Christmas at Blue Moon Ranch

To our military heroes and
their families,
With many thanks.

Thunderclouds
piled up on the western horizon as Willa Mercado drove into
Zapata
,
Texas
, to betray her husband.

She wasn’t contemplating
actual adultery. Jamie had been dead for eighteen months. She couldn’t cheat on
a dead man even if she wanted to. And she did not want to.

But selling the
Blue Moon Ranch, which had been Mercado family land for more than a century,
definitely felt like betrayal.

“Not the whole
ranch,” she reminded herself for the millionth time, gripping the steering
wheel tightly with both hands. “You’re only selling ten percent, a thousand
acres. You’ll never miss it. Your grandchildren will never miss it.”

Even so, the
guilt continued to chafe at her as she drove, like leather boots a size too
small.

Her attorney,
Juan Angelo, occupied an office in a strip mall near the fancy new Zapata
County Courthouse. Willa whipped her truck into a parking space, pulled the key
from the ignition and shoved the door open. Without giving herself a chance for
more second thoughts, she grabbed up her purse and the folder of papers she
needed, then strode toward the lawyer’s tinted glass door. A chime sounded as
she entered the air-conditioned space, and two pairs of eyes fastened on her
face.

“I’m Willa
Mercado,” she told the pretty blonde at the reception desk. “I have an
appointment for a closing at three.”

“Yes, Mrs.
Mercado.” The young woman gave her a friendly smile. “Mr. Angelo will be free
in a few minutes. Can I get you something to drink while you wait?”

Willa’s hands
were shaking too badly to hold a cup steady. “No, thanks.”

Another bright,
white smile. “Just have a seat, then. He’ll be with you shortly. My name is
Julie—let me know if you need anything.”

Julie got up
from her desk and went through a door at the back of the room. Willa turned
toward the chairs arranged around the wall near the front windows and met the
gaze that had been fixed on her since she’d walked in.

He sat at ease
in the corner chair, one long, jean-clad leg stretched out in front of him. A
soft chambray shirt and navy sports coat hung a little loosely from his wide
shoulders. His bright blue eyes smiled as they met hers and he brought up a
sexy, three-sided grin, which creased his cheeks and heated hers.

“Willa Mercado?”
His voice made her think of warm butterscotch on cold vanilla ice cream. “I’m
Daniel Trent. I think we’re here on the same business.”

The urge she’d
felt to return that grin evaporated. Willa nodded curtly. “Major Trent.” She
chose a chair as far from his as possible, facing the receptionist’s desk so
she didn’t have to confront the man who was buying part of her soul.

“Forgive me for
not getting up,” he said, evidently oblivious to her desire to ignore him. “My
bum leg’s acting up with the storm coming in.”

Willa waved away
the comment without looking at him. “Don’t worry about it.” But she couldn’t
stop her gaze from sliding sideways to his legs. She didn’t see a cast or a
brace. What did “bum leg” mean? Was it the one he kept bent, or the one he held
straight? Just how disabled was he?

He still didn’t
take the hint. “There’s a question I’ve been wanting to ask you ever since I
first heard the name of your spread.
El Rancho Luna Azul
—the Blue Moon
Ranch. Where did the name come from?”

Nosy, as well as
dense. “The legend says that Rafael Mercado, who founded the ranch, spent his
first night on the land under a blue moon.”

Trent chuckled,
a rich, deep sound. “Old Rafael must have been a romantic.”

She glanced
over, unable to suppress a smile. “He had his wife with him. Maybe she chose
the name.”

“Women being
more imaginative? Maybe.” He lifted a quizzical eyebrow. “Does that mean Rafael
was henpecked?”

Before she could
answer, Julie reappeared. “Mrs. Mercado? Major Trent? Right this way. Mr.
Angelo’s got everything ready.”

Willa took a
deep breath and stood up, then glanced Daniel Trent in time to see him pick up
a cane from the floor. She couldn’t look away as he propped the stick in front
of him, then held it with both hands for extra support as he came up out of the
chair, using only the strength of the bent left leg. His right leg stayed
straight. When he stepped forward, he swung that stiff leg out to the side in a
rolling sort of gait.

Daniel Trent
caught her staring, of course, and shrugged one shoulder. “Like I said, the
weather.” Leaning one-handed on the cane, he motioned her ahead of him with the
other. “Shall we?”

Without the
mesmerizing smile to distract her, she could see the stress in his face, the
lines at the corners of his eyes and around his mouth, which revealed a pain he
didn’t want to acknowledge.

A twinge of
sympathy lodged in Willa’s chest. “Sure.” She followed Julie down the hall. About
halfway along, though, her second thoughts hit like a rampaging longhorn bull. She
actually stumbled in shock.

A warm hand
closed around her elbow from behind. “Are you okay?”

Her cheeks hot
with embarrassment, she glanced back at Daniel Trent. “I’m fine. Sorry.”

He let go easily
as she pulled free. “No problem.”

Frowning, Willa
hurried to catch up with the secretary. Maybe she was making a huge mistake. When
she’d put the land up for sale, she’d expected to get a man with experience, a
steady and reliable neighbor she could depend on. What kind of ranching
background did Daniel Trent have? How would he manage cattle if he couldn’t
walk without a limp? Did he have other plans for the land that she should know
about?

At the end of
the hallway, attorney Juan Angelo waited for them in a windowless conference
room. “Willa, good to see you again. I’ve got your papers right here.” He
pulled out a chair at one corner of the long table that filled most of the
available space and scooted it in underneath her. Then he went to shake hands
with Daniel Trent.

“I’m glad to
meet you, Major Trent. I’ve arranged your paperwork, too.” He glanced at the
cane, and rolled back a chair on the other corner. “Have a seat.”

Willa
understood, from the way Daniel pressed his lips together, how much he disliked
that accommodation to his disability. But he said, “Thanks,” and lowered
himself into the chair without much trouble. Now they sat facing each other,
with the attorney at the head of the table between them.

Juan rubbed his
hands together. “So, we’re here to close on the sale of a thousand acres of
ranch land. Willa, you’re the seller, of course, and Daniel is the buyer. We’ve
got a fair amount of paperwork to go through, but nothing too complicated. This
first page—”

Willa put up a
hand. “Just a minute.” Her reservations had seized control, and now she looked
Daniel Trent straight in the eye. “I know I should have asked this before, but
better late than never. Just what are you planning to do with this land, if you
buy it?”

Daniel Trent
didn’t avoid her gaze. The lift of his eyebrow remarked on her use of
if.

The attorney
cleared his throat. “Willa, you shouldn’t—”

She glanced at
Juan. “I think I have a right to know if he’s got something planned that’s
going to affect my operation, my business. Like a trailer park or a factory or
an oil refinery.”

“But—”

“It’s okay,”
Daniel said. “I don’t mind answering the question.” The smile had returned to
his eyes. “I’m planning to use the land just as you have. I want to raise
cattle and a few horses. I’m planning to be a rancher.” That devastating grin
came into play. “I thought I’d call it New Moon Ranch.”

Willa didn’t
smile back. “Do you have a ranching background?”

He shook his
head. “Not much. I’ve spent the past twelve years in the Army.”

“Do you have any
experience with cattle? Horses?” Could he handle the rustlers who’d been
preying on her herd?

“Growing up in
Ohio, I had a pony. As a teenager, I spent summers working on a dude ranch in
Wyoming. But I haven’t done any riding recently. The U.S. cavalry,” he said
with a smile, “got phased out a while back.”

So she wouldn’t
be able to depend on his help in stopping the cattle thieves preying on her
herd. Willa dropped back against her chair. “How do you expect to be able to
run a ranch? With just a few months of experience and…and—”

“And a bum leg,”
he finished for her.

“Well, yes. How
in the world are you going to make this work?”

“I think Major
Trent’s plans are his own business, Willa.” Juan’s plump face had turned a deep
red and his eyes had gotten very wide, with all the whites showing. “We’re just
here to complete the sale.”

“I figured I
could hire good hands to help me out,” Daniel explained. “And I’m not too proud
to ask my neighbors for advice, maybe a little assistance now and then.”

“Ranching is a
full-time job.” Boy, did she know that. “Running a ranch, even a small one,
requires stamina and strength, coordination and physical competence.” Which was
why she was always exhausted at the end of each and every day. “The economics
are against you, too. Running such a small herd—one, two hundred head—you’ll
barely break even most years. The price of corn is going up and water’s been
scarce. Do you know how to handle those problems? Why do you want to take on a
complicated enterprise that’s pretty much guaranteed to fail?”

“Willa…” Juan
groaned.

Daniel Trent
straightened up in his chair, and suddenly she could see the military training
behind his easy-going facade. “I may not be a hundred percent physically, but I
expect to make a profit on the New Moon.”

“I’m sure you
will,” Juan started. “And I’m sure—”

“I’m not.” Willa
flattened her hands on the table. “And I don’t think I can complete the sale
under these conditions.”

The attorney
choked.
Trent
narrowed his eyes. “You’re backing out on the deal?”

“This land is my
children’s heritage. I have a duty to see that it’s cared for properly.”