Jenny said little on the way. Emotion could be a bitch. Though she was drained and exhausted, she looked pretty, with her shiny, golden-brown curls and the tiny row of freckles across her nose.
Arousal stirred through him. He wasn’t taking her to the ranch with seduction in mind, but that didn’t mean he didn’t still want her. Denying the strong physical attraction he felt had him a little on edge.
With the sun pouring in through the window, the cab of the truck grew warm. He glanced over to see that Jenny had fallen asleep, her head curled into her hand, propped against the warm glass. A surge of protectiveness burned through him, which seemed to be a common occurrence when Jenny was around.
Cain wasn’t sure he liked it.
As he turned onto Iron Springs Road, heading toward the ranch, Jenny sat up in the passenger seat. She looked out the window to see where they were. Recognizing the road northwest out of Prescott, she turned toward him.
“I can’t believe I fell asleep. Not much company, was I?”
“You needed the rest. It’s been a hard day.”
She raked back her curly hair and sat up a little straighter. Dusk had fallen, but as he neared the ranch, it was still light enough to see the white-fenced pastures along the road and lining both sides of the lane leading to the ranch house.
Cain pulled to a stop in front of the single-story, red-tile-roofed structure and turned off the engine. Jenny was out of the truck before he could get down from the driver’s seat.
“What a beautiful place,” she said, glancing around, taking in the barns, the fenced paddocks, and desert vistas surrounding the property. She looked more rested, more relaxed, and he was glad he had brought her here.
“I fell in love with the Cross Bar the first time I saw it,” Cain said, grabbing her overnight bag from behind the seat. He slammed the pickup door, and they headed for the house.
Maria Delgado opened the front door. “Señor Cain. Welcome home.”
“It’s only been a few days,” he said, smiling. “Maria, this is Jenny Spencer. She’s a friend from Jerome. She’ll be staying with us for a couple of days.”
Maria’s black eyes swept over Jenny, who was about her same diminutive height, though Maria was older and much more robust.
Jenny smiled warmly. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Maria.”
“Buenos días,” Maria said, but there wasn’t much friendliness in the greeting. His housekeeper was extremely protective. Cain rarely brought a woman to the ranch, no one for over a year. Maria’s motherly instincts had been aroused. She thought every women was after his money.
Mostly she was right.
“This way,” Cain said, grabbing Jenny’s bag and carrying it in through the foyer. Continuing down the long hallway in the bedroom wing, he walked past the master bedroom and put her things in the guest room next door.
Jenny walked in behind him.
“All the guest rooms have their own baths,” he said. “If there’s anything you need, just let me or Maria know.”
“I’m sure I’ll be fine.” She surveyed the Southwest décor, the colorful striped fabric draped over a heavy wooden chair, the Native American blanket at the end of a queen-size bed with an ornate wooden headboard.
“Your house is lovely.”
“Thank you. It’s the only place I own that really feels like home.”
They walked out of the guest room, back down the hall to the living room. It was also done with a Southwest flair, lots of bright-colored woven pillows and rugs, and heavy wooden furniture.
“You must be hungry,” he said. “You haven’t eaten anything all day but a candy bar and too much coffee at the hospital.”
She looked up at him in surprise. “I hadn’t really thought about it. Everything’s been so chaotic, I guess I forgot.”
He smiled. “Maria’s a great cook. She feeds the hands at five. I called and told her we were coming but we’d be late. She’ll have food for us waiting in the oven.”
“Now that you mentioned it, I’m starving.”
“So am I.”
Maria was gone when Cain led Jenny into the dining room. But the Spanish-style table, a heavy slab of wood surrounded by ten ornate, high-backed wooden chairs, beckoned with dark red, yellow, and turquoise pottery dishes. Dark red napkins fanned out from inside thick ruby glasses.
