The Cowboy's Pride

by Charlene Sands

  “I wasn’t sure if you’d come,” Trish said as she took the last bite of a veggie taco. Then she paused. “You’ve had enough illness in your life to last ten lifetimes.”

  “All the more reason. I can relate to the kids who have recovered and are ready to mainstream back. Just put me to work.”

  “Oh, I will. I hope you’re all settled into the hotel because we’re heading to Penny’s Song right after our meal.”

  “Has Clay been working with you?”

  “Yes, he has.” Sensitive to her feelings, Blake hadn’t brought up the impending divorce yet. “We do fine together,” she assured him. “We’re both committed to the charity, so there hasn’t been a problem.”

  And now that Blake was in town, Trish’s days and nights would be occupied. It was a blessing in some ways and it saddened her in others. Her secretive pre-divorce fling was over.

  “Have you spoken to Mom and Dad lately?” he asked.

  “I speak with Mom once a week. She seems to be enjoying Florida. I invited both of them to come, but they…they thought it would be awkward,” she said with a shrug. “You know, with what’s happening with the divorce. Do you talk to them often?”

  Blake bit into a tortilla chip as he shook his head. “I travel a lot. When I’m home, I’m busy.”

  Her brother was holding something back. She could see it in his eyes and hear the trepidation in his tone. Suspicious, she asked, “What aren’t you telling me, Blake?”

  “No, nothing really. I, um, just need some space, that’s all. We talk, but not like we used to. I’m over my illness and I’m tired of having to explain my health to Mom every time I get her on the phone. I just want to live a normal life.”

  She smiled sadly at the irony. Blake had the opposite problem with their parents than Trish did. While they worried themselves sick about him, they’d always relied on dependable, efficient Trish to take care of herself. Even now, her mother and father weren’t making tremendous overtures to see Meggie, their new granddaughter. They offered to visit her next month sometime, but Trish wasn’t holding her breath. “I get that, Blake. I do. They’ve always worried about you. It’s almost like second nature now.”

  “I appreciate all they’ve done for me. I know the sacrifices they made.” He turned a somber eye toward her. “And I know what my illness cost you, too.”

  “No, that’s not true.” She couldn’t let him feel badly for something completely out of his control. “It didn’t cost me anything. I’m just glad you survived, Blake.”

  He stared at her with a dubious expression but seemed to think better than to argue the point. The subject changed to something more pleasant, the new woman in Blake’s life. Trish was grateful her brother had survived his childhood. His life was full now and she felt great satisfaction in that.

  When the doorbell chimed at six o’clock, Trish was sure it was her brother right on time for dinner. She opened the door with a big smile, and came face-to-face with Clay. He stood stiff, like a plank of wood, his lips tight.

  “Oh, uh, hello, Clay.”

  “Trish.” Freshly showered and shaved, he looked groomed and dressed for a night on the town. The tantalizing scent of leather musk followed him as he swept his way inside the house. “Where’s Meggie?”

  An uneasy feeling stole over her. “In her playpen.”

  He glanced down for a moment as if summoning great patience and when he finally made eye contact, the intense look in his eyes made her shiver. “I want to talk to you.”

  “Uh, it’s…it’s not a good time.” She had a feeling whatever he had to say shouldn’t be said in front of Blake. “My brother’s here. I mean, he’s not here right now, but he’s coming any second. He’s in town for the—”

  “You’re buying a house in Nashville.”

  Surprised, she jerked her head back. How did he know that? Had Callie told him? She’d like to think her friend wouldn’t repeat their conversations and betray her trust. “How did you find out?”

  “Your lender called my bank for some information.”

  “And of course they pipelined it right to you.” Clay had too many pipelines, she decided. But at least now she knew Callie could be trusted.

  “I’m not the one secretly buying a house.”

  His overbearing tone rubbed her the wrong way. “It’s not a secret, Clay. It just happened a little while ago.” She lifted her chin. “Is there a problem?”

  He glared at her like she was an idiot for even asking the question. “You should’ve told me.”

  She began shaking her head. “It’s none of your… I’m not asking you for anything,” she rushed out. “I’m doing this on my own.”

  Clay rolled his eyes, his tolerance looking pretty thin. “I don’t give a damn about the money. If you need me to sign for something, I’d do it.”

  “I…don’t. I can handle it.”

  “You always do, don’t you?” His tone was sharp enough to cut glass.

  She stared at him, baffled. She hadn’t seen him today, but they had plans to go over the final arrangements for the gala, detail by detail tomorrow morning. What was he so burned about that it couldn’t wait until then?

  “I’m sorry…I don’t know what you’re getting at.”

  “Forget it,” he said, obviously annoyed with her. He strode past her heading toward the second bedroom.

  “Where are you going?”

  He didn’t answer. She followed him, stopping at the doorway to watch as he stood over Meggie’s playpen. The baby jumped for joy the second she spotted him and reached her chubby arms up. Clay’s hard expression softened. The tick that beat at his jaw smoothed to align with the plane of his face, and his broad stiff shoulders relaxed. Even his stance changed from rock solid to almost liquid.

  “How’s my little wildflower today?” he asked. Meggie responded by stretching her arms up even farther. Clay bent over the playpen and picked her up effortlessly. She cooed and looked at him with innocent trust that was dangerously sweet. It tore Trish to shreds.

  Cradling her, Clay hummed a tune that had once caused his female fans to faint flat on the floor. Meggie was mesmerized and Trish was almost brought to her knees, too.

  Heaven help her.

  Trish took a hard swallow. Her eyes stung and she held back tears. She fought the retching emotion building up. She fought it tooth and nail. She fought it for all she was worth. Clay held her baby tenderly, with total affection, and it was obvious the two belonged together. They fit. The strong tall cowboy and the blue-eyed baby bundle somehow looked perfect together. Trish shut her eyes, denying the sensations washing over her, wishing them away with silent, heartfelt pleas.

  Don’t love him. Don’t love him. Don’t love him.

  But she did. She loved Clay.

  Stunned, she couldn’t rationalize it away.

  She loved her husband and she’d probably never stopped loving him.

  The emotion sapped her strength. Everything went numb. She couldn’t watch the two of them any longer. She turned away, squelching the feeling with stark willpower. Her pride being what it was, she held that emotion in check.

  Blake’s timing couldn’t have been worse, or better, depending on how she looked at it, but he knocked then and she answered the door, giving her brother a cheerful smile, while her heart lay recklessly in danger of breaking.

  Again.

  “Hey, sis. The place looks nice,” he said, entering the home and glancing around. “I remember you doing some remodeling here, if I’m not mistaken.”

  “You’re not…mistaken. I, uh, enjoyed every second working on it,” she replied, distracted. She needed to snap out of it. Right now. “Come into the kitchen. Dinner is almost ready. I hope you’re hungry.”

  He followed her into the kitchen. “I shouldn’t be, but I am.”

  “That’s good,” she said. Her appetite had vanished.

  Clay walked into the kitchen holding Meggie on one arm. The baby took one look at Blake, then turned to Cl
ay and clung to his neck, suddenly shy. Clay comforted her with a stroke of the hand and hugged her tighter before stopping a few feet from Blake. “It’s good to see you, Blake,” he said, putting out his free hand.

  The two men shook. “Same here, Clay. You’re looking well. And I see you’ve made friends with Meggie.”

  Clay slid Trish a sideways glance, then nodded. “She’s a good baby.”

  “She’s wonderful,” Trish agreed without sparing him another look.

  “Are you having dinner with us?” Blake asked.

  Before Trish had a chance to offer an invitation, Clay shook his head to decline. That was a good thing. Her emotions were way out of whack. She couldn’t deal with Clay and her unwelcome feelings right now.

  “No, I’ve got plans for the evening.”

  Trish wondered where he was going, dressed so nice. It was better for her sanity that she didn’t know.

  Clay transferred Meggie into her arms. She went easily, accustomed to being shifted between the two adults in her life. Clay sent Meggie a lingering look before turning to Blake. “I hear the kids over at the little ranch had a ball with you today.”

  “Yeah, it was great for me, too. We relate to each other. Talk about been there, done that. That’s me, a dozen times over.” On a deep sigh, Blake went on, “What you and my sister are doing is a very good thing. I’m very impressed with Penny’s Song.”

  “Thanks, I’m pretty darn proud of it,” Clay said, then cut the conversation short. “Well, I’ll see you around, Blake. We’ll talk some more another time.” He shot Trish a momentary glance before giving her a curt goodbye. “Trish.”

  As soon as the door closed, immense relief washed over her. She could breathe again, which was a task since her heart was in her throat.

  “What was that all about?” Blake asked. “Clay couldn’t wait to get out of here.”

  Tears hid behind her eyes. “I know.”

  She’d allowed the baby to get close to Clay and she’d never forgive herself for that. As for her, falling for him again was futile. She’d done the two things she’d vowed not to do because as much as she wanted to believe otherwise, Clay hadn’t made any real overtures toward her. He hadn’t claimed undying love. He hadn’t asked her to stay in Red Ridge. For all she knew, he still harbored mistrust and resentment toward her. They’d had great sex and had shared some intimate evenings together. Period. She’d been a fool and now not only would she pay the price, but Meggie would, too.

  She admonished herself and admitted to Blake on a barely audible whisper. “I’ve really messed up this time.”

  Trish sat across from Clay at the kitchen table sipping coffee discussing the details of the gala tomorrow night. For all her worries, Clay had come over right on time and was in a slightly better mood than last night, although he remained distant and polite. He didn’t touch the cinnamon rolls she set out. He didn’t say much either, yet they managed to go over all the items Trish had on her to-do list, making sure they were on the same page.

  “So, it looks like we’ll have a packed house,” she said, leaning back, satisfied. “And I can’t think of one detail we’ve forgotten, can you?”

  “Nope, you’ve got it all covered.”

  “Yeah, on paper it looks good,” she agreed, rubbing her hands on her jeans. “But putting it together tomorrow is the real test. I want to go over to Penny’s Song as soon as Meggie wakes up to get a mental picture in my head one more time. And make sure the children are ready.”

  “They’ll be ready. Every last one of them is excited about it.” Clay took a sip of his coffee.

  “And you really think this is going to work?”

  “It’s brilliant, Trish. I have no doubt.”

  Trish had doubts about everything in her life lately, but she hoped this gala would raise generous amounts for the charity foundation. She had to put aside her feelings for Clay and deal with her heartache another time. Fortunately, Clay was cooperating, making the Penny’s Song gala his top priority, too.

  “Well,” he said, pushing air out of his lungs, “I’ve got my own list of things to do, so I’ll be going.”

  He scraped back his chair and rose, putting his hat on.

  Trish got up, too, and walked him to the door, grateful their meeting had been a civil affair.

  “Oh, I almost forgot.” He pulled out a sheet of paper from his pocket. “I had a dinner meeting last night with a contributor who can’t make it to the gala. This is our first donation. Thought you’d like to see it.” He slipped the paper under her nose.

  Trish took a quick look and then looked again. “Fifty thousand dollars!”

  The corner of Clay’s rigid mouth lifted. “I thought you’d like it.”

  “Oh my goodness.” She clutched her chest, honestly stunned. “Who…how did you…this is amazing!”

  “He’s an old friend of mine. We had dinner last night and I showed him around Penny’s Song. We sat around the campfire, swapping stories with the kids. That’s how I know your idea for tomorrow is going to kick some major contributor butt.”

  “Okay.” Trish began to nod, her head bobbing up and down. She couldn’t hide her grin. “Okay.”

  She felt better about everything now. Her doubts disappeared, but she hated facing the truth. She’d been just as thrilled that Clay hadn’t been with Suzy last night. He’d been with a friend who had deep pockets.

  “Trish.” Clay’s voice was edged with enough intensity to stop her cold.

  “What?”

  “I think we should display a united front tomorrow, for the sake of Penny’s Song.”

  She agreed instantly. “Of course we will. Our vision has always been on track. At least it’s the one thing we have.”

  He stared at her for a long moment, then finally tipped his hat. “Okay, then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  It was settled.

  Later that day, Trish walked the perimeter of Penny’s Song with Meggie and Blake and reminded the children of their part in the gala as she encountered them. One by one, they had given her their reassurances. They knew what to do.

  Blake strolled off with Meggie to show her the horses. Trish watched them go, no longer holding her breath, a tightly, when Meggie was out of her sight. Her brother wanted to get to know the baby better and Trish thought it a good thing.

  She walked up to a rise that overlooked the ranch and peered down, envisioning how it would all come to life tomorrow. After a few minutes, she saw Callie drive into the parking area. When she got out of her car, she spotted Trish and waved, then headed up the hill.

  “Hi,” she said, immediately noting the baby’s absence. “Where’s Meggie?”

  “Oh, she’s down there somewhere.” Trish pointed toward the stables. “With my brother.”

  Callie grinned. “You’re making progress.”

  “Some. I’ve already called him once.”

  Callie chuckled, her eyes beaming. “You’re bad.”

  “You think?”

  “It’s nice that she’s spending time with your brother.” She paused. “For a second, I was hoping you left the baby with Clay.”

  “Clay? Uh, no. I haven’t done that.” Trish shifted her focus back to the ranch below, unable to meet Callie’s expectant gaze. She whispered, “It’s bad enough that Meggie adores him.”

  Callie sighed. “And it’s terrible that Clay adores Meggie right back.”

  Trish shot her a glance.

  “What? You’re not denying that Clay has feelings for Meggie.”

  “No, I’m not.” Sadness swept clear through her. “Not at all. I shouldn’t have let it happen. Meggie will miss him terribly when we leave.”

  “Then don’t go.” Callie’s advice landed like a thud. She made it seem so simple when the whole thing was extremely complicated.

  “I have to go. There’s nothing keeping me here…anymore. Clay’s not…he’s not…”

  “You know what I think?” Callie said, her voice triumphant. “I think yo
u love Clay and he loves you right back and neither one of you is willing to make the first move. I think you need to forgive him and he needs to forgive you. I think you’re only going to be truly happy with each other. The three of you make the perfect family.”

  Trish was astonished. Callie had put her life into a neat little box, bluntly but honestly. She was right, but Trish couldn’t go backward. For once in her life, she wanted to feel truly and completely loved. Nothing had changed between her and Clay. Or had it? She began to doubt herself now and couldn’t even formulate her arguments. “But I, no…I can’t even…it hurt so much before—”

  Callie laid her hand on her arm. “I know. Love hurts. Tagg and I had our share of it, too. But look how happy we are now. What have you got to lose, Trish? You’re already set to go home. If it doesn’t work out between you and Clay…well, at least you gave your marriage one last valiant effort. I say, go for it.”

  “But how?”

  “Tomorrow. It’s your last chance. Dazzle Clay. Make him forget Suzy’s name. Do it for Meggie. Do it for Clay. But mostly, do it for you. You deserve it, Trish. You love Clay, don’t you?”

  Trish held back tears and nodded, closing her eyes.

  “Okay, then. Give it one last shot.”

  When Trish opened her eyes, Callie was smiling, her eyes filled with reassurance.

  “Tell me, is Tagg making this same plea to Clay?” Trish asked. “Are you double-teaming us?”

  Callie grinned and if Trish was wrong, she might have just put the idea in Callie’s head. Her friend narrowed her eyes, shook her head and waved her finger back and forth. “I’ll never tell.”

  Ten

  Trish inhaled and took a good look at herself in the bedroom mirror. Tonight she was going for daring times two. She put on a gown made of shimmering silver sequins that clung to her like a tight leather glove. The gown draped low in folds down her back, just above what would be considered indecent. She’d had her hair done in Red Ridge at Beatrice’s Salon, styled by Beatrice herself. On one side of her head, a glittery comb pulled her hair severely back only to fill the other side with a mass of long, sweeping blond waves.