Breaking Down Defenses (3rd in Breaking Series)

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Sally's thoughts weren't on the animals she was feeding. Instead they were focused on the road to the ranch. Her eyes seemed drawn to the road as she waited for a tall, broad silhouette to appear over the small hill

"He ain't coming, Miss Sally," Cookie grumbled as he limped past the cow barn.

Sally snapped out of her daydreams and went back to filling the feed troughs, "Who isn't?" she asked, trying to sound as if she had no idea what the old man was talking about. Cookie limped over to his chair and flopped down. Sally wondered why Elizabeth kept him on the ranch payroll. She assumed it was out of loyalty because the old man didn't do much other than sit around and sleep.

"That boy you're watching for. Wendell and Kent saw him at the saloon last night and he said he was leaving out this morning and not coming back this way."

"I'm not watching for any boy," Sally snapped as she carried the feed sack back to the storeroom and tossed it inside.

Cookie leaned back and crossed his crooked legs, "Whatever you say."

Sally stomped from the cow barn and went into the horse barn. She climbed the ladder to the loft and began to throw down hay roughly to put in the stalls.

Thomas wasn't coming back.... Sally had known he wouldn't. He didn't care about anyone but himself. She tried to ignore the disappointment bubbling up inside of her. Susie had been right yesterday. Sally had been saving herself and waiting for the day when Thomas would come back to her. How foolish she had been to think that he would want to. She was tossing down the hay with more force than was necessary and when she turned to grab another bale, her boot caught on an uneven piece of wood. Her arms wind milled as she tried to right herself but she couldn't and she let out a scream as she went flying over the edge of the loft. Sally tried to brace herself for the pain she knew she would feel as she squeezed her eyes shut.

"I got ya!" a voice called out and instead of hitting the hard ground she landed in two strong arms. The impact sent her and her rescuer tumbling into the hay. Sally's face was buried in the man's broad chest. He smelled like witch hazel, "You okay, Sally?"

Sally recognized Thomas's voice and she realized it was his strong arms wrapped around her. His broad chest she was currently being held tight against, his scent she was breathing in and his long, lean body she was lying on in the pile of hay.

"I'm fine!" Sally snapped as she disentangled herself from his arms and stood up. She brushed the hay from her trousers and looked over at him but he was still lying there watching her.

Thomas knew if he stood up now she would see the reaction that his body had had to holding her close against him plain as day in his denims. Her hair had smelled like a mixture of roses and horses and her long, curvy body had fit against his perfectly.

"Are you okay?" Sally asked as she held out her hand to help him up. Thomas nodded and took her hand, though he jumped to his feet himself without much help from her, "You gotta be more, careful Sally. If I hadn't been there to catch you, you could have broken your neck." he scolded. Annoyance was easier and safer to show to her than attraction was. Sally's spine stiffened, "What the hell are you doing here anyway?" she demanded as she grabbed a rake and began spreading out the hay, "Cookie said you were leaving."

"I am leaving but I wanted to say goodbye to Liz first," Thomas replied as he grabbed a second rake and began helping her.

"Just Liz huh?" she asked, trying desperately to sound as if she didn't care.