“Maybe. Maybe those horses can find homes with loving families. Maybe they can find the lives they were made for.”
His mother gave a resigned sigh, as if she didn’t approve, but also as if none of this was a great surprise. “I understand that you’re determined to see a horse rescue ranch come to fruition, and now you’re determined to leave Parker Oil. When are you going to tell your father?”
“When he returns from Galveston. I won’t jump on him. I assure you, I’ll wait until the time is right, once I’m a free man and can obtain my loan.”
“Have you discussed your plans with Lady Fortune Chesterfield?”
“I’ve mentioned my plans, and she’s told me hers. A month from now, she’ll be in Guatemala, helping her mother build another orphanage.”
Again, all he thought about was the last time he’d seen Lucie. All he could think about was that kiss.
His mother watched his expression carefully, watched him poke his hands into his pockets, watched him walk over to the fence and stare at Dusty.
“I know you don’t often go along with my ideas, but maybe you should listen to this one,” she suggested. “How about if you ask Lady Fortune Chesterfield to come to Sunday brunch? We can all handle this whole dilemma with civility.”
Chase wasn’t sure what to think about that. But it would give him the opportunity to talk to Lucie again. After all, she wouldn’t be staying in Austin that long.
* * *
Lucie had had her driver stop at the market on her way back to her apartment. She’d picked up everything she’d need for a chicken and vegetable stir-fry. Swishing it around in the pan on the stove, she added soy sauce and breathed in the aroma as it cooked. When her cell phone beeped, she thought about letting it go to voice mail. But she didn’t.
Turning the burner down to low, she picked up her phone on the counter, spotting the name and number there. Her heart beat crazily. She willed it to slow down, to not act so foolish. She hadn’t liked the way she and Chase had parted. Maybe he hadn’t liked it either.
The only way she’d know was to answer the phone. “Hello,” she said cheerily.
“Lucie, it’s Chase. Did I catch you at a bad time?”
She stared at her simmering dinner on the stove. “Not at all.”
Neither of them spoke for a moment; then Chase stepped into the void. “How would you like to come to brunch on Sunday at the Bar P?”
Brunch? That didn’t sound like an invitation Chase had issued himself. A moment later, she found out she was right.
“My mother suggested I invite you.”
“Your mother did,” she repeated. “Can I ask the reason why?”
“She just thought it would be a good idea. She’d like to keep this dissolution friendly—”
Lucie cut in, “Friendly? It’s not as if I’ve been friends with your parents, Chase.”
She heard him blow out a breath.
“Heck, Lucie, I don’t know what she’s thinking. Dad’s away and maybe she’s just lonely, or maybe it’s her way of getting me to brunch. But she suggested it, so I am offering the invitation.”
“Do you want me to come to brunch? Do you care if I do?” She wasn’t sure why she was pushing. She just wanted to know where everybody stood. That would make going forward easier.
“We didn’t part last night on the best of terms, and I’m not even sure why. That kiss—”
In the minute that followed, Lucie imagined they were both remembering exactly what had happened when Chase had kissed her. She imagined she could still taste him. She imagined his arms around her. She imagined...way too much. Maybe she shouldn’t go. Maybe she should just break off this relationship right now.
What relationship?
Trying to weigh the pros and cons in less than a second, she finally answered, “All right, I’ll come.”
“Do you want me to pick you up?”
“No. And I won’t have my driver bring me. I’ll rent a car myself. I’ve done that before.”
“Can you drive in the US?”
“I have an international license and can usually manage to stay on the right side of the road.” With concentration, she added to herself.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to pick you up?”
Chase had always had protective instincts. She’d felt them ten years ago, and she felt them now. But she couldn’t let him protect her or do anything for her. After all, he’d cut off their relationship by not answering her letters. That had hurt more than she’d ever admitted.
“I’m positive. What time would you like me to be there?”
“How’s ten a.m.?”
“That sounds fine. Give me the address.”
“Text me your email address and I’ll send you directions.”
“Chase, I’m sure the car I rent will have a GPS.”
“I’m sure it will, but I want to make certain you don’t get lost.”
By the time she ended the call with Chase, she already felt lost—lost in the past, lost in a feeling she couldn’t decipher, lost in the knowledge that Chase Parker was going to disrupt her life.
Chapter Five
“This is the smaller dining room,” Florence Parker explained to Lucie on Sunday morning. “We have our more intimate meals here.”
Lucie, Chase and his mother had passed the large dining room with its ten-foot table and twelve hand-carved oak chairs. This place could rival any British estate! The smaller dining room Florence spoke of hosted a table for six in deep walnut. White lacy place mats sat beneath the Spode china. Crystal juice glasses sparkled from the sun shining in the bank of windows.
Chase pulled out Lucie’s chair and she sat. She resisted the urge to glance over her shoulder at him. If she did, this breakfast would indeed be more intimate. She was sure that wasn’t what his mother had in mind.
Chase went around to his mother’s side of the table and helped her with her chair. When she smiled at him, she looked about ten years younger. Florence Parker possessed classic beauty with her high cheekbones, patrician nose, blond-gray hair that curved just under her chin and wide blue eyes. Lucie imagined she’d had china-doll beauty as a young woman. For brunch Florence had chosen pale lilac slacks and a matching sweater.
Lucie hadn’t known how to dress. She’d worn a flowered blouse and navy slacks. As an extra touch, the pearls her mother had given her on her sixteenth birthday lay around her neck, visible in her open collar.
A maid in a black dress with a white collar brought in a tray that was loaded with breakfast entrées—waffles, pancakes, bacon and scrambled eggs. She set the dishes on the table and Lucie could see they were going to be served family-style. That was nice. It made the room feel less like a restaurant and more like a home. As they’d passed through the grand foyer and entrance hall, wound around the curved staircase, passed the high-ceilinged living room, Lucie noticed the Western décor, lots of leather, cowhide and suede. But what she hadn’t noticed were any homey touches. Was this house really lived in?
Since she didn’t know where to begin a conversation with Chase’s mother, she began with something easy. “Your estate is beautiful.”
“It’s a ranch, dear. You might have estates in England, but we have ranches in Texas.”
“Mother,” Chase scolded with a warning look.
Lucie, trying not to connect with Chase, even with her eyes, said, “Your mother’s right to correct me. I’m still learning about idioms and Texas idiosyncrasies.”
Florence Parker laughed. “Idiosyncrasies like wanting our steak rare?”
Lucie smiled. “I prefer mine medium-well.”
“You don’t have a heavy British accent,” Florence noted.
“My mother tells me I once did, but we traveled so much I seemed to pick up intonations f
rom every dialect.”
“At seventeen, you were British all the way,” Chase said in an undertone.
This time Lucie couldn’t help looking at him, and when she did, their eyes locked, and a little tremble went through her. That had to stop.
“I should have traveled to Scotland with Chase’s father all those years ago,” Florence concluded. “Maybe then the two of you wouldn’t be in the fix you’re in. But he said he’d handle it, and back then, I guess I listened to him more than I do now.”
Chase laughed at that. “What Mom’s saying,” he explained to Lucie, “is that she’s grown independent over the years.”
Florence smiled fondly at her son. “When I was first married, I hung on my husband’s every word. I took it as law. I wanted to please him. It’s not true, you know, that you don’t find yourself in marriage. I certainly did, and I think Chase’s father respects me more for it.”
In a way, Florence reminded Lucie of her own mother. She had a bit more of an edge, but Lucie liked the woman’s frankness. Maybe this brunch wasn’t a trap after all, though she wasn’t sure why Florence wanted to get to know her when she’d be leaving Chase’s life.
“Tell me about your work with orphanages,” Florence suggested.
For most of the brunch, that was exactly what Lucie did. Florence asked leading questions and Lucie didn’t hesitate to answer them. Finally, when the maid poured cups of coffee all around again, Florence revealed, “I work with many charities, too.”
That didn’t surprise Lucie. Florence Parker probably had a high standing in the community and led fund-raising attempts.
“Word is going around that the Fortune Foundation will be opening a branch in Austin. Is that true?” she inquired.
“Yes, it is. I’ve been spending much of my time looking for office space.”
“Not space to run programs?” Florence prodded.
“No. The programs will be satellite connections to the main office. We’d like to work within the framework of already established ones. That would stream funds to children quicker.”
“I see,” Florence said, looking thoughtful. “I like that idea. At present I’m trying to find funding for my church’s after-school program. Money will soon run out and the minister might have to close it down. Would the Fortune Foundation be interested in something like that?”
Was this why Chase’s mother had asked her to brunch? “I can ask Emmett Jamison, who runs the foundation.”
“I didn’t know if the Fortune Foundation’s expansion to Austin was truth or gossip.”
“I guess every town has its chatting chain.”
“Chatting chain?” Florence asked.
“Grapevine,” Chase interpreted with a smile for Lucie.
When he smiled at her, her toes curled.
“Yes, this chatting chain you speak of is one of the reasons you and Chase want to get this annulment quickly, correct?” Florence determined.
Neither of them spoke.
Finally Lucie said, “It’s in both of our best interests.”
“I see,” Florence murmured. “You of course mean because of the media attention?”
“Yes. I took a circuitous route to drive here today to make sure I wasn’t followed. Usually I have a driver who does that, but neither Chase nor I want to bring embarrassment to our families if the word of our marriage seeps out.”
“There’s no embarrassment in getting married,” Florence said with a sly look at her son.
“Don’t start, Mom. You know I have too much on my plate to even consider getting married and having kids, though I know that’s what you want me to do.”
“I would like grandchildren before I’m too old to enjoy them.” She studied Lucie. “Do you have someone special in your life?”
“I’m not dating anyone now,” Lucie admitted.
“There was talk of an engagement a while back.”
“That didn’t work out.”
“Can I ask why?”
“Mom,” Chase said with exasperation.
Lucie laid her hand on his arm to stop his protest and then was sorry she did. Her fingers burned against his skin, and she quickly withdrew her hand. However, she said, “It’s okay, Chase.” She was practiced at this. A little bit of truth went a long way. She didn’t need to reveal that Terry’s dishonesty had left her doubting most men. As much as that, she didn’t need to reveal that his critical attitude toward her at the end of their engagement had left her with insecurities that weren’t easy to shake off.
“I thought about my broken engagement a lot. I was involved with orphanage work with my mother. Much of my relationship with Terrence was long-distance. Nevertheless, I don’t think that was the problem. His family knew mine. We had common interests. But I finally realized I didn’t love him the way I wanted to love a man who was going to be my husband and he didn’t love me the way a man should love a wife. There was no big clash or conflict or anything like that, even though the tabloids hinted that there was. We just weren’t right for each other.”
Florence looked from Lucie to Chase. “Yes, I guess one comes to realize who the right person might be as one grows older, doesn’t one?”
Lucie suddenly felt uncomfortable and wasn’t even sure why.
But then Florence changed the subject and addressed her son. “You are going to show Lucie around the place, aren’t you? Do you have time?” she asked Lucie.
“I have time,” Lucie assured her. “I’d love a tour.”
“So it’s settled,” Florence said.
But Lucie wasn’t sure anything was settled.
A half hour later, Lucie and Chase walked in silence through gardens and finally along a path that wound around the barns. He said, “Maybe we should have taken my truck. There are roads through the ranch that lead to the different pastures.”
“You have three barns.”
“Yes, we do. One leads to the pastures where we keep the horses that have always been on the Bar P and any new ones Dad might find that he’d like to ride. The second barn is for horses who might come in and out, and we want to keep them separate from the others.”
“And the third barn?”
“The third barn used to be for storage. But I cleaned it out and now it’s for my rescue horses. The stalls each lead to fenced-in areas, in case they don’t get along well with others or are afraid of them. It takes a while to gentle them sometimes. That’s true of the wild mustangs, too. They can take weeks or months, depending on the temperament of the horse.”
“Let’s look at the third barn,” she decided.
When she cut a glance at Chase, she could see the smile that slipped across his lips. Every time she looked at him, she remembered their kiss. Every time she looked at him, she remembered more than that.
His T-shirt accentuated his muscled arms. His broad shoulders never slouched. That told her he was confident in his stature as a tall man and as a person.
She was glad she’d worn slacks as they walked over packed ground and gravel and through some grass. Now and then, she had to hurry a little to keep up with Chase’s stride. He was giving her a tour as his mother had suggested, not stopping to talk or touch. That was what she wanted, wasn’t it?
The barn was only about twenty feet away when Chase increased his pace a little more, probably so he could open the door for her. She was looking at him, not watching where she was going. The stones were larger here and one turned under her foot. She gave a little yelp as she felt herself starting to fall, but she never hit the ground. Chase was there, his arms around her, helping her right herself on her feet. She just wished she could right herself in her heart and her head, because when she was standing in the circle of his arms, looking up at him, she felt as if her world would never go back to spinning normally again.
“Ar
e you okay?” he asked, his eyes concerned.
“I’m fine. I should have worn sneakers.”
“Did you turn your ankle?”
“No, I just basically slipped. Thanks for saving me.”
They stared at each other for a long time, but then Chase blew out a breath. “Come on, let’s see the horses. You can only get close to one of them—Gypsy. She’s going to be a great riding horse for someone. I hope I can find a family who wants her.”
Now Chase took Lucie’s arm as they walked. She almost pulled away but decided what could it hurt? She liked the feel of his fingers on her skin. She liked having Chase that close.
“You don’t keep any of them?” she asked.
“I’d like to keep them all. When you put time and care and gentling into an animal, you create a bond that really can’t be broken. But practically speaking, I can’t keep them all. I have to transfer that bond to someone else who will love and appreciate them.”
“But if you find a special one—”
“You mean like Gypsy? Yeah, if this deal goes through for my own place, I might just have to keep her.”
They stepped over the threshold to the barn. This structure had eight stalls, four on each side. No horses were housed there at the moment. They were enjoying the March day.
Chase opened one of the stall doors and beckoned for Lucie to come in. Walking through, Lucie could see the mare in her own little pasture. She was a gray with a silver mane.
Chase clicked his tongue and the horse came running to him.
He put his arm around her neck and rubbed her. “Hey, girl, how are you today?”
She nudged the back pocket of his jeans.
He laughed. “She knows I keep snacks in there.” He took out what looked like a cookie.
“All natural,” he said. “She’s getting back the shine on her coat and the sparkle in her eyes.”
“Can I touch her?” Lucie asked.
“She hasn’t seen many people. Mostly me. Just approach her slowly and we’ll see what she does.”
Lucie did just that.
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