Capturing A Colton. C.J. Miller

her hard to catch.

      Jade was in the round pen with a horse. She was wearing tan boots and tight khaki pants. Her white collared shirt fit her curves, giving her a casual and sexy appearance. In her hand was a long rope attached to the horse’s halter, and she turned as the horse moved. Watching her, he was captivated again by her intensity and focus. He approached the five-foot-high slatted fence. Not wanting to break her concentration, he waited.

      After a few seconds, she turned to him and waved. The smile on her face socked him in the gut. She was beautiful. He motioned for her to come over. She said something to her horse and then approached.

      “Hey, stranger,” she said. “Two days in a row. How did I get so lucky?”

      “I told you I would come by. I know you’re anxious about what’s been going on around Shadow Creek.”

      Jade looked over her shoulder. “I’ve called Shadow Creek home all my life and I love the wide-open spaces. But I’ve been starting to wish I wasn’t as isolated out here. It gets creepy.”

      “Do you have time to take a break?” He held up the bag. Not mentioning the incident from the day before, it crossed his mind a filling meal would help her through the day.

      “Let me take Tiny to graze. Then yes, thank you—that sounds great.”

      As Jade took care of her horse, Declan looked to where he had seen the dark sedan. It was gone. Many Coltons in the region meant the authorities had to split their time. Couldn’t sit on Jade’s farm around the clock. Though Declan liked the idea of them being close in case Livia approached her daughter, from what Declan knew of the local authorities, led by Sheriff Bud Jeffries, he couldn’t count on them to keep the Coltons safe. Bud didn’t hide his blatant dislike for the Coltons. Bud Jeffries wasn’t an idiot, but he was inept and stubborn. He wanted to run the sheriff’s office in his own way and he didn’t like anyone telling him what to do.

      Jade appeared again. She walked with a swagger and the sway of her hips captivated him. Declan was lost. She was everything a Texas woman should be, except that she was the daughter of his enemy.

      “We can eat under the acacia tree,” she said, pointing a distance away from the house.

      He followed her and then sat in the grass beneath the tree, enjoying the shade. Declan set out the food, letting Jade pick first. She selected the club sandwich: turkey, black forest ham and roast beef, cucumbers, tomatoes and lettuce on a fresh sub roll. Declan unwrapped his cold cut with ham, salami and bologna on a wheat roll with mayonnaise and tomato.

      “I asked the waitress at the Cozy Diner for the two best sellers,” Declan said.

      “Good choice. They’re both great picks,” Jade said, taking a bite of sandwich. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the tree.

      They ate in comfortable silence.

      “I appreciate this, Declan,” Jade said. “I sometimes forget to take breaks and it catches up to me.”

      “Is that what happened yesterday?” he asked.

      After a thoughtful moment, she shook her head. “That was just a bunch of problems and worries catching up to me. My farm hasn’t been open long and while I love the work, there’s so much of it. It will be years before I’m out from under the paperwork and the financial pressures. I run this place on donations and the occassional horse sale, and I try hard not to dip too often into my salary, but it’s hard. I want to do all I can for the animals and it’s never enough. I’ve been giving riding lessons when I have time for extra money, but not all my horses are amenable or able to do that, and it takes away from working with the horses that need the most attention.”

      Declan didn’t like to talk about money outside a business setting. When he had been younger and had none, he hadn’t felt like enough. When he had finally made his fortune, he had learned that friends weren’t necessarily happy that his hard work had paid off. A few even resented his fortune. Some expected he would give them money when they needed it, even when their definition of need—a brand-new car, a trip to a tropical island, a coveted piece of jewelry—didn’t align with his. Some criticized presents as not being extravagant enough. It was the ugly side of having money and people knowing it.

      Jade took a sip from one of the water bottles he’d bought at the Cozy Diner. “One of my biggest costs is the veterinary bills. The horses come to me in various states of bad health. If I were a veterinarian, I could treat my horses without that expense. Don’t get me wrong. I have a great vet who doesn’t charge me nearly what she could. But it’s a big part of the budget.”

      Becoming a veterinarian to treat her horses didn’t seem like the most time-or cost-effective option. Raising the money herself or finding a marketable product to supplement her income would be easier. Jade had a great place and he could think of several moneymaking opportunities. “Do you plan to go to vet school?”

      Jade sighed. “I can’t. Every penny I have is wrapped up in this place. I wouldn’t have the time and I can’t afford to hire anyone to run the farm. And as much as I’m ashamed to admit this, I don’t even know if I could get into veterinary school. My grades in high school were bad and I haven’t gone to college.”

      “Yet you’ve figured out how to purchase land and set up this elaborate horse rehabilitation business. You must have a knack for animals and numbers. If you were interested, you could go to school for business, learn ways to grow your farm.”

      Jade stretched her legs out in front of her. “You think I could do that?”

      “I know your time is limited, but you could manage.” She could find a way if she were resourceful.

      “Wow, thanks, Declan. I appreciate the vote of support. I can’t say that formal school appealed to me before opening the farm. I had a complicated childhood and that led to a confusing adolescence where I looked for attention in the wrong places. If it wasn’t for Mac, I would have gone way, way off the skids. Probably would be working some dead-end job that paid nothing and counting down to the end of the shift. At least with the farm, I love what I do. The hours pass quickly. There are days when I don’t have enough hours to finish. I’m never bored here.”

      Declan knew of Mac and had heard good things about the older man from Edith. He had been involved with Livia and managed to leave her without being killed. He owned a ranch in the area and, since reuniting with Edith, had been good to her. “That’s great that you had someone to help you.”

      He hadn’t had anyone who’d cared for him in that way. Not a single foster parent took an interest in him. He was a paycheck to them and while he wasn’t ever mistreated, he had never felt the consuming love of family. Edith was the only person in his life who had shared his triumphs and failures.

      Jade’s eyes were bright when she looked at him. “For all my misfortune being a Colton, I’ve been blessed.”

      Declan wasn’t sure what to make of Jade and that statement. His attraction to her defied explanation and while he had expected someone cold and hard, the warm and generous woman in front of him was a pleasant surprise.

      “Can I be blunt with you?” Jade asked.

      “I appreciate honesty,” Declan said. He anticipated a question about Edith or River, or maybe his father. He wasn’t quick to talk about any of those subjects, but he was curious what was on Jade’s mind.

      “Why did you buy La Bonne Vie?” Jade asked.

      Without getting into the emotional reasons for his decision, he could lay out his plan. “It’s a valuable property. The house poses a problem, but I’m tearing that down. I’ll divide up the land and use it for commercial or residential properties.”

      Jade frowned. If she had sentimental attachment to her childhood home, he was sorry about that. He hadn’t meant to speak bluntly about the house, but when he spoke of business, he left emotion out of it.

      Jade set her sandwich on the wrapper. “Do you think I could visit?”