by Tina Leonard
Cisco backed up. “I’m not bringing my brothers here, so if that’s what you’re both angling for, forget it.”
“Royalty’s royalty,” Donovan said, “even if they make special brownies and chocolates for a living.”
“What?” Phillipe said, and Cisco said, “Mind your own business, Donovan. Mind your own damn business.”
He went out, got in his truck. Headed to the hospital, proud of himself for not punching Donovan in the nose.
* * *
“I DON’T UNDERSTAND,” Suz said, staring at her husband. She was set to leave the hospital tomorrow, her babies were starting to really thrive and Christmas wasn’t that far off. It had seemed to her that her world was suddenly a very bright place. “What do you mean, Robert Donovan had you investigated?”
“He’s a sly dog, I’ll give him that. But the fact remains, I should have told you everything. And I hope that you will listen to me, let me tell you what I didn’t mention to you in the beginning.”
“I’m listening,” Suz said, her whole body turning cold.
“It’s complicated,” he said, “but my family owns a few things.”
Suz waited. “Is it an uncomfortable topic for you?”
“I just don’t go home all that often. Never, actually,” he said. “It’s been said I’ve got restless leg.”
“The medical syndrome?” Suz asked. “Something you should see a doctor for?”
“No, the kind of restless leg that causes me to see a travel agent for. Or the military, which I did. And then rodeo.” He nodded, pretty happy to have found a way to put that into words. “I’m the oldest child. I didn’t want to do the family thing. My brothers are much more like the old man than I’ll ever be.”
“A black sheep of sorts.”
“That’s what Robert called me.” He shrugged. “Mom’s family claims roots from some sort of French royalty. Hence the Olivier. Dad’s family claims some sort of Spanish royalty, or lineage of high something or other, hence the Francisco Rodriguez bit.” He pondered that for a moment. “Actually, they may have split the deck on Francisco. That one might go either way.”
“Royalty?” Suz looked puzzled.
“Well, not in the sense where one runs around wearing a crown and whatnot. And it’s all very distant. But they own a winery in France, and some stuff in Spain. Have a place in Virginia that’s pretty nice, but not for me. The brothers run all that stuff. There’s a lot to do, and I really should feel guilty about not helping with the family business, but I don’t.” He was ready to change the subject. “I guess I should mention that one of the brothers actually makes and sells artisan cheeses and chocolates, and I’m not so certain that he hasn’t branched into special brownies.”
“Special brownies?”
“Yeah. The kind that seems very popular with the peace-and-love crowd. But I can’t swear by that. It’s just something I heard whispered about once in the family. I think I was the black sheep until that business venture kicked off about ten years ago. Then I think Dad decided maybe he had bigger worries than the fact that I wanted to go into the navy.”
“Are you saying our girls are descended from some kind of royalty?” Suz asked, her adorable face looking quite worried. “I’m not exactly going to fit in with that kind of crowd.”
“You and me both.” He shook his head. “It’s okay. We only have to go home about once every ten years or so. Everybody’s happier that way.” He was just glad she was here with him. “I sent them a photo of you around the first time I ever met you. You were the most darling spitfire, and I knew the moment I met you that you were going to be someone special in my life.”
“You sent a photo of me when you first met me?”
“Around that time.”
“When I still had blue hair and piercings?”
He winked. “The family said you looked like a very intelligent sort. That’s high praise in my family. Anyway, I hope you didn’t change on my behalf. The Suz I met was the one who took my breath away.”
Suz stared at him. “You’re a navy SEAL. That’s the man I married. You’re a great swimmer, and not so good a bull rider. Where did the rest of this story come from? Is this because you didn’t marry Daisy?”
Cisco sat across from her, his eyes dark. He looked haunted. Suz tried desperately to understand why he’d be telling her this now. They’d never talked about his family before, not to any great extent—but she knew they were from Virginia. And that he’d had what he’d called restless leg—the type of condition that had made him go into the navy, and then follow the rodeo.
But that restless leg seemed to have gotten a lot less restless now that he was married and a father. Or at least Suz felt it had.
“Donovan also dug up the fact that Squint’s family isn’t royalty.” Cisco shook his head. “Donovan seems to think Daisy knew all this.”
“And she preferred you.”
He shrugged. Obviously Daisy would be after a royal title—no matter how minor. Suz had to admit her feelings felt a wee bit bruised that Cisco hadn’t told her. “I wish I’d known before Daisy and her father did.”
“Me, too.” He looked grim. “I wasn’t keeping anything from you, Suz. Honestly, I haven’t been home in nearly ten years. I am the black sheep, and I don’t care. Once our daughters were born, it popped into my mind one day that, eventually, they’d have to meet their grandparents. It isn’t a scenario that really makes me happy. So I ignored it. I’m just not close to my family, and I consider you and the girls my family. That’s it.”
Suz couldn’t imagine not being close to her family. Mackenzie had been her best friend and support for so many years—all her life. And they’d been very close to their parents, were still trying to keep their memory alive by running the Hanging H ranch and the Haunted H. “I guess Mr. Donovan is very happy he found all this out about you. Anything to cause a problem between us.”
“I hope it doesn’t.”
Suz didn’t want to admit that her feelings were hurt. Yet nothing Cisco had told her changed anything in their lives: they were still married, and he wasn’t close to his family.
It just didn’t matter.
“I’m glad I didn’t have to hear it from them.” Suz waved her husband to come sit by her on the bed, and when he did, she put her head against his shoulder. “I love you so much. Nothing is ever going to come between us.”
“They’ll try,” Cisco said, his voice a little defeated. It was the first time she’d ever heard him sound that way. “But hang with me, Suz. I swear you’ll never regret it.”
She closed her eyes.
The Donovans could have their regrets and their vendettas.
I’m going to keep my family together.
Chapter Thirteen
A thousand thoughts flew through Suz’s mind. She sat up straight suddenly, joggling her husband, who took that as an invitation to hold her in his big, strong arms.
Which felt wonderful—if she wasn’t so worried about the past coming between them. Her husband hadn’t shared all of the dark shadows in his life before her, and she’d married him without knowing that much about him. “If Daisy’s so bent on being married to a title, why has she gone after Branch?”
“Phillipe’s theory is that she thinks I may come after her.”
Suz hesitated. “Why?”
“Because she’s going to Branch, who is my friend.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Like a Prince Charming rescuer sort of situation?”
“I guess. Truthfully, I couldn’t fathom the way Donovan and his daughter think, even if I’d lived in BC for ten years.”
He tucked her closer to him, and Suz snuggled up tight. Inhaled him. Dreamed of the day they could make love again. “You’re going to have to go after her,” Suz said.
“No. Ab
solutely not.” Cisco leaned away so he could look down at her. “I’d gnaw off my own foot first. Both feet. Besides which, I’m sure Squint has it all under control.”
They were silent for a moment. “I don’t think you believe every word of that.”
“I know that I’m not leaving my wife and brand-new daughters to go chasing after a woman who has tried her best to destroy my marriage.”
“I don’t believe in my heart that’s what Daisy wants. I’ve been thinking about this. Now that I know that your attraction is a very minor title and not these big, strong muscles—” she teased.
“It might be the muscles,” Cisco said.
“But it’s likely more that she has visions of tiaras dancing in her head.”
“True. Knowing Daisy, it’s a fair possibility.”
“So take me and our daughters home to the Hanging H. Then you go after Daisy.”
“I suppose it goes without saying that I’m going to do whatever you want me to do, eventually,” he said, and she curled her fingers into his.
“I think you should go after them, and drag Squint away. Then Daisy will have to think twice about what she’s giving up.”
“Is that how the female mind works?”
“Maybe,” Suz admitted. “We can be a bit slow at times.”
“So can guys. That being said, I’m making a judgment call here. I’m not going.”
“If you don’t, Daisy’s going to get to Montana with Squint hot on her trail.”
“Which you think will make him less appealing.”
“Probably. Daisy doesn’t want what she can have. If you’d known her for as many years as I have—since she first came to BC as a little girl—you would know it’s just the way she is.”
“Probably most women,” he mused.
“I knew I wanted you from the first moment you said you wanted me,” Suz said. “In fact, I wanted your baby.”
He perked up visibly. “That was awesome. You scared me a little, but it was awesome.” He kissed her lips gently. “Thank you for understanding why I hadn’t gotten around to sharing about my family. It’s just something I try hard not to think about.”
“I should have told you I was pregnant,” Suz said softly. “Hearing it from Daisy wasn’t the way I wanted you to know. We’ve both kind of erred that way.”
They sat silently for a moment, then Cisco got up. “There’s got to be a way to get Donovan not to carve up Bridesmaids Creek.”
“The only thing I know of that changes a man’s heart is a woman,” Suz teased.
“We’re in short supply of women that will date him.” Cisco paced, turned to look at her. “Despite the abundance of ladies we have in BC, none of them will go out with him.”
“That’s a shame. I really feel like there’s a good man in there. Somewhere.”
“Even his wife wasn’t too keen on him, according to Ty Spurlock.”
Suz shook her head. “I’d like to think people can change.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”
“Tomorrow, when I go home, I’m going to get the tree put up. And start planning the happiest Christmas of our lives.” Suz smiled at her big, sexy husband. “I guess I don’t want to think about the Donovans anymore.”
“Yeah.” He nodded, his face finally relaxing into a bit of a smile. “Our last night to sleep in the hospital.”
“You didn’t have to stay with me. But it meant a lot that you did,” Suz said. “At least we can see our babies together.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” Cisco said. “Being a father and a husband is an even better ride than rodeo.”
Suz laughed. “As I recall, rodeo wasn’t your strong suit. You’re going to be a much better husband and dad than bull rider.”
“That’s the plan.”
Suz closed her eyes, letting contentment wash over her.
“Did I tell you that Sam’s hanging out with Daisy’s gang now?”
“Why?” She found that hard to believe. “Why would Sam want to do that?”
“I don’t know what he’s up to. Definitely something, I just don’t know what. But Sam’s always working an angle.” He sat back down next to her, and she made room for him in the narrow bed. “And even more disturbing, Phillipe has gone hipster.”
Suz giggled. “What does that mean?”
“Beads, vibes, yoga, the whole thing. And as weird as it sounds, it actually wasn’t that bad. I kind of liked it. His place is real small, though.”
Suz shook her head. “I believe in my heart that if we could get Cosette and Phillipe back together, everything that’s amiss in BC would fall into place.”
He sat up. “Had they ever talked about divorce before?”
“They always bickered. In a loving sort of way. But Robert putting the pressure on their business did them in. Financial hardship is difficult. Just like he’s been focused on getting the Hanging H. I had Mackenzie and Justin and you to help with those worries, so I feel like I didn’t have quite the burden they did.”
“Actually, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that.”
She looked up at him. “About what?”
“The money that’s owed to get your house and place safely paid off. How much is the note?”
“Four hundred thousand dollars.”
“So I’d like to pay that off.”
Suz’s heart dropped. She stared at her husband. “Pay it off?”
“To solve the financial aspect. Get us out from under Donovan.”
Suz swallowed hard. “Thank you, I really appreciate the offer. But I can’t accept that.” Vague discomfort rolled over her that she couldn’t place. “Navy SEALs don’t make that kind of money. You didn’t make any winnings that I know of at rodeo. As you’re my husband, I suppose I’m entitled to ask you where you’d get that kind of money.” She felt horrible about asking. Didn’t want to.
“I have income from the family businesses.”
She felt a little sick. “Can we talk about this later? Another time?”
“Sure.” He looked at her closely. “I didn’t mean to upset you, Suz. I was just thinking about getting Donovan off your back.”
“I know,” she said softly. “I know you mean well. But the Hanging H is Mackenzie’s and mine. It’s all we have left of our parents. I don’t even know how letting you pay off the note would affect Justin and Mackenzie and their daughters, because you’d own nearly a third of the property outright.”
“We’d own a third of the property outright, if that’s the actual value. But I don’t care about that, Suz.”
She shook her head. “I thought you were the black sheep, that you don’t get along with your family.”
“I’ve been a disappointment to them,” he said, his voice careful. “As the eldest son, they expected me to join the family business. When I went into the navy instead, my dad took it real hard. Our relationship was never the same after that. They feel I’m not willing to undertake the family duties. And of course, they’re right.”
“If that’s true, how is it that you have income from your family businesses?”
“They didn’t disinherit me. It’s not black-and-white like it is in BC. Here if somebody doesn’t get along with someone else, you kind of cut each other off.”
“That’s not entirely true,” Suz murmured, realizing for the first time that it really was pretty much that way.
“We’re just not close. My family hopes I’ll come to my senses at some point.” He shrugged. “Which reminds me, I need to call and let them know that our daughters—their granddaughters—have safely arrived in this world.”
Suz was really struggling to imagine how one just remembered, several days after their children had been born, to tell their parents. There was a whole family out t
here of which she’d been unaware who were related to her children—uncles, grandparents. “I don’t want their money.”
“It’s not their money,” Cisco said patiently. “It’s our money now.”
She blinked. “No. It’s not. I want the man I married, just the way I married him. No titles, no minor royalty, no family inheritance. Navy SEAL, courageous man, not-so-good rodeo rider. That’s the only man I want.”
“It doesn’t completely work that way. But if you’re worried about my family—”
“I’m not worried about your family. I’m worried about you. I need you to be the man I married, not the man I would not have married.”
He looked at her. “Suz—”
“Cisco, I’m a small-town girl. You knew what I was. I was happy in the Peace Corps. I would have stayed in, but Mackenzie’d had four babies and she needed me. Plus it was my turn to help run the Hanging H. It was time for me to take responsibility.” She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I know you’re trying to help, but I don’t need to be rescued. I’m not looking for a tiara. I’m not Daisy.”
“I know that!” He shook his head. “Suz, honey, I know you didn’t marry me for any of those things. You didn’t know about it.”
“I’d be happier if you’d called your family as soon as the babies were born,” she said, her heart truly broken. “Cisco, I can’t help but feel like you’re a little ashamed of us. Maybe not ashamed, but definitely not excited. These are your parents’ first grandchildren. Why would you wait days before you called to tell them? Did they even know we were expecting children?” A horrible thought came to her. “Do they know we’re married?”
He held up a hand. “Suz, I talk to them once a quarter, approximately. Business meetings, you might call them. That’s just the routine, the way it’s always been.”
“So, no. You didn’t break the established routine to tell them you’d gotten married.” A little fear crept into her voice. Suz tried to tamp it down. “Why did you marry me knowing I wouldn’t fit their standards? Were you just playing rescuer, then, too? SEAL to the rescue?”