Home on the Ranch: Rodeo Legend Read online

  Her eyes crinkled near the corners. “Great. I’ll see you then.”

  Chapter 2

  “Oh my gosh, Mom!”

  Bella could barely sit still on the seat next to her as Ava pulled to a stop in front of a massive Spanish-style barn with a terra-cotta roof and an off-white stucco exterior.

  “This place is ah-may-zing.”

  Ava would have to agree, a smile coming to her face at how animated her nine-year-old daughter had become. They’d driven for what seemed like forever along back roads until she’d seen the entrance to the ranch, then down an oak-studded driveway and then through vineyards until an oasis of homes and buildings and arenas had appeared. Who these people were, she had no idea, but it was clear they were wealthy.

  “I’m gonna look at the horses.”

  “Bella, wait,” she cried. But her daughter was off, dashing into the stable without waiting for Ava to get out of the SUV. “Darn it.”

  It wasn’t like Bella to disobey her, but she supposed she could be forgiven. For as long as she’d been old enough to talk, her favorite word had been horse. Before Paul had died they’d had plans...

  She slammed the door of her SUV because thoughts of Paul made her sad, especially on this day when one of his daughter’s fondest wishes had finally come true.

  “Mom, look!” Bella spun around. “Isn’t this gorgeous.”

  The place really was. Like something out of a movie set where a beautiful Spanish princess came to ride her steeds. The outside reminded her of a mission with its stucco exterior and red-tiled roof, but the inside was spacious and airy with wooden stalls that had wrought-iron bars across the fronts.

  Movement caught her eye as someone came through the opening at the far end. The man she’d been unable to forget.

  “Hey, there,” Carson Gillian said.

  Color stained her cheeks. She had no idea why. Perhaps because the man disturbed her on a purely feminine level that she did her best to ignore. Hard to do that with him right in front of her, though.

  “Good morning,” she said brightly.

  Bella turned from her position near a horse’s head. “Hi.”

  He glanced at her daughter and his face registered surprise for a moment. She wondered why.

  “You must be Bella.”

  “I am.”

  He walked toward her daughter with his good hand outstretched, the cast on his elbow blending with his white T-shirt so that it looked like he was wearing a long sleeve on one arm. She’d put it on him the other day, right after she’d asked him to let her bring Bella to his ranch. He’d been strangely quiet as she’d done it.

  A million times she’d told herself to back out of this visit. His invitation to Gillian Ranch had taken her by surprise, but once the offer had been made, it was hard to say no. Partly because Bella had been on her case since the move, but also because Ava was really hoping talk of horses would help distract Bella from some of the other problems she’d been having. Later, though, she wondered if she should’ve thought it through more. It wasn’t like her to pounce on a new patient and ask for favors—a clear sign of her desperation. And once she’d told Bella about Carson’s offer, there’d been no turning back.

  “Do I get to ride one?” Bella asked, her long brown ponytail nearly slapping her in the face when she turned back to the horse she’d been trying to pet.

  “Bella, no. That’s not what we’re here to do. Mr. Gillian just wanted to talk to you about what’s entailed when you own a horse.”

  “Actually.” He scratched the back of his neck. “I got to thinking about it, and we might have a horse or two that may, and I stress, may work out for her.”

  “Really?” Bella’s squeal startled the horse inside the stall.

  “Bella, quiet. I’m sure Mr. Gillian doesn’t want you scaring his horses.”

  “Do you mean we might actually buy a horse?” Bella’s eyes were wide. “Today.”

  “Well, I—”

  Carson shook his head, held up a hand. “Not unless I think it’s a perfect fit. And not until you learn how to ride. And how to care for a horse and clean their feet and feed them and groom them. And they’re not my horses. They’re my dad’s and uncle’s. These are their show horses. They’re used to people doing crazy things. But you should still keep your cool.”

  Bella looked suitably cowed.

  Ava tried to keep from staring at Carson by pretending an interest in her surroundings. One of the other residents had told her Carson’s dad and uncle were famous rodeo riders, or they had been. Now they raised cutting horses—specialized horses used to herd cows—according to her coworker. Some of the finest in the nation. He’d encouraged her to take Bella to the ranch, which had made her feel marginally better for putting a perfect stranger on the spot and enlisting his help. And so here she was and, if she were honest, a bit reluctantly because long after Carson Gillian had left the hospital she’d thought about him, and not in an impersonal I’m-going-to-operate-on-you kind of way.

  Ridiculously good-looking.

  That was the thought that’d kept crossing her mind, and it was confirmed this morning as he stood there in his well-worn blue jeans that looked on the verge of blowing out in the rear section.

  She blushed again.

  “Thanks for letting us visit.” She felt the need to say it because Bella had run off to another stall and suddenly she was alone with him and feeling more and more self-conscious by the moment.

  “My pleasure.” He smiled, his thick brows lifting. “Least I could do, given what you plan to do for me.” He raised his wounded arm.

  You’ve had other good-looking patients before. So what’s different about this one?

  But she knew the answer to that, and she’d known it that day in the hospital. He reminded her of Paul. It wasn’t just his good looks. It was his rugged masculinity. It was the way he carried himself. Because even sitting in a hospital bed he’d had the air of a man who did what he wanted to do and damn how his loved ones felt about it. A man to avoid. She’d learned that lesson the hard way.

  “What’s this one’s name?” Bella called, peeking between horizontal round bars that kept the horse from peeking out. “He’s so pretty.”

  “She is called Flashy.” Carson’s smile grew. “For obvious reasons.”

  They paused outside the horse’s stall and Carson moved forward to open a tiny door in the upper half. The horse immediately poked her head out, her long blond mane touching the rim of the opening, her kind brown eyes fixed on Bella.

  “Wow,” Ava said. “That mane makes her the female Fabio of horses, doesn’t it?”

  Carson smiled. “Thus, the name Flashy.”

  “Can I pet her?” Bella asked.

  “Of course.”

  Bella seemed in awe and it softened Ava’s discomfort as she caught the joy in her daughter’s eyes. She’d worn her “riding outfit” today, a pair of beige tights that she said looked just like riding breeches on TV and a pair of Western boots. Her favorite shirt, one that was getting too small but that featured the head of the animal she loved amid a white backdrop, hugged her little-girl body. She’d pulled her brown hair back into a ponytail. It showed off her profile and her little button nose, which sat beneath brown eyes. Based on the smile on her face, she was blissfully, completely, entranced with her surroundings.

  Okay, so maybe petitioning a patient for help wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

  Ava moved up to the horse, holding out a hand. “She’s a beautiful animal.” She met Bella’s gaze and smiled.

  “Isn’t she, Mom? I love her.”

  “She’s one of the best horses in the barn,” Carson said. “Never cheats a rider. Always gives you her all. We plan to breed her when she’s done showing.”

  “Neat,” Bella cooed.

  Ava took a deep breath and told herself to rel
ax. This was going to be so great for her daughter. It was just what they needed.

  “How many horses do you have here?” Ava asked.

  “Me, personally?” Carson asked. “Two. I rope off them.”

  “But not now,” said the doctor in her.

  “No.” He shook his head. “We have about twenty-five on-site. It’s a lot of work, which is something I meant to ask you about the other day. How soon after surgery will I be able to ride again?”

  She saw it then...a hint of worry in his eyes. She’d seen that same look on his face at the hospital, and on other faces throughout the years, and not just on the professional athletes. She said the same thing she always said: “Not until after the bones are fully knitted, and definitely not until after some therapy.”

  He seemed disappointed by her answer. That, too, was par for the course.

  “Look, I know it’s tough to suddenly slow down—”

  “You have no idea.”

  Actually she did after watching so many patients go through it. “You have to give it time, but I have no doubt you’ll be back in the saddle one day soon.”

  “What happened to you?” Bella asked, concern on her face. She was always so worried about everyone else, probably because of her own loss early in life.

  “I was coming out of the roping chute and my horse hit the barrier so hard he tripped.”

  “Barrier?” Bella asked.

  “It’s a rope that hangs across the front of a roping chute. It keeps a horse and rider back while the steer has time to run out.”

  Bella nodded. Ava smiled, hoping she never lost her curiosity about the unknown.

  “Somehow I ended up coming off. Banged my elbow on the chute, although I don’t know how. I must have twisted or something when I fell.”

  “So my mom’s going to operate on it?” Bella asked.

  Carson nodded. “Hoping it’ll be as good as new.”

  Bella reached for his arm, the good one, resting her fingers on it. “I hope so, too, Mr. Gillian.”

  It was such a kindhearted thing to do, it made Ava’s heart swell with pride. Maybe she wasn’t such a bad parent after all, although it sometimes felt that way with the hours she worked.

  When she glanced at Carson, it was in time to see him staring down at Bella in bemusement. “Like mother, like daughter.”

  Damn her fair complexion. Did he see the way her cheeks filled with color again? She pretended an interest in her turquoise-colored shirt, plucking at an imaginary string.

  “Mr. Gillian, can I see the horse I’m going to ride?” Bella smiled up at him.

  “Sure.” Carson stepped away, so quickly Ava wondered if maybe he had spotted her embarrassment, or if, horror upon horrors, he somehow knew she’d been thinking about him nonstop. “I’ll go get you a halter.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Bella said, darting off after him.

  The horse Bella had been petting shook her head then turned her attention to Ava, staring at her as if expecting something.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” she muttered. “I’m just the doctor.”

  Yeah. Keep telling yourself that, Ava.

  * * *

  The girl was a quick study when it came time to catching Little Red, the pony she would ride. All too soon they were headed back to the barn, Bella chatting the whole way about how she’d always wanted a horse, but her mom wouldn’t let her have one until they were settled, but then they’d moved to Via Del Caballo and at last it’s finally happening—all said in a rush and maybe without a breath between sentences. It made Carson smile.

  “Mom, look,” Bella called. “This is Little Red.”

  Ava was right where he’d left her, standing in the middle of the barn aisle, looking pensive.

  “Last name—Riding Hood,” Carson quipped.

  And there it was again. The smile. The one that gave him pause and made him wonder how he could have ever thought his new doctor was average looking the first time he’d met her.

  “Isn’t she pretty, Mom?” Bella reached back and patted the mare’s neck. “I love her.”

  “She is pretty, honey.”

  “Why don’t you clip those ties right there to her halter?” Carson suggested, almost glad to turn away and help the little girl secure the horse between two rope ties. Ava stood back and watched.

  She’s a mom, he told himself. He’d never dated a mom before, and he wasn’t about to start. And she was way smarter than he would ever be. A doctor. Successful. Top of her field. The complete opposite of him. He’d barely made it through college, had figured an education didn’t matter when he’d be able to rope his whole life. Only now that might be taken away, and that made his stomach roll in the same sickening way it did on a boat.

  “In the last room on the right, Bella—” he pointed down the barn aisle “—you’ll find a box of brushes. Pick a few and I’ll show you how to groom a horse.”

  Bella took off like a rabbit. She all but skipped down the aisle.

  “She barely slept a wink all night.”

  He wasn’t surprised. He’d seen her type before. Horse crazy to a T. Or maybe a capital H. “She seems like a good kid.”

  “The best.”

  Something about Ava’s thoughtful expression had him studying her carefully. Her face unfolded into an expression of sorrow, but changed back so quickly he wondered if he’d imagined it.

  “Listen. I was thinking maybe I could give her some lessons.” He motioned with his chin toward his arm. “I’ll be out of commission anyway, and it’d be a great way for me to earn some extra cash. Plus, it’ll be easier to know what kind of horse she needs once she gets a little more experience.”

  “Lessons, wow.” She crossed her arms in front of her, hugging herself tight. “She would love that.”

  “I wouldn’t charge much. But if you’d rather not do business with a patient...”

  “No, no. I’m fine with that.”

  “You don’t have to decide right now. If you want to talk it over with your husband, and maybe Bella, too, you can get back to me.”

  He had no idea why he mentioned “husband,” but the moment he did, he saw her flinch.

  Her eyes swung away from his. “Bella’s father passed away.”

  The words were so unexpected they rocked him back on his heels. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay. He died when she was two. I’m the only one that makes decisions in the family.”

  A widow. For at least six or seven years. So that meant she’d raised Bella on her own. Wow. What a remarkable woman.

  “Great. Well, just let me know if you want to do it.”

  “Will these work?” Bella ran back down the aisle, slowing as she approached the horse, clearly worried she might frighten Little Red.

  She learned quickly, he’d give her that.

  “Those are perfect.”

  “Baby, I’m going to run some errands while you work with Mr. Gillian.”

  “Carson,” he corrected.

  “Aw, Mommy. Do you have to?”

  “I’ll be back in a flash.” She came forward and hugged the little girl, kissing her on her head. “You’ll have more fun without me.”

  “You don’t have to leave,” he said on her way by, worried he’d upset her.

  “I know. I just have a really busy day.”

  He wanted to say something further. Words hovered on the tip of his tongue. But what to say? He’d already told her he was sorry.

  “I’ll see you later.” She walked off without another word.

  Chapter 3

  She’d turned into a coward.

  Why had she mentioned Paul? For the love of all that was holy, she’d almost told him that Bella wasn’t her biological daughter, too. Whatever had possessed her? Usually she kept quiet about her personal life, and yet
here she was opening up to him. She shouldn’t have done that. She needed to keep things impersonal. She would be operating on him soon, for goodness’ sake. That was all he was to her. A patient.

  But later, when Bella came running out of the stable the moment she drove up, Ava knew she was kidding herself. She found the man ridiculously attractive. Years ago he’d have been just her type. She’d always been drawn to masculine, outdoorsy guys. She would not go down that road again.

  “Mom, Carson needs to talk to you.”

  Oh, great. Just what she needed. “Okay, honey. I’m coming.”

  Bella took her hand, tugging her inside. She found Carson right where she’d left him, standing at one end of the barn, the horse he’d given to Bella to groom snorting in boredom, or so it sounded.

  “Here she is.”

  If ever she needed evidence of how completely uninteresting Carson found her, she had it right then. He barely looked in her direction. She was just Dr. Moore to him. Nothing else. The realization deflated her shoulders.

  “If she wants to ride, she’ll need different shoes,” he said.

  “Can I ride? Can I? Huh?”

  Bella’s excitement was evident and Ava found herself glancing down at her daughter’s feet. He must have read the confusion on her face.

  “They have the wrong kind of heel,” he said with a slight smile that made him even more handsome.

  Oh, Ava. You have it so bad.

  “Don’t get me wrong,” he added. “They’re nice boots and all, but I bet you bought them at a department store, not a tack store.”

  She’d done exactly that. They sure looked like cowboy boots to her, though. “What’s wrong with the heel?”

  “It isn’t tacked on right, not like real cowboy boots are. It’ll come off if it bangs the stirrup hard enough. Plus the foot’s too narrow. It’ll slip through the stirrup and get her caught up if we’re not careful. And they have that strap thing around the ankle, which means I can’t put her in spurs. They might look like real cowboy boots, but they’re not.”