Texas Daddy

by Jolene Navarro

  She had one goal. Get healthy and get back to the Grand Canyon. Well, that was two, but the one thing she knew for sure: Adrian De La Cruz needed to stay out of her head. She didn’t worry about her heart. It was already gone.

  Chapter Two

  Adrian tossed the trashed bike into the back of Mr. Bergmann’s truck. The rain had moved east and now humidity sat heavy on his shoulders as he stood at the driver’s door. “Mr. Bergmann, I’ll get the fence repaired before the weekend is out.”

  “Appreciate it, Adrian. And thanks for helping Nicole.” He cut a glance to his daughter. “She shouldn’t have even been out here. It’s too hazardous, and with her bashed-up knee she could have gotten herself killed. This place is dangerous.” With the sigh of a frustrated father, he looked back at Adrian. “I thank God you were out here.”

  Arms crossed over her chest, she rolled her eyes. “I can take care of myself. No one had to save me, Daddy.” She sighed and leaned forward. “Adrian, thank you. I’m grateful you were here. I’m just... Let me know if there is anything I need to do for the fawn.”

  He understood her frustration. Needing help was never a fun place to be in when you were used to taking care of yourself. “No worries—we’ve got her. You can visit anytime you like. Consider it an open adoption.” He chuckled. “Glad I was here. Hope there’s not too much damage to your knee.”

  The diesel engine roared to life. Bergmann tipped his Montana Brand tools baseball cap. “I’ll see you at the store Monday if not before.”

  Adrian gave a slap to the door and stepped back. He waited for them to disappear around the curve before heading to the shed. With a hind leg cocked, Zeta looked to be sound asleep. “Hey, wake up, lazy. We’ve got a fence to fix.” After calling Nikki’s dad, he had called George to let him know he’d be late to dinner.

  Ears forward, she raised her head. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You were just waiting on me.” After checking the gear, he picked up the fawn and tucked her inside his duster, close to him. “We have a guest, so mind your manners.” He let the horse smell the baby deer then patted her withers before swinging up into the saddle. With a nudge of his knees, they started down the dirt road at a more leisurely pace than a few hours ago.

  At the downed fence, he saw a Childress work truck with the cutting-horse logo on the side. His brother, George, pulled fencing from the back. Mia started jumping and waving.

  She was trying to jump, anyway. She looked a bit awkward with the new brace. He’d be so happy when he didn’t have to see a brace again. Mia’s gear looked twice as long as Nikki’s. She never did tell him what kind of injury she suffered.

  “Mia, careful. We just got your cast off. Where’re your crutches?” Dismounting, he dropped the reins to the ground. “You shouldn’t have brought her out here. She’s going to end up back in the wheelchair.”

  “Hey, you were the one who left her at school without calling, so don’t lecture me, little brother. Anyway, I remember someone with a busted ankle refusing to use his crutches.” George and Mia moved to the fence. She carried the fence ties as she limped next to his twin. “Then you cut the thing off so you wouldn’t miss another ride. She’ll be fine, Papa Bear.”

  Adrian popped his jaw. He was not in the mood for his brother’s ribbing. He moved to the back seat of the Silverado 2500 and used a blanket to wrap the sleeping fawn. He’d surprise Mia with it on the way back to the ranch. “My injury was different. She’s a ten-year-old girl and could get hurt again.”

  “You need to relax. What has you so uptight? What are you doing in the truck?”

  “Nothing. And you’re not a father, so you don’t get it.”

  George stopped what he was doing and straightened. “I can’t believe you said that to me. Are you looking for a fight? Because I can give you one right here and leave you in the mud, little brother.”

  Mia rolled her eyes. “Tío George, it’s okay. He just freaks out easily since I fell off the horse. It all worked out. And, Daddy, if I sit at home any longer I’ll scream. Please don’t get mad at Tío.”

  “You didn’t just fall off your horse. You were dragged across an arena.”

  George narrowed his eyes and scrutinized his twin. Adrian glared back for a moment, but quickly turned away, studying the blue sky that had been heavy and threatening an hour ago. If anyone could see his discomfort over seeing Nikki again, it would be his twin. “Weather changes fast around here.”

  “Sure.” George started unrolling the wire. “Hold this, mija. Changing the subject won’t work. When you called you said the oldest Bergmann sister was hurt. Didn’t know she was back in town. Still as stunning as when she was in school?”

  Adrian scowled at his brother then back to his daughter. Was his brother that dense to talk about women in front of Mia? He followed the glare with a shrug. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. She was hurt, and I helped her. She’s in a brace too, and was doing stuff she shouldn’t have been doing.” He took the coiled wire fencing from Mia. “Go put the tailgate down and sit with the dogs. The ground is too wet and uneven for your injured leg.”

  “Daddy! Tío said I could help.”

  “Go or I’ll have your tío take you home.”

  With a heavy sigh, she limped back to the truck. Beast and Belle, George’s blue heelers, got excited and sat next to her. Those were the kind of names you got when a six-year-old girl named your dogs. She hugged the pair and let them lick her. He sighed.

  Now she’d probably name any new dogs after some boy-band crush. She was growing up too fast, and there was nothing he could do to stop the changes.

  He checked his watch. Sitting still was hard for Mia. Who was he kidding? He’d go crazy not being able to work. He knew she thought he was too stern, so did his brother, but he couldn’t deal with her being hurt again. “How about I take you to the store when we finish? You can get a couple of new coloring books and markers. I need to pick up some groceries anyways.”

  Her face lit up. “Thank you, Daddy!”

  When she smiled, he automatically felt guilty for being upset with her. Seeing Nikki all grown up, but hurt and refusing help, had put him in a bad mood.

  Tuesday, they had the first physical-therapy session with the new brace. The therapist only came to Clear Water twice a week. Nikki would probably be there.

  He sighed and pulled the wire tight. The high school girl he obsessed over no longer existed. Life had taken them in different directions. She took on the world, and he was happy living within the borders of Clear Water, raising his daughter.

  * * *

  “Nikki, don’t be stubborn. I can cancel my appointment and go to The Mercantile for you.” Her father kept looking straight ahead. He hated conflict and would avoid it at all cost.

  She pushed the door open. “I just need a few things. I can walk over to the hardware store when I’m finished. I need to work out the kinks.”

  The muscle in his jaw popped. “It’s the walking part I’m worried about.” The wrinkles at the edges of his eyes and the gray in his hair marked the time she had been away. If she allowed herself to put a number to the years, she might start crying...and never stop. So many regrets that couldn’t be undone.

  “I’ve got this, Daddy. I’m used to being on my own.”

  “You are not alone. You’ve never been alone. We’ve been here the whole time, waiting. I never asked you to leave. I...” He took a deep breath. “I understood why you left, but once your stepmother was gone, why didn’t you come back? The door was always opened for you.”

  “Sheila was never any kind of mother, step or otherwise.” This was exactly the reason she never came home. Adjusting her ponytail, Nikki pulled it tight. “I know I would be welcomed home. I just needed to move on from Clear Water.” She jerked the handle harder than necessary and stepped out onto the golf-ball-sized gravel. “I
f you don’t leave now you’ll be late, and a Bergmann is never late. Love you.”

  As she tried to walk away with a straight spine, the uneven concrete steps slowed her down. She paused on the top one. She had never been good at being truthful with herself.

  It was not the four lopsided steps that stopped her, but the thought of going in the store and seeing people she hadn’t seen in years. Maybe she should have let her dad go for her so she could keep hiding in the house.

  A couple more steps and she forced herself to open the glass door. The tiny bell rang and the few people in the store turned and looked at her before going back to their business, everyone except Victoria Lawson. Well, Miller since she married Tommy. Barbed wire tightened around her spine.

  Vickie was one of the people she didn’t want to see. The one person she never dreamed would be working in a small-town grocery store. The one person she owed the biggest apology to. She didn’t think Vickie even knew. Maybe she had been wrong keeping silent. At the time, she thought telling everyone would just cause more hurt all around.

  The former head cheerleader and class president came around the counter and hugged her. “Nikki Bergmann, it’s great seeing you. Danica told me you were in town. Welcome back.” In high school, she’d been the perfect girl dating the perfect quarterback. There was a petty, dark part of Nikki that was disappointed her secret high school rival was still as beautiful, maybe even more so. Last she heard, Vickie and Tommy were at Baylor University together and had a son a year after she had her... Stop it, Nikki!

  Shifting from one foot to the other, she tried to come up with something polite to say. People made small talk. It was normal. Be normal.

  She hated chitchat. Forcing a smile, she returned Vickie’s hug then stepped back. “Thank you. So you and Tommy moved back to Clear Water?”

  “Where have you been? I can’t believe your sisters didn’t tell you. I moved back to Clear Water without Tommy. We’re divorced and he’s, well... He’s not around.”

  For a moment, her brain shut down. Not a single neuron fired. “Oh, I...I’m sorry.”

  Vickie laughed. “Don’t be. Jake Torres and I are married now. Coming back was the best thing that ever happened to me. Maybe God has something great in store for you too.” She smiled, a real smile, not the smirk she used back in high school. “I finally got smart. So what brought you in today?” She glanced down at Nikki’s leg. “Anything I can get for you?”

  “I just need a cart.” She tried smiling again, but it felt tight. Between the pain traveling from her leg to her spine, and the emotions of guilt, her lungs burned from the lack of air. Vickie was married to Jake, not Tommy. All the horrible feelings when she was a teenager started crowding out the person she worked hard to become while she was away from Texas. Another reason she didn’t want to ever step foot in Clear Water again.

  The wood floors under her feet had to be over a hundred years old. How many people had walked through here, taking care of their families? People that didn’t run away. She needed painkillers. She needed them over an hour ago.

  Vickie brought a small wobbly wheeled shopping cart over to her. Leaning into it, Nikki almost cried from the relief of taking pressure off her leg.

  Stomping off from her dad had been a bad choice. Her whole leg throbbed, and it was her own fault. Yeah, that’s her, a living, breathing, limping example of pride cometh before the fall.

  The shopping cart pulled to the left again. She growled and yanked it back. Great, she had a lame basket too.

  “Nikki?”

  She dropped her head before plastering a smile on her face and turning to Adrian. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were stalking me.”

  “Maybe you do know better, and you’re onto me.” His heart-melting smile was highlighted by a wink.

  She glared at him. Did she look like the kind that invited flirting? Most of the men in her life didn’t even try.

  He dared to lean in closer and grinned. “Do you need help? What are you getting?”

  “I’m just getting some painkillers, almond milk and orange juice. But I’ve got it.”

  “Daddy! Look, they have a new horse book. Can I get it too?” A beautiful girl of about ten hobbled over on crutches, her long dark hair trying to crawl out of a French braid.

  Nikki froze. Her gut twisted. Adrian’s daughter.

  “Mia, this is Nikki Bergmann. She’s the long-lost oldest Bergmann sister. We went to school together. Nikki, my daughter, Mia.”

  “Oh, you saved Swift. She’s so sweet. Thank you for giving her to my dad. I promise to take good care of her and you can come see her anytime. So you went to school with my dad. Did you know my mom?”

  Adrian cut his daughter a glare. “Mia.”

  “Sorry. Daddy says you have a brace too.” The girl looked at her leg in confusion. “Did they let you take it off?”

  She watched Adrian walk the short distance to the cooler at the end of the aisle. He was a man now with a man’s filled-out frame, but he still had the I-own-the-world swagger that seemed to be in all bull riders. It was hard to believe he gave it up for his daughter. She glanced at Mia. Did he have regrets? Obviously Charlotte, Mia’s mother, was a banned subject.

  The silence didn’t deter the young girl. “I just got my cast off, and Tuesday I have my first day in full therapy. I have a rod and screws holding my leg together. Are you in physical therapy?”

  She was as talkative as her dad. Nikki blinked a few times to clear her thoughts. “I’ll be there at sixteen hundred hours.”

  Adrian tossed a bottle of orange juice and a carton of unsweetened almond milk in her cart as he laughed. “For us civilians, we need to translate.” He rolled his eyes up as he counted on his fingers. He looked back at them with a grin. “Four o’clock, right?”

  The girl’s face lit up. “Yay! We can be workout buddies. Daddy said you’re an adventure guide in the Grand Canyon and you were in the navy. That sounds really cool. I broke my leg in three places being drug by a horse in the arena. I hit my head, so I don’t remember any of it, but Daddy saw everything.” The same gold flecks her father had now flashed in her young eyes.

  “Mia.” Adrian looked as if he had lost some color to his dark skin and his eyebrows had a deep crease between them. He did not share Mia’s excitement over the story of her accident.

  Leaning closer to her, Mia whispered, “Daddy’s having a harder time dealing with my injury than I am.”

  “Sorry, she thinks everyone wants to hear her life story.”

  “Wonder who she got that from?” She winked at Adrian. He actually blushed. Without thought, laughter—good honest laughter—bubbled forth. It surprised her at first. She didn’t laugh often—not much to laugh about.

  Mia didn’t seem to notice her dad’s discomfort. “Did you fall while climbing cliffs, or smash against a rock in the white-water rapids? I’ve seen shows about it.”

  “No, just a boring car wreck.” She smiled at Mia. “I busted my ACL and damaged my meniscus.”

  “Oh no. Is everyone okay?” Her small hand went to her chest.

  “Yeah. I got the worst of it. A guy on his cell phone T-boned us. As the passenger, I took the main hit.” That wasn’t the only hit she took that day. She shifted her weight, trying to take the pressure off her hurt knee.

  “Why aren’t you wearing a brace?” The concerned look on Mia’s face mirrored Adrian’s. The child undeniably had more of her dad in her than her mom. All she remembered of Charlotte was the girl liked wearing black and never smiled—not at her, anyway. She couldn’t picture Adrian being with a girl like that.

  Since he apparently didn’t have a cart, Adrian just threw some fresh carrots, corn on the cob and spinach in hers. He also had a giant supply of painkillers and a bottle of water. “She was doing stuff she shouldn’t be doing and now she
’s in pain and might have hurt her knee all over again. We had to cut her brace off so she could walk.” He opened the painkillers and held three gel tablets out to her. “Why don’t you take a few of these now. You look as if you won’t be standing much longer.”

  “I’m fine.” She wanted to refuse the meds he offered her, but she knew he was right. She had waited too long and now the pain was overwhelming. Without the cart she wouldn’t be standing. She took them from his hand and slammed them back without the water he offered. “Thanks.”

  With a gentle nudge, he turned her cart to the front of the old store. “Let’s get you checked out and drive you home. You need to elevate and ice that knee. No more walking.”

  Mia sighed. “Sorry he’s so bossy. He says that all the time to me. Daddy thinks ice cures everything. Tío says it’s from his bull-riding days. Ice it, wrap it and get back in the saddle.” The little girl dropped her voice to mimic her father.

  “Except you will not be getting back in the saddle—not on a barrel racer, anyway.”

  The smaller version of Adrian crossed her arms and tightened her mouth, but she didn’t say anything. There was trouble in paradise.

  “Hey, Nikki.” George came from the back, carrying something wrapped in white butcher paper.

  The brothers still looked a great deal alike, but she never understood how people got them confused. Adrian was leaner and better looking. She always thought so, anyway.

  George smiled. “Good to see you. How’s the knee?” They did have the same smile, but George’s didn’t make her feel weak.

  “She’s in pain and needs to get off her feet. We’re checking out then taking her home.” Adrian moved her cart slowly to the checkout. Another difference: George wasn’t as bossy as his twin.

  “Great, you’re joining us for dinner. Good thing I decided to pick up a couple of extra steaks.”