Christmas at Blue Moon Ranch (10 page)

“Your aunt
invited me for dinner,” he told her as he crossed the entry hall. At her look
of dismay, he laughed aloud. “Don’t worry, Willa. I said no, thanks.”

As he reached
her, standing by the open door, he paused. “But you can’t avoid me forever. There’s
more between us than just a sales contract. Someday, we’re going to have to
figure out exactly what it is.” Leaning closer, he pressed a quick kiss to her
temple. “Someday soon.”

He walked
through the doorway and let her shut him outside without a goodbye. Standing on
the veranda in the deepening twilight, Daniel thought about his brave last
words.

And wondered if
he stood a snowball’s chance in hell of making them come true.

W
ILLA LEANED BACK
AGAINST
the closed door
and commanded her heart to stop pounding.
Someday soon,
he’d said. But
she didn’t want to know what these feelings were between them. Once burned,
twice shy, so the saying went. Well, she’d been burned twice now, and she’d
learned to stay as far away as possible from the fire.

Before she could
catch her breath, the quick tap of heels on tile announced Lilianna’s arrival. “Where
is Major Trent? Rosa said he’d arrived.”

“He had to
leave. I’m sure he’s sorry he missed you.” She started for the back of the
house, but Lili stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“Couldn’t you
persuade him to stay for dinner?”

“I didn’t try,
Lili. He told Rosa he couldn’t stay.”

“Oh, but he was
just being polite.” Her aunt-in-law gave her a disapproving look. “And you, I’m
afraid, were not. Where have your manners gone, Willa? You treat Major Trent
like a—a criminal, instead of the personable, attractive neighbor he is.”

“Just because I
don’t invite him to run tame in the house doesn’t mean I’m being impolite.”

“You can be
friends with Major Trent, Willa, and still respect Jamie’s memory. You don’t
have to be afraid—”

“I’m not
afraid!” Her denial was all the more violent for being a lie. “He’ll be gone by
Christmas, Lili. I don’t want the children getting attached to him and then
being hurt when he leaves.”
I don’t want to be hurt when he leaves.
“You
and Rosa should be careful, too. Daniel Trent will not last until to the new
year. I promise.”

Washing her
hands a few minutes later, Willa met her own gaze in the mirror.
“I
promise,”
she’d said.

“Hah,” she told
her reflection. “You
hope!
”

L
ATE THAT NIGHT
,
IN THE ROOM
they’d shared since they were
children, Lili put aside her book to look at her sister, seated at the dressing
table brushing her hair. “Willa and Daniel had quite a confrontation this
evening.”

Rosa nodded. “And
now she knows just how strong he really is.”

“She’s worried
that he’ll go after the rustlers on his own.” Lili smoothed the covers over her
knees. “Or with just his own men. One of them might get hurt.”

“Nate Hernandez,
for example?” Through the mirror, Rosa saw Lili’s blush. “You haven’t even gone
up there to speak with him.”

“Why would I?”

“So that he
would know you’re interested.”

“I couldn’t.”

Rosa turned
around. “Lili, that’s always been the problem. You’ve never let Nate know, and
so he thinks you don’t care. Maybe by the time you both get to be eighty years
old, you’ll come to your senses about that.”

“If he were
truly interested, he’d come here.”

“After Jamie
accused him of stealing and fired him? What sort of man would he be if he came
back under those circumstances?”

“Jamie’s been
gone for nearly two years.”

“And Nate has
his pride.” With her hair braided, Rosa turned out the light on the dressing
table and went to her own bed, identical to Lili’s. “I suppose you can just
sleep with me for the rest of our lives.” Turning her back to her sister and
the light, she said, “And we’ll both die shriveled old maids.”

The room plunged
into darkness as Lili turned off the lamp by her bed. “You would be happier if
I left you here by yourself?”

Touching the
metal bracelet that never left her wrist, Rosa sighed. “I have my memories,
Lilianna. They keep me company. I wish you could make some memories of your
own, that’s all. Before it’s too late.”

M
ONDAY MORNING
, D
ANIEL WENT
into Zapata to talk to the sheriff
about the rustlers. Hobbs Sutton defied the stereotype of a fat, bumbling Texas
sheriff, being tall and lean with black hair, sharp gray eyes and a ready
smile.

“Good to meet
you, Major Trent.” He gave a firm, quick handshake. “Sorry I haven’t made it
out to your place yet.”

“I imagine you
stay pretty busy.” Daniel lowered himself into the chair offered. “Law
enforcement on the border is a challenge these days.”

“You got that
right.” Sheriff Sutton sat down behind his paper-covered desk. “What can I do
for you?”

“I understand
there’s been some cattle rustling in my part of the county—the northern side of
the Blue Moon Ranch.”

Sutton shook his
head. “Yeah, Willa’s lost a couple hundred head over the last few years.” A
flush spread over his cheekbones. “And I should have put a stop to it—don’t
think I don’t know that. But I’ve got sixty miles of the Mexican border to
patrol, plus the highways inside the county. I simply don’t have the manpower
to post a permanent watch on Willa’s fence line. Or yours.”

“I understand.
Have other ranches been hit?”

The sheriff went
into a drawer and pulled out a thick file folder. “These are reports of
rustling just in this southeast area. And, yeah, quite a few resemble the
evidence from Willa’s place—time of day and month, probable number of suspects,
use of a specific brand of ATV and cattle truck.” He handed a sheaf of pages to
Daniel. “I’ve clipped all those together. You’re welcome to draw your own
conclusions.” When Daniel raised his eyebrows in surprise, Sutton grinned. “Since
you’re military, I figure we’re basically working for the same boss.”

In the end,
Daniel had to admit the sheriff’s department had done as much as could be
expected. “These guys are too smart and too fast,” he concluded. “Short of
posting a full-time guard on the fences, I don’t know what the answer is. I do
know I can’t afford to lose hundreds of cattle. My herd will be a tenth the
size of Willa’s.”

Sutton got to
his feet. “Amazing, isn’t it? She’s kept that place running since her husband
left, practically single-handed. And managed three kids, in the process.”

Daniel wondered
if he heard a trace of personal interest in the sheriff’s voice. “She’s a
determined woman. A little prickly, maybe.”

“Well, she
didn’t want to sell off part of the land, you know. The Mercado legend carries
a lot of weight around here, and Willa bought into it in a big way when she
married Jamie. We all went to school together, first grade through high
school.”

“Maybe having a
neighbor on her northern border will relieve her of some responsibility,” Daniel
said, though he’d scoffed at the idea in the confrontation with Willa. “I’ll do
what I can to catch these creeps.”

“Don’t put
yourself at risk in the process. If you give me something concrete to work
with, I’ll bring in as many people as I can spare.” He walked Daniel to his
truck and shook his hand once more. “Be sure to tell Willa I’m ready for some
of her aunts’ home cooking, any time she issues an invitation!” Slapping a hand
on the truck hood, Sutton gave a final wave and went back into the building.

So the sheriff
was interested in Willa. Daniel picked up some groceries, then drove home
wondering if Hobbs Sutton was the reason Willa was so upset about their night
together. If she were dating Sutton but had let the alcohol sway her judgment…

Daniel shook his
head. Not likely. A woman who could run a ranch the size of the Blue Moon
without help wouldn’t surrender to lust if her heart was given elsewhere. Sutton
might intend to pursue Willa, but his reasoning told him she didn’t intend to
get caught.

What did that
say about her feelings for Daniel, himself?

Driving across
Blue Moon land toward his own house, he saw a small cloud of dust on the side
of the road, which resolved, as he approached, into two kids with a
brown-and-white dog. While Toby pulled on the leash attached to the dog’s
collar, Susannah attempted to propel the animal from behind with shooing
motions and occasional shoves. But the dog—young, rawboned and playful—wiggled
and plunged, going in every direction except the one Toby desired.

Daniel pulled up
beside them and lowered his windows. “Is this obedience class?”

Toby came over
to the truck and climbed up on the running board. “Hi, Major Trent. Boy, are we
glad to see you.”

Below window
level, the dog echoed this sentiment with an excited bark…followed by the
distinct sound of ten claws scraping down the finish on the door of Daniel’s
truck.

He cringed and
Susannah gasped. “No, no, doggie. Get him down, Toby!” Judging by her face as
she gazed at the door, a new paint job would be called for.

Toby
disappeared, and then the passenger door opened. “Look what we got you,” the
boy said, levering the dog’s hind end onto the seat. “Just what you need!”

Before Daniel
could take a breath, the dog bounded into his lap. Wagging from the tip of his
nose to the point of his tail, he proceeded to wash Daniel’s face with his
long, very wet tongue.

“Hey, hey. Stop.
C’mon, dog. Stop!” Daniel got hold of the narrow shoulders and held the animal
off. “Toby, where in the world did you get this animal?”

The dog lunged
forward, trying to lick again. His face and one ear were caramel brown, and his
short hair grew in brown and white splotches over his body and legs. All four
paws, the remaining ear and the tip of his tail had stayed white.

“We found him on
the road near the bus stop. Isn’t he great?”

“Definitely a
terrific dog.” While the dog turned to look at Toby, Daniel took a second to
swipe a shirt sleeve across his face. “So terrific, in fact, that I really
think you should keep him as your own.” He got his hand back on the dog before
the dog got in another lick.

“Mom won’t let
me bring any more animals home,” Toby said, his lip stuck out in a pout. “Just
because—”

“Just because
the last time he brought home a pregnant gerbil…without telling her.” His
sister crinkled her nose in disgust. “We had gerbil babies running all over the
house, ’cause he knocked over the box and couldn’t get them back in.”

Daniel had to
grin. “That’s pretty bad, Toby.”

“Well, but the
kid who brought her to school was going to drown her, because his mom wouldn’t
let him have anymore gerbils. Lucky is so pretty, I couldn’t let her die like
that.”

“Lucky is still
around?”

Susannah sighed.
“She lives with a couple of her female babies in Toby’s room. We made him take
the rest to a pet store in Laredo.”

“Lucky sounds
like she lives up to her name. But I don’t think—”

“No, really,
Major Trent, you need a dog.” Toby sat down in the passenger seat.

“Why?”

“To keep you
company. To chase off coyotes. To warn you if somebody’s coming.”

The dog chose
that moment to scratch furiously at his ear with a back foot, then turned and
bit even more violently at the spot just above his tail.

“To bring fleas
into my house,” Daniel said, already resigned to the inevitable. He’d always
had a soft spot in his heart for puppies, and this one did have an
eager-to-please expression. “Have you named him?”

Toby smiled in
triumph. “We wanted you to do that.”

“Gee, thanks.”
Daniel pushed the dog into Toby’s lap. “Put on your seat belt and hold him
still until we get to the house. Hop in, Susannah. I guess I’m taking
what’s-his-name here home.”

Once inside the
house, the dog immediately peed on the vinyl floor of the kitchen.

“No, no.” Toby
took firm hold of the leash. “You do that outside. Outside.” He pulled the dog
through the kitchen door, across the carport and into the dirt, firmly
repeating, “Outside.”

“I’m so sorry.”
Susannah grabbed up the roll of paper towels on the counter. “I knew this
wasn’t a good idea, Major Trent. But I couldn’t talk him out of it. And I
couldn’t let him come up here by himself. Mom doesn’t know.”

Daniel took the
paper towels and did the cleanup himself. “Don’t worry, Susannah. I don’t mind
having a dog. You’re sure he doesn’t belong to someone and just wandered off?”

“We’ve seen him
for several days in a row. I think somebody dropped him off because they didn’t
want him anymore. And he kept waiting for them to come back.” She knuckled
tears out of her eyes. “I hate it when people do that.”