but Audrey turned off the television and fell fast asleep with a big smile on her face.
* * *
At seven o’clock the next morning, Audrey was greeted with another text from Luke.
Are you up yet?
She was never one to sleep late.
Up and dressed,
she keyed into the phone and then added,
Feeling fine.
Not five seconds later, Luke was knocking on her bedroom door. “That was fast,” she muttered, tossing her phone down on the bed to pull the door open.
He leaned against the door frame, eyeing her from top to bottom, doing a clean sweep and making her wish she’d had something to wear besides her faded jeans and oversize shirt. At least she’d managed to put a comb through her hair and pull it back into a ponytail.
Luke came to her freshly shaven, with that same hint of lime wafting in the air, his longish clean hair curling at the ends. One strand slashed across his forehead to rest on his brow. Audrey mentally sighed. The crisp tight fit of his jeans and snug hug of a dark blue canvas shirt were enough to still her heart. “Mornin’.”
“Hi.”
“Sleep well?”
“Very well.” It was no lie.
“No fainting spells today?”
“None, and I feel great.”
Luke’s lips twisted downward. “Do me a favor and don’t do that again.”
“You don’t have to keep checking on me.”
“I came to deliver a message. Breakfast is ready. Cereal and toast. Unless…”
“Unless…I cook up something better?”
“You can stir a pot and I’m hungry.”
“When are you not? How does bacon and eggs over easy sound?”
“Throw in half a dozen buttermilk pancakes and we’ve got a deal.”
“Okay, but only if you admit you opened my door last night to peek in on me.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and planted his feet firmly. “I’m admitting nothing.”
“What kind of cereal do you want?”
Luke’s shoulders drooped and he sighed. “Okay, fine. I peeked in on you.”
Food blackmail always worked.
“I slept better knowing Casey’s little sister was sleeping soundly.”
She did a mental eye roll. How old did she have to be before Luke stopped thinking of her as Casey’s younger sister? “You make the coffee…I’m assuming you know how…and I’ll get to work on the rest.”
“It’s a deal.”
The cat jumped down from the bed, took a long stretch and strode over to Luke. She rubbed her body along his legs and bowed her back like a rainbow, purring loudly. Audrey could take a lesson or two in flirting from her cat.
Luke bent to scratch her under the chin. “I think it’s time Miss Jewel got out of this room.”
“I agree. I was going to ask if it’s okay if she roams around the ranch today.”
“Yeah, no problem. She’s probably smart enough to stay out of trouble.”
“She’s only used up one of her nine lives. She’s got eight more to go.”
With that, they headed to the kitchen. During breakfast, Luke mentioned Kat again and Audrey asked him about her. “She’s just a friend” was all he said with a shrug of the shoulder.
Audrey figured the woman would never forget her, though. She’d made a lasting impression. How many people fainted the second they were introduced?
After breakfast, Luke gave her a grand tour of the ranch and explained her duties as wrangler. She was to groom and exercise the horses, make sure they were fed properly and assist the head wrangler, Ward Halliday. They wouldn’t be working with Trib today, and that was fine with her because she had some shopping to do in town when she finished up her duties.
Luke left her in the barn with Hunter Halliday, Ward’s son, who was leaving for college in a few weeks. The big, strapping boy with a friendly smile showed her around the barn and introduced her to each one of the ranch hands during the course of the day. They were nice men who spoke politely and had nothing but respect for the horses on the property.
“We don’t sell a horse every day,” Hunter said. “Sometimes, only one or two a week, but once they go, you miss them. It’s best if you ride them and train them and try not to get close to them. The Slades take care with who they sell a horse to. You gotta tell yourself they’re going to a good home.”
Hunter used a currycomb on the mare he was grooming while Audrey stood up on a footstool and braided a thoroughbred’s mane, something she’d learned to do when she was thirteen. “I volunteer at a horse rescue at home. I know