That brought his attention back to her face. “Excuse me?”
“What I mean is, I don’t get involved with the people I work with. In my experience, mixing business with pleasure can be toxic, so it’s best to nip things in the bud right up front.”
“I’ll keep that in mind considering I don’t work here.” He pushed himself away from the stall door. “Cooper Fortune.”
Another Fortune? The town of Red Rock was crawling with them. He wasn’t one of JR’s brothers—those she knew by sight—so he must be a cousin. Is that why the name sounded so familiar?
“Wait, you belong to Solo.”
He grinned, his smile rising into one dimple. “That’s an interesting way of putting it. I prefer to think of him and me as buds, belonging to each other.”
She blushed. “I’m sorry. I just naturally pair up the human with their animal instead of the other way around. Professional habit.”
“And what profession is that?”
“Horse trainer. I’m in charge of the equine program here at Molly’s Pride. I’m Kelsey Hunt.”
He took a step forward but stopped short of entering the stall. One hand stretched outward. “It’s good to meet you, Kelsey.”
Because it would’ve been rude not to, she placed her hand in his. Calloused fingers spoke of hard work as much as his tanned, weathered skin spoke of a life lived outdoors. She tried to remember if JR had told her anything about the owner of the beautiful stallion they’d been housing for the last couple of weeks, but nothing came to mind.
“Are you in town for a visit, Mr. Fortune?”
He released her when she pulled away. “The name is Cooper and I’m here for more than a visit. I’m moving back to Red Rock. Permanently, I guess.”
She tucked Harley’s grooming brush and mane comb on a nearby shelf and grabbed her ball cap with the ranch’s logo. “You guess?”
“JR and his gang of brothers are my cousins. My brother, Ross, and sister, Frannie, live here, too.” He answered while backing up, allowing her to leave the stall and closed the door behind her. “And my son is here as well.”
He was married.
And here he was handing out pick-up lines. Geez, she felt like a loser. One would think with her history she would be able to spot a married man by now.
His slow drawl about “falling from heaven” had been a line if ever she heard one. She prayed he wasn’t another cowboy who figured whatever happened in the barn was okay as long as the little woman in the main house didn’t find out. She loved her job, but fighting off one of her boss’s rich relatives wasn’t part of her job description.
Tugging on the cap, she pulled her long ponytail through the back keyhole. It was time to start her workday. This cowboy didn’t seem to be in any hurry to leave, even though he was checking his watch for a second time.
“Well, I should get to my office.”
He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked around the oversize facility. “This is some place you have here. I know JR refurbished the original barn, but this one’s brand-new, right?”
Kelsey could tell he was impressed and for some reason, that pleased her. She’d started here with two horses and a brand-new building JR gave her total control over. Her program now housed a dozen finely trained horses that sold for top dollar as well as the horses she’d rescued from neglect.
“Yes, it’s just under a year old.” She headed toward her office in the front corner of the barn, keeping distance between them as he walked with her. “So, are you and Mrs. Fortune staying here at Molly’s Pride?”
“Well, there’s plenty of Mrs. Fortunes running around Red Rock, but none belong to me.” He stopped at her door when she did, the power of his gaze commanded she look at him. “I’m not married.”
For a moment it looked like he wanted to say something else, but he didn’t. She grabbed the door handle and pushed with a bit too much force. “Oh, I assumed when said your son …”
Embarrassed, she let her voice trail off as she moved to her desk, oddly relieved to have the two feet of wood between her and this cowboy.
“Anthony and I have—well, we just found each other a couple of weeks ago.” He stood in the open doorway, again not invading her space, and punched at the frame with his fist. Not hard, but there was a hint of frustration behind the controlled action. “His mother and I haven’t been involved in over a year and I never knew she was pregnant.”
Meaning his son was only an infant. “But you’ve worked things out it seems, if you’re here.”
He shook his head. “She died in a car accident around New Year’s. My cousin has been taking care of my son until they found—until I found out about him and came home.”
Immediately, Kelsey thought of her sister, whose husband had died in a construction accident two years ago. Lost for months, Jessica had finally emerged from her grief-induced haze to realize she was doing just fine raising their four young kids by herself, with a little help from Kelsey and Jessica’s parents.
Kelsey sank to her chair and waved at the matching one in front of her desk. The man did look like he needed to sit. “I’m so sorry. That must’ve been some phone call. I remember reading about that accident … or was it the one involving JR’s father that led to him being missing for months? He’s your uncle, right?”
Cooper dropped into the chair. “Yes, my mother’s brother. I guess there were two eventful accidents back in January. At least William’s has a better outcome now that he’s been found and is back home again.”
Home, but not whole. Everyone in town knew William Fortune remembered nothing of his previous life. He was back at the Double Crown Ranch with his fiancée, Lily, having gone missing on what was supposed to be their wedding day.
“Well, finding out you’re a father must be a happy thing for you.”
The cowboy nodded, but the slump of his shoulders revealed an invisible burden. “It’s taking some getting used to. I’ve never been around kids much and rarely one who can barely sit upright. I feel like I’ve stepped into a parallel universe with strange words like butt cream, binky and onesie.”
He suddenly offered her that lopsided grin again and nudged his hat farther on his brow. “Say, you wouldn’t happen to know anything about babies, would ya?”
There was such hope in his voice that she found herself suppressing a snort of laughter. “Ah, horse babies, cow babies, even ducklings and piglets are right up my alley. Human babies, no way. That’s more my sister’s speed.”
“So you’re not married? No kids?”
The closest she’d come to marriage was years ago when she found an engagement ring hidden in her boyfriend’s dresser drawer. Foolishly she’d thought it was meant for her. It wasn’t. Every relationship she’d had since had taught her that falling in love meant saying goodbye. No, thanks. She hadn’t even had a date since moving back home.
“Nope, I must’ve been absent the day they were handing out the maternal gene. I have no interest in marriage or kids.” An idea suddenly came to her. She grabbed the photograph on her desk and flipped it around. “Now, my sister, Jessica, has the mothering gene down pat. I’ll have to introduce you two.”
His eyes went from her to the frame image of her sister surrounded by her four kids, all under the age of eight. It lingered there and Kelsey had to fight back the flame of jealousy that licked at her insides.
You aren’t interested, remember?
A ready-made family wasn’t what Kelsey was looking for. This cowboy certainly wasn’t what