A Saddle Made For Two

Opening her mouth to ask him what he meant, she froze at the sound of the nickname he’d called her again and squeezed her eyes shut. A vision of her dad lifting her onto a pony flashed through her mind. She swallowed, forcing back the memory that still caused a deep pain. It would only lead to more memories she couldn’t deal with. “I told you not to call me that.”

His hand returned to hers. “It slipped out. But you are—”

“Don’t.” She opened her eyes to see him studying her.

“You don’t like anybody pointing out that you’re on the small side?”

She shook her head. “It’s not that. Call me shrimp, call me shorty, call me tiny. Just don’t call me…that.”

Chace tipped his head to one side before removing his hand. “Okay. If you promise to be there tomorrow for lunch at Reba’s.”

She bit back a scathing retort at his persistence. “You don’t give up, do you?”

He shrugged and looked off in the distance. “You were the one who said you didn’t know me well enough to know if you liked me. I don’t see any reason why we can’t be friends.”

Ellie knew of plenty. One in particular. A big one. But she couldn’t tell him that it was because of the heat he caused to pool in the area of her body closest to the saddle horn. “I guess there isn’t,” she fibbed.

“Good. Give it your best tonight.” He handed her the ice and touched Sky Dancer on his rump, sending them on their way.

Sky Dancer shied as they circled the back of Reba’s trailer. Ellie quickly regained control, but wondered if he’d needed a longer run.

“I was beginning to worry.”

J. R. Staton was walking toward her, and she breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of her real estate agent. Handing him the ice, she offered a smile. “Give this to Reba while I tie up, would you?”

“I’ve had a new offer for the ranch,” he said before turning to walk around the corner of the trailer, out of sight.

Ellie made quick work of sliding off her horse and making sure he was tethered, then she looked around to make sure Chace wasn’t anywhere in sight. She didn’t want to have to deal with him right now. This was far more important.

Talking about the sale, especially if it involved more money for her brothers, was much better than thinking about a wandering cowboy who turned her insides into a blazing bonfire.

The look on Reba’s face when Ellie approached with J.R. was enough to ice down any flames she’d been feeling. Reba didn’t like J.R. and took every opportunity to tell her so. J.R. wasn’t a cowboy—the one thing that raised him in Ellie’s estimation. She hadn’t expected to hear from him, much less see him, until the break before Finals. But now that he was here, she was eager to get the latest news.

“Thanks for gettin’ the ice,” Reba said, taking the bag and planting herself in the doorway.

“It’s nice to see you, Mrs. Tucker,” J.R. said with a pained smiled.

Reba sniffed as she settled more firmly against the doorjamb. “You’re a long way from home.”

Ellie bit back a groan. She could have saved them the awkwardness if she’d known J.R. planned to be in the area.

He met Ellie’s gaze and held it. “I have business in Phoenix, but I wanted to see Ellie first.” He glanced at Reba who stood frowning at him. “To discuss the sale of the ranch, of course.”

When Reba started to reply, Ellie rushed to trample anything she might say. “You said you had a new offer, J.R.?”

He nodded and focused his attention on her. “The buyer has decided the property may be worth more than first assumed. It’s a good offer. I encourage you to accept it.”

When he flashed her a smile, Ellie waited for the same sensations to overtake her that she felt when Chace Brannigan grinned at her. There wasn’t even a twinge. Uneasy with the revelation, she shoved it aside. “All I’m asking is a fair price.”

“We can discuss it further, on the way to your camper.”

Reba looked heavenward and shook her head, giving Ellie the opportunity to escape. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Reba.”

“Noon, for lunch,” her friend called after her, making it sound more like a command than a reminder.

“About the new offer,” Ellie said, as she and J.R. walked to her camper.

He named a figure. She didn’t know what to do. The amount he tossed out so cavalierly was still short of what she hoped to get. If there was the slightest chance that whoever wanted the ranch might go higher, she had to wait. The buyer had given two offers. Wasn’t the third time charmed?

“Maybe the buyer will raise the offer,” she suggested.

He pressed his lips together, and drew his brows down in a concerned frown. “I must caution you not to wait too long. This buyer is interested now. If you don’t make a decision soon…”

“I want to speak with my brothers in person, at the ranch. I’ll know more then.”

His eyebrows arched and he opened his mouth to speak. Instead of saying anything, he closed it and nodded. “I have something for you in my car. I’ll be right back.”

Ellie smiled to herself as she watched him walk away. If she could put him off long enough, she’d have time at the ranch to persuade her brothers to see things her way. In the meantime maybe the buyer would up the price.

She wanted to retire after Finals. Even if she made enough to qualify, it wouldn’t be enough to entice her brothers off the ranch. She had to sell it. But her brothers had to agree to the sale. And she didn’t look forward to telling them about it.

After checking on the horses and making sure his gear would be ready and waiting before his first ride, Chace started out for the stock pens to look over the bronc he’d drawn. A good ride would keep him in the lead. A great one could give him an edge.

His path took him through the thickest of the parking area, and his thoughts, once again, turned to Ellie. He’d hoped she’d be here in Phoenix, but he hadn’t counted on it. There were too many other places to compete. He’d spent most of the day wondering why he wanted to see her again, finally deciding that it was her downright stubbornness to fall for his charm that he found so attractive. What man could walk away from a challenge like that?

He smiled when he thought of the lucky break. But realizing how much it pleased him, he brought himself up short.

Had he gone loco? With four rodeos to go before the end of the season, he didn’t need to form any kind of attachment to a woman. This late in the game, a female was a distraction he couldn’t afford. He’d learned that the hard way, early on in his career, and knew better than to let it happen. He and the other three leaders were so close he couldn’t let up much until after the final ride of the season. Concentration was the key. One slip up, one bad fall because his mind wasn’t fully on his ride, and he might as well kiss his chance at any title goodbye. That wouldn’t help the Triple B. As the oldest, it was his responsibility to see that the ranch prospered. They couldn’t lose it the way they nearly had once. Mistakes and distractions were out of the question.

When he spied Ellie’s pickup and camper to his left, he made a decision. He might be attracted to the miniature ball of fire, but he hadn’t lost his mind. She’d told him flat-out that she didn’t want him around. He’d been fool enough to let his body rule his brains. And he was getting too old to do that. No more. He’d steer clear of her from here on out.

Before he had a chance to backtrack and change his route, he saw Ellie approaching her camper. He stopped in midstride. She wasn’t alone. He had a brief glimpse of a man with her, wearing a white shirt and tie, and carrying a suit coat slung over his shoulder. A cold hard ball of busted pride lodged in Chace’s gut when he saw the bouquet of flowers in her hand. He’d been a bigger fool than he’d thought. She already had a man, and by the look of him, a simple rodeo cowboy would fail to measure up. Even if the cowboy won a dozen National Championships.

Disgusted with himself, Chace dared a last glance at the couple before he moved on to the stock pens. What he saw made his blood run cold, then hot. “Son of a—”

Ellie stood propped against the side of her camper gazing up at the last man he’d expect to see at a rodeo.

“Maybe a little competition from the right man would improve her eyesight.”

Chace spun around to see Reba approaching. He would gladly give James Robert Staton a lot of things, including a shiner he owed him, but he remembered his decision to stay away from Ellie Warren. “Find another man, Reba. I’ve got a double championship to take care of, not a pint-size bundle of fireworks—who doesn’t like me—to tangle with.”

A glance at her told him she would hang on to this crazy idea she had like a dog with an old bone if he didn’t set her straight. Sighing, he shook his head. “Not this time, Reba. You keep this to yourself, but this is my last year. I go out in a blaze of glory or I go out a loser.”

Reba patted his arm with one plump hand. “You’ll never be a loser, Chace Brannigan. It’s not in you. But that man is nothin’ but trouble.”

Chace almost choked on his reply when he saw the object of their conversation reach out to push back a stray strand of Ellie’s hair that had escaped her braid. “What do you mean?”

Reba’s eyes flashed with impatience. “You’re a man. Figure it out.”

Chace didn’t want to consider the implication of her words. Just watching Ellie conjured up an image of rumpled sheets and passion-drenched nights. Everybody else might see her as Ellie, a diminutive tomboy on a horse, taking barrels like the champ she would someday be. But Chace’s eyes and body told him her dynamite temper and obstinate attitude hid something deeper. A passion he hoped to unleash and, at the same time, prayed he wouldn’t.

When he turned around, Reba was gone. He had to make a decision. In spite of his earlier vow to stay away from the little spitfire, he wasn’t about to let the man he’d known as Jimmy Bob since they were kids pull any of his con man tricks on her. Ellie needed protecting. And Chace was the man to do it.

Chapter Three

“What’s wrong?” Ellie asked, when J.R. started to walk away in the middle of their conversation.

He turned back to her with a smile. “I thought I saw someone I know.”

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and studied him. “Do you know many rodeo people?”

“One or two. Through business.”

A small shiver of excitement rippled through her. Spending all of her life on the ranch, and then on the circuit, had isolated her from the rest of the world. No matter what she decided to do with herself after she retired, she wanted to see how nonrodeo people lived. And live it herself.

He touched her hand. “I’ll be back to watch you ride. And tomorrow night when you’re finished, we’ll have dinner. But right now I need to get back to business.”

Ellie ignored the fact that her heart didn’t flutter at the physical contact. He had the oddest eyes. Brown, like hers, and almost impossible to read. With most people she knew what they were feeling by looking into their eyes, but his seldom showed emotion. Was he coming on to her?

“I’ll see you tonight. I’ll be cheering you on,” he said, giving her hand a squeeze.

She thanked him and watched him walk away, unsure of what had transpired. But she didn’t have time to dwell on it. If she didn’t hurry, she’d be late. The sun had begun its descent on the horizon, and she needed to change before the opening ceremony. She’d never been much for the fancy outfits some of the others wore, but she made concessions, knowing the crowd liked to see the competitors in bright colors. The flashier, the better.

In her camper she stripped off her boots, jeans and shirt and opened the door to her closet. Reaching for her favorite deep-red, fringed shirt, she glanced in the mirror.

She’d never paid much attention to her body and couldn’t remember the last time she’d taken a long look at herself. Being smaller than most women, she’d assumed she was still built like a young girl. The image of the woman in front of her gave her a completely different view. To her surprise she had hips, though nothing to brag about. Her larger-than-she’d-thought bust was nothing to write home about, either, but at least she had one. She straightened her shoulders and sucked in a breath. Not bad, she thought. But why hadn’t she ever noticed?

“Because you never had a reason to care, you fool,” she reminded her reflection. She took a step back for a better look. “Would men like this?” She’d had her share of wolf whistles from leering cowboys, but she’d brushed them off as matter-of-fact. That’s the way cowboys were. When they got to know her, most of them treated her the same way her brothers did. None of them had ever had that spark of fire in their eyes that she’d seen in—

She shook her head. “Uh-uh, no way, girl. Don’t even go there.” Thinking of that particular cowboy was dead wrong. Pushy, arrogant and nothing but a rodeoer who’d wander for the rest of his life, Chace was a danger she couldn’t let herself consider.

But why was it him who sent rivulets of heat through her whenever he looked at her? She might not know much about men, and she might not have paid much attention to her blossoming body, but she knew enough about both to know that he was the one who stoked a fire in her. She’d heard of chemistry, of how a woman’s body reacted to some men. But chemistry wouldn’t get her a home in the city and the kind of life she wanted. Chemistry would get her trouble.

Her pristine white bra and panties drew her attention. She remembered seeing fellow barrel racer, Dawn Dawson, in the showers in Memphis. The two of them were the same age, but Dawn had the body of Venus de Milo, and men always followed her around. The woman had peeled off her clothes right in front of Ellie, who had more modesty than she knew what to do with, to reveal jade-green bikini underwear and a matching bra that left little to the imagination.

Is that what makes Dawn’s hips sway from side to side? What gives her such confidence?

Ellie took a step back and studied her reflection. Would fancy underthings help? Not that anyone would see them, of course. But only to know that a secret lay hidden beneath her jeans and shirts…?

It was a thought she pondered for some time.

Chace waited until J.R. had driven away before making his first move. If the weasel was on the scent of something that would gain him more than a few bucks, he wouldn’t waste time. Chace needed to talk to Ellie and find out what she had that Jimmy Bob wanted. Things would only get worse if he put it off.

When the doorknob to her camper turned with ease, he swore under his breath, prepared to give her the blistering lecture she deserved. Hell, she’d already found one snake in there. Did she want to find another, this time with legs?

He wrenched open the door and leaped up the step. “When the hell are you going to—”

Freezing on the spot, his tirade stuck in his throat. Ellie stood less than five feet in front of him dressed in nothing but her unmentionables and looking at him with horror-filled eyes. He couldn’t have stopped his body’s reaction at the sight of her if someone had tossed a bucket of ice water on him. He’d seen women in less, but something about the maidenish look of Ellie did things to him he wouldn’t have imagined.