by Gloria Doty
“See, it’s like this…they made a decision to stay and hear the band because this will probably be their last opportunity to enjoy them for a long time. They were going to surprise you but Grammy said I had to go somewhere and make myself useful because I was driving her crazy. I think she just wanted to be alone with Grandpa for a while.”
“And since I can’t breathe well enough to dance and Luke’s not old enough to be in a bar…we’re going to keep each other company while you go and have some fun, Dani.”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t plan on attending that circus. Besides, I don’t dance.”
Raising his eyebrows, her father said, “Come on now. That’s not true. I saw you dancing when there was a party at the Frasier ranch in Texas. Besides, Cal and Lucy are coming to pick you up tomorrow night. You go, young lady. That’s an order…you understand?”
CHAPTER 32
MAGGIE GRABBED HER mail as she was leaving home and threw it on the front seat of her car. She glanced at it as she did so and noticed the magazine she ordered had arrived. She certainly didn’t have time to read anything today. It would be there when she did have time. She wanted to arrive at the bar early and make sure the extra wait staff Jace hired was prepared and knew what to do and where everything was located.
‘Oh please, God, let this plan work like it’s supposed to. If there are no customers it will be the end of The Branding Iron and maybe the end of Jace Matthews’ world, as he knows it.’
As she turned onto the street where she usually parked, she was blown away by the number of vehicles already there. The advertising must have been effective…she didn’t remember this many customers this early in the afternoon for a long time.
She entered through the back door and nearly collided with Mitch. “Get ready, Maggie. We’ve been busy for several hours already and I think we’re going to be swamped this evening. I’m sure glad you and Jace had the foresight to hire enough servers.”
“Yeah, me too,” she answered as she walked through the tables to the bar. This was going to be a fantastic weekend. She loved being busy and serving all types of customers, especially those of the male gender. It was fun to talk and flirt and the tips should be generous tonight.
The band was scheduled to play from 7pm to 11pm. The bar was full at 5:00. Ken asked them to pose for a picture since it was his idea to hire a band, in the first place.
As the next few hours passed, people were squeezing together at tables and there was a line outside the door waiting to get inside. Cal and Lucy and a reluctant Dani arrived much earlier, knowing it would be standing room only before the band played the first note.
Collier and Camille arrived in time to secure seats at a table with another couple. They were in a far corner but could still see the band. They introduced themselves and got comfortable. Collier fought his way to the bar to get them each a drink. Maggie smiled at him and nodded her head in the direction of their table.
“Hey Sweetie, you been seein’ a lot of Emily? You know, the strangest thing…I was reading this magazine and saw…” She was interrupted by Mitch asking about a certain type of whiskey a customer wanted. When she turned back, Collier had taken their drinks and was making his way back to their table. ‘I’ll tell him and Emily about the other person with the same name when it’s not so busy. Or maybe never. It doesn’t matter at all.’
The band opened with a favorite that got everyone in the mood for a foot-stompin’ evening. Hubie then took a few minutes to explain who they were and where they were from.
“We’re pretty far from home but there’s a few other people here tonight that might be just as far if not further. Say hello to our friends from Magnolia, Texas: the Frasiers.”
“Are y’all ready for a night of foot-stompin’, boot-scootin’ wild Hootenanny?”
Amidst cheers, they went into the next set without further talking.
As usual, it took some time before people were comfortable getting up to dance. When they played ‘Boot-Scootin’ Boogie,’ Hubie called out, “Come on, Cal and Lucy. Get up here and show us how it’s done.”
Grabbing Cal’s hand, she led him to the dance floor. “Let’s go, Cowboy. We can do this, for sure.”
Soon the dance floor was filled to capacity as more people joined them. When Missy slowed it down a bit by singing ‘Girl Crush,’ Mitch looked pleadingly at Maggie and she nodded and mouthed the word, “Go!”
He practically vaulted over the bar and hurried to Dani to ask her to dance. She hesitated for only a second, then stood and followed him to the dance floor. By now, it was so crowded, it couldn’t really be called dancing. Couples were close together whether they wanted to be or not.
Jace, who had been circulating all evening, glanced in their direction, frowned, paused for a bit and continued to the next table. His look wasn’t lost on Lucy.
“Our Jace is jealous of whoever is dancing with Dani. I’d say that’s a good thing, wouldn’t you, Honey?”
Cal shook his head and hugged her. “You’re not going to give up on Jace and Dani, are you, Sweetheart?”
Hubie and Travis circulated through the crowd while having a guitar and fiddle duel. Much to the crowd’s delight, they jumped up onto the bar and continued playing from there.
***
“I’m going to beg off tonight, Lorna. You go find your ‘used to be broke and now may be wealthy again’ cowboy.’ I’m going to stay here and watch a movie,” Will told Lorna when they reached their hotel room. She shrugged, dismissing his words. “Suit yourself.”
She was frustrated when she arrived at The Branding Iron. She had to park blocks away and it wasn’t easy walking that far on stilettos. When she finally made her way inside, she scanned the room until she found her target. He was standing at the bar evidently waiting to take several drinks to a table. As Maggie handed them to him, she saw Lorna and nearly dropped the bottles. Lorna made her way through the crowd, quietly came up behind Jace and wrapped her arms around his waist. “I missed you, Jace. It’s good to be back.”
He whirled around at the sound of her voice. His jaw dropped and his mouth opened but no sound came out. Finally, he managed to say, “Lorna…what a surprise. Excuse me, I…I…have customers waiting for their beer.”
There was no mistaking the look of loathing Maggie was sending in Lorna’s direction. ‘If that bitch is back to break his heart again, I will be sorely tempted to quietly dispose of her.’
Maggie wasn’t the only one who witnessed the encounter. It wasn’t like Lorna was hard to miss. She was the only one in the room dressed as though she was a celebrity ready to walk the red carpet. Dani saw her hug Jace and felt the knot in her stomach tighten. Lucy observed the hug, also. She encouraged Dani to move toward the bar and ask Jace to dance. “Tell him he promised you this dance. That will give him an opportunity to get away from her. I don’t know who she is, but he looks like he needs rescuing.” When Dani shook her head, Lucy told her, “You wouldn’t hesitate to rescue a calf, Dani. Now go rescue Jace.” She practically pushed her in their direction.
Reluctantly, she made her way to Jace saying she was reminding him he promised her this dance. He nodded, looking slightly confused. He quickly delivered the drinks and came back to the bar to find Lorna sizing up Dani and Maggie looking as though she was going to take care of Lorna, once and for all.
Camille glanced up and came as close to having a heart attack as she ever wanted to.
‘Damn! I don’t know what Lorna’s doing here but it’s a safe bet that Will isn’t far behind.’
“Collier, I have a massive headache. Could you take me home? You can come back and enjoy the remainder of the evening.”
He drained his beer and stood. Grabbing her jacket, he took her arm and told her, “Come on, Emily. Let’s get you home.”
***
Hubie introduced each member of his band to wild applause from the crowd. The fun continued for the entire four hours with Missy singing many of the crowd’s favorites.
A highlight of the night was when Travis performed his rendition of ‘The Devil Went Down to Georgia.’ They played ‘If You’re Gonna Play in Texas, Ya Gotta have a Fiddle in the Band’ just for Cal and Lucy.
“We appreciate everyone coming out tonight and the giant Montana welcome we received. We’ll be back tomorrow evening and next weekend, too, so tell your friends and relatives and bring ‘em back with you.”
The crowd cheered at that statement.
***
As the band members prepared to leave for their hotel, a gentleman approached Hubie.
“Can I talk to you for a minute? Buy you a drink?”
“No to the drink but yes to the talking,” Hubie told him.
“I thoroughly enjoyed listening to you and your band tonight. I have a lot of friends that would’ve loved to be here but they have younger children and as I’m sure you know, it’s not always easy to find a sitter. We have a beautiful park here in Bozeman…Bogert Park…it has a band shell for a stage and a huge covered pavilion.
Do you think there’d be a chance I could talk you into a performance on Sunday afternoon? You know, a family-friendly affair. I realize it’s short notice but I’ve already made a call this evening to the person in charge of the Parks Department and it is available. I have the resources to pay your fee. In fact, I can write you a check right now, if you’d like.”
The other members of the band were gathered around, listening to the exchange. Hubie asked for their input. “We’re already here and we have an entire week to fill, so I vote yes,” Tim said. The others agreed with him so it was unanimous.
Hubie shook the man’s hand. “Looks like you have a deal.”
CHAPTER 33
LORNA REALIZED SHE left without the key card to her room. She stopped at the front desk and asked for a replacement. Handing her the card, the desk clerk also gave her a piece of paper, saying she had a message from another guest.
Lorna, I decided it would be better for both of us if I had my own room. I’m also not going to the conference with you. If you want to come to room 141in the morning, we can talk and I’ll try to explain. Will
She crumpled the note and immediately walked to Will’s new room. Knocking loudly and oblivious to the time, she yelled, “Will! Open this door right now. Do you hear me?!”
The door opened, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside. “Do I hear you? I suspect people in the next town could hear you, Lorna. You do realize most of the guests are sleeping, right?”
“What do I care? That’s their problem…not mine. Why did you get another room, Will? Jealous of me going to rekindle an old flame?”
“No, not at all. Why would I be jealous? There was never anything but a flirtatious relationship between us. I’m going to be brutally honest but I highly doubt you will understand what I’m going to say. I came to California because I wanted the job you said you could help me secure…plain and simple. Was that using our friendship? Yes, it was. I’m not proud of that fact but it’s the truth. I’ve been observing you and your callousness toward others, getting ahead at all costs, your mean-spiritedness and many other non-flattering traits. Unfortunately, I also see myself becoming more and more like you and that bothers me…a lot. Tonight was the last straw. You wanted to reacquaint yourself with a man you admittedly don’t care about but you’re interested in his cash flow. Think about it, Lorna. What’s the end result here? Marriage? Because that’s the only way you’d ever get your hands on his money, if he has any. How long do you think that would last with no love involved?”
She’d been pacing but stopped in front of him. “Well, aren’t you just the self-righteous hypocrite all of a sudden? Who lived with Camille because they didn’t have a job? You thought I didn’t know about you losing your job, didn’t you? Who pretended to be interested in her assistant to get her phone number? Who was that, Will? Don’t pull any ‘holier-than-thou’ bullshit with me.”
“You’re absolutely correct, Lorna. I did all those things but I’m not liking myself too much for those actions. That’s not who I really am and I don’t want to be that way in the future but I do thank you for being my mirror so I could see myself.”
“Fine. Run back to St. Louis and Camille. I’m sure she’ll be waiting for you when she’s done playing her ‘hide-and-seek’ games. I’m going to New York after I have a little fun with Jace, if I can get him alone. Tonight he danced with some girl in boots and jeans…probably some hick from this two-bit town in this God-forsaken state. I’m betting I can make him forget her if that wretched Maggie doesn’t kill me first. She’s just upset because she wants to get in bed with him, too. And if your precious Camille is in this town and has met him, she’s probably in line, also.”
She turned and moved toward the door. “I’ll do my best to see to it that you never get a job in the investment industry, Will…in any state.” She left, slamming the door on her way out.
‘Well played, Will, ole boy. There goes your future employment and maybe enjoyment.’
He laughed at himself and the rhyme. ‘The only bright spot is your foresight in buying flight insurance when you purchased your ticket. Now you can stick around for a few days before rescheduling your return flight.’
***
Jace sat in his recliner still fully clothed. He didn’t even make an effort to remove his boots. Jake placed his head on his knee, asking for a little attention.
“I know, Jake, I’ve been pretty scarce around here lately, haven’t I?” He rubbed the dog’s head, saying, “I’m beginning to envy you. You’ve got a simple life, buddy. As long as I make sure you’re fed and watered, you have no worries…unlike me…who seems to continue to get myself mired in messes no matter what I do.”
‘You should go to bed, Jace. This has been the most exhausting, exhilarating and confusing day of your life. The rodeo was hard but women are harder.’
Although he was dead tired, sleep eluded him. He said a prayer of thanks for the successful night at The Branding Iron. It was more than he ever expected. ‘This praying is becoming a habit, Jace. What changed in your life that you suddenly feel comfortable talking to God again?
He didn’t know the answer but he knew a few things, even in his sleep-deprived state. He knew his heart skipped a beat when he heard Lorna’s voice but it almost did cartwheels when he was holding Dani in his arms and dancing with her. He also knew the line about promising her a dance was meant only to rescue him but it felt good anyway. He also knew he hadn’t made it to the bank to retrieve Emily’s check. He wanted to hand it back to her in person. Even though he no longer needed it, she needed to know how much he appreciated it. He wasn’t sure how he felt about seeing her there with Collier last night. He was going to talk to them but when he had a few free minutes, they were gone. It would have to wait until Monday; he knew she wasn’t going anywhere.
***
“So, how was the evening, Danielle?” her father asked as she came in the door.
She smiled. “You’re being nosy, Dad. What is it you really want to ask?”
“He wants to know if you danced with Jace,” Luke interjected into the conversation.
Still laughing, he asked, “Can I stay here another night?”
“Sure. Your grandparents are waiting for you, so go ask. Tell them it’s okay with us.”
Before he returned, Dani sighed. “Yes, I did dance one dance with him but he didn’t ask me…I asked him. I don’t know what to think or feel, Daddy. Tonight there was another woman there and she seemed pretty familiar with Jace, too. I don’t want to compete with one woman, let alone three of them.”
***
Collier and Camille sat on the deck, watching the stars for a while but eventually, retreated to the warmth of the house.
Removing her denim jacket, Camille told him, “Go back, Collier. Enjoy the rest of the evening. There’s no reason for you to stay here with me. I’m fine.”
“I know you’re fine, physically, Camille. Your sudden headache appeared wh
en the blond, over-dressed woman showed up and hugged Jace. It’s your emotional health I’m worried about.”
‘It’s time to tell him everything, Camille. He knows you’re hiding a lot of secrets and he’s been more than open and honest with you. If you genuinely care about him and you know you do, tell him the truth.’
She made them both a cup of peppermint tea. “I know you’re not a tea drinker, but this is soothing and you may need it soon.”
“Who was Miss Fancy Pants with the pearls and high heels, Camille?”
“Her name is Lorna and she’s a friend of Will’s. She lives in California and works for a brokerage firm. I knew if she saw me, she’d remember me. It’s hard to forget the face of the woman who found you horizontal on her living room couch. She and Will were having a ‘discussion’ apparently, when I walked in. I was introduced as Camille and although Will wasn’t with her at the bar tonight, I didn’t want her to see me. He probably wasn’t far behind since I believe she promised him a job or help with finding one.”
“Look, Collier, I have not been honest with you about a lot of things but I’ve grown to like…more than like…you and it’s only fair to tell you who I am and why I came to Montana.”
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to. I think I’m falling in love with the Camille I know, or don’t know, possibly.”
“Don’t say that, Collier. You’ll change your mind. You knew I was Barbara’s daughter and my name was Camille before I even arrived. If you hadn’t, you would believe I was Emily, like everyone else does.”
CHAPTER 34
“I TOLD YOU I write some articles for a magazine. That’s true, but I think I left out the part about how I own the magazine, Collier. The name is Mavis’ Mag and the offices are in St. Louis, Missouri. If some of this information is redundant, bear with me. Sadly, when a person doesn’t tell the truth about things, they forget what they’ve said and what was left unsaid.”