Free Her Rugged Rancher by Stella Bagwell

the saddle. I want to know about Reggie and the horse.”
    â€œThey were lucky. I don’t know how, but both came out of the spill unscathed. Reg got a lot of ribbing from the men, but he took it all with a laugh. I called Denver over at the Silver Horn to see if they had any used saddles for sale. He tells me they have a few. Most are pretty worn, but at least it would be a hell of a lot better than spending a couple of thousand for a new one.”
    Jett nodded. “I’ll be working the Horn tomorrow. While I’m there I’ll have a look at them. Rafe has all the using saddles for his men handmade, so whatever they have for sale will be good ones.” He walked over and took a seat on an overturned feed bucket. “Sassy’s been trying to locate some hay. I realize it’s only the first part of May and we should have grass for a while, but what with the drought, she’s concerned that by the time winter rolls around hay will be as scarce as hen’s teeth. The alfalfa crops over in Churchill County are already sold and they’re not even ready to cut yet.”
    â€œShe’s probably right. I figure the sooner we fill the barns, the better,” Noah agreed.
    Bending forward, Jett rested his forearms against his knees and looked over at Noah. “She found some timothy for sale, but the stuff is way up in Idaho and baled from last year’s crop. I told her to keep searching. I don’t want the cost of shipping that far. Especially when it’s not fresh-cut.”
    â€œDon’t worry,” Noah told him. “It’s early yet. Has she talked to Finn? The last I heard, her brother had his hay meadows producing. If he has surplus, he might sell what he doesn’t need.”
    â€œYou’re right. I’ll talk to Sassy about it tonight.” Chuckling, he added, “That is, we’ll talk after bath time, story reading and rocking Mason to sleep.”
    Of Jett and Sassy’s three children, Mason was the baby of the bunch, born just before Thanksgiving last year. Noah was very fond of all three kids, but he couldn’t deny he was particularly attached to little Mason. The dark-haired baby rarely uttered a cry and whenever he saw Noah, he always reached for him.
    Mason would probably be the closest thing he ever had to having a son. The hollow thought had Noah moving restlessly over to a wall where a slew of bridles neatly hung on rows of nails. Automatically, he picked up a shiny pair of bits and worked the moving parts back and forth.
    â€œYou didn’t see Bella around this afternoon, did you?” Jett asked.
    Just hearing her name was like a punch in the gut and for a moment he gripped the bit so hard he very nearly bent the silver shank. “No. Why?”
    â€œJust wondering,” Jett replied. “She wrapped up her work early this afternoon and said she was coming home. I was hoping you might have seen her out riding. She hasn’t been herself at all this week. I’ve been a bit worried about her.”
    Noah stared unseeingly at the wall of bridles as the last few minutes of Bella’s visit to the cabin played over in his mind. Try as he might, he still didn’t know what had prompted him to kiss her. Then like a crazy man, he’d pulled her off Casper and once his mouth had landed on hers, he’d lost all control. But then so had she. The memory of her soft, eager lips moving against his, the way her body had practically wrapped itself around his, still had the power to make his groin ache with need.
    â€œâ€”riding the canyon. Noah? Hello? Are you with me?”
    Jett’s voice finally penetrated his deep thoughts and with a mental curse at himself, he looked over at his friend.
    â€œSorry, Jett. I was thinking about something. What were you saying?”
    Frowning at him, Jett rose from the makeshift seat. “There must be something in the air that’s causing late spring fever or some sort