Free Silken Threads by Monica Barrie Page B

another wave of loneliness captured her within its cruelly taunting hold.
    I need him if I'm going to make it. Without his help, his knowledge of ranching, I don’t stand a chance , she told herself, trying in vain to find some vestige of control.
    It was hard, for Cassandra was in a position she’d never been in previously. She was in the middle of a strange place, akin to a foreign country with nowhere to turn, no one to turn to, and nowhere to go. She had only herself, for the man she was with obviously despised her.
    What am I doing here? Just then, there was a knock on her door. Securing the towel around her, she went to it. “Yes?”
    “May I speak with you for a moment?” came Kirk’s voice.
    The anger that had fled at the onslaught of her loneliness returned the instant she heard his voice. Without thinking, she opened the door. In the flash of time it took for the door to open completely, she saw he was dressed in a pair of gray slacks and wore a deep blue blazer. His dark hair, wet and combed back, was the color of midnight. “What?”
    “Dinner,” he said, his eyes never leaving her face.
    “What for?”
    “To eat.”
    “After the way you treated me? What the hell do you think I am?”
    “My new boss.”
    “You have a lot of nerve. You make me feel like I did something wrong just because I don’t know your ways. You look down on me, hardly condescending to talk to me, and when you do, all I hear is sarcasm. And now you want to have dinner with me?” she asked incredulously, her anger beginning to fade.
    “Yes, ma’am,” he replied.
    “Stop that!”
    “Apologizing?”
    “Calling me ma’am. My name is Cassandra!”
    “What about dinner?”
    “When?” she asked, realizing she hadn’t eaten since breakfast on the plane ten hours before.
    “I guess after you get dressed, unless you’re going in a towel?” he said, moving his eyes for the first time to the terrycloth material, which barely covered her from her breasts to the top of her thighs.
    Cassandra’s face turned red and she stepped back. “I’ll meet you downstairs in a little while,” she told him as she started to close the door.
    “Yes, ma’am,” he said with a slow grin.
    Closing the door, Cassandra leaned against it and took several deep breaths. Damn his infuriating smile! But, her anger was gone. He had apologized, in a fashion, and for right now, she was willing to accept it.
    Worse, she realized, it didn’t seem to matter how angry she’d been at him, she wanted to forgive him—but only because she needed him to help with the ranch, she told herself.
     

Chapter Six
     
    Cassandra finished brushing her hair, stepped back, and looked in the mirror. In the forty minutes since she’d had her strange conversation with Kirk, she’d put the time to good use.
    A large tortoiseshell barrette held her long hair in place by, keeping the ever-errant strands away from her face. She’d used only a small amount of makeup to accent her features, with no base and just a hint of blush on her cheeks; the lipstick was a dark peach shade, a complement to her complexion. Her eyes understated by using only a glimmer of liner to accenting the soft green. Her naturally long eyelashes had an even coat of mascara, which, she had determined, was enough makeup for Sheridan, Wyoming.
    She’d chosen her outfit with care, trying to blend in with the environment. The pale green dress was simple and stylish, falling smoothly to just below her knees and secured at the waist by a contrasting tan elastic belt that matched her saddle tan heels. The only jewelry she wore was a thin bracelet, simple hoop earrings, and the single golden S-chain necklace she never took off.
    You won’t find any fault tonight, she told the smiling image of Kirk North lurking at the edges of her thoughts.
    With that, Cassandra picked up her purse and started from the room, hoping they would make it through dinner in a civil manner. Yet with that thought, a strange