Page 51 of A Rancher's Heart

They froze.

Tamara looked them up and down. “You think anyone’s going to give you Halloween candy when you’re not wearing a costume?”

Bags abandoned to the floor, the girls raced back to their rooms.

Caleb couldn’t stop a grin from stretching his lips. “The horses and goats are in full cooperation, are they?”

Tamara nodded. “Except the goats were littletoointerested in participating, and Meany lived up to his name. He’d already found one of the bags I stashed this morning, so I moved new ones to where not even he could reach it. Unless the three of them work together, and stand on each other’s shoulders.”

“Don’t go giving them ideas,” Caleb returned. “Those goats are far too smart.”

Tamara muttered under her breath. “Far smarter than me at five in the morning.”

He glanced at Tamara. “Where’s your costume?”

She laughed, grabbing her hat from the laundry room and plopping down on her head. “There. I’m going as a cowgirl.”

It felt good to grin. “Look at that, I barely recognize you.”

She snickered. “Oh, wait. I should go as acowboy.”

She adjusted her stance, placing her legs wider on the ground. Then she contorted her face into a strange scowl.

He looked her over quickly, trying not to dwell too long on the curves under her well-cut jeans or the soft flannel shirt flaring over her breasts.

“What’s that all about?” He flicked a finger at her expression. “Cowboys don’t go around making faces. That one would scare the horses.”

She straightened with a laugh. “I was going for anI’m serious, don’t mess with memacho cowboy look.”

He shook his head. “Stick with the sweet cowgirl.”

One brow arched skyward. “Now aboutyourcostume.” She turned to the kitchen and pulled open a drawer. “I happen to have just the thing right here.”

She came forward with a pile of bright red fabric.

Caleb backed up until he remembered strong, manly cowboys didn’t back down from anything. “I don’t know that I’m cut out to be Little Red Riding Hood.”

She gave material a sudden snap, straightening the fabric as she moved in closer.

“We’ll switch jobs for the morning.” She tipped off his hat, looping a strand of the fabric over his head. She stepped behind him as he glanced down with a grimace.

“I need to record this somewhere so when the girls are teenagers I can prove how much pain and suffering I was willing to go through for them.”

Tamara stood behind him, tucked in close against his back as she did the ties snugly around his waist. “Hey, it’s just a costume, I don’t actually expect you to cook.”

“I can cook,” he protested.

“And I can cowboy.”

She gave him a swift pat on the butt, and he just about cleared the floor in surprise. He pivoted on the spot to discover her face had gone red.

“Oops?” She stepped back rapidly. “Sorry. Too used to joshing around with my cousins.”

He nearly reached for her, to drag her into his arms. What happened after that, he wasn’t sure. Oh, he knew what he’d like to do, but the exact order wasn’t down pat yet.

Something of his thoughts must’ve shown on his face, because her breathing gave a little hiccup, then she inhaled unsteadily. Her throat moved, and she blinked hard, and if the girls hadn’t chosen that moment to ram straight through the four inches of space separating them, Caleb was damn sure he would’ve done something regrettable.

The girls grabbed their bags off the table and rushed out the door.