A Cowgirl at Heart

by Christine Lynxwiler

  “Yes, sir. In that case, I’ll go ahead and move over here this afternoon. Then when I finish the house on River Road, I’ll be ready to start here.” He wished he could explain that, as far as Andrew was concerned, Elyse’s heart couldn’t be safer if it was in a monastery. He would never get involved in another relationship as long as the cloud of suspicion from Melanie’s death still hung over his head.

  Two hours later Andrew was under his camper leveling it when he heard someone say his name. He scooted out on his back and looked up to see Luke standing over him.

  “You need any help?” he asked.

  “No, I’m used to doing it by myself.”

  “Kind of a loner, aren’t you?”

  Andrew decided this might be the kind of conversation where he’d prefer to be on his feet rather than his back. He stood before he answered. “Kind of, I guess.”

  “Elyse doesn’t normally talk to strangers much.”

  Andrew nodded. “I get that. Maybe I’m different because I saved her from Zeke.”

  Luke shrugged. “Maybe.”

  Andrew walked over and checked the level. If Luke wanted this conversation to go a certain direction, he was going to have to be the one to take it there.

  “She usually keeps her defenses pretty high.”

  He looked over his shoulder at Luke. “Why?”

  Luke shrugged again, a habit that could quickly become annoying. “Sometimes a danger can come in under the radar, and before you know it, they’re right in the middle of your home territory, looking like one of you.”

  “I’m no danger to Elyse.”

  Luke snorted, but at least he didn’t shrug. “You are if you break her heart.”

  What was it with these McCords and their assumptions that he was a heartbreaker? If only they knew he hadn’t so much as looked at a woman in three years, and before that, he’d been too busy with work for romance until he met Melanie. “I’m not planning to break her heart.”

  “Good.” Luke turned to walk away.

  “Hey.”

  He turned back around. “Yeah?”

  “What if she breaks mine?”

  Luke grinned. “Then we’ll help you pack.”

  Andrew nodded. “Nice,” he muttered as Luke walked away. “Real nice.”

  After Luke left, Andrew convinced himself that it was almost comical. But by the time Matthew showed up an hour later with the same warning—only in a more tactful manner—he was starting to see that the McCords were serious. He shook the vet’s hand and sent him on his way with yet another promise that he wasn’t going to break Elyse’s heart, and went in to fix supper.

  A tap on the door startled him. Elyse? Had she discovered his camper and come to tell him not to expect her heart in return for taking up residence on the property?

  He pushed open the door and stared into Crystal’s clear blue eyes. “Hello.”

  She held up a delicious-smelling basket. “A housewarming gift from Mama and me.”

  He raised an eyebrow. Arsenic-laced brownies, maybe? “Thanks.” He took the basket and lifted the cloth. Brownies. So he was half right, at least. “Would you like to come in?”

  She shook her head. “No thanks. I’d better get back to the house.”

  “Okay.” He couldn’t believe it. No warning?

  “But before I go...”

  This was more like it.

  “Elyse is a really special person. And she’s not usually relaxed around people like she is around you.”

  “So you’re afraid that because she has her guard down, I’ll take advantage of that and break her heart,” he said in a wry monotone.

  Her eyes widened. “Will you?”

  He shook his head. “Your sister is already very important to me. The last thing in the world I’d ever do is hurt her.”

  A huge smile lit up her face. “Good.” She gave him a little wave. “Enjoy the brownies.”

  “Crystal.”

  She spun back around.

  “Would you do me a favor and tell the rest of your family that I’m not a lowlife player out to break Elyse’s heart?” That might be the only way he’d ever have time to get any work done without constant interruptions.

  She laughed. “I’ll do that.”

  He closed the camper door and carried the brownies over to the table. Ironically, the one McCord he’d hoped to see this evening he hadn’t. He really couldn’t blame the McCords. There was a quality about Elyse that made him want to protect her at any cost. Even from himself. No wonder they felt the same way.

  He walked back outside and arranged his favorite lawn chair under the porch awning. Talk about a view. To the left, he could see the McCord house and the livestock barn. To the right, Elyse’s house, and farther on past her, the river, unseen but distinguishable by the row of trees that grew along the winding bank. In front of him, a little lane, shared by the barn he’d been hired to paint and Elyse’s house, led to the gravel road two hundred yards away. But from here he could see beyond the road to the vast miles of rolling hills on the other side, dotted with cattle and unmarred by buildings.

  A place of peace. That was his first thought as he sat in the chair and surveyed his surroundings. Peace was something he’d had very little of since Melanie’s death. He’d convinced himself that it would come if he could only find her murderer and clear his name once and for all, but sometimes he wondered if he’d lost the ability to be at peace.

  He watched as the sky changed from a dusky pink to a deep gray blue and a few twinkling stars popped out. In the distance, he heard a motor puttering, and headlights came into view on the road. Even traffic out here was unobtrusive, thanks to the buffer of land between the barn and the road.

  At the end of the lane, a motor slowed then stopped. Just as quickly, the lights went out. Andrew sat quietly in the gathering dusk, his ears straining for the sound of a car door opening and closing. Crickets chirped, and in the distance a cow bawled. But no other sound.

  He eased to his feet and glided across the driveway to the fence line. Staying close to the tall posts, he made his way down the rutted pathway toward the road. Halfway down, he could make out an old yellow Toyota pickup parked sideways directly across the road from the entrance to the lane. Probably somebody studying a map or kids looking for a place to park. But he needed to find out.

  As he reached the main road, he could see there was just one person in the truck. It looked like a man, but he couldn’t be sure. Apparently the driver saw him at the same time, because the truck sprang to life and spun onto the road and away, leaving a thick trail of dust. Andrew frowned. Had Zeke switched vehicles and come to get revenge on Elyse? Or was it a coincidence that a man who obviously didn’t want to be seen had stopped on this stretch of a lightly traveled road?

  He walked back up to his camper. Elyse had been gone somewhere earlier, but she was home now, and her house had a few lights still burning. Maybe he should warn her. He remembered the parade of McCords to his camper. On second thought, there’d probably been enough warnings for today. He’d just sleep with one eye open tonight and decide tomorrow what to do about the little yellow truck.

  CHAPTER 8

  Crystal barely touched a bite of supper. She couldn’t stand to see the pity and concern in her mama’s eyes, so as soon as the dishes were done, she started up the stairs to her room. Suddenly she stopped. She’d spent a ridiculous day waiting to hear from Jeremy. She’d even made brownies in anticipation of his calling to invite her to eat supper with him and Beka.

  When he hadn’t called by late afternoon, Mama had suggested she take half the batch to the barn and welcome Andrew to the neighborhood. While she was there, she’d tried to drop a subtle hint about how vulnerable Elyse might be. If Andrew’s reaction was any indicator, subtlety wasn’t her strong suit. So she wasn’t even going to try subtle with Jeremy. She ran up the stairs and grabbed her purse and keys. She was going for blunt and to the point. There was no way she could go to bed another night not knowin
g what was wrong with him.

  She prayed all the way to his house. Once parked, she took the half batch of brownies and walked slowly to the door. The echo of the doorbell inside made her heart beat fast. What if he didn’t come to the door? A week ago she couldn’t even have imagined something so crazy, but now standing in the dusky darkness, it seemed perfectly plausible.

  The door opened, and he smiled.

  Relief surged through her. He was glad to see her.

  He stepped back to let her inside.

  Before either one could speak, Beka came bounding into the room. “My Crystal!” She threw her arms around Crystal’s legs and squeezed.

  Crystal smiled at Beka’s nickname for her.

  “You brought brownies?” The little girl’s eyes were big. “Can I have one?”

  Crystal looked at Jeremy, and he nodded. She walked on into the kitchen that she’d already started thinking of as hers and took a brownie out for Beka. By the time she set it on the counter, Beka was on a stool.

  Crystal poured Beka a glass of milk, set it down, and turned back to Jeremy, her resolve to be blunt melting away. Maybe the uneasiness had just been her imagination. A weird blip in an otherwise wonderful relationship.

  She walked over to hug him. And he did lift his arms and put them around her. But her doubts flooded back, double and triple. This was not a normal embrace. He held her away from him as if he were afraid she’d break. Or contaminate him in some way. She looked up at him. “What’s wrong, honey?” she whispered.

  He motioned toward Beka with his eyes. “Let’s talk later,” he mouthed.

  Crystal sat at the counter beside Beka, unsure what to do. “How’s school going?”

  Beka shrugged as she pulled her brownie apart with stubby fingers. “Okay, I guess.”

  “Are you still having fun in art?”

  Beka nodded. “I drew you a picture.” She looked at Jeremy, her gaze stern. “But Daddy made me give it to Grandma.”

  Jeremy turned toward the sink and started loading the dishwasher.

  Crystal stared at his back, feeling as if the air had been sucked from her lungs. But she forced herself to respond to the little girl with a smile. “That’s okay, honey. You can draw me another one later.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  “Finish your brownie and milk, Little Bit.” Jeremy’s voice was strained. “It’s almost time for bed.”

  “Will you sit in my room and read me a story?”

  Jeremy nodded.

  “Will you make it a long one?”

  Crystal waited for his answer. If he wanted to talk to her after Beka went to bed, he’d make the nightly ritual as short as possible.

  When he answered Beka, his eyes met Crystal’s, and the sadness there squeezed her heart. “I’ll make it a long one.” He tore his gaze away. “Now, come tell Miss Crystal good night.”

  It was all she could do to hug Beka and get out the door before the tears started.

  ***

  Elyse finished drying the little poodle and deftly put a tiny red bow in her topknot. “You really are a sweetie, aren’t you, Sweetie?” The poodle pranced as if to agree. “Since we have a few minutes, would you like to work on something to impress Victoria and Dylan?” Sweetie pranced again and tossed her head.

  Elyse spent the next ten minutes showing the tiny dog the finer arts of obedience. She used treats for rewards, but not every time, depending instead on praise to motivate dogs like Sweetie. When her friend Victoria Worthington came in the back door, Elyse was down on the floor with the dog.

  Victoria laughed. “You do know that you should charge for teaching her to behave so well, don’t you?”

  Elyse shrugged. “It’s fun.” She grinned. “And we had extra time since she was so good while I was grooming her. This is her reward.”

  “Yes, well...” Victoria dug around in her oversized Jimmy Choo purse and pulled out some cash. She waved it at Elyse, leaving an aromatic trail of Obsession perfume in the air. “This is your reward, and I don’t want to hear any arguments.” She put it on the counter.

  “Thanks.” Elyse knew from experience it was useless to argue with her wealthy friend.

  Victoria walked over to the steaming coffeepot, retrieved a ceramic cup from the shelf, and poured herself a cup of coffee. “When are you going to realize that you need to go into dog training full-time?”

  “Have some coffee,” Elyse said dryly.

  “Why, thank you, I believe I will.” Victoria sank down in one of the two cushioned chairs against the wall, and Sweetie jumped up on her lap. “Do you have time to drink a cup with me?”

  Elyse nodded. “My eleven o’clock canceled.” She poured herself a cup of coffee, fixed it to suit her taste, and joined Victoria. “How are things at Worthington Enterprises?”

  Victoria wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to talk about me. We didn’t get a chance to talk last night, and I wanted to. Are you sure you’re okay? Blair made it sound like you almost died. Is that true?”

  Elyse filled her friend in on the details of last Saturday morning’s incident with Zeke. When she finished, there wasn’t a trace of a smile left on Victoria’s face.

  “Wow. Did your life flash before your eyes?”

  Elyse shook her head.

  “Did it at least make you think, I wish I’d focused on using my talent as a dog trainer instead of bathing”—Victoria put her hands over Sweetie’s ears—“spoiled pooches?”

  Elyse burst out laughing. “No, I can’t say that it did. I was more worried about Pal and keeping that awful man from shooting him.”

  “Thank goodness for your hunky hero.”

  “I never said he was hunky.”

  Victoria took a sip of her coffee. “You didn’t have to. I saw him on TV.” She set her cup on the table between the chairs and leaned forward. “How many years have we done 4-H meetings together?”

  “Three?”

  “Three years of you wasting your life teaching little kids how to make their dogs sit and stay.”

  Elyse gasped. “Victoria! That is so not true. I love working with the kids. And their dogs!”

  “Okay, I overstated. Dylan probably would have been a neurotic only child of an overprotective single mom forever if you hadn’t shown him how great it is to love dogs. And, thanks to you, he knows how to take care of them. So I’m not sorry you’ve done 4-H or started the Therapy Dog Foundation. But there’s more to life than this. You’re as good as that dog whisperer guy on TV. You could be famous.”

  Elyse laughed. “That’s the last thing I want.”

  “Killjoy.”

  “So you want to stay for lunch?” Elyse asked. “I’ll make some chicken salad.”

  “Actually, I have to go.” She stood, and Elyse followed suit. “I’m meeting Adam for lunch.” The color in her face heightened slightly, just as it always did when she mentioned her friend Allie’s younger brother. “Business,” she quickly clarified. “I’m thinking of investing in his video game company.”

  Elyse nodded. If she remembered correctly, Adam Langston had been graduating high school when she was starting junior high. That made him about six years younger than Victoria. In spite of the age difference, he’d been Victoria’s sidekick ever since Elyse met her at the first 4-H meeting and who knows how long before. She remembered Andrew assuming they were a couple when he met them at the hospital. Sometimes Elyse sensed there was a spark between the two, but for whatever reason, the relationship was stuck in friendship mode. “Have fun. Thanks for the big tip, and thanks for drinking coffee with me.”

  “Thanks for inviting me—Oh wait,” Victoria teased. “Guess you didn’t really.”

  Elyse hugged her friend. “You’re welcome at my coffeepot anytime.”

  After she closed the door behind Victoria, Elyse grabbed four leashes from the hooks by the door and went to find her dogs and Pal. When she passed the doorway of the den, she smiled.

  Missy was in the corner chewing on a dog toy, keepi
ng an eye on everything. Majesty lay on her stomach with her front paws crossed elegantly in front of her. Nikki was curled up in a tiny ball in her small bowl-shaped chair. In the middle of the floor, Pal was sound asleep on his back, all four legs up in the air. The last observance was the one that made Elyse smile the biggest. Dogs lie like that only when they feel completely at ease and secure. Pal was recovering nicely.