Cowboys are Forever (5 page)

Marielle was enchanted. She had to get a closer look and see if there were any more. Getting from the ladder to the floor of the loft proved to be fairly difficult. She tried turning around with the intention of sitting down and inching off the ladder backwards, but there wasn’t enough room to maneuver her feet. Leaning forward as far she could and resting her elbows on the hay-strewn boards, she crawled awkwardly off the top rung on her hands and knees.

There. She’d made it. Unfortunately, the toe of her boot was under the rung. As she gave a little kick to extricate it, the ladder swayed and toppled backwards. Oh, well, she thought. There had to be another way down from here. She’d see the kitten or kittens, and then find it. Fifteen minutes later, after making the delightful discovery that the black-and-white kitten had five multicolored siblings and playing with them all, she went in search of an alternate route out of the hay loft.

There wasn’t one.

Marielle heaved a frustrated sigh. As far as she could see, the only way down was to yell “Geronimo!” and bail out the wide openings under the eaves. However, those big doors that opened outward were designed to unload hay through … .not jump from. She crept to the ledge and peered down cautiously. It was a long way to the ground. She was still limping slightly from her fall through the dilapidated front porch. She shuddered to think what kind of shape she’d be in if she tried to leap out of this barn.

Finally, in desperation, she decided to try and lower herself over the edge far enough to reach one of the boards that made up the sides of the stalls. If she could dangle down low enough to get her feet on the top board, she was almost sure she could climb down, using the space between the boards for a toehold. She had to try. She certainly couldn’t stay up here.

Lowering herself carefully over the side, she dug her nails into the plank foot of the loft and hung on. Kicking both feet, she tried to locate the top board she was aiming for. Where was the stupid thing? Maybe she wasn’t quite tall enough or long enough or whatever, because she couldn’t feel anything under her swinging feet except air. Marielle cursed silently then decided she’d better save her energy for trying to hoist herself back up into the loft.

She clung to the edge, knuckles white from the strain on her protesting hands, and fought for purchase. She could feel her fingers slipping when she attempted to pull herself back up and hung on even harder.
Fine mess you got yourself into now, Mari,
she thought with a nearly hysterical giggle.

Suddenly, she detected movement from below. Someone stood in the hallway of the barn. Marielle fervently hoped that it wasn’t Trey. Nevertheless, she wasn’t in any position to be choosy about who rescued her. Anybody who could get her down from here without too many broken bones would be welcome at this point.

She risked a look downward. She saw a tall, well-built body in denim shirt and tight faded jeans that looked good even from her precarious perch, topped by a black cowboy hat that tilted up to reveal a handsome face and deep dark brown eyes regarding her incredulously.

“What in the holy hell are you doing?” Trey asked.

She grinned down at him. “Oh, nothing.” She replied breezily. “Just hanging around.”

Trey stared in disbelief. Marielle dangled from the barn loft, her long, bare legs swaying slightly. His eyes traveled upwards to her rounded bottom, displayed to perfection in the snug-fitting shorts, and on to her slender torso. With both arms above her head, the denim shirt she wore had pulled up and showed a tantalizing amount of creamy skin and trim waistline. Her body was perfect, he thought, absolutely perfect. But if he didn’t quit gawking at her and start helping her down from there—the perfect body would be lying in a heap at his feet. He stepped forward.

“Let go,” He told her.

“Can’t you move the ladder over here or something?” she asked her voice breathy.

“I could. But there’s no need. If you’ll just let go, I’ll catch you.” He dodged her waving legs. “And quit kicking.”

Marielle stilled. Trey watched the play of emotions across her lovely face. She looked down at him and bit her bottom lip, expression doubtful. “Well….”she said.

Trey heaved an exasperated sigh. “Marielle,” he said patiently, “let go. You’ll be fine. I’ll catch you. Now come on—drop!”

He saw her chest expand as she took a deep breath. “Okay,” she replied. “Here goes!”

He braced himself; arms outstretched, and caught her waist as she dropped from the loft. She slid down in his embrace and came to rest with the top of her head just below his chin. Her body was pressing against his. He could feel her heart beating and felt his own heartbeat accelerate from the sensations her nearness aroused. Her slim yet lush body was molded to him and he was painfully aware of the warm, pliant flesh of the woman in his arms. He inhaled sharply as he caught the scent of her hair. Clean-smelling and fragrant, it reminded him of sun-ripened berries. His mouth watered.

He let her go and stepped back, needing to put some distance between himself and the alluring female he’d rescued. Marielle Stevens was too tempting for her own good … or his! He took a deep breath to steady himself. “I’m almost afraid to ask, but how did you get yourself into that predicament?” he inquired.

“I wanted to see the kittens up in the loft,” she replied. “My foot got stuck in the ladder and then the ladder fell—”

And then you couldn’t get back down.” Trey grinned and shook his head. “Woman, you’re accident-prone. What would you have done today if I hadn’t come along?”

“I’d have fallen, I suppose. I couldn’t have held on much longer. But I doubt if I’d have been hurt too badly. It wasn’t that far down. “She gazed up at him, her emerald eyes twinkling. “It just looked like it from up there.”

“Maybe it wouldn’t have been a life-threatening fall. But it proves my point that it’s risky for you to live on a mountain ranch by yourself. It’s going to be hard enough on you as it is now. Winters up here are rough. Too rough for you. Believe me, you‘ve got as much chance of lasting through one of our winters as a hothouse orchid. I told you I’d give you a fair price—”

“And I told you the Double D is not for sale!” she broke in hotly. “What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand? Read my lips! This. Ranch. Is. Not. For. Sale.”

Trey stared at her. Her tongue flicked out to moisten her bottom lip while those amazing green eyes glared at him. Read her lips? Hell, he could think of better things to do with her lips than read them, he decided. Impulsively, he lowered his head and covered them with his own in a demanding kiss.

Marielle struggled against him briefly. The feel of her body only inflamed his senses more. She stilled, and Trey cupped her jaw in one hand, tilting her face to allow him full access to her warm, moist mouth. He deepened the kiss, probing with his tongue, as his other hand roved across her back and downward, molding her lower body to his intimately. He groaned deep in his throat with pleasure as she kissed him back, her passionate response sending delicious shivers through his body.

She had to be the sexiest, most desirable female he’d ever met. He wanted to cover every inch of her creamy body with kisses and make love to her right here. Right now.

Trey came to his senses as Marielle abruptly broke their contact and shoved him away. She stepped backward, chest heaving, and drew a deep breath. She arched an eyebrow. “Well,” she said, her voice lightly mocking, “thank you for coming to my rescue—again.” She started out of the barn. “You don’t have a very high opinion of city girls, but you have to admit we know how to express our gratitude.”

Trey couldn’t help but laugh at her sassy comment as he followed her outside. He’d never been so affected just by holding a woman in his arms and exchanging a few kisses. This woman was dynamite!

Marielle stopped at the front porch. “When are you going to bring Uncle Dan’s sheep back?” she asked him. “I know there’s a lot to do beforehand. Like hire some help, for instance.”

“That’s what I came to talk to you about. Among other things,” he replied. “If you’re committed to staying here, then there is a lot to be done. And believe it or not,” he continued, smiling, “I want you to know that I’ll help you all I can, Marielle. I still don’t think that you have any idea what you’re in for … but I’ll be glad to help.”

“Thank you, Trey,” Marielle said softly. She laid a hand on his forearm and then jerked it away quickly, as though burned. Trey saw her lashes flutter down to veil her expressive eyes, but not before he’s seen the smoldering desire in their depths. A desire that matched his own. So, he thought exultantly, he’d gotten to her. Marielle looked away. Trey saw an expression of surprise cross her face as she gazed over his shoulder.

“Whose horse is that?” she asked curiously.

Trey looked in the direction she’d indicated and noticed for the first time that Bandy’s big roan gelding was tied to the picket fence surrounding the front yard. Evidently Bandy was here somewhere. “It belongs to my foreman.” Trey glanced around to determine the whereabouts of his chief ranch hand. At that moment, Bandy appeared from around the corner of the house. As always, he was whistling.

The older man’s face lit in a big grin. “Hey, boss,” he greeted Trey. He removed his battered Stetson and bowed to Marielle. “Howdy, ma’am,” he said respectfully. “I’m Thomas Carruthers, alias Bandy. And you must be Dan’s niece from the city. I’m mighty pleased to make your acquaintance.” He beamed at Marielle. “If you’ll pardon my saying so … you’re a sight for sore eyes. You sure didn’t get your looks from your uncle. He was a good old boy and played a mean game of checkers. But he was so goldurned ugly he had to sneak up on the dipper to get a drink.” Bandy laughed heartily at his own witticism.

“This is Marielle Stevens, Bandy. And I’ll agree with you,” Trey said casting an appreciative glance at the red-haired beauty who was smiling at his foreman. “she’s a whole lot better-looking than Dan.”

“Hi, Bandy,” she said. “I play a pretty mean game of checkers myself. My dad and I used to play a lot. You’ll have to come over for a game once I get settled in. And by the way, my friends call me Mari.”

“Well, I sure hope you count me as a friend, Miss Mari,” Bandy replied, his weathered face lit up with pleasure. “I’ll take you up on that invitation any time.” Trey could see that his foreman was captivated by their new neighbor. He couldn’t blame him, Trey thought dryly. He was pretty damned captivated himself. Besides being beautiful, she was charming—open and friendly. Not the least bit stuck-up. Like his ex-wife had been, for example. Lisette had treated Bandy, Consuelo, and everyone else who worked on his ranch like underlings, with a haughtiness that had rankled them and him. He couldn’t imagine Lisette ever climbing up in a barn loft, either.

He turned his attention to the conversation between Bandy and Marielle about bringing her uncle’s sheep back to their own grazing land.

You’ll have to do some work on your fences,” Bandy said. “Me and the boys can help you, right, boss?”

“Uh, yeah … .sure,” Trey replied.

Marielle turned to Trey. “I’ll be glad to pay for the work. But I don’t want to take your men away from things they need to be doing on your place.”

“Bandy knows their schedule better than I do,” Trey replied. “And as for paying—we all help each other out up here from time to time. There’s no charge for being neighborly.” He looked at the older man. “Bandy, send whoever you can spare to ride those fences and we’ll see what she needs to put them right. Tell them to get the wire and post from our supply shed.”

“Trey, I can’t let you just give me stuff. I insist on paying for the materials at least,” Marielle told him emphatically.

“We’ll settle up later. You can pay me whatever I paid for them. The main thing right now—if you’re determined to tend those sheep—is to get your fences fixed to keep them in,” Trey told her.

“Oh, I meant to ask … Did Uncle Dan have a horse?” she addressed the two men. “He gave me riding lessons when I was a little girl and I’m sure I’ll need a refresher course, but I want to ride.”

“Yeah, Dan kept two good horses,” Bandy answered her. “They’ll be fine for you. We’ve been stabling them with ours since he went in the hospital, taking care of them. I’ll send them over to you as soon as I can, along with some feed.” Bandy grinned at Marielle. “You won’t have any trouble finding somebody to give you a few riding lessons, ma’am. The boys will be fighting over who gets that job!” He chuckled.

“I’ll do it,” Trey heard himself saying. From the look on Marielle’s face, he didn’t know who was more surprised by his statement—himself or her.