them for the evening." He eyed her again, took his hat in both hands. "I can see you are skeptical about this plan. Trust me. You're going to have a blast."