Her Rugged Rancher (16 page)

“I just now got back from my meeting with the insurance investigator,” she told him. “Peta said you wanted to see me.”

Nodding, he pointed to a short couch positioned along the back wall of the room. “Let's sit down. I have something to show you.”

Suddenly her heart was hammering with heavy dread. Had Noah made good on his threat and told Jett he was quitting his job as foreman of the J Bar S? She couldn't let him leave! Not without her!

Feeling dizzy with fear, Bella headed to the couch. A moment later, Jett joined her. A long business-sized envelope was in his hand.

“This came in my mail today.”

Without any more explanation, he handed the envelope to her and as Bella read the address, she could feel the blood draining from her face.

“Jett, this is addressed to Noah in care of you. Why are you showing it to me?”

A clever smile slanted his lips. “Noah talked to me about the two of you. So I figured you should be the one to give him the letter. It will give you a good excuse to see him.”

Ignoring the envelope in her hand, she squeezed her eyes shut. “I guess he told you that he—doesn't want us to be together anymore.”

Jett sighed. “Noah is a little misguided. But he'll come around.”

“I'm not so certain,” she said in a strained voice, then opening her eyes, she looked hopelessly at her brother. “Jett, he's talking about leaving. And all because of me. If that happened you'd be losing the best ranch hand you've ever had. And I—well, I can't even bear to think about him being gone.”

Seeing her anguish, Jett put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Look, Bella, don't worry about me losing my foreman. From the day I hired Noah, I could see he was way overqualified for the job. He should be running a ranch of his own. He knows it and I know it. Something, I don't know what, is keeping him in limbo. But I don't push the matter with him, frankly because he's not the kind of man you can push. And in the end, I guess I'm selfish. I like having him here.”

He pointed to the letter in her hand. “Do you have any idea of what this might be about?”

Bella's gaze dropped from her brother to the return address on the envelope. Camilla Ward, Tombstone, Arizona. “Oh! Oh, no!”

“Bella, what's wrong? Do you know the person who sent this letter?”

Completely stunned, she stared blindly at floor. “No. Not exactly. I mean, he's talked to me about this person before. But I have no idea why he'd be getting a letter from her.”

Jett sighed. “Well, Noah has worked for me for seven years and he's never received mail through my office. Apparently this person wanted to make sure he received it.”

“I'm wondering how she found him?” Bella voiced the question out loud. “He broke ties with her years ago.”

Frowning, Jett asked, “Is she an ex-wife or something?”

The clenched knot in Bella's stomach worked its way up to lodge in her throat. “No. She's— I guess you could call her one of Noah's worst nightmares.”

Long seconds ticked away as Jett thoughtfully studied the envelope in Bella's hand. Finally, he said, “If you want to tear that thing up, I'll pretend I didn't see it.”

“Is that advice coming from a brother or a lawyer?” she asked dubiously.

“That wasn't advice. Just a brotherly suggestion.”

Tearing up the letter and pretending she'd never seen it was tempting. After all of the loss and pain Camilla Ward had caused Noah, it would be an act of mercy to keep her from inflicting more. But Bella wasn't a deceitful or manipulating person. If she ever hoped to have a future with Noah, it had to be built on honesty.

“Thanks, Jett, but I couldn't live with that. And the more I think about this, the more I believe he needs to see it.”

“So he can stick a match to it and put it all behind him once and for all? That kind of thing?”

She swallowed as apprehension coiled her nerves even tighter. “Exactly.”

Jett glanced at his watch. “If you hurry, you might catch Noah before he leaves the ranch yard.”

Noah didn't want to see her for any reason. How was he going to react when she showed him this letter? She couldn't worry about that now, she thought, as she hurried out of Jett's office. She could only hope that whatever Camilla Ward had to say would finally put an end to Noah's bitter memories.

* * *

Back at the J Bar S ranch yard, Noah was squatted at the front of a chestnut horse, running both hands gently over the animal's left cannon bone. There was a small amount of swelling in the tendon, but no obvious bump.

“I don't like the heat I'm feeling. Lead him down the alleyway, Lew,” he told the young ranch hand, “so I can see how he's tracking.”

He was intent on watching the horse's movements for any sign of lameness when he heard a light step behind him. Expecting it to be Sassy returning from her check on the mustangs, he didn't bother to look over his shoulder. Instead, he kept his focus on the horse's gait until Lew led the horse in a wide arc, then brought him back to where Noah was standing at the entrance of the horse barn.

“He's out of the remuda for now,” Noah told cowboy. “Tie him to the hitching post out front and I'll bring the trailer around. Maybe Doc can make a quick diagnosis. In the meantime, put Coco in the catch pen with the rest of the herd. You can ride him tomorrow.”

“Will do,” Lew said, then added, “If you have something else you need to do I can take Sweet Potato over to the Horn.”

“Thanks, Lew, but I can manage. You have a long drive home.”

Lew darted a glance at something behind Noah, then with a shrug led the horse past him. “Whatever you say.”

Noah turned with intentions of going to fetch the truck and trailer to van Sweet Potato over to the Horn. But two steps in that direction were as far as he got.

Bella was standing just inside the wide-open doorway of the barn. A close-fitting blue dress hugged her luscious curves and stopped just at the top of her knees. Her dark hair was pulled into a neat coil at the back of her head, while a pair of red high heels covered her feet.

She looked beautiful and sexy, but very unlike herself. Not because she was dressed as a career woman, but because a smile was missing from her face. And suddenly he was wondering if she'd stopped by the ranch to finally end things with him. Maybe his unreasonable behavior at the party yesterday had finally opened her eyes and she'd decided he was someone she didn't want in her life. The idea made him sick to his stomach. Yet it was inevitable and for the best.

“Hello, Noah,” she greeted him. “Do you have a minute or two?”

“I was just headed over to the Horn,” he told her, glad that he had a legitimate excuse to keep their conversation brief.

“This is very important. I have something to give you.”

Her unexpected words had him moving closer. “Give me,” he repeated inanely. “What—”

She inclined her head toward the open door of the feed room. “Let's go in there. This is rather private.”

Being cooped up with her in a small space was the last thing Noah needed, but she didn't give him time to argue the point. She'd already turned away from him and headed into the feed room. That's when Noah noticed she was holding a white envelope behind her back.

Totally confused, Noah strode after her and followed her into the dimly lit room filled with sacks of grain, alfalfa hay and tubs of supplements.

When she came to a stop in the middle of the room, Noah stood a few steps away, his back resting against a stack of sacked bran.

“What is this all about?” Noah asked.

“You'll have to answer that,” she said. “This letter came for you today at the office. It was sent in care of Jett.”

Noah didn't get letters. Not the personal kind. His rural mailbox, erected at the main entrance to the ranch, was usually full of junk mail, or a random bill.

“Must be a mistake. I don't correspond with anyone.”

She came to stand directly in front of him and Noah couldn't help but notice the piece of paper was trembling as she handed it over.

“Maybe not. But someone is trying to correspond with you.”

He flipped the envelope around and immediately felt like someone had kicked him in the teeth. Camilla!

His first instinct was to throw the piece of mail to the floor and grind his heel into it. But shock kept him from making any sort of move.

Finally, he managed to ask, “Why didn't Jett give this to me? He's usually home before I leave the ranch yard.”

“My brother thought I should be the one to give it to you. He doesn't understand that you view me as a contagious disease,” she added cynically.

Biting back a curse, he thrust the envelope back at her. “You wasted your time delivering this piece of garbage. Take it. Throw it away.”

Her eyes widened with disbelief. “You don't intend to open it?”

“Why the hell should I? That woman ruined my life. Seven years have passed since I left Tombstone. What could she possibly be saying now that could mean a damned thing to me?”

Bella shook her head. “It must've been important to her. She obviously went to a lot of trouble to track you down.”

“Like I should care,” he sneered.

She studied him with dark expectant eyes and he realized she was expecting him to face this thing like a man. Not a coward.

Running and hiding from your feelings isn't going to fix anything.

Bella's words continued to roll through his mind, taunting and daring him to face the painful memories that had haunted him for all these years.

With a groan of surrender, he ripped the mail open, then handed the contents to her. “Please read it to me, would you?”

Uncertainty crossed her face as she glanced from the letter to him. “Are you sure? Maybe you should read this privately,” she suggested.

“No. Whatever the woman has to say I want you to hear, too.”

Nodding solemnly, she unfolded the stationery and began to read.

Dear Noah,

This letter is to sadly inform you of Ward's recent death. For the past two years his health had steadily declined, and heartbreaking as it was for me, he welcomed the end.

I understand I have no right to ask you for anything, but I need for you to come to Verde Canyon as soon as possible. There's much we need to discuss.

Camilla.

Ward, dead!

Completely stunned, Noah moved a few steps over and sat down on a low stack of hay. “I can't believe it, Bella. Ward would've only been in his late fifties!”

She stepped over and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I'm so sorry, Noah. I think—well, in spite of everything that happened with the two of you, I know how this must hurt.”

Amazed that she could understand something that was only beginning to register with him, he looked up at her. “Why does it hurt, Bella?” he asked hoarsely. “I thought I hated the man.”

“He wounded you deeply and that was your way of coping. Believing you hated him took some of the pain away.”

An utter sense of loss welled up in him and before she could see the sting of tears in his eyes, he dropped his head and swallowed hard. “I just wish he hadn't gone to his grave believing I'd wronged him.”

“Maybe he didn't.”

Frowning now, he lifted his head. “Isn't it obvious? Camilla didn't write until after he was gone.”

“There could be all sorts of reasons why you're hearing from her now instead of before the man died. That's why you have to go to Verde Canyon and see her. To find out exactly why she wants to see you.”

He shot to his feet and began to pace around the dusty room. “Are you crazy? That woman caused me nothing but misery. She not only ripped apart a friendship, she tore down everything good I had built to that point in my life. Face her again? Hell no!”

He didn't realize Bella had caught up to him until she wrapped a hand around his forearm. “What are you afraid of? She can't hurt you now. Or are you worried you might run into your old girlfriend? The one you were thinking of marrying? Maybe her desertion bothered you much more than the debacle with Camilla and Ward.”

He frowned with disbelief. “Do you honestly think that?”

She shrugged one shoulder. “I don't know what to think. The way I see it, neither one of these women should be striking a chord of fear in you, but it looks like they are. You're afraid to travel down to Arizona.”

Groaning with frustration, he shook his head. “Kelsey was just a girlfriend. It's true I was considering asking her to marry me. But now that I've had years to think about it, I can see that notion wasn't prompted by love. It was because she was the first woman with any class to show me some respect and I was grateful more than anything. The fact that she lost faith in me probably turned out to be a good thing. Even if I had gotten around to proposing to her, I doubt a marriage between us would've lasted a year.”

“Then if it's not her that's keeping you from going, it has to be Camilla.”

“Damn it, Bella, it's not her! Not exactly. She was never anything more to me than a friend. And after she went crazy, I didn't even consider her to be that much. It's just that the whole place—the Verde—I loved it with all my heart. I don't know that I can bear seeing the ranch again.”

She squeezed his arm. “I'll go with you, Noah. We'll go together.”

“Why would you want to do that? This is my baggage. My problem.”

A tender expression came over her features as she slid her arms around his waist and snuggled the front of her body to his. “Oh, Noah,” she said softly, “you should know by now that I love you. I don't want to share only good times with you. I want to share the troubled times, too.”

Noah's heart was aching to put his arms around her, to hold on tight and never let go. But he couldn't let pain sway him. “No. You have some misguided notion that I'm a good man. Good enough for you, that is. And you're wrong.”