Rancher's Son by Leigh Duncan

Author:Leigh Duncan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2012-09-09T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

The morning they were to break camp and start the trek to Kissimmee, Sarah eased open the bunkhouse door on a day so new the sun was only a promising glow on the horizon. Standing in the doorway, she drew in a deep breath. Icy cold knifed into her lungs. She coughed. Smoke plumed in the air around her. A chill seeped through her boots, her socks and into her feet. She squinted, drawing her arms tight to her chest. Above a thick mist, the tops of palm trees floated like pom-poms in the distance.

Awed by the sudden change in the weather, she shivered. Only yesterday afternoon, they’d eaten outside, feasting on fresh-caught fish, hush puppies and all the fixings spread on long tables beneath shade trees. She stomped her feet.

A cheery tune cut through the sound-dampening fog. Seconds later, a familiar shape rounded the corner of the bunkhouse. Despite the freezing temperatures, Sarah felt a warm spot open in her chest when she noticed Ty, saw his footsteps falter and heard the last of his whistled notes fade. He changed direction and, as he headed toward her, his bright smile cleared the early morning cobwebs from her mind.

“Mornin’,” he called with a slight tug on the brim of his cowboy hat. “You’re up early.”

“Had to make sure Jimmy was warm enough.”

A wide grin split the lower half of Ty’s face. “That little scamp couldn’t get enough to eat last night, could he?”

Sarah let her smile deepen. Last night, Ty had insisted on keeping Jimmy’s fish separate from the others. “A boy deserves to eat his first catch,” he’d said, dishing the special fillet onto the child’s plate. The kid had wolfed it down, then helped himself to seconds and thirds.

“You were right about the sunshine and fresh air being good for him. He slept through the night without waking a single time.” Sarah crossed her fingers, hoping she’d dealt with the last of the boy’s nightmares. She stilled as Ty began a slow inspection that started at the top of her head and ended somewhere below her jawline.

A frown creased his forehead. “But you didn’t? Bed uncomfortable?”

“No,” she hurried to reassure him. “No, it’s fine.”

With a sly glance and a teasing lift of his eyebrows, Ty continued as though he hadn’t heard her. “’Cause I can offer you another place to sleep if you’d like.”

The implication started a slow burn that coiled upward from below Sarah’s waist. Thrown off guard by her visceral reaction, she sucked in a deep breath of icy air. Despite her traitorous body, she did not want to share Ty’s bed. Much. At least not until she got to know him better. She clasped her arms more tightly and gave herself stern orders to get the conversation back onto a nice, safe topic…like the weather.

“I slept fine,” she insisted, praying her face hadn’t turned a flaming red. “It’s just that once I woke up, I couldn’t get back to sleep.” She didn’t

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