Once Tempted (34 page)

Carrie looked across to Ward. “Looks like Tess needs a little convincing. I’d recommend taking her out to the meadow at night so she can appreciate the wonders of nature.” She grinned.

“Hmm, the evenings are warming up.” He was set to say more to see how much Tess’s blush could deepen when the sound of horses loping up the trail reached him.

And all hell broke loose.

Reid was in front, followed by Brian and then Erica. The men pulled their horses back from a lope down to a walk, but Erica, either because Ziggy had been trailing a bit and she wanted to catch up or because she wanted to get back to the group as quickly as the others and not miss any of the exchanges, waited to slow down. Not an expert rider, she misjudged the distance—and like a speeding driver tailgating the car ahead, her belated attempt to slam on the breaks failed.

Ziggy, his head jerked high by Erica’s yanking on the reins and ears pinned back, rammed Chili. Chili was one of their best trail horses, but no animal likes to be plowed into, and he reacted with a buck, his rear hooves doing their own slamming—right into Ziggy’s chest.

Ziggy squealed in pain and reared, throwing Erica off balance. Lurching frantically to stay in the saddle, she overcompensated, falling onto his neck. With a cry she grabbed his mane.

These five seconds of frightened chaos might have ended with no further incident if, at that exact moment, a doe and a buck hadn’t burst through the underbrush on the side of the trail with a crash and the snap of young branches, landing in the horses’ midst.

Already panicked, Ziggy lost it completely. Normally mellow when confronted with the deer, rabbits, and even bobcats that sometimes crossed their paths, this
time he spooked, jumping sideways. The second his hooves touched the ground, he wheeled around and was gone, tearing down the trail as if the hounds of hell were chasing him.

It all happened so quickly. And since Reid was riding in front of Brian, he missed the mayhem. Ward, facing the opposite direction, saw the nightmare unfold.

The second the frightened Ziggy spun on his haunches like a circus pony and took off down the trail, Ward spurred Rio forward. He was already at a gallop as he passed Reid. “Keep Tess safe!”

Tess’s heart pounded as loudly as the sound of Rio’s hooves thundering down the trail as he and Ward flew after Erica. It pounded not just from the fright of seeing Erica’s and Brian’s horses shy and spook, or from having two large deer burst out of the undergrowth like two disturbed extras from
Bambi
(a movie she’d honestly never liked because of all the wild critters), it pounded from the crystalline revelation: She’d fallen in love with an extraordinary man.

She might never come to love
Bambi
but she suddenly knew without a doubt that she loved Ward Knowles. He was an amazing man, a true hero, a modern-day knight in jeans and a cowboy hat, racing off to save a damsel in distress.

Another thing she realized was that she pretty much loved Brocco. He’d stood still, his hooves never leaving the ground during the pandemonium. It was as if he’d heard Ward’s shout to Reid—that he keep Tess safe—and decided to do his part. She was going to filch a carrot from Quinn’s cache and feed it to him once they got back to the barn.

With Brocco she could easily show her appreciation
and the depth of her affection. Ward was a different matter.

Even if she could screw up the courage to show how deeply in love she’d fallen with Ward, there was a little problem. The man of her heart was racing off to rescue the wrong damsel. When he returned fifteen minutes later—fifteen minutes that felt more like fifteen hours as Tess listened to Reid talk soothing nonsense to calm a rattled Carrie—Erica was seated in front of him on Rio, leading a limping Ziggy behind them. Despite her scare, despite Ziggy’s injury, Erica’s eyes shone with what Tess could interpret only as joy. And why not? After all, Erica was back once more in Ward’s arms.

F
OUR HOURS LATER
that special glow still illuminated Erica’s face. More irritating and depressing was how it amped up in wattage when Ward and Brian appeared at the tail end of Carrie’s meeting with Samantha Nicholls at her Mendocino floral shop, Seaside Lilies.

The meeting had gone well. Since Samantha had come recommended by Adele, Tess hadn’t really worried it wouldn’t. Samantha had done her homework and suggested a mix of peonies, roses, and calla lilies for Carrie’s bouquet that suited the romantic style of her wedding dress. Fortunately Samantha had visited Silver Creek during the summer, and so she knew which flowers would be in bloom and was able to suggest arrangements for the tables’ centerpieces that would echo the ranch’s gardens.

It was Samantha’s job to be helpful; it was seeing Erica fulfill her role as maid of honor with immense good cheer that caught Tess by surprise. The glow resulting from Ward’s gallant rescue had done more than color her cheeks; it had mellowed her personality. Not a single silky-smooth criticism passed her lips. When asked for her opinion on the bridesmaids’ bouquets and the men’s boutonnieres, she offered ideas that actually suited the
style of the wedding. More surprising, she then went on to make the frankly brilliant suggestion that Samantha create several hanging decorations of star flowers for the tent that could be suspended over the diners, combining the theme of stars and flowers. The idea perfectly encapsulated Carrie’s vision for her wedding.

Riding ensconced in Ward’s strong arms had obviously brought out the best in Erica, Tess thought as Carrie sprang out of her chair and hugged her stepsister.

“That is so brilliant, Erica. I love the idea,” Carrie said.

If Erica was revealing an admirable best side, all glowing sweetness and light, Tess was feeling impossibly dull. The only positive thing she could say about herself was that she had just enough self-restraint to keep her petty thoughts about Erica’s transformation to herself. Unleashing them would only show Erica how much it had rankled to watch her ride back to the ranch, safe and secure in Ward’s arms.

While Carrie was greeting Brian and then excitedly listing the flowers Samantha was going to use in the centerpieces and larger displays, along with Erica’s idea for a hanging installation, Ward chatted with Samantha, who wanted to know when Adele and Daniel were returning from their trip so that she and Adele could confer about the flowers for the Mother’s Day weekend they were holding at the ranch.

Erica had sidled next to Ward and entered the conversation easily by praising Adele’s eye and excellent taste. Tess, unable to take much more of Erica’s triumphant niceness, especially when she found herself agreeing with the other woman, decided a hasty retreat was in order.

She scooped her purse off the stool that stood next to a long wooden workstation and, exiting the glass conservatory that served as Samantha’s studio, glanced at her watch.

It was four o’clock, but after the morning they’d had it felt much later. For each hour since Ward’s dramatic rescue, Erica must have recounted the tale of his bravery three times over. With every recounting her voice grew a little more breathless.

By now Tess could recite the story herself, visualize Rio racing after Erica’s terrified horse and, as they galloped neck and neck down the winding trail, see Ward leaning over and grabbing Ziggy’s bridle and bringing the animal under control. She could hear Erica, who’d lost her reins as well as her stirrups, sob with relief as she slowly unclenched her fear-frozen fingers from Ziggy’s long mane. Apparently, when she’d slid from the saddle her legs had been too shaky to hold her. So, of course, Ward had lifted her onto Rio’s back and shepherded her to where the others waited in worried apprehension.

Tess thought her head might explode if she had to hear the story again. She took a deep breath, hoping to empty her mind of every last image of Erica curled against Ward’s broad chest as Rio carried them back to the barn.

She looked around her, not really seeing the grounds of Seaside Lilies. She drew another breath and caught the hint of the sea’s salty tang in the air. But its freshness couldn’t chase away the pounding inside her head. Opening her handbag, she looked inside, rummaging through the jumble of her keys, cell, lipstick, compact, hair elastics, and her ever-present notebook filled with the decisions Carrie and Brian had made over the weekend. Where was the darned aspirin?

The sound of the others’ voices had her abandoning her search. She’d get some aspirin in her cabin. She must have some there.

“There you are, Tess. I hope we didn’t keep you waiting,”
Carrie said. She had her hand wrapped in Brian’s bigger one and looked happy. That was good. So far, Carrie, bless her generous nature, had been pleased by all the wedding plans put forth.

“No, I was just getting some fresh air. I’ve never smelled the Pacific before.”

“You’ll have to take some time off and do some exploring. The northern coast is amazing,” Brian said.

Tess smiled past her headache. “Yeah, maybe.”

They made their goodbyes to Samantha and walked toward the cars, Brian’s rental car and Ward’s. Erica had naturally positioned herself next to Ward so Tess maintained a space between herself and the foursome.

“Hop in, Tess,” Ward said. “I don’t want us to be late.”

She glanced over at him in confusion, unable to think of a single thing they might be late for.

“For our appointment,” he prompted.

“You guys have another appointment?” Brian said.

“Yeah.” Ward was already drawing his car keys from his jeans pocket. “Luckily it’s not far. We’ll meet you back at the ranch.”

“So what’s this fairy tale about a meeting?” Tess stared out the windshield as she spoke. They were on Route 1, going God knows where, and the scenery was beautiful. Almost as magnificent as the man steering the car. “Erica knew you were lying by the way.”

“Ask me if I care. I wanted to spend some time alone with you.”

She focused on the first because the second made her too happy. “Yeah, well, she’s working awfully hard to make you care, isn’t she?” She brought her hands together and turned slightly toward him. When she spoke
she made her voice go gooey with admiration. “Oh, Ward, I’ve never seen anyone ride like that. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t been able to grab Ziggy’s reins and slow him down.”

He shot her a glance that was a mix of irritation and amusement. “Knock it off.”

Her voice turned even more treacly. “Yes, Ward, I’ll do anything you say, Ward.”

“So, what would you have liked me to do, let Ziggy run off with her?”

“Yeah,” she admitted. Abandoning her cloying tone, she slumped back into the padded leather of the front seat. God, she hated being jealous, but she couldn’t seem to shake it or temper her dislike for Erica—not even when she could see qualities to admire in her. “And maybe she could have run into Sasquatch and he could have made her his mate, kind of like in
King Kong
.”

“I don’t think Sasquatch would have her. Too high maintenance.”

Tess didn’t think so, either, but she refused to abandon her funk. “Wouldn’t work anyway since she’d probably figure out a way to get you to rescue her from Sasquatch, too.
Porca puttana
,” she muttered under her breath.

“You know, you are incredibly sexy when you get all Italian fishwifey.”

She tossed her head. “Save the sweet talk for Erica. I have a headache.”

Suddenly Ward pulled off the road. As the wheels bounced over a rutted dirt drive, she looked around her in surprise, seeing nothing but the gnarled limbs of trees softened by fuzzy spots of bright green leaves beginning to unfurl. “Hey, where are we going?”

“A little nature appreciation.”

“Oh, please, after Bambi and friend made their appearance on the trail, I think I’ve appreciated all the nature I need to for today.”

He didn’t answer but merely grinned as he negotiated the ruts and potholes left by the spring rains. Ahead, Tess saw a clearing, a meadow filled with tall grass and delicate yellow wildflowers. Then beyond, nothing but sky.

She opened her mouth to repeat her question, but Ward had already turned onto the field, cut the ignition, and opened his door. Moving quickly, he circled around to her side. Pulling open her door, he held out his hand. She could hear the sound of the surf now, a slow rumbling roll followed by the thunderous crash of waves slamming the rocks. The meadow ended in a cliff overlooking the sea. Searching, her eyes met his, and a thrill shot through her at the intensity of his blue-green-gold-chipped gaze.

He took her hand. Wordlessly he led her around to the front of the Jeep and backed her against the hood and lifted her onto it. The warmth of the engine penetrated her cotton skirt. He moved closer, stepping between her legs, which of their own volition opened in a V of welcome.

“God, you’re beautiful.”

“As beautiful as Gina Lollobrigida?”

“Gina who?” He frowned. “Christ, Tess, you’re more beautiful than any movie star or celebrity. You’re you. Unique. And you drive me crazy with need.”

“Good answer.”

They stared at each other, the excitement building as surely as the heat flaring between their bodies. The sea air around them seemed charged. Heavy with moisture, it caressed. She stilled, waiting for his next move while her heart revved with wild joy.