by AC Arthur
Despite how he felt or how he’d left, Tyler was back at Westwind. And he wasn’t leaving until he found out who killed his parents.
* * *
“He’s an arrogant jerk,” Gabriella said into the phone as she plopped down on the bed.
Her suite at the Westwind Resort was lovely. From the gorgeous dark stained real hardwood floors to the heavy cherry oak furniture and the detailed stone fireplace, it was a vacationer’s dream. In fact, from her walk around the interior of the resort, Gabriella saw very little that needed staging, a fact that made her wonder what she was doing here.
“Well, unfortunately, we’ve met a few of them in our lifetime,” her sister, Adriana replied.
“And we’ll probably meet more,” Gabriella chimed in.
A king-size bed was way too big for her because it reminded her that she was in bed alone. A fact that used to be liberating. In the five months that had changed.
“At least you’re at a resort. You can work and play, right?” Adriana asked.
Rubbing a hand over her closed eyes Gabriella took a second to re-focus herself. She spent way too much time doing that, but feared it couldn’t be helped.
“There’s a great outside pool, but the gym is on the small side. There’s no spa. I think adding one would definitely increase the asking price. And there are horses.”
She opened her eyes and stared up to the beige painted ceiling with its thick wooden beams.
“I visited the stables today and the horses there are beautiful,” she told Adriana. “I can’t remember the last time I rode a horse.”
“Senior year of high school when you worked at the Lehigh Summer Camp,” Adriana said. “That’s the year Dad sold the two Thoroughbreds he’d let us ride occasionally. I believe they both went on to win races for several years after that.”
“I never cared about the racing. I just liked riding. There was something really invigorating about it.”
“And you were good at it. So why don’t you book a horse ride while you’re there?” Adriana asked. “I mean it, Gabs, you should take some time to relax.”
Gabriella chuckled. “For the last seven years everyone in the family has been asking, ‘When are you going to get a job?’, ‘What are your plans for the future?’ Now that I have a job that I really enjoy, you’re telling me to take some time off.”
“No, I’m telling you to enjoy your life,” Adriana said. “For the past five years I’ve watched nothing but turmoil erupt around the people I love most. It started with Roland Summerfield and his crazy daughter Larice nursing broken hearts and harboring grudges bringing all kinds of stalking and shoot-out drama to our family. Then Parker’s family deals with their own secret son drama complete with more shoot-outs and murders. And, as if we’re keeping some type of tit-for-tat going on, Rico and Eva were just re-visited by very emotional media coverage about the two-year anniversary of her brother being killed by that cop.”
Gabriella recalled each situation and all the different reactions each incident had stirred between members of her family and by extension, the Donovan, Lakefield and Desdune families. It had been a rough patch of years for all of them, she readily admitted that. Just as she reminded herself that keeping her own little drama a few months ago to herself was still for the best.
“I understand,” she told Adriana. “I haven’t taken a trip since your wedding last year. And I definitely have a nice vacation on the radar. But not until I finish this job. If all goes well I could land an exclusive design deal with The Proctor Group.”
“They’re a trading group, right? Explain to me again, how this works out for you and your interior design career?”
Sitting up now, Gabriella kicked off her sandals and tucked her feet beneath her. She loved talking about her work, especially to her family since it had taken them all so long to see how serious she was about her career choice. Gabriella had known immediately that she didn’t want to work for Bennett Industries, a global communications company, alongside her father, Marvin, and brothers Alex and Rico. Her other brother Renny was a sculptor and her only sister, Adriana, had first gone into modeling, but was now starring in a popular television drama and two new movies next year. Waiting until she was twenty-seven years old to finally decide where she would work had been an ongoing source of frustration for her parents and siblings. But Gabriella knew that she needed to take her time figuring out what career would be best for her. Now, she knew she was doing what she was always meant to do.
“My degree in Design Strategy & Innovation allows me to be flexible in what jobs I take. The Proctor Group specializes in the sale of home/businesses, such as farms, wineries and ranches. My job is to meet with the client to ensure that their ultimate goal is to sell. In that case, I work primarily as a stager, getting the properties ready to secure optimum value for the client. On the off chance that there’s a change of mind and the client decides to stay in their property, I’m still available with an assessment regarding interior design. It’s a win/win situation.”
“Okay, if you say so,” Adriana said with a chuckle. “I’m just glad to hear you sound excited about something.”
“I am excited.” Gabriella admitted. “Even if the client was a rude brute earlier. I plan to wow him with my winning smile and charm tomorrow evening at dinner.”
“You’re having dinner with your client?”
“A dinner meeting, I suppose. He suggested it so I’m just going to show up and play things by ear. Which reminds me, I have to go. I want to do some more research and beef up my preliminary report on the resort.”
“Okay, I’ll let you go. But I want to tell you something first.”
Gabriella stood from the bed and headed to the desk near the window where her laptop was already set up. “Sure. What’s up?”
There was a pause and for a moment Gabriella became nervous. Was something else going on with Adriana and her new family? The Donovans had been through a lot in these last three years and because she was married to Parker, that meant Adriana had been in the thick of things. With the death of Roslyn Ausby, the woman responsible for the blackmail and murders that plagued the family, Gabriella and the rest of the Bennett family had breathed a sigh of relief that now, finally, all would be well.
“I’m pregnant.”
Everything stopped. And then moved with a speed that made Gabriella suddenly lightheaded. The room was spinning and her hands were shaking. So much so, she almost dropped the phone.
“Gabs? You still there?”
“Ah, yeah. Yeah,” she said after all her effort went into holding that phone tightly to her ear. She’d leaned against the desk and hoped her legs wouldn’t totally give out and she crumbled to the floor.
“That’s great. I mean, you’re happy right? You and Parker wanted to have kids?”
Gabriella’s throat was suddenly dry as she balled her other hand into a fist and pounded lightly between her eyes.
“We’re ecstatic! We haven’t told anyone yet. I wanted to call you before I called Mom and Dad because I know sometime during the course of that conversation they’re going to ask if I’ve spoken to you,” Adriana told her.
Gabriella shook her head. “Not with the news of another grandchild,” she said dryly.
Renny and his wife Bree had two-year old triplets—Delia, Desirae, and Daniel. Those three currently held the hearts of Marvin and Beatriz Bennett. Adriana’s baby would capture them next. And Gabriella was just going to have to accept that.
No matter how much it hurt.
Chapter 2
Hobbs Creek hadn’t changed much in the eighteen years Tyler had been away. The last time he’d been in his hometown had been five years ago when his mother had begged him to come home for Christmas. That thought didn’t help Tyler’s melancholy mood.
Main Street still looked like a flash out of that old Andy Griffith television show his grandmother used to love, with the police station on one corner, a barber shop on the other and across the street a ge
neral store and post office. He’d parked his truck in front of City Hall and walked to Clyde Gwynn’s office, a block and a half away. The fact that he hadn’t called first was a stark contrast to the lifestyle Tyler was used to in L.A. Nothing happened there without a phone call. But being back amidst the small town, slower and more laid back pace, Tyler had forgotten that courtesy. Therefore, he wasn’t too upset to find that Clyde wasn’t in his office.
The change in plan didn’t bother Tyler much. In fact, it allowed more time for him to pick up the things he needed from the store and to walk through the town where he’d spent his early years. He chose to walk the two additional blocks, stopping in the small shops that featured homemade goods he had forgotten while he was away and the new ones that had arrived. Tyler never did this in L.A. Shopping wasn’t one of his favorite pastimes and he had assistants that would take care of that kind of stuff for him. There was staff at the ranch, but most of them were new. They were getting to know Tyler, the same as he was with them. It was weird because even though George was gone, Tyler still felt like Westwind was his father’s domain and that he didn’t belong there. That meant, asking the staff to do things for him personally was out of the question.
Inviting the designer to dinner was a calculated move. One Tyler hadn’t been so sure of in the moments right after he’d done it yesterday. But during the hours that followed he had to thank his conscience for having the forethought. Sitting at a table with her would give him the opportunity to find out just what plans she thought were in the works. Whereas, Tyler wasn’t sure Clyde was going to be totally honest with him. His father’s friend was, of course, going to carry out George’s wishes to the end. But what if Tyler didn’t want the things his father had? He never had before. The vision George had for the land and the livestock never seemed to match what Tyler thought his future would hold.
“Well aren’t you a sight for sore eyes? Tyler Walker West live and in the flesh.”
To emphasize her words she’d walked right up to him, running her hand over his left pectoral and straight beneath the opening of the blue chambray shirt Tyler wore.
“Hannah Lynn Palmer,” Tyler said, lifting a hand to slowly clamp his fingers around her wrist.
She arched one thick eyebrow and watched as he slowly, but purposefully, moved her hand from his chest and dropped it at her side.
“I’ve left you several messages,” she said and brought that same hand up to fluff the tapered edges of her golden blonde hair. “But you probably aren’t getting them. I know how hard it can be to hire good staff.”
Tyler didn’t immediately respond. As he recalled, Hannah loved to hear herself talk. Her father owned P&P Steakhouse, a few miles out from town. It was a premiere restaurant in the area and had been for as long as Tyler could remember. Ted Palmer often bought cattle from Westwind, and Hannah had gone to school with Tyler and Jagger. So it was safe to say Tyler and Hannah had a lot of history, even if he excluded the three and a half years he’d spent professing his love to her.
“Anyway, I’m glad you’re out and about. I can understand the grieving process taking a while though,” she continued. “When my momma died, I wanted to jump in that grave before they tossed the first shovel of dirt on her coffin.”
She chuckled.
Tyler did not.
“So next Friday’s the kickoff to the 4th of July celebrations. I thought it’d be great if we rode in the parade together. You know, like we did that year you won first place in 4H for that horse you loved to distraction. That was so much fun. Of course, I have no idea where my Junior Hobbs Creek Pageant crown is now, but I still know the wave.”
She demonstrated. Right there on the sidewalk where cars and trucks drove by and people walked past them, Hannah waved as if she were riding along happily in a parade. If old feelings didn’t still cut raw with him, Tyler might have laughed at how silly she looked. Instead, he tipped the brim of the chocolate felt Stetson he wore back and gave her the best smile he could manage.
“No thanks, Hannah. I won’t be attending the parade.”
He made the mistake of thinking that would end the conversation, but when he attempted to walk around her, he felt her hand on his arm pulling him back.
“We haven’t had any time together since you’ve been back. How about you come over to the restaurant tonight and we’ll have a nice steak dinner.”
His reply was quick and probably not what Hannah expected to hear. “I already have dinner plans for tonight.”
“Oh.” Her lips pursed. “Well, I hope you find some time to spend with an old friend while you’re here. I mean, after all, our families are connected and have been for a very long time. I’m sure my father would like to speak to you about future business transactions.”
Ted Palmer was the son of Judson Palmer, who had been the mayor of Hobbs Creek for thirty years before finally retiring. Judson had also played a big part in contributing financially to the rebuilding of a good portion of Main Street twenty-five years ago when a fire started at the church and burned from one building to the next until a three block stretch was destroyed. Because of this, Hannah knew the weight of what she’d just said, which only irritated Tyler more.
He moved so that he was out of her reach, being careful to keep his voice level and low. The one thing he hadn’t forgotten while he was away from Hobbs Creek was how fast gossip traveled in small towns.
“When your father is ready to talk business he knows the number to the ranch office. As for any other connections, there are none. Good evening, Hannah.”
With a slight nod, Tyler ended the conversation and turned to walk away once more. She didn’t try to stop him this time, but Tyler knew it wasn’t the last he would hear from her. Hannah did not give up easily, not when she set her mind to something. And whether he liked it or not, Tyler sensed that she’d definitely set her mind on something where he was concerned.
* * *
Gabriella stepped up onto the front porch of the main house at Westwind Ranch & Resort feeling as if she’d somehow been morphed from the 2017 Volkswagen Passat rental car into a 1950’s John Wayne western movie. Her first impression was—there was an abundance of wood. An overabundance would be more like it. The wedge heel of her camel colored ankle boots, made a clunking sound as she walked toward one end of the wrap around porch. She’d changed into jeans and a white shirt for what she figured would be a casual business dinner. Now, considering the worn planks of this floor and the dust circulating from the dried dirt landscape, she wondered if she might still be a little overdressed.
She reminded herself that she wasn’t in her hometown of Greenwich, CT or even in Manhattan where she visited her older brother Alex and his fiancé, Monica Lakefield, from time to time. This was Hobbs Creek, Texas, a small town in what was known as the Texas Panhandle region. And she was at Westwind Ranch & Resort, one of the most successful cattle and horse ranches in the area. The resort branch of Westwind was fairly new, being added on three years ago as a new business venture. It was the previous owners, George and Verna West’s, step into tourism which was intended to become an economy booster in the area. According to Dessie Gwynn, the woman who’d hired Gabriella, it was slow going, but progressing.
“I’ve got dinner started around back.”
The deep, but smooth, voice jolted her and Gabriella turned to see him standing near the front doors of the house.
Tyler West, oldest son to George and Verna. Fitness guru, model and in a few months designer of a new fitness clothing line. His Google bio said nothing about six feet plus of fineness personified. That may have been a bit much, she thought as she walked toward him. But then, when she stood only a few feet away she realized, no, it was actually an understatement. Blue eyes, that in the right light could look green, dark brown hair, close cut beard and naturally thick eyebrows that a woman would kill to possess. And he spoke French, which for Gabriella, was the sexiest language. Dressed in dark jeans, a dark blue chambray shirt, and chestnut colored
cowboy boots, he was one tall glass of western deliciousness. If she were inclined to look at him that way. Which she was not because this trip was about work. Besides, neither her mind nor her body were ready for anything other than ogling good looking men.
“Great,” she said and tapped a hand over the bag she’d just remembered she was carrying. “I have my notes and some preliminary design ideas we can discuss.”
He didn’t frown, but he didn’t smile welcomingly either.
“Food first,” he said and extended an arm toward the door.
Since he was the client, Gabriella nodded and followed. The entrance was two massive heavy oak doors with polished bronze door handles. Formidable, dominating, and like her host for the evening, not very welcoming. Inside was only a little better. Dark hardwood floors, western fabric vaulted ceilings, and, thick wood beam framed doorways, invited her in with soft golden lighting and plush cushioned chairs. The animal skin rug in the center of the foyer wasn’t gorgeous, but the natural light she could see pouring into the room ahead filled her with optimism.
“We can go this way,” he said from behind.
Gabriella turned to see that he was leading her to the left through another doorway. This room had dark paneled walls and heavy leather upholstered furniture. There was a fully-stocked bar with four stools that stretched along one wall, shelves loaded with books along another. The large fireplace fought with the bar as the room’s focal point and the gigantic stuffed moose head hanging over the fireplace could go right into the same “must go” category as the animal skin rug in the foyer.
They passed through another room, with a little more light due to the wall of windows. Unfortunately, those windows were mostly covered by heavy plaid patterned curtains. The final room they moved through was more like a covered porch with screen in walls and dark wicker furniture.