Expecting the Rancher's Child (Callahan's Clan) (3 page)

She watched his hands as he poured drinks. He had fine, strong hands, which were probably good for ranch work. Maybe the isolation of this spread was what he preferred because he had a warped view of the world and a poor opinion of people in general.

When he held out a glass of pale white wine, she reached to take it, her fingers touching his lightly. He looked up, his gaze meeting hers. “Thanks,” she said, taking her drink and sliding off the bar stool to cross the room and look at his pool. But she didn’t see the water as questions swirled in her thoughts. Why did she have this intense reaction to him? Worse, why did he feel the chemistry, too?

“Running away from me?” he asked in a deeper tone as he joined her.

Startled, she met his probing gaze and wondered how long this reaction to him would continue. She didn’t want to try to guess what he was thinking at the moment. It was impossible to miss the blatant look of desire in the depths of his brown eyes.

“We better stick to talking about business,” she replied, wishing she didn’t sound so breathless. How could she have this reaction to him when he wasn’t doing anything to cause it, and when they held such opposing views of the world?

“Blake, we’re not going there,” she whispered.

Suddenly, he looked mildly amused, which shattered the intensity of the moment. “Not going where, Sierra?” Exasperation pricked her.

“You know where. I don’t know why we have this chemistry between us, but we need to ignore it, avoid it and hope it will go away because I’m sure you don’t want to feel it any more than I do.”

“I’m hurt,” he teased, his eyes twinkling. “I didn’t know I was such an ogre that you don’t want to find me attractive.”

“Right now, you’re moving into an area where neither of us should go,” she snapped, losing her usual good nature and patience. She was on edge because of her reaction to him, and his sudden flirting was only adding fuel to the fire.

He laughed softly. “Relax, Sierra. I know our relationship is a professional one, but while you’re living here, we might as well indulge in some unbusinesslike moments.”

With an effort, she smiled and tried to bank her impatience with him. He had made light of that intense moment, and she was certain it had meant nothing to him. She wanted him to feel that it meant nothing to her, too. She had no intention of letting him know the extent of the edgy, sharp physical awareness she had of him as a sexy, attractive male.

She suspected a man like Blake did not need any coaxing to entice him into a physical relationship. She was certain he had attracted females from a young age and was fully aware of the effect he had on women.

“If that big check you gave me included anything besides the design work you described in my office, then the deal’s off.”

Instantly the amusement left his expression. “Hey, Sierra. Absolutely not. My teasing was in fun and meant nothing.”

She realized her reaction had been too strong. Her past biased her. She tried to relax, getting them back on a casual, friendly footing. “I don’t know you well at all. Just making sure we understand each other,” she said, smiling at him.

“Good. Have a seat. Etta is in the kitchen, and Wendell is helping her get dinner on the table. I’ll introduce you to her. She’s a fantastic cook, which always makes it easy to come home.”

“You think of the ranch as home,” she said a few moments later, after they’d stepped outside and were sitting in chairs facing his patio.

“I told you that I love it here. This is my haven. I can come out here and enjoy the total silence. Sometimes you hear the wind, and sometimes you don’t even hear that. For a few minutes I can imagine the whole world is at peace. Even if it’s not, my little corner of it is.” He grinned. “Obviously, I like the ranch and I’m happiest here.”

“You’re fortunate. Far luckier than you give much thought to. I work with people daily who don’t have a haven, not even a tiny one. Then, there are those who surprise me—one would think they couldn’t possibly feel at peace because they own nothing, but they have an inner sense of a haven. That’s resilience, and it’s amazing.”

“You really like working with those people, don’t you?” he asked, looking more intently at her. He sounded surprised.

“More than anything. It’s the most wonderful feeling in the world to help someone, or rescue an animal and find it a loving home, or make someone’s life easier. That’s the best possible reward.”

“That’s commendable, but in my experience people don’t change. You can work your fingers to the bone and not make a difference. With the career you had, there were some very tangible financial rewards and lasting legacies. You could have built your own business instead of working with people who will disappoint and deceive you.”

“You have a cynical view of the world. Expect more from people, Blake. There’s a deep-rooted goodness in most people. Look for that and believe in it.”

“I’m just puzzled. You’ve tossed over a spectacular, successful career, a fabulous reputation and a hefty income for something that will take infinite patience, probably have low financial returns and be a lot of hard work that sometimes goes unappreciated and unrewarded.”

“Wow, Blake. That’s strong. You’re only looking at the downside of what I do.”

“Just looking at it honestly because I can’t understand your great faith in the goodness of human nature.”

“I don’t know what you’ve experienced, but I have seen that people are good and can live up to high expectations, or occasionally exceed them. Look at you. You don’t need money, yet you work hard to build your hotel business.”

He looked away and was silent a moment. She noticed a muscle flex in his jaw and wondered why her question caused him to tense up.

“I want to know that I can be a success in the business world as well as in the ranching world. We all have our goals.”

Wendell appeared, wearing a white apron over his jeans. “Dinner is served.”

“Thank you.” Blake stood. “Leave your wine. There will be some poured at the table.”

She walked with him toward the front of the house, and then they turned into the wide hall. In minutes Wendell directed them to a kitchen that was big enough to hold her Kansas City apartment, but the tempting smell of beef assailed her before she ever stepped inside. Doors stood open to reveal stainless steel appliances and state-of-the-art cookware that, when not in use, would be out of sight behind the elegant dark wood. A tall, slender woman with her brown hair clipped at the back of her head, smiled. Etta wore a white apron over a black uniform.

“Sierra, this is Etta Strong, my cook. Etta, this is Ms. Benson, who is here to plan the decor for our new wing.”

“So what’s for dinner tonight?” he asked as soon as the women had greeted each other.

“Tossed salad with chunks of lobster, slices of avocado on the side and French dressing. Prime rib, asparagus hollandaise, mashed potatoes and gravy and buttermilk biscuits. With homemade peach ice cream,” Etta answered.

“That sounds like a fabulous banquet,” Sierra remarked.

“When you’re seated, I’ll get you started.”

As Sierra walked with Blake to the adjoining informal dining area, she had another view of gardens and his irrigated yard, and marveled at the luxury of his lifestyle. She was thankful again for his check, and after their earlier conversation, she knew he needed to see some of the good his money would do.

They sat at a table that could easily seat ten. Wendell came with a bottle of red wine and one of white. He asked Sierra her choice and tipped red into her glass before pouring Blake’s.

Etta set the prime rib in front of Blake for him to carve. She returned with a bowl of steaming asparagus that she served.

After the first bite of prime rib, Sierra sipped her wine and smiled at Blake. “I have to agree—you have a fabulous cook. This is delicious.”

“Wait until you try her homemade ice cream. Wendell helps her with that.”

“No wonder you like the ranch so much.”

He smiled. “The food is the best, but there’s more than food. Have you ever been to a rodeo?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Actually, one of the best is in New York City, the Professional Bull Riders at Madison Square Garden,” he explained.

“Do you ever participate locally?”

“Sometimes—not as much now as I used to. I have ridden bulls a couple of times, but not seriously. That’s a bit rougher than I’m up for.”

“Aw, shucks,” she said, smiling. “So I won’t see someone I actually know in a rodeo. The pictures I’ve seen look wild.”

“That’s the thrill of it,” he said, and she laughed.

Through dinner, he was charming, keeping the same professional manner as if they were at a business dinner in Kansas City. Even so, there was an undercurrent of sensual awareness, and every minute spent in his company drew her closer to him and heightened his appeal.

As Wendell removed her dinner plate, she smiled. “My compliments to the chef. That was one of the most delicious dinners I’ve ever eaten. I don’t know which was best—that prime rib or those fantastic biscuits.”

“Thank you,” Wendell said, smiling as he started toward the kitchen. “I’ll tell Etta.”

Sierra looked at Blake. “I meant every word of that. What a marvelous cook you have.”

“I do everything I can to hang on to both of them. Etta has a reputation throughout the county—and probably farther than that. If she decided to leave, she would have so many offers, I don’t know how she would decide.”

The peach ice cream was served with white chocolate chip cookies, and they lingered over coffee, which Sierra barely touched. Once again, she thought about the homeless people at the shelter and how they often lived with hunger. Blake’s check would provide food for so many, and again, she felt enormous gratitude for his donation.

“Etta should open a restaurant—talk about natural talent for a job.”

“Don’t put ideas in her head,” he teased.

“Did she cook for your family before cooking for you?” she asked. For a fleeting second, she saw a hard look cross his features. It was gone so quickly, she thought she must have imagined it.

“No. The family she cooked for decided to move to South Texas and sell their ranch. I was friends with her son growing up. We’re the same age and went through school together. He’s a great guy. After graduation from high school, he went to the Air Force Academy and now flies fighter jets. He’s stationed in Europe. They have four other kids who are scattered except for an older, married daughter who has four kids. She lives in Dallas, and the grandkids come out here a lot and stay with Etta and Wendell. They’re cute kids, and we have horses for them—except the little one, who’s too young to turn loose yet.”

“That’s great. Were you born and raised in Dallas?” she asked. This time she had no doubt about the shuttered look she received.

“Yes. My father divorced my mother before I was a year old. He severed all ties with us, so I grew up without knowing him. He has never been a part of my life. If he’s ever spoken to me, it was before I was old enough to remember. I don’t know why, but my mother has never remarried.”

He spoke in a flat voice, and she realized she had touched on a sensitive area. “I’m sorry, Blake,” she said, meaning it, unable to imagine how devastating it would be if her father had rejected her. She thought about her generous, loving dad who had always been a big part of all his children’s lives.

Blake’s voice dropped, and she heard a note of amusement. “Sierra, don’t ever play poker. You look like you’ll start crying over me any minute. Of course, if you want to hold me close and try to console me for being abandoned—”

“Forget it, Blake,” she interrupted, laughing at him. “I see you survived and grew up quite well.”

“I’m friends with my father’s other sons, my half brothers, now because the oldest one and I went to school together. He’s a little younger, but we played football together in high school. Enough said on that subject. Where are you from? New York?”

Still thinking about his abandonment by his father before the age of one, she shook her head. “No. I’m from Kansas. That’s why I came back to work in Kansas City. My dad’s a minister, and I have a big family with a lot of contacts in the city. My mother is a retired teacher, and most of my family is involved in charity projects related to my job. Mom and two of my sisters volunteer at our animal rescue shelter. Dad runs some programs to help people from the shelter get to church. He has free breakfasts at his church every morning… I could keep going. There are six kids in my family, fourteen grandkids and a foster grandchild—soon to be adopted. I’m the one with no kids.”

“That’s a big family. It’s a very different lifestyle from my background, where I grew up with just two of us at home—Mom and me.”

“We were always free to bring our friends home with us, so we constantly had a house filled with kids,” she said, unable to imagine a home of just two.

“Don’t look at me like I was left by myself on the street,” he said with a grin. “I’m not one of your charity projects, although that might be interesting.”

She smiled in return. “There is no way I could see you as a charity project at any point in time. I suspect your mother showered you with love, and you had friends galore.”

“I always thought so,” he answered easily. “Let’s move and let Etta and Wendell clean up and go home.”

“Sure. I want to step into the kitchen and tell Etta how wonderful dinner was. I can’t imagine having someone like that cook for you all the time.”

“It is another draw the ranch holds, although if I had to live in Dallas year round, I’d try to get her to move with me. Wendell, too, of course.”

Blake waited while she went to the kitchen to tell Etta and Wendell again how wonderful dinner had been. She returned to find him leaning one shoulder against a door jamb and looking at her legs. His gaze flew up to meet hers, and there was no mistaking the blatant sexual speculation in his expression.

Trying to ignore the unguarded moment, she crossed the room to join him, and they walked into the big living area overlooking the patio and pool.

“Tell me when you’re ready, and I’ll show you the new wing. We can take a quick look tonight and go over the rooms in detail tomorrow—or we can skip anything related to work tonight and let you relax.”