Christmas in Winter Valley Read online

  No blood. All the snow sparkled in the valley. Maybe it was cold enough last night that not even the predators were hunting.

  Slowly, Cooper started down off the ridge, thinking he’d feed Hector and saddle him before he went back to the cabin. In another hour or two it would be warm enough to start down. They’d have to ride double and move between the trees until they finally met a road that was little more than tire tracks. But from there, the ride would be easier. Another mile and a better road. It would take them ’til noon to make it to the opening of the pass, where Creed had dropped off the supplies. Once out of the trees, he might get a cell signal and be able to call someone at the headquarters to come collect him and the boy. Riding in the pickup would be warmer for the kid, and Hector wouldn’t mind having a trailer to travel in, either.

  He looked down and saw the shack about forty feet below. The thermometer flashed in the sun, and Cooper laughed about how Tatum worried about it being left out in the cold.

  A rabbit darted in front of him, not three feet away. Solid white, it almost looked like a ripple in the snow.

  Cooper twisted and lost his footing. Both feet were sliding, but in different directions. He waved, feeling boneless, out of control, then he fell forward, slamming his face hard.

  All at once he was rolling, bouncing off ice and rocks, fighting to grab hold of something that would break his fall. He tumbled and picked up speed before he reached a ledge, then dropped about ten feet down onto rocky ground covered in ice.

  The blow knocked the wind out of his lungs, and for a few minutes, Cooper simply fought to draw a breath. When he finally gulped in cold air, every part of his body screamed in pain.

  His next breath was slower as he began to move one part of his body at a time. Hands worked. Arms were bruised but fine. Wrist hurt—probably badly bruised or sprained. Neck hurt, but nothing damaged. He shifted to his left leg.

  It didn’t move. He couldn’t feel anything in his left leg.

  He moved the right leg. It hurt like hell, but it moved.

  Cooper lay very still and stared up at the sun. He’d broken his leg. He’d broken bones before and he knew one fact: at any moment it was going to start hurting. Irrationally, he thought maybe if he was just perfectly still, the pain might not come.

  He felt hot and cold at the same time. Sweat dripped from his forehead and froze as it slid down his neck.

  “Mister!” Tatum called from the rock steps. “Coop, you all right?”

  Cooper didn’t move, but he heard the kid running toward him. As Tatum drew closer, the sun began to dim. Then there was silence and the whole world faded.

  He tried to fight his way back. He thought he heard the boy yelling, but he couldn’t open his eyes. The pain was crawling up his leg now. The boy screamed again, but he barely heard him. His head was pounding, as if he was reliving the fall over and over again.

  Then, a moment before he gave in to the blackness, Cooper heard a rifle fire and he wondered if the bullet was heading for the sky or would do him a kindness.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  December 17

  Maverick Ranch

  TYE DUSTED THE snow off his shoulders when he stepped into the kitchen. He smiled and nodded at Dani, but he didn’t speak to her. What was between them was private. No one else. The last thing he wanted was folks gossiping about them.

  Elliot was filling the coffee cups while Dani passed plates and bowls across the bar. This was Sunday—no full breakfast. “You sleeping all right in the bunkhouse, Tye?” the boss asked.

  “I am. The snoring lulled me right to sleep,” he lied. In truth, he hadn’t gone back to bed after he’d left Dani. The newly carved memory had been too fresh in his mind and he’d needed to live there for a while.

  Tye forced himself not to look at her as he took his seat. “I’ve already checked on that mare you’ve got in the third stall in the white barn. She’s not doing well. It’s her first, and all she wants to do is run away. I hung blankets on the walls so not even wind will bother her, but she’s pacing, restless and afraid.”

  “We call it Sunny Barn after my sister-in-law. My brother gave it to her as a wedding gift two years ago.” Elliot sat across the table from Tye, guessing he’d already heard the story.

  Elliot’s words were calm, but his face twisted with worry. “I wish Cooper was here. I thought both my brothers were out having fun and I was left alone to take over the worrying. Turns out Coop is probably dealing with more snow than he needs and Griffin’s father-in-law has had quite a time of it. Now he’s getting better, Sunlan is probably smothering him.”

  Creed leaned forward from his usual place at the table. “You think we should put a twenty-four-hour watch on her?”

  Elliot grinned. “The horse, or the redhead you just helped up the stairs?”

  “The horse. Dallas told me after she changes, she wants to help with the delivery. So, Tye, be sure and slow the birthing down.” The foreman laughed at his own joke. “I’m guessing her nap will run the clock around. Then she’ll probably forget about the horse and want to head home.”

  “Not likely.” Elliot scrubbed his face as if he could wear away the worry. “Looks like they’re here for a little longer. They were planning on Sunlan flying them home and if she doesn’t make it in, they’ll have to fly standby out of Lubbock. But the university has about thirty thousand students finishing up the fall semester and heading home. Add that exit with the holidays coming up, and the airport won’t be easy to navigate.”

  Creed looked like someone had just pumped a few rounds of buckshot into his chest, and he could feel the pain even though he hadn’t heard the blast.

  Tye didn’t know what was going on with the redheaded cousin and didn’t care. “I’ll check on the mare now, and off and on all day while I work out there, then I’ll take the first shift tonight.” He glanced up at Dani as she passed out hot biscuits.

  He only got one. No invitation tonight. He already had a date with a mare.

  Creed shook his head. “Now you mention it, what about the cousins?” He looked from Elliot to Tye. “Someone’s got to keep an eye on them.”

  “Right.” The last thing Tye needed was one of those nutty cousins hanging around the barn.

  While Elliot and Creed tried to come up with ideas, Tye took the time to study Dani. When she finally glanced up, she smiled shyly.

  He smiled back, remembering. There would be other nights, just like there had once been other chances when he flew off a wild horse at the rodeo. In truth, he’d slept with more women than he could count. Most of them passed through his hotel room while he was in his early days on the circuit. With some, he was too drunk to remember their names come morning. Some he forgot by the next season. Only a few he could recall.

  Dani would be one he’d never forget. She made him wish he’d been a better man. A man who could settle down, make something of himself, grow old with her. He had nothing to offer a good woman like her. He’d be doing her a favor if he stepped away now. But it had felt so right to be holding her last night.

  She trusted him, and it seemed like a lifetime since anyone had believed in him.

  He remembered that she’d silently cried, late in the night—she must have thought he was asleep—but he’d felt the tears on his shoulder. He hoped they were tears of joy and not regret. He’d only said a few words when he’d left her room. He guessed she’d be one of those women who’d take years to really know.

  The idea of doing what was right for her worried him. Much as he hated to admit it, he’d spent his life thinking mostly of himself. Doing the right thing with Dani would mean a hell of a lot more than having a one-night stand.

  When he left the kitchen, Tye took the time to thank her for the breakfast. He mustered the courage to look at her directly, praying he didn’t see regret. To his surprise, he saw a twinkle of laughter in her eyes.
r />   Tye walked all the way to the barn before he noticed he’d left his coat by the door. Thoughts of another night with Dani warmed him.

  A little after nine, Pete and Patrick wandered into the pristine barn, which had been built to hold racehorses.

  Tye studied the boys and swore he couldn’t see an ounce of their mother in them. They were both built wide and low to the ground like bulls. They might be twins, but they weren’t identical. Pete was two inches taller, and his eyes were more black than brown.

  Pete’s hair was shaggy while Patrick’s was cut short. Pete laughed easily, but his brother never smiled.

  “We’re here to help,” Pete said. “Just tell us what to do, Mr. Franklin.”

  “Call me Tye, for starters.”

  They both nodded, but Pete added, “We saw you ride once. Our granddad took us to the rodeo over in Fort Worth. Man, you were good.”

  “Another lifetime,” Tye answered. “Right now I could use some help with this mare. I think she’s about to drop her foal and it’s not near time. We’re going to work slowly when near her. Talk low. The last thing we want to do is make her nervous.”

  The boys did exactly as Tye directed. In an hour, the place was set for an emergency birth. As the wind howled outside the barn, each man took a turn calming the mare.

  “Will it live, born this early?” Pete whispered.

  “I don’t know, but I’ll do all I can. Elliot said the only vet for fifty miles was heading up the hills to help Cooper with the mustangs.”

  Three inches of snow had fallen during the night, then melted just enough to freeze when clouds rolled in. Now a layer of ice covered the earth outside the barn. The two Garrett brothers were happy to work in the barn. There was little to do for the mare but wait now, so they took on their share of the worrying.

  Tye heard the side door to the barn open, but he didn’t look up. Cowhands had been coming and going all morning. They cared about the mare, but Tye had no doubt that they also cared about Sunlan. Every one of the hands stopped by to talk about how much Sunlan loved her horses. Some said she wouldn’t have married Griffin Holloway two years ago if he hadn’t given her the fancy barn his father had built to house racehorses.

  Everyone on the ranch watched over Sunlan’s herd. And every man stopped to watch her ride when she was on the property. Dani told him it must be like seeing a prima ballerina on a New York stage. Poetry in motion, one man said.

  Tye hadn’t met the lady, but he admired her horses and considered himself lucky to be working with them.

  The clang of tin caught his attention. He turned to see Dani dressed in his coat, two sizes too big, and mud boots to her knees.

  She set down her load on a bench just outside the stall. “I brought you boys brunch since you two didn’t make it in for breakfast.”

  Pete looked at her as if he smelled a trick and not fresh banana bread. “Do we eat brunch?”

  “You do when I make five loaves for the houseguests along with two dozen blueberry muffins, and they turn their noses up and say they’ve all sworn off sweets. I delivered four loaves and most of the muffins to the bunkhouse, but I thought you men in the barn would like a treat.”

  Patrick passed Pete and tapped him on the head. “I’ll eat yours. I don’t think you’d like brunch.”

  To their credit, the boys exited slowly out of the stall, then rushed for the basket of food.

  Dani moved near the stall gate and whispered, “How’s it going?”

  Tye placed his hand over hers. “I’d rather be with you.”

  “I wish you were. It’s quiet at the big house.”

  Tye brushed his hand over her warm skin. “From the moment I touched you, I felt like I’ve been waiting for you. Like I’ve been working my way back to you, but we’ve never met.”

  “I know.” She blushed, as though she’d never talked of such things. “Maybe we met a few lifetimes ago.”

  He grinned. “I’d remember you.”

  When she looked away, he worried that he’d said too much. They were still more strangers than friends.

  She glanced at her sons. They were too busy eating to even look up. “Are they making a hand?”

  It occurred to Tye that some people would have no idea what she meant, but he did. “They are. Patrick has a real way with the horses. I watched him working with half a dozen other mares today. Pete does what he’s told, but I’m guessing he had more fun building the new stall in the back than working with the stock.”

  They were silent for a few minutes, only communicating by touch.

  “I’m glad you came out here,” he said, so quietly he wondered if she’d heard him.

  She looked down but didn’t pull away.

  “I don’t say much, Tye, but that don’t mean I don’t feel. I’ve spent most of my days alone.” She wasn’t apologizing, simply stating facts. “I don’t want to go out, and don’t bother to buy me anything. I don’t need compliments or flattery, or even to talk more than necessary. It’s enough to have you near now and then.”

  Tye nodded, as if agreeing to a contract. He pulled away his hand as Pete walked toward the stall.

  “We left you a few slices, Tye. You don’t want to miss tasting Mom’s banana-nut bread.”

  “I’m hungry. Thanks.” He was looking at her, not the food. She had no idea how cute she looked in her mud boots and his big coat. There was something so down-home about her, something so natural.

  Tye stepped out of the stall and Pete moved in. “Did your mother bring any biscuits?” He might be talking to her son, but he was still looking at Dani.

  “Nope, just muffins and bread,” Pete answered.

  Dani fussed with the a napkin as she said, “I only make biscuits in the mornings. I’ll make sure you get an extra one tomorrow.”

  “That would be nice,” Tye said politely. He ate a thick slice of the bread while she talked to her boys, then he stood and lifted the thermos. “If you men can stay a little longer, I’d like to catch a ride back to the kitchen in your mother’s ATV and refill my coffee.”

  “No problem.” Pete nodded his head as if he was glad to do Tye a favor.

  Dani didn’t say a word as she headed out of the barn with Tye walking beside her.

  He climbed into the passenger side of her ATV, which had its back made for carrying groceries and meals from one building to another.

  They headed toward the headquarters in silence, with her driving and Tye’s hand on her knee.

  She parked at the kitchen door. He followed her in. The little entrance was lined with hooks for hats and coats. The air was cold there and the overhead light wasn’t on.

  Dani pulled off his heavy coat and hung it on the first peg. Her hand straightened out the wrinkles of the jacket with a gentle brush, almost as if she was touching him.

  When she didn’t turn around, Tye moved closer, pressing his body against her back as he wrapped her in his arms. He kissed the spot beneath her ear and whispered, “You smell like cinnamon.”

  She laughed. “You smell more like horse.”

  He nudged her like a horse might. “I like how you’re shy in daylight and not so shy in darkness. You fascinate me.”

  “I’m not that complicated.”

  “Then I’ll keep trying to figure you out.”

  He guessed there were probably a thousand words that needed to be said between them. There was so much they didn’t know about each other. But right now, in the shadows, all he wanted to do was to be close to her.

  “I liked wearing your coat. It almost felt like you were holding me.”

  He rocked her in his arms. “I’ve been around, Dani. More than most, I’m guessing, but there’s something about you that makes me feel like we’re just starting out. Just learning to be truly alive.”

  She turned in his arms.

  Af
ter one long kiss, he heard a door open in the main part of the house and knew their time was up. She moved away, and he didn’t try to stop her. Dani refilled his coffee while he just stared at her. It had been so long since anyone had done something for him that her simple gesture felt like a gift.

  He could hear voices now coming from the front foyer. One of the cousins said she wanted to ride, and Elliot said he was expecting an accountant and didn’t have time to take her.

  Tye wasn’t surprised when the redhead huffed her way into the kitchen. When Dallas saw him, she switched to all sunshine smiles. “Tye, right? The cowboy who can dance.”

  “Yep.”

  “Would you take me riding this morning? I assume I slept thought the birthing of the baby.”

  “I’d love to, but I’ve still got a date with a pregnant mare. You didn’t miss the birthing. Until she delivers, I’m living in her stall. You’re welcome to watch if you promise to be quiet.”

  The sunshine smile vanished. “What else can I do around here? If it wasn’t for the possibility of seeing the birth, I might as well go home. Even my parents aren’t as boring as you people.”

  Dani must have been waiting days to present her idea. “I know something fun.”

  “Not baking. I hate cooking. In fact, when I get my own place in New York or wherever, I’m not even putting in a kitchen. All anyone needs is a phone and the food’s delivered.”

  “Not baking.” Dani held up one finger. “Decorating. We’ve an attic full of holiday stuff. Wouldn’t Sunlan be tickled to come home and have the house covered in Christmas?”

  Dallas’s head ticked back and forth a few times before she smiled. “Might be interesting.” She pulled Elliot out of the kitchen, demanding to see the attic.

  Tye leaned across the counter and kissed Dani’s nose. “You’re brilliant.”

  She walked him to the back door and whispered, “I’m good at thinking of things to do.” Her grin made him laugh.