Wrangling the Redhead by Sherryl Woods

She’ll spend the whole blasted day with the horse just to spite me.”
    “Then it’ll be her choice,” Grady said.
    Wade felt his stomach turn over. “And if we come back and find her lying in the dirt with a couple of cracked ribs or worse, will that be her choice, too?”
    Grady’s expression sobered. “You’re really worried, aren’t you? Aren’t things going as well as I’d hoped they would?”
    “Up to a point,” Wade said cautiously. “But she’sthe kind of woman who’ll push the limits, and you know it.”
    “Talk to her,” Grady said again. “Lauren’s a lot smarter than you’re giving her credit for being. She’s not going to do anything foolish unless you goad her into it.”
    Wade scowled at having the responsibility for Lauren’s actions placed squarely on his shoulders once again. “I’ll talk to her,” he said grimly. “Not that I think it’ll do any good.”
    He walked outside and let the screen door slam behind him, so he couldn’t be accused of sneaking up on her again.
    “Nice to know you have such a favorable impression of my common sense,” Lauren said mildly.
    Wade groaned. After her protests about how he was always sneaking around, it had never occurred to him that she could hear every word he and Grady had exchanged inside the house.
    “Sorry,” he mumbled.
    “Are you really?” she asked. “Or are you just sorry you got caught?”
    “Mostly the latter,” he said with candor. “I try never to insult a woman to her face.”
    “Just behind her back?”
    “If we’re going to get into a sparring match over this, can I have some of that tea?” he asked.
    Lauren nodded toward the table. “There’s the pitcher. Help yourself.”
    Despite himself, he bit back a grin. He should have known she wasn’t going to demean herself by waiting on him. He poured the tea, took a long swallow and tried to find some way to get his foot out of his mouth.
    “Since you heard everything we said, I don’t suppose there’s any chance at all that you’ll consider going over to Winding River tomorrow and spending the day shopping?” he asked hopefully.
    She beamed at him. “Nope. Consistency is important when you’re working with a horse. I need to stay right here.”
    Because she was right, he didn’t have a good argument for that. “Will you at least promise to stay out of the corral, to keep the fence between you and Midnight?”
    “Midnight is not going to hurt me.”
    Wade’s frustration mounted. “Dammit, you don’t know that. He was as good as wild a few weeks ago.”
    “And he’s trusting me more and more every day. You’ve seen it yourself.”
    “I just don’t want you getting overconfident and taking risks, especially with nobody else around,” Wade insisted.
    Her gaze met his and lingered. He saw the precise moment when curiosity was replaced by surprise. Her expression softened.
    “This isn’t some macho edict, is it?” she asked, studying him. “You’re really worried about me.”
    “I’m just not sure Grady and Karen have enough insurance to pay for patching your head back together,” he insisted, refusing to admit that he cared the least little bit on his own behalf.
    She reached for his hand. “No, you’re worried about me, aren’t you, Wade? Admit it.”
    He frowned at her persistence, but he wasn’t going to lie. “Okay, fine. Yes, I’m worried about you.”
    “Why?”
    Now that, he thought, was the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question. “Because anything that has to do withthe horses around here is my responsibility,” he said finally.
    “So, this is purely a selfish concern on your part,” she said, her gaze still clashing with his, daring him to deny it.
    “Yes,” he insisted.
    “Bull,” she said softly. “But I’ll let it pass this time.”
    She stood up, and the movement was enough to send the scent of her perfume wafting toward him. She put her hand on his cheek, then slowly withdrew it. “Thanks for caring.”
    She was