Aidan: Loyal Cowboy: Aidan: Loyal CowboyThe Family Plan

by Cathy McDavid

They’d met briefly on two occasions when Anita had come by the house to go on a call with Chase.

  “Hey, Jolyn. How’s it going?”

  “Not bad for a Friday.”

  While friendly, Jolyn’s banter lacked its usual warmth, and she made a point of not looking at Chase. He wondered if his abrupt brush-off was to blame.

  “Will I see you at the horse show tomorrow?” Head tilted back, Anita watched Jolyn.

  “No, I’ve got work in the morning.”

  As they’d done with the first light, Chase passed Jolyn bulbs and she installed them.

  “You aren’t entering that horse of yours in the gymkhana?” Anita asked. “I’ve heard the two of you can clear some pretty spectacular jumps.”

  “I don’t jump anymore,” Jolyn replied, an edge to her voice. “Not since the accident.”

  “Oh, um, yeah.” Anita winced at Chase, clearly mortified at her unintentional slip. Trying to recover, she said, “Sorry if I brought up something I shouldn’t have.”

  “Don’t sweat it.” Jolyn inserted the last bulb.

  “We should head out,” Chase told Anita. “Peaches is expecting you.” The time for a quick exit was long overdue.

  Chase would have liked to help Jolyn with the ladder but she had it collapsed and on the floor before he had the chance. She did it all without looking at him or Anita.

  Great. So much for alleviating the tension of the last week. With a casual “See you later,” he motioned for Anita to accompany him outside.

  “Sorry if I blew it in there,” she said when they were seated in Chase’s truck.

  “You didn’t. Don’t worry about it.”

  “Sure?”

  “Yeah, I am.” If anyone had blown it in there, it was him.

  * * *

  JOLYN WATCHED CHASE and Anita drive away, all the while fighting a wretched case of jealousy. Not at Anita, but at the easy camaraderie she shared with Chase. The same camaraderie Jolyn had once shared with him but had lost this past week.

  For a few seconds, when they were standing so close she could feel his breath caress her cheek and sense his potent sexual response to her nearness, she’d almost let it slip about the lumps in her mother’s breast. Then, he’d have known that her reasons for avoiding him lately had nothing to do with them.

  But then Anita had shown up. Chase had left with her, and Jolyn was back to where she’d been before he’d found her installing the lights in his office—alone and miserable.

  Speaking of lights…

  Jolyn hefted the ladder and walked tiredly to the surgery. She’d like to blame work or her knee for her lack of energy, but she knew stress was the real culprit.

  The Sutherlands had fallen into a routine. Jolyn’s mother pretended nothing was wrong and refused to talk about the lumps, the biopsy, or anything until after Red, White and Blue Ridge Days. Jolyn, her father and her brother, however, did talk, often and at great length, trying to figure out how they could convince Dottie to get the help she needed.

  The constant tension was having an adverse effect on everyone in the family. Her father in particular, whose temper flared at the least little provocation.

  The one and only good thing to come out of this terrible mess was that her mother hadn’t mentioned Chase or Mandy in four whole days. Whether that minor miracle had to do with what Steven had told her about him and SherryAnne, the advanced class dance performance tomorrow night, or the unsettling news her doctor had imparted in his phone call, Jolyn didn’t know.

  Something told her, however, that her mother hadn’t given up, simply taken a break.

  Jolyn knew she was crazy to think she and Chase could ever be together. But she couldn’t stop hoping… .

  “Hi, Jolyn. Whatcha doing?”

  Buzz and Lickety popped around the corner seconds ahead of Mandy.

  “Installing lightbulbs. What about you?”

  “Nothing.” She dragged the word out. “Waiting for Mrs. Payne. She’s doing some stuff in the house.”

  By “stuff,” Jolyn assumed Mandy meant household chores. “You can help me if you want.”

  Mandy shrugged indifferently. “Could, I suppose.”

  Lickety dropped to the floor and rolled onto her back, silently begging for a tummy scratching. Mandy paid her no attention, which was unheard of. She always had a pet for the pitifully homely but endearingly affectionate dog. The little girl must really be down in the dumps today.

  Well, that made two of them.

  “Have you ever painted a room?”

  A tiny spark of interest flittered across Mandy’s face. “No.”

  “Want to try?”

  “You’d let me?”

  “Sure.” Jolyn smiled for the first time that day. Maybe she couldn’t smooth out things between her and Chase but she could lift his daughter’s spirits. She picked up the ladder and said, “Bring that carton of bulbs, will you?”

  Mandy needed three attempts before she got a solid grip. “Where to?”

  “The reception area. Follow me.”

  Ten minutes later, with the painters’ help, Mandy was busy slathering paint onto the storage room walls, getting as much or more on the floor and the oversized T-shirt Jolyn had borrowed for her to wear. She told the painters to let the girl have her fun and then repaint the walls later.

  Installing the last of the florescent lightbulbs, she went to check on Mandy’s progress and was gratified to see the girl grinning from ear to ear. Buzz and Lickety were a different story and lay sulking in a corner. Judging by the pale green dog prints dotting the floor, one or both of them had gotten into the pan of paint.

  “How’s it coming?” Jolyn asked.

  “I’m almost done.”

  “Good, because Mrs. Payne said to let you know you’ll be leaving in about fifteen minutes.”

  That might be cutting it close, Jolyn thought. It would take ten minutes alone just to get the paint out of Mandy’s hair and off her face and hands.

  “My mom called last night,” Mandy said without preamble and without taking her eyes off the wall.

  “She did?” Given Mandy’s previously forlorn mood, Jolyn felt fairly confident SherryAnne hadn’t changed her mind about coming out for a visit.

  “She told me she has a surprise for me and that it’ll be here for my birthday.”

  “That’s nice.” Jolyn tried to sound enthused. “I bet you can’t wait.”

  A long silence followed, the soft clack, clack of the roller hitting the wall the only sound.

  “Do you have any idea what it is?” Jolyn’s second attempt to generate conversation also failed. She sympathized with the little girl, who was so obviously miserable.

  Before she could come up with something else to say, Mandy spat out, “I’m glad she’s not coming to see me. I hope she never comes here again.”

  “Oh, sweetie, you don’t mean that.”

  “I do. I hate her.” Mandy threw down the roller. Startled, the dogs scrambled to their feet and bolted from the room, crashing into the wall and getting paint on their fur. “You can be my dad’s girlfriend if you want because I don’t care anymore.” She stormed out of the room behind the dogs, ripping off her T-shirt and tossing it onto the floor.

  Jolyn stooped to pick up the discarded roller and carried it over to the pan of paint. The floor was a disaster area. Large splatters covered most of the dog prints. It didn’t matter, she reflected. Once the flooring w
as installed, no one would ever see the mess underneath.

  She wished every problem in her life could be resolved so easily.

  Chapter Eleven

  Seven gypsy princesses, their full skirts swishing and gold bracelets clinking, dashed past Jolyn. Not one of them was over the age of fifteen.

  “Nice job, ladies,” she called, patting the shoulders within reach.

  The audience agreed, continuing to applaud. A few of the more enthusiastic fans yelled, “Encore, encore!”

  Dottie’s advanced students had put on yet another outstanding performance for Red, White and Blue Ridge Days.

  Jolyn walked around behind the stage and into absolute chaos. “Do you need any help, Mom?” she asked. The hallway off the community center’s huge kitchen had been converted into a temporary dressing room. Seven girls and three costume changes, coupled with cramped quarters and two helpers, equaled a disaster area.

  “Thanks, honey, but we’re in good shape.” Dottie appeared to be unaffected by all the commotion. She glided through the room, restoring order and calm wherever she went.

  “I can take those boxes to the car for you.”

  “Your dad will. You know him, he has a system.” Her mother was the one with the system, her father merely carried it out.

  “Okay.” Jolyn lingered, unable to explain her urge to stay amid the dancers when she more often couldn’t wait to flee.

  “Go on.” Dottie shooed Jolyn away. “The band will be starting any minute. Have some fun, why don’t you? You deserve it.”

  She didn’t feel much in the mood for fun and hadn’t all week.

  “I’ll be fine.” Her mother smiled and cupped her cheek, the gesture reminiscent of when Jolyn was the same age as the girls. “Really. Everything will be fine. You’ll see.”

  Her mother understood what Jolyn hadn’t and had offered exactly the reassurance she needed.

  “I know.” Jolyn gave her mother a brief, yet fierce, hug.

  “I’ll be out shortly.” Dottie turned her attention to a student. “Your father’s promised to two-step with me.”

  Jolyn always liked watching her parents dance, be it country-western, like tonight, ballroom, disco or whatever. Over the course of many years, and with her mother’s patient tutoring, her father had progressed into a passably good dance partner.

  The band was on the stage and warming up when Jolyn returned to the main room. Folding tables and chairs had been moved to create an open area in front of the stage. Fruit punch and iced tea dispensers were set up on a table in the back. A pair of doors on the side of the building were open, allowing people to travel back and forth to the picnic area for a breath of fresh air. Jolyn and Chase had sat at one of those very picnic tables the afternoon she’d presented her bid for his clinic.

  Hard to believe nearly a month had gone by since then.

  Jolyn found a group of her parents’ neighbors and, at their warm insistence, joined them. She hadn’t had much free time for socializing since her return home and tried to enjoy herself. Relaxing was difficult, and she listened more than she contributed to the conversation. Scanning the ever-moving crowd, her restless gaze came to a halt only when she found Chase.

  She’d spotted him earlier in the dinner line, watched him and Mandy eat from the corner of her eye, and knew where they were sitting during the dance performance. With almost two hundred people packed into a room designed to accommodate a hundred and fifty, it was easy to keep out of his path.

  Was that what she wanted?

  No. She’d much prefer going back to the way things had been before Monday when her mother had told them about her doctor’s phone call. Unfortunately, that didn’t appear to be possible.

  Mike came in from outside and stopped to chat with Jolyn and her friends. The topic quickly turned to the clinic with everyone wanting to know how it was coming along. Fortunately, Mike answered most of the questions, leaving Jolyn free to brood some more.

  The band launched into their first set, opening it with a rousing country classic. Rather than be quiet and listen, everyone just talked louder. By the start of the third number, Jolyn was ready to go home, but knew her absence would be noticed and gossiped about.

  She had just decided to excuse herself when Mike touched her arm and said, “Would you like to dance?”

  “Um…” Jolyn laughed nervously. She hadn’t been on the dance floor in she didn’t remember how long. Touring, with its sixteen-hour workdays, didn’t allow for an active night life. And for six months after the accident, Jolyn hadn’t known if she would walk again, much less dance.

  “Come on,” Mike said, reaching for her hand. “When was the last time you and I tripped the light fantastic?”

  Eleven years. Their high-school senior dance. The same night Chase had kissed Jolyn and SherryAnne had sought out Steven for a whole lot more than kissing.

  Before she could decline Mike’s invitation, he whisked her out onto the floor. The song had one of those in-between tempos, not too fast, not too slow. Jolyn had trouble keeping up with him, though not because of her knee. She was out of practice, and he was an energetic dancer.

  “Take it easy,” she said, slightly out of breath.

  “Sorry.” He grinned apologetically and in his best Bullwinkle the Moose imitation, said, “Sometimes I don’t know my own strength.”

  “It’s me. I’m not in the best of shape anymore.”

  The blatant up and down he gave her was pure male. “News flash, Jolyn. You’re in great shape.” As if to emphasize his point, he tugged her closer.

  She instinctively hung on. It was that or fall flat on her face. She liked Mike, enjoyed working with him. However, she wasn’t interested in him romantically. She hoped he wasn’t thinking of rekindling their high-school courtship. It had been one-sided back then and would be again today.

  “I want to thank you for giving me a job,” he said, smiling down at her. “I know it may not be permanent and all, but I really appreciate it.”

  “You’re doing great. It’s me who appreciates you.”

  “Can’t say I ever thought I’d have a woman for a boss.”

  “You getting a lot of flack from your buddies?”

  “Hell, yes. I tell them they’re just jealous. None of that fat bunch of slobs has ever worked for a boss as pretty as mine.” He anchored his arm more firmly around her waist and spun her in a half circle.

  “You’re making me dizzy.” She chastised him with lighthearted humor. Inside, she was growing increasingly agitated. Mike was flirting with her and she wasn’t sure how to take it.

  Finally, the song ended. “Thanks, Mike. I enjoyed that more than I thought I would.”

  Before she could break away, he said, “Wait.” The next number started, and he swept her into his arms for another dance. “There’s something I want to ask you.”

  Oh, boy. Here it comes. Jolyn searched her mind for a kind letdown.

  Mike lowered his head. His lips hovered a few inches from her ear. “The thing is—”

  Jolyn couldn’t hear herself think over the loud music and the people talking.

  “—I don’t know how to say it so I guess I’ll just come out with it—”

  She’d tell him, I like you too much as an employee and a friend to risk ruining things by entering into a personal relationship. Yes, that’s how she’d handle it.

  “Oh, hell.” Mike chuckled sheepishly. “I’m acting like a dumb kid. Here i
t goes.” He inhaled robustly.

  Jolyn braced herself. Mike was a super guy. She’d hate having to hurt his feelings.

  “Do you think Anita would go out with me if I asked her?”

  “What?” Jolyn came to a sudden standstill in the middle of the dance floor. “Anita!” She could have burst out laughing with relief but didn’t in case Mike took it the wrong way.

  “She’ll turn me down flat, won’t she?” He was wearing one of those kicked-puppy faces Mrs. Cutter had been talking about the other day.

  “No, no. It’s not that.” Jolyn didn’t dare tell him what had been running through her mind before he’d mentioned Anita’s name. “I’ve only met her once or twice. I hardly know her.”

  “She probably has a boyfriend.” After the third couple bumped into them, Mike and Jolyn resumed dancing. “Girls like her have guys lining up at their doorstep.”

  “She is pretty.”

  “Has Chase mentioned anything to you?”

  Jolyn shook her head. “He hasn’t.” Mike’s inadvertent reminder of Jolyn and Chase’s awkward meeting the previous morning took a little of the shine off her good mood. “But Anita recently rented a room in town. If she’s involved with someone back in Phoenix, it can’t be serious or she wouldn’t have moved here.”

  Mike’s face lit up. “You’re right. Thanks.” Taking Jolyn by complete surprise, he leaned down and kissed her soundly, though chastely, on the lips. “She’s here somewhere. You won’t mind if I abandon you and go looking for her?”

  “Not at all.” Jolyn felt her cheeks warm. “Good luck.”

  Humming along with the band, Mike twirled Jolyn, caught her up in his arms and then proceeded to Cotton-Eye Joe her across the floor.

  “Take it easy,” Jolyn complained good-naturedly. She was once more having trouble keeping up with him.

  Mike pulled her up short. It took Jolyn a few disorienting seconds to realize it was because they’d nearly collided with someone—someone who stood like a stone statue in their path.

  “Hey, pal!” Mike said amiably. “Didn’t see you there.”