Josh slid a boot into the stirrup and swung aboard, settling himself with impressive ease. As he reined the horse out of the barn, the man looked like every woman’s cowboy fantasy. Every woman but her, she told herself.
Tory glanced over at Ivy, who seemed to be fascinated by the kittens. “We need go back to the house, sweetheart. I have to get to work again.”
The day passed swiftly with so much to do. That night, Tory fell into another exhausted slumber, but she wasn’t as sore as she had been the night before.
She awoke anxious and unsettled the morning of the third day. She knew she’d been doing a decent job, but it might not be enough. A man doing the same work wouldn’t have a child to worry about. A man could have helped Josh stack the heavy straw bales that had arrived from town, or helped him dig postholes where he was putting in new fencing around one of the training rings.
The good news was Clara Thompson showed up again that morning just as she’d promised.
“You’re a lifesaver, Mrs. Thompson. I’ll never be able to repay your kindness.”
“Everyone needs a little help once in a while, dear.”
Not wanting to be late, Tory kissed Ivy good-bye and headed out to the barn. She had almost reached the wide double doors when a dark red Dodge pickup rolled to a stop in front, throwing up a cloud of dust. The two men she had noticed yesterday climbed out of the truck and Josh strode toward them.
When the men spotted her, they stopped and turned, forcing Josh to introduce them, though clearly, he didn’t want to.
“Guys, this is Tory Ford. She’s been working here the last couple of days. Tory, meet Cole Wyman and Noah Beal.”
Tory silently prayed she would still be working there tomorrow and the day after that. “Hello,” she said.
“I’m Noah.” The dark-haired man extended his right hand, the only one he had, which she shook. “That’s Cole,” he said. “He’s not nearly as friendly, but he’s harmless.”
“Thanks,” Cole said darkly. He tipped his blue-and-white Dallas Cowboys’ baseball cap in greeting, then settled it back over his gleaming blond hair. “Nice meeting you, Tory.”
“It’s nice to meet you both. If you’ll excuse me, I need to get to work.” As she walked away, she could hear Josh handing out orders and prayed one of the men wouldn’t wind up getting her job.
Instead the hours slipped past. She broke for lunch at noon, went inside to find Mrs. Thompson had used the rest of the Spam to make sandwiches, ate, and headed back to work.
When she finished with the morning chores, she went in search of Josh, but he was nowhere to be found. Wandering out to one of the pastures where she had seen him working, she walked along the fence in search of him, stopping at the sight of the most beautiful jet-black stallion she had ever seen.
He was breathtaking, tall and powerfully built, with a long black mane and tail and a white spot in the middle of his forehead. He snorted when he saw her, stopped stock-still to watch her. He snorted again and lifted his magnificent head.
“Hello, pretty boy. Aren’t you just a beautiful thing? I wonder what your name is.” She loved horses, though she had only ridden a couple of times, short, paid-for trail rides among the saguaro cactus north of Scottsdale on a very tame horse. She hadn’t seen the stallion in the barn, but then, keeping such a free-spirited creature confined would have definitely been a crime.
“I wonder if you would let me pet you.” He seemed to be drawn to the sound of her voice. He nickered and started walking toward the fence, stopped a few feet away, looking at her with big, watchful brown eyes. She ducked through the fence and walked a little closer. Blowing out a breath, he lowered his head and plodded up to her, stopped right in front of her.
“What a good horse. I wish I knew your name.” Stroking her hand over his powerful neck, she ran her fingers through his coarse black mane. The animal closed its eyes and rested his head on her shoulder.
“Oh, you are so sweet. I bet you’d like your ears rubbed.” She patted his neck and straightened his topknot, gently rubbed his ears. He made a sound that was almost a sigh.
“Tory . . .” Josh’s deep voice drifted softly toward her. “I need you to listen to me. I need you to do exactly what I tell you.”
The horse’s head shot up and he snorted.
“I want you to slowly back up, one step at a time, until you’re out of the pasture. Okay?”
There was something in his voice that put her on alert. She looked back at the stallion, whose ears now lay flat against his head. He stomped his front hoof and bared his teeth.
Tory took a step backward, first one and then another. She wasn’t far from the fence, and yet the fear she saw in Josh’s face made it seem a mile away. The stallion didn’t follow. His eyes were fixed on Josh, who ducked between the strands of fencing and slowly walked toward her.
Josh moved in front of her, putting himself between her and the stallion, when the animal charged. “Run!” he commanded and she did, racing the last few feet to the fence, ducking between the strands of wire to safety on the opposite side.
Josh was right behind her, the stallion on his heels, its head down, teeth bared, the whites of its eyes showing. Josh turned, jerked off his hat, and waved it in the stallion’s face. The animal whirled away as Josh ducked to safety on the other side of the fence right beside her.
The stallion whirled back and raced toward them, slamming into the fence, neighing wildly, baring his teeth, screaming as if he were in pain.
“You okay?” Josh asked.
Tory’s gaze shot back to the stallion, her heart pounding like a wild thing. “I guess he doesn’t like you.”
Josh slapped his hat against his thigh and jammed it back on his head. “What the hell were you doing in there?”
Her chin went up. “I was looking for you. If you didn’t want me going into the pasture, you should have told me.”
He sighed and glanced away, tugged the brim of his hat a little lower. “You’re right. I should have said something. Cole and Noah know better than to go into Satan’s pasture. I should have warned you, too.”
“Satan? That’s his name?”
“Satan’s Star, and believe me it fits him. He’s a real man-eater. I should have warned you. I could have gotten you seriously injured, even killed. Ranch life isn’t easy—one of the reasons the job you’re doing isn’t for you.”
Her heart sank. “Wait a minute. I’ve been doing good work, haven’t I? I’ve done everything you’ve asked me to.”
“I’m not complaining about the work you’ve done. It’s just not a good idea. I need someone with some muscle, someone who can help with the heavy lifting. Cole and Noah have enough to do. I need another man.” Those blue eyes zeroed in on her face. “And I’d appreciate you not suing me for being honest.”
Tory sighed. “I won’t sue you,” she said glumly. “I never really would have.” Because he was right. She just wasn’t big enough or strong enough to do the kind of manual labor he needed to help him run the ranch, even with two other men.
She would have to go back on the road, find another town, look for another job. The thought made her eyes sting.
Josh pushed his hat back with the tip of his finger and started to say something, but instead of finishing his sentence, he looked over her shoulder back at the beautiful black horse, pawing the ground and snorting, running back and forth along the fence.
“When you were out there with Satan . . . I’ve never seen him that calm. What did you do to him?”
Her gaze followed his to the magnificent stallion. “I don’t know exactly. He seemed to like the sound of my voice. Or maybe he liked the way I smell. I always wear perfume. Mostly Chanel.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “You’re saying my horse has expensive tastes?”
She smiled. “I don’t know. He was really sweet until you walked up. I think you scared him.”
“Are you kidding me? I scared him?”
“Yes. He was just reacting in order to protect himself.”
Josh started to argue, then turned and looked back at the horse. The stallion was still watching their every move. “You game to try something?”