The Cowboy's Way(23)

“The Circle W hasn’t always looked like this or been in this bad of shape,” she said, staring at the hot, black liquid in the cup in front of her. “It used to be the nicest horse ranch in the county.” She took a deep breath to chase away the sense of regret that always came over her when she thought about how things used to be, and what she’d lost. “It’s just been hard for me to keep up with everything the past couple of years.”

“Since you had Seth?” he mused.

“The money problems actually started a few months before that—when my father passed away,” she admitted. She wasn’t certain why it was important to her that T.J. understand her circumstances. It just was. “Insurance took care of most of Dad’s treatment, but it didn’t cover everything.” Holding her coffee mug with both hands in an attempt to stop them from trembling, she added, “After I used what money my dad had in savings to pay off the medical bills, I managed to keep the only two men left who worked for him until after I had Seth. Once he was old enough to stay in a baby carrier, so I could take him with me to do the chores, I had to let the men go.”

Raising her gaze to meet his, her chest tightened at the compassion she saw in his eyes.

“That’s when your stallion started getting out to come over to my place?” he asked.

She nodded. “Between trying to take care of a baby and run the whole ranch by myself, I didn’t have the time to repair the fences and there was no one to help me do it.”

“So you’ve been here by yourself for a year and a half?” T.J. frowned. “What about Seth’s daddy? Couldn’t he have helped you?”

“Seth’s father was killed in an industrial accident shortly after we found out I was pregnant,” she said, shaking her head.

“I’m sorry, Heather.”

Her chest tightened with emotion at the sincerity in his voice. It felt good to finally be able to talk to someone about it.

“Thank you, T.J.” She swallowed around the lump clogging her throat. “I won’t pretend that it wasn’t one of the toughest times of my life—losing my fiancé and my father within a few months of each other—but I got through it. I have a beautiful son and although we don’t have much of a family left, we have each other.”

They were silent for a few moments before he spoke again. “I know it’s none of my business, but how have you been making ends meet?”

She paused for a moment. The concern she detected and the gentle tone of his voice made her feel that he actually did care. The feeling was unexpected and coupled with how attractive she found him, it could prove to be a disastrous combination for her.

Maybe telling him a little more about her situation would help to cool some of those feelings. She shrugged. “I get a small check each month from an annuity my fiancé set up shortly before he was killed and although I don’t like it, when I have to, I sell one of the brood mares.”

He looked taken aback. “I didn’t realize—”

“You’re not the only one with a breeding program,” she interrupted, smiling. “Magic Dancer is an American Quarter Horse Association world-champion pleasure horse and before my dad retired him from competition, that stallion won in several different age classes.” She rose to refill their coffee cups. “Quite a few of his colts have won world championships in their classes and even my brood mares come from champion bloodlines.”

“In other words, your stallion didn’t spoil my mares, he may have improved my program.” T.J. frowned as he sat forward. “I knew his confirmation was outstanding, but I didn’t realize he was a registered quarter horse. Why didn’t you tell me that instead of letting me rant about keeping him on your property and how he had spoiled my mares?”

Heather laughed as she set his refilled cup on the table. “If you had stopped to take a breath when you were reading me the riot act, I might have.”

When she started to return to the opposite side of the table T.J. caught her hand in his. “Why don’t we start over and forget about what’s happened before I found you and Seth stranded on my side of the creek?” he asked as he pulled her down to sit on his lap.

Instead of her confessions pushing him away, he seemed even more eager to explore this attraction between them.

Unsure of what he was up to, Heather merely nodded as she stared into his incredible hazel eyes. A deep forest green with a halo of brown around the pupils, they seemed to have a hypnotic effect on her. She couldn’t work up so much as a hint of a protest.