Christopher had agreed to call his parents and set up a time for Cisco to come to the ranch. Without that, Cisco was pretty sure Deke Jones would have met him at the door with a shotgun in hand. He knew how Orlando would have felt about a man who dared to hurt Gabi.
He pulled around the house and parked in front of the barn. Climbing out of the truck, he glanced back at the ranch house. Curtains fluttered in one of the upper windows. Delaney.
The thought that the conversation he was about to have might be the final hurtle before he could see her again spurred him on. Deke was standing to one side of the corral closest to the barn. It looked as if he was working on a section of fence along with one of the ranch hands. Cisco wiped his palms on his crisp jeans and moved forward.
Deke straightened as Cisco approached and said something to the younger man, who glanced at Cisco, then headed for the far side of the corral.
“Mr. Jones,” Cisco said when he got closer. “Thank you for agreeing to talk to me today. I know I’m not—”
“Might as well call me Deke and don’t thank me yet,” the weathered rancher answered, adjusting his hat as he spoke. “My girl’s been crying a fair bit in the last couple of days and you seem to be the reason.” He kept his tone soft, but that gravelly voice was pure steel underneath.
“I’m sorry,” Cisco began, but Deke lifted his hand.
“Not me who needs to hear that apology, son.”
“You can bet I’ll be making up for how I handled things with Delaney for a long time.”
One side of the cowboy’s mouth twitched. “If Delaney has any say in it, you certainly will.”
“It will be my great honor,” Cisco told Deke. “And that’s why I wanted to talk to you before I go see Delaney. I hope to love and honor your daughter for a very long time. I have a great deal of respect for you and your family, the life you’ve built.”
“I sure as hell hope you don’t plan to hug me at the end of this speech.”
“No, sir.” Cisco shifted, toed the ground with one boot, then wiped his hands on his jeans again. His throat was dry and scratchy. He wished he had a glass of water, or better yet, whiskey. He’d never relied on liquid courage, but he could sure use some now. Instead he cleared his throat. Deke Fortune Jones was an old-fashioned man’s man. Cisco had a feeling Delaney’s father wouldn’t countenance any weakness in a man who came courting his youngest child. “I love your daughter, sir. I want to ask her to marry me and I’d like your permission before I speak with her.”
Deke didn’t answer, only lifted one thick brow.
Cisco wanted to rush on with a stream of reasons why he deserved Delaney’s hand even after he’d hurt her so badly. But he remained as still and silent as Deke. The man would make up his own mind, no matter how much Cisco pleaded his case. He knew Delaney would never be his if her family disapproved. They were a part of who she was as much as this town, and he would never ask her to give them up. So he didn’t say anything more, just stood stock-still, waiting for his fate to be decided.
* * *
Delaney had been pacing back and forth in her bedroom for the past thirty minutes, stealing glances out the window and wondering where Cisco had gone.
He’d parked in front of the barn, but she’d still expected him to come to the house and it had taken every ounce of willpower she possessed not to run down the stairs to greet him. But he hadn’t, at least not yet. Her father would be out in the corral, although how Cisco could manage a half-hour conversation with her dad she had no idea. She sank down to the carpet in front of her dresser and drew her knees up to her chest, using one finger to trace the flower inlay on the boots Cisco had made for her. She forced herself to stay there instead of standing watch at the window. If Cisco wanted to talk, he knew where to find her. If not, then she—
“Delaney.” Her mother’s muffled call came from the bottom of the staircase. “You have a visitor, sweetie.”
Panic drove Delaney to her feet in an instant. Panic that Cisco had come to fight for her and she wouldn’t be able to resist him. Panic that he’d come to tell her she wasn’t worth the effort and she’d lost her chance to be his.
She glanced in the mirror, not surprised that she looked pale and tired. She finger-combed her hair and pinched her cheeks for color, then walked down the hallway to the stairs before she chickened out.
Cisco waited at the bottom, along with her mother. His dark chocolate eyes were intense yet unreadable as he watched her.
“You two head to the den for some privacy,” her mother said, giving Delaney’s arm a reassuring squeeze. “I’m going to make fresh lemonade, so if you get thirsty, just holler.”
She turned to Cisco, leaning forward to give him a maternal kiss on the cheek. “It’s good to see you again, Cisco.”
Delaney’s heart stuttered. How pathetic that she was reduced to being jealous of her mother and her easy affectionate nature with people.
“Thank you, ma’am,” Cisco answered, turning his gaze to Jeanne Marie. “I’m sorry for all the turmoil I’ve caused around here.”
Her mother’s smile was gentle. “When you’ve raised seven children, trouble and turmoil are part of life.” She headed to the kitchen as Delaney led Cisco into the cozy den.
She marched to the edge of the room in front of the fireplace, expecting that he’d take a seat on the well-worn sofa. But when she turned, he was standing right behind her. So close that the scent of bergamot and spice surrounded her. So close that she could see faint lines of fatigue bracketing his eyes and mouth. He wore a crisp blue button-down shirt that made his skin look more golden than normal and dark Cinch jeans with cowboy boots, a style that was a mix of his city background and the weeks he’d spent in Horseback Hollow. It suited him and Delaney realized he now seemed comfortable in both worlds.
It was hard to concentrate on anything beyond her body’s reaction to him when he was this close. Her heart pounded, her stomach rolled and a tremble slipped through her as he gave her a tentative smile.
“Hello, Delaney,” he said, his voice a low caress. He didn’t move to touch her but still managed to invade every inch of her personal space.
“Can you back away a little?” she asked, her voice breathless. “I can’t think when you’re looming over me.”
He stuffed his hands in his front pockets and rocked back on his boot heels. “Am I looming?”
“Definitely looming,” she confirmed.
He took two large steps toward the couch. “Is this better?”
She nodded, then sucked her bottom lip between her teeth. It wasn’t actually any better, because she only wanted to sway closer to him. She forced herself to remain still.
“What can I do for you, Cisco?” There, that sounded formal and indifferent, as if she had better ways to be spending this late-spring afternoon.
“I’m sorry if you thought I was out with Rachel last night,” he said quickly.
That wasn’t what she’d expected. Cisco wasn’t the type of guy to apologize for a simple misunderstanding, but it touched her that he was now. It was difficult to keep her feelings walled off from him when he was clearly going so far out of his comfort zone to make things right.
“Matteo was running late but he got to the restaurant shortly after you left. I would have told you, but you were... I didn’t want to ruin your evening.” He shrugged and suddenly looked uncertain.
Another piece of her heart’s armor fell to the floor.
“It wasn’t a date.”
“He brought you flowers.”
“Yes, but it wasn’t a date.”
He looked as if he wanted to argue but gave a short nod. “Thank you for telling me.”
Oh, how Delaney hated and loved this at the same time. Loved how careful he was being with her but hated how that decorum was like a barrier between the
m. She’d never had much use for formality.
“Is that what you came to tell me?” She held her breath as he seemed to mull over his response.
“I quit my job at Cowboy Country,” he answered after a moment. “I told you Alden Moore would probably fire me, but I didn’t wait for that to happen. I turned in my resignation letter yesterday morning.”
Delaney tried to process what that meant but hadn’t quite wrapped her mind around it when he continued, “I’ve donated the money I planned to invest in the condos to the Fortune Foundation.”
“To Christopher? Is that why he was with Matteo at the restaurant?”
Cisco nodded again. “I want the money to be used to support the Horseback Hollow community.”
“You bribed my brother?” Delaney blurted, disbelief hurtling through her. “And he went for it?”
Cisco took his balled hands out of his pockets, pressed them hard against his eyes, then jammed them back down again. “It’s not a bribe,” he said slowly. His voice held a weary edge. “Although that was his first suggestion, too. That’s why Rachel facilitated the meeting. Christopher seemed even less inclined than you to return my calls.”
“My family is a loyal bunch.” Delaney wrapped her arms around her waist, unsure where this conversation was heading.
“I respect that. Christopher and I had a long talk last night. We’re actually a lot alike. Both of us used to think the bottom line was all that mattered. That our success and all the trappings that went along with it were what made us who we were. Your brother changed when he met Kinsley...”
“She’s been good for him,” Delaney agreed.
“...and I changed when I met you,” Cisco continued. “I changed because of you. I don’t want to buy my way into your family. I needed to show you that my intentions, my heart, are in the right place. With you.”
The air whooshed out her lungs as he spoke the words. They were exactly what she wanted to hear, but now that he’d said them, doubts bubbled to the surface again. “What if you only think you changed? What if I’m the latest deal you have to close? The rush is going to end eventually, Cisco. This connection—” she gestured between the two of them “—is bound to fade.”
“Or grow deeper,” he countered.
She bit her lip again to keep from crying. “I’m afraid to trust you,” she told him on a shaky breath. As much as she liked to play tough, Delaney had to be honest with him. “I don’t want to be a challenge to you now, then wake up a few weeks or months or years down the road to find you’ve gone off on your next adventure. I’m a simple cowgirl, Cisco. I told you that from the beginning. I like who I am. I love my life. I want you to be a part of it, but what if it doesn’t last?”
“What if it lasts a lifetime?” He took a small velvet box from his pocket, holding it out in a hand that trembled slightly. “I love you, Delaney. I think I started to love you the moment I first saw you.”
“At the barbecue,” she whispered, unable to take her eyes off the box.
“At Gabi and Jude’s wedding,” Cisco clarified. “But I had no idea how important you’d become to me. You are a part of me, the best part of me. Hell, it took having a woman boss me around all over this ranch to make me realize what it takes to be a real man.”
“I’m kind of a big deal on the ranch,” she said with a small laugh.
“You’re a big deal to me every minute of every day.”
She continued to stare at the ring box until Cisco cleared his throat. She glanced up at him, unable to produce a sound as she looked into those dark eyes filled with so much love. For her.
As she watched, his gaze shuttered and he looked as though he was about to bolt. His fingers curled around the box as if he might shove it back into his pocket. She didn’t understand and opened her mouth but still no words came. He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again, his eyes intense on her. “I know how much I hurt you, and I probably don’t deserve a second chance. But I won’t give up on you, Delaney. Your father told me the decision is yours and that’s true—”
“You talked to my dad?” She felt her mouth drop open. It took some nerve to approach Deke Jones on a good day, let alone with the situation Cisco had caused clouding the water.
Cisco nodded. “I’ll wait for you for as long as it takes. Every single damn day for the rest of my life, I’m going to wake up ready to prove that I can be—that I am—the man you deserve. Even if it takes forever.”
Delaney snapped shut her mouth and licked her too-dry lips. Hope began to fizz through her, and she felt lit up like a sparkler on a summer night. “Was there something you wanted to ask me, Cisco?” He looked at her blankly and she raised one eyebrow. “I mean, that’s a mighty-fine box you’ve got there but—”
Before she could finish the sentence, he’d dropped to one knee in front of her. He opened the box to reveal a perfect round center-cut diamond surrounded by tiny bezel-set chips. The ring glinted as the afternoon light caught it and her heart seemed to stop for an instant. It was perfect. He was perfect. “Delaney Fortune Jones, I love you more than I ever thought possible. Would you do me the very great honor of becoming my wife?”
He didn’t look confident or cocky as he said the words, just full of love, hope and yearning. Delaney thought he’d never been more handsome.
“Yes,” she whispered, and he rose to slip the ring onto her left hand, then gathered her in his arms, holding on so tight she thought he might never let go. She hoped he’d never let go.
“You will always know that you’re my first priority,” he said into her hair, peppering her with soft kisses as he spoke. “You are everything to me, Delaney. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said, tipping back her head to look into his eyes. “We’re going to have the best life together.”
He grinned at that. “The best ever,” he agreed.
She gave him a saucy wink. “We should probably start with finding you a new job.”
He shook his head. “The job will come,” he told her. “We should definitely start with this...” Then he kissed her and she both lost and found herself as they explored each other. There was no doubt that Cisco Mendoza was hers for life. And she couldn’t be happier.
* * * * *
Don’t miss the next installment in
THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS:
COWBOY COUNTRY
When PR expert Brodie Fortune Hayes is hired by Cowboy Country to fix their tarnished image, he thinks he can teach Caitlyn Moore how the world really works. But she ends up teaching him how to open himself to love!
Look for
MY FAIR FORTUNE
by Nancy Robards Thompson
On sale May 2015, wherever Harlequin books and ebooks are sold.
Keep reading for an excerpt from A DECENT PROPOSAL by Teresa Southwick.
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Chapter One
Sydney McKnight knew there was no way a white knight would ride in on his stalwart steed and save her, but a girl could hope.
Needing a good save is what happens when first thing in the morning your father, who was also your boss, hits you with th
e “are you seeing anyone?” question. It was a sure bet this conversation wasn’t headed anywhere she wanted to go.
Standing outside the office of McKnight Automotive, she glanced around for an escape, but short of making a run for it, there was no way out. Time to get the attention off herself and back where it belonged. On her father, who she and her brothers just found out had been seeing someone in secret. For months. And now Tom McKnight was looking to find out if his daughter would be in a committed relationship anytime soon so that he could take the next step in his own.
“Dad, you didn’t have to sneak around and date. The boys are fine with it.”
“It wasn’t Alex and Ben that concerned me, Syd. It’s you.” He met her gaze and there was no looking away or mistaking his meaning. “I will always have a special place in my heart for your mother.”
Complications from childbirth had caused her mother’s death. Syd knew she wasn’t to blame for it but that didn’t stop a small stab of guilt. “For years everyone has been telling you to get on with your life, Dad. Now we know you did, a while ago. With Mayor Goodson. It’s about darn time and I’m completely fine with it. Fly. Be free. Be happy.”
Her father’s expression tightened into a mask of stubborn resolve. “How can I be happy until I know your personal life is in order?”
That was code for having a man. What her father didn’t get was that first you had to want a man messing up your personal life and Syd didn’t. This wasn’t the first time they’d had this conversation, but she was going to do her best to make it the last.
“Dad—” She stopped and took a deep breath, tapping into her well of patience, which at this point was hitting rock-bottom. “I know you want to protect me, make sure I’m okay. And it’s really sweet, but I’m a big girl now.”
The Taming of Delaney Fortune (The Fortunes of Texas: Cowboy Country) Page 18