The Texan's One-Night Standoff

by Charlene Sands

  A sigh blew from her lips, and Trace turned to her. “What?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing. I should go.”

  “You sure? We haven’t gone into Santa’s Village yet.”

  “I’m sure.”

  Disappointment dimmed the gleam in his eyes. “Okay, I’ll walk you to your car.”

  He took hold of her hand again. She didn’t want to make a fuss by pulling free of him, so they walked hand in hand into the parking lot.

  Now’s your chance. Tell him you’re not taking him back. Tell him he hurt you and...

  The words didn’t come. She couldn’t yank them out of her throat. Not when he was being so dang sweet and trying so hard to impress her.

  When they reached her car, she hoped to make a quick getaway. Launching into her handbag for her key fob, she moved away from him, breaking their connection. “Good night, Trace. Thanks for the funnel cake,” she said, opening the car door.

  He glanced at her hand on the door handle and knew enough not to press her tonight. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  She should tell him no. There was no point. “Okay.”

  Before he could say anything more, she slid into the seat and pressed the ignition button.

  The car didn’t rev right up. In fact, nothing happened. She pressed the button again, giving the engine gas.

  Again nothing.

  Shoot. Trace walked over. He had a keen sense of cars, and judging by the expression on his face, this couldn’t be good. After fiddling with the ignition button, he spent a few minutes under the hood and came up looking bleak. “You want the good news or the bad news?”

  “Bad.”

  “The car’s not going anywhere tonight. Not without a tow.”

  Ruby silently cursed under her breath.

  “The good news is, I can give you a lift home.”

  * * *

  Parked in front of her cottage now, Ruby slid across the pristine leather seat, angling for the truck’s door handle. “Thanks for the ride, Trace.” Her head was spinning from spending time with him tonight. It was almost too much to take in. What they had once was pretty darn remarkable. Being with him tonight at the carnival had brought back memories of the good times they’d shared when Trace had loved her.

  Before he’d had second thoughts.

  Before he’d turned into a jerk.

  “Hold up a sec, Ruby.” The urgency in his voice stilled her. He climbed out of his truck and spun around the hood to open the door for her. He offered his hand, and she fitted her palm inside his as she stepped out. Now that they were alone under beautiful moonlight, she waited for the butterflies to attack her stomach, but nothing seemed to happen. No flip-flops. No queasy feeling. No little bursts of excitement.

  That was a good thing, right?

  As soon as her boots landed on Preston soil, she pulled her hand free, grabbing for her purse, ready to end this night. Earlier, rather than have her wait for a tow, Trace had insisted on taking her home. His good buddy Randy over at Cool Springs Auto promised to tow her car to the shop and take a look at it first thing in the morning. Ruby couldn’t argue with that logic. She would’ve had to do the same thing, and Trace had effortlessly taken care of everything for her.

  Ruby had always thought of herself as an independent woman. She could fend for herself, but having Trace take over the reins tonight and deal with her car issues was nice for a change.

  “I’ll walk you to your door,” he said.

  She didn’t like the prospect of Trace giving her a good-night kiss, one more potent than the one he’d given her at the festival. He’d been her first love, and the splinters of his betrayal were still stabbing her. The pain wasn’t as strong as it had once been, but it left behind scars that had yet to heal. She couldn’t be a fool twice. “There’s no need, Trace.” Her door was ten feet away, and having him walk her there implied much more than she was willing to concede right now.

  “Okay. But before you go, Ruby, I, uh...”

  Brisk night breezes put a chill in her bones as she faced him, her back against the bed of the truck. He stepped closer and removed his hat, hesitating as if searching for the right words. Whatever he had to say had to be important for him to stumble this way. Usually confident, he rubbed at the back of his neck and inhaled from deep in his chest. She’d never seen him quite like this, and she almost wanted to put a hand on his arm to steady him. Almost.

  “I wanted to say I’m sorry...deeply sorry for the way I treated you. I should’ve realized what we had was special, and now that I’m home to stay, I want to make it up to you. I want to start fresh. You and me, we were good together. I want that—”

  The sound of footsteps crunching gravel came from the road behind them. She swiveled her head as a figure came out of the shadows and into the ring of moonlight surrounding them.

  Trace saw him, too. “Who in hell is that?” he asked none too quietly.

  Ruby tried not to react. “Beau’s son.”

  Now that Brooks was upon them, his brows arched as his inquisitive glance went from her to Trace and back again. “Evenin’,” he said. He was picking up a Texas drawl, probably from spending time with Beau. She almost chuckled, except seeing her ex-boyfriend meet up with her current lover wasn’t a laughing matter.

  “Hi, Brooks.” There was cheery lightness in her voice worthy of a big Hollywood award.

  “Ruby.”

  “Oh, um, Brooks, I’d like you to meet Trace Evans. Trace, this is one of Beau’s twin sons, Brooks. He’s visiting here from Chicago, getting to know the family.”

  Trace sized Brooks up as he put out his hand. “Nice meetin’ ya.”

  “Same here,” Brooks said without much enthusiasm as the two pumped hands.

  “So, you’re one of the lost boys Beau’s been searching for. I heard about you. Not from Ruby, though. She didn’t say a word about you all night, but word spreads quickly when someone new shows up in Cool Springs.”

  “I met Trace at the Christmas carnival in town,” she was quick to explain. “My car broke down and Trace offered me a lift home.”

  Trace took a place beside Ruby against the truck. “Yeah, just like old times. Ruby and I go back a ways. Don’t know if she told you about us, but I’m back in town now.” He gave Brooks a smile. Was he warning Brooks off or simply making conversation? Trace had no reason to suspect anything, not that it mattered anyway. He didn’t have a claim on her anymore. “So, how are you liking Cool Springs so far?” he asked.

  “I’m liking it just fine.” Brooks said the words slowly, giving nothing away by his tone. Yet his gaze shifted to her every so often as if puzzling out what was happening. “I’m beginning to feel right at home here at Look Away.”

  Ruby edged away from Trace. If he put his arm around her to haul her closer, she’d cringe.

  “Must be, if you’re out taking a walk this time of night in the cool air.”

  “I’m used to cold weather. Chicago winters can be brutal. Actually, I wasn’t out walking for the sake of walking. I came to ask Ruby a favor. Is all,” he added.

  Ruby kept her lips buttoned. Brooks playing the country bumpkin was enough to make her laugh. But she didn’t dare.

  “That so?” Trace asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Ruby and I were in the middle of a conversation,” Trace announced, as if that wasn’t obvious.

  “Was I interrupting?” A choir boy couldn’t have appeared more innocent.

  “You were, actually,” Trace replied, his chest expanding as he stood a bit taller.

  This was not going well, and it was clear Brooks wasn’t going to back down.

  “Don’t let me stop you,” Trace said, gesturing with a royal sweep of his arm. “Go ahead and ask Ruby your favor.”

  “Actually Trace, I’m not up for this conversation tonight,” Ruby said. “It’s been a long day, and I’m tired. Brooks, can your question wait until tomorrow?”

  He glanced at Trace, eyeing him for a second b
efore nodding. “Sure thing. It can wait.”

  “Okay, then. We’ll talk tomorrow. And Trace, thanks again for the lift.”

  “You’re welcome. I enjoyed our date, honey.”

  It wouldn’t do any good denying it was date. Trace had it in his head it was.

  Both men stood like statues, refusing to move.

  “Well, good night, then.” She made her way past Trace and rolled her eyes at Brooks as she brushed by him. His lips twitched in amusement, and for that split second, devilish images of tossing him over her shoulder played out in her head.

  She left them both standing there and walked to her door. Curiosity had her turning around briefly to see Trace waiting until Brooks was well on his way before getting into his truck and starting the engine.

  Men.

  * * *

  “So what’s with your ex showing up?” Brooks wasted no time with pleasantries, yet his tone coming through her cell phone was more curious than accusatory.

  “Where are you?” It hadn’t been but ten minutes since he’d left her. Cozy in her pajamas and tucked into bed already, she really was unusually tired tonight and...confused. She hadn’t expected the man she’d banked all her dreams on once to show up with apologies and promises.

  Promises that she’d waited so long to hear.

  “I’m at my place. Sitting here wondering what’s going on with you. Are you okay?”

  “I’m okay. It wasn’t really a date, Brooks. Trace wanted to talk to me and apologize, I guess. I agreed to meet him at the Christmas carnival.”

  “So, are you forgiving him?”

  “I don’t know what I am at the moment, Brooks.”

  The line went silent. A moment ticked by, and then a sigh came through. “Is it none of my business?”

  Now, that also was unexpected. Brooks had a way of getting to the heart of the matter. “It may be your business, a little, since we’ve been seeing each other.”

  She hadn’t had to deal with the reality of their relationship until now. But it was evident Brooks had made her no promises and he was bound to leave for Chicago after the holidays, while Trace was offering her something that she’d always wanted. “I want to continue seeing you, Ruby.”

  “I, uh, I just don’t know, Brooks.” Could she be blunt and tell him she couldn’t afford to get her heart broken again if she gave in to her feelings for him and he left town? Could she tell him that he hadn’t offered her the sun, the moon and the stars the way Trace once had? It was silly to think Brooks would. They’d known each other only a couple of weeks. Though things had been humming along very smoothly until Trace showed up. “I can’t be pressured right now.”

  “I don’t want to pressure you, Ruby. But this guy’s hurt you once, and I wouldn’t want to see that happen again. I care about you.”

  “I care about you, too, Brooks. But we both know...” She hesitated, biting her lip, searching for a way to put it that wouldn’t seem callous or crude. The truth was, they were hot for each other. They’d had a chance meeting in a bar—the cliché hook-up—and it would’ve ended there if Brooks hadn’t turned out to be a Preston. Now they couldn’t seem to keep their hands off each other.

  “What do we know?” he asked.

  “We’ve been thrown together under strange circumstances, wouldn’t you say?”

  “I suppose. When I first met you, I never once thought you’d be a part of the Preston family. Shoot, it blew my mind when you walked into the barn that day. But I’m not sorry you did. Are you?”

  The truth was, no. She wasn’t sorry she’d met Brooks. She liked him, and maybe her feelings went much deeper than that, but she wouldn’t face them. She couldn’t. It wasn’t just because he was Beau’s son. Or because of all of the secrecy and guilt involved in seeing Brooks. No, she couldn’t face deeper feelings because her heart wasn’t healed enough to let another man inside. So even though she’d slept with Brooks, readily giving him her body, she’d held a small part of herself back. She couldn’t give herself wholly to him, and at this point, he hadn’t asked that of her, either. “No, I’m not sorry.” Enough said for now on the subject. And because her curiosity was tapped, she asked, “Did you really come by to ask me a favor, or was that a little fib?”

  “No fib. Although I’ll admit, I wanted to see you tonight.” His voice turned husky, and whenever it deepened like that, she melted a little inside.

  “Did you want to go out for another ride tomorrow or something?”

  “I’d love to. But that’s not the favor. The truth is, I’ve been thinking about my grandfather. I need to make my peace about him, and I’ve been putting off a visit to his nursing home. I’m not sure I’m ready to go it alone and face him. That man caused my family a lot of grief, and I don’t know how I’m going to react. But I need to put it behind me so I can move on.”

  “Would you like me to go with you, Brooks?”

  His relief came in the way of a quick sigh. “Would you?”

  “Yes, of course. I’ll go with you whenever you want.”

  “Really? That’s great. I’m... I’m thinking I’ll arrange an appointment sometime before the holiday party this weekend. I want to—”

  “I’ll clear my calendar whenever you can arrange it.”

  “Okay,” he said, his voice cracking a little. As if he was barely holding it together, as if this visit to his grandfather had been festering in his mind. “It means a lot.” Breath whooshed out of his lungs. “Thank you, Ruby.”

  “Of course.”

  Sadness swept through her when she heard the pain in Brooks’s voice. It only served to prove how much she cared about him. If she could do anything to bring him some peace and sense of closure, she was right on it. But it was more than that. She wanted to be by Brooks’s side, to give him the support and encouragement he might need to make that visit easier for him.

  He was her friend, at the very least.

  Eight

  Brooks stood shoulder to shoulder with Beau on the steps of the ranch house as a black limo pulled up and parked. His father took a deep breath in anticipation of seeing his other son for the first time. “I’m the better-looking twin,” Brooks said, smiling.

  Beau’s chuckle caught in his throat as Graham stepped out of the car. “My God.”

  “Yeah, I know.” It was the typical reaction people had when they met the Newport twins for the first time. One face on two very different men. “Graham cut his hair a bit shorter than usual just so you could tell us apart.”

  “That’s...smart,” Beau said with a catch in his throat. Then he took off straight toward the limo, and Brooks followed.

  Graham was reaching inside the limo to help his fiancée out of the car. It had been a while since Brooks had seen Eve Winchester. Because she was Sutton Winchester’s daughter, she’d been an immediate adversary, and he hadn’t liked her for a time, but Graham was head over heels in love with Eve, and Brooks had finally made his peace with her.

  “Welcome, son,” Beau said, trying his best to keep his composure. As Brooks sidled up next to him, he spotted tears glistening in his father’s eyes. “I’ve waited a long time to meet you.”

  “So have I.”

  The two men embraced, and Brooks gave Eve a smile and a peck on the cheek.

  Graham broke away first from the bear hug, taking Eve’s hand and gently tugging her forward.

  “Beau, I’d like you to meet Eve. My fiancée,” Graham said.

  Beau embraced Eve carefully. Despite the beige leather jacket and blouse underneath, Eve’s baby bump couldn’t be missed on her slender, athletic body. “Pleased you meet you, Eve. Welcome to my home, and congratulations on the little one. I couldn’t be happier about all of this. My two sons, a new soon-to-be daughter and a grandbaby on the way.”

  “We’re excited about it, too,” Graham said, and there were smiles all around.

  “I’d appreciate it if both of you called me Dad.”

  Graham shot Brooks a quick glance as if to say
, Finally. We have a dad. “I think we’d both like to do that, right Eve?”

  Her green eyes glittered. “Yes, of course.”

  Beau’s lips curved up in a wide smile. Then he scratched his head, shifting his gaze from Graham to Brooks. “You two boys are certainly identical. That much can’t be denied.”

  “No, but I’ve wanted to deny this guy was my brother a time or two,” Graham said, eyes twinkling. It was meant as a joke, but there was some truth there, too. They’d had their differences, especially lately. Graham hadn’t exactly approved of the tactics Brooks had used to go after Sutton Winchester.

  “Is that so?” Beau asked, puzzled.

  “But it’s all good now, right Graham?” Brooks was quick to point out.

  “Right.” His brother had the good grace to nod and agree. Brooks didn’t want to dredge up the past, not now, when they’d finally found their family. It was all about the future now.

  “Graham, I’ve gotten a chance to get to know Brooks, and he’s told me some about the two of you growing up. I can’t wait to get to know more about you and get acquainted with Eve. I have to admit...there was a time when I didn’t t-think this day...would e-ever come.” Beau choked up.

  Graham’s eyes watered a little, too. “Well, we’re here now for a few days and we’ll have lots of time to catch up.”

  “You’ll stay for the holiday?”

  “Of course.”

  “I’m happy to have you here for as long as you want. Let’s get out of the weather. Come on inside. I’ll show you to your room.”

  The chauffeur brought the bags in behind his family as they entered the house, but Brooks held back. There was something missing, or rather, someone.

  He did a quick scan of the grounds, looking for signs of Ruby. Since their conversation two days ago, he hadn’t stopped thinking about her or his reaction to seeing her with Trace Evans. Jealousy had surged as strong as he’d ever felt it, making him stop and assess exactly what was going on between him and Ruby. He’d never met a woman quite like her, and the thought of her going back to her ex put an ache in his gut.