Million Dollar Cowboy (Cupid, Texas #5)(86)

Vivi got a hotel nearby. Together, they all decided that Ranger, Remington, and Rhett would take turns at the hospital, while Ridge, along with Zeke, would keep an eye on the ranch. Truth to tell, Ridge was happy to leave the hospital for Silver Feather, but he kept close tabs on Duke's condition and flew back and forth to El Paso a couple of times to check in.

In the days following Duke's heart attack, he took it on himself to pay bills, update the computer software, and institute some cost-saving ways to conduct his father's business.

He was surprised by how much he enjoyed the tasks and how easy it was to slip into the rhythms of ranch life. He'd forgotten how much he loved working with cattle and being on the land.

The dormant cowboy in him stirred, charged to life. He took to riding Majestic around the perimeter of the ranch every morning with the excuse of checking fences, but in all honesty, he did it because when he was on the stallion's back, he felt young again. In touch with the side of himself he thought long lost.

He also juggled his own affairs. Every evening at nine p.m., Phil Rhonstein would phone him from Beijing and they'd conference call with the legal team, often until the wee hours of the morning. Wading through the natural misunderstandings and misgivings that arose from not being there in person, troubleshooting and putting out fires on both fronts.

It felt better than he thought it would. Being back in the saddle again. Working hard. Keeping his mind and body busy. Focusing on work instead of his father's failing health.

Or what was going on between him and Kaia.

What was going on between them?

She'd texted him a couple of times to check on Duke, but mostly, she'd kept her distance. She was polite and kind and offered to help any way she could, but when he asked her to dinner or just to hang out, she told him he needed to focus on his family.

He sent her some gifts, just to make her smile and to let her know he was thinking of her. Small things. Fun things he knew she'd enjoy. A key chain in the shape of a cat with her name engraved on it. Her favorite candy bar. A Betta fish hand-delivered by her sister Aria because Kaia adored anything aquatic.

She acknowledged each gift in a text or phone call with her usual joy, but finally told him that while she appreciated his generosity, his family deserved his full attention.

He couldn't help wondering if he'd made a misstep. He told himself that she was right, that things were too fractured and uncertain for them to carve out the time to have a heart-to-heart and figure out where they stood.

But that wasn't true. It was just an excuse not to see her just yet. Not until he'd figured out what to do about his growing feelings for her. 

He wanted her. Badly. Wanted her in his bed again. Wanted her more than he'd ever wanted any woman.

On Saturday, two weeks after Archer's wedding and the day before he and Casey were due home from their honeymoon, Ridge was in Duke's office, making out payroll when the housekeeper appeared in the doorway and told him he had a visitor.

"Who is it?" he asked, not even looking up from the computer screen.

"One of those Alzate girls."

"Which one?" he asked, yanking his head around and shooting to his feet.

"The spunky one," the housekeeper said. "I put her in the den."

A big smile split across his face.

Kaia!

Finally, she'd come to see him.



The housekeeper had parked Kaia in Duke's den and given her a glass of cold lemonade, while she waited for Ridge.

Feeling awkward now and wishing she hadn't shown up unannounced, Kaia shifted on the couch. She'd kept telling herself to give him space, but after almost two weeks of not seeing him in person, she couldn't bear it a minute longer.

But she had half an hour before she had to be at the dog care clinic to raise funds for the local no-kill animal shelter. She'd been unable to stop herself from dropping by to check on him.

She wasn't even sure what she was going to say. The den was intimidating, filled with mounted animal heads on the wall, a cigar humidor on the desk, and a ginormous portrait of the grizzled patriarch of Silver Feather Ranch, Levi Lockhart hanging over the fireplace. Heavy eyebrows framed sharp dark eyes, and his grim mouth was set in a disapproving line.

Was his humorless demeanor due to the harsh reality of nineteenth-century life in the Trans-Pecos? Or had old Levi simply been an asshat?

No wonder Ridge was so ambitious. For his whole life, having that stern man looking down on you like you'd never measure up. It would intimidate anyone. She wondered why Vivi had not vanquished old Levi to the attic. Probably one place where Duke dug his feet in.

"You don't scare me," Kaia told the old cuss. "You might have buffaloed your family through six generations, but the only reason you weren't killed off was because you did a nice thing once. I suspect you were more bark than bite."