Free Another Chance by Michelle Beattie

told Letty I'd do.  I know Wade doesn't have time to smooth feathers, and frankly it's not up to him.  So I will.  I'll visit the farms and ranches, make myself known.  Make myself clear that they hired me for my qualifications."
    Silver lifted her glass.  "To fighting for what you want, no matter what."
    Thinking of Steven at the feed mill and the man at the telegraph office and hoping things wouldn't come to "no matter what", Jillian tapped her glass to Silver's.

SEVEN
    The impact of driving home the nails sent tremors up Wade's arm.  The hammer handle was slick in his palm as he worked on the barn.  He dropped the tool into the grass and wiped his hand on his pants.  He squinted at the sky, praying for a cloud, anything to give him some relief from this heat.  Moving to the shirt he'd abandoned hours ago, he lifted it off the ground and wiped his face.
    Hearing a rider coming in, Wade tensed.  After their little prank earlier, Wade had sent James and Scott to check fences.  They shouldn't be back unless they'd run into trouble.  God, he hoped that wasn't the case.  He couldn't afford to have lost cattle through broken fences or from rustlers, though there hadn't been any of those around these parts in some time.
    But it wasn't Scott or James; it was Jillian.  His first reaction was a hard kick of his heart, followed by an equally swift rush of desire.  He rolled his eyes upward.  Why her, he wondered again.  Annoyed with his reaction, he crumpled his shirt in his fists and flung it.  Now if only his lust could be as easily discarded.
    Sighing, he faced the oncoming rider.  What struck him first was her dishevelment.  Considering the lack of breeze, even a little horseback ride wouldn't toss her hair like that.  Half her braid had come undone and the other half barely hung on.  She had a smear of dirt on her cheek.  Her blouse was dirty and-
    The horse had barely come to a stop when Wade stepped forward.
    "Why is your blouse torn?"  She had a large tear at her elbow and there was some blood.  A crazy fury swept through him.
    "I lost a wheel on my buckboard."  She shoved some hair behind her ear.  "I know to check the wheels, make sure they aren't loose.  But with everything that happened this morning…"
    A sweet flush rose up her neck, tinted her cheeks.  Damn, he thought, it was one thing to fight desire.  But fighting it knowing she felt the same?  He wiped his upper lip.  Shit.
    She slapped a hand over her skirt, sending out a poof of dust.  "Anyhow if I'd checked, I wouldn't have taken a tumble."
    Knowing she hadn't been manhandled didn't ease his tension.  Losing a wheel unexpectedly often threw a driver and spooked the horse.  It wasn't uncommon to be knocked to the ground by the unexpected jar, then trampled by the wagon when a frightened horse took off.  It was the reminder he needed to cool his blood.  A woman like Jillian would constantly be in harm's way.  And those who were foolish enough to care for her would always worry, would always be at risk of losing her.
    "Front or back?"
    "Back, luckily.  I was knocked out, took a fall. Some of my supplies were tossed about, but it didn't hurt Hope or spook her as much as it could have."
    "You were lucky."
    "I know.  And I can see you're busy..."
    Her eyes slid over him and for a day that was already sweltering, the temperature suddenly shot up another ten degrees. He felt a bead of sweat skip down his chest and roll over his belly.  He nearly swallowed his tongue when her eyes tracked it to the waistband of his pants.  Her throat rose and fell as she swallowed.  Blood roared in his ears.  He went thick and hard.
    Her face now more of a burn than a flush, she said, "I know I'm imposing, clearly you were hard at work, but I can't get the wheel on by myself and coming here was closer than going back to town."
    Hell, with the way his body was reacting, being alone with her wasn't a good idea.  But neither could he refuse her