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“Good morning, Mr. O’Donnell,” Mariah said, yanking him from his thoughts.
“Hello, Miss Weston.”
Jacob noticed her gaze flick between his shirt and jeans—probably evaluating how suitable they were for the ranch—and almost asked if he passed muster. His irritation from the previous night returned, but he squashed it down. This was not a moment to be bothered with personality conflicts. By the same token, he wasn’t going to apologize for coming from the city and not knowing how to chase cows.
He cleared his throat. “I need to discuss safety issues with you. I’m a businessman, so I know why you require a signed waiver in case of an accident. As a father, though, I can’t help being concerned.”
A range of emotions flitted across Mariah’s face. “A ranch isn’t the same as a city park, but I’ve assigned our most experienced wrangler to you and your daughter for the duration of your visit, and a second one while you’re learning the ropes. Caitlin should be fine if she behaves herself. Now, your registration form says you’ve ridden before...?”
Jacob nodded. “We used to go horseback riding every week,” he said absently, still chewing on Mariah’s comment if she behaves herself. It gave him a nasty sensation in his gut—Kittie never behaved herself these days.
“I’m guessing you rode at a private stable with a riding track.”
“It wasn’t a ranch. We live in Seattle. But we haven’t gone out for several years.”
“That won’t be a problem. The horses I’ve chosen for you are older, savvy and unflappable. You ought to be all right on them—they’re practically catatonic,” Mariah said, a bit too smoothly.
Jacob leaned forward. “I want my daughter to be safe, Miss Weston, not bored. What good will the ranch do her if she’s bored?”
Mariah didn’t blink. “The U-2 isn’t boring, but we do insist that our guests don’t stretch their limits too far.”
Limits?
That was like waving a red flag at a bull, yet before he could react, she went on, “Vacations here are meant to be fun, not dangerous. My grandmother is a doctor and lives on the ranch. My aunt is also a doctor, and she lives in town behind her clinic. They’ve mostly treated our guests for aching bums, upset tummies, cuts, scrapes and sprained ankles. Since you haven’t ridden recently, I suspect you’ll be added to the aching-bum list.”
Nonplussed, Jacob opened his mouth...and then closed it. He wasn’t sure if he’d been insulted or patronized or if Mariah was simply doing her job by informing him of the ranch’s medical support. Taking into account the few amenities the U-2 offered, having two doctors available was a surprise. He just prayed they wouldn’t be needed. Kittie had her mother’s rare blood type, so he always ensured adequate emergency services were present wherever they traveled. In preparation for this trip, his staff had learned there was a well-equipped clinic in the local town, but they hadn’t said a doctor lived on the ranch.
“I’m not sure about that,” he said. “Remember those friends I told you about? Their son came home with a cast on his arm. He broke it at the end of his visit here.”
Mariah’s expression chilled, no doubt from the censure in his tone. Fine, she should know he wasn’t accepting her word without question.
“It happens occasionally—usually when people aren’t practicing reasonable caution or when parents don’t keep tabs on their children, assuming someone else will do it for them. That can happen anywhere, even in the city. Anyway,” she murmured, swinging her legs over the bench to stand up, “your wranglers will catch up with you after breakfast. We work hard on the U-2, so you might want to make sure Caitlin has a healthy meal before starting out. Have a pleasant day, Mr. O’Donnell.”
Jacob glared.
He wanted to call to Mariah’s departing back that he worked hard in Seattle as well and of course he’d ensure that Kittie had a decent breakfast...except it was pointless. Especially about Kittie. He knew perfectly well he couldn’t force his daughter to swallow a bite of food if she didn’t want to. And considering the precarious state of their relationship, she’d probably refuse to eat if he said anything about it.
CHAPTER THREE
LATER THAT AFTERNOON Mariah and Luke Branson rode in the direction the wranglers had taken the O’Donnells. She routinely checked on visitors to be sure the greenhorns were doing okay, and today the newest greenhorns were Jacob and Caitlin...not that Jacob O’Donnell would enjoy being described that way.
Her horse tossed his head, playfully testing her control of the bit. Shadow loved to run, the wind racing by, his hooves thundering across the land.
“You’re a live wire, aren’t you, boy?”
He whinnied and leaped a step. His black coat gleamed warm in the sunlight and his ears were pricked forward, alert to every sound.
“I swear that animal is your best friend. I come in a poor second,” Luke complained good-naturedly.
“He’s my best horse friend,” she agreed. She’d raised Shadow from the day he was born, right after her mom and dad’s accident. It had helped get her through those bleak, grief-filled days. “But you’re my best people friend.”
“So is Reid still saying he doesn’t want to go to college?” Luke asked with a pleased grin.
“More or less.”
“Maybe he’s worried how you’ll pay for it.”
“Could be. It’s tight, but we’re doing better. The debts are paid and I’m putting money aside. We should be able to swing the expense.”
“That’s great.” His mount sidestepped skittishly. “Stop it, Ghost, or I’ll turn you into dog food,” he warned the gray-and-white piebald.
Ghost snorted in disbelief.
“I could talk to Reid,” Luke offered. “He might open up for me—man-to-man, that sort of thing. Or at least as his future brother-in-law.”
“Thanks, but I’ve pushed enough. He’s got finals soon and they have to come first.”
“It’s your call. Are those the greenhorns you’re checking on?” Luke gestured to the south, down a sloping hill.
“Looks like them.”
Mariah bent over Shadow’s neck and watched the group in the distance. Though she’d still dressed in black that morning, Caitlin had forgone the silver-studded shirt and purple accents in her hair. Other than those small changes, she’d remained pure defiance. The anxious daughter from the predawn morning was nowhere to be found a few hours later. She’d mouthed off to the cowhands, told the cooks they were serving heart attacks on a plate and shown up an hour late to the corral. She wouldn’t say where she’d been, but Burt had calmly informed her that if it happened again she’d either sit her rear end in the tent for the day or spend it shoveling out the horse stalls.
Burt was always calm. It made him a terrific wrangler for kids. Things that might give anyone else a stroke made him yawn. She wished she could say the same thing about herself. Having Jacob imply she was lying about the injuries on the ranch had infuriated her. There had been a boy who’d broken his arm the prior year...but he’d fallen in Buckeye when his parents stopped to buy postcards on their way to the airport.
Luke controlled another sideways jump from his horse. “This O’Donnell fellow sounds like a real piece of work. I’ve never heard you gripe so much about a guest.”
“He rubs me wrong.”
“That’s interesting.”
She gave Luke a sharp glance. “There’s nothing interesting about it. He’s difficult, that’s all. He actually advised me that my parents should speak to Reid about being friendlier to guests. What nerve. He thinks the world revolves around him and his money. It isn’t that I don’t care what his daughter is going through, but he has to deal with it, not just throw his checkbook at the problem. On top of that, he said our facilities are primitive. Since when are hot showers and commercial-grade restrooms primitive? If he wanted a resort on the Riviera, he should have gone to the Riviera.”
“Okay, okay,” Luke placated. “I’m not the enemy. I’m on your side. Let’s go meet this difficult guest.”
Mariah brushed Shadow’s flanks with her heels and they cantered toward the others. As they got closer she could see that Jacob O’Donnell and the wranglers were working with a cow—its calf bawling in loud, unhappy tones—while a white-faced Caitlin remained in the saddle, some distance away. Mariah swung to the ground, her focus narrowing. The mother cow had a nasty cut running down her rear haunch. She was in pain, and that would make her more unpredictable than usual.
“It’s not too bad, Baby Girl.” Burt cursed amiably as he received a kick in the stomach. “But that gentle touch of yours will come in handy, Mariah.”
Her mouth curved. At rare moments he still called her Baby Girl, the way he’d done when she was four years old and would sneak into the barn to be with a favorite horse.
“Hey, Burt,” Luke greeted the cowhand.
“Howdy. Sorry to mess up your old-fashioned courtin’ with old-fashioned work.”
Luke chuckled, the cowhands sniggered, and Mariah could have belted all three of them. Luke wasn’t courting her. They had an understanding; you didn’t have to court somebody you were already going to marry.
The noise from the frightened calf was increasing the mother’s agitation, so Mariah nudged it into her sight. “Don’t fuss, silly, nobody is hurting your baby.”
Both animals quieted.
“I have the first-aid kit,” Jacob said when she looked up. He lifted the canvas pack that was a standard piece of equipment on the U-2.
Mariah took the kit. “Thank you. Stay with Caitlin, and we’ll take it from here.” They couldn’t let guests be involved in this kind of situation. It was funny, though. Jacob didn’t seem bothered that he might get injured himself at the ranch, just that his daughter be kept safe.
He stuck out his chin. “What about that guy?” he asked as Luke rolled up his sleeves.
“That ‘guy’ is our neighbor and an old hand at doctoring livestock. Luke Branson, meet Jacob O’Donnell.”
The two men gave each other measuring looks, testosterone zinging through the air, and she sighed in disgust. Men were men, regardless of where they’d grown up. She’d have to intervene before they started chest bumping or doing something equally stupid to prove their masculinity.
She cleared her throat. “Mr. O’Donnell, your job here is to reassure your daughter.”
“It’s Jacob, and I’m going to help. Kittie is fine. I told her to stay well back on her horse.”
“She’s the color of old paste and needs her father more than we need you getting in our way. You’re just delaying treatment for this cow by arguing with me.”
“That’s right,” Luke added, and Mariah dug her elbow into his rib cage. Did he think she couldn’t cope with Jacob O’Donnell on her own? She did not need his assistance; he would simply make it worse. He ought to have figured out by now that the Westons took care of their own troubles.
“Please...Jacob,” she said. “We have it under control.”
He glared darkly and stomped away.
Caring for the cow’s cut was messy and unpleasant, but Mariah finished as quickly as she could in order to make it easier on the animal and her calf. Burt untied the cow’s legs and she lunged to her feet, restrained from further movement by the lasso around her neck. Range cattle were tough; they could be down to their last ounce of strength and still be dangerous. She wouldn’t like being corralled, but the wound was septic and severe enough to warrant a few days back at the ranch.
Mariah dropped another rope over the calf’s head. “Caitlin?” she said, motioning to her.
The teenager swallowed. “Is she going to be okay?”
“Yes, you found her before it got too bad. I want you to take the lead. The mother will follow her baby, so go nice and slow.”
“I don’t...um...don’t know the way.”
“You don’t have to. You’re riding Blue—he knows the ranch better than the rest of us. Say ‘Home, Blue,’ and he’ll get us there.” She gave Caitlin the end of the rope and focused on Luke. He’d hooked his thumbs in the pockets of his denims and was giving her a quizzical look. “You aren’t coming with us,” she informed him.
“You’re mad at me.”
“What gives you that idea?”
He laughed and kissed her lightly. “It was easy. I’ve known you since birth and recognize that expression in your eyes—it’s the same one you had when you were seven and hit me with a horseshoe. Am I still invited to the dance on Saturday?”
“You’re always invited. You know that.”
As he rode off, Mariah climbed onto Shadow. She was annoyed, but it wouldn’t last long. Luke was a handsome man, with the powerful build of someone who worked hard every day of his life, but she was surrounded by good-looking cowboys and sexy visitors like Jacob O’Donnell. It wasn’t Luke’s appearance that set him apart—it was the friendship that had survived childish squabbling, years away at school, and her need to concentrate on Reid and repay her school expenses before making a commitment. It didn’t matter how much you loved someone. You had to believe in the same things to have a lasting relationship.
When they were ready to leave, Caitlin said “Home, Blue” in a high, squeaky voice. She held the rope in a white-knuckled grip as Blue ambled toward the ranch. He had more common sense than most people, which was why she’d chosen him for Caitlin.
The cow limped forward, attention fixed on her calf. The baby was young, born late in the spring drop, but it wouldn’t be orphaned like the other calves they fostered annually.
Jacob jockeyed his horse next to Mariah. “She’s scared,” he muttered.
“Responsibility is scary, but that isn’t a reason not to take any.”
“I didn’t say it was.”
“But?”
His jaw set stubbornly. “She’s just a kid and this must feel like life and death to her. It’s too much.”
“She’s leading a calf to the barn, not doing brain surgery,” Mariah said drily. “I think she can handle it, but if you’re so worried, you could ride with her instead of complaining to me about it.”
Jacob scowled. “I’m planning to. It’s just that you don’t know anything about my daughter, so you don’t know what she can or can’t handle.”
“You’re right, we don’t know her. Which begs the question...why did you think we could do something to help her if you couldn’t do it yourself?” Mariah winced as soon as the retort left her mouth. So much for her resolution to treat Jacob like any other guest.
“Hell. Are you rude to everyone, or am I special?”
He was special all right...especially irritating.
She couldn’t deny that Jacob’s lean, masculine intensity pulled at her senses. Physically he was a compelling man; it was his other parts she wasn’t so crazy about.
“I’m not trying to be rude,” she said evenly. “But it’s important for Caitlin’s welfare that you don’t expect a service we aren’t able to deliver. And if I have to push to get the message across, that’s what I’ll do.”
“At least we agree about her safety, but you can’t act as if she was raised on a ranch, with the skills and experience you and your brother have acquired from everyday life.”
“Kids grow up fast here. There’s nothing wrong with that. Everyone has to take chances to learn and really live. We just risk a few more than parents allow their children to in the city.”
“That’s so reassuring,” Jacob said sarcastically. “But I’ll decide how fast my daughter grows up, if you don’t mind.”
Mariah bit her lip to keep from saying something else she’d regret. For example, if he was so concerned for Caitlin, why did he spend so many hours working? She’d heard that he had already asked where he could charge the batteries for his smartphone and laptop computer, whether the ranch provided wireless internet and if they had a fax machine for guest use. What did he plan to do, set up an office in the mess tent and run his business while everyone else dealt with Caitlin? Surely she needed her father’s time more than she needed to ride in a Mercedes or have other expensive frills.
Mariah’s dad used to say it took all kinds to get by, but she wasn’t as certain. While she appreciated the income Jacob O’Donnell’s “kind” brought the ranch, it came at a stiff price. Money was a means to an end for Mariah; it wasn’t a priority the way it appeared to be for Jacob.
“By the way,” she said finally, “we never put our guests in the middle of a situation as serious as treating a wounded cow, so I know my wranglers didn’t ask for your help.”
“It seemed the right thing to do, and I wish you hadn’t interfered.” Jacob’s eyes were hard and impassive.
“I interfered, as you put it, because it’s my job.” She wasn’t sure what to make of his statement. Chauvinism? Or was it ego? She’d encountered an excess of male ego over the years—typically from weekend warriors taking risks to prove something to themselves or someone else. Except Jacob didn’t seem the weekend-warrior type. “Did you get kicked or hurt before I arrived?”
“Not to speak of.” He slapped some dirt and grass from his clothes. “You aren’t going to be sued. I signed your waiver-of-responsibility forms, remember?”
“Does everything boil down to money for you?” she asked, her nerves on edge...maybe because she knew that the waiver forms might or might not protect the U-2 in court. And the threat would go up if somebody with Jacob O’Donnell’s resources decided to sue them. He could likely purchase a hundred ranches without noticing the change in his bank account.
“There’s nothing wrong with money, and it safeguards my daughter.”
Mariah watched Caitlin. Despite what he thought, being rich didn’t offer guarantees. And while it was natural for parents to worry about their children, Jacob seemed to worry more than most. He must have been frantic about Caitlin’s behavior to bring her to Montana. Riding horses and working with range cattle was worlds away from going to a safe, air-conditioned movie theater.
“For what it’s worth, I think Caitlin is a good kid at heart,” Mariah said awkwardly. “I realize she has problems you’re trying to—”
