Exquisite Acquisitions

for her.

He did everything really well, it seemed, and it was beginning to grate on her nerves. How could a man be so perfect? He had to have some flaws. Please, dear heaven, let him have some flaws.

Because from where she sat right now, with Carter in the lead, leaning back in the saddle, comfortable and relaxed on Duke, the black stallion that Carter had broken himself, and a tan Stetson riding low on his forehead, she didn’t see one darn flaw.

Macy had dated some good-looking men over the years. Some of them were actually nice and some had treated her fairly well. But none of them had panned out. Ultimately, it wasn’t their flaws that had turned her off. What it always seemed to boil down to was Macy’s world-famous mother. They’d been more interested in dating Tina Tarlington’s daughter than getting to know Macy as an individual. Dating a Tarlington had been their key motivation, and as soon as Macy had figured it out, she dumped them. She wanted a man who saw her for herself, not someone more impressed by who had signed her birth certificate.

Was that too much to ask?

Duke took off at a trot and Honey followed. Macy tried to seat herself firmly on the saddle for the ride, but her butt bumped hard leather so often, she winced in pain, gritting her teeth. She had a death grip on the reins, and luckily Carter didn’t look back to see her ridiculous attempt at riding. After a few minutes, Carter brought his horse to an even gait, and Honey slowed, too. Macy finally caught her breath. She was sure her rear end would never be the same. She called out, “Can we stop soon?”

Carter turned around to look at her.

“I, uh, I wanted to see that part of the river.” She pointed to a nondescript piece of land along the bank.

She heard a slight chuckle rise up from his throat. “It’s no different than any other part of the river, but sure. If you need to stop, we will.”

“I don’t need to stop. I want to.”

“Right.”

Carter led the way, guided by a descending blaze of sunshine. The rays lent a pinkish hue to the land and gleamed over the water. The air was heavy but the water invited. Macy’s horse automatically followed Duke, and within minutes-and Macy was counting-they reined in their horses. Carter swung his leg over the stallion and dismounted, gaining his footing easily in one fluid motion. He gave his horse a pat on the back then strolled over to her. Macy tried to duplicate his dismount, but her boot connected with the horse’s rump and Honey jostled slightly. Macy lost her balance, kicked the horse’s rump again and hung on to the saddle horn for dear life.

Carter was there to grab her before she fell to the ground. “Whoa, hang on.” His velvet voice slid over her.

Macy found herself in Carter’s arms, pressed against the hard planes of his chest as he lowered her. The toes of her boots touched the ground first, and she was sandwiched between Honey and the hunky cowboy. Her heart skidded to a stop. And it pissed her off. Darn him. He’d rescued her again. She stared into his eyes. It was a mistake. Instead of finding desire, she saw amusement twinkle in his eyes.

“Maybe you’re not as good with horses as you think you are.”

She removed her arms from his neck and gave him a little shove. “I am. I’ve been riding a long time.”

“When was the last time?” he asked, unfazed by her push.

“Oh, um. Let’s see.” She pondered a moment and then remembered. “It was three or four years ago.”

Carter pushed his hat farther up on his forehead and stared.

“Maybe five or six years ago.”

He held her gaze.

“Okay, it’s been about eight years ago, at least.”

Carter’s voice was smooth as silk. “Seems like I’ve forgotten more than you know about horses.”

She was still smarting from being held tightly in his arms. “Not true. I’m just rusty.”

Carter turned his back on her and she immediately rubbed her rump, trying to press out the knots and ease the sore spots. She was sure her bottom was raw.

“Remind me to give you a balm I’ve got back at the house. It’ll fix your pretty little butt all up.”

He whipped his head around and caught her just as she was removing her hand from her behind. He laughed.

“You’re enjoying this too much, Carter McCay.”

“I can honestly tell you, I am.”

He moved to the riverbank and bent to pick up a pebble. She saw him toss it far, skipping over water that was motionless. Ripples interrupted the calm and swept out in a large circle. It was soothing to watch.

“Doesn’t look like a wild river to me.”

“Not tonight it’s not. But it can be. Sometimes, the river fools you. It can become deadly when you least expect it.”

The sun faded on the horizon. Dusk was Macy’s favorite time of day, and they stood there quietly for a while as the light finally ebbed entirely.

“I like it here,” she said aloud.

Carter swiveled his head and their gazes met. “I knew you would.”

“But I can’t face another day of lounging around. I’m learning something about myself.”

“What’s that?”

“I don’t relax well. I need something to do.” The idea had come to her today when she’d been bored out of her mind. She’d been mulling it over ever since. She couldn’t expect Carter to entertain her every day. He had a business to run. And she promised him she wouldn’t be a burden. The solution would benefit them both. “Carter, you can tell me no, and I wouldn’t blame you at all, but I’d like to help you fix up the inn. I could use a project. And my services come cheap. I’m…free.”

Carter didn’t hesitate to answer. “No.”

“Why not?”

“I haven’t decided about the inn yet.”

“But, it’s perfect. You can’t still be thinking of tearing it down? Tell me you changed your mind about that.”

“I can’t tell you that. I’m not ready to make that decision.”

Macy crossed her arms so hard they jammed into her ribs. She eyed him carefully. “So that’s it.”

“I didn’t say that.”

It wasn’t what she’d meant. He was stubborn. That was his flaw. Lord have mercy. She almost did a happy dance, right there on the riverbank, under the moonlight. Carter was a stubborn mule.

She laughed and he sent her a look of astonishment. “Why are you laughing?”

She lifted a shoulder. “No reason,” she fibbed. Now she had a valid reason to hold on to when his image flashed through her mind at night right before she dozed off to sleep.

The cowboy wasn’t perfect.

What a relief.

He leaned close, skeptical. “You’re not going to argue with me about it?”

“Oh, I definitely will. I’m pretty relentless when I think I’m right.”

He frowned. “Which is most of the time, I take it.”

She smiled wide. “Of course.”

* * *

“Bye, Mara, and thanks again for lunch earlier,” Macy called out by the front doorway.

“You’re very welcome,” Mara answered from the kitchen.

Macy exited the house, looking like a country girl in Carter’s felt hat and a new pair of blue jeans. Late- afternoon sunshine made her squint, and she immediately plopped sunglasses onto the bridge of her nose. Marching past the corrals, she saw Henry speaking with one of the men. She waved to him and he tipped his hat then she turned her attention to the road leading to the inn.

Macy had met a few of the ranch hands over the past few days, and no one seemed to recognize her or make