CHAPTER 7

	Joey wandered into the stables later and leaned on the door to Candita’s stall. 
The horse walked up to her and nudged her with her nose.
	“What am I going to do, Candy girl?” Joey asked as she scratched the horse’s
nose lovingly.  “I’m not doing too well with this book thing, am I?”  The horse lifted its
head and brushed against her face, sniffing.  “Well, It would be a lot easier if your owner
would just talk a little.” She sighed, and Candita nodded her head up and down.
	Joey sighed.  “Yeah, you know him too, don’t you?  I don’t know why he agreed
to do this book if he’s not willing to tell me anything I can write about.”  She wrapped her
arms around the horse’s neck and hugged her, then backed up and looked at her.
	“Well, girl, why don’t we go for a ride, huh?  You’d like that, wouldn’t you?  I know,
and I could do with a little time to think, too.”
	She opened the door to Candita’s stall and the horse followed her out without a
lead.  Still talking to the animal, she placed the blanket over her back, then hefted the
saddle on top and fastened it down, checking it for fit.  Next, she put the bridle in place
and was just about to mount when she noticed someone leaning against the wall in the
shadows.
	“Oh!” Joey gasped, stepping back slightly, gripping the reigns tightly.  The figure
straightened and took a step forward.   She let her breath out as she realized it was
Blake, and he tipped his hat and grinned at her.
	“Ethan said you were good at that,” he said, walking forward and testing the
saddle and harness. “Just like a pro,” he added, nodding.  Candita nuzzled Joey’s neck
and Blake eyed them thoughtfully.  “She likes you.”
	“I like her,” Joey admitted, stroking the horse’s  neck lovingly.  He watched her,
and she felt a little uneasy.
	He’d obviously been surprised to see her in the bunk house, she thought, and
Harvey’s comment about taking her camping had disturbed him, she was sure. Was he
now having a hard time accepting her closeness with the horse?  Was he resenting her
presence on the ranch and wishing she weren’t there?  She frowned at the thought.
	“You don’t mind, do you?” she asked, sheepishly.
	“Mind?”  He looked at her, surprised. “Of course not!  She seems to suit you
perfectly.  And I’m impressed with your horse skills. Are you sure you never saddled a
horse before?”
	She shook her head. “Never. A few of my friends in college took me riding a few
times, but the horses were always brought out already saddled.”  She smiled.  “I used to
watch movies when I was a kid and see people riding of in the countryside and always
wished I could do that.”
	“And now you are,” he said, smiling and sounding not at all upset with her.  Joey
frowned. When he was curt with her at least she knew where she stood. Now he was
being nice, and it confused her.  She was on edge, waiting for his mood  to change, for
him to brush her off and walk away.
	“Yes, I am,” she agreed, straightening her shoulders.  He sensed her unease
and cleared his throat.
	“Listen, about this camping trip idea of Harvey’s ...” he paused, and Joey sighed.
	“Don’t worry about it,” she insisted.  “Harvey was just making a suggestion.  It’s
not important.”
	“Actually, I was thinking it was, rather,” he said.
	“Oh!” Joey was startled, and stared at him, speechless.
	“But I have to go down to Billings tomorrow to take care of some business.  I try
not to go down there unless I can’t help it.  I’ll be away several days.  I was thinking,
when I come back I’ll take you out for a night of camping. “
	“You really don’t have to,” she said. “I don’t want to be a burden to you, and
besides, I’m here to do a job not go camping.”
	“Yes, about your job. I’m afraid I’m not being very helpful.  Harvey keeps giving
me the dickens for that.  Discussing my private life is not one of my strong points.”  He
cleared his throat, “But I really so have to go to Billings and I’ve given you nothing to
work with so far.  Meet me in my study this evening after dinner and I’ll try to answer any
questions you have.  At least then you’ll have something to work on when I’m gone.”

	That night Blake sat brooding at the dinner table while they ate in silence.  He
had promised himself he would really try to be nice to her, but the woman just never
stopped surprising him, and it was driving him crazy.  Earlier that afternoon he had
listened to her talk to Candita and had felt guilty about having not provided her with
much information to do the job she had been brought there to do.  It had prompted him
to offer his time after dinner to answer any questions she had, so she’d be able to get
some work done on the damn book while he was away, and he’d be able to head down
to Billings with a clear conscience.  
	With that settled, he had watched as she had swung herself up onto the horse
and headed out into the fields on her ride.  She looked like she’d been riding all her life,
like she belonged on that horse — belonged on the ranch. He had quickly turned away
and gone in search of some all-consuming job to take his mind off the view of her in her
tight fitting jeans and T-shirt, riding off with her long black hair falling freely from beneath
that cowboy hat he had got used to seeing her in.  Any job, he told himself, to keep
occupied and stop himself from saddling up and riding along side her.
	He’d worked himself hard the rest of the afternoon, far away from the stables so
he wouldn’t see her when she and Candita returned, and he was tired and grimy by the
time it was time for dinner.  Freshly showered, and dressed in clean jeans and denim
shirt, he figured he was ready for the small talk over the dinner table that would lead up
to the dreaded interview in the study afterwards.  Everything would have gone fine, too,
if she hadn’t appeared for the meal in that dress!
	Blake stabbed his fork into the food on his plate and grumbled under his breath. 
Damn woman! Sure it was hot out, but why a dress?  Not that it was anything fancy,
nothing like what Cordelia used to wear or anything, just a simple white cotton sundress,
with a halter top and a fit that contoured to her body and ended just above her knees. 
When she walked in his eyes went immediately to her tanned legs, and every time he
looked at her across the table during the meal all he could see was her bare shoulders,
the dark tinge to her skin and blackness of her hair accentuated by the white of the
dress. What made him more angry than anything were the thoughts that kept running
through his head about exactly what he’d like to do to that dress!
	He frowned and shovelled another spoonful of food into his mouth.  It was clear
the interview was going to be hell. Maybe he should just get it over with here at the
dinging room table? That would avoid having her sitting anywhere in the study where her
legs would be in view, wouldn’t it?  Sure, he could just tell her to go get her paper and
pencil, or tape recorder, or whatever it was she was planning to use to keep track of his
answers, and they could just do the whole twenty questions thing right there.
	He glanced across the table to where Joey was sitting in silence, looking like she
felt unwelcome, and swore under his breath. Now look what you’ve done! he scolded
himself.  She thinks you’d rather she weren’t even here.  He sighed. Well, that’s because
I do wish she wasn’t here! he replied to his own thoughts, as his fork harpooned a piece
of meat. 
	Sure, you wish she wasn’t here, his mind taunted him. You wish she were
upstairs — in that big king size bed of yours that you usually sleep in all alone.
	That’s quite enough of that! He slammed his fork down on the table and pushed
his plate away, standing up with such force that his chair nearly tipped over behind him. 
When he looked up Joey was sitting like a statue, her fork half raised to her mouth, eyes
wide in shock.
	“Excuse me?” she asked, her voice soft and meek — and confused. “Enough of
what?”
	Blake groaned and rolled his eyes. Damnit all, he had spoken out loud!  He
shook his head and ran a hand across his forehead. “Nothing.” he said, a little jittery. “I’m
sorry, I was just — umm — talking to myself.  I have something on my mind.  You go
ahead and finish up your dinner, I’ll meet you in the study whenever you’re ready.”
	With that, he turned on his heel and strode out the door without looking back. 
Joey sat looking as his retreating back and set her fork back on her plate. Her hand was
trembling, and she took a deep breath to steady herself.  
	“Well, this promises to be an interesting evening.” she grumbled under her
breath.  She straightened her back and resumed her meal, determined not to let him
spoil these last few minutes before she fed herself to the vultures in his study.  Being in
his company then would be bad enough. After the amicable conversation they had had
in the stables before her ride, she had hoped that the interview session would go
smoothly, but now it certainly didn’t look that way.  He had seemed so disturbed by her
presence through the entire meal that it was clear he didn’t want her at the ranch. One
would think he would just give her the information she needed and get it over with so he
could get rid of her.  
	She slid her empty plate aside and stood up.  Why prolong the inevitable, she
thought to herself, as she left the room.  She slipped back upstairs to her room to
retrieve her pad of questions and  the tiny dictation unit she planned to use to record
their conversation, then returned to stand at the door of his study. With a deep breath,
she reached forward. Of all the places she could be at that moment, inside that room
with Blake Winters was not the last place on her list — it wasn’t even on the list!
	“Come in.” Blake’s voice barked at her in response to her gentle rap on his door. 
When she stepped inside he was standing with his back to her, looking out the window. 
He didn’t move as she gently closed the door behind her.  Her lips tightened as she
looked around the room, remembering the first time she had been in this very room. It
had been the first time she had set eyes on him, the day she had arrived and he had
made it clear that she was not welcome at Silver Star.  She winced, and closed her eyes
for a few seconds as the bad memories washed over her, then she took a deep breath
and threw back her shoulders.
	“Well, shall we get started?” she asked.
	“Yes, fine. Sit down, please.” he said, but he didn’t turn from the window. She
could see his profile as he stood there, and his jaw was clenched tight. Silently she
muttered to herself and looked for a place to sit, finally choosing the far end of the sofa,
where she pressed herself up against the leather arm rest for support. 
	At last he left the window and strolled around the sofa to sit in the arm chair on
the other side of the room, facing her.   He looked at her, then quickly turned away. 
“Where would you like to begin?” he said, his voice curt and dry.
	She took a deep breath.  “Well, I’ve been talking to the staff, and looking at the
albums you brought me, and remembering some of the things you told me. I have a few
questions to start with from there, and then we’ll have to sort of reconstruct your life
story, more or less. I’ll need facts, but you have complete control over how detailed you
want this thing to be, of course!” she added with exaggerated reassurance, and saw him
grunt visibly.
	“Not likely. Nielson will want the bottom of the barrel dredged.” he snapped.  Joey
shifted uneasily, and he stared at her silently for a few long seconds that felt like forever,
then his jaw seemed to soften, and he nodded. “Well, regardless, there is no biography
without a life story, is there.  Let’s get this thing over with, shall we?”
	“Good.” she said, and pressed the button on her recorder, setting it on the coffee
table between them.  Blake eyed it like it was a rattlesnake that needed a shotgun taken
to it, but said nothing.  Joey flipped to the first page of her pad and cleared her throat.
She would start with some impersonal questions, like his education and the history of the
ranch, and hope to make him more comfortable before working into the deeper stuff.
	“So, you told me you studied to be a vet at university. What about some details
on that? What school, how long were you there, what you thought about life in the city as
a student.”  She raised a cautious glance in his direction, prepared for a gruff reply, but
he just sighed and started talking.  
	Time passed, and Joey relaxed a little. The interview was going much better than
she had expected, and she had heard some fascinating stories about this man’s life.
Especially when he talked about the ranch, he seemed to have no reticence.  Slowly she
manoeuvred the conversation towards his childhood, and he talked a lot about his
father, but rarely mentioned his mother.  It was a subject Joey already knew would be
difficult to broach, but if he wasn’t going to do it, she knew she had to.
	“And your mother?” she asked cautiously. “I’ve gathered since I’ve been here,
that you and your mother didn’t get along?”
	He shot her a cold stare. “Cordelia? No, we don’t.”
	“Why do you always refer to her by her first name?” Joey probed.
	“Because it’s her name.” he said flatly. 
	“You never called her mother?”
	“I did. For a while, until I realized she didn’t deserve it.” he said, his gaze focused
on the window.
	“And why was that?”
	He shot her a stone cold stare. “I’m not really interested in dredging that
particular barrel.” he said.  Joey chewed on her bottom lip and Blake groaned under his
breath.  “Look, isn’t there anything else you need to know?”  he snapped, sounding
much more harsh than he had intended.
	“Well, your relationship with your mother is rather — umm — important to your
life story, don’t you think?”
	“No.” he said flatly.
	Joey tried again. “Well, I’m sure she played a role in your life that helped make
you who you are today, don’t you think?  I mean, even if you two didn’t get along, you
grew up with that and that moulded your character.  She was an influential person in
your life, and that’s part of what a biography is all about.”
	He stared at her.  Why did the woman have to be so right?  There she sat, with
those tanned legs crossed and the smooth skin of her thigh showing at the hem of her
dress, and she was saying things that made perfect sense. Why on earth he wanted to
take her dress off and make love to her, he had no idea, but it seemed like a much more
enjoyable way to spend his time than talking about Cordelia Winters, and what effect
she had had on his character!  He clenched his jaw and tore his eyes away from her
legs to stare out the window again.
	“The woman nearly destroyed my father, this ranch, and everything he loved.
She wasn’t liked very much around these parts. She used people to get her own way
whenever it pleased her, and I was no different than the rest of them. I stayed clear as
often as I could. There, how’s that for character building?”  He stood up swiftly and
turned his back on her.
	“Well, umm ...” Joey shifted uncomfortably and stood up, feeling uncomfortable
sitting while he towered above her. She knew his mother was a touchy subject, but she
wasn’t sure when she would get another chance to try to get her questions answered.
Maybe she shouldn’t push the issue, but she was certain there was more to be told than
what met the eye. Nothing about his past explained why he had thrown his heart into the
children’s charity the way he had.  Could it have had something to do with the bad
feelings he had had with his mother?
	“She was your mother, she gave birth to you. You were her child,  surely she
must have felt more for you than just ...”
	Blake swung around before she had finished her train of thought.  The look on
his face silenced her in an instant, and she stood motionless as he glared down at her.
“Cordelia Winters had no child, and she took every opportunity to let me know that was 
exactly how she felt about me.”
	Joey stared at him.  “Blake, I’m sorry, I just need...”
	“I’m through talking about Cordelia. Maybe if you want to know more about how
she felt about me, you should ask her yourself!” He strode towards her, headed towards
the door in his anger, but it looked as if he were headed directly at her, and she took a
step back.  Her leg backed into the sofa throwing her off balance, and she let out a
breathless shriek as her arms went flying in the air while she toppled backwards.  Blake
was a mere step away from her, and with the speed and precision of a calf roper, he
reached out and grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her forward. The action flung her at
him with unexpected force, and she ended up flattened against his chest, gasping for
breath, with his large hand gripping her arm tightly.
	“Oh!” she yelped, lifting her eyes upward in shock, finding herself staring up into
his rock hard face. 
	“Damn!”  he swore under his breath, as he stared back at her for a moment, then
without warning he bent his head and claimed her lips with his.  Joey was in complete
shock, as he kissed her with an intensity she had never known before.  She felt light
headed, and was silently glad for his support, and her head was spinning as his lips
crushed against hers as if searching for something.  Breathlessly, she found herself
kissing him back, and that only served to increase the fire in his lips.  He kept hold of her
wrist, but his other hand slid up her back to rest between her shoulder blades and
pressed her firmly towards him, crushing her chest against his as she struggled to catch
her breath.  His hand pressed against her bare back, and her skin tingled at his touch. 
In an attempt to breathe, she found herself whimpering into his kiss, and in return a
muffled moan escaped him.  
	At last his hand released her wrist and slid its way up her arm, over her shoulder
and came to rest on her breast, the thumb brushing gently over her taut nipple. She
gasped against his lips and his hand moved again, sliding lower, over her waist, her hip,
and around to her behind where he pressed her against him. Startled, she felt his
masculinity pressing hard against her in the front and another sharp gasp escaped her
throat as his lips continued to feast on her.
	He groaned, and came up for air, and she did the same, panting heavily.
	“Blake!” she gasped, and he groaned again.  Trembling, she opened her eyes
and looked up at him.  His eyes were closed and his expression was one she had never
seen on his face before. Desire — and it made her weak in the knees.
	For a few seconds his grip on her tightened, then there was a change in him, and
he swore under his breath and let go of her as if she was made of burning coals. He
pushed her away from him and turned to stride briskly out the door. “I won’t be here in
the morning, I’ll be  leaving for Billings at sun up,” was all he said, his voice somewhat
shaky, and then he was gone.  Joey sat down immediately, her legs too weak to hold
her up, and listened to the sound of his boots on the stairs as he took the steps two at a
time.  She had no idea what had gotten into him — what had gotten into her either for
that matter — but it was clear he was angry with himself for having kissed her.  
	She sat, more confused than ever, and tried to catch her breath.  At last, she
reached for the pad she had dropped, and the tiny recorder, and switched it off with
trembling fingers. With all the composure she could muster, she stood up and walked
out of he room and carefully climbed the stairs to her bedroom.  
	With a deep breath, she closed her bedroom door behind her and leaned against
it. What just happened? she asked herself.  She raised trembling fingers to her lips,
feeling the heat of his kiss still tingling there.  She closed her eyes and groaned. There
was no way she was going to get up and see the man off the next morning like she had
for the cattle drive, she told herself. No, she would welcome another few days without
him around the house! She didn’t know what she would have done if she had had to
face him across the breakfast table the next morning!  Instead, she would work on his
biography while he was gone, and when he returned, she would pretend that none of
this had even happened; pretend that his rejection of her didn’t burn inside her like the
same coals that had made him toss her away from him earlier.  His physical attraction to
her had been unmistakable, but clearly he was repulsed by the idea of carrying it any
further, and the sooner she got this book finished and got herself off the Silver Star, the
better!