Chapter Thirteen
T hough he’d ended the night before in Peyton’s trailer with nothing more than a kiss because of her injury, Drew realized he had an obvious spring in his step the next morning as he made his way from the sports medicine trailer to where Peyton’s little trailer was parked. He’d had a terrible night’s sleep—or was it a good night?—thinking about kissing Peyton Halliday. Among other things.
He just couldn’t get the feel of her, the taste of her, out of his head. And by dawn, he’d decided he didn’t want to.
Because Doc Tracer wasn’t going to let Drew work in the clinic until Peyton left with the other women for the next region on their exhibition tour—something Drew would have to face when it happened—he’d decided to check on her arm and shoulder in a not her doctor capacity, then ask if she’d like to drive down to see Crater Lake with him. If she’d thought Smith Rock had been amazing, then she would be down for seeing the deepest lake in the nation.
And the roughly two-and-a-half-hour drive both ways would give him focused time with her and go a long way toward keeping her from physical harm for the day. A win-win as far as Drew was concerned.
When he reached her trailer, a place he was really starting to like, he rapped on the door. She didn’t answer. Drew knocked again, and when she still didn’t answer, he tried the latch.
Locked.
Oh boy. Peyton Halliday was on the loose.
Then he remembered Peyton mentioning the veritable breakfast bar that Natalie laid out every morning for the cast and crew. Peyton had probably gone to the big RV for something to eat. Another apple fritter sounded pretty good to Drew, also.
He wove his way around the other competitors’ traveling homes until he reached the row where the Buckin’ TV rig was parked. He arrived just in time to see a veritable flood of cowgirls including Peyton leaving the RV, laughing and chattering as usual, followed by the TV crew, Natalie…and Alec.
What was his little brother doing with the Buckin’ Babes?
Drew stopped and pulled in a breath. Talk about a stupid question. A group of beautiful women, his unattached hound dog of a little brother…of course Alec was hanging out here.
The group turned toward the large passenger van they used to ferry the group around whatever town they happened to be visiting. Alec’s truck was parked next to the van, and he seemed to be directing Nat to follow him.
Alarm set Drew in motion toward the group. Alec was a bull rider. Doing risky things was how he rolled. If he’d come up with something for the women to be filmed doing, the odds of it being something Peyton’s family wouldn’t want her doing—what he wouldn’t want her doing, he realized with a jolt—was pretty close to one hundred percent.
Alec noticed him trotting toward them. “Hey, Drew.” Alec raised a hand in greeting, his devil-may-care smile wide.
Out of the corner of his eye, Drew saw Peyton pause to watch him and Alec. The morning sun glinting in her copper hair threatened to totally derail him, but he needed to find out what Alec had cooked up first.
Drew beckoned his little brother to him.
“You have perfect timing. I was just about to call you,” Alec said.
“What are you up to?” Drew asked, struggling to keep from looking back at Peyton. She pulled him to her as if she had a lead on him. In equal measures an annoying and thrilling sensation.
“Just being brilliant,” Alec said with a smug look and crossed his arms over his chest, obviously pleased with himself.
“Considering you spend your days being dumped on your head—”
“I wear a helmet.”
“Still, your definition of brilliant might be different from mine.”
Alec rolled his eyes. “Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I invited the Buckin’ Babes to come to our ranch and see firsthand how the broncs they ride are raised, cared for, and trained.”
“Did you clear the visit with Grandfather and Ian?”
Alec gave Drew a duh look. “Yes. It will be great publicity for Liam’s bronc program and for the Wright Ranch brand overall. Plus, we’ll get to spend the day with the Babes.” He rocked back on his boot heels.
Drew smiled, relieved. “That is kinda brilliant, Alec. We can easily keep them busy for the day. The whole day.” He clapped a hand down on Alec’s shoulder and turned him toward where the women were loading into the van. Peyton seemed to be hovering outside, delaying climbing in with the other women. She kept glancing toward Drew and Alec.
Was she worried he didn’t want her to see his home? Or was she concerned he regretted kissing her last night? Again. He’d have to make sure she knew neither was true.
“Can I ride with you?” he asked Alec.
“Figured you would.”
As Drew walked toward the van and Alec’s truck, he gave Peyton a small smile and tugged at the brim of his hat.
Her shoulders relaxed and one corner of her luscious mouth inched upward. She watched him long enough to heat his blood before she turned and climbed into the van.
Maybe he’d have to reassure her in a private place.
Alec laughed. “Wow, Drew. I’ve never seen you look at anything but a medical text book like that. Could it be you’ve finally decided to appreciate the human body for something other than clinical study?”
“Shut up, Alec,” Drew said without heat.
He did the opposite, laughing hard as he climbed into the driver’s seat. “Yes! Welcome to the world of the living.”
Fastening his seat belt, Drew asked, “Did you clear this with Liam, too?”
Alec made a hedging sound as he pulled forward, gesturing out of his open window for the van to follow him. “I figure it might be better to ask for forgiveness instead of permission.”
Drew snorted. “Forgiveness from Liam? You do like to court death, don’t you?”
Alec shrugged but grinned unrepentantly.
It hit Drew that Alec and Peyton were a lot alike. They both had reacted to something traumatic in their lives by becoming daredevils.
Drew had done the exact opposite. Instead of throwing care to the wind, he’d armed himself with the knowledge he’d need to make sure he never lost anyone he loved again. At least as much as humanly possible. He suddenly realized he’d dealt with the rest, what was beyond human control, by simply keeping himself apart. Unseen. Because there was less risk that way. So far, his approach to life had worked just fine for him.
But maybe not so much now. Since a certain redhead had entered the picture.
He leaned so he could see into the truck’s large, passenger-side mirror, checking to make sure the big white passenger van was following the black Wright Ranch truck that Alec used.
The sight of the van directly behind them instantly put him at ease. Peyton was there, right behind him, on her way to what he considered the safest place on earth. Despite the fact it was where his mother had been injured and ultimately died. But he considered the Wright Ranch to be so safe now because every person living and working there had been touched by his mother’s death, and he trusted them to never let something so devastating happen again.
Out of the corner of his eye, Drew caught Alec repeatedly looking at him as he drove toward home, so he finally asked, “What?”
“Haven’t seen you hanging on the fence with Doc these past few days.”
“Doc gave me an assignment that has taken me away from the arena.”
“Oh yeah?” Alec shifted in his seat, his curiosity tangible.
“Yeah.” Drew wasn’t about to tell Alec about Peyton. It would be all over the entire rodeo by the end of the day.
“This assignment wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with a very pretty, not to mention badass, little redhead, would it?”
Drew shot his brother a look. “What makes you think that?”
Alec tilted his head back and forth in the annoying way he did when he had something on one of his older siblings. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe because I know you were spotted lurking outside her trailer, and then again going in and out of it.”
Drew huffed out a breath. “Yeah, okay. My assignment has to do with Peyton Halliday.”
Alec scoffed. “I know you’re a dyed in the wool stick in the mud and all, but I can’t believe you’d call that smokin’ hot firecracker an assignment. Geez, Drew.”
Drew had had enough. He turned toward the brother he’d always been closest to and told him the truth. “Her family has offered to pay for significant upgrades and additional funding for the sports medicine clinic program. And if you want to have the best immediate medical aid next time you get busted up after coming off a bull wrong, then I’m expected to keep that smokin’ hot firecracker safe while she’s here in Pineville.”
Alec gave a silent oh , then turned his attention back to the road. The silence lasted barely a heartbeat before Alec glanced back at Drew and said, “Probably because she’s the sort who’d try to climb on a bull like Red Rum.”
Drew gave an exaggerated nod. “Probably.”
Alec matched his nod for a moment, then added, “She sure is cute though.”
Drew turned his attention to the road in front of them. “Yeah. She is.” Cute and sweet and funny and smart.
If only what he could accomplish in the future wasn’t dependent on her acting completely opposite to her nature for her family’s peace of mind.
*
Peyton had to admit she was as excited to visit the Wright Ranch as the other women in the van, but certainly for much different reasons. It wasn’t Thomas Wright’s wealth, obvious from the moment the van followed Alec Neisson’s truck through the giant, elaborately scrolled wrought iron gate and started up the long, blacktopped drive, that piqued her interest. It was the fact that Thomas Wright was Drew’s grandfather.
She was eager to see where Drew’s caring, tenacious character had formed. To better know the man whose kiss she couldn’t stop thinking about.
At first Peyton had been worried when Alec had shown up without Drew at the Buckin’ TV RV with the offer to visit their family home. Drew didn’t strike her as the type to want to expose their home to a check out my crib sort of reality TV moment. But then he’d shown up as they were leaving and sent her a smile and hat tip that had gone a long way toward reassuring her.
As well as made her heart do a funny thump in her chest. Just as a single kiss from him did funny things to other parts of her.
So now she was going to see his home. Along with a chattering gaggle of other women, but still. And they probably would only go into the stables, but for those who grew up on a working ranch, the stables and barns were the heart of the home.
As she suspected, Alec’s truck bypassed the circular drive in front of the large home that looked more like a mountain resort lodge than a single-family dwelling. Nat was pointing and rattling off several different shot angles she wanted with clear excitement.
Several of the women squealed at the sight of a life-sized bronze sculpture of a rearing horse in the center of the circular drive. Nearly all of them held up their phones to take a picture of the horse. Peyton didn’t. She’d grown up with a life-sized bronze sculpture of a Texas longhorn bull that her grandfather had had commissioned. Maybe the statues meant the grandfathers had something in common? Why she cared was beyond her.
She might not even see any other members of Drew’s family beside his affable younger brother, but the possibility didn’t stop her palms from sweating.
The vehicles continued around the big house, which appeared to be made up of a large center section with two single-story wings jutting out on either side. They parked in front of a huge, multi-bayed garage off to the side of the home. There were no other cars or trucks parked in the large blacktopped area between the garage and house, but with a garage that size, there were plenty of places to park inside. It didn’t mean no one was here.
Before exiting the van, she rubbed her hands on her jeans as best she could with her sore shoulder in an attempt to dry her palms.
Thank goodness she had wiped her hands off because Drew was there waiting outside the van, a hand outstretched to help the ladies from the van in true cowboy fashion. Though she absolutely didn’t need any help stepping out of a van any more than the other girls did, she slipped the hand of her uninjured arm into his and allowed Drew to balance her as she stepped to the asphalt.
Steeling herself for the impact of his blue eyes, she raised her gaze to his. And found his attention on her hurt arm. He was playing not-her-doctor doctor. He proved it by retaining her hand and gently pulling her away from the group.
She blew out a breath. “I’m fine, Drew.”
“Just taking a quick peek.” He raised the sleeve of her I Love Texas short-sleeve T-shirt, which she’d worn specifically on the chance he’d do exactly this, and gently turned her arm to better see the purple bruise.
“Not my doctor, Drew.”
That brought his gaze up to hers. The heat she’d expected before was there, and more than just her palms began to sweat.
One corner of his mouth curled upward. “Not your doctor, Peyton.” Despite the statement, he looked back down at her arm, gently probing the bruised area. “Consider me a concerned friend who just happens to have a medical degree.”
The thought of having Drew as a friend unfurled something in her chest. Especially if he turned into a friend with benefits.
Luckily oblivious to the path her thoughts were tripping down, he nodded his approval. “The swelling has decreased considerably. How’s the pain?”
“Only hurts when some random doctor pokes at it.” She smiled up at him.
He chuckled, lowering her sleeve and smoothing it in place. “Some random doctor, huh? I’ll keep my eye out for him.”
“Appreciate it.” Peyton was pretty sure she was going to have a hard time keeping her eyes off said doctor, especially when he smiled the way he currently was.
Behind her, Peyton heard Nat say, “That’s perfect. You got it?”
“Got it.”
Peyton turned and found Dan still looking through the camera viewfinder, the lens aimed squarely at her and Drew.
“Excellent.” Nat definitely sounded smug.
Peyton turned back to Drew. His gaze was on Nat and her cameraman, his mouth no longer smiling.
Regret for exposing him in a way she knew he didn’t want made Peyton reach for him.
He slid his hand down to her elbow and gave her arm one final squeeze before releasing her. “I didn’t sign the release, remember? Don’t worry.”
He stepped away from her and said, “The bronc barn is this way, ladies and gentlemen.” He started walking in the direction Alec and most of the ladies were already heading.
Peyton watched him go, wondering at his ability to…settle her, like an overexcited animal, in a way no one she’d ever met before could. She liked it.
Looking very much like a pied piper, Alec was leading the group of women past the smallest and fanciest barn, built and finished to match the main house. Nat and her two-man crew were running to catch up with them. Peyton hurried to catch up with Drew.
When she reached his side, she asked, “Not the bronc barn?”
He shook his head. “Not the bronc barn. Saddle horses.”
They approached the largest barn, which was much more utilitarian, but Alec kept the group moving with a steady commentary Peyton couldn’t quite hear.
She looked questioningly at Drew. “Not the bronc barn?”
He shook his head, but a smile was teasing at his mouth again. “Not the bronc barn. Bulls.”
She took in the size of the structure and whistled. “That’s a lot of bull.”
“There are cows and steer in there, too. And one of my grandfather’s offices.”
Curiosity flaring, Peyton looked toward the huge, mostly metal barn again. Was Thomas Wright in there right now, pouring over breeding books in an attempt to create the next biggest, baddest bull that his brand was so famous for? She suddenly itched to get a closer look. While she’d always figured she would someday use her psychology degree by getting trained and certified to be a counselor, maybe helping kids who found themselves stuck in hospitals, she wouldn’t mind dabbling in bull or bronc breeding. Someday.
She must have paused because Drew settled a warm hand on her back and urged her forward.
As they walked, he pointed toward one of two remaining barns, this one medium in size compared to the first two. “That’s the bronc barn.”
Peyton nodded toward the last, classic style barn. “And that barn? Please don’t tell me you have sheep.”
He laughed. “No, we don’t raise sheep. That’s the old barn. It’s for equipment and storage.”
“Y’all have a lot of barns.”
He shrugged. “It’s my grandfather’s life’s work.”
Peyton’s grandfather’s life’s work was built on dead dinosaurs.
She took in the beauty of the ranch, from the beautifully designed and maintained barns and outbuilding, to the lush green irrigated pastures, and on to the snow-capped mountain range that provided a frame to it all. “It’s so gorgeous here.”
“I haven’t been able to give it up.”
A short, sharp whistle sounded behind them. They stopped and turned toward the sound. A tall, broad-shouldered man with sun bleached blond hair stood on the edge of a large patio out the back of the main house and beckoned Drew with a wave.
“That’s my oldest brother Ian. Apparently, he wants to talk to me.” Drew hesitated for a moment as if debating bringing her to meet his brother.
As much as Peyton had been hoping to meet Drew’s family, she chickened out. “Go. I’d better catch up with the girls to make sure that the only footage Nat has of me on this trip isn’t what she shot of us.”
That seemed to settle his internal debate for him. He gave a quick nod. “Okay. I’ll catch up with you.”
Peyton couldn’t help but watch him jog away. For a guy who had to have spent most of his time with his nose in a book, he sure had a great body. Ranch strong, not gym thick. She knew from touching his shoulders, chest and arms that his muscles were long and sinewy, and it didn’t take too much imagination to picture what they’d look and feel like without his shirt between them.
Afraid of where her hormones would take her thoughts next, Peyton turned and hurried to the bronc barn.
Which turned out to be mostly empty of broncs. Alec was unnecessarily explaining that with it being rodeo season, their best broncs, which was most of them, were contracted out. Like Karen From Finance was currently still at High Desert Rodeo grounds. Peyton automatically looked for Mustard Gas. He didn’t seem to be in any of the stalls or attached paddocks. A stinky horse like that probably had to be kept in a very open pasture.
Having grown up on a similarly high-end ranch, Peyton quickly grew bored with Alec’s rudimentary explanation of their program. The other girls didn’t seem to mind, though, being more than impressed by Alec’s charm.
Peyton was far more interested in what Drew was doing. She’d made sure to be front and center for at least a couple of the panning shots Nat favored. Telling herself she was simply saving Drew the trip to catch up with her, Peyton slipped out of the bronc barn.
But as she started toward the big house, she began to waver. This was their home. She didn’t have the right to saunter up there. A little kissing didn’t equal an invitation to meet the fam. And if she and Drew were to take their physical relationship further? Well, she’d deal with it if—or when—it happened.
She changed course and instead wandered to the bull barn. Much like the bronc barn and undoubtedly for the same reason, the paddocks and the attached stalls on the side of the barn appeared mostly empty. An equally empty corral was connected to the closest end of the barn, and rather than skirt it, Peyton decided to climb through the railing and walk across so she could check to see if the paddocks on the other side of the barn were empty too.
She was only a few paces inside the corral when she heard a yell from the direction of the house. She spotted Drew running toward her, gesturing at her.
“Peyton! Get out of that corral.”
She instinctively looked around her, checking the door that the bulls would use to access the corral from the barn. She was completely alone in the circular space.
Then she realized she might have committed a transgression of some sort and hurried to retrace her steps.
She was just easing her way back through the fence rails when Drew reached her and practically hoisted her the rest of the way through the fence.
She was about to make a joke about threading a needle when she caught sight of his face. He was pale, and his jaw was clenched. But the worst was the look in his eyes. He almost looked panicked. She could plainly see what had to be fear, stark and wild, creating a storm with his blue eyes.
Peyton couldn’t help but look behind her again. The corral was still empty of any sort of danger.
Drew started to grab her by the shoulders but stopped, apparently in deference to her bruised arm.
He fisted his hands and dropped them to his sides, instead. “Don’t ever go inside that corral.”
“I’m sorry. But I’d just wanted to see—”
“Ever, Peyton. Do you understand?”
A deep voice behind her said, “Drew.”
As Drew straightened, Peyton turned. The man standing at the corner of the barn outside the corral could only be Thomas Wright.
He gave a two-finger beckon then retreated back around the corner of the barn. His office must be on that side.
Drew said, “Stay right here. Please.” Without waiting for her to say anything, he trotted around the perimeter of the corral and disappeared where his grandfather had gone.
“You have to forgive Drew,” an equally deep but less gruff voice said.
She spun to find the man who’d whistled Drew to the house, his oldest brother Ian. The family resemblance was obvious in the stupid good looks, but Ian was bigger, more weathered. And his eyes were a darker blue than Drew’s, yet no less intense and knowing.
She asked, “What did I do?”
“Nothing, really.” Ian hooked his thumbs in his jeans’ pockets. “But something pretty bad happened in that corral, and it spooks some members of the family in different ways.”
“What happened?”
He ran his disconcerting gaze over her for a moment, then said, “Have Drew tell you. Least he can do after hollering at you.”
Knowing it was much easier to run from pretty bad things than stand around talking about them, she nodded vaguely. As much as she burned to know more about Drew, she wasn’t about to get her hopes up.
“So, you ride broncs?” Ian reclaimed her attention.
“Ranch saddle broncs,” she clarified.
“Just as impressive,” he asserted in a way that made her instantly like him. “Has Drew told you about his nemesis, Buckaroo Bonsai?”
Her curiosity flared white hot again. “He has not.”
Ian’s handsome smile grew wide. “Now that’s a story I can tell you.”