A Cowboy For Christmas by Kristen James Page B

the counter while
she poured water and set the vase down. But she smelled his
cologne, felt his presence.
    She looked up. He watched
her, too, his lips parted and his eyes aglow with something like
sentiment or reverence. Whatever it was, it stopped her from moving
or breathing for a full minute.
    He swallowed and she shook
herself. So that was what it felt like when the world stopped. She
took his hand for the short walk outside into the chilly night to
the truck. It was still running, so the inside was warm.
    “ How did today go?” It’d
been the first thought and she needed something to stop her
escalating emotions. How could he get her so worked up?
    “ We got the roof done.” He
looked over to answer, and she was pretty sure he looked down to
her breasts and then to her legs.
    She smoothed her hands down
her skirt, glad she’d worn the short skirt, even if it was winter.
“That’s good.”
    “ Nervous?”
    “ We’re being honest about
it?” She didn’t want to answer, but that answered for her. Could he
be nervous, too? With his calm exterior, she had no way to tell.
Even when he took on jumpy horses or tall ladders, he didn’t look
nervous.
    He turned on the radio to a
country station. There were a lot of things she could discuss with
him, but the lack of conversation felt nice for now. Maybe he
already understood she was thankful when he backed off the night
before. She’d been so ready until she had time to think about
it.
    It wasn’t that she needed
time. She just liked to think things over. And she had. Quite a
lot.
    He pulled into the
restaurant parking lot and turned off the engine.
    “ I get to open your door
for you.” He jumped out and came around. She’d never seen the point
in that type of thing, but she had to admit she liked it when he
offered his hand. “Did I tell you how beautiful you
look?”
    “ Thanks.” She linked her
arm though his. “I thought you might appreciate something besides
Wranglers.”
    “ Now, you can’t knock
Wranglers. Especially if you could see your cute little butt in
them.” He gave it a pat before grabbing the restaurant door. The
unexpected touch left her skin tingling. Inside, they were seated
right away despite the dinner crowd.
    She studied her menu, but
noted he studied her curves. She’d worn a burgundy top with lace at
the neckline. It swooped down lower than her work shirts. Combined
with the skirt, it seemed to get his attention.
    “ Our waiter is coming.” She
set her menu aside. “Did you decide?”
    “ Oh, yeah, I know what I
want.” The pure appreciation in his eyes let her know it,
too.
    She tried not to blush as
the waiter approached their table. Brent turned and ordered,
knowing what he wanted though he hadn’t looked at the menu. It
sounded so good, she ordered it as well. Alone again, they both
smiled, staring.
    “ I take it you don’t offer
trail rides in the winter.” She decided to talk about the ranch, a
safe subject.
    “ Not yet. There’s several
stables along the coast that do, and they’re much bigger. We take
their overflow in peak season.”
    “ Do you plan to expand?”
She’d controlled the urge to ask this kind of question before, in
case it brought back the tension.
    “ I’m sure we will someday.
And I guess you have a say in that now.” His tone wasn’t cold. But
they were on thin ice, she knew.
    “ I still want to know what
you planned.” She wanted to be a part of the stables and the plans,
not take over.
    “ I saw a vision of the
place, and that’s pretty much what it is right now. I have the
land, the horses, and the beach nearby.” His gaze dropped down to
the table. She didn’t think he was mad, but he was closing up in
himself. Something was off.
    Ben.
    They hadn’t spoken much
about her late brother. She couldn’t hold it against him, since
they hadn’t known each other for a long period of time. Things were
going well enough for her to want to stay on longer, and he seemed
to want that as