Wild Western Nights

by Sara Orwig

  “Jake, tell him your news before one of us does,” Tony said.

  “What don’t I know that everyone else does?” Gabe asked his brother, realizing Jake hadn’t stopped smiling since saying hello.

  “Caitlin is expecting a child,” Jake said, grinning broadly. “You’re going to be an uncle, kid brother.”

  “Congratulations!” Gabe said, delighted. “Imagine, me—an uncle.” He grinned nearly as broadly as Jake. “That is fantastic news! Astounding.”

  “I didn’t expect this much enthusiasm from a guy who knows nothing about babies.” Jake studied his brother.

  “I like Nick’s kids. Michael is cute, and Emily is a little doll.”

  “Thanks. I have to agree,” Nick replied with a grin.

  “Maybe you’re growing up, Gabe,” Jake said, still focusing on his brother.

  Gabe laughed. “This baby is different, too. This will be my nephew. Or niece,” he added. “I might have a niece. Wow. If we weren’t in this relatively quiet restaurant, I would let out a whoop.”

  “Hold it in, little brother,” Jake drawled. “I know you, and you’re not kidding. If you do that in this place, we’ll get booted out before we get breakfast. Celebrate when you get outside.”

  “Let’s have a toast,” Gabe said, raising his glass of water. “To my brother and to Caitlin. Congratulations to the new mom and dad. May you always remember not to meddle unnecessarily in your baby’s life.”

  “Hear, hear,” Nick said, smiling as they all clinked glasses of water against Jake’s goblet.

  “Amen to that one,” Tony added. “With all our interfering fathers, I hope we have learned to stay out of our children’s lives when we should. Course, our control freak dads were what made us all such close friends through the years. Because of them, we have a bond that most men don’t. But as much as I like y’all, I’d rather not have that tie with you.”

  “Well, thank goodness Dad still leaves me alone,” Gabe said as he set down his glass.

  “He sees you as the baby brother and doesn’t realize time is passing. When you take the plunge and propose, he’ll go into shock,” Jake said with another smile.

  “You’re right,” Gabe replied, thinking about Maddie. He glanced around the table and looked at three happy men who were more relaxed than they used to be in their single days. “I will have to admit, marriage seems to agree with the three of you.”

  “That and the recent investments you’ve made for us,” Tony said, raising his glass to Gabe. “You’ve made us all richer. I knew there must be a good reason I put up with you tagging along all those years. Who knew then you’d grow up to be a shrewd investor?”

  “Maybe his brother,” Nick said. “Jake always has had faith in you. Thanks, Gabe. You’ve really turned a dollar for us.”

  “See, I kept telling y’all if you put up with him, you’d be glad someday,” Jake said, and they all laughed.

  “I’m glad everyone is happy,” Gabe said, looking up as the waitstaff brought big trays loaded with breakfast.

  “Thanks again for ordering for me, Jake.”

  “You’re welcome. You’re predictable when it comes to breakfast. About the only thing predictable in your life.”

  Gabe grinned. “Speaking of unpredictability, Maddie Halliday is back. She’s come home to sell the Halliday ranch. Don’t get a gleam in your eye, Jake. You own more land than one man should right now.”

  “I may not be able to resist looking at the ranch, Dad,” Jake said.

  “I deserve that one. Buy the Halliday place if you want it. It isn’t close to yours though.”

  “That won’t matter. I’ll look into it. Is it on the market?”

  “Not yet. That’s what Maddie’s here to do. I happened along yesterday when she was on her way to the ranch and had a flat on her brand-new rental car.”

  “What’s she up to? Is she married?”

  “No, she’s not.”

  “Well, well,” Jake said, studying his younger brother.

  “I can see the wheels turning, Jake. She loves Florida and her job there. Her mother and maternal grandparents all live there. She can’t wait to put the ranch on the market and get out of here forever.”

  “No, I don’t guess there will be anything between the two of you, then. Her determination to leave Texas would kill any interest you would have in her,” Jake said.

  Conversation changed and Gabe was happy to eat in silence and avoid more questions about Maddie. For now, he wasn’t sharing his thoughts with Jake.

  When the group had finished eating and broken up to go to work, Jake walked out with Gabe.

  “I wasn’t kidding about looking at the Halliday ranch,” Jake said. “Actually, I’m surprised you don’t want it. It’s closer to your half of the ranch than mine.”

  “Jake, I’m spending more time with my investments. And yours, I might add. I’d rather do that than worry about increasing my land holdings.”

  “I’d rather you did, too. You’re a damn fine petroleum engineer, but you’ve got the knack for investments—that’s your real talent. Just keep it up. You’re going to make me wealthier than Dad and probably yourself, too. He’ll go into shock when he realizes the extent of how your wealth has increased. I’ve told him a little, and he gets very quiet.”

  “I like the work, Jake. Anyway, I don’t have to own half of West Texas to be satisfied. Our ranch is big enough, and we’ve got income from other sources. To me, it just looks like a lot more work. The Halliday ranch may turn a tidy profit, but I can’t see why you’d want to deal with it.”

  Jake studied him a moment. “The door is always open at the office. You know I’d like to have you on a consulting basis if you don’t want to come back full-time.”

  “Thanks.”

  “The guys were talking before you arrived today. They are really happy, Gabe. You’ve done a great job for them.”

  “I’m doing all right for myself. Investing is a way to prove myself, beyond the family business and the ranch. I’m no longer ‘Jake’s little brother.’ It’s one thing that I’ve done all on my own, with no family involvement other than the fact that you are one of my clients.”

  “You hardly have to prove yourself.”

  “Sometimes I feel I do. Jake, I’ve always been your little brother. That’s how people know me. This is something I can do that is totally apart from the family business or the family ranch or your expertise. I’m on my own.”

  “Well, if it makes you feel better, you’ve been damned good at it. You’re making both of us billionaires. I think it’s only a matter of time until Dad asks you to handle some of his personal investments.”

  “I wouldn’t mind that,” Gabe said, and then he wanted to change the subject. “I’m thrilled for you and Caitlin. The baby is really great news.”

  Jake grinned. “We think so. We’re excited. Actually, Mom and Dad are far more worked up than I thought they’d be.”

  “Mom, I’m not surprised. Now Dad—he’ll be a granddad. I wonder if that gave him a jolt.”

  “Didn’t seem to. So far he hasn’t tried to interfere, but I expect an account to open soon for our baby.”

  “Oh, sure. He’ll do all sorts of things. Tell Caitlin I’m happy for both of you. And thrilled for me. An uncle. Most amazing. Can’t wait to spoil him or her. Dad may not be the only one starting to do things for the baby.”

  Jake laughed. “You surprise me more all the time. Could it be my baby brother is growing up?”

  “Maybe it’s time, Jake,” Gabe answered a little more sharply than he’d intended.

  “How do I get in touch with Maddie?” Jake asked.

  “I have her cell phone number,” Gabe replied, fishing in his pocket for his billfold and pulling out a slip of paper with her number. “Here, call her on my phone, and I’ll talk to her after you’ve finished.”

  “Sure,” Jake replied, making the call and setting up an appointment with her to discuss the ranch. He handed the phone to Gab
e. “Thanks. She’s waiting. See you, Gabe.”

  Gabe nodded as he said hello to Maddie, watching his brother walk away and thinking about the baby news. Jake would be a dad, and he would be an uncle.

  He sauntered to his car and climbed in, sitting and talking to Maddie, reminding her they were going to have dinner at a local place where she would see a lot of her friends.

  Maddie had an appointment, so as soon as they finished their call, Gabe drove to a local jewelry store to find a baby gift for Jake and Caitlin, finally settling on a Dresden calliope music box that he had gift wrapped. Whistling, he drove to the office, still amazed that he would soon be an uncle, something he had never thought about and hadn’t expected to have happen for a long time.

  Maddie would be as surprised as he. An hour after lunch, Gabe was already wanting to leave early so he could get ready to see her and tell her the good news.

  Maddie dressed in new jeans and a blue Western shirt. She looked forward to the evening and getting out where she could see old friends. She tried to keep that prospect as her focus and avoid thinking about Gabe, but it was impossible.

  “Foolish, foolish woman,” she admonished herself, speaking aloud in the empty room. When she had come home for her grandfather’s funeral, six men had asked her out. She had turned each one down. She hadn’t wanted to go out with them, but even if she had, she still would have refused to do so. Any relationship in these parts would complicate her life too much. Besides, next to Gabe, the men all paled in comparison.

  “Why can’t you fall in love with someone else?” she asked herself, thinking about Gabe.

  The doorbell rang and she hurried downstairs to open the front door. Looking great, Gabe stepped inside.

  “Oh, my word.” Her gaze raked over his blue shirt and his tight jeans and Western boots. “We’re dressed alike,” she observed, making him flash a wicked grin.

  “We think alike,” he said.

  “Oh, no we don’t. I know better than that. I’ll run and change my shirt. You stay right here. Or go sit in that front room where you used to wait for me.”

  He gripped her wrist. “Forget it. You look great and I’m happy for us to be dressed alike. Maybe it’ll send a message to the locals to stay away from you.”

  She stared at him a few seconds before she spoke. “I cannot understand you. You act like you want a relationship between us, yet I know you don’t.”

  “Oh, yes, I do. I keep telling you—time and people change. You’re different now, and I am, too. So let’s explore the differences.”

  Sighing, she shook her head. “Gabe, don’t try to dredge up what’s over.”

  “We can talk in the limo. Are you ready to go?”

  “I suppose, although I think we’ll look silly dressed alike.”

  His grin returned. “I like it. Makes you my woman.”

  “If that doesn’t sound like a Neanderthal, I don’t know what would. You’re not going to ruin my evening out, are you?”

  “No, I’m going to stand back and watch every single guy in the county want to dance with you.”

  She had to smile. “I suspect a few ladies will see to it that you don’t get lonesome while I’m on the dance floor.”

  They both laughed, and he squeezed her hand lightly. “It’s great to be together again,” he said. His words twisted her insides. She didn’t want to have fun with him, fall into old habits and find him as charming as ever. Why did he always seem larger than life to her? It had made sense when she had been eight years old and he had been thirteen. Back then, she had thought of him as the big brother she wished she had. She stopped seeing him as a substitute brother when she was about twelve years old. By that time, she thought Gabe was the cutest boy in the next dozen counties.

  As they sped along the highway, Maddie talked about the agencies she’d interviewed earlier that day, and Gabe told her what he knew about each and which one his family used.

  “Enough about me and my day. How was yours?”

  He flashed her a broad grin, and she wondered if he had made some highly rewarding deal. “What happened? You look like the proverbial cat.”

  “Happier than any cat. I got some really great news. Jake is going to be a father, which means I will be an uncle.”

  While he shot her another quick smile, she stared in surprise. “That’s really great,” she said.

  “You don’t sound like you actually think so,” he said, giving her another quick look.

  “Again, you shock me. I’m amazed you’re so delighted. What do you know about babies or being an uncle?” she asked with a sharp note in her voice.

  “Nothing,” he replied cheerfully, “but I’ll learn and it’ll be fun. I’m excited to be an uncle.” He gave her another quick look. “Sorry, Maddie. For a moment I forgot you’re an only child, so you won’t be an aunt.”

  “I’m not worried about that. I could marry someone who is an uncle, and then I would be an aunt by marriage. I’m amazed that you find a baby really great news. I figured you wouldn’t care.”

  “Maybe a few years ago I would have been that way, but this spring I volunteered to help with a shelter after a tornado, and those little kids were cute. Then I got involved in a community project where we took two kids to work on the ranch, and I dealt with them pretty much on a daily basis. I enjoyed both projects.”

  “Well, another surprise. I didn’t know you were into good deeds, and I’m astounded you enjoyed working with the kids.”

  “See, I’ve been telling you since yesterday, there are facets to me that you don’t know.”

  “Maybe there are, Gabe,” she said, looking at him intently, wondering if he had changed. She had known him extremely well by the time she moved away from Texas. At that time, he had no interest in kids, commitment or charitable deeds.

  “Now, I can’t imagine my brother as a father, but Jake will be a good one, I’m sure,” Gabe said.

  “I’m sure, too. He’s been like a father to you,” she said.

  It was hard to imagine the Gabe she used to know donating his time to help storm victims and enjoying spending time with kids. Also, the project that had involved kids at his ranch would have meant an even stronger mentorship with the kids. Had he matured and grown up in the years she hadn’t seen him? Would his feelings toward his own status as a dad be different now than they would have been six years ago?

  For the first time, she began to seriously question the stand she had taken to keep Rebecca’s existence a secret from her father. If Gabe had changed, her decision to keep Rebecca a secret would have to transform, too. She glanced at his profile and wondered again about the depth of his feelings about the expected baby arriving in his family.

  Her world had suddenly shifted. She was at a loss and needed to regain her composure before Gabe noticed. He used to be able to read all of her feelings.

  “Have you talked to Caitlin yet?”

  “No, but I will soon. I got a baby present this morning, and I had it gift wrapped. If I’d thought a minute, I would have held off on the wrapping and shown it to you.”

  “One more surprise. What did you buy?”

  “It’s a fancy calliope music box from Starling’s Jewelry.”

  “I’ll bet it’s beautiful. The baby can’t touch it, but that’s sweet, Gabe. Caitlin and Jake can play it for the little one. That was being a good uncle.”

  “I can’t wait. A nephew would be fun. A niece—that would be a huge delight.”

  Thinking instantly of Rebecca, Maddie’s heart thudded. She drew a deep breath. Again, she questioned her decision to keep Rebecca from her father. If Gabe was this way about Jake’s baby, what would he be like about his own? Had she made a terrible mistake? Or had Gabe matured over the past six years?

  He kept talking to her, but she couldn’t focus on what he was saying. Her ears rang, and she felt light-headed. She tried to get a grip on her emotions. Gabe had shocked her deeply, and he was going to realize something was amiss if she didn’t begi
n to act like herself.

  After a few more seconds, she picked up the thread of conversation.

  Gabe drove her to a local place where musicians were already playing fiddles and people were doing the two-step. They hadn’t gone three feet from the front door before old friends greeted and hugged Maddie.

  Gabe left her with friends and managed to get a table. He ordered an iced tea for her and a cold beer for him then returned to stand near her.

  Finally, they made it to their table. Gabe glanced at his watch. “That only took a half hour. Think I’ll get to dance with you tonight?”

  Smiling, she grasped his hand. “Let’s go dance now.”

  They entered the dance floor while a two-step was playing. Gabe was a great partner, and she loved dancing with him. With work and Rebecca, she had missed going dancing. When Gabe faced her, his blue-eyed gaze blazed with desire. She couldn’t look away. Her racing heartbeat and breathlessness were not from dancing.

  They finished the dance and another couple hurried over to greet her. She hugged Sophie, her closest friend from early childhood, and then received a light hug from Sophie’s husband, Tyler Randolph, another local she had known most of her life. Her past was secret from old Texas friends, which always gave her a twinge of guilt. Her grandfather had been a man with secrets and he kept them well, including the one concerning his granddaughter.

  They chatted until music started again.

  The next dance was claimed by another local she had grown up with. While she danced with Dan Emerson and caught up on his life, she saw Gabe dance by with another acquaintance. Molly was laughing at something Gabe was telling her, and he was smiling. He looked as if he were having the time of his life. This was Gabe as she had always known him—fun, carefree, charming, enjoying life to the hilt. And not a man for marriage, babies, responsibility—as carefree as the wind. Was she missing what was really there? Had life and time made changes in him?

  Later in the evening, they ordered ribs, but she could barely get through her dinner for people coming over to talk to her. They soon had half a dozen chairs around their table.

  It was midnight when she finally agreed to leave. Not until they were in his pickup, did Gabe give her a long look. “I’ve finally got you to myself.”