Land of Enchantment Page 3

  'Do you know him?' Stella breathed after he was out of hearing.

  'I met him today.' Diana watched his retreating back until it disappeared.

  'Lucky you! He's not really handsome, is he? I mean, not in the accepted sense of the word. But he's got an aura around him that takes your breath away. No wonder you wanted to come to the rodeo tonight!'

  'What's the next event?' Stella's observation had been too astute and Diana wanted to shift the subject.

  'Bull riding,' Stella answered after consulting her printed programme.

  That was what Diana had been afraid it would be. And Lije Masters was entered in it. Her stomach twisted itself in knots. The apprehension she had felt during the steer wrestling seemed minor compared to the agony she knew she would go through in this the most dangerous event.

  'Are you going to do it?' Stella asked, her dark head cocked inquiringly towards her blonde companion.

  'Do what?'

  'Take him up on his offer to show you around,' Stella replied with a mock frown on Diana's blank expression. 'I should think tonight after the rodeo would be a perfect time.'

  'Do you?' Diana asked earnestly before seeing the teasing look on her friend's face. Immediately she tried to appear nonchalant. 'I haven't made up my mind yet.'

  'We're only going to be here for another day.' The dark head shook sadly. 'This isn't the time to play hard to get, Di.'

  'I just don't want it to look as if I'm chasing him,' she sighed.

  'He issued the invitation. It's up to you to accept. I just wish he had a friend for me!' A resigned smile played across Stella's face.

  'Oh, you're coming with me,' Diana said quickly.

  'I would make it a crowd. No, thanks.' Stella shook her head firmly. 'And if you're getting cold feet about accepting that date, then you're a fool.'

  Diana knew Stella was right. She knew also that she was going to accept the offer, but that didn't ease her tension. She hadn't even been this much on edge when she received her first kiss. Some inner voice told her that this was the most important evening in her life and she couldn't be as blasé about it as Stella was.

  Bull-riding was an event that Diana watched with fascinated horror. The cowboys who were able to stay on the vicious-looking bulls the required eight seconds still had to get off. In this event there were no pick-up men on horses in the arena. The only protection the rider had was the clowns in their baggy pants and painted faces. Diana's terror was so strong that she couldn't even join in with the rest of the audience as they gasped, then laughed at the daring antics of the brave clowns, who by one means or another diverted the bull's attention from the defenceless rider.

  It was worse when Lije was announced. The fear of watching the spectacle was not as great as the fear of not watching. He went the full eight seconds on the twisting, bucking, spinning, angry bull, a giant of a beast with a big hump on his neck and an evil face. As the buzzer sounded, Lije slipped from the bull's back. It spun around, hooking its huge horns to the left as Lije dodged out of danger to the right. Diana's heart didn't start beating again until he was safely astride the fence.

  There were only two riders left after him, and for Diana they were an anticlimax. The man she had only met that afternoon had made his ride safely. Although all the cowboys who participated were virtually strangers to her, he was the only one that mattered in a personal way to her.

  The rodeo was over and the grand exodus of the audience began. This was the moment Diana had been looking forward to and dreading. She smoothed the crease on her lavender slacks, straightened the matching box jacket, and touched the turtle neck of her white ribbed sweater. Moistening her lips with her tongue, she looked over at the girl standing beside her.

  'Do I look all right?' she asked anxiously.

  'With anyone else, I'd think you were angling for a compliment,' Stella laughed. 'That cowboy has really got you, hasn't he?' A spot of pink appeared on Diana's cheeks as she tried to ignore the teasing statement. 'You look fine,' Stella smiled. 'You'll knock him out and you know it. Now, run along. I'll see you later at the hotel and you can give me all the delicious details.'

  Diana reluctantly left her companion and walked in the opposite direction of the parking lot. The street lights did their best to illuminate much of the darkness, but even in their light it was difficult to distinguish the features of people who were more than a few feet away. Diana had only a general idea of where to look for Lije, and that was in the stable area. She was hesitant to ask the numerous other cowboys who were about where to find him lest they mistake the reason for her interest in them.

  For several minutes she walked around by the stables area hoping to get a glimpse of Lije Masters. But after ignoring another query as to what she was doing that night and wouldn't she like to join the asker, Diana realized that her silence was getting her nowhere. The only way she was going to find Lije was to ask for him.

  'Excuse me.' She chose an older-looking cowboy with bowlegs and a kind face. 'I was wondering if you could help me.'

  'Be glad to,' he smiled, stopping a few feet in front of her. He was lean and wizened, not much taller than Diana herself, who was five foot six.

  'I'm looking for Lije Masters. I was wondering if you could tell me where I might find him.'

  'Shore thing, ma'am. You go to the second row of stables and turn right. He'll be somewhere in the middle.'

  After thanking the cowboy for his help, Diana set off in the direction he gave. The unhappy thought kept running through her mind that Lije might have already left the rodeo grounds as so many of the cowboys were doing. When she rounded the corner of the second row of buildings, she experienced a mixture of relief and trepidation at the sight of several groups of cowboys standing near the stalls.

  As she walked by the clusters of three or more men, Diana heard their loud voices fall to whispers and finally silence when she went by. Her gaze furtively searched their midst for the tall, lean man she was looking for, but she made it a point not to meet the bold gazes. She kept a purposeful step to her walk as if she knew exactly where she was going. Her lack of any noticeable attention to the cowboys kept any passing comments between those in the group. The next group Diana wasn't able to sidestep as easily.

  'Hey, Blondie!' one of the men called to her as she approached. She tilted her head away from him after she had determined that it definitely wasn't Lije Masters, but the cowboy wasn't deterred that easily. 'You gotta be lookin' for me, baby, because I'm the only one around here that's got any day money in his pockets.' He planted himself cockily in her path and moved to block her when she would have gone around him. 'You are some sexy blonde,' he stated, surveying her from head to foot.

  'Excuse me, please,' she said with angry patience, but he still wouldn't let her by.

  'Say, I've seen you. You were one of those models that was strutting around here this afternoon. Listen, doll-face, why don't you and me go have a drink somewhere?'

  This time Diana met his stare with a cool and contemptuous one of her own. The cowboy was young and very obviously good-looking, too much so since it had given him a very swelled head.

  'I'm meeting someone. Would you please let me by?' she repeated.

  'Baby, there ain't no one around here that could possibly be better than me,' he assured her. A devilish twinkle was in his eyes as his friends behind him sniggered at that statement.

  'I choose my own escorts,' Diana retorted with deliberate, cutting coldness.

  'You've cornered yourself a fiery little filly, Jack,' one of the other men hooted.

  It was an unpleasant situation. Diana could see the brazen cowboy reassessing his chance of success. She had learned long ago that calm indifference combined with a few well-chosen words usually put off the most persistent wolves.

  'I might have known you would be the one to waylay my girl, Evans.'

  A third voice startled both Diana and the cowboy blocking her way. A sigh of relief sounded from Diana as she recognized Lije Maste
rs walking towards them. His arrival brought a swift end to the cowboy's desire to prolong the conversation. There was a hint of a smile about his mouth as Lije met the grateful look she gave him. The cowboy named Evans was already moving to the side.

  'The lady never said she was meeting you, Masters.' The wind was out of the cowboy's sails and Diana was glad.

  Her heart was still singing with the words, 'my girl', although she realized they were said for someone else's benefit.

  'I was wondering what kept you, Diana.' Lije Masters smiled and the smile removed all the hard remote lines in his face. Diana felt bathed in a golden glow of warmth that increased as his hand took her elbow and guided her away from the group of silent cowboys. When they were out of earshot, he looked down at her, his grey eyes twinkling with amusement. 'It is Diana, isn't it?'

  'Yes, Diana Mills.' Breathless embarrassment crept into her throat, making speaking difficult. She felt so strangely submissive when she was with him. 'I have to thank you again for rescuing me.'

  'It was my pleasure again.' The smile was no longer on his lips but had retreated to his eyes. And Diana regretted the loss. 'I was settling my horses for the night. It'll take a few more minutes. Do you mind?'

  'Not at all' Diana replied, trying hard not to feel she was superfluous.

  The buckskin and the bay were in adjoining stalls not too far from where Lije had found her. The stalls were large and roomy, but Diana stayed by the door. She had never been very comfortable around horses, mostly because she hadn't had too much to do with them. She was content to watch Lije as he picked up a curry comb and began brushing the broad back of the dappled buckskin.

  'What are the names of your horses?' Diana asked, noting the ease with which he moved around the horse.

  'This fellow,' slapping the buckskin on the side to get him to move over, 'is just plain Buck. Red, my other horse, is registered with the American Quarter Horse Association as Firebrand.'

  Diana watched while Lije picked up the horse's hoof and began cleaning it. It made her wonder if she could ever behave that naturally with a horse. That thought made her laugh silently, because where would she ever have the chance to find out?

  'Why do you have two horses?'

  The grey eyes smiled at her question, as Lije lifted the last hoof and cradled it on his knee.

  'Buck is the best all-around horse a man could have. He ropes calves, does a good job of hazing, serves as a pick-up horse if he's needed, can cut and rein as well as any, and in a pinch, you can bulldog off him. For steer wrestling, nothing can touch Red.' He set the hoof back on the floor. 'There, all done.'

  Brushing the straw from his tan dress jeans, Lije walked to the stable door where Diana was standing. His shadow loomed over her momentarily before he stepped into the outside light.

  'There's not really a lot I can show you this late.' It wasn't an apology, but the statement of a fact that they were both aware of. 'There's a little café down the street. Would you like some coffee?'

  Diana agreed. But later when they walked into the brightly lit restaurant, she wished he had chosen somewhere a little less public. Looking across the table at him, it was hard for her to believe that she had ever been crushed against that broad chest. It was hard to believe any of this was happening to her. She couldn't think of anything to say and she never remembered being this tongue-tied on any date. She felt embarrassed telling the waitress that she wanted her coffee black.

  'Are you from San Antonio?' Lije was leaning back in his chair, his long legs stretching beneath the table. If Diana seemed uneasy, Lije appeared totally relaxed and in command—which he was.

  'No, I'm from Dallas. I grew up there and except for a few weekend excursions I really haven't been anywhere. That probably sounds very dull to someone like you who travels all over the country.' Diana nervously clasped her hands around the heavy mug of coffee.

  'Not quite what you would expect from a model,' he agreed dryly.

  'Modelling is just like any other job or profession. It may sound glamorous, but it's really a lot of hard work and self-discipline.'

  'Don't you enjoy it?' An eyebrow raised briefly over a grey eye.

  'I … I like it well enough.'

  'What made you decide to become a model?'

  'It seemed the only logical choice at the time,' Diana sighed, taking a sip of the hot liquid. 'I didn't seem suited for anything else. Education costs money.'

  'What about your parents? Couldn't they help?'

  'I have no parents.' Camouflaged defiance made her look at him boldly. 'I'm your typical baby on the doorstep.'

  His gaze made a slow study of her face. There was authority in his expression, but Diana couldn't detect any patronizing air of superiority.

  'You were never adopted?'

  'I was very sickly as a baby and a child,' Diana replied. 'My earliest memories are of hospitals and doctors and nurses. By the time I got over all the illnesses, I was too old. People only want to adopt babies or children under five. So I had a succession of foster parents, which was nice, because I always had a room of my own.'

  'I imagine if you were as beautiful then as you are now, it must have been difficult for you.'

  Diana glanced at him in surprise. 'How did you know? Most people think it made it easier.'

  'Generally children are placed in homes where there are other children almost the same age. It would be logical for the natural children of your foster-parents to be envious and even jealous of you,' Lije reasoned.

  'Yes. It really complicated things. The parents tried to be objective, but it was hard for them, too. I mean, every parent likes to believe that their child is the prettiest or the most intelligent.' All the little long-ago hurts brought a haunting quality to her expression. 'The last family I stayed with had a daughter just a few months younger than myself. When I first came there she had a steady boyfriend, but, just by my being there, they broke up. I never did anything to make him think I was interested in him. It was really awful. He kept calling me on the phone. She was really a nice girl, and I would have liked to have had her as a friend.'

  'What made you decide to take up modelling?'

  'It seemed obvious. After all, how many bosses' wives would want someone like me as their husband's secretary?' Diana smiled. 'As I said, I didn't have the money to go on to college even if I could have got a partial scholarship. I went to work in a department store in Dallas. Within a month I was modelling some of their clothes, which was when Connie Deveronne saw me. She's my employer now.'

  'What would you have done if you were able to choose?'

  'I think I would have liked to be a teacher in the primary grades or pre-school.' She stared wistfully at her coffee.

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  Chapter Three

  'WELL,' Diana breathed in deeply, "I've managed to give you my life history. Now tell me about yourself. I know you're a rodeo rider and come from New Mexico.'

  She liked the amused glint that came into his eye. Did he guess that she had changed the subject so she wouldn't reveal how really empty and lonely her life had been?

  'That about sums it up,' Lije stated with infuriating calm.

  'Are you married? Single? What about your parents? How long have you been riding in rodeos?' Diana lightly rattled off a list of questions, hoping she didn't betray her intense interest in his answers.

  The corners of his mouth lifted in a faraway, indulging smile. 'I'm thirty-one years old and unmarried, which is the only way a man should follow the rodeo circuit with any success. My mother died when I was seven and my father a few years ago. I started out competing in high school rodeos, but I've been competing in RCA-sanctioned rodeos off and on for the last twelve years.'

  'What does RCA stand for?'

  'Rodeo Cowboys Association. Do you want any more coffee?' At his adept change of subject, Diana realized that Lije was as reticent to discuss his past as she had always been.

  She declined the coffee and rose when he di
d to leave. They strolled leisurely back to the stable area, ignoring the cold bite of the night breeze as Lije shortened his long stride to match hers.

  'Why do you ride in rodeos?" Diana glanced up at him curiously.

  'It's probably the cleanest sport there is. Although the spectator thinks of it as man competing against man, it really is a battle between man and animal. Not a life-and-death struggle like bullfighting, but a pitting of skills against a clock.'

  'Isn't it cruel, though, to the animals?'

  'Hardly,' Lije answered, chuckling softly. "In the first place, I don't recall ever seeing a horse treated for anything more severe than a strained muscle unless he accidentally got tangled in the chutes, but I wouldn't even want to attempt to count the number of riders who'd suffered broken bones or internal injuries. The odds are with the animals basically. I don't think there's a town where a rodeo plays that there aren't half a dozen or more representatives from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals haunting the grounds. There are horses that are born to buck, just like some are born to run.'

  'Tonight I heard one of the cowboys tell you something about the bull you were to ride.'

  'Riders always pass along information to one another concerning the characteristics of an animal. You'll always see some cowboy helping another in the chutes or acting as a hazer in the steer wrestling or calf roping. As I said, you compete with the animal and the clock, not each other.'

  'Why do you ride?' Diana asked, aware that he had dodged any specific answer before.

  'Why do you model?' he returned.

  'For money.'

  'That's why I'm here in San Antonio.'

  'Don't you ever want to settle down? I mean, you can't rodeo forever.' She tried hard to see his expression in the dim light.

  They took several steps before he answered her. When he did Diana had the thought that he had weighed each word carefully before answering.

  'Another two years on the circuit and I'll be able to quit—as long as nothing changes,' Lije said firmly, too firmly for it to have been for her benefit.