The Rancher’s Unexpected Gift Read online

  The Rancher’s Unexpected Gift

  Snowbound in Sawyer Creek

  Lacy Williams

  Contents

  Exclusive invitation

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Exclusive invitation

  Cowboy Fairytales sneak peek

  Also by Lacy Williams

  Exclusive invitation

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  Find out what's happened with each of the Snowbound couples one year later. Someone is having a baby… will there be a Christmas Eve wedding…? And much more.

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  Chapter 1

  Delaney Anderson had never done anything this stupid in her life.

  Desperation made people do stupid things.

  Delaney prided herself on always making the right choice. The smart choice.

  How many times a day did she remind Evan to make right choices? How many times had she told him he'd never regret those choices?

  She already regretting coming here tonight.

  None of that mattered now. All that mattered was finding her wedding ring.

  "Can I take your coat?"

  The voice from behind startled her into turning. An attendant in a suit had a warm smile and an outstretched hand.

  Delaney took a deep breath. Here went nothing.

  She let her arms slip out of the full-length coat. Even inside the expansive foyer, cold air seeped around the massive front door and chilled her bare arms and legs.

  She wobbled a little on the black heels that matched her cocktail dress. She'd had to borrow both from her friend Sierra, and neither fit quite right.

  The heels were tight enough to pinch her toes—a half size too small. The dress's spaghetti straps made her self-conscious that the whole top might pop off. And the length... She never wore anything this short. The skirt ended well above her knees.

  But at least she might blend in to the party guests. The Cattlemen's Association Christmas ball was the premiere event of the season here in Sawyer Creek. The Trudeau family had hosted since forever—even a transplant like her knew that. The massive ranch house on the massive ranch boasted a real-life ballroom. Who built a house with a ballroom? The Trudeaus did.

  The annual Christmas shindig drew the Who's Who of land-wealthy ranchers and their families, and a smattering of singles who were well-connected enough to attend.

  Yeah, she might blend in for a short period.

  As long as she didn't run in to her boss. Ex-boss.

  She hesitated on the edge of the ballroom, overwhelmed by the sheer number of people.

  The Christmas decorations were beautiful.

  And a pain to dust. She'd spent hours in here over the last few days, meticulously clearing the kind of fine dust that seemed to seep through the walls on such a large ranch. Polishing the floor that countless feet were now scuffing. Washing the windows.

  After tonight, a new maid would have to do it all over again.

  Maybe it was a good thing she didn't work here anymore.

  Except thinking about her lost wages made her stomach dip precipitously.

  If she thought about that too much, she'd find herself drowning in worry. Mired in a bog that had the power to suck her under.

  Find wedding ring.

  Avoid Cash Trudeau.

  Get out.

  As long as she kept to the plan, she'd be fine.

  Plans made sense to her. Plans kept her going.

  For Evan, she could do this.

  She stepped in to the ballroom. No one questioned her right to be here. With her hair swept up in the fancy style and her earrings—cubic zirconium—sparkling in her ears, she might look the part.

  But she knew how false appearances could be, didn't she?

  She remembered taking off the ring to put on some lotion when her hands had been so dry and cracked that she'd been unable to bear it any longer. The cleaning supplies she used dried out her hands terribly, but she'd worn through her last pair of yellow rubber gloves earlier in the week and wouldn't get paid again until after Christmas.

  She thought she'd put the ring in her jeans’ pocket with plans to stash it in her purse when she had the chance. But when she'd arrived home after the terrible events of the afternoon, the ring had been neither of those places.

  She'd spent a half hour combing through her car, walking along the driveway, and searching the tiny bungalow she shared with her son.

  The ring was nowhere.

  Which meant it must still be at the Double Cross mansion. The one place she'd promised herself she would never set foot on again.

  But the ring meant too much. She had to fetch it.

  Even if it meant humiliating herself. Even if it meant getting escorted away by the sheriff.

  "Hello, there." A man about her age wearing a tuxedo and bolo tie greeted her with a smile.

  The predatory kind. The kind of smile she'd learned meant trouble.

  "Excuse me." She tried for a tone between cool and abrupt and attempted to skirt the man.

  Except he moved to intercept her. "I don't think I know you. Are you new in town?"

  A laugh bubbled up. "No." He didn't know her because he moved in a completely different social circle. She cleaned houses for some of the people in this room. If they saw her, they'd likely ignore her, pretend she wasn't here.

  People like Delaney were invisible.

  "Excuse me," she said again. "I'm meeting someone."

  She tried to edge past him, but he grabbed her wrist. "Don't be in such a rush."

  She recoiled from the touch, but his hand encircled her like a manacle. He refused to let go.

  "Let go," she said fiercely, though she kept her voice low. The last thing she needed was a scene. There would be no recovering if she lost other housecleaning jobs. She wanted to be invisible, at least for tonight.

  And then she felt a presence behind her. A warm hand closed around her opposite elbow, and she registered a man close by her side.

  "I think you'd better let the lady go."

  She froze at the voice.

  Her ex-boss. Cash.

  Instantly, the handsy guy backed off, releasing his hold on her.

  Heart beating frantically, its thudding drowning out the party noise, she turned to face him, the motion knocking his hand away. "Please don't touch me."

  He didn't seem perturbed by her reaction at all, only smiled an easy smile. "I was just trying to help."

  There was nothing predatory about his smile. His was a smile that said he'd humor her for now, but nothing more. His was a smile that said he was someone used to getting his way.

  Which she already knew.

  The way his eyes crinkled at the corners made her stomach swoop, and that in turn made her words sharp.

  "I don't need your help."

  His kind of help had fired her earlier in the day.

  Doom settled like a black cloud in her stomach. He had every right to throw her out.

  She waited for him to demand she leave.

  And waited.

  Cash had expected to recognize everyone in the room. He'd grown up in Sawyer Creek. He’d been through 4H with half the folks here. He’d known his generation from school, the older generation from hanging out at their houses after high school foo
tball or basketball games. The few he hadn’t met when he was a kid he knew now from doing business with them.

  But he'd never seen this blonde bombshell before.

  Her presence here had to be Mallory's doing somehow. Mallory had taken charge of this year's Christmas ball, including the guest lists.

  Because Mom and Dad were gone.

  Mallory was taking over the Double Cross.

  Cash was going back to his old life in Austin.

  Tonight, he wanted to forget all of that.

  The mystery woman stared at him, the ramrod-straight set of her spine and the light in her blue eyes seemed to ask what are you waiting for?

  He'd expected another boring party. Chatting, making nice with people he didn't particularly care to socialize with. But here he was, heart pounding like he was back in seventh grade.

  From the first glance he'd had of her crossing the ballroom—just a glimpse of her hair pulled back from her face, the graceful curve of her neck—he'd been ensnared.

  He'd had to have a look at her face.

  One glimpse of her shocking blue eyes and stunning cheekbones and those lips that seemed to hint at a smile… One glimpse and his thrumming pulse had demanded he meet the beautiful creature.

  He didn't believe in love at first sight, but his insides were tied up in knots, and adrenaline was pumping. He hadn't felt this alive since...

  Since well before he'd received the news about Mom and Dad's accident. Over a year.

  He didn't believe in love at first sight, but he couldn't just let this creature walk away. He didn't know if he'd ever been attracted to someone like this, the powerful magnetism that was drawing him to this woman.

  He cleared his throat. "At the risk of sounding as lame as that other guy, I don't know your name either. And I'd like to."

  Her expression transformed into disbelief. Maybe even past disbelief to incredulous.

  She glanced around self-consciously. He didn't know what she was looking for. The party guests were all caught up in conversation.

  "Stop patronizing me," she ground out between gritted teeth.

  What?

  His expression must've shown his genuine confusion, because her disbelief turned into shock.

  "You really don't know who I am?" she asked.

  "Am I supposed to?”

  He was watching her so closely that he saw the blush bloom not on her cheeks, but across her upper sternum. It spread across the exposed skin there, nearly from shoulder to shoulder. Fascinating.

  "No," she said with a false sweetness. He'd heard a saccharine tone like that from his sister before. It usually meant it was time to make tracks. "No, we don't know each other at all."

  Her tone and the hard light in her eyes made it clear the words were blatantly false. Why would she lie?

  And what had he done to offend her? Was it just that he didn't recognize her? He'd swear he had never seen her before tonight.

  "If you'll excuse me," she murmured.

  "Wait—"

  She froze at his command but didn't turn toward him.

  If she knew him at all—and somehow he sensed she did, though his brain strained to find the connection—she had to know he wasn't going to give up so easily.

  "Has it been a long time since we've seen each other?" That had to be it. Maybe they'd known each other in high school and he simply didn't recognize her.

  She smiled, this time without the saccharine sweetness. "Yes. Ages."

  She was still lying. He was sure of it. But why?

  He shouldn't be this intrigued. He didn't like being lied to, but something was drawing him to her.

  Mallory would say it was Christmas magic, but Cash had stopped believing in magic a long time ago.

  Maybe it was this woman. Her own brand of magic, tempting him like he'd never been tempted before.

  Whatever it was, he couldn't walk away.

  "Please. Tell me your name."

  Her eyes tracked up and down his face. Looking for what, he didn't know. She finally seemed satisfied, because she offered one wary word. "Delaney."

  Delaney.

  It was both unique and unfamiliar.

  He didn't know a single Delaney.

  But he trusted his gut, and it told him she wasn't lying this time.

  Delaney.

  "You got a last name to go with that?" he asked.

  She gave him a cool stare. "Not one that I'd care for you to know."

  He mimed an arrow heading straight for his heart and exploding there.

  She didn't crack a smile. Not even the hint of one. Tough crowd.

  But he was flying high because she'd cracked once. He knew her name.

  "I'm Cash Trudeau." He extended his hand, aiming for a handshake when he really wanted her close. Tucked into the curve of his arm.

  Or closer. In his embrace.

  She stared at him, once again wearing an expression that said he was a little cuckoo in the head.

  He didn't care.

  He left his hand there until she relented with a sigh and put her small hand into his.

  The first touch was a shock. Not because of the waves of attraction that sent gooseflesh skittering up his arms and down his spine.

  Because of the roughness of her hand. It was a worker's hand. Sandpaper skin he usually felt when shaking a cowboy's hand. Not a woman's. Even Mallory, who was as tomboy as they came, used buckets of lotion to keep her hands soft.

  Delaney seemed even more self-conscious as she reclaimed her hand.

  She seemed flustered, not looking at him directly anymore.

  Which was a plus, as far as he was concerned. She wasn't immune to whatever this crazy thing between them was.

  "I have to—I really am looking for someone."

  She started to walk away.

  Everything about her intrigued him. He wanted to know more.

  There was no way he was letting her go that easily.

  Delaney's pulse was racing as she walked away from Cash.

  He didn't know who she was.

  The cad.

  The jerk.

  Obviously, she'd made less of an impression earlier today than she’d thought.

  No. No, he was too high and mighty to notice the hired help, that was his problem.

  Even so, it made her feel powerless. Less than.

  And she hated the feeling.

  It reminded her of everything that was wrong with her life.

  It doesn't matter.

  Evan mattered. And getting her wedding ring back was the only thing she could do for him right now.

  She was brushing past a man in a tuxedo when she felt Cash's presence behind her.

  Angry tears burned the back of her nose.

  Why couldn't he leave her alone?

  She was trying not to think about what had happened earlier.

  And what it meant for her and Evan.

  And that was virtually impossible with the tall, imposing rancher breathing down her neck.

  Chapter 2

  Five hours earlier.

  Delaney had to go in there.

  But Cash was inside.

  She stood outside the ranch's pretentious office with the wide oak desk that she practically had to crawl on top of to dust. A wall of picture frames required extra attention, and the trash can tucked behind the desk was always full, which meant she had to trek it down the hall and outside for disposal.

  But none of those annoyances really meant anything.

  She didn't mind her job, most of the time. It put food on the table and kept a roof over hers and Evan's heads. Her mom had cleaned houses and the occasional office and taught Delaney that she shouldn't be too proud to clean someone else's toilet.

  But when she came face-to-face with someone like Cash Trudeau, she hated her job.

  No, that wasn't quite right.

  She was ashamed.

  Maybe she was too proud to clean toilets.

  This is ridiculous.

  Mallory Trudeau
ran most of the ranch operations and had given Delaney a long and specific list of what needed to be cleaned. The office was on the list. Delaney had to go in there.

  Even if being around Cash made her goosebumps sit up and take notice.

  It wasn't as if he'd ever noticed her before. Mama had taught her well. Be discreet when the client is home. If possible, work around their location in the house. Apologize for being in their way.

  Grovel, if needed.

  There was no use for it.

  Cash had been in the office all day. It was the last room on her list to clean. It was Christmas Eve, and she'd worked through lunch, barely stopping to shove a turkey-and-cheese sandwich in her pie hole. She needed to get home to Evan. She had gifts—too few—to wrap tonight, and she was already taking advantage of Sierra, who'd offered to babysit on her holiday from work.

  She fortified herself with a deep breath—

  Only to freeze when Cash strode out of the office.

  The hall light was off, and even though the hallway was illuminated by natural light from the bank of windows at one end, the man didn't seem to notice her at all. He was moving the opposite direction, so it made sense.

  Still. It pinched a little.

  But Mama would be proud.

  She slipped into the room, set her bucket of cleaning supplies near the door, and propped the vacuum against the wall. If she worked quickly, she could be out of here before Cash came back. If he came back. Maybe he was getting ready for the event tonight. Maybe he was done.

  She used a rag to dust the picture frames. She didn't have time to be distracted by a younger Cash and his sister Mallory with their parents. Or to wonder what the plush carpet would feel like beneath her bare toes.

  Keep working until the job is done.

  She still missed Mama. More during the holiday season. They'd never had much, but Mama had always made Christmas magical.

  That was her job now. She'd do better to focus on finishing her job here at the Double Cross and getting home to Evan.