Gideon favored the leg as he carefully took the steps, opened the door, and stopped as he saw who waited in his living room.
A gigantic smile broke over his face. “Eli, you sorry son of a gun, when did you get in?”
His brother caught him in a big hug, slapping his back and laughing. “Damn, Gideon, it’s good to see you.”
“You, too, brother. Why didn’t you let me know you were back?”
“Caught a ride on a transport to Dulles and another to Denver. Too busy. No time.”
“Thank God, you’re home safe and sound. It’s great to see you, man. Want a beer?” he limped to the refrigerator and pulled out two frosty bottles.
His brother grinned. “Have I ever said no to a beer?”
Gideon snorted. “Not that I can remember.”
Eli made himself at home on the corner of the couch. “Place looks good.”
Gideon nodded. “Maddie comes over every Wednesday and cleans for me. Does laundry, cooks a little.”
“Maddie, huh?” Eli’s grin took on a life all its own.
Gideon nodded, inhaling and letting the breath out slowly. “Yeah.”
“Things going okay with you two?” Eli drank half the contents of his bottle in one long gulp as Gideon lifted a shoulder.
He finished his drink with one long chug, Eli’s question hanging in the air. “I told you about Pap Lowry and his…scheme.”
“Yeah. How’s that working for you?”
“Just blew up in my face. Don’t even know where to start.” Gideon got up and brought them another couple of brews.
Eli stared and shook his head. “She found out, didn’t she?”
“Are you clairvoyant?” Gideon snorted.
“Nah, just knew it was going to happen sooner or later. You should have known it too, you dumb ox. What made you think you and Pap could get away with it in the first place? As I recall, Maddie always was a pretty smart piece of a…”
“Watch it, brother,” Gideon warned.
“Smart girl,” Eli amended. “You really screwed the pooch with this one, Gideon. Couldn’t care less about the land—we’ve got plenty. But we need that water, or legal rights to it, anyway.”
“I know.” He stared at the floor in silence, then gazed at his brother. “Maddie has plans to turn the Lowry place into a summer camp for children with acute disabilities. Give them a break from hospitals and doctors. Offer a chance to feel like normal kids for a few weeks. I’ve taken her to Laramie—Rowdy is going to draw up some simple plans for a few family cottages—but now Pap’s taken a turn for the worse.”
“Sorry to hear that. You look ripped up. Crunch time, huh?”
Gideon nodded. “Yeah. We both knew it was underhanded, but Pap insisted. I guess he didn’t want to die with the deception on his conscience, so he spilled the beans to Maddie. I just came from there. Pap’s in the hospital, and Maddie told me off. She’s pretty angry.”
“Imagine so. You think helping her with this camp idea is the way back into her good graces?”
“I’d do it anyway. It’s a terrific idea, and thinking of those kids kicks me in the heart.”
Eli sat up and let his hands hang between his legs. “She threaten to withhold right-of-way to the water?”
“No. Eli, you’re missing the point. She thinks we lied to her.”
“She’s right.”
Gideon shot him an exasperated sigh. “She was never going to know, but now that she does…”
“She’s mad as hell and wants nothing more to do with you.”
“Pretty much. After what McCall pulled on her, she doesn’t trust anybody—any men, at least. She was just beginning to respond to me, and this happened.” Gideon sighed.
Eli downed the rest of his beer and set the empty bottle on the table. “And that’s a big problem, because now you’ve fallen for her.”
Gideon kept silent. Eli knew him better than anyone—always could read his mind. Why should he be surprised that he understood the situation?
“Swear to God, Eli, I never believed in love at first sight, but the first time I laid eyes on her I was a goner. She’s sweet, funny, kind, works hard, loves kids. Maddie would do anything, for anybody, anytime. And she loves this place—this life.”
“Heard she grew up pretty.”
“Understatement. Long, curly hair, greenest eyes you ever saw. More woman than I ever dreamed—more than I deserve.”
“Maybe we should rethink this.”
Gideon growled. “Not funny.”
Eli stretched his mouth into a rueful grin. “Damn, man, you’ve got it bad. She going to be mad at me, too? Or do I have a chance to save the Branch family future? Pap did stipulate one of us three had to marry her.”
Gideon sprang from his chair and leaned over his surprised brother, one finger pointing an inch from his nose. “You stay away from Maddie,” he growled. “She’s mine, dammit, and you’ll keep your hands off her.”
Eli chuckled, palms out. “Easy, man. Just checking. Think she’s going to give you another chance?”
Gideon ran his fingers through his hair, returning to his seat and collapsing against the cushions. “I certainly hope so. I kind of lost it tonight. She was ranting about me being a liar, and I backed her into a wall and pulled her in for a kiss.”
Eli’s face broke into a slow smile. “Well, it would seem you’ve inherited the family gene for doing the wrong thing at the wrong moment. She get you in the balls?”
“She wanted to.” Gideon shook his head and grinned. “But as furious as she was—she kissed me back. Just before she sent me hobbling to my truck. Maddie wants to forgive me, Eli, but I hurt her. I want to give her some time, but if I wait too long, her walls will be back up and I could lose her.”
“Then don’t.”
Gideon shrugged one shoulder. “I’m going to see her through this thing with Pap, help her get that damn camp built and running, and make myself indispensable to her. Everything between us happened so fast, she hasn’t had time to get to know me, see me for who I am, trust me. I’m going to show her she can take a chance on me.”
“Good plan, bro. Take it slow, show her you care, prove yourself, court her the old-fashioned way. You need help, I’m always available.” Eli wagged his brows.
Gideon picked up a pillow and threw it at him. “I could use your help here.”
“You’ve made good progress. I’m ready to get started. What do you need?”
“There are a few more repairs, mainly on the barns, and then we can buy some stock. I’ve got a list of upcoming auctions and a broker in Laramie that has a line on a man who’s selling off his herd. Once the barns are ready, we’ll purchase horses, additional tack, supplies, and get the late crop of hay cut in the northwest quadrant.”
“Hey, slave driver. I said help, not take over.”
“You got a problem with hard work? ’Cause if you do, Snowy Branch is not for you.”
Eli finished his drink and set it on the coffee table. “I know a few guys who’d like to have a steady job. You object to hiring some jarheads?”
“How many? And do they have any experience?”
“You know them all—we enlisted at the same time. Roper, Collier, Samuels, and Marcus. We’ve had our fill of hot sand and hostility. They were coming back anyway, and when I mentioned starting up Snowy Branch, they wanted to be a part of it. What do you think?”
“I think one of us is living right.”
“Thought you’d like the idea. They’ll be here next week. Meanwhile, I’ll see what’s available online for horseflesh and tack. A week or two from now, we should be ready to take delivery on those cows—and a few bulls.”
“Hoo-yah.” Gideon grinned at his sibling. With his brother taking the lead, he could concentrate on Pap, Emma’s Camp, and convincing Maddie she couldn’t live without him
Saying goodnight to Eli, he went to his room and took care of his leg. Tomorrow was another day.
Another day, and another chanc
e to mend fences with Maddie.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The doctors kept Pap in the hospital. He was weak and in pain, and there was no way Maddie could maintain her mad at him. Gideon, however, was another story.
Pap went on the attack and forced Maddie to admit her disappointment in both of them. Her grandfather said if she should be angry at anyone, it should be him. Gideon had fallen for her, and she was a fool to hold a grudge, and hadn’t she learned anything about loving and forgiving in the last few years. She owed him and Gideon a hearing, at the very least.
“It’s time you grew up, and if you have to work so hard at staying mad at Gideon, it’s because you are running from yourself. The only real liar in this entire fiasco is you, Maddie—lying about your true feelings. I’ve got no time and no patience for your stubbornness.”
He shooed her out of his room. “No use hanging around here waiting for me to die. This bunch is taking good care of me. Go find Loretta and have some lunch. Maybe she can talk some sense into you.”
“I don’t want to leave you, Pap.”
“Maddie, you and I both know where this is heading. What will be, will be. Now, go eat, and let me get some rest.”
Leaving reluctantly, she heaved a sigh of relief as the fresh air hit her face. The hot sun warmed her skin, and a breeze ruffled her hair as she slid behind the wheel of her Chevy and drove to Loretta’s.
Have I really screwed up so badly?
Of course she told her best girl all about Gideon and Pap and their agreement and how incensed she’d been. Surprisingly, Loretta said she was crazy to put Gideon and Harrison in the same league, and all Pap had wanted to do was make sure she was taken care of.
Maddie listened open-mouthed. “Never in a million years would I have expected you to be on their side.”
“Stan?”
He merely grunted and said she’d figure it out. “Gideon’s a good man, Maddie. A woman could do a hell of a lot worse, in my opinion.”
“You, too?” she squeaked.
“All Pap and Gideon are guilty of is trying to make your life better. They love you. Instead of whining about it, you should be thanking your lucky stars the best man I know is head over heels in love with you.”
Not much a woman could say when her two best friends thought she was making a colossal mistake. Everyone had an opinion, but the only one that counted was hers.
Shot down by her friends, Maddie refused to think about it anymore. Thus chastised, she made her way to the Chevy and drove back to the ranch. She had a lot to think about.
Putting her messed-up love life on the back burner, Maddie spent the next couple of days scurrying from to the hospital, and then to town searching for help on the barn roof and corral repairs. Wouldn’t you just know, she fumed, that Cocky and his sidekick, Horny—a.k.a. Buddy Collins and Russ Jenkins—were the only two cowpokes looking for work?
The two sauntered into Loretta’s one afternoon while Pap was having an MRI and Maddie was enjoying her favorite root beer. Hats in hand, the two men approached her.
“Miss Lowry, we want to apologize for our rudeness a few weeks back. We had too much to drink and made a bad impression. Heard you was looking for help, and well, me and Russ wondered if you’d give us a chance. We’ll get the ranch in working order quicker than a calf latches onto its mama’s teat.”
In spite of the crass offer, Maddie decided to take what she could get and hired the two men. “No flirting and no drinking on the premises allowed,” she cautioned. “I need men who aren’t afraid of hard work and who’ll take my orders without question.”
Buddy and Russ almost fell over themselves assuring her it would be business only. “Not a problem, ma’am.” A handshake to seal the deal, and she scooted over to the hardware store to pick up the supplies. Barn roof was priority number one, then the corrals, and a fresh coat of paint for everything.
When the guys showed up on Monday, she had supplies lined up for them and put them to work. Just as she was leaving to check on Pap, a dark blue pickup dusted up her drive and parked next to the house.
Lord have mercy. Was that Eli Branch behind the wheel? When did he get home? Not that it would do any good, but she guessed after her tirade at Gideon the second Branch wanted to try his luck.
Every bit as tall as his brother, younger and leaner, he had the killer smile and determined gait of all the Branch men. He hiked up his jeans and stalked her way. A ping in the region of her heart irritated Maddie. Seeing Eli made her think of Gideon. Thinking of Gideon brought memories she’d been stubbornly attempting to forget.
Dark hair, high and tight, deep blue eyes. Straight white teeth grinned from his desert-tanned face. The short time he’d been home attested to his military background. A Marine, through and through. Just like the men said, “Once a Marine; always a Marine.”
Removing his hat, Eli squinted up at Maddie from the bottom of her porch steps. “Hey, there, firecracker. Been a while, hasn’t it?”
Maddie broke out in a smile. “Glad you made it home in one piece, Eli. Gideon send you over to test the waters, or are you here with a diamond in your pocket?”
Eli shrugged one shoulder, a sheepish grin kicking into deep dimples. “Gideon hasn’t sent me anywhere since I turned twenty-one, and darlin’, if you want a diamond on that pretty finger, you’re talking to the wrong Branch brother. I came to pay my respects to Pap. Gid says he’s feeling poorly.”
Maddie straightened and motioned him inside. “Come on in and have a seat, Eli. Pap’s still in the hospital. Hanging in there. Know he’d be glad to see you, though. You home to stay?”
“Yep. Most of the construction work is done at Snowy Branch, but I’m headed out to visit a cattle broker in Cheyenne. Thought I’d stop and pay my respects on the way. We’re ready to take the next step and get the ranch back to making money again.”
“Then you’ll need access to water.”
That stopped him dead in his tracks. The smile faded from his face, and he faced her full on. “Will it be a problem, Maddie Mae? Because if it is, we’d best talk about it now.”
Maddie went over to the rolltop desk and pulled out a piece of paper, waving it in the air. “Your brother and you—Zack, too, I imagine—will be relieved to know I’ve had Pap’s attorney draw up a right-of-way agreement for the area around the river. I realize we haven’t been close, but there’s no way I’d hold water over any Branch head. Gideon and Pap should have known I’m not that kind of person. I’m not going to sell, and I’m not going to marry Gideon or anyone else for land or water.”
After reading the agreement, Eli’s earnest stare bored into her. “This is mighty white of you, Maddie, but I don’t think that’s what Gideon intended when he…well, when he said what he did.”
“Maybe not; maybe so. Doesn’t matter. I’ll have your copy by the end of the week. You boys can go ahead with your plans, and so can I. This entire controversy is settled, as far as I’m concerned. Pap was crazy to concoct such a cockamamie idea in the first place.”
“He was only looking out for your best interests, Maddie. You know that—so does Gideon—so do I.”
“If one more person tells me that, I’m going to scream. I know. But this document makes it a moot point. We both get what we want without having an arranged marriage enter into the equation.” She sighed. “This is, after all, the twenty-first century.”
“Sticks in your craw, does it?” Eli asked.
“Just a bit.” She measured the distance with her forefinger and thumb. “Look, I was about to go to the hospital. It’s on your way. Would you like to go with me?”
“Good idea. I’ll follow you.” Eli gently clasped her arm. “Maddie? My brother’s a good man. He deserves a hearing.”
“That’s what everyone says.”
“Everyone would be right,” Eli said.
When they got to the hospital, Eli parked next to her and followed her into Pap’s room. “Someone’s here to see you.” She softly touched Pap
’s bruised hand. So many needles had poked his old veins, the age spots had turned from brown to purple. His skin had done battle with time and modern medicine.
“Gideon, that you?” Pap squinted through watery eyes.
“It’s Eli, Pap. I got home a few days ago and wanted to come say hello.” He wrapped the old man’s hand in his, dragged a chair close to the bed with his foot, and sat down.
“Gideon,” Pap rasped, “I’ve talked to Maddie until I’m blue in the face. You’ve got to do something, boy. I made a mess of things—I ruined it all.”
Maddie’s hand flew to her mouth, her fingers stifling a cry. Her grandfather, weak and confused, stared in desperation at the man by his side. No matter how much she’d reassured him he hadn’t caused problems with her and Gideon, he wouldn’t listen.
She leaned over Eli’s shoulder. “Don’t fret now; everything’s okay. Gideon and I are fine, just like I said. But this is Eli. He’s come to visit you.”
“Gideon, listen to me, son.” Pap grabbed Eli’s hand, his breath panting in short gasps. “I know you care about her… I don’t have long, boy. You got to make your move, she needs you… You promised to look after her. I can’t go until I know she’s okay… Promise…”
Too choked up to speak, Maddie fought to keep her tears from falling as Eli shot her a hopeless gaze. His free hand reached for hers, the other clutched with surprising strength by Pap.
Eli sought to reassure him, assuming the role of his brother. “It’s all right, Pap. Don’t upset yourself. Maddie and I will work everything out. You don’t have to worry about anything. I always keep my promises.”
“Love her, Gideon. Love her like you promised.” Pap’s eyes closed, the effort too great to sustain. “Promise…” He drifted off.
Eli pushed the nurse’s call button and guided Maddie away from the bed as hospital staff rushed in.
“Gideon,” Maddie whispered.
She wanted Gideon. As grateful as she was to Eli, she wanted it to be his brother holding her, his strength reaching out to her. Why, when he’d deceived her, did she need him so badly? Old hurts and disappointments didn’t seem as important as they once had.
Never Say Never Again Page 18