Page 31 of On His Ranch

“Yeah, I guess that’s so. Good job,” he remarked when she milked four streams into the bucket. “Now, go grab yourself a stool. I keep extras on that wall.” He pointed. “And bring an extra bucket while you’re at it.” He could tell from the sly look that crossed her face and the way she quickly turned away that she’d thought of another smart comment and decided to keep it to herself.Smart girl.Still, his hand itched at the thought of it, eager to make good on his earlier promises if she gave him a reason. In the meantime, he enjoyed the view of her ample, curvy buttocks jutting out past her narrow waist as she walked to the wall.

When she came back, she was carrying both the pail and the stool he’d indicated. The view he got on her return was just as good.

“Where do you want these?”

“C’mon.” He took the stool from her walked over to the stall next to the one he’d been teaching her in. The cow peered at him with large brown eyes and let out a long moo in greeting. “Hey there, Cindy. I know you’ve been waitin’, girl. Good news is the wait is over.” He took a seat in front of the cow. “I want you to meet Piper. Piper, this is Cindy.”

She giggled at his elbow. When he turned back to look at her, she covered her mouth.

“Somethin’ funny?”

“No,” she said quickly. “Well, um, yeah. I mean… I just can’t picture a guy like you talking to cows, that’s all.”

“A guy like me, huh?” He grinned. “Sit down and get to milkin’.”

She obeyed, and he heard the obliging ping of milk hitting the pail.

His hands settled into the familiar rhythm as soon as he sat down. “Tell you the truth, sometimes I think people are the ones I shouldn’t talk to.” That got her to look up, and he winked, trying to help her relax. “Animals are the intelligent, loyal ones.” He reached out and patted Cindy on her flank. “Isn’t that right, girl?”

“So… are you going to tell me about the rules?”

“I thought we already went over those.” He had been milking so long, he could watch her while his hands work and saw her shake her head.

“No, I mean why you have so many.”

“I don’t think of four as a lot.”

“They’re vague, left up to interpretation. Which I’m sure is the way you like it.”

Piper was an odd combination of snark and shyness that kept him guessing. Maybe it was why he kept wanting to get to know her better, to see if she was a bratty girl hiding behind a shy mask, or vice versa.

“Which one bothers you the most?”

She shrugged a shoulder and seeming to feel his eyes, turned her head. But the next tug of her cow’s udder overshot the pail and she returned her focus to watching her hands. “I don’t know. They’re all…”

“What?” he prompted, truly curious to hear her thoughts, even if he disagreed.

“Well, like the danger one, for example. How much trouble do you think I can get into on a farm?”

“I don’ know, you seemed to be in good deal of danger yesterday.”

Piper went still, dropping the udders and staring at the wall of the barn. When she moved again, it was to wipe her hands on her jeans. “Did you… did you ever figure out what that was about?”

Chase tensed on the stool. He wouldn’t lie to her, but he didn’t want to scare her, either. Then and there, he decided that protecting her meant more than just her person. There was no need to say anything and risk adding to her worries when he wasn’t sure. “No. I never found anyone, if that’s what you’re askin’.”

When she turned toward him, her face was unreadable. “Do you… do you know who… what happened?”

“No. Do you?”

Her face contorted and settled on a mask of rage. “Of course not! Don’t you think if I did I would say something?”

“I don’t know,” he replied calmly. “Now, please stop shoutin’. You’re spookin’ the animals.”

She huffed loudly and folded her arms across her chest, clearly annoyed. “It just doesn’t make any sense. If I knew something, why would I keep it from you?” She punctuated the question by spinning around to face him, but Piper was not paying attention to what she was doing and her foot knocked over the pail.

They both watched in silence as the milk spilled onto the floor.

“That’s twice,” he remarked, his tone terse.

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