Page 20 of The Texas Cowboy's Proposal

Her house. She had never referred to it in those terms, ever. It was a sobering thought.

Words were often hard to come by when visitors entered the Burkitt domain for the first time. It was huge by even modern standards, let alone through the past decades, as her ancestors added on to it. And the ornate carved woods of the walls and trim work would be almost impossible to duplicate in the present. But then, this was evidence of a kingdom that had been built and added onto and fought for and intended to stand for generations to come. It was the remaining testament to the cattle kings of a bygone era. The Burkitts’ history was immense, and this house would be a lasting reminder of their footprints on the land throughout history—or at least, that was how it was intended to be seen. To Sammi Jo, it had been a museum to visit as a child, and she had been mesmerized, as Lacy was in the moment. Then it had become her only home for the last twenty-three years, and her perspective had changed as she became an adult.

“And the paintings on the walls are huge. They must be really heavy too. Are you related to all these people?” Lacy was walking slowly along the marble flooring, her gaze taking in the artwork in silent amazement.

“Yes, these are Burkitts over the last couple hundred years. The earliest painting we have dates back to the early 1800s, even before the battle at the Alamo. It is a small one and not very good, but it is in a glass case in the library. You can see it when we visit in there after lunch.”

“Don’t you get scared, living in such a big place by yourself?”

Sammi Jo smiled. “Not really. I’ve just gotten used to it. And Marcella, our head housekeeper, and her husband, Joseph, who oversees the care of the grounds, live in an apartment on the first floor, so I’m not really all alone. There are other staff that have cottages just down the hill from here or in town. It does take quite a few people to keep this place in shape. Besides, I have my own small apartment over the main foaling barn these days. We only use this house now for special events or visitors.”

“Like us today!” Lacy grinned.

“Exactly like you.” Sammi Jo had glanced a time or two at the man who followed along a few steps behind her and Lacy, an unreadable expression on his face as his gaze took in his surroundings. Jaxson, as the head foreman, had met often with her grandfather and then her grandmother. She had no idea what was going through Beaudry’s mind, though. Sammi Jo tried to remember if Beaudry had ever visited the main house over the years.

“Is this where we’re going to eat? That table has so many chairs. How many are there? Do we pick which one we want to sit in?” Lacy had crossed through the archway with its massive oak carved doors open to reveal the formal dining room, where three huge ornate crystal-and-wood chandeliers hung over the length of the table, carved by Italian artisans more than a century before, brought over to America by ship, that seated a group of forty diners. Each chair’s high back had also been carved to match the table. Nothing less would have been expected of a cattle baron going into the twentieth century. A huge fireplace was tall enough for a man to stand upright in it. And the sideboards along the opposite wall were marble inlaid with mirrors hung over their lengths. There were more paintings and photographs, this time of landscapes and noted horseflesh that had made names for the racing side of the operation. Trophies filled a tall case at the opposite end of the room.

“I like to dine in a different room. It’s smaller and less formal. We’ll go through this door.” Sammi Jo held the door open for her guests to go ahead of her.

“Oh, this is pretty. I like this one too. It’s like being in a glass house with lots of plants.”

“My grandfather built on to the house as a wedding present for my grandmother. She loved pretty plants and being outdoors, so he had this solarium-style room added for smaller dinners and other meals for the family. You may choose which chair you’d like to be yours.”

Lacy made almost a full circle around the table, which could easily seat a dozen people around its circular sides. A bright-yellow tablecloth covered it, and the chairs were high-backed, white wrought iron, inlaid in the center, with bright yellow-, green-, and pink-tufted cushions. White stoneware plates, tea glasses, and place settings were already in place.

The aroma of something delicious reached them as they took their chairs.

“You’re very quiet.” Sammi Jo decided to bring the silent man into their realm from wherever he had shut himself away. “I hope you’re hungry.”

“Isn’t this a grand house, Daddy?” Lacy added her question.

“It is certainly on the grand scale. Very much like a museum of treasures. And, yes, it’s been a while since breakfast, and the food does smell delicious. I’ve just been enjoying listening to our tour guide talk about her home. I imagine it was quite something indeed to have all of this on a daily basis. I can’t think of anything that would even come close in comparison. In fact, I doubt anything could hope to match it.”

“It’s like a castle, right here in Texas. Are you really a princess in disguise, Miss Sammi Jo?” It was the child’s question, but Beaudry’s full gaze fell on her, a brow raised, echoing that thought.

“A Texas princess in search of Prince Charming.” His smile, coupled with his tone, felt more like a smirk to Sammi Jo. Lacy remained oblivious to the change in the air around the trio.

“That’s what you need, Miss Sammi Jo, a real-life prince. Then you could live here in the castle happy ever after, just like in the book.”

“A Texas princess in distress in search of a prince... don’t know about the happy ending and all. But I’d say the rest will be an interesting story,” Beaudry ended the analogy.

Marcella made her entrance at that moment and saved Sammi Jo from making any response. As she served the lunch of baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and fresh vegetables from their gardens, Sammi couldn’t shake the feeling that his words had dampened the visit, for her at least.

A princess in distress—is that how he saw her? Spoiled and self-indulged and in a bind, begging for his help to save her castle? She certainly didn’t need pity or charity from the man. But shedidneed him. And that created an even odder feeling. Need and want could become very close twins in some situations. She couldn’t confuse the two.

And if that was how he saw her? A needy, spoiled female having to have her grandmother conjure up a husband for her?Buyher one? Why all of a sudden should it bother her what Beaudry Hawkes thought of her?Business was business.

Except she’d never felt less like a fairy-tale princess in her life. And distress was a most unpleasant feeling. Where would the cure be?

Chapter Nine

They had risenwell before the sunrise so he and Jaxson and the other hands could finish up loading the two trailers and get them on the road headed to the stock show in Fort Worth. Once they were on their way, Beaudry left Jaxson to load the horses into their horse hauler while he went back to the house, where Lacy, with Seraphina’s help, had at least made it down to the table for a bowl of oatmeal that she looked like she might doze off into at any moment.

“Okay, let’s get you loaded next, little one.” Beaudry picked her up, and her head went directly to his shoulder, one arm slung around his neck, and a mumbled “Okay” went into his shirtsleeve.

“I packed you and Jaxson and ‘Little Bit’ here some breakfast burritos for the road. She can eat one when she wakes up. Have a safe trip,” Seraphina whispered, passing off the brown sack to Beaudry’s free hand and holding the screen door open for his exit.

Beaudry nodded. “Thanks. We’ll see you on the flip side.” How often had they repeated the same scene over the years? Such was life on their ranch. It represented stability, and people knew what to expect each day. But things weren’t going to be that way for long. The visit yesterday to the “castle” had been unsettling in more ways than one. And Lacy had talked non-stop about it until she finally fell asleep late the night before while they were packing up for the trip.

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