by Jillian Neal
He let Meritt slip through his hands and made no effort to hold on to any single grain of sand from that relationship.
He and Callie would figure this out together. He just had to prove to her that he'd be there for every moment of the rest of their lives. Beyond that, they'd just figure it out. She'd been asking for a sign. Well, this was one hell of a sign.
Unless he was wrong. The doubt compounded on the worry. He tensed his arms around her. Her breasts were still fevered and tender. But that could be because of something else. Maybe he was dreaming this all up because it's what he wanted so badly. She'd put on a little weight. That was it. Good. That was precisely what he wanted her to do. If she was really pregnant, she'd know, and she would be the one telling him. Wouldn't she?
Chapter Forty-Four
Endlessly thankful that Dalton and Wes were running his feed trucks that morning, though Ford knew he'd owe them a week's worth of feeding at some point in the future, he turned slightly in the bed and grinned down at Callie still sound asleep in the crook of his arm. Sweet baby. Her hair was in a wild mane covering her bare breasts and shoulders.
He longed for her just like this—warm and sweet and natural. She was tucked up in a ball against him. He let his hands caress and awaken the descent of her spine and her bare ass. She grinned but kept her eyes shut tight.
Overcome with the need to prove to himself that he could be gentle, almost achingly tender with her this time, he brushed a kiss along her hairline. "I want you."
"I love the way you sound in the mornings," she informed him.
"How do I sound?"
"All gravelly and even more sexy than normal."
"I'll have to remember that." He continued to try to coax her awake, but his mission was interrupted when her cell phone buzzed on the side table. It was just after seven. Ford couldn't remember the last time he'd slept that late, but who the hell was calling her?
Huffing out her irritation, Callie slid upwards in the bed, yanked the sheets up over her tits, and stared at her phone. "It's Nana." Ford tried to listen in to determine what was going on. "Wait. What?" She paused long enough for the answer to that question. "But why? You've owned the farm since Mom was a kid."
Not much he could make out of that, and he couldn't hear whatever Delphia was saying. A knock on the front door had him lumbering out of bed and yanking on his Wranglers. Clearly, his sleeping-in time was over, and his brothers wanted some help.
Scrubbing his hands through his hair, he swung open the door with an apology pinned on his lips, but he stopped before any words could fully form. Clint Garcia, one of the sheriff's deputies, stared back at him with a frightened expression. "Uh, Mr. Holder, sir..." he held up an envelope.
"What the hell is this?" Ford demanded. Barbed wire twisted in his gut. Every hair on his body stood on end. Somehow, he knew whatever that phone call was about it had something to do with what was in that envelope.
"I'm here on behalf of the Holder County Superior Court."
"I know who you work for, Clint, for Christ’s sake we went to school together. Just give me the envelope and stop calling me Mr. Holder."
Ford jerked the envelope out of Clint's hands and tore it open. His heart pounded out a vengeful war-drum cry. Sonuvabitch. He read the words spousal support modification request and falsified information before he closed his fist around the paperwork. "How fucking many times can she do this? I signed the papers eight weeks ago. She isn't getting one red cent from me. She was the one that was cheating," he seethed.
Clint shrugged. "Guess the judge thinks she has a case. I'm not sure."
"Ford, what's wrong?" Callie rushed from the bedroom in one of his T-shirts and her jeans. She had her purse slung over her shoulder.
Clint visibly took his time staring at her appreciatively. An odd growl kicked up from low in Ford's gut. "I'll talk to my lawyer. Get off my land," was the only warning he gave before he slammed the door. Turning to Callie, he tried to count to ten before he spoke but only made it to four. "It's Meritt. She's suing for alimony again. I'll talk to Dale Miller. He handled the divorce. I'm sure she won't get anything, but the woman loves to make my life a living hell."
Callie's already worried features fell. "I'm so sorry."
"Not your fault, sugar. Tell me what Nana wanted and why you think you're leaving." He gestured to her bag.
"I have no idea what's going on. Apparently, there's an assessor out at the farm along with some kind of doctor who works for the state or something. I don't know. I have to go see what's going on. It looks like my father," she spat the word, "is trying to take full possession of my grandparents’ farm without having to pay for it or something. Nana is confused and upset, so I have to go out there and see if I can make sense of this. He's always been an asshole, but this is extreme even for him."
"I'm coming with you," Ford informed her.
"No, you don't need to do that. You have to handle this," she gestured to the paperwork. "I'll be fine. I just need to calm Nana down and get through to my father."
Ford ground his teeth. "Callie, baby, he's furious with me. If he decided to take it out on your grandparents, then I'm the one who needs to talk him out of it. Now, I'm coming with you. I'll call Dale on the way."
"I'm sorry about all of this," she fussed.
He cradled her chin in his hands. "What am I about to say?"
She managed a slight grin. "That I didn't do anything worth apologizing over."
"Good girl, now keep telling yourself that while I get a shirt on."
Callie tried to listen in on the phone call Ford was having with his lawyer as he drove them off of Holder Ranch. The only thought that remained centered in her head was that Meridian had been correct—Meritt was nothing but trouble.
"I haven't even seen her in months, Dale," Ford huffed. "How the hell would I have given her the impression I'd come into more money than I had when she left?"
Feeling guilty for using Ford's problem to distract from her own, Callie recounted the things Nana had told her. There was some farm assessor out on the property who was supposed to be drawing up paperwork on how much the farm was worth. Had her father somehow come into money? That seemed unlikely. And even more importantly, did he really believe that her grandparents would sell the land they'd saved so long to purchase? A spark of hope remained ignited in her belly. Now her grandparents would see what a wretched human Callie's father really was, and they'd kick him off their land for good. She just had to make sure her father didn't get his way. But he couldn't possibly. This was one of his get-rich-quick stunts again. She was sure.
With that thought easing the tense set of her shoulders, she tried to discreetly adjust her bra. She wished she'd just start her period because her boobs were killing her. Of course, with all of the sex they'd been having lately, they'd likely scared Aunt Flo off. But surely, any day now, she'd show up with all of her crampy, bitchy glory, and Callie would be miserable. At least her periods were super light since she'd been on the pill so long.
She was already halfway through the placebo pills in her birth control package. It likely wouldn't be any day now, it would be any minute now. Dammit, she probably should've put on a pad before they left Ford's house. It would just be the icing on the cake of this horrendous morning to bleed through her jeans while she was trying to talk to a tax assessor and yell at her father.
Chapter Forty-Five
Ford handed his phone to Callie when he ended the call to keep from hurling it against the windshield.
"What did he say?" Callie asked.
"For me to bring the papers to his office and that he'd take care of it. He seems to think something must've happened that made Meritt believe I'd come into money. I have no clue why she'd think that, but god knows she's only happy when she's making me miserable."
"Ford, I'm really..."
"I know you are, baby, but this isn't your fault. Let's just go see if we can't get through to your daddy and then I'll deal with my ex."
/> "I'm sure this is just one of Dad's get-rich schemes. Either that or he's trying to get back at me for something. He's such an ass, but his bark is always much worse than his bite. I'll get through to him. Nana said he's trying to get Pops declared unable to care for himself or something. She said that the doctor said they were going to have to get evaluated by the state to prove that they're healthy."
Ford had no doubt that her daddy was an ass, but he'd done more rounds with greedy vipers than Callie ever had. Abe didn’t want the land. Not really. He wanted attention, and he wanted money. Ford had his checkbook in his back pocket. If he had to pay off her daddy to shut this all down, he would.
He knew that's what Abe was after anyway. Ford had circumvented his plan to bilk her grandparents for more money for that barn roof, and now Abe was pissed. This was yet another reason he sure as hell would not be giving Meritt spousal support. The words rolled into a rock in his throat making him gag. She'd had all the support she wanted until she got caught with her pants down, literally. Now, she was going to have to lie in the bed she'd wanted to be in for years.
When Ford saw the black Nissan Frontier parked in front of the Simpkins’ house, a half-dozen cogs in his mind turned slowly until they locked into place. Even he would never have believed that she'd do this, but once again, he'd failed to see just how mean his ex-wife could be. He'd taken his father's advice and tried not to corner her, but it hadn't worked. Not when she was the master puppeteer and had an idiot like Abe Monroe caught up in her strings. Ford had cornered the marionette, and now he was going to get the manipulator.
Too angry to speak or move, he glared at her truck. When Callie opened her own door and slid out of his truck, he jerked back to life. Stomping to her side, he wrapped his arm over her shoulders and pulled her close. If they were going to step into one of Satan's rings, he'd keep her safe.
"What's wrong?" Callie shivered against him.
"I'm not sure yet, but I have a good idea. That's Meritt's truck," he spat.
"Why would she be here?"
"We're about to find out." Too far gone for manners, he flung open the front door without knocking. "What the hell are you doing here?" He spared no pleasantries for Callie's grandparents. He'd talk with them later.
Meritt narrowed her eyes into a vicious sneer, precisely the expression she'd used for the last year they'd been together. "My god, you are so predictable."
Abe looked far too pleased for anyone's good.
Ford spared her an eye roll, and pulled Callie tighter against him. "God knows how much you love to run your mouth, Meritt, so get to it."
"I knew you'd do this. I'm honestly almost disappointed it was this easy."
Callie's fists clenched against Ford's thigh. His baby narrowed those pretty brown eyes, and Ford was momentarily concerned he was going to have to break up a cat fight.
Meritt continued. "You always have to be the hero, don't you? I knew you'd come out here to save your little jailbait slut. Too bad your brain isn't as big as your dick."
Ford lunged for her, but Callie gripped his hand and managed to pull him back. "Don't," she ordered. "That's what she wants."
"No, that's not what she wants," Ford snarled. "She wants me to pay your daddy off and then what, Meritt? If I pay him off, you have some kind of deal worked out with Abe so you get half or something like that?"
She gave him a simpering smirk. "That and proof that you do have access to the vast Holder Land and Cattle checking accounts when you need them. That looks very good for me in court. I told you a long time ago not to cross me, but you did it anyway. You just never learn."
Panic cinched in his muscles, but he'd be damned to hell before he'd let her know she'd gotten to him. "You can take me back to court all you want, but you'll never get a dime of Holder money. I wasn't the one having an affair. As you'll recall, that does matter in the state of Oklahoma."
"Really?" Meritt laughed in his face. "You expect everyone to believe that you just happened to find her right after I left? Get off your high horse. I wasn't the only one messing around."
"That isn't true," Callie huffed. She shook her head and turned on her father. "Dad, how could you do this? To me? To Nana and Pops? How can you seriously sit there and be working with...her."
"You're such a spoiled brat," Abe scoffed. "Like I told both of you, not all of us were born into the right families. The Holders have more money than they have sense, and I think it's high time the rest of us get our share."
Rage ignited in Ford and unhinged his temper. "Call her a brat one more time and it'll be the last thing you say."
"Ford, stop," Callie soothed. "This is ridiculous. You're not giving them anything because Nana and Pops aren't selling the farm, and you," she gestured to Meritt, "just told us your whole stupid plan. Go ahead and take us to court. We didn't start dating until after those papers were signed."
"Good luck proving that. Your grandparents aren't able to care for themselves anymore, little girl," Meritt slithered like the viper she was. "The farm rightfully belongs to your father since he's the one who stayed here to care for them all these years."
"Bullshit," Ford snapped. “Get out. Now.”
Callie sat beside Ford on her grandparents’ old sofa and tried to understand what Dale Miller and Meridian were explaining. The pain and disbelief seemed to have rendered her deaf. She couldn't quite make out what was being said, or perhaps it was the shock of it all that had created the barriers.
Ford shook his head, "So, if I buy the farm and return it to Harold and Delphia, Meritt can use that as evidence to get alimony, but if I don't then Abe could take their land?"
Dale gave him a somber nod. "Your hands are tied, which is precisely what Meritt wants. She's gambling on the fact that you'll break down and purchase the farm if Abe pushes hard enough and then she grants herself access to the company accounts when your net worth is being calculated."
Meridian cut across him, "But none of this works Meritt and Abe's way unless they can get a judge to rule that the Simpkins are incapacitated and in need of guardianship. Then the courts would have to appoint Abe as the guardian. We can stop that from happening."
Dale shot her a long-suffering glance. "From what I was able to deduce from my earlier conversation with Abe, the claim is that the Simpkins are unable to manage their financial resources. Because there are two loans against the farm, the property itself is the resource they seem unable to manage. Mr. Simpkin, you did try to secure a third loan two months ago. That combined with the lacking funds in your checking and savings accounts does make my job more difficult."
"I'm lacking funds because he constantly asks for money," her grandfather vowed. "I've given him thousands over the years. Half of the time I don't see the improvements he said he was making."
Her nana alternated between crying and praying.
Ford stood and started to pace. "Mr. Simpkin, I am not going to allow Abe to take your land from you. We'll figure something out so that I can buy it and give it back to you. There has to be some way to prove Callie and I weren't dating until after my divorce. Once I figure that out, everything else falls into place."
"If you buy this farm it will be even more difficult to get a judge to believe that you weren't with Callie before the divorce papers were signed," Meridian cringed as she spoke. "You've only been dating two months. It's a significant enough purchase to make it appear that you two were together for years. We're going to have to handle this a different way."
Suddenly, a hesitant hope cleared Callie's muddled mind. "There is. There is a way to prove that. I just have to call Derrick. I'll be right back."
Ford grabbed her arm as she whisked past him. "You are not calling Derrick."
The ego and pain in his eyes wounded her. She'd seen it before, but it had been almost gone completely the last few weeks. "Ford," she tried to beg with her eyes, "I am not Meritt. You know that. Derrick can help us if he will. You can't fix this on your own. I deserve the chance to help.
Honestly, maybe even more than that, I deserve the chance to make Derrick hear me. I need you to understand that."
Chapter Forty-Six
Ford was furious, mostly with himself, but if he were being brutally honest, he'd admit he was ticked with Callie, too. Every fucking time she called Derrick, a bolt of betrayal tightened in his chest. He needed to be the one that saved them, dammit. How did she not get that? All he'd ever wanted to be was her hero.
He went back to calling himself an asshole for good measure. The only saving grace was that Derrick had yet to pick up his phone. Some hero.
"Ugh!" she tried to growl and sounded a great deal more like a pissed-off kitten.
"What is it you think he's going to be able to do?" Ford finally asked.
She leveled him with a cool glare. The chill twisted up his spine. He really was being an asshole, but he had no idea how to stop. "I wasn't even here in town until the day of your divorce. He can corroborate that I was in LA."
"Meritt had an affair a decade ago with some fucker that lived in Dallas. You don't have to be in the same state to screw around. That doesn't prove anything."
"It's the only option we have right now, and I'm going to figure this out. Meritt and my father are not going to win. I refuse to let that happen." Shaking her head, she went back to her phone and scrolled through her contacts. When she landed on one, she slammed her finger down hard enough to redden the tip. "Mrs. Devers, uh, hey, it's Callie." Her entire face contorted in a deep cringe. "How are you?"