The Rancher's Untamed Heart

When I got to the office on Friday morning, I walked quickly past the secretary's desk, not making eye contact, not asking about her weekend plans, and, most importantly, not slowing down outside Herman Banks's office.

The day was looking pretty bleak, but I knew what I needed to do. I got into my office without having to talk to anyone, and took off my rain jacket and set my umbrella over the trash can to drip dry.

My heart was beating like a rabbit's as I sat at my desk, trying to appear normal.

Not committing fraud shouldn't be so frightening. It should be just another day at the office.

"Damn it, Herman Banks," I muttered, firing up my computer and waiting to read my e-mails for the morning.

Maybe Sarah had e-mailed me to say she had gone on that inspection with our mutual boss. Maybe our boss had e-mailed me to let me off the hook on this one. Seen the error of his ways.

Fat chance.

As I feared, the only e-mails were adding to my workload, not taking anything away, particularly not the one task I didn't want to have to deal with.

I steeled myself, took a deep breath, and picked up the folder that Herman Banks had left on my desk. I didn't even know what ranch he had inspected.

Seeing the name on the first page, I gasped out loud. I couldn't help myself. This wasn't just any ranch, this was the very same ranch that my boyfriend's land pushed up against, the ranch whose owner had personally threatened me when I was with Clint.

The Yates ranch was definitely large, but the numbers didn't quite add up. I looked over the paperwork, and something just seemed off. Not just Herman Banks asking me to lie about having seen this inspection with my own two eyes, the number of animals was just a little too even, and the growth was a little too regular.

Every other ranch I'd seen had spikes and bumps and grumpy notes stuck into the file about crop rotation and illness and failure and death, why was this ranch ticking along so perfectly?

I couldn't help myself. I had to know what was going on here, and I only saw one way to do it.

I would have to pay the Yates's ranch a visit, in person, as soon as possible. I stood up, turned my monitor off to save power, and marched back out of the office, gathering up my things on the way.

"Where are you headed?" Lisa asked as I passed her desk.

I slowed down.

"Gotta double-check something from an old inspection, I'm finalizing some paperwork," I said, smiling at her. "I should be back to the office, but maybe not before lunch."

She nodded.

"Do you have any plans for the weekend?" I asked. I didn't want her to think that I was being rude, that would make my life more difficult for months.

She shook her head.

I smiled sympathetically and kept heading for the door, marching on towards my official government vehicle. Getting behind the wheel, I put the file on the seat next to me.

Quickly, I checked the address and keyed it into my GPS, heading for the Yates ranch.

The drive was uneventful, but I couldn't quite calm down. The heat was in my cheeks and my heart was still pounding in my chest.

As I drove past the turnoff to Clint's ranch, I hesitated. All I really wanted to do was pull off, take the road down to Clint's front door, and throw myself into his arms. That's what a Friday was about, now, wasn't it?

I had to work. I had to focus. I couldn't just think about Clint, and his easy smile, and his kind eyes, and his muscular chest.

I definitely couldn't think about his muscular chest if I was going to go to a surprise inspection on a possibly hostile ranch.

The closer I got to the Yates place, the more I was questioning my decision. Was this really the best idea I'd ever had, or was I fooling myself? Should I risk my job, and do what would make Clint proud, or risk losing Clint, but keep the job I'd been working for?

I gulped.

It was time to make this decision. What was my priority here?

With only two miles to go before the entrance to the ranch, I pulled over, cut the engine, and sat on the side of the road, flipping through the paperwork Herman Banks had given me and thinking hard.