“So, the hero’s come to save the day,” Todd said when Megan joined him after showing Peter to his room.
“Don’t you dare make fun of him,” she snapped. “He just wanted to fit in, which is more than I can say for you.”
Todd held up his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Okay, I give up. Peter’s a saint and I’m a jerk.”
She waved off the apology. “I’m sorry. I was just feeling guilty.”
“Guilty?” Jake echoed, coming into the room looking tanned and healthy and vigorously masculine.
“Don’t get excited. I’m not confessing to my sins,” Megan told him, unable to ignore the stark contrast between this man and the one she’d just left upstairs. Measured against Jake, who was all solid muscle, Peter made a lackluster showing. She couldn’t help wondering if she’d been subconsciously comparing them for years.
“Too bad,” Jake said. “Listening to you recite your sins could have been fascinating.”
“Where’s Tess?” she asked, deliberately changing the subject.
“In the kitchen eating chocolate chip cookies.”
“I’m surprised you’re not in there with her.”
He grinned. “I’ve had mine.” He held up a foil-covered plate. “Mrs. Gomez dispatched me to bring a batch to you guys.”
Todd reached eagerly for the plate, then breathed in deeply. “Still warm from the oven. I’ve died and gone to heaven.”
“You work for a culinary celebrity,” Jake pointed out. “Doesn’t she ever feed you leftovers?”
“Sure,” Todd said, biting into a cookie. “Take-out Chinese is my personal favorite.”
“I meant from her own private kitchen.”
Megan scowled at the pair of them. “I don’t cook at home.”
Jake chuckled knowingly. “Still lousy, huh? I thought maybe being the host of Megan’s World might have taught you something. You make it look so easy.”
“Don’t you start on me, too,” she said. “I’ve already had this conversation with Tess.” She glanced up and spotted Peter in the doorway. He looked more like himself in his tailored slacks, silk-blend shirt and polished loafers. “Come on in. You know Todd, of course. And this is Jake Landers. Jake, Peter Davis.”
With Todd looking on in amusement, the two men squared off as if readying for a sparring match. Even dusty and windblown, Jake had the clear advantage. Peter exuded money and polish. Jake exuded pure male sensuality. Megan truly wished it weren’t so. Peter was a whole lot easier to cope with. Safer.
“Peter and I have business to discuss,” she said, hoping to dismiss Jake.
Instead, he settled into her grandfather’s favorite leather chair. “Don’t mind me, darlin’. I’ll be quiet as a mouse. You won’t even know I’m here.”
Unfortunately, ignoring Jake’s presence was as impossible as pretending that she was still happily ensconced in her New York life-style. “Whatever,” she mumbled.
“Megan, these really are private business matters,” Peter said stiffly. “Do you think a stranger should be present?”
“Oh, I’m no stranger,” Jake said before Megan could reply. “Meggie and I go way back. For a time there, we were practically joined at the hip.”
Todd choked on his cookie. Megan glared at him, then at Jake. “If you’re staying, keep quiet.”
“Not another word,” he vowed solemnly.
Of course, the fact that he remained stoically silent while she and Peter discussed her company’s financial situation made her even more aware of his presence. A discreet cough every now and then hinted of his disapproval of various plans offered up by Peter.
Jake scowled when Peter shook his head over her plan to create a production facility in Whispering Wind.
“What kind of rent will you be paying for this studio space?” Peter asked. “What are the cost projections for renovations? The kind of equipment you’ll need won’t be cheap. What about offices? Where will the crews come from? It seems to me to be sheer folly to even consider this, when everything you need is already available in New York.”
“I can’t be in New York right now,” Megan said. “This is temporary.”
“Then it truly is a waste of money,” Peter countered. “I’d have to strongly advise you against it.”
“Maybe so,” she said, accepting his judgment. “But can I do it?”
“There’s money in the bank, if that’s what you’re asking,” he said tightly. “I thought you were asking my advice.”
“I think she’s made it clear that she’s not, hot-shot,” Jake piped up, then gave her a rueful smile. “Sorry. I lost my head.”
“Yeah, right,” she muttered. “Okay, we’re not getting anywhere like this. Why don’t we have another meeting tonight, when Kenny has given me the cost projections?”
Peter scowled in Jake’s direction. “Will he be here?”
“More than likely,” Megan said with a sigh of resignation, after glancing at Jake’s intractable expression. She reached for Peter’s hand. “Come on. I’ll show you around.”
“Better watch those shoes, Pete. There’s a lot of cow dung on a ranch,” Jake called after them.
As soon as they’d walked outside, Peter regarded her with a miffed expression. “Who is that man?”
“An old friend,” she said wearily. “And my grandfather’s attorney.”
Peter stared at her incredulously. “He has a law degree?”
“Oh, yes. He used to practice in Chicago, till he decided to come back here, more than likely for the sole purpose of making my life a living hell.”
Jake stuck his head out the door. “I heard that, darlin’,” he said, before disappearing inside again.
“He is a very annoying person,” Peter proclaimed.
“Tell me about it,” Megan said. The only trouble was she was beginning to count on that very annoying person. Moreover, he was beginning to make her palms sweat and her knees go weak just the way he had all those years ago. It was a very bad sign.
Satisfied that Peter wasn’t outside making moves on Megan, Jake returned to Tex’s office and settled in to cross-examine Todd.
“What’s the scoop on those two?” he asked point-blank. Jake was fully aware that he was now doing exactly what he’d warned Tess against doing—prying into Megan’s private life.
“Megan and Peter?” Todd responded, his expression innocent as a lamb. “He’s her CPA, but, of course, she told you that.”
“Anything more to it? The guy hovers like he has a right to.”
“Why don’t you ask her?”
“Because you’re here and I’m asking you.”
“Then you’re flat out of luck, because Megan pays me very well to keep my mouth shut about her private business.”
Jake wanted to remind him that he hadn’t been half so discreet with Tess, but stopped himself. He considered pressing the point, but concluded that Todd’s loyalty was too admirable a trait to mess with. “Does she know how lucky she is to have you working for her?” he asked instead.
Todd grinned. “I remind her every chance I get.”
“How do you like Wyoming?”
“Hate it,” Todd said succinctly.
“What happens if she decides to stay?”
“I’m praying that won’t happen.”
Jake gave him a warning look. “I’m praying just as hard that it will.”
Todd shrugged. “I guess we’ll see whose prayers have more pull.”
“I’m not relying entirely on outside forces. I aim to do a little persuading of my own.”
“By sleeping with her?” Todd asked, regarding Jake with disconcerting directness.
Jake considered his own response carefully. Discretion be damned. “No,” he said finally. “That will be all about pleasure.”
“Then you’ll use Tess,” Todd concluded with evident scorn. “You really are a low-down louse, aren’t you?”
“No. I’m a man who cares what happens to an eight-year-old kid who’s just lo
st the only person who ever really loved her. I’m also a man who knows Meggie well enough to understand that she’ll never get past the guilt if she doesn’t do what her granddaddy counted on her doing.”
“Why here? Why can’t she do that in New York?”
“Because this is Tess’s home.” Jake shrugged. “And Megan’s, though I don’t think she’s realized how important that is to her yet.” He wondered if, in the end, that wasn’t what had drawn him back to Whispering Wind, despite all the bad memories.
“It’s a house, land, a bunch of cows,” Todd said disparagingly.
“It’s her heritage.”
“What makes you think her heritage matters to her? She ran away from it once.”
“And I’m betting that she’s regretted it ever since,” Jake told him, as sure of that as he was of his own growing feelings for her. Meggie needed a home more than most. So did he.
“Not so you’d notice. I keep her schedule. Her life in New York is full, jam-packed with friends.”
“And empty of the one thing that counts,” Jake said.
Todd looked perplexed.
“Family,” Jake said quietly, thinking of how desperately he’d always wanted one of his own. All those years of living on the edge with a mother who’d drifted in and out of an alcoholic haze had made him long for a real home, the kind Tex had made first for Meggie and then for Tess. Jake wanted children and family feasts on holidays and a zillion presents tucked under a towering Christmas tree that sparkled with lights. Maybe it was an idyllic illusion. Maybe it didn’t exist in real life, but he wanted to find out for himself.
He wanted all of that with Meggie, a woman who’d tossed everything aside for a single life and an all-consuming career. Maybe Todd was right. Maybe Jake was nothing but a damned fool thinking he could have all of that with Meggie. Just because they’d once shared that dream didn’t mean it still meant anything to her.
Supper was a very tense affair. Megan didn’t have the energy or the will to referee the nonstop sparring between Jake and Peter. With Tess chiming in on Jake’s side and Todd smirking, Megan’s stomach was in knots by the end of the meal.
Maybe that was why the unexpected appearance of Flo Olson set her off. When Tess’s mother burst into the dining room like an avenging angel come to claim her own, Megan rose from her chair and met the woman before she could get anywhere near Tess.
“I want you out of here,” she said with quiet force, waving off Jake, who’d also risen. “You’re in violation of a court order.”
“I don’t give a damn about court orders,” Flo said. “Tess is my baby.”
Peter regarded her with shock. “Who is this woman?”
Flo barely spared him a glance, before focusing on Tess again. She held out her arms. “Come here, baby. Give mama a hug.”
Wide-eyed and clearly frightened, Tess slipped out of her chair. But instead of going to her mother, she crept close to Jake, who circled an arm protectively around her shoulders.
“Go away, Mama,” Tess said in a small, but surprisingly firm voice. “I don’t want you here and I don’t want to go with you. You don’t love me. You just want Tex’s money.”
Flo’s face crumpled, and for the first time, Megan felt a vague stirring of pity for the woman. Maybe her presence wasn’t entirely about Tex’s money, after all. Maybe she really did regret abandoning Tess.
Or did Megan just want to believe that because she needed to think that Sarah had lived with regrets? Her mother had shown no evidence of remorse. Sarah hadn’t crawled back and begged forgiveness the way Flo was doing. Megan realized that on some level she was actually a little jealous of Tess. Even after all these years, Megan still thought a dysfunctional mother was better than no mother at all. How pitiful was that?
“Tess, sweetie, I’ve missed you,” Flo said, holding out a hand beseechingly.
Tess took Jake’s hand instead. “I don’t believe you. You never even wrote me a postcard.”
“Baby, I was busy, but I’m here now. I’ve come to get you. We’ll be together again.”
“I think Tess has already made her wishes clear,” Jake said coldly. “Now, will you leave or will I be forced to call the sheriff?”
Flo looked from him to Megan. “You’re a woman. Surely you understand what a mother feels.”
“Sorry,” Megan said, hardening her heart against the woman’s obvious, if belated, distress. “I’m afraid I don’t. Mine was just like you.”
“I made a mistake,” Flo whispered. “I never should have left her here.”
“But you did,” Jake said. “She’s an O’Rourke now. It’s all nice and legal. Tex saw to that. You have no claim to her.”
“She’s my blood,” Flo protested.
“And Tex’s,” Megan reminded her. “Like Jake said, she’s an O’Rourke.”
Flo seemed about to protest again, but Jake nudged Tess toward Megan, then took hold of Flo’s arm and steered her from the room. She was still arguing when they finally moved out of earshot.
Tears were streaking down Tess’s face as she stared off in the direction her mother had gone. Megan knelt down in front of her.
“Peter, let’s get back to work,” Todd said diplomatically, tossing his napkin on the table and leaving the rest of his dinner untouched.
“But—”
Peter’s protest was cut off as Todd ushered him from the room as expertly as he guided unwanted visitors from Megan’s office in New York.
“What’s going to happen to her now?” Tess asked Megan in a quavery voice.
“That’s up to her,” Megan said. “If she keeps trying to see you, she could be sent to jail.” She studied Tess intently. “Unless you’d rather we make arrangements for her to visit you here. It would be okay, if that’s what you want. She is your mom. I’ve told you before it’s perfectly natural to still have feelings for her.”
Tess bit her lower lip. “She sounded sort of like she really missed me, didn’t she?”
“I thought so, too,” Megan said honestly, praying she wasn’t misjudging the other woman’s intentions. If she hurt Tess again, Megan would personally wring her neck.
Tess’s expression turned hopeful. “Maybe it’s not all about me being rich now.”
“Maybe not.”
“Would it be okay to maybe ask her to dinner or something?”
“If that’s what you want, I won’t forbid it.”
“What about Jake? Will he freak out?”
Megan grinned. “Probably, but this is your call, Tess. Jake and I will work it out however you want.” She tucked a finger under Tess’s chin. “Just remember what Jake and I said—you’re an O’Rourke now. That means you’ve got me to depend on. I may mess up from time to time, but we’re family.”
Tess nodded solemnly. “I guess I’ll think about it some more.”
“Take your time. You don’t have to decide tonight or even tomorrow.”
“What if she leaves town before I make up my mind?” Tess asked plaintively.
Megan figured that would tell them all they needed to know about Flo, but she didn’t say that. “We’ll find her,” she promised. She doubted it would be that difficult. Though she prayed it was otherwise, she still didn’t entirely believe that Flo would go far from Tess’s newfound wealth.
Megan brushed the tears from Tess’s cheeks. “Okay, now?”
Tess nodded, then gave her a shaky smile. “I’ll be better after I’ve had ice cream.”
Megan glanced at the table. “You haven’t finished your vegetables,” she observed sternly, then grinned. “Oh, what the heck. Neither have I. Two hot fudge sundaes coming up.”
“Three,” Tess said. “Jake’s going to want one, too.”
“Yes, I imagine he will,” Megan agreed, leading the way into the kitchen.
With Mrs. Gomez gone for the evening, they were left to their own devices. Fortunately, dishing up ice cream was a skill Megan had acquired early on. She loaded the dishes with hot fudge, then let
Tess squirt whipped cream on top. Jake returned just as they’d finished.
He took one look at the gooey desserts and pulled up a chair. “I assume this one is for me,” he said, grabbing the biggest sundae.
“It could have been for Peter,” Megan grumbled.
“Never. He’s probably into poached pears with a carmelized sauce.”
He was, but Megan wouldn’t have admitted it if her life depended on it.
“Everything okay?” she asked instead.
He nodded. “How about in here?”
“Me and Megan made a pact,” Tess said.
“Oh, really? What kind of pact?”
“She’s gonna stick by me no matter what.” Tess regarded Jake solemnly. “She said you would, too.”
Jake reached over and ruffled her hair. “That’s a guarantee, sweet pea.” His gaze locked with Megan’s. “You couldn’t shake me if you tried.”
There was no question the message was meant for both of them.
20
Total disaster reigned in Peggy’s kitchen on Tuesday morning. Megan watched as her old friend stood in a corner and observed the scene with an obvious mix of fascination and horror. Her furniture and appliances were being rearranged, lights were being set up and cameras placed. To anyone outside the business, it must seem chaotic. To Megan it was an orchestrated beehive of activity that had become second nature.
Worried that Peggy might panic over the upheaval and back out, Megan joined her and gave her hand a quick, reassuring squeeze. “You okay?”
“It’s so exciting, isn’t it?” Peggy asked, surprising Megan with the sparkle in her eyes. A moment later, Peggy’s eyes dimmed and worry creased her brow. “Are you sure they can put everything back when we’re finished?”
After Tex Page 22