The Cowboy And The Debutante. Stella Bagwell

where you are!”

      The demanding tone of Miguel’s voice was like a shot of adrenaline to Anna. She shoved herself away from him and stood on rubbery legs.

      “I’m okay. I don’t need a doctor!”

      Another cowhand retrieved her felt hat from the ground where she’d fallen and handed it to her. Anna jammed it back on her head and tried not to wince as it settled over the goose egg that had already formed beneath her scalp.

      “You probably have a concussion,” Miguel warned her.

      “I can see, and I don’t have the urge to throw up. I just have an ache in my head. And you would, too, under the circumstances.”

      Miguel motioned for the men to get back to work, then, taking Anna by the arm, he led her over to the back of the chuck wagon where the two of them would be out of sight from the others.

      “Why are you continuing to argue with me? You were briefly knocked out cold!” he told her, his voice rough with frustration. “I want you to swallow a couple of pain pills, and then I’m going to ride with you back to the ranch.”

      “Why? I don’t need to go back to the ranch.”

      He glared at her with angry disbelief, and Anna wished she had the strength to knock the know-it-all look off his face.

      “You didn’t need to be down in the branding pen, either,” he said, “but you wouldn’t listen to me.”

      “Oh, sure, throw that up to me! I’m sure it tickles you to death to be able to say ‘I told you so.”’

      At this very moment, Miguel wanted to shake her, then hold her as tightly as he could. He’d never been so frightened as when he’d heard the thud of the calf’s hoof striking her head and then had seen her lying white-faced and lifeless on the ground.

      “Nothing about this situation tickles me Anna.”

      She tried not to feel hurt by his attitude. After all, nowhere was it written that he had to like her. “In other words, you never wanted me around in the first place. You only tolerated my presence because of my mother. Well, if you must know, I only came out here on this roundup to please my mother.”

      “And here I thought all this time you were pining to be near me,” he said sarcastically.

      “You really are—” she shook her head “—sickening!”

      Suddenly his hand was cupping the back of her neck and his face was dangerously close to hers. “What would you know about me, Anna Murdock Sanders? You’ve been away from this ranch for more than a year. You didn’t even know your mother had hired a new man to run the place. I can plainly see who and what you care about!”

      Anger turned her cheeks scarlet and made her head pound just that much worse. “I think your hands and your notions are both misguided,” she said through gritted teeth.

      Something flared in his eyes, but before Anna could figure out what it was, pressure from his fingers propelled her forward and a pair of hard lips clamped down on hers.

      She groaned a protest in her throat, and her fists came up to push against his shoulders. But that was where her fight ended. Her stunned outrage was suddenly forgotten as her senses gave over to the overwhelming sensation of being in his arms, tasting his hard, warm lips.

      Anna was certain an eternity had passed before he finally ended the kiss and looked down at her. By then her legs were trembling even worse than before, and her head reeled with pain and the humiliation of surrendering to the man.

      “I’m certain,” he muttered, “that you think entirely too much. As for my hands and my notions—you won’t be bothered by either of them again!”

      “That’s the best news I’ve had in years!”

      Miguel didn’t know what in hell had come over him. He hadn’t wanted to kiss Anna Murdock Sanders! But he had, and even now he still couldn’t find the strength to put her away from him.

      “Can you see straight now?” he asked coolly.

      Her nostrils flared daintily as her eyes focused on the tantalizing curve of his lips. She was probably just one of many women that had tasted his mouth, she told herself. What had just transpired between them had meant nothing to him, except an act of punishment.

      “Straighter than I’ve ever seen before!”

      “Good. Then get on your horse and get out of here before I say or do something I’ll really regret.”

      “Believe me, I already have.”

      She jerked away from him and strode around to the front of the chuck wagon. The cook searched out a bottle of painkillers for her and Anna quickly swallowed one down with a swig of bitter coffee. By the time she’d untethered Ginger and swung herself up into the saddle, Miguel had already dismissed her and gone back to work in the branding pen. Now all she had to do was ride three miles back to the ranch and try to forget she’d ever met the man!

      Chapter Three

      “Anna! Anna, wake up!”

      This time it was her mother’s instructions rather than Miguel’s and the urgency in the older woman’s voice caused Anna to come awake instantly.

      “What’s wrong?” She glanced at the clock on the nightstand and was alarmed to see it was the middle of the night.

      “Don’t panic, darling, but we’ve had a telephone call from South America. It sounds as though Adam has been involved in some sort of accident out at one of the oil sites.”

      Anna bolted upright in bed, and the sudden movement caused her to clutch her head and groan.

      Chloe sat down on the side of the mattress and put her arm around her daughter. “I’m sorry I had to wake you up like this. I know your head must be killing you. But your daddy and I are going to be leaving in a few minutes.”

      Anna dropped her hands from her temples and stared anxiously at her mother. “Now? Tonight? Is he—” She was forced to stop and swallow as fear knotted her throat. “Is he injured critically?”

      Chloe shook her head. “No...it doesn’t sound that serious. The caller said Adam was in the hospital with a broken leg. And that was the only injury he knew about.”

      “Thank God for that much,” Anna murmured as thoughts of her brother whirled through her mind. He’d always been like a third arm or leg to her. Even when they were apart, she always felt his presence, as he did hers. She ached for him now.

      “Don’t you think I should go, too? I want to see him,” she said, quickly throwing back the covers.

      “Not tonight,” Chloe said quickly. “You don’t need to be traveling with that lump on your head. Besides, if it turns out Adam needs surgery on his leg, we might have to stay down there for an extended time. If that’s the case, I’ll need you here to see after the horses for me.”

      Anna nodded at her mother’s reasoning. “Of course, I’ll do anything you need me to.”

      Chloe hugged her close. “I know you will, darling.”

      She got up from the bed and gently pushed Anna back down against the pillow. “Try to rest and don’t worry. We’ll call you as soon as we find out anything. And in the morning please go over to Miguel’s and explain to him what’s happened and that it looks as though we’ll be away for a few days.”

      “Go over to Miguel’s? Mother, there’s no need for that! The man will probably be down at the stables by daybreak. I’ll let him know then.”

      Chloe frowned at her daughter. “He won’t be down at the stables in the morning. The men are going to be doing roundup without him tomorrow. He was going to Alamogordo to make a deal on some liquid feed.”

      “Then