The Cowboy and the Lady by Diana Palmer Read Free Book Online

ranch work had never waned, even though he could have gone the rest of his life without ever donning jeans and a work hat again. He was rich now, successful, and his financial wizardry had placed him in a luxurious office in a skyscraper in downtown Victoria. He didn’t have to work cattle. In fact, for a man in his position, it was unusual that he did. But then Jace was unconventional. And Amanda wondered if he hadn’t really enjoyed ranch work more before it made him wealthy. He was an outdoor man at heart, not a desk-bound executive.
    He caught sight of Amanda at once, and even at a distance, she could feel the ferocity of his look. But she straightened proudly and schooled her delicate features to calmness. It wouldn’t do to let Jace know how he really affected her.
    “Don’t let him rattle you, Mandy,” Duncan said under his breath. “He picks at you out of pure habit, not malice. He doesn’t really mean anything.”
    “He’s not walking all over me anymore,” she returned stubbornly. “Whether or not he means it.”
    “Declaring war?” he teased.
    “With all batteries blazing,” she returned. She put up a hand to push a loose strand of her silvery hair back in place.
    “I came to see the calves,” Duncan called to his brother.
    Jace leaped gracefully down from the fence and walked toward them, pausing to tear off his hat and wipe his sweaty brow on the sleeve of his dusty shirt. “Did you need to bring a delegation?” he asked, staring pointedly at Amanda and Terry.
    “We did think about hiring a bus and bringing the kitchen staff,” Amanda agreed with a bold smile.
    Jace’s glittering silver eyes narrowed. “Why don’t you come down here and get cute,” he invited curtly.
    “Grass allergy,” she murmured. “Dust, too. Horrible to watch.”
    Duncan chuckled. “Incorrigible child,” he teased.
    “How do you stand the dust and the heat?” Terry asked incredulously. “Not to mention the noise!”
    “Long practice,” Jace told him. “And necessity. It isn’t easy work.”
    “I’ll never complain about beef prices again,” Terry promised, shading his eyes with his hand as he watched the men at work sorting and tagging and branding.
    “Hi, Happy!” Amanda called to an old, grizzled cowboy who was just coming up behind Jace with his sweaty hat pushed back over his gray hair.
    “Hello, Many!” the old cowboy greeted her with a toothless grin. “Come down to help us brand these little dogies?”
    “Only if I get a nice, thick steak when you finish,” she teased. Happy had been one of her father’s foremen before…
    “How’s your mama?” Happy asked.
    Amanda avoided Jace’s mocking smile. “Fine, thanks.”
    Happy nodded. “Good to see you,” he said, reading the hard look he was getting from Jace. “I’d better get back to work.”
    “Damned straight,” Jace replied curtly, watching the older man move quickly away.
    “It was my fault, Jace,” Amanda said quietly. “I spoke to him first.”
    He ignored her soft plea. “Show Black the Arabians,” he told his brother. “They’re well worth the ride, if he thinks his anatomy will stand it,” he added with an amused glance at Terry, who was standing up in the stirrups with a muffled groan.
    “Thanks, I’d love to,” Terry said through gritted teeth.
    Jace chuckled, and just for a moment the hard lines left his face. “Don’t push it,” he advised the younger man. “It’s going to be tough walking again as it is. Plenty of time.”
    Terry nodded. “Thanks,” he said, and meant it this time. “I’ll pass on the horses today.”
    “We’ll head back, then,” Duncan said, wheeling his mount. “Amanda, race you!” he called the challenge.
    “Hold it!” Jace’s voice rang out above the bawling cattle.
    Amanda stopped so suddenly that she went forward in the saddle as a lean, powerful hand caught at the bridle of her mount and pulled him up short.
    “No racing,” Jace said curtly, daring her to argue