by Carrie Carr
He must have heard the remorse in her voice, because Billy let the shield of anger that he used to protect himself fall. He sighed. "Peggy left last year. I was sure that would make you and Mom very happy." They had warned him that not being married would allow his "friend" to leave whenever she wanted, and he'd only be hurt in the long run.
"No, it doesn't. It doesn't make me happy at all." Looking around the clean room, Ellie spoke very quietly. "At least you had the guts to face up to Mom and live your own life. I'm so damned proud of you, little brother. Prouder than you'll probably ever realize."
Billy leaned over and peered into his sister's eyes. "Who are you, and what have you done with my sister?" He fell back when she playfully pushed him away.
"Wise guy." She took a deep breath, and prayed that what she was about to say wouldn't get her thrown out. "I found my birth father's family, Billy. Or, I guess you could say, my family." His nod gave her the courage to go on. "My grandfather is about the nicest guy you'd ever want to meet. And my cousin--" She paused, thinking about Lex. The woman absolutely infuriated her, but she thought that was more because of how Amanda felt about her than Lex's personality or actions. "My cousin owns a ranch, if you can believe that. She's tall, dark, and extremely full of herself." Here Ellie grinned. "But she's also loyal and loving."
"Sounds like a great lady." Intrigued by the look on his sister's face, Billy tapped her on the leg. "And?"
"What do you mean, and?"
"Come on, El. Don't forget I've known you forever. What else aren't you telling me?"
"She's gay." Ellie retreated to the furthest point of the sofa, afraid of her brother's reaction. "Lex lives on the ranch with her partner, Amanda." When her brother was silent for too long, Ellie stood up. "Aren't you going to say anything? I just told you that my cousin is a lesbian."
Billy met his sister's eyes, a small smile forming on his lips. "What am I supposed to say, El? I think the important thing here is, how do you feel about it?"
"What?"
"I bet that threw your little world into a tailspin, didn't it? You and Mom, always preaching against something, whether it was marriage before sex, say no to drugs, or may all the queers rot in hell." He jumped to his feet also. "Actually, the reason that Peggy left was because I asked her to. I found her shooting up in the kitchen one morning. Nothing I said or did mattered to her, because she had her drugs." Billy walked over to the entertainment center and picked up a framed photograph. The two people smiling back at him were covered with seaweed and sand, and couldn't have looked happier. "She wouldn't stop, El. I found out that her boyfriend was also her supplier, and when I confronted her with it, she moved in with him."
Ellie stepped up behind Billy and put her arms around him. "I'm sorry."
He put the frame back where it came from and turned around. "So, I did the marriage before sex, and said no to drugs. And now you're telling me that your cousin is gay? That's pretty funny."
"Want to hear something even funnier?"
"I could use a good laugh about now." Billy fingered the rings in his eyebrow. "Think I'd look good with purple hair?"
"Maybe. How 'bout me?" Ellie waited until she had his full attention. "Think I look good as a lesbian?"
Chapter Fifteen
BULLDOZERS SHOVED LOADS of dirt and upturned trees, while two men in business suits stood by and watched. Billings chewed on his cigar and gestured to the ongoing construction. "Just how long is this supposed to take, Wilson? We're so far behind schedule now that we've already lost hundreds of thousands of dollars."
"I'm sorry, sir. Things just haven't gone our way. There was a problem with the permits, and then with the zoning. It cost more than I expected."
"I'm not asking for excuses, Wilson; I'm expecting results. This could be the deal that gets me, I mean, us, the recognition in the organization that we deserve." The ring of his cell phone cut off any other ravings. He reached into his coat pocket and took out the device. "Billings here."
Wilson watched as his boss' face lost all color. This isn't good.
"No, sir. It's just taking a little bit longer than we anticipated. I'm sure that if we're given a little bit more time, we can pick up the adjacent land that we need. Yes, I understand that. You're right, sir. This area just screams for a resort. No, I don't. The land south of here is perfect, but--" Billings closed his phone. "I'm sure you guessed who that was."
"Yes, Mr. Billings. I have a pretty good idea." Only the head of the organization could instill such fear into a man like Billings. Andrew felt his own blood run cold at what could have caused the reaction.
Billings looked around until he was certain that all the construction workers were out of earshot. "We need that land. No later than next week."
"I don't see how, sir. That woman doesn't want to sell. And to tell you the truth, she scares me a little." Andrew hated the admission, but there was something about the fire in the rancher's eyes that disturbed him.
"Bullshit! She's a woman, you twit." Billings spit a soggy chunk of cigar between Andrew's shoes. "If she won't sell, then maybe her next of kin will. Get on it, or we'll be contacting your next of kin." He flicked what was left of the cold tobacco at his assistant and stomped away.
AMANDA SAT IN the dark den, the solitude almost more than she could handle. Earlier, Martha had found her upstairs and relieved her of Lorrie so that Jeannie could spend some quality time with her baby, leaving Amanda with nothing to do. She debated barging into her sister's room and taking Lorrie back, but immediately felt guilty at her thoughts. Hearing someone come up onto the front porch, she rose to see who it could be. Opening the door, she was surprised to see a sheepish Michael.
"Hello, sweetheart. I thought I'd stop by and see how everything was going." When he saw the sad expression on Amanda's face, Michael moved into the entry and enveloped her in a hug. "What's the matter?"
"It's stupid." The loss that Amanda felt any time Lorrie wasn't in her arms was something that she was ashamed of, and she certainly didn't want to try to explain it to her father. "I thought that you had a full day scheduled."
Michael had an idea as to his daughter's problem, especially seeing her without the baby. But he accepted the subject change amicably, and the two of them moved into the den and got comfortable on the sofa. "I was supposed to work all day, but they called and asked to have it rescheduled for next week." He had been retained by the Somerville school district to take the children's individual pictures, but a last-minute field trip caused them to cancel. "Is that Martha's voice I hear?"
"Yes. She told me that I needed a break, so she's in Jeannie's room with Lorrie." Amanda's tone spoke volumes of her opinion on the matter. "I guess now I have the afternoon free."
"Excellent! I came out to see how your sister is doing, but I think that can wait. How about taking a ride with me?" Although Michael had gotten better at riding, he'd promised Lex that he wouldn't go out alone, and he was itching to get back into the saddle.
Having become an accomplished horsewoman in the past year herself, Amanda understood her father's excitement where riding was concerned. "That's the best offer I've had all day." She stood and gestured at her simple skirt and top. "Just let me go get changed."
A short time later, Amanda was back downstairs, and the pair was about to leave the house when the phone rang. After the third ring, it stopped, and Martha came out of Jeannie's room in search of Amanda.
"Hello, Michael. It's nice to see you here." Martha turned to Amanda. "I'm sorry to bother you, but you have a call from some bank in Los Angeles. I thought you might want to take it."
"Thanks, Martha." Amanda kissed the older woman on the cheek before going over to sit at the desk in the corner of the den. She picked up the line on the phone that was flashing. "Hello? This is Amanda Cauble. Really? No, I--yes. Thank you. Of course, I understand." She placed the handset back on the cradle and turned the chair around. "They've decided to launch an investigation into my missing funds. I wonder why
now, instead of when we were there."
"That's wonderful. And they didn't mention why?"
Amanda shook her head. "He didn't say, only that he was sorry about the earlier misunderstanding."
"Excuse me." Michael looked first at his daughter and then at Martha. "What's this about 'missing funds'?"
The two women exchanged looks, then Amanda took the lead. "I'll explain while we're riding, if that's okay. I really need to get out of the house for a while." She watched as her father thought about arguing, then resigned himself to waiting. "Thanks, Daddy."
"Don't thank me just yet, young lady. I'm not giving up, just postponing the inevitable."
Once they were out on the trail, Michael turned a bit sideways in his saddle so he could easily see Amanda's face as she rode beside him. "I think I've been more than patient, Amanda. Would you kindly explain to me these so-called missing funds?" He listened patiently as she related all the recent goings-on.
After swearing her father to secrecy, Amanda also recounted Lex's problems, and how it all seemed to happen close to the same time. "So, now you know. But please don't let Lex find out that I told you. She's upset enough."
"Don't worry, I'll keep quiet." Michael's sharp business mind raced, even as he tried to appear nonchalant about the matter.
The horses plodded along quietly for a time, their presence not even disturbing the birds or other animals along the path. Finally, Michael spoke again. "If I didn't know any better, I'd swear that this sounded like something your mother might pull."
"I hate to admit it, but I thought so, too. I suppose it's a good thing she's locked up in that hospital." Amanda didn't like feeling that way about her mother, but she slept better at night knowing that Elizabeth could do no harm where she was.
LEX RETURNED FROM unloading hay, only to find the baby with Jeannie, and Amanda nowhere to be found. She couldn't find Martha either and was about to head upstairs for a shower when there was a knock at the front door. Looking down at her dusty, hay-covered appearance, Lex cursed as she went to see who it could be. She was taken aback by a short, balding man in an expensive suit, wearing dark shades and chewing on an unlit cigar. "Yes?"
"You Lexington Walters?"
"That's right." Already Lex had formed an intense dislike for the toad-like man. "And you are?"
He pulled a handkerchief from his jacket and wiped at his perspiring head, even though the outside temperature was moderate. "My name's not important, but my business with you is. Do you have someplace we can speak privately?"
Lex sighed. She didn't have the time or the inclination to play games. Hot and dirty, all she wanted was a shower, and then maybe a little one-on-one time with her partner, if she could find her. Stepping out onto the porch and closing the front door behind her, Lex leaned against the doorframe. "So, talk."
Wilson was right. This bitch is obnoxious. If we didn't need that land so bad, I'd love to teach her a few manners. Billings had decided to make a visit to the rancher himself, since his associate was too much of a weakling to handle the job to his satisfaction. He removed a checkbook from his interior jacket pocket. "Let me get right to the point, then. I've come about the property you recently acquired, and am prepared to pay you three hundred percent over what you invested. That's quite an offer, don't you think?"
"It would be, if I were interested in selling." Lex pushed her hat further back onto her head. "Why the sudden interest in that piece of land? It's mostly trees, scrub brush, and creek. Not really worth farming or ranching." She knew that it also had good grazing, but only someone who had been deep on the property would know that.
"Then I'm doing you a favor by offering to take it off your hands, aren't I?"
"Nope. You're just annoying me and keeping me from a nice long shower." She reached for the doorknob, but her progress was halted when the man grabbed her arm.
"Listen to me, lady. I'm only making this offer once."
Jerking her arm free, Lex glared at him. "Good. Then I'll only have to turn you down once." She stepped closer, until there was very little space between them. "If you touch me again, I'll rip your arm off and shove it up your ass."
"Don't you dare threaten me, woman. Take what we're offering or you won't like the consequences." Billings took the cigar from his mouth and used it to point at Lex. "I'm not someone you want to mess with."
"That makes two of us." Lex grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and shoved him off the porch. "Get off my land before I shoot you as a trespasser."
Billings backed to his car, never taking his eyes off the rancher. "You've just made a very big mistake, Walters." He got into his luxurious rental car and then spun away, the vehicle kicking up gravel and dust in its wake.
Lex took a final look and then went into the house. She assumed he was working for the man she had met at the auction and wasn't too worried. She hated pushy brokers, and couldn't understand the appeal of the property that she wasn't even certain she was going to keep.
ONCE EVERYONE HAD settled down for bed, Amanda stepped out of the bathroom, drying her hair with a towel. Lorrie must have become fussy while she showered, because Lex was stretched out on the bed with the infant snuggled on her chest. The sight almost brought tears to Amanda's eyes, and she stood in the doorway, not wanting to break the spell. For a moment, she imagined that the child her lover held was theirs, and she knew more than anything that was what she wanted, even though Lex wasn't ready.
Lex turned her head to make eye contact with her partner. "Did you have a good shower?"
Shaken from her reverie, Amanda tried to push down the hurt her previous thoughts had brought. "I sure did. At least I won't have to worry about you making me sleep on the sofa tonight."
"Nah, I'd never do that." Lorrie was asleep, so Lex carefully extended one arm out to her partner. "You've always been real good about letting me stay, no matter what."
The comment drew Amanda out of her sad mood, and she moved across the room to sit on the edge of the bed. "I have, huh? Are you saying that you've come to bed less than clean?"
"More times than I care to admit." Although her attention was focused on Amanda, Lex continued to run one hand gently down Lorrie's back, soothing not only the sleeping infant, but herself. "Did you have a good ride with your dad today?" Lex had been downstairs in the kitchen bothering Martha when the two had come in, hugging and laughing, and Lex had been a bit jealous that it wasn't her with Amanda instead of Michael.
"We sure did. That reminds me, the bank in L.A. called back this afternoon. They've had a change of heart and plan on doing a full investigation into what happened to my trust."
Lex couldn't help but grin. "Imagine that." She had spent hours on the phone, both in California and back home, complaining and threatening not only the bank president, but several different people in the chain of command. I guess something finally worked.
Scooting closer to her lover, Amanda brushed her hand down Lex's face. "What's that look supposed to mean?"
"Hmm?"
"You don't seem very surprised by the news, that's all."
"Oh." Come clean, or dance around the subject? "I, uh, kind of made a few phone calls in the last few days. That's all." The look on Amanda's face wasn't what Lex had been expecting.
"You what?" Amanda snapped off sharply, causing Lorrie, along with Lex, to flinch. "What did you do? Threaten someone?"
Lorrie started to cry, and Lex sat up and began to bounce her gently. "Shh. It's okay, little one." She raised her face to meet Amanda's angry glare. "Not so loud, Amanda. You're upsetting the baby."
Amanda rose to her feet and paced around the room. "It's okay that I'm upset, but you don't want me to upset the baby, is that it?" When Lex didn't answer, her pace quickened and her voice rose. "Dammit, Lex. I'm not some helpless little thing, you know. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my own problems! You're always butting into my business. 'Poor little Amanda' can't do anything without her macho lover stepping in. Do you honestly think I
couldn't have handled this?"
"Amanda, wait. It's not like that at all. I just--"
"You just wanted to ride in to the rescue, like you always do," Amanda snapped. Months of disappointments and days of stress had finally caught up to her. "Goddamn it! Let me live my life!" She stomped to the window and looked outside. "All my life, someone has tried to protect me. Well, it doesn't always work, does it?"
Lex put Lorrie into her crib before she stepped quietly behind Amanda, afraid to touch her. "I--"
"First, my father, then my grandfather!" Spinning around, Amanda was poised for a battle. "When I got older, I thought, 'Finally! Now I'll be in charge of my own life.' Then Frank came along when I was in high school, and he was even more protective than the two of them together." Her chest heaved from the exertion of her tantrum and Amanda used both hands to push Lex away from her. "He left me! Who's next? Grandpa? My father?" Her anger dissipated as quickly as it had flared, and then Amanda collapsed into her partner's arms as her voice cracked and she started to sob. "You?"
As she held Amanda, relief flowed through Lex. She had been worried that her lover didn't seem to be grieving for Frank as Lex thought she would. They stood in front of the window, Lex never loosening her grasp while Amanda let her emotions pour out.
A TINY SQUEAK awakened Lex, and she had to look around the room for a moment before she realized that it came from the crib. Moving quietly so as not to wake Amanda, she slid out of bed and made her way over to where Lorrie was fussing. "Hey there, lil' bit." Noting that the baby's diaper needed changing, she handled the chore without thinking, then picked Lorrie up to kiss her on the cheek. "I bet you're hungry, too." She took the squirming infant downstairs, hoping that Amanda would stay asleep.