Frank spent all her time in the saddle during the next four days, enjoying the peace and quiet of the hours spent alone. She was relaxed and refreshed when she came back to the ranch as arranged on Tuesday evening. Wednesday morning, she smiled with affection as she watched the dust whirl behind the pickup when Ollie drove down the lane to the main road. It would do him good to relax and get away from everything. Still, she understood how he felt. Ollie loved the ranch so much he didn’t feel a great urge to get away. His work and everyday life seemed satisfying enough that he didn’t want an escape. She turned toward the barn, humming as she went. It was going to be another hot day. The sky was a clear blue, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight.

By the end of the day, it was hard to believe it had been sunny and clear in the morning. She had been busy and hadn’t noticed the dark, threatening clouds that had formed in record time during the late afternoon. By the time she finished the evening chores, they hung low over the ranch, their darkness shrouding the area oppressively. The air was still and warm and humid. Forked lightning riddled the black sky to the west, and the roll of thunder cannoned through the surrounding coulees.

The Thunder Breeding Hills, she mused as she fanned herself with her hat, appreciating the movement of air as it wafted across her face. Native people had called the Cypress Hills that because they thought they were the home and breeding ground of the storms. She lifted her face to the sky. The night was going to be spectacular. It was a good thing she wasn’t afraid of thunder and lightning, or being by herself.

When she stepped out of the tub an hour later, a loud clap of thunder shattered the night. Within seconds, rain sluiced down in a torrent. Frank dried herself, wrapped a fresh towel sarong-fashion around her body, then stepped back into the bedroom. Shaking her hair loose around her shoulders, she went to stand at the window. She smiled as she watched the welcome drops bounce on the cement walk below. Their pounding rhythm on the roof was almost exciting, and she was stirred by the sound of it as she ran her fingers through her heavy, damp hair. She turned to pick up a small electric hair dryer and a styling brush and worked her hair until it floated around her shoulders like a soft, fragrant cloak. Fiery lights glinted off it like sparks borrowed from the lightning that pierced the evening sky.

After spraying herself lightly with her favorite perfume, she put on a two-piece, silk lounge set. The string straps of the camisole top kissed her shoulders and heavier decorative flat lace flowers studded with sparkling rhinestones made their way across the top of her breast line. The pants were wide legged and flowing. The material caressed her body with loving intimacy, accentuating her lissome slenderness. The rich purple complemented her coloring and gave her skin a luminous glow. She winked at her reflection in the mirror as she dropped a mocking curtsey. “Here I am, all dressed up with no place to go.”

She twirled away from the mirror and did a bouncy little dance step down the hall to the living room, stopped to put one of her favorite CDs in the player and turned up the volume. She swayed with the beat as she sashayed into the kitchen. Foot tapping, she hummed along with the music while she made herself a salad. She took two pieces of chicken from the fridge and buttered a dinner roll, then went back into the living room and set the plate on the coffee table by the couch.

She was about to sit down when one of her favorite pieces started to play. She hesitated as the music teased her, then she let herself go and began to dance with fluid, sensuous abandon. She discarded all her inhibitions and moved instinctively to a primitively erotic choreography, bending and swaying, stretching and sighing to the rhythm of the music. She wasn’t aware of the heady picture she made with her fiery cloak of hair drifting and fanning around her, while her silky lounge wear moved against her body like a pair of loving hands, caressing and molding here, floating lightly over her curves there, changing with her every movement. She was only aware of the beat that carried her to the last note. When the music was done, she sank exhausted to the couch and sighed with contentment.

She was lifting her hair off her neck when she sensed another presence in the room. She looked up, expecting to see Ollie. For a second, her mind didn’t register what her eyes saw. Her heart suspended in mid-beat. She stiffened. A billion tiny shards of ice prickled under her skin, moving upward along her arms, slipping across her shoulder blades, raising the hair on the back of her neck. She shivered, and then sprang to her feet like a startled cat.

“You!” she gasped as her stalled heartbeat accelerated. “What are you doing here?” Startled fear registered in her face and her voice as she met the sardonic green eyes across the room. The cowboy didn’t answer.

“Who are you?” she cried, bewildered. Anger flashed through her, interlacing with the fear. “Haven’t you ever heard of knocking?”

“A lot of good it would’ve done. Do you really think you’d have heard a knock above that racket?” He was using that now-familiar, chilling, velvety tone of voice that barely masked the steel edge of anger. “What the hell are you doing here? How did you get here? You certainly aren’t anything that Ollie would bring home. That only leaves the new fellow—Lamonte.”

His voice was hard and cold, but his green eyes seared her. “Ollie swears that Lamonte’s the best help he’s ever had, but obviously he has one weakness. Damn! Why didn’t you move on with your rodeo crowd? Good help is hard to come by, but even a good hand is trouble when he’s constantly got his mind on a hot piece of ass.” He strode across the room to face her. “Why in hell couldn’t you leave a good man alone?”

Frank went hot with anger. Blood pounded in her ears, a muscle twitched in her jaw. Her eyes narrowed. Her hands clenched into tight fists, and she lifted her chin, ready to do battle. “I don’t know who you are, but you are way out of line. I work here. I have a right to be here, which is more than I can say for you.”

“You lying tramp!” His hand darted out to cup her chin with an iron grip, forcing her face up to his. “I happen to own this place. I know that you don’t work here. And now I’m giving the orders. Pack your bags and I’ll take you back to Maple Creek. Then I’ll know you’re gone for certain.”

As she stared at him, his words registered. Was it possible that this man was her boss? The elusive Colt Thompson? Her large brown eyes slowly filled with tears that she sought to quell. One by one they brimmed over and slipped down her cheeks.

“Don’t try the tears on me,” he warned harshly. “It isn’t going to work.” He scowled and turned away abruptly. “I don’t understand how Ollie allowed this to happen. He knows the rules. I’m not running a whorehouse here.” He swung back to face her; his movements stiff and defensive. “Where the hell is Ollie?”

Confused and angry, she raked her fingers through her hair. “Ollie went to Swift Current for a few days. I don’t expect him back until the weekend.”

“What did he go to Swift Current for? He didn’t mention it to me.” She didn’t answer, and he demanded, “Then where is Lamonte?”

She yelled at him in exasperation, “I am Frank Lamonte!”

He froze. He seemed momentarily at a loss for words, before he exploded, “What kind of fool do you take me for? I know Ollie wouldn’t hire a woman in the first place, but if he had, he would have told me.”

“Why wouldn’t he hire a woman?” she stormed. “I’ve worked with livestock all my life. I’m good at what I do. I keep my mind on the job, which is more than can be said for some of the men around here,” she added bitterly. “If Ollie didn’t tell you I was a woman, it was probably because he knew what a chauvinist you are.” Angry spots of color flamed in her cheeks.

He stiffened at her words, his eyes narrowing to angry slits. This little termagant had some nerve, standing here in his house, calling him a chauvinist. His look pinioned her for breathless seconds.

“Let’s just imagine for a moment that what you’re telling me is true,” he sneered icily. “If you are Frank Lamonte, why would you want a job in an out-of-the-way place like this? It doesn’t make sense. And remember, I saw you in action at the rodeo,” he said with disgust. “Kirby Wisehart is a married man. He has a terrific wife and two beautiful little kids. And you two were canoodling like …like I would have expected from a buckle bunny. But not Kirby, I’ve never seen him step across the line until you were all over him.”

Her mouth fell open. “Kirby Wisehart? Him and I canoodling or whatever you call it? I wasn’t all over him, as you put it. Kirby knows a guy I use to team rope with and…”

“Team rope? You team rope?”

“I said I used to team rope with him. I haven’t team roped for several years, and I haven’t seen Clint Roberts since I went to university. He married a barrel racer in the US…”

He nodded. “I know that.”

“Kirby was showing me pictures of Clint & his wife and kids on his phone.”

“You threw your arms around him and hugged him. And then you two sat head to head…”

“You were watching us?” she asked in disbelief.

“It would have been hard for anyone to miss. Everyone could see you flirting with all those guys.”

“I was not flirting with all those guys,” she blazed. “You really are a judgmental, narrow minded ass.” By now she was yelling. “Jeez! You ask why I took a job in an out-of-the-way place like this. I wanted to get away from people like you. Until I went to the rodeo, I managed to do that quite nicely.” She slammed a cushion across the couch, stood up, and turned toward her bedroom. “I’ll go and pack now, but I’m not leaving at this time of the night. I’ll be on my way early in the morning. Then you can look after your ranch yourself, Mr. Thompson; at least, that is who I assume you are.”                                                                                                  

***

Colt paced through the kitchen and living room. Gradually his righteous anger gave way to uncertainty and frustration. “If she really is Frank Lamonte, Ollie is going to kill me for sending her packing. Shit, after the way he’s been singing her praises, he might up and quit too. What the hell have I done?  ”

He poured himself a drink of rum and coke and sat down at the table. “Who’d name a woman like that Frank?” He stared unseeingly at the folded paper on the table. “Ollie never let on. How was I supposed to know?”

The more he thought about the situation, the more anxious he felt. “I’m afraid I may have stuck my foot in my mouth. I can’t afford to have everything fall apart on this end now. I’ve got my hands full with Mom and Dad and the farm.” He stood up and put his glass in the sink. Then he walked down the hallway and knocked on her door.

She didn’t answer immediately. Maybe she was asleep. He knocked a little harder.

“What do you want?” Her voice was surly.

“Would you come out? I… We need to talk.”

“As far as I’m concerned, there’s nothing left to say!”

“I’ve been thinking about all this, and I need to talk to you.”

“I’m not interested in talking to you. All I want to do is get a good sleep so I can hit the road early.”

“Look, this doesn’t have to take long. I could come in there.”

“Don’t you dare come into this room! Just give me a moment to put on my housecoat and I’ll come out.” She picked her old terrycloth robe off the back of the chair and pulled it over her pajamas, then opened the door, glaring at him. “This is bordering on harassment! What do you want?”

He looked disconcerted. “No!… I’m not trying to harass you. But I’ve been thinking… I might have been a little hasty here,” he stammered uncomfortably. “I… It seems… Well, I admit I jumped to the wrong conclusion when I saw you at the rodeo.  I never suspected you were…who you are.” He shifted uneasily. “Dammit!” he said defensively, “all I knew about you was that your name was Frank and that you were the best help Ollie’s ever had. There was never any indication that you were a woman. Who calls their daughter Frank?”

“My parents did.”

“I realize that now; but I still don’t understand it. Anyway, can we talk about you not leaving? I mean…would you consider staying on?” He ran an agitated hand through his hair. “I screwed up here, and Ollie will probably want to quit too if you leave. It would have been so much simpler if he’d told me who you were. I mean, what you were.”

“It’s your own fault that he didn’t tell you. He obviously knew what your reaction would be.”

He looked guilty. “You’re right; he knew that without a doubt. But we need a good hand, and according to Ollie, that’s what you are. You know the lay of the land and the routines here on the ranch. I admit that I was out of line and I apologize until the cows come home. Now that everything’s out in the open, will you please consider staying? ”

She stared at him wordlessly. Absently, she ran the back of her hand across her lips. Darn! Why couldn’t this phase of my life have stayed simple? She sighed heavily. “I love it here. I don’t really want to leave, but I won’t work for anyone with your attitude.”

“I was inexcusably judgmental and I deserve that. But you work with Ollie, and as long as Ollie’s satisfied, I’m not going to interfere. Can we shake hands on it and start over again?”

Frank’s weary gaze searched his face, then shrugging her shoulders she turned and walked to the window. She watched the rain pelt down for a minute or two, then, with a sigh, turned to face him. “I’ll stay because I like working with Ollie, but you have tossed some pretty insulting insinuations around. One thing has to be clear; I will not tolerate that sort of thing. If it happens again, I’ll be gone, no matter what the circumstances.”

“That’s fair enough.”

She wheeled around and glared at him. “What is wrong with you? Why would you jump to such a wild conclusion? You had no idea who I was.” She made a move to walk past him.

He looked embarrassed, almost desperate, as he stood in her way so she couldn’t flounce back to her room. “Look. I’ve been around the rodeo circuit for years and I’ve seen so much crap go on. When I saw you flirting with all those guys—”

“I was not flirting with them.”

“I thought you were.” Colt ran his hand through his hair. “Dammit, Kirby Wisehart has everything a man could ask for in life, but you’re an attractive, sexy woman and sometimes what starts out as a flirtation sticks like a burr in a guy’s mind. They end up doing stupid things and it ruins marriages and destroys families. Now that you’ve explained what you two were doing… well, I realize I was wrong. I should have trusted Kirby, but I let my past experiences cloud my judgment.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say, except that I hope you will accept my apology.”

She turned and moved across the room to another window. What a way to end a perfectly enjoyable day, she reflected. All her spontaneous happiness had fled. He had apologized, but she was tense and uneasy in his presence, and his unfounded accusations hurt. She walked over to the counter and plugged in the electric kettle. In an effort to cover the awkwardness of the moment she asked, “Would you like coffee or something to drink?” She wondered if he was planning to stay the night. He didn’t usually, but maybe he wouldn’t trust her here on her own.

“Sure,” he said, hesitating. “Actually, I could use something to eat too. I expected to catch one of Ollie’s home-cooked meals, so I didn’t eat before I left.”

Irritation flooded through her. If he figured she was going to start waiting on him, he was crazy. “Help yourself. There’s chicken in the fridge. You can grab a couple of dinner buns out of the breadbox. I made strawberry cheesecake this afternoon. You can have a piece for dessert.”

He hesitated momentarily, then, with a barely perceptible shrug of the shoulders, walked over to the fridge. “I don’t want to be a bother, but it’s been a long day, and I’ll be getting pretty ragged by morning.”

“No bother to me,” she said and bit back further irritation as she measured instant coffee into two cups. Did he expect her to jump up and wait on him? Well, bully for him. He was darn lucky she even offered to make instant coffee. She hoped he disliked it as much as she did.

When he had finished eating, he gave her a tentative smile. “Good cheesecake!” he said appreciatively. “That really hit the spot. I’m beginning to see why Ollie thinks you’re such a great hand. It must be a welcome change for him to have someone around the place to cook.”

Frank stiffened at his words. “Ollie’s opinion of me is based solely on my ability to perform as a ranch hand, outside, doing all the things that any man in the same position would do, and in some cases, I dare say, even more. I seldom cook or clean; although, there are occasions when we share both jobs and make it a joint effort. I have not relieved Ollie of the cooking as you seem to imagine. That would hardly cover my job as a ranch hand, would it?” She picked up her cup, carried it to the sink, then turned and walked stiffly toward the door.

“Just a minute, I didn’t mean it that way.” He took three giant, hurried steps to the door and blocked her escape. “Damn it! I was paying you a compliment. Ollie’s no fool. You have to be a good ranch hand or he’d never be so impressed. But it must be nice to have you around the house, too.”

She rounded on him angrily. “That isn’t how it came across to me. It sounded to me like the old, ‘a woman’s place is in the kitchen’ routine. Truthfully, I’m not a great cook. I spent most of my life working outside with my dad and I missed out on learning most of the finer domesticated things. But, I am very capable of doing what I was hired for.” Her dark eyes flashed furiously.

“I seem to be a genius when it comes to finding ways to offend you,” he said, looking at her in dismay.

“Well, maybe you should learn to think before you speak.” She took another step forward and looked at him chillingly. “Excuse me. I’m going to bed.”

His eyes held hers stubbornly for a long moment before he stepped aside.

“Good night, Fran.”

Resentment flashed in her eyes. “My name is Frank.”

 “Damn it!” he protested. “Every Frank I know is a man. Whatever else you may be, there’s certainly nothing masculine about you. I can’t call you Frank. It just doesn’t fit.”

“Frank is my registered birth name, and it’s what I answer to.” She turned and walked away and she could feel his eyes on her as she walked down the hall and into her room. She closed the door firmly and leaned against it with a sigh, shutting out his piercing gaze. She was exhausted. And no wonder! She had spent more emotional energy in the past few hours than she had in the entire past year.

 

Contemporary Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Western Romance, Adult content, Woman Fiction, Veterinarian, Canadian setting, ranch setting, depression, divorce, ranch hand,Cypress Hills Southern Saskatchewan, Maple Creek Saskatchewan, Stettler Alberta, love

 

Sparks fly when Frank Lamonte and Colt Thompson meet. There is an explosion of anger, based on misinformation and suspicion: but there is also an undeniable attraction. Thirty-six fateful hours set the stage for a lifetime of consequences. 

Veterinarian, Frank Lamonte, comes to Belanger Creek Ranch to work as a ranch hand after her boss recognizes her growing symptoms of depression and insists she take a leave of absence. She is reeling from a series of emotional blows, the final one being a broken engagement. He tells her to leave town for a while and give her ravaged emotions a chance to heal, without constantly facing reminders of the past. She's determined to get better quickly, and nothing will stand in her way.…that is, until she meets the owner of Belanger Creek Ranch. Her attraction to him could end her plans, even though she thinks otherwise. 

After divorcing the cheating wife who destroyed his dreams, Colt Thompson has become a bitter and cynical man. Being vulnerable once broke his heart; allowing it to happen twice will never happen. He will make certain that he never falls in love again. When he finds Frank Lamonte at the ranch, he makes up his mind that she is a liar and a cheat. He will not let himself be attracted to her, even though the tension sizzles. 

Will Frank and Colt open their hearts to true love? 

Or, will Colt do everything he can to protect his heart? Will he wed Shauna Lee Holt, his “friends with benefits” woman; a woman he doesn’t love? 

Will Frank take a risk and make him think again? Will she settle back into the state of depression that resulted in her coming to Belanger Creek Ranch? When Dr. Jason Winters DVM arbitrarily put her on leave of absence, he told her to deal with her emotional trauma. He promised that her job as a veterinarian at his clinic would be waiting, when she was mentally healthy. Will she jeopardize all her opportunities? 

Heartache lies ahead for these two intractable characters, and neither one of them will make wise choices along the way. Sparks fly when Frank Lamonte and Colt Thompson meet. There is an explosion of anger, based on misinformation and suspicion: but there is also an undeniable attraction. Thirty-six fateful hours set the stage for a lifetime of consequences. 


Veterinarian, Frank Lamonte, comes to Belanger Creek Ranch to work as a ranch hand after her boss recognizes her growing symptoms of depression and insists she take a leave of absence. She is reeling from a series of emotional blows, the final one being a broken engagement. He tells her to leave town for a while and give her ravaged emotions a chance to heal, without constantly facing reminders of the past. She's determined to get better quickly, and nothing will stand in her way.…that is, until she meets the owner of Belanger Creek Ranch. Her attraction to him could end her plans, even though she thinks otherwise. 

After divorcing the cheating wife who destroyed his dreams, Colt Thompson has become a bitter and cynical man. Being vulnerable once broke his heart; allowing it to happen twice will never happen. He will make certain that he never falls in love again. When he finds Frank Lamonte at the ranch, he makes up his mind that she is a liar and a cheat. He will not let himself be attracted to her, even though the tension sizzles. 

Will Frank and Colt open their hearts to true love? 

Or, will Colt do everything he can to protect his heart? Will he wed Shauna Lee Holt, his “friends with benefits” woman; a woman he doesn’t love? 

Will Frank take a risk and make him think again? Will she settle back into the state of depression that resulted in her coming to Belanger Creek Ranch? When Dr. Jason Winters DVM arbitrarily put her on leave of absence, he told her to deal with her emotional trauma. He promised that her job as a veterinarian at his clinic would be waiting, when she was mentally healthy. Will she jeopardize all her opportunities? 

Heartache lies ahead for these two intractable characters, and neither one of them will make wise choices along the way.