wished he could get her to confide in him without having to fight it out. But maybe he was judging her wrong, and the spikes were just her armor, and the scars he got from fighting his way through were just part of the process. Why he was willing to put himself through such an ordeal was another conversation entirely.
“This ranch is a mess,” Julia commented as the horses began to move uphill at a much slower pace.
“It certainly needs some TLC,” Kaiden agreed. “We do our best to keep the boundary fences secure because it benefits us all, but none of the other ranchers have the bandwidth to take on the place full-time. You need someone like Rio Martinez to come in and buy the ranch.”
“I don’t think Dad would like that—although he is a big fan of Rio’s.”
“Rio and Yvonne bought the Cortez place from Ines with the proviso that she still gets to live there forever, and it seems to suit them well. My brother Ben’s managing the Gomez place. He and Silver will probably buy it when Pablo dies, which means we’ve saved two of the local ranches from big land developers.”
“Is that a problem around here?” Julia asked.
“It could be. And once a developer gets a foot in the valley you know what happens next. You’re surrounded by housing developments.”
Julia nodded. “I’ve seen it happen in the East Bay, so I understand your concerns.” She drew up her horse. “Is it true that Ben’s developing some kind of Morgan Valley preservation trust thing?”
“Yeah. Who told you about that?”
“Nancy.”
“How the hell does she know?” Kaiden raised his eyebrows. “It’s supposed to be family only at this point.”
“Then someone’s been indiscreet. Maybe you should tell Ben.”
“Nancy won’t tell anyone,” Kaiden said confidently.
“She told me.”
“True,” Kaiden considered. “I probably need to have a word with her, or I’ll ask Ben to do it. It’s his baby after all. Thanks for the heads-up.” He pointed at the upcoming boundary fence that was in way better condition than the others surrounding the Garcia Ranch. “You can leave me right here.”
“That’s not your land.”
“Nope, it’s the Lymond place. I don’t think Cauy and Jackson will mind if I cut across the bottom corner of their pastures. I’ll be back home in no time.”
He reached the fence, dismounted, and waited for Julia to join him. He watched her indecision as to whether to ride away, or get down and join him, and smiled invitingly.
With a sigh, she dismounted and immediately rocked back on her heels. Kaiden grabbed hold of her elbow to steady her.
“Hold on there. Riding’s a bit like being on a ship. You need to find your sea legs.”
She’d grabbed hold of his jacket and he looked down at her clenched fist.
“Speaking of touching me without my consent, I’m good with it, you know?”
He’d surprised her into looking up, and then he found he couldn’t look away.
“Sorry.” She uncurled her fingers and he took hold of them instead.
“It’s fine. Really.” He slowly bent his head, giving her plenty of time to exercise her own version of consent, and gently brushed his mouth against hers.
With a sigh, she kissed him back, and for a moment, he forgot everything but the taste of her. He was the first to draw back and smile.
“Wow, I’ve always wondered what it would be like to kiss Julia Garcia, and now I know.”
She immediately bristled. “So, that was some kind of a dare for yourself?”
He fought a grin. “More like a promise.” He stepped back. “Let me know when you’ve made a decision on the plans, and have a great weekend.”
“I will.”
She stomped off toward her horse looking so adorably confused that Kaiden had to pretend to be busy straightening his Stetson so she wouldn’t see his triumphant grin. She’d let him kiss her, and he wasn’t going to let anything spoil that moment—especially her.
She mounted and he went over to her side.
“You good on the way back?”
“I think I can manage.” She nodded at the fence. “How are you going to get through that? There’s no gate.”
“Duh, how do you think? You’ve been living in the city for too long. Watch and learn, Ms. Garcia, watch and learn.”
He mounted his horse Indian style, rode back in a wide circle, set Domino in a lope straight toward the fence, and hopped over it. From the safety of the other side he hollered and waved his hat at Julia.
She gave him a slow handclap before turning away