Reuniting With The Cowboy. Shannon Taylor Vannatter

      “Busted. Mama traitored—petting countless other dogs and cats again.” The sniffing stopped and kisses took over. With both cheeks sufficiently licked, she set them down.

      “Mom?”

      “In the living room. Did the emergency surgery go okay?”

      “Yep, she’ll be fine. Derek was a great help to Lance with the vaccinations.” She strolled into the living room. Home. She loved this house. The worn plank flooring and walls, beams across the ceilings, and ancient windows. Comfortable, unpretentious and cozy.

      “Did Dr. Bridges leave already?” Mom was in her jammies, curled up on the couch with a book.

      “A few minutes ago.” Ally couldn’t wait to soak in the bathtub for an hour. Except for Mom’s weekly book club meetings, they both were usually in for the evening by six o’clock. Such exciting lives they led. Probably should get out more.

      Maybe she’d have more oomph at the end of the day with Derek around. Most applicants would have waited until Tuesday to start work, but she was thankful for his eagerness.

      Today’s ranch vaccinations had been so much easier with help, and when she’d gotten the emergency call, Derek had been able to stay with Lance and finish. Best of all, she didn’t ache quite as much with an extra set of hands at work.

      Wolf and Foxy pranced circles around her, offering unconditional love—even though she’d been with other critters all day.

      “Y’all don’t care who I play with, do ya?” Her high-pitched tone sent the tiny bundles of energy into excited jitters and she settled on the floor, leaning against the couch. The Poms fought for lap space, then stilled as she stroked their soft coats. “You’ll never guess who showed up after you left, though.”

      “I saw you with Cody after I got out of the shower.”

      “He arrived just as the state inspector was about to write me up for having too many cats. Cody took Bruno and the three I got in yesterday and saved the day.” And rubbed her shoulders. She could still feel his touch.

      “I wonder why the inspector came again. Good thing Cody was there to be your hero.”

      “Until I asked him to sell me an acre and he admitted he’s only leasing the land.” She picked up Foxy and rubbed noses with her. “What’s up with that, Foxy?”

      The only problem with furry friends—they never answered back.

      Wolf let out a yip.

      Not in people language, anyway.

      “Maybe once his lease is up, you can buy the acreage. It’ll work out.” Mom gave her an encouraging smile. “Just have faith.”

      Mom’s words stung. Faith was exactly what she didn’t have.

      Why couldn’t her new neighbor have been someone else? A single woman living alone, or a family with a mom who needed adult companionship. Someone who could have at least sold her an acre or two. And who didn’t stir such confusing feelings in her. Even some animal-hating grouch. Anyone other than landlocking Cody.

      Though he probably wouldn’t even stay put. Which, as her mom had pointed out, could be good for her. He wouldn’t even be here if not for his injuries and she was sure he’d head back to the circuit just as soon as he could hobble there.

      If Cody moved on, she’d get another chance to convince the owner to sell her a parcel of the land. But that meant Cody would run out on her like before. When she’d needed him most. She had to stay away from him in order to survive this go-round.

      For as long as she could remember, Cody had gone from one obsession to the next, never sticking with anything for long. Baseball, basketball, fishing, hunting, soccer, football, racquetball and finally rodeo. He’d pursued rodeo far longer than anything else.

      Wolf was hanging off her lap and Ally shifted her legs into a crisscross position to give the dogs more room. Closing her eyes, she twirled the end of her braid around her finger.

      Sometimes she could still imagine it was her dad doing it. Even after twelve years, she longed for his presence, his sound counsel. He’d have known what to do about her shelter. But he wasn’t here.

      “Ally?”

      She looked up. Mom had clearly asked her something. “What?”

      “Are you ready for supper?”

      “You can go ahead. I need a bath.”

      Her only hope was to buy the land once Cody got bored with playing rancher and his lease was done. And that would be best for her wayward heart, too.

      A hot bath and a bowl of soup later, she crawled in bed thinking about her predicament.

      And Cody. She wouldn’t be his new short-term diversion.

      Stop thinking about him.

      She closed her eyes and snuggled under the covers—exhaustion fogging her brain.

      Dogs barking. Ally opened her eyes. Lots of yapping. And they were close. How long had she slept—minutes or hours? It was still dark outside. She was used to the sound. In fact, she usually woke up only when they weren’t barking. But this frenzied chorus seemed to come from right under her window.

      She rolled over, squinted at the green digital numbers on her clock. Four twenty-three. Why were the dogs stirred up in the wee hours of the morning? And why did they sound so near? She threw the covers back, jumped up and hurried to the window.

      Three dogs surrounded the live oak in her yard. Barks, yips and growls filled the early-morning air. As her eyes adjusted to the moonlight, she spotted a cat clinging to a gnarled, twisted limb high in the tree. In the distance, the lights were on in the barn.

      What were they doing loose? Her heart lodged in her throat. She flipped her lamp on, tugged a warm-up suit over her pajamas and darted down the hall.

      “Mom.” Ally knocked on her bedroom door. “The animals are loose.” Flashlight in hand, she bolted through the house and jerked the front door open. A light blinded her as she barreled into something solid.

      Someone solid.

      She screamed.

       Chapter Three

      “It’s me.” Cody’s strong arms steadied her. The soft flannel of his shirt warmed her against the chill of the night air as his familiar spicy scent surrounded her.

      Ally pulled away from him. “Are you all right? I didn’t hurt your knee, did I?”

      “No.” He lowered the beam of his flashlight and she got a glimpse of his denim clad legs. “Why are the animals out?”

      “I have no idea.”

      “I’ll help you corral them.”

      “You can’t.” She stepped around him. “It’s dark and you’ll step in a hole or something and hurt your knee. If you want to help, though, go to the barn. I’ll catch the dogs and bring them to you. Just put them in pens and I’ll sort out who goes where later. Once I get all the dogs, then I’ll be able to lure the cats back.”

      “I’m on it.” He limped toward the barn.

      She ran to the clinic. The door stood wide open. Odd. She grabbed several collars with leashes and a handful of treats, then scurried back out to the gathering under the tree.

      “Here, Spot.” The splotched mutt ignored her as he jumped, his front paws running up the tree with each lunge as he growled at the terrified cat. “I’ve got treats.” She dug a biscuit out of her pocket and held it just out of the dog’s reach. Spot’s nose twitched and he lost interest in the cat long enough for her to clasp a collar around his neck. “Gotcha.”

      She