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CHAPTER
FOUR
After leaving Benedict and her uncle on the galleria, Isabella went first to the kitchen and conferred with Magdalena to prepare a feast of traditional Aguascalientes dishes. “I’ll be back in plenty of time to help you,” she promised their cook.
Magdalena waved her hand as she polished the silver flatware. “I always appreciate your help, but you have a guest to tend to.”
She kissed the older, rotund woman on the cheek, not commenting on how much she’d love to tend to the Texas cowboy. “I enjoy cooking. One day I’ll have a family of my own.”
“You’re not getting rid of me that easily, Carmen Isabella. Surely, your husband will live here at Terra Dura.”
Magdalena’s proclamation caused Isabella to freeze in her tracks. Would a man such as Benedict give up his home to step into her world? She didn’t know. “I don’t know what the future holds, but wherever I go, you will have a place with me.”
Upstairs, she freshened up and slipped on a long cotton dress over her favorite bikini before sneaking out the back entrance.
“Senorita Cortez?” Juan met her as she strolled down the path that connected the five-car garage to the stables. “Shall I saddle up Bonita for you? I am preparing a mount for the guest.”
“No, I’m not riding today. However, I would like to see her, Juan.” Isabella headed down between the stalls. She stopped in front of her beloved Bonita and patted her on the nose. “Hello, my sweetheart.” The mare nickered a greeting. “He’s here,” she whispered to the horse so the vaquero couldn’t hear. Isabella told Bonita and Lola everything. “The man I told you about, he’s here.” She pressed her forehead to the mare’s face. “I’m not upset that he didn’t recognize me, I guess. I am disturbed that he seems to not like me. I need to make him see me, Bonita, the real me. Wish me luck.” Isabella gave her beloved companion a kiss before saying goodbye. “Is the four wheeler out back, Juan?”
“Yes, it is senorita. I am sorry to tell you that Raul took it out yesterday and flipped it.”
“Oh, no. Is he okay?”
“Si, he’s fine. He fared much better than the four wheeler. The front bumper is bent and he tore the right fairing off.”
“Does it still work?” She wanted to be at the springs before Benedict arrived.
Juan nodded. “Si, I repaired it myself. I’ve already ordered the replacement fairing, but the machine is safe to drive.”
Their foreman had been brought to Terra Dura by her father. He’d been living on the streets as a young man. When he was hired, Juan was barely literate and Isabella knew he was loyal to her. He was a man she could trust. “If you say it is fixed, Juan, it is fixed. I have faith in you. When our guest, Mr. Redford arrives to collect his mount, if he asks for directions to the springs, point him toward Paradiso.” She named the most beautiful hot spring and one that truly suited her purpose.
Juan agreed. “Si, this I will do.”
Isabella took her leave out the back door of the barn. The dark blue four wheeler was parked beside a stack of shovels and racks. Just as their foreman reported, Raul had done a number on it. Juan might have had time to fix the machine, but it appeared he hadn’t taken time to wash it. “Aye, yi, yi,” Isabella muttered, slinging her tote over her shoulder. She didn’t worry about getting her dress dirty, she wouldn’t be wearing it long anyway.
…Bull meandered down the hill from the hacienda. Shaking his head, he rubbed his eyes. The last Paloma he’d drank had left him slightly tipsy. The sound of an off-road vehicle echoed in the distance, but he didn’t pay it much mind.
“Mr. Redford, I have a mount waiting for you.”
“Great, thank you.”
“My name is Juan, I will be glad to help you in any way I can while you are here.” He placed the reins of a gorgeous chocolate brown Azteca stallion in his hands.
“Gracias,” Bull admired the graceful lines of the horse. “I appreciate that, I know how valuable good help can be. How long have you worked for the Cortez family, Juan?”
“I have been at Terra Dura for twenty-seven years, senor. Patron Cortez gave me my job and I’ll always be eternally grateful.”
“Don Luis seems like a good man.”
Juan’s expression didn’t change. “Not Don Luis. His brother, Romero Miguel Cortez. He was a great man.”
“I’m sure he was.” Bull didn’t miss the man’s emphasis on the word he. He wondered if Romero Miguel was Isabella’s father. “I’m about to take a ride on the property. Anything I should see?”
Remembering Senorita Cortez’s request, he mentioned the springs. “Paradiso is a beautiful hot spring about two miles south.” He pointed in the right direction. “And keep a careful eye out for Toro Roca, he is a mean one.”
Bull recognized Toro but he didn’t know the other word. Apparently, there was a mean bull in the pasture. Well…now, there was two. Apparently, Juan didn’t know his reputation with the animals. When he was growing up, his dad had kept an oversize Black Angus as a stud bull. The old animal had been harmless, but his father loved to send unsuspecting guests to where they’d cross paths with the behemoth. That thought brought Carmen to mind and the danger she willingly placed herself in – he didn’t like it, he didn’t like it at all. How was he supposed to go back to Texas and leave her to an unknown fate?
For the next hour, Bull admired one of the grandest ranches he’d ever seen – and he’d seen a lot. Naively, he’d never imagined Mexico to look this way. With wonder, he surveyed the magnificent land before him. Bull was used to seeing flat grasslands flow into gentle foothills, but here the scenery was more dramatic, more colorful. On every side, he could see herds of cattle and horses grazing in lush green pastures. Since he didn’t know where the stock Don Luis intended for him to see could be, he didn’t venture off the path Juan had set him on.
