Saving the Cowboy’s Christmas (Rowdy Ranch #12)

Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

R ance wanted to kiss Lani again, but he’d discovered that kissing made him desperate for something he couldn’t have right now. “We should head back.” He picked up the mug lying in the snow. “I’ll take yours.”

“Tell Granny I loved her hot chocolate.”

“I will.” He walked toward the sleigh and she fell into step beside him. “There’s more if you want some before we leave.”

“I’d rather just go. I want to get back to your book.”

“Excellent news.” Shoving the mugs into the backpack, he zipped it. “I guess that means you don’t want to drive, either.”

“No, thanks.”

“Then up you go.” He held out a hand and she took it to steady herself. This time it was skin on skin and he tightened his grip, relishing the contact, imagining her touch on other places, sexy places.

Maybe he shouldn’t count his chickens, but he’d laid out a fool-proof plan. She hadn’t been able to poke holes in it and her days of pretending she didn’t want him were over.

He'd taken a huge chance acting on impulse, though. He’d originally talked himself out of kissing her while they were in the meadow, but apparently it hadn’t been too soon after all.

The manuscript hadn’t hurt his cause, either. Writing a book to woo a bookworm made sense assuming the content didn’t suck.

Evidently it didn’t, judging from the way she settled into her seat and immediately opened the box. She was totally immersed in the story before he’d made it up to the driver’s box. Slapping the lines against Thor’s rump, he told the Belgian to get moving and off they went.

Crazy good. He’d instantly deposited those two words in his memory bank. As Thor trotted down the path, the bells on his harness jingled and the sleigh runners whispered over a perfect carpet of pure white snow. The Christmas spirit was alive and well today.

Unless Lani found major problems in the rest of the book, Square Glasses Press would take it. He'd researched the company and read the reviews of their recent publications. Decent reviews, but no blockbusters. Fine with him. He hadn’t given the book to Lani expecting her publisher to make him a bestseller.

She was right that he’d have had a better chance using his mother’s contacts. But going that route wasn’t his style.

The ride back went faster, or at least it seemed that way. When they made a right onto his mom’s road, he glanced over his shoulder. “We’re almost there. I’m gonna stop so you can put that away and climb up here.”

“Can we just sit here for a few minutes? I want to finish this scene.”

Thor snorted and shook his head, setting off the bells. Then he turned his head and gazed back at them.

Lani peered at the Belgian. “I’ll bet you want to go home.”

“He does.”

“Okay. Never mind. I’ll stop.”

Her eagerness to keep reading scattered an extra handful of glitter on an already sparkling day. He hopped down and waited for her to box up the manuscript. “When you get to the end, would you please call me?”

“Not if it’s the middle of the night.” She tucked the wrapping paper in with it and closed the lid.

“Definitely call me if it’s the middle of the night. That means you stayed up late to finish it and I’ll want to hear why you did.”

“It might be two in the morning.” She laid the lap robe over the box and put the bow in her pocket. “I’ve been known to forget the time.”

“I don’t care. Call me. I know you have my number since I put it in your phone the last time you were here.”

“And maybe I deleted it.”

“Did you?” That would be discouraging.

“No.”

He smiled.

“I’ve been busy.”

“Call me. Please.”

“All right, if you insist.” She took his hand as she stepped down.

“I sure want to kiss you right now.”

She glanced up. “Well, don’t.”

“I’m not gonna, but I’ll be thinking about our first kiss a lot.”

“Not me.”

“Liar.”

She held his gaze. “Yeah, I’ll think about it, too. Come on.” She tugged him toward the front of the sleigh. “I want to drive.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He helped her up, climbed in beside her and handed her the lines. “Just slap these lightly on his rump and tell him to go.”

“Move out, Thor!” The Belgian took off without her having to tap him with the lines, which made her laugh. “He really does want to go home.”

“He knows I brought him some carrot chunks.”

“Where are they?”

“In my truck. You don’t have to stick around for that, since you probably want to get back to reading. Just take the box and vamoose.”

“That’s not fair. I’ll help you unhitch and brush him.”

“Nah, I’ve got this.” They rounded the bend in the road. “And I’ll have help. See Buck walking up to the barn? He must have figured we’d be back about now.”

“Should I try to hide the box under my coat? I’m not sure I can. It’ll look like I’m smuggling something.”

“It doesn’t matter if he sees it. He knows I gave you a Christmas present, just not what it was.”

“Then he knows you’re interested in me?”

“He does. Quite a few people know. They just think you don’t like me.”

“I’m not sure I do.”

“Fair enough.”

“What if he asks me about the gift?”

“Just tell him it’s a book you’ve always wanted.”

“We’ve established I’m not a convincing liar.”

“And here I thought you’ve been hoping I’d write a book so you could read it. I’m crushed.”

“You don’t crush easily. Okay, I’ll tell him— I don’t know what I’ll tell him. I’ll think of something.”

“Now you’re starting to sound like me, creating subterfuge on the fly.” He waved at Buck, who waved back.

“But the difference is you love intrigue. You eat it up with a spoon while it makes me nervous as hell.”

“Because you don’t do it enough. You’ve got the brains for it, just not the nerve. Stick with me and you’ll get better.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.”

“Don’t worry, Lani-lou. I’ve got your back.”

She groaned. “What would it take to get you to stop calling me that?”

“I’d tell you, but you can’t afford it.”

“You want me to pay you ? That’s extreme, even for you.”

“I’m not talking about money.”

“Oh, I see. Since I’m bargaining with the devil, I guess you want my soul.”

“No, but you’re close.”

Her breath hitched. “You’re right. I can’t afford it.” As they drew closer to the barn, she surveyed the area in front of it. “Where do you want me to park this rig?”

“Anywhere. We’ll haul it back to the tractor barn after we take care of Thor. You can stop here, if you want.”

“Okay, then. Whoa, Thor! Whoa, boy!”

When the sleigh came to a halt, Rance leaped down. He started to help Lani but paused to glance up at her. Buck was on his way over. “Want to climb down by yourself?”

“Yes, I do.”

“I’ll get the box.”

“Hey, guys,” Buck called out. “I see you’re back in one piece. Hang on, Lani, I’ll help you down.”

“Thanks.”

Rance ducked his head to hide a smile. Buck would chastise him later for his lapse in cowboy manners. Retrieving the box, he turned and waited while Buck played the gentleman.

Then he handed Lani the box. “I know it wasn’t exactly what you expected, but?—”

“It’s great.” She kept her expression neutral. “Thank you for thinking of me. And for the sleigh ride. I’ll just stick this in the truck so I can help with Thor.”

“Speaking of the truck, you probably need to take it back in case your folks want to go somewhere.”

“Oh. I suppose?—”

“Don’t worry about Thor,” Buck said. “Rance and I can handle this. We don’t want to strand Harry and Vanessa.”

“No, we don’t. I wish now I’d rented a car, but they insisted I didn’t need to.”

Buck nodded. “They wanted to save you money. By all means, go.”

“I’ll see you two later, then. Thanks again for the sleigh ride. It was fun.” She hurried away.

“She hated your gift, didn’t she?”

Rance turned to Buck, who for years had been the only father figure in his life. He couldn’t tell Buck the surface details, but he could give him the truth underneath those facts. “She actually really liked it.”

“You’re kidding yourself, son. She said it was great, but she didn’t mean it. Anyone could tell that. Oh, and her saying thank you for thinking of me ? That’s what everyone says when your gift bombs.”

“Take my word for it, the gift didn’t bomb.”

“Then why did she react that way?”

“Because she’s afraid to like anything connected to me. Deep down, she believes I have the power to ruin her life.”

“Do you?”

“Maybe.” That worried him more than he cared to admit.