Home on the Ranch: Honorable Texas Cowboy Read online

  His attraction for Kate before was nothing compared to his feelings now that he’d kissed her, held her in his arms, and he let out a deep sigh.

  Dammit, Jose, he thought as he walked to his and Jose’s apparently empty room. You have all the luck.

  If he didn’t have the deeply instilled belief that Ma would somehow find out if he did, he would have cursed her, too. He was sure it had been an innocent mistake, but her innocent mistake had just stuck him into a whole heap of trouble.

  * * *

  Kate stared at the closed door, fighting the mad urge to rush to it and chase after Diego.

  That kiss. She could still feel the pressure on her lips—intense, full of desire, but still somehow tender.

  Jose’s kisses were always hungry and demanding. Nothing like what she’d just experienced. She should have realized immediately that it was Diego. She’d only met him a few times, had hardly spoken to the man, but it was enough to know that he and his brother were as different as night and day, however much they looked the same.

  Kate groaned quietly and dropped her head to her pillow, then turned her face so she could see the bedside table, where a diamond ring sat, its facets glinting at her in the lamplight. This was very, very not good.

  It was nearly morning, and Kate punched her pillow a few times and tried to lie down and close her eyes, but there was no way she could get to sleep after what had just happened, even though she had been up much too late—first at the rodeo, then agonizing about that damn ring on the nightstand and what would happen when she gave it back.

  She tried to read a bit to get her mind off the whole big mess she found herself in, but after a few minutes she gave up and paced aimlessly around the little room, feeling cooped up, but too nervous to leave the room. What if she met Diego in the hallway? Or Jose? Or, God forbid, both of them?

  Nope. Better to wait and make a dash for downstairs once other family members had arrived. She definitely needed a buffer around when she saw either of them. The conversation she needed to have with Jose would have to wait. Once again, she berated herself for not breaking up with Jose when she had the chance. Her efforts to let him down easy had really come back to bite her.

  And Diego, well...if all went as she hoped, her next conversation with Diego would be somewhere in the vicinity of never ever. She was far too embarrassed to be around him.

  Embarrassed, she repeated to herself. Certainly not attracted, like some parts of her body seemed to believe.

  She got dressed slowly, listening for noises below, and wished like hell she’d come up with some other way to spend the Fourth of July. Even a lonely hotel room would be better than this. And then she would’ve missed the rodeo the night before, too, and this entire debacle could’ve been avoided. If only, if only.

  For the thousandth time in the past two hours, she replayed The Kiss. It had already earned capital-letter status in her mind, the standard by which all other kisses would be compared. A mostly asleep touch of the lips that had quickly deepened into a connection that made her heart stutter.

  For a moment, it had given her hope that her problems had been solved. Some of her commitment to breaking up with Jose dissolved in those few seconds—the sweetness behind the kiss made her suddenly sure there was a side to Jose she’d missed, and the relief she’d felt was almost overwhelming. He was more than just a joker, a guy wandering through life without letting it touch him. And she had thought for a tiny happy sliver of time that perhaps they’d be able to make it work after all.

  Kate didn’t want to admit, even to herself, how thankful she’d been. She loved this job so much, had grown so fond of Ma and Pop, and she knew she might need to leave when she and Jose split up. It had made things that much harder over the past few months as she’d started to realize Jose wasn’t the right guy for her.

  It had even gotten to the point that she was glad he didn’t come to Spring Valley very often because she wanted to put off the inevitable breakup as long as possible. In fact, she’d been convinced, just by his absence, that he felt the same way and didn’t know how to break things off, either. So she had finally decided that this was the do-or-die weekend, only to have her moment thrown back at her in the most unexpected way when Jose proposed.

  If it had been him who’d kissed her like that, though...

  But no, it had to be Diego who made her heart pound right out of her chest. And really, Jose couldn’t have kissed her like that. She had known the truth for weeks now: she and Jose didn’t make sense and never would, and that was why their kisses never set her on fire like that. But Diego was different.

  It was incredibly clear to her that the chances of keeping this perfect job working with the McNeals had gone from slim to none in the time it took for her lips and Diego’s to touch.

  Kate was broken out of her reverie by a knock and shouts from below, followed by the murmur of conversation and the pounding footsteps of young children. Finally, she could escape this room and distract herself from her own thoughts.

  After a quick glance through the cracked door to double-check that the hall was empty, she walked quickly to the stairs and made her way toward the living room without a pause.

  Whatever had happened a few hours before, she wasn’t going to let it ruin the holiday for this sweet family who had welcomed her with open arms. She would just try to avoid being too close to either Jose or Diego. If she could sidestep any awkward situations, things would be just fine.

  After one more fortifying breath, Kate walked into the living room. She was about to say, “Happy Fourth of July!” but only managed the “Ha—” when a voice shouted her name so close behind her that she nearly jumped out of her skin, cutting off the rest of her statement.

  Before she could recover, she was wrapped up in someone’s arms and being lifted off the ground. Kate’s jolly greeting ended as little more than a squeak and a gasp for breath.

  “Set her down, you idiot,” Brock said from his spot on the floor, where he and his young stepsons were building a block tower.

  “Excuse me for being romantic,” Jose shot back as he finally set Kate back on her feet.

  Kate rubbed the place on her arm that ached where he’d squeezed her but bit her lip and said nothing. Now was not the time to explain to Jose what the word romantic meant. She flushed, feeling embarrassed and annoyed.

  “How are you, Kate?” said Cassie, Brock’s wife, as Kate sat beside her on the sofa.

  Cassie and Kate had become friends almost as soon as Kate moved to town, and she knew that Cassie, the town’s doctor, was unusually perceptive. But this wasn’t the time to get into her worries or discuss the events of the last twenty-four hours. She mustered everything she had in her to give Cassie a sincere smile. “I’m fine, Cassie. How are you?” she asked, as convincingly as she could.

  Cassie’s eyes didn’t move from Kate’s face, and she knew Cassie wasn’t totally convinced. Kate shrugged. “There are a lot of changes going on and it’s just a bit...overwhelming,” she said softly, not wanting Jose to overhear.

  Cassie nodded and gave Kate a quick side-hug—she had been at the rodeo the night before and had watched the proposal firsthand—and then focused her attention on the boys playing on the floor. They’d switched from building towers to knocking them down with as much force as possible.

  Kate was glad Cassie’s eyes were off her, and she took a deep breath. She had a sneaking suspicion Cassie was at least somewhat aware of Kate’s tangle of emotions regarding the ring upstairs—the one Kate couldn’t force herself to actually wear.

  In fact, Cassie had seemed more quietly sympathetic than excited about the whole event the night before, and Kate wondered if it might be best to open up to Cassie and ask for her help. Though how Cassie could help her in this situation wasn’t at all clear to Kate; she had no idea. Still, it could be good just to have somebody to talk to about it all.

>   Her thoughts were cut short by Diego’s entrance. Kate tried not to stare at him, but it was hard. How could she have ever mistaken him for Jose? Yes, they were identical twins, both tall with bronze skin, coffee-colored eyes and jet-black hair, but everything else about them was so starkly different: Diego didn’t have any of Jose’s joking swagger, and his eyes were kind rather than perpetually amused. He didn’t have that smirk Kate had come to recognize as Jose’s trademark.

  The more she noted the differences, the more she’d wished she hadn’t gotten involved with Jose in the first place. When she’d moved to town, Kate had been so worn down from her old job and from being alone that he seemed like the perfect antidote. She just needed to have some fun, and the man was definitely fun—and, as a bonus, quite attractive.

  She should have realized that in order to be truly happy she needed someone who brought more to the relationship than fun and good looks. Kate just wished she’d figured that out before getting herself into this sticky situation.

  And now she’d found the whole package, and he was completely off-limits.

  Chapter 2

  Kate watched Diego as he entered the room and greeted his family members, each one of them genuinely happy to see him. When he got to her, he gave her a cursory head bob and hardly looked at her. If she didn’t see how his ears flushed pink, she might have thought he was angry with her. But that coloring was definitely from embarrassment, not anger. He settled onto the floor next to Brock, folding his long legs in front of him, and immediately began playing with the kids.

  Her heart started to melt as she watched the children light up with excitement over their uncle’s attention. It took a good deal of effort for her to rein in her wayward emotions.

  “Ma said you didn’t get in until after two in the morning,” Brock said, shaking his head in protective-older-brother disapproval. “Are you planning to work yourself into an early grave?”

  Jose walked over and slapped Brock on the back of the head, grinning widely. “Hey, if he doesn’t keep at it, our business won’t make it through the first year. We all have to make some sacrifices.”

  Brock rubbed the back of his head and looked up at Jose. “What sacrifices are you making, exactly?” he asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

  Kate could feel the tension in the room mount as Diego looked from his twin to Brock. She wondered what Jose could say to that; after all, she’d been with him long enough to see that he wasn’t sacrificing much at all to build up his business. Not compared to the effort Diego was putting in, apparently.

  Jose smiled, but this time, the smile had a tinge of anger to it, and Kate waited for the sharp words she knew were coming. She’d seen him lash out a few times, like once when a man at a bar had hit on her, and she hadn’t forgotten how cruel Jose could be when angry.

  Before either man could say another word, Diego placed himself between them. “Cool it, guys,” he said, looking from one to another before his eyes settled on his twin. “Jose, let’s go see if Ma needs help in the kitchen.”

  Jose looked for a second like he might stay and argue, but after a moment he nodded and followed Diego out of the room.

  As soon as they were gone, Brock looked at his wife, who was shaking her head slightly at him. “I know, I know. I promised not to say anything. I just worry about Diego,” Brock told her.

  “He’s an adult. If he wants to get out of this thing, he’ll need to do it himself,” Cassie said in a half whisper. It sounded to Kate as if they’d had this conversation more than once before.

  “But Jose—” Brock began, only to stop abruptly when Cassie cleared her throat.

  Brock glanced at Kate for a second, then looked away. “All I’m saying is that they need to be on the same page,” Brock finished.

  Kate felt awkward as she realized Brock had been about to say something harsh about Jose, but after Cassie’s reminder that Kate was in the room, he had tried to avoid disparaging Jose in front of her. The conversation came to an abrupt end.

  Kate considered telling them that she was well-aware of Jose’s faults but decided against it. It was a holiday, not a time to sow more discord among a family she cared for deeply.

  At that moment Amy and her new husband, Jack, appeared at the door, wide grins on their faces as they surveyed the assembled group. “Looks like we’re the last ones here,” Amy remarked as she waddled through the door with Jack walking beside her as if he was guiding her over dangerous terrain, until she reached the biggest, squishiest chair in the room. Her belly stuck out in front of her as if she’d stuck a beach ball into her shirt.

  Kate couldn’t believe how large Amy had gotten. She was a couple of days past her due date, and it seemed impossible the baby was still refusing to join the world. From the looks of things, that kid was using up every possible inch of space.

  Jack gathered a few pillows and arranged them to create a pregnant-lady-nest before helping Amy into the chair. Amy gave him a thousand-watt grin in return. Every time Kate was around those two, she felt an ache in her heart as she saw the love and devotion they heaped upon each other.

  Diego would probably treat a woman like that, she thought before managing to clamp down on the thought.

  “How’s the riding school going, Kate?” Amy asked, turning to her. She and Jack had recently changed their competing riding school into a rodeo ranch, but Amy still had a soft spot for the younger children and liked to keep up on what was happening over at the McNeals’.

  Kate was happy to have something else to do besides think. Thinking had suddenly become very dangerous. “Since we got the kids from Jack’s school,” she said, nodding at Amy’s husband, “business has been up. Even more so now that it’s summer. I’m sure it’s still not as busy as it was in Spring Valley’s heyday, but it gives me and Pop more than enough to do between the two of us.”

  Amy nodded. “That’s good to hear. Maybe one day soon Spring Valley will go through a boom and Pop will need to hire even more instructors like you. Though from what he tells me, that would be awfully hard to find. Pop still can’t believe his luck that Jose found you.”

  Kate didn’t know what to say to that. The elderly Mr. McNeal had almost immediately made his way into her heart, was the sort of kindly father figure she had wanted in her life for as long as she could remember.

  The thought of disappointing him, of leaving this ranch house that had begun to feel like home, hurt more than she wanted to admit. Her time at the ranch seemed like it could be near an end, and that thought created a ball of sadness that lodged in her chest.

  And Diego? Well, it was one kiss that caused a silly momentary infatuation. She’d get over it quickly enough once she left, she assured herself. She’d just need to avoid him and do everything she could to find a way to stay employed with the McNeals while breaking things off with Jose without any hard feelings. How hard could that be?

  Well, might as well start packing, she thought with a little eye roll.

  If there was any possibility she could make all that happen, though, then any ideas about a relationship with Diego had to be ignored, because there were exactly zero ways that could work out. Things were difficult enough without throwing that in, too. At least she wouldn’t see him all that much as she got over her little crush. He almost never came home for visits lately, a new development that Ma complained about to no end. Apparently, it had started...

  Just after she came to work at the ranch, she realized.

  As if he’d been avoiding her.

  The realization hit her like a pile of bricks. Did he have feelings for her even before they’d ended up in the same bed?

  No, it couldn’t be. She was reading too much into things because of her crush.

  Teeny-tiny nothing crush that would go away in a day. Her silly infatuation.

  At that moment, Jose and Diego walked back into the room, and Kate felt her breat
h catch in her throat. Diego glanced at her, and his eyes told a story she didn’t want to read.

  No, she had to be making all this up. Silly infatuation, she reminded herself as she stood and headed out of the room. She needed some fresh air.

  “Hey, where’re you going?” Jose asked before she could disappear. “Ma doesn’t want any help. I already checked.”

  “Taste-testing isn’t exactly helping,” Diego said quietly, but Jose ignored him.

  “I need to check on the horses,” she told Jose, purposely keeping her eyes off Diego. “They haven’t been fed or watered yet this morning.”

  “It’ll have to wait until after you eat,” Ma said as she appeared beside Kate and put a hand on her shoulder. “Everything’s hot, and you need some victuals before you start working up a sweat out there in the heat.”

  There was nothing for Kate to do but allow Ma to steer her toward the table. The rest of the family followed, and soon they were all crowded around piles of eggs, bacon, hash browns and a giant stack of flapjacks. It looked like enough to feed an army, but Kate guessed the table would be empty soon enough, by the way the McNeal children were piling it onto their plates.

  Everyone except Diego. Even Amy was attacking the meal with more gusto than he was, but to be fair, she was so pregnant that her appetite was no surprise. Diego’s lack of a large appetite, though, seemed odd. He was picking at his food in a very uncowboy-like way. Almost as if something was weighing on his mind.

  She didn’t really want to examine it too much, and silently hoped for a distraction. Like a tornado, or Amy going into labor, or—

  “So, how was the rodeo last night?” Ma asked the table of children and spouses. “Jose wouldn’t say a thing when he and Kate came home.”

  Not exactly the distraction Kate had been hoping for. She could feel every muscle in her body tense as she waited for someone to speak. It shouldn’t have been surprising, but it hadn’t occurred to her that it might come up over breakfast. She should have spent her early morning hours deciding how best to stop this freight train. Too late now.