attracted to her, she wanted to run from him as fast as her legs could travel.
“It’s no problem. Emily was a great help to me today and I enjoyed her company.”
Resting his forearms on the open window of the truck, he studied her with a slow sweep of his brown eyes. A part of Rose wanted to jerk the gearshift in first and step on the gas. The other part of her, that crazy melting part, wanted to lean her face into his, lift her fingers to his cheek and beg him to kiss her again.
“You were very tired last night,” he said lowly. “You should have rested today. But I can see you didn’t.”
The blue scarf she’d been wearing this morning was gone and now her long hair fell in disheveled waves around her face. There was dust on her face and clothes, beads of sweat on her upper lip and dark shadows of fatigue under her eyes.
Her beauty stirred the man in him, but it was her wearinessthat touched something deep inside him. She was a soft, gentle woman. She shouldn’t have to work like a man. But he supposed it was the choice she’d made for herself. Or had Tomas’s philandering taken away any sort of choices she might have had?
“Rose, had your father taken out other mortgages on the Bar M?” he asked with sudden bluntness. “I’m talking about loans other than the one I made him.”
Where was this coming from? Rose wondered. She’d thought he was going to say thank-you, goodbye, see you tomorrow, then let her be on her way.
Stifling a sigh, she switched off the engine and looked at him. “No. At least we don’t know of any other loans. There were all sorts of loans at the bank where he’d purchased cattle and horses. But thank goodness, the livestock had been used as collateral. We sold all those to pay off the promissory notes.”
“I know you probably think I’m prying,” he said, “but there’s a reason for my asking.”
She didn’t want to look at him when he was close to her like this. It made her remember when she’d believed in the love of a man and a woman, in marriage and all the things that came with living together. In short, looking into Harlan’s face made her very, very vulnerable.
“What is it?” she asked.
“There is a way you and your sisters could get out of this mess. And I’d be perfectly comfortable with the idea.”
“A way out? Of debt, you mean?” she asked guardedly.
He nodded. “You could sell the Bar M. Pay off your debt to me and have the awful burden of keeping it going lifted from your shoulders.”
“Sell it? To you, I presume?”
He looked truly surprised by her assumption. “Good heavens, no! What makes you think I’d want to purchase the Bar M?”
Her gaze moved from him to a bug splatter on the windshield. “Well, you are a Texan and they like things big.”
His deep laughter tugged her eyes back to his face. “Believe me, the Flying H is plenty big enough for this Texan.
“Maybe so. But you’ve got to admit you could use the water.”
He lifted the battered straw hat from his head and combed his fingers through his hair. As Rose watched him she wondered what it would feel like to run her fingers through those dark, damp strands, to lock her hands at the back of his neck and draw his head down to hers.
“Rose? Did you hear me?”
She stared at him blankly, totally stunned at how far her thoughts had taken her. “Oh—I was thinking about—about something else. What were you saying?”
“I was saying it would be to my financial advantage to drill wells on my own place rather than purchase the Bar M for water.”
“Yes. I suppose so,” she said, hoping her cheeks didn’t look as red as they felt. If he were to ever know the erotic images she had of him, it would be disastrous. “And I’m sorry if I sounded suspicious, but after everything that has happened I can’t help but think the worst. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust…well, I guess I’m always going to have my guard up.”
She didn’t have to tell
“It’s no problem. Emily was a great help to me today and I enjoyed her company.”
Resting his forearms on the open window of the truck, he studied her with a slow sweep of his brown eyes. A part of Rose wanted to jerk the gearshift in first and step on the gas. The other part of her, that crazy melting part, wanted to lean her face into his, lift her fingers to his cheek and beg him to kiss her again.
“You were very tired last night,” he said lowly. “You should have rested today. But I can see you didn’t.”
The blue scarf she’d been wearing this morning was gone and now her long hair fell in disheveled waves around her face. There was dust on her face and clothes, beads of sweat on her upper lip and dark shadows of fatigue under her eyes.
Her beauty stirred the man in him, but it was her wearinessthat touched something deep inside him. She was a soft, gentle woman. She shouldn’t have to work like a man. But he supposed it was the choice she’d made for herself. Or had Tomas’s philandering taken away any sort of choices she might have had?
“Rose, had your father taken out other mortgages on the Bar M?” he asked with sudden bluntness. “I’m talking about loans other than the one I made him.”
Where was this coming from? Rose wondered. She’d thought he was going to say thank-you, goodbye, see you tomorrow, then let her be on her way.
Stifling a sigh, she switched off the engine and looked at him. “No. At least we don’t know of any other loans. There were all sorts of loans at the bank where he’d purchased cattle and horses. But thank goodness, the livestock had been used as collateral. We sold all those to pay off the promissory notes.”
“I know you probably think I’m prying,” he said, “but there’s a reason for my asking.”
She didn’t want to look at him when he was close to her like this. It made her remember when she’d believed in the love of a man and a woman, in marriage and all the things that came with living together. In short, looking into Harlan’s face made her very, very vulnerable.
“What is it?” she asked.
“There is a way you and your sisters could get out of this mess. And I’d be perfectly comfortable with the idea.”
“A way out? Of debt, you mean?” she asked guardedly.
He nodded. “You could sell the Bar M. Pay off your debt to me and have the awful burden of keeping it going lifted from your shoulders.”
“Sell it? To you, I presume?”
He looked truly surprised by her assumption. “Good heavens, no! What makes you think I’d want to purchase the Bar M?”
Her gaze moved from him to a bug splatter on the windshield. “Well, you are a Texan and they like things big.”
His deep laughter tugged her eyes back to his face. “Believe me, the Flying H is plenty big enough for this Texan.
“Maybe so. But you’ve got to admit you could use the water.”
He lifted the battered straw hat from his head and combed his fingers through his hair. As Rose watched him she wondered what it would feel like to run her fingers through those dark, damp strands, to lock her hands at the back of his neck and draw his head down to hers.
“Rose? Did you hear me?”
She stared at him blankly, totally stunned at how far her thoughts had taken her. “Oh—I was thinking about—about something else. What were you saying?”
“I was saying it would be to my financial advantage to drill wells on my own place rather than purchase the Bar M for water.”
“Yes. I suppose so,” she said, hoping her cheeks didn’t look as red as they felt. If he were to ever know the erotic images she had of him, it would be disastrous. “And I’m sorry if I sounded suspicious, but after everything that has happened I can’t help but think the worst. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust…well, I guess I’m always going to have my guard up.”
She didn’t have to tell
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