And she knew without a doubt he’d methodically planned this mode of transportation and made it nonnegotiable just so he could annoy her further. Added to that, he must be well respected because his employee didn’t bat an eye at the sight of the new recruit and the way she’d arrived on the scene.
“Also, Monte from the feed store called and our truckload will arrive around two this afternoon.”
“We’ll unload it in the barn on the west side. Make sure to tell Josh. We need all hands for that.”
Ryan nodded once again and tugged on the reins of his horse. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”
He climbed onto the stallion and headed around the side of the barn.
“He seems nice. It’s strange how the two of you get along.”
“You’re hurting my feelings, Belle.”
She cringed. “Don’t call me that.”
“What do you prefer? Annabelle suits you, but it’s a mouthful. Besides, I want my own name for you.”
“Ms. Carter would work fine. Or, you don’t have to refer to me at all.”
That low chuckle sent even more tremors through her, causing her body to respond in ways she did not want where Colt was concerned.
“Oh, come on now, Belle. That’s no way to start your first workday.”
Fisting her hands on the horn of the smooth saddle, Annabelle forced herself to take calm, deep breaths. “I offered to get a different job, I’d prefer a different job, actually. I just needed some time to start getting a paycheck.”
“I can give you time, but then you’d lose your land.”
“Isn’t that your ultimate goal anyway? To see my father and me fail? I’m not naive, Colt. I figure you want our property for something.”
“I don’t like to see anyone fail,” he corrected as he led them toward the front of the property. “But if I’m going to be in a fight, I want it to be fair so my victory is that much sweeter.”
A fight. She had to remember that’s exactly what this was with him. She was fighting for her life, her future.
All she’d wanted was to take her meager savings and start minor renovations on her house to bring it up to par for her dream.
But then life had intervened. Her sister and fiancé were taken away, Annabelle found herself an instant mother to twin babies, and her father had ultimately failed her when she’d needed him most.
She wasn’t going to fail him, though. He was hurting. He’d lost his daughter, was trapped in his own hell with his addiction, and Annabelle would fight to the death if necessary to keep her family safe. She would make a home for Emily and Lucy, take back her land, and see the B and B come to fruition. Anything less was not an option.
Colt Elliott may have knocked her down a peg, but she was determined to fling him off his podium.
* * *
Colt’s shoulders burned, his arms strained as he hoisted the last bag of feed onto the pile he and Ryan had created. Josh had been taking loads and dispersing them to other barns.
And Annabelle had been holding her own. Sweat had her little tank clinging to her back. Damp tendrils of hair had escaped her ponytail and were now plastered against her neck. She’d gone home for lunch and had returned just before the shipment had arrived. He’d been busy and asked Ryan to take her and bring her back...using the truck.
But there was no way he was missing an opportunity to deliver her back home. They’d worked hard and he was utterly exhausted. He could only imagine how she felt as someone who wasn’t used to this type of work every day.
He had a walk-in shower with three rain heads and jetted sprays waiting on him. Not to mention a bottle of bourbon he’d just acquired from a special selection that had been aging in a barrel for decades. He loved his contacts in Kentucky.
Guilt nipped at his conscience. When Annabelle went home, she had two babies to take care of and he highly doubted she took any downtime for herself.
Annabelle continued stacking boxes from the pallets into the corner of the barn. She didn’t once stop to look his way, didn’t say a word, and didn’t complain. She was already a better employee than the stable hand he’d fired last week...only she wasn’t a regular employee. She was there under duress, against everything she wanted.
Part of him wanted to tell her to go, to let her father handle the mess he’d made, but he knew she wouldn’t go for that. She was too proud, too loyal to her family. She’d lost her sister and her father had completely let her down. And from her tone when she’d briefly mentioned her fiancé, he’d let her down, too. Colt had to assume the man was the twins’ father, but he honestly had no clue...and it wasn’t his right to ask.
The more tidbits into her life he discovered and pieced together, the more admiration he had for her. “That’s the last of it,” Ryan stated.
Colt pulled his hat off, swiped his forehead with his arm and turned to Ryan. “Go ahead and take off. I’ll finish up here.”
“Want me to give her a lift on my way out?” Ryan asked, nodding toward Annabelle on the other end of the barn.
“I’ll take care of her, as well.”
Ryan eyed Colt and he knew what was coming.
“Don’t say it.”
Ryan merely shrugged. “Someone needs to. You’re playing with fire.”
Oh, he sure as hell hoped so. Was there any other way to play a game of seduction?
“I know what I’m doing.”
Ryan’s brows lifted. “Do you? Because your father may have had a vision, but he wouldn’t have put someone through this just to gain the land.”
Colt jerked his work gloves off and shoved them into his back pocket. “Which is why she’ll be with me. I won’t let her do more than she’s capable of.”
“Did you know her hand was bleeding?” Ryan asked.
Colt jerked his attention toward her once again. “What?”
“When I walked by earlier, she was wiping her hand on her pants and I saw blood. She’d torn her work gloves.”
Damn stubborn woman wouldn’t ask for help no matter what.
“I got her another pair,” Ryan went on. “But I have a gut feeling she’d fall over before she came to one of us for help.”
That she would. Colt raked a hand over the back of his neck and nodded. “I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen again.”
“That land is going to be yours regardless,” Ryan added in a low whisper. “Why don’t you just let her go?”
Reasons he couldn’t even explain. When she’d shown up yesterday morning and literally busted through his ranch, he hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her. He’d always gone after what he wanted—livestock, business deals, employees...women.
Annabelle Carter was a total game changer.
Colt kept his eyes on Annabelle as she stacked her last box. Guilt slammed into him when she pulled off her glove and examined her hand.
Without glancing at Ryan, Colt said, “See you in the morning.”
His trusted worker wisely walked away. Colt moved across the cobblestone walkway, closing the distance between him and Annabelle.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”
She spun around, clearly startled. “I’m fine.”
With a hand to her chest, she tipped that defiant