The Texan's Tennessee Romance / The Rancher & the Reluctant Princess: The Texan's Tennessee Romance / The Rancher & the Reluctant Princess

“He was.”

Seeing movement out of the corner of his eye, he turned, thinking maybe the stray dog had come back for dinner. Instead, he saw a small herd of deer wander out of the woods, grazing on the grass of the lawn. He counted three full-grown does and another that might have been a young buck.

“Natalie,” he said softly, nodding in that direction. “Look.”

She turned her head, then smiled. “They’re beautiful.”

“They are, aren’t they?”

They watched in silence for a moment, and then something—a scent, a motion, a sound, perhaps—startled one of the does. She lifted her head, looked directly at Casey and Natalie, and then turned to melt back into the woods, followed by her companions.

“We’ve certainly seen the animals today, haven’t we?” Natalie said, looking at him again. “Think a black bear will come out of the woods next?”

He grinned. “I kind of hope not. Dogs and deer I can handle. Bears—not so much.”

She chuckled. “The ones around here usually leave you alone if you do the same with them. Tommy and I saw one on a hike once. It looked at us, we looked at it, and then we all turned and went our own ways. Fortunately, Tommy and I had been making a lot of noise, so we didn’t startle the bear when we appeared. That’s when they’re particularly dangerous, when they’re frightened or protecting their young.”

“We didn’t see many bears back in Dallas. Saw a few rattlesnakes on my uncle’s ranch. I didn’t care for them, either.”

Natalie shuddered delicately. “Neither would I. I don’t like snakes.”

“Ah. So there is something that intimidates the intrepid Natalie Lofton.”

“Intrepid?” she repeated, lifting an eyebrow.

Shrugging, he admitted, “It’s a word I tend to associate with you, for some reason. Maybe because you seem so hard to rattle. Broken pipes, blood, stray dogs—bears, apparently. You deal with it all without blinking. I’ve only heard you admit to two things that intimidate you—snakes and babies.”

She blinked and he could tell that he had taken her completely off-guard, something that apparently didn’t happen much with her. And then she gave a little smile that didn’t quite reach her somber eyes and said, “I’ll admit to being wary of both snakes and babies, though maybe not quite to the same extent. As for the rest—I’m not sure intrepid is the word to describe me. Trust me, I don’t handle everything as calmly as you suggest.”

“Coulda fooled me.”

He’d always considered himself fairly proficient in interpreting body language. Something about the way she crossed her arms and then huddled a bit into her sweater made him wonder what it meant. A slightly self-protective gesture, perhaps hinting at a recent blow that had been difficult for her to handle? Or was she just chilly and he was reading too much into the emotions he’d thought he glimpsed in her expression?

“The temperature seems to be dropping,” he commented, telling himself to mind his own business. “Maybe you’d better go back inside.”

She glanced again at the clean, empty deck. “I guess so, since we’re finished here. You’re done for the day, aren’t you?”

“Yeah. It’s getting too close to dark to start anything else. I guess I’ll head on back to the cabin I’m staying in. I’m going to do some work on the floors there this evening. I’m sanding and refinishing them, starting in the kitchen.”

“So you’re working on both at once?”

“Pretty much. The regular maintenance guy had already finished the outside of mine before he was in the accident. So I’ve been working inside there for a couple hours a day after leaving here.”

“I know Kyle and Uncle Mack must appreciate your help.”

He shrugged. “As you’re well aware, I’m not the most skilled handyman, but I want to contribute what I can while I’m here.”

She took a step toward the cabin, then stopped and looked back at him. He could almost see a debate going on in her head before she asked, “You said you’re working on the kitchen floor in your cabin?”

“Yeah. I’ve got the room cleaned out and everything taped off, so I’m going to start sanding tonight.”

“What about dinner?”

“I figured I’d pick up a burger and fries on the way.”

She took a quick deep breath and then said very casually, “I have a few things I can make quickly here if you’d like to eat with me before you go. If you’re going to put in more hours of work this evening, you need to eat something a little more nutritious than a burger and fries.”

Though he was surprised that she’d offered, Casey didn’t hesitate to accept. “I’d love to join you for dinner. Thanks.”

She smiled somewhat tentatively. “Okay. Great. Come on in and you can wash up while I get started.”

Leaving his toolbox at the foot of the steps, he followed close behind her as she moved toward the door.

Chapter Four

Casey entered the kitchen a short time later sniffing the air. “Something smells really good.”

Her hands protected by oven mitts, she set the pan of broiled fish on a trivet. “I hope you like fish tacos.”

“Love ’em.”

They sat at the kitchen table with their meals, and Natalie searched her mind for conversational topics that didn’t stray too far into personal territory. They talked more about the renovations to the cabin, and a few more things that needed to be done inside before it was rented out again. They chatted about the A-frame in which Casey had been staying, and how Kyle and Mack had decided to install a pool table in the loft now being used as a cozy sitting room with a spectacular view.

Casey admitted he hadn’t taken advantage of the many local tourist attractions during his stay. He added that Molly wanted him to accompany her and Olivia to the Dollywood theme park the following week, leaving the baby with Jewel. Kyle wasn’t enthusiastic about amusement parks, but Molly had promised Olivia she would take her soon.

“I haven’t been to the park in years,” Natalie said, “but I always had a good time there. I’m sure you’ll have fun with Molly and Olivia.”

Casey took another bite of his almost completely eaten taco. Washing it down with a sip of the peach tea she had prepared, he complimented her again on the simple meal. That led to a casual discussion of their favorite foods and specialty restaurants.

“There’s a place back home in Dallas that makes the best barbecue pizza anywhere,” Casey enthused. “Topped with pulled pork, barbecue sauce, onions, jalapeños and three different kinds of cheese. The best.”

“Sounds messy.”

“Totally. And a lot of people follow it up with an antacid chaser. But it’s still good.”

“I’ve only been to Texas a few times,” she said. “And then only to Dallas and Houston for business purposes. I haven’t seen much of the state except for the insides of some very nice conference hotels.”

“Oh, there’s lots to see in Texas,” he assured her. “From the coast to the plains, it’s a pretty diverse state. I’ve spent most of my life in the Dallas area.”

“I always seem to be there midsummer. It was always hot.”

He shrugged. “You get used to it.”

“Will you be going back soon?”

She hadn’t meant to ask any questions for fear of giving him an opening to ask a few in return. That one had just slipped out.

Casey didn’t seem to find the offhand inquiry particularly significant. “Yeah. I guess. I mean, well, most of my family’s there. I just came here to visit Molly and Kyle, and then I volunteered to help out a little with the repairs. I’ll probably head back to Texas in another week or so.”