Читать книгу Unrepentant Cowboy - Joanna Wayne - Страница 9
ОглавлениеChapter Three
Joni Griffin leaned over the injured horse, gingerly applying the flexible vet wrap over the pillow wrap. Her hands moved with precision as she made sure the bandaging fit snugly enough to hold it in place but not so tight it caused undue pain.
R.J. watched the procedure over Joni’s shoulder and muttered reassurances to the beautiful filly. “Poor girl. I should have been watching you more closely. Instead I let you get hurt.”
“Horses get wounds just like people do,” Joni said. “You can’t prevent all of them. The good thing is you caught this one early and the cut’s not all that deep.”
“You think Miss Dazzler will be okay then?”
“I think she’s going to be just fine, but you’ll need to keep applying the hydrotherapy a few times a day until the swelling goes down, and the bandaging will have to be replaced each time. I also recommend one gram of phenylbutazone twice a day to help with the swelling.”
“I can handle the bute and probably the treatment and bandaging if I have some help from Corky or Adam, but I don’t wanna go trusting Miss Dazzler to anyone who’s not a trained vet.”
“I’m sure Adam can judge if the wound is healing right,” Joni said. “Your son is amazing with horses. So is his wife, for that matter.”
“Right on both counts. I notice you and my daughter-in-law have spent a lot of time together of late.”
“Can’t help but like Hadley. And your granddaughters are adorable.”
“Yes, they are, but they’re a handful. That’s why I hate to ask Hadley to take on the full responsibility of Miss Dazzler, especially with Thanksgiving just two days away. She and Mattie Mae have been cooking up a storm.”
“Sounds delicious.”
“It will be. How about you join us for lunch that day?”
“I just may do that. Actually, Hadley has already invited me.”
“Good. I s’pect we’ll have enough food to feed half the citizens of Oak Grove.”
“Then I’ll definitely come and try to eat my share.”
“Good. Now back to Miss Dazzler. I want somebody who knows what they’re doing to take a good look at that wound every day, just to be sure it’s healing right.”
“I could show Adam what to look for.”
“He’s off at a cattle auction today.”
“What about Corky?”
“He’s a good enough cattle wrangler, but I don’t trust him to take care of Miss Dazzler’s injured fetlock. Not that he wouldn’t like helping you do it. I think he’s got a crush on you. Can’t say that I blame him, mind you. If I were younger—”
“Okay, enough with the flattery. I’ll see Miss Dazzler once a day until the fetlock is completely healed.”
“I sure would appreciate that.”
Joni smiled. It was hard to turn R.J. down, even though she already had a full plate this week. But R.J. loved his horses. That was always a plus in her book.
And she admired the way he hadn’t given up on living even with the inoperable brain tumor slowly stealing his health and his life.
Miss Dazzler nuzzled Joni’s neck as if she understood that she was to be treated like royalty.
“Hiring you to join his practice was the best decision Doc Benson made since he married that pretty little filly of his,” R.J. said.
“Thank you. Be sure and tell him that.”
“I do, every chance I get.”
The decision had been great for her, as well. Blake Benson’s practice offered the perfect opportunity for her to utilize her equine vet training. And he definitely had enough work to keep both of them busy.
Joni walked over to the freshwater spigot and washed her hands with a bar of soap hanging from rope attached to a large nail. “Will any of your other children be joining you for Thanksgiving?” she asked.
“Probably not.”
“So, no takers except Adam on the terms of your will?”
“Nope. Haven’t heard from nary a one of them except my oldest son, Jake. He’s called a time or two to bombard me with questions.”
“That shows he’s concerned about you.”
“Weren’t none of those questions about my health. I guaran-damn-tee you that.”
“Then what does he ask about?”
“The ranch. The will’s provisions? My sanity, though he don’t say that directly. I s’pect he wants to buy the ranch for himself—or find a way to beat me out of it.”
“Ah, an apple that didn’t fall far from the tree,” she teased.
“Probably why the two of us don’t gee-haw in harmony.”
Joni didn’t question R.J.’s sanity, but she could see why his children might think he was sliding into senility. He’d invited them all to the reading of his will without letting them know he was still alive.
Then he’d insisted they move back to the ranch and take part in its operation for one full year if they wanted to inherit their share of the eight-million-dollar estate. So far only Adam had moved back, but he hadn’t actually had to disrupt his life.
According to Hadley, Adam was just getting over injuries sustained while on active duty as a marine in Afghanistan and hadn’t even had a job, much less a successful career, when he’d made the decision to move onto the ranch.
Besides, R.J. had jumped in to help when Adam’s young daughters were abducted. That had given Adam a bit more incentive to get to know his father.
R.J. stepped away and spit a stream of tobacco into a spittoon near the back of the barn. “I don’t blame my kids for having no use for me,” he said once he’d wiped his mouth on the sleeve of his flannel shirt. “I was never a decent father to any of them. But it’s my money and I’ll do what I damn well please with it.”
“The one with the gold makes the rules?”
He scratched his ruddy, whiskered jaw. “Call it what you please. Blood kin or not, I’m not leaving my ranch or my money to someone ’less I get to know them first and figure they’re worthy.”
“Did you define worthy in the will?”
“No, but I should have put it in there. Might have my attorney go back and take care of that.”
Joni doubted he’d go that far. She was fairly certain that R.J. just wanted a chance to get to know all his children before the brain tumor claimed his life. And from what she knew of the crusty old rancher, he definitely wouldn’t be beyond a little manipulation to get what he wanted.
“Did I tell you that I’ve been in contact with one of my granddaughters?” R.J. asked.
“No. How exciting for you.”
“Yep. Effie Dalton. She lives in California, but she’s going to be in Dallas visiting my son Leif this week. She wants to come out to the Dry Gulch and spend a few days.”
Joni struggled to remember the basics of what R.J. had told her about his children in extensive detail over the past few weeks. “Is Leif the divorced defense attorney?”
“Yep. That’s the one. Haven’t heard a word from him since the reading of the will, but Effie thinks she can convince him to drive her out here.”
“I know you’d love that.”
“Doggone right, unless Leif’s coming would just mean trouble. I told Effie if her dad wouldn’t drive her out here to call me and I’d send a car to pick her up—anywhere, anytime.”
“How old is she?”
“Fifteen. She lives with her mother. But get this. She loves horses and she’s already talking about becoming an equine vet. I’d sure like for you to meet her while she’s here. Maybe give her some encouragement.”
“I’d love to. But now I’d best get to my next patient. You keep an eye on Miss Dazzler for me. And remember, she needs stall rest until the swelling is gone.”
“No problem. I’ll just come down and sit with her if she gets lonesome.”
Joni suspected that if he’d taken as much interest in his children when they were growing up as he did his horses now, he wouldn’t have to use bribes and manipulation to get them to visit him.
A horse at the far end of the elaborately renovated horse barn neighed.
“Old Bullet’s calling my name,” R.J. said. “Think I’ll have Corky saddle him up so I can take him for a short ride.”
“Should you be riding alone?”
He gave her a wink and a click of his tongue. “Are you hinting you want to go along with me?”
No doubt he’d been as much a womanizer in his younger days as the locals claimed. His flirting was totally harmless now, though.
“I’d love to ride with you, Mr. Dalton, but I have three other calls to make this afternoon. I’ll be lucky if I make it back here to check on Miss Dazzler by dark.”
“You’re too pretty to work all the time. You need a man to go home to. I’ve still got four unmarried sons, you know.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Now you take care of yourself and I’ll be back first thing in the morning to check on Miss Dazzler.”
“You be careful and don’t be out on these old deserted roads by yourself at night. I guess you heard about Evie Monsant getting murdered yesterday.”
“I heard about a body being found yesterday morning. I didn’t know it was Evie’s until I saw the police tape all around her gate and house when I drove past last night on my way home.”
“The media are already claiming it might be the work of The Hunter,” R.J. said. “I don’t put no stock in that myself, though. I’d put my money on her knowing the guy who killed her.”
“Why?”
“She was a strange woman. Sticking to herself all the time. The way I heard it, she’d hardly say howdy if she met you face on. No telling what she was mixed up in.”
Joni wasn’t so sure. “The news reporters must know something if they’re saying her death could be the work of a serial killer.”
“Not necessarily. Those blowhards love putting the fear in everybody. Gets ’em higher ratings.”
“I hope you’re right. Not that it would make it any better for Evie, but the thought of a serial killer in Oak Grove is bloodcurdling,” Joni admitted.
“You just be careful,” R.J. said. “But I wouldn’t worry about it too much. This is about as peaceful a place as you can find in all of Texas. I figure Evie Monsant brought her trouble with her.”
“Maybe.” But unexpected anxiety skidded along Joni’s nerve endings as R.J. walked her to her aging pickup truck. She’d grown up in a rural area much like this one, where neighbors looked out for one another. She’d always felt safe, the same as she had since moving to Oak Grove nine months ago.
Still she might sleep with her shotgun in easy reach tonight.
She said her goodbyes to R.J., climbed behind the wheel and turned the key in the ignition. The motor made a grinding noise and then sputtered and died. It did the same on the second try. On the third try, there wasn’t even a grind.
So much for getting through and getting home before dark.
* * *
EFFIE JUMPED OUT of Leif’s black sports car and rushed to the metal gate. She unlatched it and hitched a ride on the bottom rung as it swung open, her ponytail bouncing behind her.
Her excitement over arriving at the Dry Gulch Ranch equaled Leif’s displeasure. He’d done his best to talk her into a trip to anywhere but there. He’d even considered buying her a horse of her own when she got back to California, one she could keep at the stables where she worked.
That had felt too much like a bribe. Besides, his ex would have killed him, a fate only slightly worse than playing nice with R.J. all afternoon. But Leif was also spending time with Effie, so there was a silver lining to his misery.
Once he’d driven across the cattle gap, Effie took her time getting back in the car; her gaze was focused on a young deer that had stepped out of a cluster of sycamore trees a few yards in front of them. She stood as still as a statue until the deer turned and ran back into the woods.
His daughter had obviously spent far too much time in the confines of the city.
She fastened her seat belt. “Grandpa didn’t say he had deer on the ranch, too.”
Grandpa. The word sounded irritatingly strange when used by Effie for a man he barely knew and Effie didn’t know at all. “Who told you to call R.J. Grandpa?”
“I asked him what I should call him and he suggested Grandpa. That’s what his twin granddaughters call him.”
Leif seethed but went back to safer territory. “I suspect there are all kinds of creatures who call the Dry Gulch home.”
“What kind of creatures?” Effie asked.
“Possums. Raccoons. Armadillos. Foxes. Skunks. Rattlesnakes.”
“Rattlesnakes. Really?” She screwed her face into a repulsed scowl.
“Yes, but probably not out and about much this time of the year, though it’s warm enough today you’d need to be careful if you were traipsing through high grass or walking along the riverbank.”
“There’s a river on the property?”
“More like a creek, but they call it a river.”
“Can you swim in it? Not now, I know, but in the summer.”
“I wouldn’t recommend it.”
“It doesn’t matter. Grandpa says there’s a spring-fed pool for swimming. There’s also a small lake where he goes fishing. He said he’ll teach me how. Do you remember the ranch at all?”
“Not from when I was a kid.”
“When else were you here?”
“I paid a visit to the Dry Gulch a few months back along with your uncle Travis and R.J.’s four other biological children. We were given a tour of the ranch.”
“You had a family reunion?”
“More like a reading of R.J.’s commandments.”
“What does that mean?”
He knew he should let it go, but all Effie was getting from R.J. was propaganda. She should be exposed to a little of the truth.
“R.J. wants all his offspring to move back to the ranch and raise cattle. It’s a requirement if we want to be included in his will.”
“So if you move back here, part of the ranch will belong to you?”
That had backfired. Effie made it sound like manna from heaven instead of the bribe it was. “I’m not moving back here, so it’s a moot point, but, yes, that’s the gist of it.”
“Why not move out here? I mean, who wouldn’t want to own part of a ranch?”
“I’m not a rancher. I’m an attorney.”
“What about Uncle Travis?”
“He’s perfectly happy as a Dallas homicide detective. Believe me, he wants no part of R.J. or the Dry Gulch, either.”
Effie exhaled sharply. “Well, I do. You could inherit it and give it to me.”
He should have known not to get into this with Effie. Horses were her current phase. Naturally, she’d think living on a ranch was a super idea.
Effie went back to staring out the window. “Did you move to Dallas to be closer to Uncle Travis?”
“No. He moved here after I did. He was a detective in Louisiana before taking a job in Dallas.”
“So he moved to be closer to you?”
“No. He moved because he wanted a fresh start.”
“Did he get divorced, too?”
“No. He was instrumental in getting a crooked police chief sent to jail. Why all the questions?”
“No reason.” She went back to observing the passing scenery. The wooded area had given way to acres of pasture. A few head of cattle were off to the right, some grazing, most resting.
“Is this all part of the Dry Gulch?” Effie asked.
“So I was told.”
“Where’s Grandpa’s house?”
“We’re almost there. Keep watching and you’ll make out the roof and chimneys when we round the next curve.”
She stretched her neck for a better look and then started wiggling in her seat when the house came into view. The century-old structure in desperate need of a face-lift apparently excited her a lot more than his plush penthouse condo had.
A few minutes later, Leif pulled into the driveway that led to the separate three-car garage and stopped next to a beat-up pickup truck with a lifted hood. R.J. stood next to the right fender.
“Is that my grandfather?” Effie asked.
“That’s R. J. Dalton.”
She opened the door a crack and then hesitated, as if unsure of herself or of him. But when R.J. saw her and waved, she jumped from the car and ran to meet him much in the way she’d run to meet Leif when she was a little girl.
R.J. opened his arms, and Effie eagerly stepped into a giant bear hug. A pain so intense he nearly doubled over from it punched Leif in the chest. It had been years since Effie had hurled herself into his arms.
Reluctantly, Leif climbed from beneath the wheel and planted his feet on the concrete drive while R.J. and Effie exchanged greetings. He didn’t see the woman until he’d walked to the other side of the stalled truck.
She was leaning over the engine with an expression on her face that suggested she’d like to plant a stick of dynamite under the hood and put the truck out of its misery.
“What’s the problem?” Leif asked, thankful for any excuse to avoid dealing with R.J., even if only for a few seconds.
“Her battery conked out on her,” R.J. answered for her.
“With misfortune’s usual bad timing,” she muttered.
“It could have been worse,” R.J. said. “You could have been stranded on one of these back roads.”
“Like I was yesterday,” she said. “Fortunately, Tague Lambert happened by and gave me a start. He took a look at the battery and said I should get it replaced.”
“So why didn’t you?” Leif asked.
“I was planning to take it into Abe’s Garage in Oak Grove tomorrow. Wednesday’s my day off. Do you have a pair of jumper cables I can borrow, Mr. Dalton?”
“Sure as shootin’.”
Leif stepped in closer for a better look at the dead battery before turning to the woman. She wasn’t flagrantly sexy like Serena, but she had a natural girl-next-door kind of freshness about her. Impulsively, he checked her ring finger.
No golden band, but unless looks were deceiving she was much too young to engage in a tryst with a jaded, approaching-forty attorney like himself.
Not that he was interested in a new relationship. He hadn’t cleared the breakup hurdle of the one he was in yet.
“Even if you get the truck started, the battery is likely to give out on you again,” Leif said. “I don’t think you should try to drive it.”
“I don’t have a lot of choice. Sam Loden and his ailing mare are expecting me in about twenty minutes.”
“Don’t you go worrying,” R.J. said. “I’ll get you to Sam’s, but first we need some introductions.” He rested a thin, wrinkled hand on Effie’s shoulder. “This is my granddaughter Effie Dalton, the one I told you about.”
The woman wiped her hands on her jeans. “You must be the California granddaughter who loves horses?”
Effie smiled. “That’s me.”
“Then we have something in common. I love horses, too. And your grandfather has some of the most beautiful and spirited ones in the county.”
“I can’t wait to see them,” Effie said.
“You won’t have to wait long,” R.J. assured her. He turned back to the woman. “This is Joni Griffin, the best vet in six counties—the prettiest, too.”
A blush reddened Joni’s cheeks. “There you go again. Flattery will not lower your bill.”
“It’s not flattery when it’s true,” R.J. said.
Leif extended a hand to the woman. “I’m Leif Dalton, Effie’s father.”
“And R.J.’s son,” she acknowledged. “R.J.’s told me all about you.”
He wouldn’t begin to guess what that might include, since he figured R.J. knew very little about him except his name. And that he had a daughter who R.J. figured he could manipulate.
R.J. put out a hand to him. Leif had no choice but to take it or be seen as a total ass.
R.J.’s grip was much stronger than expected.
“Glad you and Effie are here?” R.J. said.
Leif only nodded. It was better than an outright lie. He turned back to the woman. “Can I give you a ride somewhere or take you to get a new battery?”
“You just got here,” she said. “You’ve hardly had a chance to say hello to your dad.”
An added benefit. “I’m sure he and Effie can find plenty to talk about until I get back.”
“Actually, that’s a dang good idea,” R.J. said. “You drive the doc to Sam’s place and I’ll have my wrangler Corky take her truck into Oak Grove so that Abe can install a new battery.”
Leif turned back to Joni. “I’m game if you are.”
“Sam’s ranch is off a dirt road. You’ll get your sports car layered in mud from last night’s rain.”
“Mud I can handle. Not too keen on driving through whatever made all those scratches on your truck, though.”
“You won’t. Those are from a few of my more adventuresome trips.”
“Through an Amazon jungle?”
“Close. Through Texas brush.”
“So that’s settled,” R.J. said. “You two go heal animals and get to know each other. Corky will get a replacement battery, and Effie and me will check out the horses and try out the cookies Mattie Mae baked this morning.”
Leif turned to his daughter. “Is that arrangement okay with you, Effie?”
“It’s better than okay. I can’t wait to see the horses.”
“Call me if you need me for any reason,” he said.
“Dad. I’m fifteen, not two.”
“She’ll be fine,” R.J. assured him, as if he knew the first thing about parenting.
Leif was relieved for the chance to escape R.J.’s company, but as soon as they started walking toward his car, he had second thoughts about driving off and leaving his daughter alone with his so-called father.
“Be sure Effie meets the twins,” Joni called back to R.J. as she stopped at the door to Leif’s car.
“Absolutely,” R.J. agreed. “I’ll give Hadley a call now.”
“The twins?” Leif questioned as he climbed behind the steering wheel.
“Lila and Lacy, your half brother Adam’s daughters,” Joni answered. “They’re three and too adorable for words.”
So Joni wasn’t the only grandchild to be welcomed into the fold. Leif had received word from R.J.’s lawyer that Adam Dalton had been the first offspring to move onto the ranch. He hadn’t realized Adam was married or had children, but then he hadn’t really given it much thought.
His hand rested on the gearshift, but he made no move to shove it into Reverse.
“You don’t have to do this if you’d rather stay here with Effie and R.J. I can find someone to give me a lift,” Joni offered, obviously misreading his hesitation.
“Driving you to Sam’s isn’t a problem. I’m just not sure about leaving Effie here with my infamous father. Effie probably isn’t as competent on a horse as she’d like everyone to believe. R.J. is liable to put her on some wild horse she can’t control.”
“R.J. would never do that.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“I know him. He’ll watch over her like a mother hen. Hadley fully trusts him with the twins, and they’re only three years old.”
“Okay, so I’m overreacting a bit, but you can’t be too careful these days.”
“Are you sure it’s just that you’re being careful? It sounds more like vindictive.”
“Trust me—I have good reason for the way I feel about R.J.”
“I know he wasn’t much of a father to you or any of his children. He admits that. But people can change. You might even like R.J. if you gave him a chance.”
“He had lots of chances. He blew them. Case closed.”
She honored that request, and a few minutes later they were on a back road, his sleek sports car hugging the curves as they made their way to Joni’s next four-legged patient.
Leif turned and studied Joni’s profile. He’d always liked long hair on women, but Joni’s short, shiny hair looked great on her. The bouncy locks hugged her cheeks and highlighted her long, dark eyelashes.
Even without makeup, her skin was flawless, so smooth it almost begged to be touched. Her lips were soft and inviting, her smile a killer. But it was the cute, slightly turned-up nose that added the final seductive touch.
Cute, casual, no apparent pretense, outspoken. She could definitely spell trouble.
But not for him.
The sooner he got out of Oak Grove, the better. He wanted no part of any attachment that would bring him back into R.J.’s world.
* * *
JONI GAVE LEIF directions to Sam Loden’s ranch and then leaned back with her eyes straight ahead. The car, with its soft leather seats, had that invigorating new-car smell. She felt as though she were riding on a cloud. So why was she so uncomfortable?
Because R.J. had practically forced her on the man, that’s why. Driving a vet around who smelled of horseflesh and antibiotic ointment was probably the last thing Leif wanted to be doing today.
Worse, he smelled of musky aftershave and was wearing a shirt that probably cost more than anything in her wardrobe. His jeans no doubt carried a designer label. Hers had a rip in the right leg and not the fake kind people paid extra for.
She raked her fingers through her short hair, tucking the right side behind her ear.
“You really didn’t have to do this,” she said, then was immediately sorry when she feared it made her sound ungrateful.
Leif turned toward her, a half smile playing on his lips. “I’ve heard all about Texas cowboy chivalry. I’m just trying to measure up.”
“Is there no chivalry among attorneys?”
“Not a good day to ask me that.”
“Why not?”
“I won a case yesterday that has me reconsidering my choice of professions.”
“I’ve had days like that. But shouldn’t winning have had the opposite effect?”
“One would think. But enough of my complaining. Let’s talk about you.”
“There’s nothing much to tell. I’m an Oklahoma gal who wound up in Texas making barn calls and trying to convince the local ranchers that a female can be as capable as a man when it comes to dealing with sick horses.”
“You’ve already won R.J.’s heart.”
“I spent the night helping one of his favorite mares get through a difficult birth my first month here. That made me a golden girl in his mind.”
“How do you fit in with the rest of Oak Grove?”
“So far, so good, except for the day of the UT/Oklahoma football game.”
“Understandable. We Texans do take our college football seriously.”
“Don’t tell me you’re a Longhorn alum?”
“No. I went to UCLA and then law school at Stanford. I’m barely a Texan except by birth. After Mother divorced R.J., she moved to San Francisco with my brother, Travis, and me. I only moved back to Dallas five years ago.”
“Born a Texan, always a Texan,” she said. “So say the natives.”
“Is this the turn up ahead?” he asked.
“Yes, and then look for an old church that hasn’t been used in years. It only has half a roof and seriously leans to the left. Just past that you’ll come to the gate of Sleeping Dogs Ranch. That’s the Loden spread.”
Leif slowed and took the turn. “So what’s it like dealing with cranky old ranchers all day?”
“I wouldn’t know. Most of the time I deal with terrific guys who just want the best care for their horses. It’s my dream job. However, there are times when I’m standing knee-deep in mud with my arms up to my elbows in horse while I try to coax a contrary foal into the world when I think I should have become a rock star.”
“Do you sing?”
“Nothing that doesn’t make the dogs howl. Hence the choice of becoming a vet was probably a wise one. What about you? What would you like to be on days you wish you weren’t an attorney?”
“Independently wealthy or maybe a Walmart greeter. Those guys usually look pretty chipper and there’s always junk food nearby.”
She laughed, surprised to find that the tension she’d felt earlier was quickly dissolving.
Leif slowed as they approached the gate to the Sleeping Dogs Ranch.
“The gate has an automatic lock,” she said. “The code is 6824. Enter it in that control box on your side, and I’ll call and let Sam know we’re here. That way he can meet me at the barn, tell me what needs attention and we can get right down to business.”
“That sounds a little kinky,” Leif said, his voice teasing.
A slow burn crept to her cheeks. The possibility of a kinky encounter in a barn definitely had potential.
But not with Sam Loden.
“Have you been in a lot of barns, Leif Dalton?”
“None in recent memory, but I’m always open to new experiences.”
And new experiences usually sent her back into her shell. Maybe it was time she opened up to something besides work.
But not with Leif Dalton. He was a heartache waiting to happen. She didn’t have time for that.
Still, there was no denying the buzz of awareness she felt just sitting next to him in a car.
Who knew what the day might bring?
