Stay With Me: BWWM Interracial Cowboy/Western Romance (Westbury Ranch Book 2) (2 page)

Chapter Two

J
uston had never expected to glance at a woman and fall head over heels in love. Nothing in his life prepared him for such a moment. He liked women, sure. But he never felt such massive pull like he was experiencing right now. Shayne was
so
not his type. He’d never dated a city girl before. Shayne was used to higher standards, and he wouldn’t ever be able to give her that. Yet, he couldn’t help but feel that she was the right one for him.

How crazy is that? Silly even. He shouldn’t even look at her that way but he couldn’t help but keep glancing her way as she rode beside him. For a woman who’d spent several years in the city, she looked right at ease on the horse. He saw the way she gripped the reins and pressed her heel to the horse’s side. She could control the animal. He’d been afraid she wouldn’t be able to handle the heat and the brutal routine, but he was strong. He hadn’t heard her complain, not even once. Instead, she was full of questions, and he liked that she was actually interested in the work.

Not just a city girl. She was much more than that. And of course, he was completely bowled over by her looks. Her caramel skin glowed with good health, then her hair, dark and wavy, was tied up in a bun. Her body, curvy and supple, was covered from head to toe, but still it made his mouth water every time he looked at her. He longed to get his hands on her sinuous body and run his fingers over that dewy, soft skin. He wanted to plant his lips on hers and feel them move under his. His fingers itched to run through her hair.

Juston knew he was in deep horseshit; and he didn’t think he’d be able to climb out of it. He never felt quite like this for another woman, and it wasn’t going to be easy to fight this attraction. But Shayne was way above his league. He couldn’t ever get a woman like her, yet still he wanted to try. Not because it was an ego thing but because he wanted to be with her.

“This seems about right, boss,” Blade broke into this thoughts.

Juston turned his attention to the task at hand. “Yeah, it is. Let’s take a break for lunch. We’ll start moving them again, after a couple of hours.” He got off his horse and patted it on the flank. Understanding the silent command, the animal tottered off to do its own grazing. He sauntered over to help Shayne, but she was already off her animal.

Her brows furrowed, as she held the horse’s reins. “Should I let her go?”

He patted the filly she’d been riding and smiled. “These horses are trained well. They won’t go far.”

“If they do wander off, I don’t think I’ll be able to make it back to the farm on my legs.”

He laughed at the first admission she made regarding the exhaustion she must be feeling. He was used to riding every day, but for her, it was a new experience, at least after several years. “Don’t worry.

She walked to the grove of trees where Blade and the other ranch hands had already made a place.

“Tired?” he asked.

She hesitated. Her gaze flicked to him and then flitted away. “I haven’t ridden in many years. Of course, when we were young, my father made it a point for us to learn to do everything on the farm, but I never liked it that much.”

“And yet, here you are, willing to try it all over again.”

Shayne shrugged her shoulders. “Circumstances change,” she paused. “People change.”

There was some story to the pain reflected in her eyes. The emotion was gone before he could fully decipher it. He knew she’d gotten divorced recently and could understand that she must be hurting. He longed to kiss her anguish away, but she was off limits. He really shouldn’t be thinking anything along those lines. A woman like her wouldn’t ever settle for a ranch hand. Way below her standards, and it wouldn’t hurt to remember that.

They settled with the other men, and he felt surprised to see that she seemed totally at ease. With no air of superiority or authority. She blended in as if she’d spent countless hours with these people, and yet he was aware that she was deliberately making an effort to make them feel at ease with her. He appreciated the effort. As did the men.

“How long have you been living on the farm, Blade?”

The middle-aged guy who’d spent too many days outside in the sun scratched his head. “Maybe about ten. When I came, I wasn’t so sure about this place but your father was a good man, and you were just a young girl.” He chuckled. “Of course, Cullen has also done well for herself. She’s made a success of the farm since he passed on. That’s what he wanted. He was very proud of all his girls.”

“I didn’t inherit his love for farming.”

“You have your own strengths and your father recognized that. He was happy when you got that job in that fancy New York Company and I remember when he came back after a visit. Said he was right proud that you were doing so well.”

She glanced away, probably to hide the tears that sprang to her eyes.

“Where did you work in New York?” Juston asked to help change the topic.

“At a public relations firm.”

“What kind of work?”

“We built up brand images for corporations and individuals. Public relations is about dealing with the media or other outside sources on anything to do with a client.”

“Do we need public relations here?”

Her smile lit her face. “I sure hope so. That’s why Cullen hired me. I’m supposed to build an image for the farm and also do marketing activities to boost sales and bring more clients. That’s why I want to understand every aspect of the work that goes on here.” She shrugged her shoulders. “If I don’t know it, I can’t sell it.”

He thought she could sell anything she chose. All she had to do was smile that sunshiny smile, and a client would agree to whatever she wanted. The woman had charm and personality and he felt sure there weren’t many people in the world who could resist her. “Our work is simpler, I guess. We just deal with cattle.”

Her gaze locked with his. “It certainly isn’t easy. I don’t know how you guys do it, day in and day out.”

“We’re used to the hard ride and the heat,” he said. “I grew up on a farm, so it’s something I can do in my sleep.”

“Which farm were you on?”

“It’s a day’s ride away. Rosa Ranch. Owned and run by a family for four generations. My father moved there with me when I was seven. Before that, we were in a town west of Chicago.”

She opened her lunch box and took out a sandwich. “Would you like some?”

“Nah! I have my own.” He opened his pack and drew out his lunchbox. “I loved the farm from the first day and of course, there was no stopping me. Every day after school, I was learning how to handle animals, fix fences, ride horses…or drive my dad’s truck. There was no looking back.” He opened the box and used the fork to spear some pasta. His gaze lingered on the lunch box. “Would you like some?”

“Sure.”

He offered her the lunch box.

Then, she tasted some of his food. Her expression shifted and changed. “My God! This is good. Who made this?”

“I did.”

Her eyes widened in surprise as she took another bite and then handed back the lunch. “You can cook?”

Blade laughed. “This guy could give Jackie competition in the kitchen.”

“That’s not true,” he disagreed. “There are so many things she could teach me. Trust me, I’m nothing compared to her.”

“But you’re definitely very good,” she said. “I can handle myself around a kitchen, but nowhere as good as that. What did you put in this?”

“Thyme and some sweet basil. Usually, I grow mine in small pots in the kitchen, but I haven’t gotten around to doing that here yet.”

“Where is your cottage?”

“It’s behind the one that Graeme has. You just keep walking straight and it’s there behind a grove of trees. I like it.”

“Yes, I remember it. Haven't seen it in a while, but I remembered my father built it quite a few years back.” She took a bite of her sandwich. “Now, there have been quite a few additions in the farm in the time that I was gone. And I think Cullen is also thinking about building some more cottages behind the farmhouse.”

“The way she’s growing the business, that girl is going to need a lot more hands. I don’t think it will be too long before we need a few more people,” Blade piped in. “I see a great future for this farm.”

“Yeah, so do I. That’s why I came here,” Juston agreed.

“Some men might not like the idea of working under a woman,” she said.

He shrugged. “I never cared. Man or woman, the person has to know what they’re doing. I don’t like people who try to throw their weight around but don’t know what they’re talking about.” Juston didn’t want to name names but he’d been very disappointed by the owner of the ranch next door. Max Hayes was a man he hoped never to see again. The man didn’t know shit about ranching and yet, he was born on a farm. He didn’t have a love for the land…that much was obvious. Strangely enough, he thought Shayne had respect for the land even though she chose to move out for a long time. He could see it in her eyes. It was there even if she didn’t realize it herself.

“Like some people we know,” Blade added.

Juston concentrated on his food. He didn’t want to encourage gossip about Max. The man was a weasel, but Juston had some standards, and he didn’t like to talk about former employers.

“So now, what we are going to do after lunch?” Shayne asked.

“Some of the guys are going off to fix the fence towards the east. They’ll be back after a couple of hours, and then we’ll drive the cattle towards the stream. We’ll cross it, allow them to spend some time on the pasture beyond it, and then start the ride home,” he explained. “The goal is to reach the farm before nightfall.”

“And you do this every day?”

“Every other day,” he admitted. “It’s important to let them rotate around the farm, so we go in different direction each time. It allows the grass to grow back before we return.”

“And what happens when you add sheep to this mix?”

“I heard Cullen is planning to buy some soon,” he replied. “Once she does so, we’ll be following a similar routine for the sheep but on alternate days. Luckily, the land is big enough to support many herds. It shouldn’t be a problem, but we’ll definitely need more people.” Juston stood and stretched. He cast an eye at the horses to make sure they were close by. If they lost a horse, it would take some precious time for them to recover it. The good thing was that Cullen and her team had trained the animals well and they never strayed beyond a certain distance. He did feel happy to work on this farm. There was a discipline that he appreciated, along with dollops of respect and a good camaraderie amongst the ranch hands. Graeme, even though he was in a relationship with the boss, didn’t throw his weight around and was a fair foreman.

He could easily make a home here.

As he glanced back, he saw Shayne gaze flick away from him.
Good.
So she wasn’t as unaffected by his presence as he thought. Perhaps there was some hope for them, or maybe he was just being too optimistic. “I’ll just walk around to make sure the cattle are all okay.”

“I’ll come with you.” She winced as she stood. “I sure could stretch my legs after sitting on the horse for so long.”

“We’ll be off then,” Blade said. He stood and motioned for the other men to get up, as well. “We’ll fix that fence and be back soon.”

“Take care.” Juston strode forward and she joined him. “You should put on your hat.”

Obediently, she stuck it on her head. “Thanks. I guess I’m not used to taking these basic precautions.”

“It will grow on you. It takes time to get into a new routine, but you’ve grown up on a farm, so it should be easy to slide back in.”

“I don’t know about that…” Her voice sounded wistful as she replied. “…It’s been far too long since I actually did some work on a farm. I think the city life has made me soft.”

He didn’t quite agree with her. Even though he didn’t know her well enough, Juston suspected that she had a spine of steel and would be able to tackle anything she set her mind to. “Did you like living in New York?” He changed the topic. “I visited once, but all that noise and the people…made my head spin.”

She laughed at his description. “I guess that happened to me when I first went there, but slowly I got used to it and yes, I loved it. For a long time…I was really happy. The city has its own charm and I was sucked right into it. The late night plans, the cocktail hours, and the glamorous events. It was exciting, interesting. I enjoyed it.”