The Rancher's Rules

She hadn’t.

He frowned. “This is serious, niña.”

“I know.” Seriously disturbing. She might not think getting involved with Grant was up there on the list of her one hundred most intelligent life choices, but she sure as certain didn’t understand his melodramatic reaction. “Why do you have a rule against kissing me?”

He looked at her like she’d lost her mind.

“It’s a reasonable question. I liked kissing you.” She knew it couldn’t go anywhere, but it wasn’t exactly the crime of the century.

Grant glared at her. “Get over it. It won’t happen again.”

“Get over it? No wonder women break up with you by the truckload. If you treat them all like mass murderers for liking your kisses.”

“Stop dramatizing. We have enough to worry about without you getting theatrical.”

Her theatrical? She wasn’t the one turning a simple kiss into a federal offense.

He folded his arms across his chest, his stance defensive. “For your information, the women I date rarely break it off with me, and I don’t mind them liking my kisses.”

Okay. He was mad. That was pretty obvious. And he looked pretty confused too, but the words still hurt.

“What’s the matter with me?”

She had not meant to shout.

Grant winced, then rubbed the back of his neck.

“Stop doing that. You remind me of my dad,” she accused, out of all patience.

“Good. That’s good. Just remember, I’m a lot like your dad. You don’t want to kiss me again.”

Zoe pinched herself. It hurt. “Ouch.”

Grant looked at her with that dumb cow stare that men got sometimes when faced with a relationship discussion. “Why did you do that?”

“I wanted to know if this was some bizarre dream. Unfortunately, it’s not.” She rubbed at her arm where she had pinched it. She could not understand Grant’s reaction. She had a good reason for avoiding a relationship with him, but what was his problem with her?

She needed some time to think—away from the maddening man trying to convince her that he was just like her father. No two men could be more different. Grant had never made Zoe feel like she needed to be something or someone different to earn his approval. He’d hurt her when she was nineteen, but he hadn’t known how much. After all, as far as he was concerned she was the one who had run from the barn.

He didn’t know that she’d changed her mind and been prepared to take their relationship to a deeper level. But that didn’t excuse him turning to another woman so quickly, or the fact he hadn’t talked over what had happened with her before doing so. Zoe wasn’t the only one who had seen her and Grant as a couple that summer.

“I’m going to check on Snoopy and Maurice.”

“Great. I’ll start dinner.”

His obvious relief set her teeth on edge. “Fine.”

She left, stopping briefly to don her coat. When she opened the door, cold air and flurries of snow blasted her. She made her way to the barn, glad for the guide rope Grant kept during the winter between the barn and the hacienda. Her hands were numb in no time, and she berated herself for forgetting her gloves. She pulled her hands inside the sleeves of her coat and used the ends like mittens, holding onto the rope through the down-filled cotton. When she finally reached the barn, she yanked open the door and rushed inside.

She pushed the door shut against the howling wind and swiftly falling snow. She leaned against it, trying to catch her breath. One of Grant’s horses neighed. Zoe’s head snapped up at the sound. Snoopy came bounding toward her, barking a greeting.

“Hush, dog.” Zoe sank to her knees to hug him, and scratched him behind the ears. Snoopy crooned low in his throat at her affectionate scratching.

“Grant has a rule against kissing me. Can you believe it?” She patted Snoopy and stood up. She wanted to check on Maurice as well. “In fact, he would rather kiss just about anyone but me. He made that perfectly clear.” She walked over to the goat’s stall, talking to Snoopy all the way. “My best friend and self-proclaimed protector has a rule against kissing me. The man’s got a screw loose. I never noticed it before. I’m not exactly a candidate for the lead role in Fatal Attraction.”

She entered Maurice’s stall and leaned forward to pet the goat. He ignored her. Maurice had never really accepted Zoe. The only person he had ever shown any affection for was Mr. Givens. Zoe sighed. She checked Maurice’s food supply and then left his stall.

Snoopy danced around her. “Well, screw loose or no screw loose, after that kiss I’ve got some thinking to do.” Her body still tingled in places where he had touched her—even places he hadn’t. The dog barked once loudly. Zoe smiled. “I’m glad to see you agree.”