Claiming the Rancher's Heart. Cindy Kirk

purpose, not lead a life she hadn’t chosen.

      A coyote howled in the distance, the eerie sound drifting in on the breeze through the screened patio door. Stacie shivered. “It’s so quiet out here…so isolated. Do you ever get lonely?”

      “I have friends.” The smile that had hovered on the edge of his lips most of the evening disappeared and his shoulders stiffened. “I see my parents at least weekly.”

      “But you live by yourself.” Stacie wasn’t sure why she was pressing the issue, but the answer somehow seemed important. “Almost an hour from civilization.”

      “Sometimes I get lonely,” he said. “But when I have a family of my own, it’ll be different.”

      “The solitude would drive me bonkers.” Stacie took a sip of coffee. “I need people. The more the merrier.”

      “It’s important to know what you want and what you don’t.” Josh’s expression gave nothing away. “I need to find a woman who could be happy with this kind of life.”

      “Cross me off that list,” Stacie said, keeping her tone light.

      Josh’s gaze never left her face. “I’ve never been much for lists.”

      Regardless of his obvious reluctance to hurt her feelings, she knew he’d made his decision, just like she’d made hers. No matter what the computer thought, she and Josh weren’t meant to ride together into the sunset.

      She took another sip of coffee and gazed out the screen door, feeling a little sad at the thought. Which made absolutely no sense at all. “The good thing is we haven’t completed our first date and we already know it’s not going to work.”

      “What’s so good about that?”

      Didn’t he understand that she was doing her best to see the glass as half-full? “We don’t have to waste time—”

      “Are you saying tonight was a waste?”

      She exhaled an exasperated breath. “No, but—”

      “I don’t think it was a waste at all,” he said. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve had this much fun or ate such a delicious meal.”

      He smiled and her pulse skipped a beat. Yikes. She’d never thought a cowboy could be so sexy.

      Stacie placed her cup on the coffee table. “I should be getting home.”

      “Not yet.” Josh reached forward and gently touched her face, letting his finger glide along her jaw.

       He’s going to kiss me. He’s going to kiss me. He’s going to kiss me.

      The words ran through her head like a mantra. She told herself to pull away. To put some distance between them. To just say no. He was Anna’s friend, after all, and he was looking for someone special. But instead of moving back, she leaned into his caress, her body quivering with anticipation.

      He moved closer. Then closer still. So close she could see the flecks of gold in his eyes and feel his breath upon her cheek. She was already anticipating the taste of his lips when he abruptly sat back, his hand dropping to his side. “This is a bad idea.”

      Her heart dropped like a lead balloon and she felt like a child whose favorite toy had been snatched from her grasp.

      For several heartbeats they simply looked at each other.

      “You’re right.” Her pulse, which had stalled, began to thump like a bass drum. “It’s late. I should get home.”

      When she stood he didn’t try to stop her. By the time she reached the front door, her heart had settled into a regular rhythm. She paused on the porch and took a deep breath of crisp mountain air, hoping it would clear her tangled thoughts. Darkness had fallen, but thanks to a brilliant moon and a sky filled with stars, she could see clearly.

      Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bert racing across the yard toward her. Her spirits lifted and she stopped at the base of the porch steps to give the dog a goodbye hug. Bert reciprocated with a wet kiss to her cheek. She laughed and gave the animal another quick squeeze.

      When she straightened, she found Josh staring.

      “What can I say?” she said. “Animals love me.”

      “Of course they do,” she thought she heard him mutter under his breath.

      Though the truck in the drive was less than twenty feet away, the walk seemed to take forever. She quickly discovered that heeled sandals and a gravel drive weren’t a good combination. Not to mention that every time she took a step, Bert pushed against her, forcing her closer to Josh.

      When they got to the pickup, Josh reached past her to open the passenger door. Stacie inhaled the spicy scent of his aftershave and a yearning to play “kiss the cowboy” returned.

      But instead of giving into temptation, she stepped back, putting a more comfortable distance between them. She was congratulating herself on her good sense when sharp teeth sank into the back of her heel. She yelped and leapt forward, crashing against Josh’s broad chest.

      His arms closed protectively around her and a look of concern blanketed his face. “What’s wrong?”

      Stacie turned in his embrace to cast the dog a reproachful look. “Birdie bit the back of my foot.”

      The animal cocked her head and swished her tail slowly. Her dark lips curved upward until it almost looked as if she were smiling.

      “Nipping heels is one of the ways she herds cattle,” Josh said in an apologetic tone. “It’s her nature.”

      “I don’t like that part of her nature.” Stacie wagged a finger at Bert. “Don’t do that again.”

      The dog stared for a moment and then lifted a paw and proceeded to lick it.

      “She’s sorry,” Josh said, a little smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

      “Yeah, right.” If Stacie didn’t know better she’d believe the animal had wanted her in Josh’s arms and had done what she could to make that happen.

      “Nothing will ever hurt you,” Josh said, his eyes dark and intense. “Not on my watch.”

      “Are you saying the cowboy will protect me against the big, bad dog?” she asked in a teasing tone.

      “Most definitely.” His gaze drifted to her lips.

      Though she knew she was playing with fire, Stacie slipped her arms around his neck, raking her fingers through his thick, wavy hair. “What I want to know is, who’s going to protect me against you?”

      She wasn’t sure he heard the question. Because the words had barely left her lips when his mouth closed over hers.

      Chapter Three

      “You kissed her?” Seth Anderssen let out a hoot of laughter that echoed throughout the Coffee Pot Café.

      Josh scowled and wrapped his fingers around the small cup, wishing he’d kept his big mouth shut. After all, Seth’s sister, Anna, was Stacie’s friend. If Seth mentioned to her he’d been blabbing about the date, it might get back to Stacie. And she might get the mistaken impression that he was interested. Which he wasn’t. Not in the least.

      “Did she come back into the house?” Seth asked in an all-too-innocent tone. “So you two could get even better acquainted?”

      Josh met his friend’s blue eyes. “Are you asking if I slept with her?”

      Though no one was seated nearby, Josh had automatically lowered his voice. When his marriage crumbled he’d provided more than his share of grist for the town’s gossip mill, and he wasn’t eager to repeat the experience.

      Seth’s gaze remained steady. “Did you?”

      “Of