Always a Lady by Sharon Sala Page A

the new livestock, and cursing the relentless sun and dust with every other breath. For spring, it was exceedingly hot.
    Lily cooked, washed, cleaned, shopped and slept. Repeatedly. Her heart ached through the routine. Case hadn't done more than plaster her guilty conscience with several mind-boggling looks. They did nothing but remind her of how wonderful it had felt to be held in his arms. Then he would stomp outside with the rest of the men, keeping their contact to a minimum.
    Nearly two hours had passed since supper was over and the last dish had been cleaned and put away. Lily was wandering through the house, searching for something to do. She didn't want to watch another television show. They were all reruns. She'd run out of anything new to read. And it was too early to go to bed. Besides, when she closed her eyes, all she could see was the look of pain on Case's face as he'd turned her loose and walked away. She couldn't let herself believe that she was anything more than a passing fancy . . . the only woman on the place syndrome. She'd convinced herself that no man would love her the way she was.
    An owl hooted from a nearby tree, breaking the silence of oncoming nightfall, and Lily turned instinctively toward the door and the welcoming shadows of darkness. Night was comfortable to her. It was then that she looked the same as everyone else.
    The air was a welcome twenty degrees cooler than it had been during the day. The nights were still quite cool and brisk, and a dew was falling. Lily could feel the air's dampness on her skin as she walked out onto the back porch and sat down in the porch swing.
    It creaked, a gentle squeak every other push that reminded Lily she wasn't alone.
    Case leaned against the fence outside the yard, secure that he was hidden in the darkness, and watched her swinging, leaning her head back and inhaling the scents and sounds of nightfall as readily as a woman born to the country.
    She was a surprise, his L.A. woman. When she'd first arrived, he wouldn't have given a plug nickel for the bet that she'd last a week. But she'd fooled him. Hell, she'd fooled them all. Not only was she pretty, she was as capable as any hand Case had ever hired. And his arms ached to hold her as his body hardened with the need to make love to Lily all through the night.
    Case swallowed a groan, pushed himself away from the fence and strode toward the porch, announcing his presence with firm steps.
    Lily straightened immediately as she sensed someone coming up the path. She peered into the darkness and knew that the light from the kitchen behind her silhouetted her for anyone to see. A tiny sigh of relief escaped as she recognized the familiar shape of broad shoulders and long legs and that ever-present black Stetson crowning his head.
"Lily," he greeted, as he neared the porch.
"Case." She held her breath and waited.
    He leaned on the porch rail and shoved his hat to the back of his head, waiting . . . hoping she'd say something more. She did not.
    "I just thought you should know that I've decided to give the men a day off tomorrow."
    "Why? Is something wrong? Are you already through with roundup?"
    The panic in Lily's voice was evident, and it gave Case just the least bit of encouragement. She couldn't hate him all that much if she didn't want her job to come to an early end.
    "No, honey," he said softly, ignoring her indrawn breath at the term of endearment. He didn't care. He was tired of letting her call all the shots. "One of the men got his foot stomped pretty good today. He'll be out for a bit, and several of the men are coming down with some kind of flu bug. I thought it'd be best if they all took a day's rest and let everything kind of get back to normal before we continued."
"Oh!" The relief in her voice spoke volumes.
    "You can do whatever you want tomorrow. Sleep late, take one of the ranch vehicles and go to town and shop, whatever . . . I don't care. I only ask one thing of you. If you leave the