Have a Little Faith (3 page)

Tanner Enterprises had hotels, resorts, amusement parks, and theaters all over the United States and Europe. But a dude ranch would be a first for the entire company let alone for Lane himself.

Unique for the area, he mused as he continued to jot down plans and notes. Not many people need a fake ranch simply because in Oklahoma, they either had their own or knew someone who
had. But for people from the coasts, people from the cities who didn’t have those connections, this theme park would be a vacation for them. They could stay in cabins on the ranch and be able to participate in country-centered activities.

It was great, Lane decided smugly. It was perfect, and it was all his. So, the Morgan’s hadn’t made a definite decision as of yet. A little green would sway them, no doubt. Money talked and if their financial history was any indication, money would talk loudly to the Morgan family.

They had come a long way, he realized as he thumbed through his reports. In six months, they had gone from owing thousands of dollars with the land as collateral for loans taken out prior to Joshua Morgan’s death.

After selling off half of their land and various equipment and livestock, they had
gotten out of serious debt, but had no income.
Now, as far as Lane could tell, it was hit or miss. No
doubt the harsh s
ummer in Oklahoma hadn’t been in their favor. But if it would help him gain a signature on his contracts, then it was in his.

Lane readied for bed still dreaming. His father had given him this responsibility and he intended to see it through. Maybe it wouldn’
t make a difference to his old
man, but for the first time in Lane’s life, he
was doing something for himself.

Chapter Three

Alex grunted as she thrust her shovel down into the earth. What in the world possessed a cow to run through a barbed wire fence was beyond her. All she knew is that she had three uprooted t-posts and she had to fix them
before more cows got out
.

She’d removed her button up shirt and wore only a tank top with her denim jeans—now stained from being dragged on the ground by the crazy cow.
Her hair was pulled up on the top of her head tied with a string.

Sweat rolled
down her back. She noted
absently that the sun was high and it was
close to noon. She decided against
breaking for lunch
when she noticed the cows getting closer to the fence. Even a temporary fence wouldn’t be sufficient. She would have to finish
it
before anything else
was done
.

On that note, Alex picked up a post
,
slid it into the ground
,
then
hefted
the t-post
driver
up
to work
the post
into the ground. She repeated the process three times before she was satisfied enough to run the barbed wire.

When the fence seemed to withstand the weight of her backside leaning on it, she was done. She picked up her shirt and tugged it on, not bothering with the buttons.

“Looks all right to me.”
Jack Manning, the Morgan Ranch foreman strolled up to her. “Did it hurt the cow any?”

“No. M.C. is fine.”

“Y
ou named the cow?” Jack spit tobacco on the ground and helped haul the t-post driver into the bed of the ranch truck.

“M.C
. stands for Mad Cow. After the
idiot
drug me across twenty acres, I think she deserves the name.”

Jack chuckled at Alex’s scowl and shut the
tailgate
. Alex walked over to where
her
horse
was tied and stroked her hand down his neck.

“Hello, Prince,” she said and was rewarded with a head bump.

“Figured I’d take the truck on back if you want to take this here devil.”
Jack commented coming up beside her. “Monster gave him a good grooming today.”

“That’s fine. I may take him
for a run in the one-eighty,” s
he decided thinking of her favorite pasture.
It was one hundred and eighty acres of flat grass. Her skin tingled in anticipation of feeling the wind rushing against her.

“He’ll like that.” Jack patted the
horse’s
neck. Alex noticed the worry in his gray eyes and the strain in his voice. Knowing that a woman would never be equal to the men on Morgan, she had always stayed out of their business. But when it was just Jack, Alex could pry.

“Everything all right, Jack?”

He took his time to answer which had Alex biting her lip. Overhead, a hawk called out as it soared through the brilliant blue sky. A rabbit skidded through the clearing and back into the woods. And Jack sighed.

“There’s a rumor. Is your mother really planning on selling?”

Alex’s eyes widened in shock
and the breath she’d been holding whooshed out. “She hasn’t told you anything?
”

“No, she hasn’t told anyone anything.”

Alex huffed out a breath. “All I know is that she’s considering it.
A rep from a company is coming… today,” she realized with a jolt.
“But I’m not letting it go without a fight.”

“It would be nice to know if I need to be looking for another job.”

“Oh, Jack.” Alex closed her eyes tight and wished Tanner Enterprise
and her mother
to hell. “I hope it doesn’t come to that.”

“You’ve got a lot going here too. You’re a fine cowboy.”

“Thanks, I think.”

Jack smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Go on for your ride, Alex. I’ll get this equipment back to the barn and I’m getting me some dinner.”

“Dinner?”
Alex frowned. “What time is it?” Had she worked the entire day away?

“Nearly six.”

“I’ll see you in the morning.” With that, she mounted Prince and took off toward the one-eighty pasture.

Besides the barn, the one-eighty pasture
was Alex’s playground. It was used primarily for hay
,
but Alex rode her horses there and rode them often. There was a small pond big enough to swim in, small
slopes
and inclines to make the runs fun for her and her horses, and it was a beautiful view from Highway Seventeen.

The sun was setting earlier each day, Alex noticed as she brought Prince to as gallop. Soon, winter would hit Oklahoma. It would be a relief before it would become a
nuisance
.

She
slowed
Prince to a trot and untied her hair. It fell in lo
ose waves just
past her shoulders. Now, she would feel the wind on her skin and the thunder of hooves below her. Now was the part of the day when work was done and it was time to just
be
.

She kicked Prince twice to send him off in a run and for that moment, she was free.

Oklahoma—to Lane—
was a beautiful state. So far, he had noticed clean air and a
welcoming breeze when he stepped off the plane. The sun was just beginning to set.

It was a big orange ball in the sky and cast hues of
brilliant colors. Pink, purple
, and red lit up the horizon. As Lane studied the colors, he almost wished he could paint. He would paint the sunset and the planes in front of it with
its
gentle slopes and green prairie.

Just as
he
thought that what he was seeing was the most beautiful
scene he’
d ever
witnessed
, a figure emerged from atop the hill. It blocked the sun and was cast in shadow
,
but Lane instantly made out a horse and rider.

The horse stopped at the top of the hill and the rider reached up and untied her hair. It fell down dark and long as she shook it out.
With a couple gentle kicks, the horse took off again and charged down the hillside.

As the horse and rider changed angles from the sun, Lane saw that the horse was white as snow wi
th tiny specks of black through
out his body. And he saw that the woman atop
of
the horse was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.

Was it a trick of the light?
h
e
wondered, squinting out the window. Or was this woman truly as magnificent as she seemed? She was slight in build. He wouldn’t even try to guess her full height as she was
leaning
forward on the ho
rse as it raced across the plane
.

He
r hair was black as night and
tossed in the wind they created. Dirt and mud flew up behind the hooves of the animal as it effortlessly cleared a rock. The horse landed gracefully, never losing speed or elegance.

Lane
realized
his mouth
was
hanging open
and
he clamped it shut quickly. There was a knot in his stomach that he i
nstantly recognized as desire—
h
ard and strong for a woman
that
he had no idea who she was. For the moment,
he was undeniably speechless—
but only for a moment.

“Who is that?” h
e asked the driver
of the cab
.

The balding man gla
nced out the window and grinned
. “
That’s Alex
Morgan.”

“That’s Morgan land?
I didn’t see a road near
by on the map.”

“They just put this in there when they cut the ranch in half. Surely you heard about that.” The driver snorted. “Old Man Morgan gambled away all their money and half their possessions. They sold that,” he gestured to the other side of the road. “County bought it and put in Highway Seventeen. End of the road runs straight into the Morgan’s driveway. Probably wouldn’t be on a
ny
map yet.”

“You’re probably right.” They were past the pasture
where
Alex
Morgan
had been rid
ing
. Lane opened his briefcase and made a note of what the driver had told him. Highway Seventeen ending at the ranch was more than an ideal entrance
to
the dude ranch.

Alex
Morgan, Lane mused as the car bump
ed over a cattle guard with old,
weathered iron poles supporting each side. Now there was an unexpected surprise. Pleasant or not, he had yet to find out.

When the car came to a stop, Lane locked his briefcase and stepped out. His first impression of the main house was that of a rustic hideaway. It wasn’t big in size
,
but where it lacked
magnitude
, it made up in charm. It was made of red, black, and cream c
olored bricks checkered through
out the two stories of the outer surface. Attractive shudders hung over the windows and although the paint was peeling, they were painted to match the cream colored bricks.

The house would be perfect for the main office, he decided
as the wheels
turned
in his head
. It would hardly need to be changed on the outside.
New
paint
, he scribbled in his notebook he had extracted again from his briefcase.
Chain link needs to go
, he wrote.
Picket fence ideal
.

T
o the right of the house, there was a small, white shed with a single window. Large trees shaded the yard and grew thicker until they blanketed into woods. The foliage was thick and full
and matched the shade of his eyes. Beauty, he thought, came in all forms.

He tipped his driver before retrieving his
luggage, replaced his notebook,
and proceeded to knock on the front door.

It opened and Lane found his gaze lowering until they rested on the woman in a
wheelchair
. Her honey hair was in a neat bun and her blue eyes were dull and distant.

“Hello. Are you Mrs. Morgan?”

“I am.”

He held out a hand.
“Lane Tanner, ma’am.
It’s nice to meet you.”

Alex shut the door firmly and hooked the latch that was installed on the top part of the door of the tack room. She had ridden herself into exhaustion and was ready to hit t
he shower and drop into oblivion
.

Her stomach growled as she made her way
up the drive,
but she ignored it.
Sure, she hadn’t eaten since… d
inner last night, she realized on a moan. Maybe she could just swipe an apple on the way upstairs.