Free Home Is Where Hank Is (Cowboys To The Rescue 1) by Martha Shields Page A

these sounds barely registered in Alex’s brain. All she could hear was Hank’s harsh, uneven breathing. All she could see was his hard, implacable face. All she could feel was the magnetic force between them.
    No! She wasn’t attracted to this man. It was just the excitement of learning how to ride. But even as she tried to convince herself, she knew it wasn’t true. Something about this cowboy drew her like nectar drew hummingbirds. How simple it would be to walk into his arms and taste that nectar. She knew without a doubt it would be incredibly sweet—so sweet she might never want to leave.
    Alex dragged her eyes from his. Now the simple pleasure of learning to ride had been ruined. Instead of concentrating on the horse, she wouldn’t be able to think of anything but those blue eyes watching her.
    “Is what I have on okay?” She dug her fingernails into her palms, trying not to squirm as he looked her over slowly, insolently, from head to toe.
    Finally he said, “You got better shoes than that? Something with heels and harder soles?”
    She glanced down at her faux leather sport shoes: “I’ve got a pair of short heels for dresses, but—”
    “Not those kinds of heels. Look.” He lifted his foot. The deep brown leather boot was dull with dust, but the solid, stacked two-inch heels and the well-creased rounded toes looked much sturdier than anything she owned.
    Alex shook her head. “This is the best I’ve got.”
    He shrugged. “They’ll do for now. Thought we’d ride about an hour. That going to put a hardship on you fixing supper?”
    Like he cared. “I’ve got a roast in the oven. It should be fine for a couple of hours, but I ran out here so fast I... I just need to check it first.”
    He nodded and turned away. “Fine. Be back in ten minutes.”
    “Yes, sir,” she mumbled, and stalked toward the house. The instant she entered, the comforting smells and sounds surrounded her, soothing her. Her heart slowed to a normal pace as she made sure she hadn’t unseated the lid on the pot when she’d slammed the oven door. The roast was fine and would be okay for another couple of hours.
    Now all she had to do was put a lid on the hormones boiling inside her. This ranch and the people on it were far too tempting as it was. Not a day went by that Claire or Buck or someone didn’t ask her to stay. If she succumbed to this attraction to Hank, she’d be lost. She might never make it to San Francisco.
    Alex closed her eyes as her fingernails dug into her palms. Romances came and went, but what she would learn under Monsieur Buchaude would last the rest of her life. All she had to do was keep her perspective—and hope Hank kept his hands to himself.
     
    As the screen door slammed, Hank spun around. His heel sprayed a shower of dirt across Maisy’s stall door. He would’ve kicked the door if he didn’t have to put a beginner on the mare before she’d have time to calm down.
    What the hell was wrong with him? Coming on to Alex was just plain stupid, like a jackrabbit playing with a rattlesnake.
    But when her wide, golden eyes turned on him, eating him up like candy, his thinking apparatus went on vacation. Those eyes.
    For one brief second they saw nothing but him. They held concern. Almost like she cared about him, like she wanted him as much as he wanted her. That’s the way it seemed...for one brief second.
    Then his mouth opened without being connected to his brain, and she skittered away, like she was the jackrabbit and he the rattlesnake.
    Hank leaned against the barn wall and threw his head back with a thump. She was right to be scared of him. If he had his way, they’d be taking a different kind of ride all together. He hadn’t thought about anything else since he’d met her. Knowing she slept just a floor below him had him tied in so many knots he might never be able to unravel them all.
    What the hell was wrong with him? She was just another woman. She had two arms, two legs, two eyes, a