by Debra Holt
“Don’t you love how you can see so many bright stars above your head in a Texas night sky? There’s really nothing like it.”
They appeared huge with so little ground light to interfere with their brilliance. The lights of Abilene had receded in the distance some time ago, and darkness spread outside the car as they headed back to Braxton and the Monroe ranch.
“I prefer the bright lights of the Strip in Vegas. They’re so bright, you can’t see any stars in the sky. But you’re not there for stargazing, unless you’re catching one of the shows. That’s my idea of bright lights.”
Josie couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for Dev. He seemed to be living in such a fast-paced world that he had no idea what he might be missing around him. But she shook it away. The evening had been nice. In fact, this would be a night to remember. She finally had an actual date with Dev. If she still recorded her thoughts into the diary she kept during her teen years, it would be a red-letter entry. Except it wasn’t a date. She was simply having dinner with an old family friend…more than that…the brother of her fiancé. Many things had changed in a very short time.
She couldn’t have asked for a more attentive, handsome, charming dinner companion. They had walked into the country club with its linen covered tables and candlelight, and Josie’s feet felt as if they barely touched the floor as Dev escorted her across the room. She knew the eyes of several female diners swiveled their direction more than a few times. So that was how it felt…to be the one on his arm? To receive all his attention and smiles? Her imagination was pretty close to the mark of reality. Dev was all polish and knew exactly how to wine and dine a dinner companion.
They talked of many things…or rather he talked about his adventures, and she listened, making a comment now and then. Unfortunately, there were some less than pleasant moments. There were too many times during the evening when unbidden comparisons between the two brothers and the two evenings she had spent with each of them crossed her mind.
Chance may not have come with them, but he was there…especially when the light kept catching the brilliance of the stone in the ring on her left hand. It was a constant reminder…a chaperone in its own right. There was something else that had also popped into her mind as they sat at the dining table, being hovered over as if they were special guests. Dev had chosen the classiest place in the city for their dinner out. In his silk suit and Italian shoes, he looked the part of a well-heeled member of the big city gentry.
Her dinner with Chance had been different. Chance gave her the choice of the club or her favorite restaurant. He had made it extra special with the rose and the champagne toast…when he certainly had not needed to do so. The contrasts in the two brothers had become more marked. The rest of the evening went as one would have expected. To her surprise, Josie wasn’t that disappointed when the time came to head back to the ranch. And that realization did keep her more thoughtful on the ride homeward. Thankfully, there was little need of conversation on the drive. Each of them seemed content with their own thoughts. When the silence was broken, often by Dev, it was to make some remark about one of the fantastic places he had seen and how she needed to see more of the real world.
The car purred to a standstill in front of the house. She waited as Dev came around, opened her door, and then walked her to the front porch. Josie hadn’t thought this far into their evening. That sudden realization surprised her. In her young girl dreams, the moment at the front door was the ultimate high point of the evening. That’s when the kiss would come. What a different comparison came to mind. Back in those younger days, she would have been so giddy over the prospect of a goodnight kiss from Dev. But reality was different. In fact, it wasn’t anticipation she felt. It was uneasiness about the whole situation. She was just being ridiculous, she told herself. It was just a dinner between two longtime friends. Not a date. There could be no date, especially when one was engaged, and one was about to be…or not…married as in Dev’s case. Talk about tangled webs.
“I enjoyed this evening, Josie. You have a way of making a person feel relaxed and at ease around you. It’s nice to be able to take a breath of fresh air.” His tone sounded sincere. The look in those Braxton baby blue eyes definitely was focused only on her.
“I can either see that as a nice way of saying I’m a really dull dinner companion compared to those you’re used to, or I can take it as a compliment. I’ll choose the latter.” She smiled up at him, the semi-circle of light from the single bulb left the rest of the long porch in darkness.
“You should, because it is a compliment. Maybe I should have come back to Braxton a lot sooner. Maybe I should think about staying a while longer now that the blinders are off.”
“Blinders?” She made the one-word reply, while the look he was giving her definitely played havoc on her ability to concentrate on the moment. What was going on?
Two hands reached out, cupped her upper shoulders, and drew her into him. His head lowered towards hers. “I should have seen you coming sooner. Little Josie grew up into quite a desirable woman.”
Her eyes closed just as his lips touched hers. Dev Braxton is kissing me. Those four words echoed around and around in her brain. The moment had arrived. What was she doing? He wasn’t Chance. Her eyes flashed open, and she pushed against his chest, shoving him hard to put distance between them. At the same time, a voice broke into the scene.
“Hate to break up this touching scene, but your girlfriend called…twice. You might want to call her.” The words were a dash of ice-cold water upon her and the moment. Josie sprang back, her eyes moving in the direction of the speaker.
Chance sat in the corner of the porch, on the railing, arms folded. He wasn’t smiling. That was an understatement. His words had dropped like lead weights in the darkness. Slowly, he stood and moved to stand with one shoulder propped against the post at the top of the steps, hands slid into jean pockets. Dark eyes flashed blue sparks from beneath the brim of the hat pulled low over his forehead. He didn’t speak, as those eyes slid slowly over Josie’s face, pausing on her freshly kissed mouth, before returning to meet her gaze.
“A voice message on my phone would have sufficed. And she is my ex-girlfriend…people seem to have a problem remembering that. You didn’t need to make a trip over here to tell me that,” Dev responded in a controlled voice.
“I didn’t make a special trip. I live here, remember?” Chance’s remarks were for his brother, but his gaze remained full bore on Josie. “Had to make sure my fiancée got home okay, too. I remember agreeing to the dinner for you two to reminisce but don’t recall the part about a goodnight kiss. Or was that a hello kiss?”
In spite of the chill of the evening, Josie felt warmth flood over her cheeks and the fire of indignation surged upward, as well. Was Chance trying to make her feel she had done something wrong? She hadn’t asked for the kiss. It upset her that it had happened. It only brought more confusing feelings swirling inside her. Why couldn’t he trust her?
“You’re seriously staying here with Josie?” Dev’s frown mirrored his question. He swung his gaze from his brother to her. “Is he really staying here?”
“Yes,” Josie replied, sending a less than warm look across to the tall figure still watching them. “In the foreman’s old apartment in the barn.” She hastened to make that point clear. That finally brought a change to Chance’s face…a sarcastic upturn of a corner of his mouth.
“For now. That’s subject to change very soon.” His eyes sent their own message.
Josie tried to ignore the sudden rolling in the pit of her stomach as his words and their real message registered.
“It’s cold out here and you have an early morning. I’ll see my brother on his way.” Chance moved away from the post and gave a direct look at his brother. Josie felt Dev hesitate for a moment. However, he soon thought better of pushing his luck. He flashed a smile at her.
“Chance is right, sweetheart. You get inside and get warm. I’ll see you soon. After all…we
’re going to be family, right?” He was cheeky enough to send a wink at his brother before he added a slow smile for her.
Dev swung his hand out in a gesture that meant for Chance to take the lead, but Chance made it clear that Dev was going first. Chance hesitated for a moment, his brother getting out of earshot. He turned back to Josie.
“Was it everything you imagined all these years?”
Josie looked up at the man watching her with that aggravating way he had of seeing things she didn’t need him to see. It confirmed her thoughts.
“You did this on purpose tonight…the dinner…sending us on our own. Was it a test of some sort? So much for the trust that you talk so much about between us.”
“I do trust you,” he replied evenly. “It’s my brother I won’t turn my back on. I figured this evening might help you lay some ghosts to rest. You always imagined how a date with him would be…and you even got a goodnight kiss thrown in. You should have a lot to dream about tonight.”
Chance didn’t wait for a reply. He turned and soon joined his brother at his car. A few brief words were exchanged, and Dev headed out, followed by Chance in his truck. Stepping inside the house, she closed the door and slid the deadbolt. She wasn’t quite certain what, or who, it was she thought she was locking out.
*
“If you’re going to lock the front door, you also need to make sure the back door is locked. Otherwise, it doesn’t do much good if you’re bent on keeping someone out.” The words were spoken without much inflection, as she poured herself a cup of coffee the next morning. They came from the man already seated at the kitchen table, in his usual spot, reading the newspaper spread before him. She hadn’t spared him a glance since entering the kitchen.
“I’ll remember that next time.” She picked up her gloves from the counter and headed toward the back door.
“You know better than to skip breakfast, especially on a day like today. The temperature is supposed to drop another twenty degrees by noon.” He still had not looked in her direction.
Her hand paused on the doorknob. “Thanks for the weather report.” She tossed the words over her shoulder as she stepped outside onto the porch, pulling the door shut none too gently after her. Stomping across the cold ground toward the stables, she fought off the cold from her feet, but that wasn’t the real reason. It was to relieve some of the anger that still simmered seeing Chance sitting so calmly at her table when she came downstairs…after she had spent a night of tossing and turning and bad dreams, in all of which Chance, not his brother, had the starring role.
The overhead heaters were working well inside the large barn; however, if the wind decided to gain force, Josie knew they would not chase the entire chill away. She pulled a horse blanket from the side bin and moved into Cookie’s stall. Rubbing her hand along the animal’s neck and back, she found a smile returning to her face. The horse was her baby and constant companion for the last ten years. They had traveled many a mile together. She felt calm returning. Josie opened the blanket and slid it over the animal’s back, buckling the straps that would hold it in place.
“You’ll stay warm now. I’ve got errands to run in town, so you get to have the day off, lucky guy. I’ll bring you back some of the apples you like.” A soft neigh responded to her words, along with a gentle toss of the animal’s head.
“You’ve spoiled that horse rotten.”
Josie realized, much to her regret, that Chance had entered the stable. She kept her eyes on the horse.
“It’s bad manners to sneak up on a person without warning.”
“I wasn’t aware I was sneaking. Maybe if you had eaten something this morning, you wouldn’t be in such a bad mood.”
She rounded on him at that point. He stood in the opening of the stall, a coil of rope in one hand, and something wrapped in a paper towel in the other. He held that hand out to her.
“You forgot this.”
She automatically reached for it. Only then did she notice the paper towel was wrapped around a couple of slices of cinnamon toast…her favorite.
“I didn’t ask you…”
“Before you say something that you’ll regret later, just say ‘thanks’ and eat it. There’s a thin line between being stubborn and being just plain foolish.” He turned away at that point and walked toward the feed bins along the far wall.
Josie started to speak. She opened her mouth. Then she closed it. She hated the way he could be right so much of the time. What she hated even more was the way he had become so good at irritating her almost constantly. Surely, he knew they couldn’t go on like they were?
She took a couple of bites of the toast, her mind trying to work out so many things. Why couldn’t they find a middle ground? She ventured to find one.
“Are you glad that your brother’s home?”
“Probably not as glad as you are.”
There he went again. Did he do it on purpose? She left the stall and advanced to where he was reading over the latest feed bills in his hands.
“Do you try to make me angry? Why do you have to be so mean? I was trying to make civil conversation with you.” Her eyes shot sparks in his direction.
His head came up, and his steady gaze focused on her. “I was simply making an observation. After all the years you pined over Dev, you have to be overjoyed he has returned, minus a wife, and obviously ready to succumb to your charms. After seeing that kiss last night, I’d say you’ve got him right where you always wanted him. Congratulations.” He moved away from her, turning to rub the large brown and white nose of his own horse that appeared over the neighboring stall door.
“Congratulations? You make it sound like I planned it all, like I set some sort of a trap for him.” Tossing the last slice of toast into the nearby trash bin, her hands went to her hips as she planted her feet firmly.
Chance gave her a half smile over his shoulder. “Maybe not consciously. After all, you are still a fairly inexperienced female in comparison to Dev’s usual choices. Nevertheless, the combination of those witch eyes and that sexy blue dress you had on last night, were all meant to get him to kiss you. I ask again…was it everything you expected it to be?”
Josie was taken aback by his words, and especially the question. Of course, the way his voice lowered and his eyes grew darker as they zoned in on hers, made strange things happen with her ability to concentrate and maintain a normal rate of breathing.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“You dreamed of him kissing you for years. I know, because I heard enough about it. Did your pulse speed up? Have trouble breathing? Feel that hot sensation deep down in the…”
“That’s none of your business, Chance Braxton.” She cut him off. How dare he speak to her like that. How dare he know how she felt when she kissed him! Dev, she meant…not him, not Chance. Oh, geez.
“Want to know what I think? I think you didn’t feel any of those things, Josephine Monroe. Only you’re just stubborn enough to try and make yourself believe something that wasn’t there…was never there in fact. If, for no other reason, than to keep from accepting the fact that you felt those things when you and I kissed. Maybe, after all these years, your fairytale world finally just got turned right side up and those rose-colored glasses you hid behind are indeed a thing of yesteryear.”
“You’re partially right about one thing, Chance Braxton. You have turned my world upside down,” she conceded. “I never had rose-colored glasses…at least where you were concerned.”
That got his attention.
“Plus, I never was the center of the town’s gossip mill before you came barging into my life. Thanks a lot for that experience,” she finished in a tone dry with sarcasm.
Chance’s expression changed. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about being informed by Mrs. Ross that my parents would certainly have never approved of you just moving in with me. That I should know better. Seems I am living ‘in sin’ in the eyes of some of the good townspeo
ple.”
Sudden fury lit the blue eyes. “Are you serious, Josie? When did this happen? Who else said such a thing to you?”
“The morning Dev returned. I was picking up some supplies for Tom, and she handed me that bit of news along with them.”
“Dammit, Josie! Why didn’t you say something sooner? I won’t have this happen, and it certainly won’t go any further. And what did she think your engagement ring was all about?”
Josie’s eyes shot to his. “What do you mean by that? And I didn’t have my ring on…I told you before that I keep it in its box when I’m working with stock or whatever.”
“I mean that I shouldn’t have allowed three weeks to go by without putting a wedding ring on your hand…for more reasons than one. Against my better judgment, I agreed to delaying the wedding until Reverend Morrison’s return. I have a mind to just put you in the truck and drive over to the justice of peace today.”
“Not so fast, mister,” she spoke up, finding her own ire building at his high-handedness. “I have a say in this, and I don’t believe I’ll let you tell me what I will or won’t do or have you putting me anyplace.”
“Josie, I’ll wager, from the moment you were born, you’ve been stubborn. However, we have an agreement. You have my ring on your hand. You love this ranch, and I want you to keep it. What I will not put up with is anyone in this town daring to smear your family name or your reputation. Eight days Josie…and not one day more. You’ll have your wedding with Reverend Morrison like we decided, but I won’t be swayed against my better judgment again. The next time you see Mrs. Ross, you’ll have a wedding ring on your finger. And it will be a plain one, so you can keep it on your hand at all times.”
It was difficult to reply to his last remark, as his long strides took him out of the barn in nothing flat, leaving her staring after him. What was she to do? The bottom line could not be ignored. There was an agreement…a mutually agreed-upon decision.
She had no way to pay back the defaulted loans. As much as she wanted to, and as hard as she could work, it still wouldn’t be enough without working capital to get them through the winter and into the spring. Chance’s offer was the one way to keep all she had worked so hard for most of her life.