“Good. Keep it that way. We don’t need to ever refer to this again.” Her father released his hold on her then. He dug his hands into his pockets and came up with the keys to the SUV.
“Tell your sisters it’s time to go home. I’ll drive around the park and pick them up in front of the old Railway Depot.”
“But it’s early. They won’t want to leave.”
“If they want a ride home, they’ll leave.”
Having heard about the fight—or rather, the punch—her sisters decided they’d better go home with Hawksley and make sure he didn’t get into any more trouble. It wasn’t even seven so Sage figured she might as well go in to work now that the evening had been pretty much ruined.
She was halfway through the crowd when she spotted Dawson sitting at a table with his mother and daughter. He was cutting up some steak for his daughter and she felt a bubble of sweet sorrow, seeing what a devoted father he seemed to be.
He isn’t all bad.
No, he wasn’t. But she’d always known that. Dawson’s numerous good qualities were what made the whole situation between them all the more tragic.
He looked up then and caught her watching them. She tried to hurry away, but he motioned for her to come closer. With his mother and daughter both eyeing her curiously, she didn’t see any other option.
“Hi, there. Delicious dinner, isn’t it?” She approached his mother, holding out her hand. “I’m Sage Carrigan. I know your son from the circuit. I used to be a barrel-racer.”
“Nice to meet you, Sage.” The older woman’s handshake was limp—she offered only her fingers, not her palm—but her gaze was sharp and Sage could tell that she was being sized-up, woman-to-woman.
“That’s my mother Patricia Anderson,” Dawson said. “And this is my daughter Savannah.”
“Hey there, Savannah. I like your hat.”
“Thank you. I like your belt buckle,” the little girl replied. “Did you win it? It looks like one my Daddy has. Only smaller.”
“Yes I did. It’s one of few that I did manage to win. I wasn’t as good at the rodeo as your father is.”
“And yet, you never saw a finer rider,” Dawson said. “Watching Sage on a horse is like seeing a beautiful sunset.”
The compliment stunned her. And his mother, as well. Patricia’s mouth was actually parted in surprise as she stared from her son to this woman she’d only just met.
“Well... I should be going. Enjoy the rest of your meal. It was nice meeting you both.” She smiled at Patricia and then more genuinely at Savannah.
“Hang on a second.” Dawson rose quickly from his seat and took her arm, leading her further into the crowd.
She knew she should pull away. But the truth was, it felt wonderful to have him touch her again.
“I thought I saw you in the middle of that skirmish in the ticket line a few minutes ago,” Dawson said. “Are you all right? I was on my way to help, when I suddenly couldn’t see you anymore.”
“I’m fine. That was my father taking a shot at Bill Sheenan.”
“That name sounds familiar.”
“He owns the ranch next to ours.”
Dawson’s eyebrows went up. “So he’s the one...”
She shook off his hand then, something she should have done sooner. Why was he acting all caring and protective? He had no right. No right at all.
“I’ve got to go. You should get back to your daughter.”
Ten minutes later Sage was in her store and it had never felt like more of a haven to her. She inhaled deeply as she stepped inside. Chocolate. Was there anything better?
She spelled off Rose Linn, who’d been working with her since the store opened. “I’ll take over for tonight, Rose. Thanks. See you tomorrow?”
They usually closed on Sundays but with the rodeo in town they were making an exception.
“Right after I take my folks to church and make them some lunch,” Rose promised. Though she was only twenty-four herself, Rose always spoke about her elderly parents as if they were her children.
“By the way,” Rose added, “Your cousin Eliza dropped in, hoping to talk to you. She asked if you could drop by the B & B sometime.”
“Did she say what she wanted?” A visit from Eliza Bramble was unusual. Ever since she’d moved to Marietta two years ago, she’d been somewhat of a hermit, refusing all invitations to the Circle C and showing no interest in getting to know the Carrigan side of her family.
Callan figured Eliza was after the Bramble House, worming her way into great aunt Mabel’s favor so she would inherit when the old lady died. As far as Sage was concerned, anyone who could put up with Mabel deserved the house.
But there were rumors that a large sum of money was part of the inheritance.
And if that were the case, Dani felt it was only fair that all the Bramble cousins share in the family wealth.
Sage had no idea how many cousins there actually were. Most of the Brambles had long since moved away, most of them to California. Only Sage’s mother, and great aunt Mable, had remained.
As Rose was leaving the store, Jamie MacCreadie was coming in. He removed his hat and nodded at Rose, then at Sage.
“Hey, Jamie. I saw you had a good day at the rodeo. Lucky thing you took that re-ride.”
“Thanks Sage. You ever miss being a competitor?”
“Honestly? No.” She shuddered. “I wouldn’t risk it with my bum knee, anyway. That Australian rider looked good. A special friend?” Since she’d known Jamie most of her life, she felt she could tease him a little.
But her comment hit the mark a little harder than intended. His face reddened and he stared down at his boots. “Tell you the truth, I’m not too sure. One minute she’s driving me crazy. The next she’s doing the exact same thing—but in an entirely different way.”
“Sorry to break the news, Jamie. But you’ve got it bad.”
“Ya think?” He managed a one sided grin. “Wondered if I could score some points if I bought her some chocolate?”
“A much better choice over flowers,” she assured him, with a silent apology to Risa, the nice new owner of the florist shop next door. They hadn’t had a chance to get to know one another yet, but Sage was hoping they would become friends. “How about I pick out some of my favorites for you? I’ll package them in a pretty box with lots of ribbon.”
He seemed relieved that she’d offered. When she was done she had to ask him about his hair, the dark ends curling up at his shirt collar. “What is it with you cowboys? How come you never get your hair cut properly?”
He grinned, his mood restored somehow now that he had a gift to give his lady.
“Girls like us rough, Sage. What can I say?”
She had a few more customers after Jamie left. Enough so she felt justified in having kept the store open a few hours longer than usual. By the time she’d closed up, it was nine.
She wondered if Dawson was at Grey’s Saloon, waiting for her, even though she hadn’t agreed to meet him there. This afternoon he’d sure seemed anxious to tell her the whole sordid story of his marriage.
But what was the point? Words couldn’t alter the facts. And spending more time with him could prove dangerous to her peace of mind.
She’d been in love with him then, and those feelings were already stirring inside her again. There was only one more day of rodeo, but she still had to protect herself. If Gina had taken off with another guy three weeks ago, that meant she and Dawson were still legally married.
This time Sage knew the score so there would be no excuse if she fell for him again.
Especially since there was a child involved.
CHAPTER FOUR
The next afternoon, Sage sat through the rodeo finals with her sisters, wearing her cowboy hat low and sticking close to family. Her father hadn’t come today.
“He’s in the most god-awful mood,” Dani complained. “What happened between him and Bill Sheenan last night? We heard he actually threw a punch.”
“And Bill didn’t retaliate,” Mattie added. “Doesn’t that seem strange?”
“Oh, you know. The old feud.” Sage dipped her hat lower, slunk down in her seat.
“There had to more to it than that.” Callan was harder to fool than the others because she knew their dad the best.
Sage had promised her father that she would keep their mother’s affair secret from her sisters, and in her heart she felt it was the right thing to do. That way their memories of mom could remain unsullied. But the end result was that they were harder on their father than he deserved.
No matter how tough and sometimes cold he could seem, Sage was always able to remind herself that he’d been hurt by the one person who should have loved him the most. Now that she knew he’d been aware of the affair, she felt even more sorry for him.
Though Hawksley would hate that—he wasn’t one to accept pity from anyone, least of all one of his daughters.
Sage often wondered if her father would have been different if he’d had a son. Maybe some of the pressure would have come off her and her sisters. She certainly remembered his reaction when Callan had been born, though she had been only four at the time.
“Another damn girl.”
That’s what they’d been to him. One damn girl after another. And yet their mother had assured them all that he didn’t mean it. “Your father loves you. He just has a strange way of showing it.”
The cowboys put on a good show that afternoon, not that Sage was in a mood to appreciate it.
The feisty cowgirl from Australia won the barrel-racing. Jamie, cheering on the sidelines, looked thrilled.
Sage purposefully stared down at the program when it was Dawson’s turn at the tie-down event and later riding the bucking horses. She could tell how well he was doing by the roar of the crowd, though, and his scores were high. Probably high enough that he would earn all-around and the big prize money.
Well good for him. He could take his money and move on to the next town and the next rodeo. Hopefully by now he realized coming to Marietta had been a mistake.
If he’d wanted to say he was sorry a nice Hallmark card in the mail would have done the trick.
Monday morning Sage got on her bike a little earlier than usual so she could stop by the Bramble House on her way to work. She was looking forward to returning to routine. They’d had a farewell dinner at the Circle C last night and she’d promised Dani she’d come to visit her in Seattle this December to do some Christmas shopping. She’d given Mattie an extra big hug. Somehow the weekend had whizzed by and the two of them hadn’t had a chance to have a proper talk.
She’d wanted to hear more about Wes, and how the girls were doing at college and whether Mattie was coping okay with her empty nest.
But she’d had to content herself with telling her big sister, “You’re beautiful, Matt. Inside and out.”
“What’s with the sappy goodbyes? You all live in the same state for heaven’s sake,” Dani had pointed out in her logical way.
Which was true, since Bishop Stables—where Mattie and Wes bred and trained Tennessee Walking Horses—was just north of Missoula. Still, the drive was over three hours long and in reality Sage didn’t visit with Mattie any more often than with Dani.
Sage rounded a corner on her bike and turned right onto Bramble Lane. Changing gears as the grade shifted, she took a moment to appreciate the rich golden-colored leaves on the willows along the river. Soon those branches would be bare. If only autumn wasn’t such a fleeting season. Why couldn’t it drag on and on the way the winter always did?
There were so many beautiful homes on this street. Displays of red and gold chrysanthemums and fat, orange pumpkins graced many of the porches in a tribute to fall. Sage slowed as she neared the house of her dreams. She’d coveted it so badly she’d actually phoned the realtor, Tod Styles, to inquire about the asking price.
She hadn’t been happy about potentially giving a commission to Tod, because he’d been a real jerk to her friend Chelsea a while back. But when she’d found out how much they were asking for the house, it no longer mattered. The house at 34 Bramble Lane was out of her league.
She knew the owners had already left town, so when she spotted two vehicles in the drive—one a dusty black truck, the other Tod’s pristine red Lexus, she braked hard. Two men were in the front yard chatting.
One was Tod.
And damned if the other wasn’t Dawson O’Dell.
He noticed her about the same moment she spotted him.
“Hang on a minute, Tod.”
Tod glanced over his shoulder, and recognizing Sage, gave her a cool nod. “Sure thing. I’ll just make that call.” Tod gave her another look, actually a frown, then climbed into the front seat of his car with his phone in hand.
Meanwhile Dawson was still moving toward her. She could tell his body was hurting, but he was still gorgeous. It was there in the deceptively lazy way he moved his long lean body. The fall of his hair across his forehead. The knowing spark in the mossy green of his eyes.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“What does it look like? I’m buying a house.”
“But—you can’t!” Shock made her say that—even though it was clearly an illogical comment and Dani, if she were here, would be the first to point it out.
“It’s not like a wedding. You don’t get to stand up and voice your objections.” He tilted his head to one side. “By the way the helmet’s a good look. Love what it does for your cheekbones.”
She resisted the urge to remove the helmet and fluff up her hair. So she looked crappy. That didn’t matter. What mattered was that Dawson wasn’t just in town for the rodeo. He was buying a house. “Why didn’t you tell me you’re planning to move here?”
“Honestly? I was hoping we could get to a friendly footing before I mentioned it.”
“A friendly footing.” Was he insane?
“So do you like the house?” he asked. “What do you think of the neighborhood?”
No way was she going to admit to him that she absolutely loved it. “It’s okay, I guess.”
“You think Savannah will be happy here? She’ll be starting school full time next year. I’m going to register her in kindergarten as soon as we get settled.”
Was he trying to imply that the reason he was buying this house was for his daughter’s sake? But he could have purchased a house in any one of a hundred different towns he’d been to in his travels. Why had he picked her town?
“Dawson, honey? Are you still busy?” His mother emerged from the side of the house, holding Savannah’s hand. “The back yard is wonderful. I was just giving our pumpkin a ride on the tire swing. She didn’t want to stop.”
As soon as the little girl saw her father she ran for him. He swung her up into his arms and she gave him a kiss, then looked at Sage.
“Hi. Where are you going?”
“To work.” Sage tried to smile, even though she was still feeling so angry.
“Sage owns the chocolate shop where I bought you that treat the other day.”
“Ohhhh.” Savannah’s eyes—the same shape and shade of green as her father’s, so no question about her paternity—were big and round. Sage realized she’d just gone up a few notches in the little girl’s esteem.
But not his mother’s. Patricia had her hands on her slender hips. She was dressed in a linen shift dress and heels—rather much for Monday morning in a small, western town.
“Well. It’s, Sage, isn’t it? Don’t you look sporty.”
“Just on my way to work, when I noticed all the activity. This house has been vacant for a long time.” Hopefully the implication was that there was a reason it hadn’t been sold.
Tod stepped out of his car then, tucking his phone into the breast pocket of his suit as he walked toward them. “Just spoke to the seller. They’re fine with next Friday as the closing date.” He nodded at Sage. “If you’ve come to ask about the house again, it’s sold. The financing condition was
just lifted.”
Dawson gave her a quick, surprised look. And Sage felt like trying out her father’s right hook on Tod. She did not want Dawson knowing that she’d had her eye on this house, too. But big-mouthed Tod had just blown it.
“It’s a great house. Congratulations Dawson. I’m sure you and Savannah will be very happy here.” If she sounded less than enthused, well, she couldn’t help it.
“Don’t forget Grandma,” Patricia added in a chipper voice. “Someone has to look after our little pumpkin when Daddy’s working.”
“I’ve got a line on a day-care, Mom. And some sitters with flexible hours when I’m on nights.”
“Why bother with all that when I’m right here, ready and available. Doesn’t your new job start next Monday?”
Sage raised her eyebrows. Sounded like she had another surprise in store. “New job?” she asked, looking directly at Dawson.
“Law enforcement,” he elaborated, not too helpfully.
Patricia smiled proudly. “He’s going to be the new deputy. Sheriff Toby Walton offered him the position last month.”
Sage’s mind was still numb with shock when she coasted up to Bramble House thirty seconds later. She pushed her bike up the sweeping walk-way. Weeds had poked through the cracks in the concrete. Taking a closer than usual look at the Victorian mansion, she realized the white trim needed painting, too.
Maybe Great Aunt Mabel wasn’t as rich as her sisters thought.
She propped her bike against the steps, hesitated, then removed her helmet and shook out her hair.
Dawson’s mother’s comment still resonated...Don’t you look sporty. It clearly hadn’t been meant as a compliment.
Eliza opened the front door before Sage had a chance to knock. Her cousin, who had moved to Marietta after her fiancé died in a hiking accident in Glacier National Park, was a tall, thin, sporty-looking—as Dawson’s mother would say—woman of thirty-two. Before the accident Eliza and her finance had worked for a big insurance firm in California, which was where her parents and siblings still lived.
Promise Me, Cowboy (Copper Mountain Rodeo) Page 4