cue, Frank lifted a paw and waited for Miranda to hunker down for the formal introduction.
“Best cow dog this side of the Red River,” Wade boasted proudly. “Or at least he was until my wife tried to turn him into a house dog. Frank’s been suffering an identity crisis since Laura showed up to pamper him.”
Miranda noticed how the big cowboy’s voice softened when he mentioned his wife. Clearly the man was deeply in love. She couldn’t imagine how it would feel to be in love. She’d never been remotely close to experiencing those emotions.
Her gaze drifted to Quint. “What about your wife, the restaurateur? Steph, right? Married three months?”
Quint’s whiskey-colored eyes widened in surprise. “You know Steph?”
“Not yet, but Vance mentioned her fabulous restaurant so I’ll want to try it out.”
“Enough chitchat. We have cattle to separate and haul to Cousin Gage’s ranch.” Vance glanced down at Miranda. “You do ride, don’t you?”
Miranda shifted uneasily. “Um…no.”
Vance’s grin turned mischievous. “Perfect.”
“He means that you won’t have to unlearn any bad habits,” Quint put in as he sent Vance a surreptitious glance. “Isn’t that right, Cousin V?”
“Sure, what else?” Vance said with a nonchalant shrug.
When Vance ambled toward the string of horses tethered beside the gate Miranda glanced anxiously at Wade. “I’ve heard Vance is the practical joker of your family. He isn’t going to put me on the wildest bronc he’s got is he?”
“Probably not. Most of his jokes are playful and harmless,” Wade assured her. “Like the time he left red construction paper hearts on my pickup seat while Laura was working as my temp housekeeper. Then he disguised his voice and called to say I’d won a honeymoon vacation to the Bahamas, long before we’d even had our first date.”
“Or the time Vance stocked our honeymoon apartment with aphrodisiacs and left a bed as the only stick of furniture in the place,” Quint added wryly. “Then there were the Christmas lights he strung outside the apartment and glowing neon sign that read. Do Not Disturb.”
“In high school there were the usual pranks of adding extra gas to our tanks to make us think we were getting great mileage and nailing our shoes to the floor,” Wade recalled.
“Don’t forget that trick he pulled on the baseball coach with breath mints and water,” Quint reminded him. “The poor man’s mouth turned green while he was engaged in a heated dispute with the home-plate umpire.”
“And there was the time on the rodeo circuit when Vance—” Wade clamped his mouth shut when Vance flashed him a silencing frown. “I guess the joker doesn’t want you to hear the list of his offenses.”
Vance drew the paint pony to a halt in front of Miranda then glanced at his cousins. “Why don’t you round up the cattle in the west pasture while Randi and I bring in the herd from the south. We’ll take Frank with us.”
When Wade and Quint mounted up, Miranda noted the ease with which they settled in their saddles. She doubted she’d look as relaxed on a horse.
“Ready, Calamity Jane?” Vance asked, directing her attention to the stirrup. “Nothing to this. This horse is well trained to move cattle. All you have to do is stay aboard. Heaven forbid that you fall off and end up with a black eye, swollen jaw and knot on your noggin.”
“About that knot,” she said as she approached the pinto mare. “It was an accident.”
“Or an opportunity too good to pass up,” he said, and smirked.
Miranda wheeled on him. “Look, pal, I’m going to do my level best to handle everything you throw at me this week and try to get along with you. So can we please get past that night at the tavern and serve this sentence as amicably as possible?”
“Sure, just as soon as I get over that wisecrack about Peter Pan,” he said darkly. “I may be fun-loving, but I take proper care of my cattle, horses and ranch. Just because I try to inject enjoyment into my work doesn’t mean I shirk my duties and behave irresponsibly.”
“I can see that you don’t,” Miranda assured him. “You have a well-manicured place that’s indicative of pride, hard work and commitment.”
Her compliment took the defensiveness out of his stance and expression. He even smiled at her. Miranda wished he hadn’t because the woman in her responded instantaneously. Even with that black eye and discolored jaw she still found him absolutely irresistible.
Enough of those inappropriate thoughts, she chastised herself. She turned to stuff her foot in the stirrup. Her body went on red alert when Vance clamped his hands around her waist to steady her and guide her onto her perch.
When she glanced down he tipped back his head to stare at her with that endearing one-eyed squint. “Sorry, Officer, I wanted to make sure you got settled in the saddle without mishap.”
“Well, uh, thanks.” Miranda yanked her attention away from those full, sensuous lips and toyed with the reins. “How many gears does this mare have?”
“Just two.” He grinned wryly. “A plodding walk and a hell-for-leather gallop. Hold her to first gear and you’ve got nothing to worry about.”
Miranda watched Vance mount up with grace and experienced ease. The man was definitely in his element. She, however, was not. He probably wanted to see her fail—big-time. Wanted to see her swallow her pride and nurse a few bruises after she cartwheeled off the pinto and bit dust. He’d probably laugh his head off when she went flying. Well, she’d stick to this saddle like glue, she vowed resolutely. She’d already made a fool of herself in his presence more times that she cared to remember. She was not going to do it today.
VANCE HAD TO ADMIT RANDI was a real trooper. Even when the cattle herd cut and ran and her pinto mare shot off to stop the stampede Randi held on tightly. Of course, her face turned baby-powder white and she clamped her teeth together in grim determination. But damn if he didn’t admire her for tackling the unfamiliar chores and attempting to do her very best.
Things progressed without mishap until the Black Angus bull abruptly turned tail and headed for the creek. The bull, it seemed, decided he wasn’t in favor of being confined to the corral. He thundered toward Randi and her mare who stood directly in his escape route.
“Oh, my God,” Randi squawked as the cantankerous bull charged toward her.
The pinto reared up when the bull sideswiped it. Vance’s heart missed several vital beats while he watched Randi somersault backward over the horse’s rump. He nudged his sorrel gelding and raced toward her. Damn it, if he killed the chief’s niece on the first day he’d be penitentiary bound.
Vance dismounted before his horse skidded to a stop and raced to Randi. She lay sprawled facedown in the grass, her breath coming in shallow hitches.
“You okay?”
“Don’t…know,” she wheezed. “Can’t breathe yet.”
Vance liked the way
