Ally had no idea how long they stood like that. She only knew that when the storm finally passed and she lifted her head, he wiped her tears away with the pads of his fingers and gently lowered his head to hers.
The touch of his lips was everything she had ever wanted, everything she needed. Ally kissed him back, pouring her feelings into the sweetly tender embrace.
For the first time in her life, she was really and truly happy to be right where she was. And it was all due to Hank.
He made Mesquite Ridge a different place for her.
It was still a wilderness, with so much of the four thousand acres uncared for and untamed. But when she was with Hank and saw the ranch through his eyes, she also noted the richness of possibility of the house and the land.
She saw the wonder to be had in a life here, with him.
And that made her want to be held, to be loved, to love in return.
It no longer mattered how much was holding them apart. She wanted to be with Hank again, even if only for a brief period of time.
And he wanted her, too.
His kiss, the warmth and tightness of his embrace, told her that.
And that was, of course, when the purr of a car motor came up behind them.
Ally and Hank let each other go, turned in unison and saw Graham Penderson, of Corporate Farms, get out of his Cadillac and stride toward them.
“I HAVEN’T HEARD FROM YOU,” the small man said, as slick and falsely charming as ever. “So I thought I’d stop by to get your answer in person.”
Ally felt Hank tense beside her. Knowing it would be a mistake to show any weakness to the CF agent, she resisted the urge to take Hank’s hand and hold on tight. Deliberately, she held Penderson’s eyes. “Thank you for the offer-” which, technically, was about to expire “-but my answer is no.”
Ally wasn’t surprised to see Penderson’s expression grow more conciliatory than ever. “You understand ours is a one-time offer. Six months from now, if you still haven’t sold on the open market, we won’t be back with anything near what we are offering now.”
But Hank would still be there, Ally thought, wanting the land.
If his “plan” to acquire it had been put together by then…
She stopped herself. She could not allow herself to think that way; otherwise she’d be no better a business person than her father had been. And it was up to her to see the ranch sold-for a good price-so her own future would be assured, no matter whether she got laid off from her job or not.
This was her chance to obtain the financial security that had always eluded her in her youth.
But she was going to do it her way. Not Corporate Farms’.
“I understand,” Ally said calmly. “The answer is still no. I’m not selling until I get an offer that matches what the land is worth.”
Penderson’s glance narrowed. “We already gave you that.”
“No. You didn’t,” Ally countered equably. “Fortunately, I have every confidence someone else will.”
Especially now that renovations on the ranch house are under way.
“Fine, then.” Penderson gave one last disparaging look at the acres of untamed land, resettled his hat on his head and stalked back to his Cadillac. “You’ll be waiting a long time to realize more than what we’ve already offered, for property that is in such poor shape. And I’m not just talking about the house, which we planned to tear down anyway. No one can run cattle on pastureland this overgrown! The mesquite thickets alone are a hazard.”
Ally and Hank stood in silence, watching him drive off.
“He has a point about that,” she said with a sigh, as her mind returned to business. “There is mesquite everywhere and the trees are covered with two-inch thorns that can do a lot of damage to people and cattle.”
Hank wrapped a companionable arm around her shoulders. “First of all,” he soothed, “cattle are smarter than you think.”
“Is that so?”
“It is.” Hank squeezed her warmly and continued his tutorial. “They know enough to stay away from anything that is going to injure them. Second, the trees don’t just sport fragrant white flowers in the spring and summer, they also produce long bean pods that the cattle can graze on, and provide shelter when it’s cold, and light shade in the hottest parts of the day. Mesquite adapts to almost any soil that isn’t soggy. It’s heat and drought tolerant, helps prevent erosion and fixes nitrogen in the soil.”
Ally thought about what the untamed growth would do to the bottom line. “Mesquite is still not popular with ranchers, since it readily invades grazing sites, and is virtually impossible to get rid of once it takes root.”
Hank tipped back the brim of his hat and gave her the sexy once-over. “And here I thought you didn’t know anything about ranching.”
“I know enough to realize that a controlled burn is needed on vast parts of the ranch, to ensure the long-term health of the land. But as much as I’d like to rid the ranch of all the old dead grass, cedar, mesquite and so on, to germinate different seeds and promote steady, even growth, I’m not sure blackened land would be the best thing for any property on the market.”
Hank inclined his head. “Nonranchers might not understand.”
“And since everyone who is anyone wants a ranch these days, just so they can say they have one-even if they never really visit it…”
“It makes sense to leave the land wild and untamed, for now.”
“Right.”
They studied each other.
Ally knew Hank still didn’t want her to sell to anyone else, but to her surprise, he didn’t look the least bit relieved about what had happened earlier.
“Aren’t you going to tell me I made the right decision regarding Corporate Farms?” She didn’t know why, exactly; she just wanted to have Hank’s approval about that.
He shrugged and walked toward the back of his truck. “It’s not over yet.”
Perplexed, Ally trailed after him. The intimacy they’d felt earlier was gone, just like that. “What do you mean?”
Hank slammed the tailgate shut. “I know what it looked like just now, but Corporate Farms has not given up. They will wait a few days and go into phase two.”
Oh, really? “And what the heck is that?”
“First, they tried to take advantage of you. That didn’t work, nor did playing hardball with you. So, figuring the third time is the charm, the next time they’ll come back to woo you. And give you an offer you’d be nuts to refuse, with absolutely no time limit on deciding.”
Ally shook her head. “I don’t think so. Graham Penderson was pretty clear just now, that this was it-they wouldn’t be back.”
Hank folded his arms in front of him. “We’ll see who’s right. The question is, what are you going to do if they come back with a much higher offer?” He scanned her face. “Will you sell to them, knowing what you do about their overall intent, and how they do business? Or wait for another buyer?”
HANK HAD HOPED-unreasonably, he knew-that Ally would have had time by now to really think about what she was going to do, and commit to selling to him. If only because he had the ability and the drive to turn the ranch into the financial success it always should have been.
Instead, the hard-edged business person in her kicked back in. “If Corporate Farms were to come back with another offer, I would of course listen to what Graham had to say. Just like I will consider any and all offers that Marcy Lyon at Premier Realty brings to me, after the property is listed. And should you come to me with a serious offer that meets my asking price, of course I’ll listen to that, too.”
Hank’s gut tightened with disappointment. “But in the end the highest dollar wins,” he guessed.