Chapter 5

“Aren’t you nervous at all?” Daphne asked her brother.

They stood waiting on the train depot platform for his soon-to-be bride’s arrival.

He shrugged. “Curious, but not nervous. Would it make you feel better if I was as nervous as you are?”

Daphne frowned at his teasing. “This is serious, Cy. Once you marry her, there’s no going back.”

“That’s what divorce is for,” he said.

“You’re awful,” Daphne responded.

“Look, I know that nothing about this situation is ideal, but we’re doing the best we can. I’m doing the best I can. Marrying a woman who has the know-how to improve our ranch is our best bet at this point. We’ve been over this.”

“I know, but I can’t help but worry about it.”

Cy put an arm around Daphne, giving her a little squeeze. “It’ll be all right. You’ll see.”

Daphne nodded, but her apprehension remained. “Any more news about the bank robbers?”

Cy welcomed her change of subject. “No, but I’m sure Marshal Burrows will find them.”

“Do you still think that they headed for Mexico?”

“Yeah. That’s what I’d do. They’re smart guys to have pulled this off. I feel bad for that teller they blackmailed into helping them. I knew they had inside help,” Cy replied.

A train whistle sounded, and they fell silent. Cy’s nerves kicked up, but he kept his nonchalant demeanor in place. Despite what he’d said to Daphne, he had his own misgivings, but he was determined to make it work. Keeping their ranch depended on it. As the train chugged closer, Cy’s heartbeat kept time with the increasingly loud sound.

Once the black, metal beast rolled to a stop, Cy stepped forward, Daphne at his side. People disembarked, going on their way, but no woman matching Leigh’s description got off the train.

Cy strode over to the conductor. “Excuse me. I’m looking for Leigh Hawthorne. She was supposed to be on the train. Brown hair, green eyes?”

The conductor rolled his eyes. “Oh, her. There she is now.”

Cy looked where he pointed, wondering at the conductor’s disdain. The ramp from the cattle car had been lowered. A woman walked down it, leading a horse. Cy took her measure as she neared them. She stood around five-seven and the jeans and plain white blouse she wore emphasized her lithe curves. His lips curved into a satisfied smile as he noted her confident, slightly rolling gait. Leigh Hawthorne was no lady of leisure. She was exactly what she’d told him she was—a farm girl through and through.

Leigh glanced towards the depot and saw a man and woman descend the platform steps to the dirt lot next to it. The man striding towards her wore jeans and a blue Western shirt. Her gaze traveled up his long legs, over his trim hips and stomach, to his wide shoulders and strong arms.

Those attributes alone were enough to make her heart beat a little faster, but as they came to stand before each other, Leigh found herself trapped by his dark gaze.

“Mrs. Hawthorne?” he asked.

His baritone voice washed over Leigh, and she broke out in gooseflesh despite the hot temperature.

“That’s right. And you’re Mr. Decker.”

He nodded, taking in her amazing green eyes, straight, patrician nose, and pretty, pink lips. The bridge of her nose and her cheeks were attractively sprinkled with freckles, proving that she spent a lot of time outdoors. Small, delicate ears, around which tendrils of light brown hair curled, showed below the brown, leather cowboy hat she wore.

Leigh studied Cy just as closely, fascinated with his dusky skin, midnight eyes, and full, sensual mouth. She stifled the urge to trace one of his well-defined cheekbones with her fingertips. Letting her gaze roam over him, she smiled up into his eyes.

“Not bad, Cyrus. Not bad at all.”

Cy felt as though he was a stallion on sale at an auction and damned if he didn’t feel proud that she’d found him pleasing. It was the first time he could ever remember a woman he’d just met openly praising his appearance. Her forward behavior amused him.

“I’m glad you approve. Likewise.”

To most women, his short statement might not have seemed like much of a compliment. However, the appreciative gleam in his eyes was just as meaningful as if he’d showered her with flattery.

“Thanks,” she said.

Cy nodded. “This is my sister, Daphne.”

Leigh smiled at the other woman, who looked much like Cy, only shorter in stature. “Pleased to meet you, Daphne. Just call me Leigh.”

Daphne shook hands with Leigh, noting the strength in her grip. “Nice to meet you, too. Who’s your friend there?”

Leigh stepped back to her horse. “This is Cutter. I rode the last leg of the trip in the horse car with him because he was gettin’ antsy. He’s never traveled on a train before, and it was a long trip.”

Cy let Cutter get his scent and ran a hand over his neck. “He’s a beauty.”

“Thanks.”

Daphne motioned toward their wagon. “Well, let’s get you home so we can get you something to eat and let you rest.”

Leigh said, “Oh, I’m rested plenty. It feels good to move around, but I could stand some food. And to clean up. I smell like Cutter and horse crap.”

To Daphne’s surprise, Cy laughed outright at her crude remark. Leigh laughed with him, unable to take her eyes off his striking countenance.

Cy said, “I didn’t notice that you stank, but then again, I’m used to being around horses and dogs so much that I wouldn’t think anything of it if you did. I didn’t know you were bringing your horse. I brought the wagon, so I’ll put your bag in there for you. Your trunks are in your room at the house.”

“Great.” She handed him her bag.

They walked to the wagon and Cy put her bag in it before helping Daphne onto the seat. Since she’d already saddled Cutter, Leigh swung up on his back. Her practiced movements told Cy that she was indeed an experienced horsewoman. She sat Cutter well, neither too relaxed nor too stiff.

Leigh’s legs were shapely under her jeans, and he could well imagine them wrapped around him. Halting those kinds of thoughts, he took up the lines and clicked his tongue at the horses. They started moving and Leigh rode alongside the wagon next to Cy.

“How many head of cattle do you have after the sale?” she asked.

Cy liked that she got right down to business and that she seemed genuinely interested in the operation. On the way home, the three of them discussed the ranch in between Cy and Daphne telling her about Chance City and showing her various businesses as they went.

Leigh that it was strange that, while a lot of people looked at Cy, few of them waved to Cy and Daphne. They recognized them, but they didn’t seem to have favorable opinions of the Deckers. It made her feel protective toward the people who would soon be her new family.

Cy noticed that Leigh narrowed her eyes and stared down a few people and barely suppressed a smile. His future wife was no pushover. He was glad to see that she was a strong woman because being married to him wouldn’t be a stroll in the park.

“I hope you don’t plan on making a lot of friends, Leigh,” he remarked.

She got his meaning. “I don’t need a lot of friends. I just need a few good ones.”

“Good to hear.”

“Decker!” called a male voice.

Leigh thought she heard Cy growl, but she wasn’t sure. Judging by the dark look on his face, she figured that she was probably right.

A man wearing black trousers, a white shirt, and a black vest, to which was pinned a badge, rode up to the wagon. His blue eyes swept over Leigh, taking her measure.

“Brock Guthrie, this is Leigh Hawthorne, my bride-to-be,” Cy said. “Brock is one of the deputies I work with.”

Leigh leaned towards Brock a little and held out a hand to him. He smiled and shook it.

“Well, Cy has himself a looker. I couldn’t believe it when he told us he was getting married,” Brock said.

He concentrated mostly on Leigh and Cy, but he kept glancing over at Daphne every so often.

“It’s nice to meet a friend of Cy’s,” Leigh said.

Brock’s expression turned hard, and Leigh then knew that the two men were anything but friendly. He turned his attention to Cy.

“Rob wants to talk to you later.”

“Why? Is there another case he wants me to work on?” Cy asked.

Brock’s tone turned angry. “I don’t know. He wouldn’t tell me. Just go see him and find out for yourself.” He touched the brim of his hat to Leigh and Daphne. “Ladies, have a good day.”

He trotted on ahead and Cy’s jaw clenched as he noticed Daphne watching him ride away. “You need to stop this foolishness.” He spoke in Comanche.

Daphne gave him a sharp look and responded in kind. “Do not order me about as though I am some young girl.”

“I do not understand what you see in him when he hates what we are. What you are. Do not torture yourself with dreams of something that will never be. I learned that lesson and so should you.”

Daphne said, “Your situation is different than mine.”

Cy shook his head. “No, it is not. We both want something we can never have. The only difference is that I know it and I am moving on.”

Daphne’s temper ratcheted up a notch. “Are you? The only reason you are marrying her is to save our ranch. I do not call that truly moving on. Not in your heart.”

Cy’s hands tightened on the lines, but he remained silent.

Daphne said, “This is not the time to discuss this. We are being rude.”

“I do not want to discuss it at all. There is no point. You know my feelings about it, but if you want to pine for him, go ahead. But you are right about us being rude,” Cy said. He switched back to English. “Leigh, I’m glad Cutter made the trip all right. Did you have enough money?”

Leigh’s gaze flicked back and forth between the siblings, but she didn’t remark on their tense exchange. “I had plenty. I paid for Cutter’s passage with my own money, though. I didn’t use all of yours, either. I’ll give it back to you.”

“Keep it,” Cy said.

As they left the city behind them, Leigh saw Cy’s shoulders relax. Daphne ignored Cy, making Leigh wonder what they’d argued about. She surmised that it had something to do with Brock. Their previous easy conversation didn’t resume, and Leigh didn’t push it.

She used the time to look over the landscape before her, noting that the rural area they traveled through was much more arid than her farm back home. Fields stretched out before them, filled with various crops, but some of the wheat was stunted from the drought. No wonder Cy was concerned.

If the grazing for the steers was so inferior, they wouldn’t fatten up over the summer, which meant that they wouldn’t bring a good price in the fall. She made a mental note to have Cy show her the nearest water source in the morning. Although his longhorns were different than her Hereford cattle, she was confident that she could improve the herd. She also had some ideas about diversifying.

“Well, there it is. Sundance Ranch, home sweet home,” Cy said.

Leigh arched an eyebrow when she saw the recently patched up barn, the house that needed a good paint job, and a couple of bunkhouses that had seen better days. Oh, boy. He wasn’t kidding about how bad things are. Looks like I got my work cut out for me, she thought. Instead of filling her with dread, the prospect of improving the ranch gave her a satisfying sense of purpose. Soon it would be her ranch, too. She grinned as enthusiasm took hold of her.

Cy wondered what she was smiling at. “I know it looks bad—”

“No, it doesn’t. It’s beautiful,” Leigh said.

Daphne smiled. “You think it’s beautiful?”

Leigh nodded. “Yeah. The possibilities are endless, and we can make it the way we want it. Just like an artist looking at a canvas. We’re the artists and this ranch is our blank canvas.”

Cy liked her creative take on the situation, and his regard for her rose a notch. Turning in the lane, he let out a shrill whistle. Slink came out from behind the barn, racing for the wagon in a white-and-brindle blur. Burt followed closely with Pudge bringing up the rear.