by Trish Milburn - The Texan's Cowgirl Bride (Texas Rodeo Barons)
Maybe he was going at the case all wrong. Perhaps if he figured out the reason why Delia left, then that might give him some sort of insight into where she might have gone. He put in a call to a law enforcement contact to see if he could dig up any allegations of domestic abuse. Even as cranky as Brock could get, Travis didn’t think that was the reason for Delia’s disappearance. Savannah had been old enough to remember if her parents were fighting, and she hadn’t indicated that had been the case. Granted, they might have hidden it from her, so he needed to try to find out one way or the other.
When he exhausted what he could do while standing outside a medical clinic, he forced himself back inside. He didn’t want Savannah coming out and seeing him gone. With two TVs tuned to different programs at opposite ends of the waiting room, one to a cartoon he didn’t recognize and the other to one of those awful daytime talk shows, he went straight to the small alcove in the middle. It held four chairs and provided at least some buffer from the noise. The magazine selection was crap, so he resorted to playing games on his phone.
After what seemed like enough time for an entire generation to be born and grow to adulthood, but really wasn’t more than an hour, the door next to the registration desk opened and out walked Savannah.
Travis hopped up from his chair and crossed to her. “You okay?”
“Yeah, nothing an ice pack and some ibuprofen won’t help.”
“And ice cream,” he said as the perfect idea popped into his head.
“I wouldn’t argue with that.”
When they reached his SUV, he opened the door for her and attempted to help her in.
“I’m okay. What’s a little needle in the boob?”
He laughed, glad to see at least most of her anxiety from earlier had dissipated. Waiting was always the worst part of anything you were dreading, but, of course, now she’d have to wait for the results. If he could will a good outcome, he would. But as it was, he’d have to wait and wonder the same as her. He really wanted her to be okay, and he hoped he had the strength to be there for her even if she wasn’t.
Travis backed away from her and swallowed the lump that appeared in his throat. He could not allow himself to think of that possibility because he didn’t like the image of himself running away to avoid losing someone again, of how easily he could imagine himself giving in to the temptation to do exactly that. It was easier to face down enemy combatants in a foreign land than to look that kind of loss in the eye.
When they passed by a grocery store a few minutes later, Savannah pointed at the shopping center. “You know you just passed the store, right?”
“Yep. This isn’t just an ‘any ice cream will do’ kind of day.”
“It’s not? Because I think there was probably some Häagen-Dazs back there with my name on it.”
He glanced across at her. “I’ve got something better in mind.”
“Better than Häagen-Dazs? This I’ve got to see.”
She winced a little as she adjusted what he assumed was an ice pack under her arm.
Five minutes later, he pulled into one of the parking spaces at Ed’s Dairy Drive-In. A quick glance at the bright look in Savannah’s eyes, and he knew he’d made the right choice.
“I can’t believe this place is still open. I haven’t been here in years.”
“You remember the time a bunch of us decided to invade after that basketball game?”
“Oh, my God, yes. It was homecoming senior year, and there were, what, sixty or so of us who skipped the dance and descended on Ed’s instead? I think we freaked the poor employees out.”
“What I remember is Amber Carmichael dumping a strawberry milkshake on top of Josh Freeman’s head after she found out that he’d cheated on her with Shannon Denton.”
Savannah lifted her hand to her mouth and laughed. “You know, I secretly loved that. Amber was a bitch.”
This time he laughed. “True.”
“Welcome to Ed’s,” said a female voice over the speaker. “What can I get you today?”
Travis looked to Savannah. With a grin, she said, “Strawberry milkshake.”
They both started laughing, probably making the gal inside think they’d lost their marbles. But Travis didn’t care. It was good to see Savannah looking happy.
After they got over their laughing fit, they managed to claim their order of cheese fries, hot dogs, the hilarity-inducing milkshake and a banana split then headed for his house. After parking, he grabbed all the food except for her milkshake.
“I’m not going to end up wearing that, am I?” he asked.
She pursed her lips as if considering his question. “I don’t know. Do you deserve to wear a milkshake?”
“Me? I’m an angel.”
“Pfftt,” she said, then opened her door.
When he slipped from the driver’s seat, it was to find Savannah standing behind his SUV.
“Thanks for going with me today,” she said. “I appreciate it.”
“No problem. Glad to do it.”
She reached for the bags he held. “Sorry to run, but if I can get my food, I’ll head home.”
He shook his head. “Oh, no, you don’t.” He nodded toward the house. “You’re going in, eating your lunch and relaxing for the rest of the day.”
“It wasn’t that big of a deal. I should get back to work.” The wince as she glanced over at him belied her words.
“Humor me.”
He got the feeling the anesthetic was just beginning to wear off because she didn’t argue any further, allowing him to escort her into his house and to the couch.
“Don’t you have to go to work?” she asked.
He pulled their food out of the bag and set it all out on the coffee table. “That’s the beauty of being your own boss. No one to tell you when you can and can’t work.”
“But you have to work to make money.”
“It’ll still be there to make tomorrow.”
As they ate, they reminisced about other classmates and where everyone was now.
“I heard Robbie Dearborn moved to L.A., went into acting,” she said.
Travis nearly choked on a cheese fry. “You could call it that.” At Savannah’s curious look, he continued. “Let’s just say you’re not going to see any trailers on TV for his movies.”
“Bad, B-rated stuff?”
“More like X-rated.”
Savannah’s eyes widened. “No way!”
“Yes way.”
“Oh, my God! I cannot wait to tell Lizzie. She had the biggest crush on him. She will just die of embarrassment.”
As they finished their food, he noticed fatigue beginning to tug on Savannah’s eyelids. “You look tired.”
She yawned as if to emphasize his observation. “I barely slept a wink last night.”
He stood and grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch. “Stretch out for a bit and rest.”
She made as if to stand. “I need to get home.”
He gently pushed her back down on the couch. “I’m not letting you leave when you’re this tired. Besides, here you can rest and not have to answer questions about why you’re in bed in the middle of the day.”
She looked up at him. “I hate it when you have a point.”
He smiled. “But at least you admit that I do have a point.”
In answer, she shoved off her shoes and stretched out along the couch. He covered her with the blanket and, before he could stop himself, pushed a loose strand of hair away from her face. That gentle touch changed the air between them. When Savannah’s eyes met his, he could tell that she sensed it, too.
“Sleep,” he said simply, then forced himself to walk away before he crawled onto that couch with her.
But after she fell asleep, he couldn’t stop him
self from returning to the living room to simply look at her. He realized she was more relaxed than he’d seen her since they’d reconnected. A warmth filled him that he’d been able to give her that.
As he watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest, he realized he wanted to give her so much more.
Please, God, please let her be okay.
Chapter Ten
Savannah rolled onto her back and stretched, then reconsidered that motion. She grunted against twin jabs of pain, her bruised ribs on the left and the biopsy puncture on the right. Without opening her eyes, she took several deep breaths until the discomfort faded. Once it did, she realized that she felt more rested than she had in a while. Finally, she’d gotten a good night’s sleep.
Her eyes popped open when she realized that what lay beneath her didn’t feel like her bed. As she scanned her surroundings, everything came flooding back. Yep, definitely not her apartment. Her next thought was that she really had to go to the bathroom.
When she lifted herself from the couch, she didn’t see Travis anywhere. She hurried down a hallway and found the bathroom. After tending to the most pressing matter, she looked at herself in the mirror and smoothed her hair. If she were home, she’d brush her teeth. But she had to settle for the next best thing and rinsed her mouth out with the mint mouthwash sitting atop the vanity. She splashed her face with cold water, which banished the final bit of grogginess.
She retraced her steps to the living room, arriving just as Travis came in through the front door.
“You’re awake,” he said.
“Yeah.” She glanced at the clock on the wall and was stunned to see it was nearly 6:00 p.m. “You should have woke me hours ago.”
“Why? You obviously needed the rest. How do you feel?”
“Sore.” She paused as she met his gaze. “But rested.”
His lips stretched into a satisfied smile.
She eyed the door behind him. “Did you go to work?”
“In a way. Went outside to make some calls so I wouldn’t bother you.”
“Travis, you shouldn’t have let me run you from your house.”
“You didn’t. It’s a nice day outside. Decided to soak up a few rays.”
She laughed a little and shook her head.
Travis headed toward his kitchen. “Thirsty?”
She realized she was parched and followed him. “I’d kill for a glass of water.”
“No killing necessary.” He grabbed a glass from a cabinet and filled it with cold water from the tap.
“Thanks.” She downed half the glass without stopping.
Travis grinned. “You were thirsty.”
She’d probably been sleeping with her mouth wide-open. That surely made a pretty picture for him to see.
“So, any progress today?” The way he shifted his gaze away told her that she wasn’t going to like the answer. “The lead didn’t pan out, did it?”
“No.”
“Tell me.”
“Your mom was in Tulsa for a few weeks, staying with an aunt. But the aunt passed away a decade ago, and no one knows where your mother went from there.”
Savannah set her glass down and leaned both hands against the countertop. “How can someone just up and disappear, not once but twice?”
“It’s easier than you might expect.”
She shook her head. “Maybe it’s not even worth trying. She obviously doesn’t want to be found.”
Travis closed the distance between them and turned her to face him. He lifted her chin so that she met his gaze.
“Don’t give up hope yet. I’m not done looking, not by a long shot.” He ran his thumb over her bottom lip.
In the blink of an eye, the moment changed from him reassuring her to something very different. His expression changed to what she’d swear was hunger right before he dropped his lips to hers.
She felt that restrained hunger as his mouth took possession of hers, and she silently cursed her injuries. Because right now she wanted nothing more than to be healthy and whole and to satisfy her own hunger for this man.
Gradually, Travis pulled away but leaned his forehead against hers. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I quite liked it.”
He smiled and kissed her again, soft and sweet this time. “No, I’m sorry to start something I can’t finish.”
Her heart gave an extra hard thump against her chest. At least part of Travis wanted what she wanted, and that knowledge sent a zing of excitement through her. But there was obvious struggling with his new and probably unexpected desire. “I should go.”
This time, he didn’t disagree.
She lifted onto her toes and gave him one last kiss before forcing herself out the front door. Despite everything—the fruitless lead in the search for her mother, her still uncertain health status, the yearning for Travis that went unfulfilled—she still wore a smile all the way home.
* * *
EVEN THOUGH HIS self-protective instincts told Travis to stay away from Savannah, he couldn’t. Over the next several days, he drove out to the ranch at least once a day. He had nothing new to report on the search for her mother, but thankfully she didn’t seem to mind that he showed up empty-handed. Well, not exactly empty-handed. He’d brought her flowers one day, takeout from Amos’s another and plenty of kisses every time.
In fact, it was getting harder and harder to give her the necessary time to heal, harder to resist the need in him that had been neglected for too long. Thoughts of her didn’t even let him be while he was sleeping, and his dreams only made him hungry for her even more.
When he wasn’t with her, he devoted most of his time to the search for Delia, going down every path he could think of to take. They all turned up nothing, at least until an email from a colleague in Galveston landed in his in-box. He sped through it then read it more carefully before printing it out and shoving it into his pocket. He grabbed his keys and headed for the door.
“By the speed at which you’re moving, I’m guessing you’re going to see Savannah.” Blossom said Savannah’s name in a teasing, singsong voice.
“As a matter of fact I am.” He saluted Blossom and headed out to the elevator.
“Have enough fun for me!”
He smiled because he planned to. Maybe not tonight, but eventually he wanted to pull Savannah into his arms and not let her go until they both were satisfied.
When he reached the Peach Pit, he was glad to see that Savannah’s vehicle was the only one in the lot. Needing to be near her, he strode inside, all the way back to the kitchen, and pulled her into his arms. She squealed in surprise but melted against him when he captured her mouth. The kiss went from zero to sixty in a fraction of a second, with Savannah’s hands snaking their way through his hair. But as if she suddenly corralled some common sense, she pulled away, trying to catch her breath.
“What was that for?”
He grinned. “Do I need a reason?”
For a moment she looked flustered and glanced beyond him as if to make sure no one was around. It was cute.
“I want you to come away with me this weekend, to Galveston.”
“What?”
“I got another lead, a solid one this time.”
Savannah held up a hand. “Travis, don’t...”
He’d given himself permission to live again, to maybe even love again, no matter how scary that prospect. He wasn’t letting her shut down this idea before he got it out, convinced her it was just what they needed in more ways than one.
“I rented us a beach cottage, so we can have a nice getaway while also seeing if this new information leads us to your mom.”
Savannah’s eyes widened as she glanced beyond him again.
He looked over his shoulder and immediately realized his mistake. His
assumption that Savannah was alone had been wrong. Carly stood in the doorway to the storeroom, a stack of aluminum pie pans in her hands and a stunned expression on her normally peppy face.
“What’s he talking about, Savannah?”
Savannah took a step toward her sister. “Carly, it’s nothing.”
Carly held up a hand. “No. I distinctly heard him mention Mom. Are you looking for her?”
Savannah shot him a desperate look, as if he might be able to reverse the last couple of minutes like a DVR recording. He hoped she saw the apology in his eyes. She took a deep breath, resigned, and shifted her attention back to Carly.
“Yes, I’m looking for Mom, and Travis is helping me.”
“And you didn’t think you should tell me? Does anyone else know?”
“No, just Travis.”
“I don’t understand. Didn’t you think maybe you’re not the only one who has questions to ask her?”
He heard the hurt in Carly’s voice, the same kind he knew was a part of Savannah.
“It was a sudden decision. I... One of the things I wanted to know was our family medical history on Mom’s side.”
“This because of Lizzie and the baby?”
Savannah hesitated before answering. “No, this is for me.”
Carly’s forehead furrowed. “Why? You two planning to have a kid or something?”
“No!”
He didn’t know why, but Savannah’s quick, forceful answer kicked him in the gut. He’d never given much thought to having kids, especially after Corinne’s death. But now? With Savannah? He was surprised to find he didn’t mind the idea.
Savannah took a couple of steps toward the middle of the room and leaned back against a table that stood in the center of the kitchen, one on which she’d rolled out pie dough. “After I got hurt at the rodeo, I found a lump in my breast. The doctor asked if there was a history of breast cancer in the family, and I realized I didn’t know the answer. I have no idea about a lot of things regarding Mom, like why she up and left us.”