Cowboy Wants Her Heart by Kris Pearson

Author:Kris Pearson [Pearson, Kris]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: contemporary romance, Women's Fiction, Forever Love, Bachelor, Single Woman, sensual, Hearts Desire, Lifetime Love, Life-Changes, Second Chances, Honesty & Trust, Home & Family, Romantic Schemes, Beautiful & Feisty, Love-Family & Forever, Small Town & Rural Area, The Heartland Series, Cowboy romance, new zealand
Publisher: Kris Pearson
Published: 2014-06-04T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen — Murderous Intent

Alfie clamped a hand over her mouth to hold her exclamation in. Even so, he must have heard her sharp inward gasp and seen her eyes widen with shock.

His dark gaze probed hers, and the tension in his neck told her he’d clenched his jaw to hold back any further admissions.

“Rory,” she said. And then had no idea how to follow his name.

“Yep—that’s me. Suspected of murder when I was just sixteen. Not a great way to impress the world.”

Her heart pounded in her throat. “But you didn’t! I’m sure you didn’t. You look after people, not kill them.”

She saw the flinch tighten his face for an instant before he gained control gain.

“It was looking after things—horses mostly—that put me on the wrong side of him.” He glanced around the restaurant, apparently checking no-one sat close enough to hear over the trilling mandolins. “He was old school—hard on them. Too hard. Broke their spirit rather than coaxing them to trust him. I hit him once for it.”

“Poor horses,” Alfie murmured. “And poor you. I suppose he hit you back?”

“Beat the shit out of me,” Rory agreed. “Sorry darlin’. Make that ‘beat me black and blue’. It was no defence being covered in bruises the day he died. They took it as ongoing aggro, and it went against me.”

“But surely, your family...” She trailed off, having no notion of how his family could have let it happen. Sipped her wine in confusion.

“Ah, my helpful family,” he said with a bitter twist of his lips. “Ewan took Dad’s side in most things. He saw it as a great opportunity to get rid of an annoying kid who thought he knew it all. Trouble was I’m much more instinctive with animals and crops than he is. Would have run rings around him in another few years. And he knew it.”

Alfie set her glass down and reached across the table to clasp his hand. “So he didn’t defend you?”

Rory turned his hand over and threaded his fingers through hers. “Saw it as the ideal way to get me out of his hair.”

She shook her head. “But your mother?”

He drew another deep slow breath while apparently considering what to say next. “My mother was... sick of the farm... sick of the debt... sick of being married to Mac Morrissey—who was nothing but morose and dictatorial because of the money problems. I’m guessing she’d wanted out for a while, and this was her God-given chance.”

“But losing the farm? Surely that would have left her with nothing?”

“Nothing was about what they had, anyway. Nothing but a lot of debt. Dad should have gone into dairy conversion when everyone else did, but...” He shrugged. “She knew Ewan wouldn’t make a go of it—not at his age and with his attitude. So she backed him and waited either for the bank to foreclose or Ewan to totally stuff things up.” He shook his head. “Geez, he was dumb as a box of rocks. As they say in certain parts of Texas.

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