Linda Warren - Skylar's Outlaw

“Yes, ma’am.”

She wanted to smack those words back at him, but instead, she turned to walk out the door. Since throwing caution to the wind seemed to be her trademark, she pivoted and said, “I’m not leaving this room until you tell me why you don’t like me.”

He took a step toward her, the green of his eyes overshadowed by some dark emotions. “You don’t remember, do you?”

“Remember? Have I met you before?” She couldn’t have. She wouldn’t have forgotten someone like him.

“Yes. Several times.”

Shocked, she gaped at him. “Where? When?”

“The name Everett Coleman ring a bell?”

A sliver of alarm slithered up her spine. “Of course, he was my mother’s fifth husband.”

“Four years ago I was his foreman at the Rocking C Thoroughbred Farms.”

“What?” Suddenly she couldn’t breathe.

“Everett Coleman was the man who framed me.”

“WHAT?”

“While your mother lived at the Rocking C, you came many times to visit, usually with a couple of friends in tow.”

“Yes, but I don’t remember seeing you.” Her voice came out hoarse, and she curled her hands into fists.

“The cowboys and I were hired hands, and beneath you and your friends. You mostly made fun of us and called us names.”

She swallowed a wad of guilt that haunted her from those years—years of rebellion, years of living life on the edge. How did she explain that to him? How did she admit she had been a pampered, spoiled bitch?

Her throat worked but no words came out.

“You and your friends spent the afternoons around the pool in skimpy bikinis, leaving the privacy gate open so the cowboys could see. At night y’all hit the clubs in Fort Worth. One night y’all came in around 3:00 a.m. I was checking a mare that was about to foal. You were trying to put a saddle on Juniper Rose, and I told you no way were you going to ride that horse. You were drunk out of your mind. You gave me a tongue-lashing I won’t soon forget, but I refused to let you ride the horse. You told me to pack my things because I wouldn’t have a job in the morning.”

Sky felt color stain her cheeks. She remembered. Oh, God! She hated going to the Rocking C, but her mother had whined and whined until she’d given in. Sky had always taken friends with her to get through the weekend. And they did what rich girls did best—they partied.

“The next morning Everett said you were leaving that afternoon, and to make myself invisible until then. Ol’ Everett had a plan and nothing was getting in the way of it, including you.” Coop’s eyes bored into her. “I spent six months in a Huntsville prison because of him.”

“I’m sorry. I really am, but I had nothing to do with that.”

“I know,” he admitted, to her surprise. “But women like you and your mother, who drive men to do the unspeakable, rub me the wrong way.”

She licked her suddenly dry lips. “I’m not my mother and I’m not the same woman you met on that ranch.”

His eyes swept over her and a chill ran through her. “You look the same.”

“Really?” She lifted an eyebrow. “My hair is frizzed out. I’m not wearing makeup, and I have oil on my boots and on my jeans. Not to mention I’m broke. I’m hardly that self-centered, tongue-lashing bitch you met.”

“Maybe.” He folded his arms across his chest. “It’s hard for me to believe you’re Dane’s daughter. Cait and Maddie are so loving and caring. As a boy, I wanted to run away many times, but I stayed and finished high school because of Cait. She never gave up on me. And Maddie…well, she’s the nicest person I’ve ever met.”

“And I’m the bitch.”

His eyes met hers. “If you say so.”

“I don’t.” She straightened her backbone, determined to tell her side. “Motherhood has changed me. Back then I hated all the glitz and glamour of the Rocking C, and I especially disliked my mother’s husband. I suppose I felt if I rebelled enough, Mom would stop insisting that I visit. My life wasn’t as much fun as you might think, but I’m not going to stand here and try to explain my past behavior. I’m sorry for what was done to you by Everett. He’s a scumbag. But hating me is not going to help our situation here at High Five. That’s my concern now.”

Coop unfolded his arms, his eyes still holding hers with that sizzling glare. “You think you can work with an ex-con?”

“Yes.” Her eyes didn’t waver from the challenge in his. She took a step closer. “Cait says this ranch can’t survive without you. We can either see if that’s true or we can make High Five a prosperous operation once again.”

He didn’t move or speak, but the muscles in his arms worked from clenching his hands.

“Cait’s always talking about the bottom line. Well, this is it. We can either be friends or enemies—your choice.” Sky paused and then added, “Ru said I needed to give you a chance. That works both ways. I can’t change the past, but I can make the future better.”

On that, she walked out the door and didn’t bother to close it. Once she reached the edge of the lighted area, she bolted through the darkness. Her lungs tight, she sank to the ground beneath an oak tree.

Life was hell when you had to look at yourself through a two-way mirror and see all your faults and bad habits in living color. Pointed out by a man who had been on the receiving end of her bad behavior. She never dreamed she’d met him before. She’d never…Damn it! She could blame a lot of people, but the only person to blame was herself. Back then her resentment toward her mother had clouded her judgment and her actions. Sky had been out of control, drinking and partying way too much.

Drawing a long breath, she listened to the coyotes in the distance and the crickets chirping. She was wrong. She’d misjudged Cooper because he hadn’t been bowled over by her. That’s what had irritated her. Seeing vanity in herself wasn’t easy.

Cait had always said that one day Sky might have to eat her words about Cooper. She was, and they tasted like a bull nettle going down her throat. Startling. Burning. Awakening.

She glanced up toward the heavens. “If you’re watching, I could use a little help.” Her father had said that when she was grown she would see her faults clearly. They were about as bright as the twinkling stars. She rose to her feet and started toward the house.

Growing up was hell.

COOPER STOOD THERE for five minutes before he closed the door. He hadn’t meant to say so much, but she had a way of triggering his emotions. He didn’t analyze that any further because he didn’t want to know why the woman had such an effect on him. Never in his life had he judged anyone, but with her he couldn’t help himself.

He sat at the table and pushed the plate aside.

Friends or enemies.

His choice.

There was only one way to settle this, the same way he settled every big decision in his life. He never thought of himself as a gambler, but some days a man just had to take a risk.

Jamming a hand into his jeans pocket, he pulled out a quarter. As he flipped it in the air, he called, “Heads.” Catching the coin, he laid it flat on the table and stared at it a long time. “That’s the way it will be.” He blew out a breath. “And God help us all.”

COOPER WOKE UP at 4:00 a.m., as always. He had an internal clock that never failed him. After making coffee, he dressed. The food the redhead had brought still sat on the table. It was ruined now, so he carried it outside and gave it to the dogs. Then he washed the plate and drank two cups of coffee. Ready for the day, he headed for the barn, keeping his mind blank. He refused to think about the redhead.