Texas Tender Read online

  “And my name is Will. Calling me Mr. Haskins makes me feel like I ought to be responsible for something.”

  She had followed him outside, but she couldn’t see his face in the glare of the sun. “Apparently, you don’t feel you’re responsible for anything.”

  “Begging your pardon, ma’am—I mean Idalou— but I’ve only heard your side of the story. For all I know, you could have sold the bull to Mr. Mc-Gloughlin and now you’re trying to hornswaggle me into helping you steal it back so you can sell it to me.”

  “I’d never do anything as despicable as that!” Idalou exclaimed. “I can’t believe you’d even think it.”

  “I don’t,” he said, with a smile Idalou now thought was evil rather than dazzling. “I’m just trying to make the point that I can’t go busting into situations when I don’t know any of the facts or the people involved. Hell, I’d have to be a better shot than Luke if I was to do that and come out with a whole skin.”

  “Who’s Luke?”

  “One of my adopted brothers. He’s a hired gunslinger. His brother Chet used to be one, too, but he quit when he got married.”

  Idalou was losing her grip on the makeup of the Maxwell family. “You’re welcome to look into the facts as much as you wish while you hang out in the Swinging Door—that is, if you’re sober enough or can summon the energy—but you’ll find the facts are exactly as I’ve stated them.”

  “I’m sure they are, and I’ll be happy to speak to the sheriff on your behalf.”

  “I can speak to the sheriff on my own behalf,” Idalou said between gritted teeth.

  “I have no doubt you’d do so very eloquently,” Will said, “but I was assuming you’d already done so without the desired results.”

  She wasn’t about to tell him that the sheriff—when last they’d had one—had basically ignored her complaints about McGloughlin. “Jordan McGloughlin is a very clever man as well as a very powerful one. Even if I had absolute proof of everything he’s done, I’m not sure the men who’ve been our sheriff would have done anything about it. It’s very difficult for a woman to be taken seriously when she goes up against a man with money and influence.”

  “I understand, and I’m really sorry there’s nothing I can do.”

  She got the feeling he was holding back, that he wanted to help but wouldn’t let himself. The change was subtle, but she had the sense he had dropped his facade and was actually speaking to her instead of acting a role.

  “You have to understand I have no standing in this situation,” he continued. “But that’s not the most important reason. In a few days, I won’t be here to protect you. If I intervene, it’ll leave you vulnerable between two very powerful neighbors.”

  Idalou knew he was right, but that didn’t keep her from being angry at him. “You might as well head back to town. My brother will let you know when he gets the bull back.”

  “I hope it’s soon,” he said, falling back into his glib role. “I know you want to get the sale completed as soon as possible.”

  She had to get the sale completed soon. The bank loan was coming due and she didn’t have the money for the next installment. If she couldn’t pay it, the bank would auction off their property. McGloughlin would get her ranch at a low price, and she and her brother would be practically destitute.

  “Since neither finding the bull nor completing the sale quickly is important to you, I won’t keep you any longer.” Idalou tried to inject every bit of disdain possible into her tone of voice. “I’m sure you’ll find more convivial company at the Swinging Door.”

  “Maybe more welcoming, but certainly not more attractive,” Will said.

  She felt her cheeks grow warm, but she quickly recovered. “I don’t like flattery.” Idalou was certain Will believed fancy words would solve any problem. With a face like his, he was probably right. She had to keep reminding herself she was furious at him, that he was a graceless scamp. She probably ought to thank Mc-Gloughlin for making it impossible for her to close the sale today. She had gone so weak in the knees when she’d set eyes on Will, he could probably have talked her into selling the bull for any price he named.

  “Neither do I,” Will said, his eyes surprisingly hard. “I’ve experienced it often enough. But I’ve also seen enough women to know there aren’t many more attractive and spirited than you. If you think that’s flattery, you need a better mirror.”

  Now Idalou was angry at herself for letting her temper get the better of her. “There’s more to me than a face.”

  Will leaned against the porch rail, a quirky smile causing his eyes to gleam with amusement. “I was warned I’d need plenty of liquid courage if I had to tangle with you.”

  Idalou knew people talked about her temper. Considering how she’d behaved toward him during the last twenty minutes, he probably believed the talk was justified. “It makes me angry that people don’t take me seriously just because I’m a woman.”

  “You ought to meet up with Isabelle. The two of you probably wouldn’t stop talking for weeks.”

  Even if they did share an idea or two, Idalou thought it was probably better that she kept a safe distance from Will’s peculiar family. “I really have to go help Carl look for the bull. You may be in no hurry, but I am.”

  Will walked down from the porch and unhitched his horse, a sleek quarter horse of good breeding. “I’ll get out of your way. I hope you find him soon.”

  As she watched Will mount up and ride off, she was irritated that she’d gone and done just what the men in town had said she would. They said she was too temperamental, but she was temperamental because they ignored her efforts to be taken seriously. She’d been foolish to let Will Haskins’s handsome face make her think he would be different. Webb Mc-Gloughlin had been unfaithful as well as reckless. Van Sonnenberg was the worst of the bunch. Was it possible to find a man who was honest as well as hardworking and dependable? A man who believed a woman was worth paying attention to at other places, besides the table or the bed?

  A tremor shook her. The thought of sharing a bed with Will Haskins was like being struck by lightning. If she had any sense, she’d put him out of her mind. It wasn’t any consolation to know he was so handsome that any woman would be overwhelmed just by meeting him. She couldn’t afford to act like any woman. Her father had never listened to her, and now the ranch was in trouble. Webb hadn’t listened to her when she’d begged him not to ride the rogue horse that killed him. Carl wouldn’t listen to her because he was in love with Mara. Idalou refused to let Will ignore her. She had a ranch to save, a brother to protect, and a lot of men to teach that they couldn’t disregard her just because she was a woman. She couldn’t do all that if she was mooning over Will Haskins.

  Yet somehow Idalou wasn’t able to convince herself that she wasn’t just a little bit in danger of liking Will Haskins, and not just because of his looks.

  As he rode away from the Double-L ranch, Will had reason to be glad all over again that he’d talked Jake out of coming with him. All a woman like Idalou had to do was tear up, and Jake would have been on his way to demand why Jordan McGloughlin would do anything as dastardly as steal a poor young woman’s bull. Will wasn’t immune to women, even when they weren’t as attractive as Idalou Ellsworth, but he was averse to sticking his neck out when he was certain that things would be worse for her after he left.

  He hoped his presence wasn’t going to complicate the situation. He’d been trying to convince Jake and Isabelle that though he was the youngest of the orphans they’d adopted, he was too old for them to keep looking over his shoulder. Jake didn’t hesitate to assign him the most difficult jobs on the ranch, but he always kept an eye on him. Jake insisted he was just making sure Will’s work was up to standard, but Will knew he was watching to make sure nothing happened to him. He was the only one left at home, so all the attention that had previously been divided among twelve was focused on him alone. It had gotten so bad, Will had threatened to move away.

  The look on
Isabelle’s face when he’d stated that intention had caused him to spend the next couple of days convincing her he was just kidding, but she and Jake both knew he wasn’t. Six of the orphans were married and raising their own families. Pete, Luke, Hawk, and Zeke were somewhere out West, and Eden was off at school. Though his parents would never have admitted it, they had been holding on to him because he was the only one left. And he had stayed for the same reason.

  Up until three years ago, he also stayed because he couldn’t leave his brother Matt, who was a moody recluse determined to take in any boy who needed a home or protection. Though Will was five years younger than Matt, he had always stood between Matt and the outside world. But three years ago Matt had gotten married and adopted three kids to go with the two he already had. With his wife soon to give birth to their second child, Matt was finally settled and happy. Most important, he had a wife who loved him despite his past and knew what to do when the ghosts threatened to descend on him.

  Now Will had a chance to build a life of his own, but it hadn’t turned out to be as easy as he’d thought. Though six of his adopted brothers and sisters lived within riding distance of Jake and Isabelle, they’d insisted that one of them ought to live at home. Despite his protests that Jake and Isabelle were too young and healthy to need anyone to watch over them—especially not someone they were watching over—Will had been elected. Deciding to buy this bull was Will’s desperate effort to establish some sort of independence without alienating half his family.

  He paused to wipe the perspiration out of his eyes and from his forehead. He didn’t know why anyone would want to live in central Texas. It was hot as hell, flat as a plate, and as close to a desert as Will hoped to see. He loved his own home, with its rugged hills, cool breezes, and shaded valleys. It could get a little dicey when it rained too much and flood waters came roaring through the valleys, but that added a bit of excitement. What could be exciting about a flat terrain that stretched the same for miles in every direction?

  He wondered if Idalou would move away when she got the money for her bull. She gave every indication of being determined to stay where she was, but surely she could see that she and her brother would have a better chance of making a go of it if they weren’t sandwiched in between two larger ranchers who wanted her land and water. Her father had had the good sense to homestead both sides of the creek, but her water rights made her a target. Idalou wasn’t in a position to compete with McGloughlin or Sonnenberg.

  As much as he sympathized with her, Will knew better than to get involved in a local dispute. Despite what the men had told him, he really didn’t know the facts behind the situation. And he wasn’t going to be around long enough to handle any repercussions. It wasn’t right to come in, disturb the balance of things, then disappear, leaving Idalou vulnerable and possibly unable to defend herself.

  Besides, he wasn’t the kind of guy to go looking for trouble. He’d had more than his share of it when his parents died and he and Matt were thrown out of the orphanage and left to fend for themselves. If Isabelle hadn’t come along, he didn’t know what might have happened to them.

  Drops of sweat rolled down his back between his shoulder blades. How did people stand this country? Why did Idalou want to save her miserable little ranch when she would have enough money to buy land someplace that hadn’t been cursed by the devil?

  Because she was a stubborn female in the same mold as Isabelle. Though he adored Isabelle and would have fought any man who disparaged her, she was something of a tyrant. Idalou had all the makings of a second Isabelle—beauty, intelligence, and iron determination. Jake seemed to like being led a merry dance, but Will was just as happy to observe from the sidelines. There were ways to solve life’s problems without butting heads. Life was too short to spend it perpetually in a lather.

  Still, guilt nibbled at the sensitive edges of his conscience. He couldn’t keep from thinking he ought to have found a way to help Idalou. He had considered offering to help her find the bull. That wouldn’t have looked like he was interfering and taking sides. But Idalou wanted him to ride over to McGloughlin’s place to confront him. That would definitely have put a coyote in the chicken house. Though Isabelle would take him to task for not helping any woman in need, no one would thank him for stirring up trouble.

  His musings were interrupted when he saw a rider heading toward him. He didn’t know the boy, but it was polite to stop and greet a stranger. “I’m Will Haskins,” he said by way of introduction.

  “Carl Ellsworth,” the boy replied. “My sister and I own the Double-L ranch.”

  Will could see a strong resemblance between the brother and sister. Both had rich brown hair and luminous big, brown eyes. Carl kept his hair cut short, while Idalou had tied her luxuriant tresses up in a ponytail. Carl was tall with a body that had yet to fill out the promise of his broad chest and wide shoulders. Idalou was slim, but her body had reached its full glory of womanhood. Both had the same smooth skin, but Carl’s was deeply tanned from being in the sun. Though Idalou’s eyes could bore a hole through you, Carl’s gaze was curious and inviting.

  “I’ve just come from there,” Will said. “I gather you still haven’t found the bull.”

  Carl knitted his brow. “I expect he’ll turn up in a day or two. I’ve tried to make Idalou understand that bulls don’t stay in one place unless you put them in a pen, but she’s determined he’ll impregnate every cow possible before you take him away.”

  Will hesitated a minute before telling Carl that Idalou had asked him to help her find the bull.

  “Idalou thinks Jordan is behind everything that happens to us. The bull’s just wandered away looking for more cows.”

  It was obvious that Carl was trying to keep his emotions in check. Will suspected he was angry his sister had asked a stranger for help. It didn’t reflect well on him. At Carl’s age, self-image was very important and extremely fragile. Even though his own brother was now happily married and a successful and respected member of the community, Will knew Matt still struggled to respect himself after what had happened to him.

  “I don’t have to get back to town right away,” Will said. “If you’d like me to—”

  “I don’t need anybody’s help,” Carl replied a little too readily for politeness. “I’ll find him.”

  “I’m sure you will,” Will said. “I’ll be putting up at the hotel. Just let me know when he turns up. I’m anxious to put him to work.” But first he needed to buy some cows and convince his family he wasn’t being an unappreciative siphon just because he wanted a place of his own before he turned thirty.

  “He’s a willing breeder,” Carl said, some of the tension in his expression easing. “We don’t have enough cows to keep him busy, so he’s been sneaking over to Jordan’s land. Idalou is really steamed that he’s servicing some of Jordan’s cows without Jordan having to pay for it.”

  “Did Jordan offer to pay for the bull’s services?”

  Carl looked surprised. “Why should he?”

  “Because those calves will bring a better price when he sells them. It’s only fair that he offer to pay you something.”

  Carl was looking uneasy again. “That’s what Idalou said, but Jordan said he didn’t ask us to have our bull service his cows.”

  “Then he ought to have offered to sell you the calves.”

  “We don’t have money to buy stock,” Carl said, anger in his eyes. “If we did, we wouldn’t be selling the bull.”

  “Still, Jordan ought to . . .” Will broke off. He shouldn’t start putting ideas in Carl’s head. The last thing he needed was the boy doing something rash and saying it was Will’s idea.

  “Maybe he will when he sells them,” Carl said, looking uncomfortable with the turn in the conversation.

  “I’m holding you up,” Will said. “I’m sure you want your supper.”

  “I’ve been out looking for the damned bull all day,” Carl said, his handsome face relaxing. “I haven’t eaten anything sinc
e breakfast.”

  “Then I won’t keep you,” Will said. A young man Carl’s age wouldn’t want to miss any meals. “I’ll look forward to hearing from you.”

  Carl nodded and rode off. Will noticed that the horse he was riding didn’t seem to be of top quality. He wondered if Carl and his sister were so strapped for cash they couldn’t afford decent horses. He nudged his own horse’s flanks, and headed toward town. He’d do well to think less about Idalou and her brother and more about how to get the bull for the best price.

  Still, he sympathized with Carl. Will had nine big brothers and one big sister. He knew what it was like to have people always telling him what to do and never being satisfied with what he did or how he did it. It would be a lot worse when he announced he intended to set up his own ranch.

  Will felt so much better after an afternoon rain shower caused the temperature to drop, he decided to take a walk around town before supper. He was used to being more active than he’d been today. He had some surplus energy he needed to work off. A light breeze stirred the stagnant air. He pulled off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp, which made it feel better. He settled his hat back on his head and headed west along the boardwalk, reading the names of the stores and other businesses he passed.

  He nodded to people as he walked by, inwardly amused when they did a double take. He’d gotten used to people being startled by his looks, but he wasn’t greatly impressed because he’d grown up being compared to his brother Matt and to Luke and Chet Attmore. And though he might be the best looking of the four, one of the others was always bigger, stronger, better with a rope, faster with a gun, more charming—no, he guessed not more charming. Isabelle always said he had more charm than a snake oil salesman. She never said that about the others. But since she didn’t say it in a good way, he didn’t take the remark as a compliment. When it was coupled with what she said about his being too lazy to get out of his own way—well, good looks weren’t enough to overcome all of that.