Love Me Tender

by Susan Fox

  “You were in love with her even back in fourth grade?” She had to wonder what had broken them up in the end.

  He shook his head. “Jessie was a pal, a buddy. A tomboy. A lot like Robin is now.”

  “So you fell for her in your teens? You must have married when you were awfully young. Robin’s what? Eleven, twelve?”

  “We got married a few months after high school graduation. Robin came along the next year. She’s eleven now.”

  She wondered how long he and his ex had been divorced. Long enough for her to have fallen for another man, married him, and had a baby. Robin had mentioned a baby brother.

  “Want to try a trot, see how it goes?” Dave asked.

  “You bet.” Though Cassidy wasn’t into long-term planning, likely she’d stay in Caribou Crossing through the summer, so there’d be time to find out more about this intriguing man. Who knew, some of that learning might even come from pillow talk!

  He eased his horse forward and hers followed along, the dog running beside them.

  It took a few bone-rattling moments to get the feel of the trot, but she did better with the lope and let out a whoop of exhilaration. When Dave slowed the pace, she said, “This is exactly what I needed. A real change of pace.”

  “You’re not talking about going from a trot to a lope, are you?”

  “Vancouver to Caribou Crossing. Sports bars and clubbing to horses and sweet-smelling wild roses.” A scuzzy boss to a good man like Dave. A bunch of metrosexual guys she didn’t find sexy to an effortlessly masculine one like the rider atop the gorgeous palomino.

  “Welcome to my world.” He gestured expansively.

  “It’s lovely.” Gazing ahead to where rolling hills rose to rocky outcroppings, she sucked in a deep breath of air that smelled of grass, sunshine, horse, dust.

  “I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. But you, I gather you’ve got a gypsy spirit?”

  “Totally. There’s so much to see and do. I grew up in Victoria, spent some time in Toronto. After high school—when you were getting married—I was in Europe. My mom was there with her latest guy.” She wrinkled her nose, remembering his high-handed ways. “I didn’t get along with him, so I left and traveled around on my own.”

  “On your own in Europe? At what, seventeen, eighteen?”

  “Just turned eighteen when I left Mom’s house.”

  “If Robin tried to do that, it’d kill me.” He snorted. “Or she’d kill me, because I’d make her call me three times a day.”

  “Control freak?”

  “Only when it comes to her safety.”

  “Gramps was a bit like that.” He’d worried about her, made her report in. It had felt like he didn’t trust her to look after herself. But when he said he did it because he loved her, it was hard to get too resentful. In fact, after he died when she was fifteen, she’d missed his fussing. Missed him. A lot. “But my parents liked me and my brother to be independent.” They loved her and JJ in their own way, but their personal dramas always came first.

  “Traveling Europe on your own is pretty independent.”

  “Man, was it amazing. All these new experiences! Places, people, languages, food. I loved it. Eventually I came back to North America, but I kept up with the traveling. I’ve been across Canada and I’ve visited lots of the States.”

  He shook his head bemusedly. “You figure on ever settling down?”

  “Nah.” Anytime she’d thought she’d had a home, it had proved to be an illusion—and learning that had hurt. No, she wasn’t destined to set down roots, so she found joy in variety. She tilted her head to glance sideways at him. “Do you ever get itchy feet? Imagine living somewhere else, or even just visiting?”

  He shrugged. “Not really. Oh, it’s nice to go to Vancouver occasionally, eat in a different restaurant, go to the theatre or a game. But”—another of those wry grins—“even though it makes me sound like a total stick in the mud, everything I want is here.”

  “Everything?”

  One of those mysterious shadows crossed his face. “Robin’s here,” he said slowly. “My family, friends. The inn.”

  No mention of a woman. Surely he’d dated since his divorce. Cassidy wasn’t pushy, but she didn’t like to pussyfoot around either, so she said, “No special woman?”

  He didn’t look at her, nor respond. After a long moment of silence, he said, “No.” Then, “You okay if we lope again?”

  She couldn’t force him to expand on that if he didn’t want to. “You bet.”

  His horse speeded up, taking the lead. Merlin was at the palomino’s heels and Cherry followed. Cassidy found her balance. She studied Dave’s denim-clad back, so strong and athletic, imagining how it would feel to wrap her arms around him, to run her hands up under his shirt and feel those muscles flex.

  He was clearly attracted to her, but he was holding back. Why, if he wasn’t dating anyone else? Had Jessie broken his heart?

  Cassidy didn’t believe that human beings were designed for monogamy. Take her parents and her brother as prime examples. People should be sensible enough to recognize it, and not invest their hearts in all that soppy romantic stuff. On the other hand, few people were designed to be totally solitary beings. It was good to have friends and great to have sex. The smart thing to do was hook up, have fun, then move on, hopefully with no hard feelings. Sure, you missed out on the romance of being in love—something she’d never come close to experiencing herself—but you also got to skip the angst of a broken heart.

  Dave was too sweet a guy to carry a torch for a woman who’d long ago moved on. Someone should make it her mission to shake that sweet guy out of his blues. To coax that dimple out of hiding.

  And who better than Cassidy?

  Was he worried about the fact that she worked for him? Maybe that was why he held back. She’d learned, during training by Madisun, that there was no rule against staff dating as long as they behaved professionally on the job. In fact, the chef, Mitch, and the bartender, Roy, had been a couple for the past year. But they were colleagues, not boss and employee.

  Her instincts, which were usually reliable, told her Dave would never harass or pressure a staff member. Maybe he figured that coming on to one was inappropriate. Hmm. What if she seduced him and promised it wouldn’t affect their work relationship? Would he say no? She mulled that notion over as Dave maintained the lead, trotting now, on a narrower trail.

  Best not to get ahead of herself. He had included her in a family outing. Yeah, Robin had instigated it, but he could have said no. It seemed he was open to at least being friends. It wasn’t a bad start. She’d enjoy the eye candy and his company, and see where things went from there.

  Trees arched overhead, letting dappled sunlight sift through their branches. Birds chirped and a distinctive song trilled. She searched for the red-winged blackbird and found him perched on a fence post. She breathed in the pure, grassy country air and, exhilarated, let out her own corny rendition of the bird’s call.

  Dave glanced over his shoulder, laughing, and she grinned back.

  A couple of minutes later, he slowed Malibu to a walk, and shortly afterward they turned into a neat stable yard. Robin had mentioned that Riders Boot Camp was less than two years old, and the buildings did look much newer than those at Westward Ho!

  The girl’s head poked out of the barn door, and Merlin ran over to greet her. She called, “Evan, they’re here,” and, with the dog at her side, came to meet them. A moment later, a man in jeans and a tee followed her.

  He studied Cassidy with obvious interest, and she reciprocated. Evan actually looked a little like Dave: a lean, rangy build and easy on the eyes. Evan was a couple of inches shorter, at maybe six feet, his brown hair had sun streaks, and his eyes were a striking greenish blue. Oh yeah, Jessie did know how to pick them.

  From Cherry’s back, she held out her hand to him. “Hi. Cassidy Esperanza.”

  “Evan Kincaid. Welcome to Riders Boot Camp. Want to hop down and take the t
our?”

  “Love to.” She dismounted, holding her breath that her stupid left leg wouldn’t choose this moment to go numb. But no, it behaved just the way it was supposed to. She smiled with relief. Caribou Crossing was good for her health.

  While Robin tied Cherry’s and Malibu’s reins to a hitching rail, Evan and Dave greeted each other. Cassidy expected awkwardness between the two men, but instead they acted like friends. Maybe they’d buried the hatchet, in Robin’s best interests.

  “Where’s your mom?” she asked Robin, hoping to meet the intriguing woman.

  “Out on a trail ride.” She caught Cassidy’s hand and tugged. “Come on. Most of the horses are out, but I’ll show you the few that are left. And the barn, the tack room, the ring, the guest cabins. We’re not fancy like the Crazy Horse, with a restaurant and a spa. We’re no frills, intensive, all about horses and riding, and that’s what folks come for.”

  Evan, Dave, and Merlin joined them and they strolled around Riders Boot Camp. The layout had obviously been well thought out, and the place was attractive in an appropriately rustic way. As each of her companions chipped in bits of information, she realized how closely they’d all been involved in setting up this operation. She also realized how mature Robin was for her age, which was obviously something her family encouraged.

  “This is really impressive,” Cassidy told them as they passed a couple of bunkhouses and several cute log cabins with wooden lounge chairs and flower boxes on the porches.

  “We haven’t even told you the best part,” Robin said. “We’ve got a scholarship program. You guys fill her in. I’m going to get Concha.” To Cassidy, she said, “That’s my mare.”

  After she ran off, the dog at her heels, Evan said, “We set Boots up as a charitable foundation. Jess wanted to offer our riding experience to disadvantaged people who would benefit.”

  “That’s a terrific idea. So you what, run on donations?”

  “We do have donors. A few are on our board and some get the option of staying at Boots for a week or two themselves. We also have paying guests on a sliding scale based on what they can afford. Word’s getting out and, sadly, we now have to turn people away.”

  “Your wife had a brilliant idea.”

  Evan glanced at Dave and they exchanged what looked like fond grins. Weird. Although she, personally, thought jealousy was a stupid emotion, it surprised her that there was so little tension between these two men.

  “She did,” Dave said, “but it took a village to make it happen.”

  “Luckily, Jess had that village,” Evan agreed.

  Cassidy prided herself on making her own way in the world. And yet she almost envied the woman who had a village behind her to make her dream come true. The woman who had such fantastic qualities that two amazing men had fallen in love with her. The woman who’d given birth to and raised a terrific daughter and now had a baby boy as well.

  A touch on the back of her shoulder brought her out of her thoughts. She knew from the tingle of awareness that it was Dave behind her. “Ready to continue our ride?” he asked.

  “Sure.” She wanted to lean back against him, feel his arm come around her, but instead he dropped his hand and stepped away.

  Flanked by the two lean, handsome men, she returned to where the horses were tied, Cherry and Malibu now joined by a sleek bay horse that Robin was saddling.

  “Are you coming riding with us, Evan?” Cassidy asked.

  He shook his head. “I’ve got the month-end accounts to attend to.”

  “You’re an accountant?”

  “Investment counselor, but I do handle the accounts for Boots.”

  “He’s the money guy,” Robin said, swinging lightly into the saddle. “When Mom and I want to spend money, he tells us we can’t. Right, Evan?”

  “Someone’s got to keep this place in the black,” he joked back. “Have a good ride and have fun at your grandparents’ tonight. Say hi to Sheila and Ken for me.” He patted her leg, then stepped back. “Want a leg up, Cassidy?”

  “I wouldn’t say no.” Rarely used muscles were tightening up. It was a good feeling, though, for an active person like her.

  He boosted her into the saddle, then untied the reins and handed them to her. “I’ll see you again soon, I’m sure. Maybe tomorrow night at the Wild Rose, if you’re working then.”

  Remembering the Wild Rose’s schedule, she asked, “For the line dancing?”

  “If we can get a sitter for Alex, our baby.”

  “Me!” Robin said. “You can bring him up to Dad’s and my apartment and I’ll look after him. Gramma Brooke and Jake could bring Nicki too.”

  “Thanks, Robin. I’ll talk to your mom and gramma, and let you know.”

  Dave had untied his palomino and swung into the saddle. “Hope to see you then.”

  As Cassidy rode out of the stable yard between Robin and Dave, with Merlin trailing them, she tried to sort out the family relationships. “Sheila and Ken are your parents, Dave?”

  “That’s right.”

  Robin spoke up. “I have three sets of grandparents. It’s cool!”

  “I guess you do. Your dad’s parents, your mom’s parents, and Evan’s parents.”

  “Yeah, except that Evan’s mom, Gramma Brooke, isn’t married to his dad.”

  A common-law relationship? She wasn’t about to ask.

  Dave said, “Evan’s father’s been out of the picture for a long time. Brooke remarried last year. Her husband, Jake, is in charge of the Caribou Crossing RCMP detachment. He works with Karen MacLean, who you met earlier this afternoon, Cassidy.”

  “And Gramma Brooke is a beauty consultant at Beauty Is You,” Robin said.

  “I’ve seen that salon.”

  “If you need a haircut, go there,” the girl told her. “She’s the best.”

  As the three horses left the dirt track and headed onto a long stretch of rolling grassland, Robin went on. “Gramma Brooke and Jake have this adorable baby girl, Nicki.”

  Cassidy wrinkled her brow. “Your mom and Evan have a baby, and his mom and Jake have a baby?”

  “Isn’t it cool?” The girl’s face was bright with excitement. “Except that it’s pretty weird that Nicki’s my aunt. I’m her babysitter!”

  “When Nicki’s older,” Cassidy said, “if she ever tries to lord it over you that she’s your aunt, remind her that you used to change her diapers.”

  “Great idea! You’re smart, Cassidy. I’m really glad you came riding. Aren’t you, Dad?”

  “Way to put your dad on the spot,” Cassidy teased. “It’s okay, Dave, you don’t have to answer that.” But she glanced at his face to read his reaction.

  He met her gaze and lifted his hand to the brim of his hat in a gesture of acknowledgment. “I’m glad.” Yet his expression wasn’t so much pleased as uncertain.

  Apparently Robin heard—or chose to hear—only the words themselves, because she said, “Cassidy, you should come to dinner with us. Meet Grandma Sheila and Grandpa Ken and the rest of Dad’s family. It’ll be barbecue, and my cousins will be there, and the dogs all play together, and it’s so much fun!”

  “That’s really nice of you, Robin, but . . .” But you should have asked your father first. “It’s not fair to your grandparents to invite someone without them knowing.”

  “No, honest, it’s okay,” she said earnestly. “They cook loads, and they always tell us we can bring our friends. You’re our new friend, so you should come.”

  “Maybe Cassidy has other plans,” Dave said. His tone was neutral and his expression guarded. Did he want her to say she had other plans?

  “But she’s only been here a few days,” his daughter protested. “How can she have other plans already?” She turned her big brown eyes on Cassidy. “You don’t, do you?”

  Feeling like she was at a tennis match, gazing between Dave on her right and Robin on her left, she turned back to Dave with a “tell me what to do” look.

  The tension around his eyes and
mouth softened. “It would be nice if you came.”

  Chapter Five

  Saturday evening, Dave stood beside his father at the giant barbecue on the back patio of the home he’d grown up in, inhaling the tangy scent of grilling sweet-and-spicy ribs.

  He was glad his parents hadn’t moved when their kids flew the nest. This sprawling rancher-style house on two acres of benchland north of town held so many happy memories of growing up with his sister and two brothers. It was still the family’s heart, with regular Saturday night dinners, out-of-town relatives coming for visits, and monthly sleepovers for the next generation. Robin and her cousins—the Cousins cousins, as they called themselves—loved those sleepovers, which featured home-baked treats from Dave’s mother and gold rush ghost stories spun by Pops. No one could tell a ghost story as well as his old man.

  Nor, he thought as he watched his father deftly turn the thick country-style ribs, did anyone’s hand match his when it came to the barbecue.

  Pops gestured toward three women sitting in lawn chairs. “Seems like a nice girl.”

  Cassidy, tonight dressed in beige capris and a smoky blue tee, with a lightweight purple hoodie tied around her shoulders, sat with his mom and younger sister, Lizzie.

  “Yeah.” Some strange momentum was under way and he was doing nothing to stop it. When Robin had issued the dinner invitation, Cassidy had consulted him in a wordless glance. If he’d given a tiny head shake, then explained later that it was family time, he was sure her feelings wouldn’t have been hurt. But he hadn’t. He enjoyed her company.

  And what was the big deal? He had women friends: Karen MacLean, Sally Ryland, Brooke Brannon. Cassidy could be another friend.

  The afternoon ride had been fun, with Robin deciding that Cassidy needed to see the view from atop Whisky Mountain, but he felt bad for not realizing the expedition would be too long for someone who hadn’t ridden much. When they’d dismounted at Westward Ho! Cassidy’s leg had given her trouble. She’d been a good sport, saying ruefully that riding used new muscles.

  Hobbling back to the Wild Rose, she had leaned on him for support. She’d fit neatly against him, his arm around her shoulders, hers around his waist. He’d been aware of her. The unfamiliarity of her slender, curvy body and the light flowery scent that overpowered the smell of horse that clung to both of them.