The Cattleman's Proposal

by Helen Lacey

  “Nothing,” he said lightly. “Just some family stuff to sort out.”

  She nodded. “Thank you for the clothes,” Joley said as she came towards him.

  “No problem. I can order breakfast,” he said easily and saw her grimace. “Only if you’re up for it.”

  “I don’t think so,” she replied and stood in front of the large window which overlooked the city center. “Maybe some more tea.”

  “Sure. Help yourself.”

  She moved away from the window and stood by the narrow bench. Nate watched as she grabbed a cup and poured water over a teabag. Her movements were slow, controlled and he suspected she was harbouring one heck of a hangover but was way too proud to show it.

  “Mmmm…good,” she said as she took a sip. “I guess I should be going.”

  Nate shrugged. “There’s no hurry. It’s Sunday.”

  “I have things to do,” she said quickly and placed the cup on the bench. “I always spend Sunday with Red.”

  “Red?”

  “My horse,” she explained.

  “Right. You told me about him last night.”

  Her mouth creased. “I bored you with horse stories…sorry.”

  “Horses don’t bore me,” he said and dropped into an armchair. “I break and train them for a living.”

  “I thought you owned a cattle station?”

  “I run cattle on Gwendonna Downs,” he explained. “Horses are my work.”

  “They’re my release from work,” she said and sat down in the opposite chair. “Well, there’s only Red. But I adore him.”

  Nate grinned. “Yes, I gathered as much from your conversation last night.”

  She groaned. “Oh god, I did bore you with horse stories. Please tell me I didn’t go on about how I was deprived of a pony as a child and as soon as I could afford it bought my first horse when I was eighteen.”

  “Yeah, I got that.”

  She looked at him. “What else did I say?”

  Nate rested his elbows on the arms of the chair and linked his fingers. “Well, there was the sad only child story and how you longed for a little brother or sister and you—”

  “Okay, I get it,” she said and waved a hand. “I bored you with my tales of woe.”

  “Not at all. It was enlightening.”

  Her gaze narrowed. “Did I…did I say anything about…”

  “About Patrick?” he said when her words trailed.

  She shook her head quickly. “No, I mean…nothing…I’d rather forget the whole thing.”

  “That might be difficult considering you’re in my hotel room wearing my clothes.”

  Nate watched, fascinated as her blue eyes widened and changed to a deep indigo. She had a temper, but was doing her best to keep a lid on it. Her reaction amplified the burning awareness pumping through his blood. If he had his own way he’d charge across the room and kiss her like he wanted to do. But he wasn’t about to do anything to scare her off. Despite her bravado, Nate sensed Joley McBride needed a slow hand.

  “Then I guess now is probably a good time to tell me how I ended up in your hotel room?”

  “You insisted on staying,” he said quietly and saw the color rise up her neck and hit her pale cheeks and he bit back a smile.

  “I insisted? I must have…”

  The exact moment her memory kicked in was glaringly obvious. Her big eyes almost popped out of her head. He figured she was quickly recalling the glass after glass of champagne, her repeated offers to take her to bed, then later, when she lost the contents of her stomach all over his shoes.

  “The garden,” she said vaguely, frowning as she shook her head. “I remember being in a garden.”

  “It was a garden bed.”

  The color quickly leached from her face. “Near the pool. That’s right. Oh…I was sick. I was…” She stopped, stilled, and met his gaze head on. “I was sick and you were there. Your shoes…”

  “Fortunately I brought another pair with me,” he said easily.

  She took a second, swallowed hard and then met his gaze head on. “I’m so sorry. I’ve never behaved like that before.”

  Nate believed her. There was something refreshingly honest about Joley. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons he was so attracted to her. He wanted honesty. Of all the things he looked for in a woman, that was at the top of the list.

  “Forget about it.”

  “I can’t—”

  “So you had a bad night and too much to drink,” he said and cut her off. “It’s not the end of the world.”

  She didn’t look convinced. “Why are you being so reasonable?”

  “Because that’s what you need, isn’t it?”

  He had a point. But Joley wasn’t sure agreeing to anything was a good idea. Especially since she remembered every agonizingly embarrassing moment of her behavior at the wedding. Like, how she asked him to make love to her before she’d thrown up. And of course her insistence he take her to his room, where she’d proceeded to strip off the awful dress that had been strangling her all night. Not quite naked—but naked enough that he’d be very aware of her flaws. And what else had she said? Joley hoped she hadn’t wailed about her current financial situation. Or how much her biological clock had started ringing off the hook.

  “Well, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry. Now I need to go home,” she said and pushed herself up.

  “I’ll drive you.” Nate got to his feet. She was about to refuse his offer when he spoke again. “I insist.”

  Joley figured there was little point in being obstinate. “Sure. I’ll get my things.”

  It took a few minutes to collect her dress and handbag and head for the car park. Once settled in his hire car her nerves receded a little. I’ll be home soon. Away from this. Away from him. Knowing she might never have to see him again gave her some relief. Sort of.

  Her suburban brick and tile was twenty-five minutes from the city and in view of her head pounding like a freight train, Joley appreciated the silence that developed between them. She didn’t want to talk or dwell on her behavior.

  “Thank you,” she said when he pulled up outside her house. “I’ll make sure I get your clothes back to you before you leave.”

  “I’d like to see you again.”

  She snapped her neck sideways. “What?”

  “Have dinner with me tomorrow night?”

  Dinner? “You mean like a date?”

  “Like dinner,” he said quietly. “I’ll pick you up at seven.”

  Joley shook her head. “No.”

  “Then meet me at the hotel restaurant instead.”

  “I can’t,” she said

  “Sure you can. You’re not seeing anyone at the moment, right?” he asked.

  How did he know that? Gabby, of course. She could imagine be painted as a dull, workaholic who spent every night alone in her small house. Yeah…because it’s the truth. She shook her head, still defiant, then got out of the car and shut the door.

  The window rolled down. “By tomorrow you’ll want to see me again. So, meet me at the hotel at seven,” Nate said and before Joley could reply he drove off down the street.

  ***

  “I dropped by early this morning and you were out.”

  Her mother. Joley had known it as she picked up the telephone late that afternoon. She’d spotted the caller ID and considered letting it ring out. But she knew Ella would only call back. Better to face the inquisition now.

  “Where were you?”

  “Jogging.”

  Ella laughed. “Try again. And don’t bother to say you were riding your horse. You car was in the driveway and I called the stables. Did you spend the night with Nate Garrigan?”

  Joley bit back a sharp retort. Ella had been running interference in her love life ever since she’d hit puberty. “I stayed at the hotel last night,” she explained, choosing her words carefully and stretching the truth as far as her conscience would allow. “And I slept alone.” Which wasn’t a lie. Nate had tol
d her he’d spent the night on the sofa. “Look, I can’t talk right now. I’m going out and I have to—”

  “With him?” her mother asked, jumping all over the possibility.

  “To see Red,” she replied. “So I’ll see you on Wednesday.”

  She rang off and plopped the receiver into the cradle. Wednesday night dinner with her parents had been a weekly ritual ever since she’d moved out at twenty-four. It was the same year she and Patrick had gone into business together. He bought a share in the business her father had started twenty-five years earlier and they became partners. Since she was a young girl Joley had known she wanted to fly. By eighteen, she had her pilot’s license and spent the next three years working with her father until she gained enough qualification to teach. Now, she did most of the scenic tours and tuition with her father, while Patrick, although a skilful pilot mostly ran the administrative side of the business. It had been that way for years. She and her dad flew, he organized. Little did Joley know he had steadily borrowed money to upgrade their small fleet of aircraft. Now they were in a position where they couldn’t pay back their loans. And he’d dropped the bad news on the day before the wedding..

  Which meant they could lose everything.

  I could lose everything. And what it would do to her father didn’t bear thinking about. Patrick had Gabby, the baby and enough charm to land on his feet. But the school was her father’s whole world. And mine.

  She grabbed her cell and called Patrick’s number. It rang out and went to his message service. She left a message, then another the next hour, and another the hour after that. When she wasn’t silently cursing her best friend for being unavailable, she was thinking about Nate Garrigan and his overbearing arrogance. He’d all but ordered her to have dinner with him. And Joley didn’t take orders. It would serve him right being stood up for acting so outrageous.

  Joley had more important things to think about than Nate and his washboard belly. By the time she arrived at work the following morning she was as wound up as a spring. Patrick would call her, she was sure of it. The new part-time office manager appeared to have the day’s schedule well under control and Joley had just two lessons before twelve. She returned to the office before lunch and went to grab her keys to drive over to his place when her father appeared in the doorway.

  Ian McBride was a big looming figure with a head of shaggy gray hair, weathered face and a soft, gentle nature. A man whose heart was in the sky even when his feet were on the ground. She loved her dad dearly and would do whatever was necessary to save his beloved flight school. Talking with Patrick was number one on her list.

  “Heading out?” he father asked.

  She nodded and moved towards him. “For a while.”

  “Don’t you have a lesson at eleven?”

  Joley shook her head and then quickly checked the schedule on her desk. True enough, she did have a mid-morning lesson. “Yes, looks like I do. Can you cover for me?”

  He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Of course. Everything okay, love?”

  “Sure.”

  “You seem distracted. It’s not like you to forget a booking.”

  “I’m fine,” she lied and smiled the best she could. “What about you? Are you okay?”

  He shrugged. “As good as these old bones let me be. It’s looking like another quiet week though.”

  Her dad was right. The lessons seemed thin on the ground these days. “It’ll pick up,” she assured him and smiled.

  He shrugged his big shoulders dejectedly. When, she wondered, did her father start to look so old? “We haven’t had any new students sign up for a few weeks now.”

  “Things will improve. We’ve been through tough times before.”

  “But the new planes—”

  “Were necessary, Dad,” she said and touched his arm. “That’s why I agreed when you and Patrick suggested them. We have to stay competitive and the new Cessna’s were part of that. Business will get better. When Patrick gets back we’ll all sit down and talk about the business. For the moment though, I have an errand to run.” She kissed his cheek, grabbed her bag and left the office.

  Joley wouldn’t, under any circumstances, let her father see how worried she was. She was strapping up her seat belt in her car when her phone rang. Patrick finally returned her call. She snatched up her cell and said his name.

  “Joley?”

  Patrick’s voice scratched through the receiver and sounded far away. “I’ve been trying to call you since yesterday.”

  “Sorry…” She heard him say and then his voice faded.

  “Patrick, we have to talk,” she insisted. “I’m coming around to see—”

  “Too late,” he said quickly. “We’re at the airport.” More static screeched and his voice faded out again. “Leaving today…got an early flight.”

  “But we have to talk about the business,” she said in a firmer tone. She knew Patrick. He’d try to charm his way and get her to wait until he returned from his honeymoon before they talked about their financial problems. But she wasn’t prepared to wait. “I can’t wait until you—”

  “Don’t sweat it, Joley,” he said as his voice faded again. “It’s all sorted. Sorry for leaving like this. But Nate…”

  She gripped the cell phone. Nate? What did he have to do with anything? “Patrick, you can’t simply—”

  More static and then his voice again. “It’s all good, Joley. I promise. It’s for the best, really.”

  “What do you—”

  “Nate will explain everything,” he assured her, sounding so far away he could have been in another stratosphere. “I gotta go, Gabby’s waiting. See you in a couple of weeks.”

  The line went dead.

  Nate will explain everything.

  Nate sure as hell would!

  Chapter Three

  She took a taxi to the city to avoid fighting for a parking space and when the cab pulled up outside the hotel, the valet attendant opened the door and she headed inside. The black, halter style dress she wore gave her an odd kind of courage. She wasn’t the kind of woman who usually dressed up. Overalls for work, sweats or jeans on the weekends were her usual garb. She knew the gown covered her curves in a flattering way and the heels added to her height.

  To meet Nate Garrigan again Joley figured she’d need every advantage she could get. He’d made it clear he wanted her. So maybe she could use that to distract him long enough to tell her what exactly had transpired with Patrick. She hadn’t told him she was coming and really had no idea if she’d find him waiting. Joley certainly wasn’t about to make a telephone call. She wanted to see him face to face. She looked around, searching through the crowd.

  And there he was.

  In the foyer at exactly seven o’clock, just as he’d said. He looked so good her mouth turned dry. Had she ever seen a man with better shoulders? And a Nate-wearing-nothing-but-a-towel flashback of his belly and chest didn’t help much either. Nor did the fact he stared at her with such scorching intensity. Perhaps because she couldn’t remember a man ever looking at her in quite that way before.

  He met her across the floor. “You look lovely,” he said after one final visual sweep of her from her feet to her hair. “Shall we go into the restaurant?”

  Words burned on the edge of her tongue but she held them back. Better to wait until they were seated. Keep it civilized. In control. Then she would demand answers.

  Nate will explain everything.

  Her best friend’s words were etched in her memory. Oh, Patrick…what have you gotten me into now?

  “Drink?” Nate asked once they were seated at a private table.

  She asked for a Club Soda. He ordered it and imported beer for himself. She held her tongue until the waitress disappeared.

  Nate looked at her and spoke before she had a chance to say what was on her mind. “I wasn’t sure you’d turn up.”

  Joley’s brows snapped up. “Really? You sounded pretty sure of yourself yesterday.”


  He chuckled and she refused to think about how much she liked the sound.

  “I was hopeful.”

  She sucked in some air. “So, now I’m here—maybe you’d like to tell me exactly what you did or said to Patrick before he hot-footed it out of the country a day early?”

  Nate eased back in his seat. She was mad as hell and looked sexy enough to take his breath away. Everything about her affected him in a way that made Nate take notice. He wasn’t about to let her slip through his fingers. And he wasn’t about to allow her loyalty or feelings towards Patrick Cohen to come between them either. He’d do what he had to do. End of story. Nate knew what he wanted and he’d play his cards to get it.

  “I didn’t do anything to Patrick,” he said quietly. “Gabby called me yesterday morning. And I saw your friend today before they left for their honeymoon.”

  Her gaze narrowed. “For what purpose?”

  “Don’t you know?”

  Her eyes flashed at him. “If I knew I wouldn’t be asking.”

  “Your business is in trouble,” he said flatly. There was little point in avoiding the inevitable.

  If Joley was surprised, she hid it well. “And what does that have to do with you?” she asked so quietly he knew she was holding back her temper.

  “Nothing,” he replied and then tapped his wristwatch. “Up until about eight hours ago. Now…” he paused and waited for her to focus her total attention. “Well, a lot can happen in a few hours. It seems your friend isn’t much of a business man.”

  “Patrick—”

  “Put your business in an untenable position. But you know that, right?” he asked and waited for a moment while their drinks were served. When they were alone again, Nate continued. “The question is do you know the extent of his deception?”

  Her eyes flashed brilliantly. “I’d hardly call it that.”

  Nate half smiled. “In what reality does a person keep important financial facts from their business partners?”

  “He didn’t,” she denied. “And I can assure you I know Patrick a whole lot better than you do.”

  “Of course,” he said and drank some beer. It was time she knew the truth. He named a substantial dollar figure. The exact amount Patrick Cohen had asked him for earlier that day. The amount it took to pull Joley’s business back from the brink of ruin. “And did you know that?”