Page 6 of A Rancher's Heart

Chapter Two

It seemed some things—like acting far too impulsively and putting her foot in it—would never change.

Still didn’t think she was in the wrong, but there was no use fighting a battle she had no way of winning. She needed this job, and if that meant groveling, she would swallow her damn pride and do it.

Tamara released a harsh puff of air and prepared to cut out her spleen.

“I wasn’t drowning.”

His words were a lot softer than she’d expected, and a totally different direction than the “don’t bother to unpack your bags because I wouldn’t trust you with my children if you were the last woman on earth” retort that she’d have understood.

She stood in shocked silence.

“There’s a cave near the base of those rocks,” he said, his voice still rumbly but no longer gravel-pit harsh. “Sometimes an air pocket forms in there, and I was checking it out. I had my head above water and was breathing the whole time. Sorry I scared you.”

Huh.

“Okay.” She curled her fingers around the skeleton of her broken glasses, and fought to keep a shiver from taking her apart. The physical reminder gave the needed distraction to head the conversation into solid, manageable topics. “You need to get dressed and warmed up. It’s far too cold to be out here half-naked.”

“Agreed. We’d better both get home as quick as we can.” He caught her by the wrist and took the broken glasses from her fingers. “But I don’t think you can drive without these. Can you?”

Tamara shook her head. “I have spares in my luggage, so don’t wor—”

“You’re not hiking the trail blind.” Caleb folded his arms over his chest.

“I’ll be fine,” Tamara insisted.

He grunted, then turned and walked away so quickly Tamara was left once again in a foggy blur. She peered around until she found her runners, soft curses escaping as she alternated between stubbing her toes and stepping on sharp-edged rocks.

Once her feet were protected, Tamara put her head down to pick a path best she could, but every third step another stone tilted, threatening to leave her with a sprained ankle, or worse.

Suddenly he was back, solid legs forming a wall in front of her.

“Maybe there’s something to that hypothermia thing.” He’d pulled on his shirt. “Fortunately, my ride can take an extra, and she doesn’t care if you can see or not. Come on, I’ll give you a hand.”

She expected him to offer a literal hand to hang on to as they crossed to where he had his horse tethered.

Caleb had other ideas. A gasp escaped her as he scooped her up in a firm hold.

“I can walk,” she insisted even as her arms flew instinctively to curl around his neck.

“Too slow. It’s cold.”

Which effectively shut her up. She spent the next few minutes cuddled against an increasingly warm torso, heat rising between them as she tried to find an angle to hold her head that didn’t leave her staring straight into his face.

It was better in some ways when he lifted her into the saddle, and in one smooth motion, mounted behind her because then she couldn’t see him.

But she could feel him. Rock-solid thighs and all the rest, with her body nestled right up against his. Impossible to ignore exactly how much contact was made while riding double.

He wrapped an arm around her waist, holding the reins confidently in the other hand. Landscape passed as nothing more than fuzzy masses of shades of green. She squinted to try to make out landmarks, but it was nothing but a collection of ranch-shaped blurred objects.

His fingers were spread across her belly, body moving in an easy rhythm as his horse carried them along.

With nothing much to see, it was either stay silent or come up with something to discuss. For a few moments she managed to keep her mouth shut. Only the silence made it too easy for her to focus on the rub of their bodies. They were both wet, and yet they could have been straight out of a sauna with the heat generating between them. The horse’s gait created a seductive rhythm that made her feel every moment of her past months of chastity.

Tamara attempted to change position to open space between them, but all it did was rub her hips against his, and a low growl escaped him.

She froze.