Rode Hard, Put Up Wet: Cowboy Romance (Rebels & Outlaws 2)

There was a noise behind her, but since she was outside and the noise was inside, she ignored it. Then the door opened and someone stepped right into her, too absorbed in her own nerves to react. Her feet slipped a little and for an instant, Marie was afraid she'd fall.

A pair of arms wrapped around her and caught her before she could lose her balance totally. That allowed Marie enough time to steady herself, to turn and see who had grabbed her. Her chest didn't seem to want to open itself up to air, as if there were something sitting on her chest.

Chris's face, lightly stubbled, was only a few inches from her own. His masculine scent filled her nose, filled her entire head. She was a professional, and not the sort of woman to get involved with his sort, though. A crease between her eyebrows deepened.

"What do you need?"

His lips pressed into a thin line. "I have an answer for you," he said. He closed the door and stepped away.

"Oh?"

"If someone else did the work for free, then you wouldn't need so much money, yeah?"

"Why, do you know a carpenter who works free?" The way his body language shifted was almost confusing for a moment. And then it was all too clear. "What do you know about carpentry?"

"I know more than just how to pour a whiskey and how to shoot straight, you know."

It might have sounded haughty if someone else had said it, but somehow the way that it came off when he spoke was neither boastful nor defensive. No different than if he'd said that the weather looked pretty clear.

"Are you offering to do it?"

"I'm not going to beg you," he said. The words were standoffish, but his expression wasn't. She'd almost have called him bored.

Marie considered the idea for a moment. There would be certain advantages. Certainly, the main one was the cheaper labor. She wouldn't have to worry about whether or not the carpenter would do it. Certain disadvantages, too, of course.

He'd be around more, for one thing. That wasn't necessarily a problem in itself. The little shiver that ran through her spine at the idea, on the other hand, was.

If she were being honest with herself, it would be the best thing that had happened to her in at least six months. Years, quite possibly. Marie had made a policy decision to be honest with herself as irregularly as possible.

The thought occurred to her in a flash, exactly how she could get out of it, and she spoke before she even had much opportunity to think about it.

"But you'd still need materials, right? That would cost a fair bit of—"

He smiled, like she'd stepped right into his trap. "Not a penny, ma'am. We got some out back, just going to make firewood at this point."

"But that's not yours to use, is it?"

He shrugged. "I don't know Mr. Davis even knows they're out there. Just sittin' in the shed."

"Are you sure?"

"Sure I'm sure."

He made a convincing argument. The sensible thing would be to take him up on his offer. It was a good offer, no up-front costs, and she had to admit, there were more reasons that she'd come to him than just his convenient location.

At least, she had to admit it to herself, because she sure wasn't going to admit it to him. She'd get to sit back, this way, and watch him working every day, for a few days at least. Maybe she'd to solve the riddle of what the hell the story of Chris Broadmoor was. Get to the core of all those rumors.

More than that, she could get to why there were rumors in the first place. See if there was anything to them. If there was anything to him.

She looked out across the way. Her schoolhouse didn't look nearly as pathetic from this distance as it had once she'd gotten close. Inside, it was almost heartbreaking.

"I think I'd like that," she said, finally.

He nodded and started moving before she could say a thing. The door flipped open easily and he disappeared inside. She waited a minute, and then another minute. She had begun wondering when she was going to decide that he'd just left her when she heard a voice call out from behind her.

"Lead the way, then."

He had a heavy-looking ladder slung over his shoulder, one that had the rough condition of a tool that had seen heavy use. She paused for a moment, thinking that he looked startlingly unlike what she'd expected from him. Then her brain caught up with her ears and she turned to start moving towards the school building.