Read Charlene Sands for Free Online

as strawberry jelly. Tension sizzled between them. Tess didn’t imagine it. She could almost feel the heat coming off his body. Then he lifted a corner of his mouth. “The Double H, Tess. I want your half.”
    She swallowed.
    And was brought back to the moment.
    Then anger struck her anew. “You’ll never get it.”
    “I always get what I want.”
    “Not this time,” she said with rigid determination. She turned and walked out of the corral, but something compelled her to turn around.
    And when she did, her firm resolve crumbled instantly. Lucky Girl walked over to Clint and nestled her head into his chest as he offered quiet and kind words of encouragement. The filly lapped up his undivided attention, giving him her full trust.
    Befuddled and truly in need of clearing the dust from her brain, Tess entered the stables.
    She really needed a good, long, hard ride.
     
    Tess mounted her mare just outside the stables as Sonny rode up, squinting against the bright sun. He tipped his brown felt hat, then lowered it farther on his head. “Morning, Miss Tess.”
    “Good morning, Sonny. Looks like a good day for a ride. I’m taking Maple out for a little while. Mr. Stewart is coming to the ranch to give me his monthly report on the expansion of the Hayworth Emporium at noontime.”
    “I’ll keep a lookout for him.”
    “Thank you. But I’ll be back in plenty of time to meet him.”
    Sonny nodded, then grinned. “You really should wear yourself a bonnet, Miss Tess. It’s gonna prove to be a real bright day.”
    “Oh, I—” she stuttered, glancing at Clint with the new filly and her mama, “I meant to wear one, but I guess I forgot.”
    “Hold on,” he said, climbing down from his mount. “I’ll get you one.”
    And while he made his way into the barn, Tess couldn’t keep her gaze from drifting to Clint, working with the mare in the corral, earning the new filly’s trust and having himself a grand old time.
    “Here you go. Try this one.”
    Tess reached down and took the offered hat from Sonny. She adjusted it onto her head. It sat lower than the one Hoyt had ordered especially for her, but it would do. “Thank you. This will work fine.”
    “It’s one of Clint’s. But he won’t miss it.” Sonny winked and slapped her mare on her rump.
    Maple took her cue and walked forward in an easy gait, passing the corrals and a watchful Clint as they passed him by.
    Once past the houses and outer buildings of the ranch, Tess settled back in the saddle and enjoyed the ride, fully in awe of the land before her. Mostly grazing land for Hayworth cattle, the acreage spilled out for miles. She still had trouble believing all this land was hers.
    Well, not all hers. Half belonged to Hoyt’s son, and she wouldn’t forget that. She’d never wanted the land, the riches or the notoriety that came with being Mrs. Hoyt Hayworth. All she’d wanted was to live in peace with a man who’d treat her kindly. She’d had that with Hoyt. And she wasn’t ashamed that she’d fallen in love with an older man.
    “Come on, girl.” She clicked the reins gently, spurring Maple into a trot, the fresh air against her face invigorating. Wild grass and flat plains spread out before her, and the sun beat down, causing tendrils of hair to stick to her neck.
    She rode for a long while, clearing her head and calming the riot of emotions that were always so close to the surface. She’d been somewhat of a recluse back in Turner Hill, trying to live her life without incident. But the memories of her father’s abuse and then her brother’s crimes had changed all that.
    She’d had to start all over. Working that out in her mind wasn’t easy, and sometimes she needed these private moments of solitude to gather her thoughts. She’d put Theresa Metcalf to rest back in Turner Hill. She was Tess Hayworth now, but at times she just plain needed the reminder.
    When she spotted a large cropping of lumbering oaks, the shade beckoned, and she rode