Champagne and Cowboys

by Donna Michaels

  “We can get the guys to help move your furniture, and you could rent the house out for a while if you want to before you sell it.” He was musing out loud and didn’t notice Susan had fallen silent. “We’d need to get the kids enrolled in school before the next semester starts, and I need to paint those extra bedrooms. I put that off because I didn’t use them.”

  “John, this is too much, too soon. You won’t be the only one with panic attacks if you don’t back off a little.”

  “It’s funny, but I don’t feel the least bit stressed out about this now that I’ve gotten used to the idea.” He looked fondly at her belly peeking over the edge of the table. “In fact, I feel better than I have in months.”

  “That’s because they pumped you full of fluids and electrolytes last night,” Susan said. “You need a keeper.”

  “I know. Want to apply for the job?” He laughed when she glared at him. “Okay, I’ll drop the subject for now. Let’s go see if the kids are awake.”

  “Mr. John!” Matt ran to John and wrapped his arms around his leg.

  John swung him up into his arms. “How’s my buddy? I’ve missed you.”

  “I missed you, too. Where did you go? I thought you’d died like my daddy did and Mommy didn’t want to tell me.” Matt settled his head against John’s shoulder and held on so tightly John could barely breathe.

  John felt like even more of an ass than before. How could he have walked out of these kids’ lives like he did? He didn’t blame Susan for being hesitant to let him back in.

  Christy watched him from across the room, her hand in Susan’s. John gave Matt a hug and set him on the floor. As he approached Christy, she crowded in close to her mother’s side and hid her face. John knelt on the floor in front of her. “Hello, sweetheart.”

  “I’m not your sweetheart anymore,” she mumbled from behind Susan’s back.

  “Christy…” Susan said in a mildly warning tone.

  “Well, I’m not! He left and didn’t even say goodbye.” Christy pushed away from Susan and ran from the room.

  “That didn’t go very well, did it?” John thought his heart would break. How could he ever make it up to her?

  “It will be okay. I’ll talk to her. Why don’t you go find Cooper and give me a few minutes alone with the kids?”

  John found Cooper in the exercise room, lifting weights. He sat on a nearby bench and watched Cooper for a few minutes, remembering when Cooper was still in a wheelchair, not caring if he lived or died.

  “You’ve come a long way, Coop. I’m really proud of you.”

  Cooper set the weights on their stand and grabbed a towel. “Yeah, I guess I have. It wasn’t easy, but nothing worth having ever is.”

  “I think Christy hates me, and Susan won’t marry me unless the children agree. I don’t know how to win that kid over after what I did.”

  Cooper slung the towel around his neck and sat across from John. “Doc, I’ll admit you have your work cut out for you, but you’ve never been a quitter. You didn’t give up on me, even when I was at my worst. You’ve spent too many years around a bunch of cowboys so you don’t understand women as well as you should.”

  “And I suppose you do?” Doc leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “Please, explain them to me.”

  “Don’t laugh. I live in a house full of women. They all want one thing—to feel like they’re are the most important thing in the world to the ones they love. They put everything they have into making others feel loved. They’d just like to get a little of that back, you know?”

  It was one of those light bulb moments for Doc. “Like when Blake hired the carriage for the wedding, to give Mandy the fairy tale she wanted.”

  “Exactly. Or when Jake risked his life to save Carol. You need to find a way to convince Susan, and Christy, that they mean the world to you.”

  “I don’t suppose you have any ideas on how to do that, do you?”

  “Not a one. Figure out what they want the most, and find a way to give that to them. That’s the best advice I can give you.” Cooper stood and went back to the weight bench. “Good luck, Doc.”

  Susan asked Katie to stay with Damon and took Matt with her to look for Christy. They found her in the mudroom with her arms around Nancy and Cooper’s dog. The poor pup’s fur was damp from her tears, but the dog didn’t seem to mind. He licked Christy’s face, making her smile.

  “There you are,” Susan said, sitting on the floor beside her and stroking the dog’s head. “You shouldn’t run off like that. You had me worried.”

  “Mr. John ran away. If grownups can do it, why can’t I?”

  “He shouldn’t have done it, either. He caused everyone a lot of pain and heartache. You know how you felt when he didn’t come back?”

  Christy nodded.

  “Well, that’s how I feel when I can’t find you. It makes me scared and sad, and I worry about you.” Susan pushed her daughter’s hair from her face. “John is sorry for hurting you, and if you’ll let him, he’d like to make it up to you.”

  “How is he going to do that?”

  Susan put an arm around Christy and Matt. “He wants to know if he can be your father. He wants to marry me and make us all family.”

  Matt, of course, was all in favor of the idea. Christy was more cautious.

  “Will he go away again?”

  “No, honey, he won’t.” Susan knew he’d learned his lesson, but it might take a while for Christy to trust him again.

  “I guess it would be okay.” Christy looked up with a small smile. “Will he let me have a dog?”

  Susan laughed. “If it made you happy, he probably would. But you need to think about this. If I marry John, you’d have to leave your friends and move down here.”

  “I can make new friends,” Christy said.

  “Yes, you can.” She wished she had the ability of a child to adapt, to forgive.

  “Will I have my own room? I don’t want to share with Matt.”

  “Yes. John’s house has four bedrooms, so you’d have your own space.”

  Christy thought for a moment. “Does it have a pool?”

  Susan shook her head. “No, it doesn’t. I’ll miss that pool, but there’s one here at the ranch we can probably use.”

  Christy wrapped her arms around Susan’s waist. “I think you should marry John. Then maybe you won’t be sad anymore.”

  John thought long and hard about what Cooper had said. What did Susan want more than anything? He thought back over their conversations and the only thing he could come up with was that she wanted him. She wanted love. That he could handle. As for Christy, he had no idea. He would have to ask Susan about that. Whatever it was, he would do his best to get it for her.

  He was sitting in the living room when they came through the kitchen. Christy gave him a shy smile and came to sit beside him. “Mom says you want to be my dad. Is that true?”

  “More than anything,” he said. “I’m sorry for running out on you.”

  “That was mean, but if you promise to never, ever do it again, I’ll forgive you.”

  “Cross my heart and hope to…” He let the words go unspoken. “Hope to be your dad forever.”

  Christy grinned. “Then I guess it’s okay if you marry my mom, as long as I get a dog for a wedding present.”

  “A dog, huh? What kind of dog did you have in mind?” John looked up at Susan, who shrugged.

  “I want one of Megan’s puppies, like the one Nancy has. One that’s grey and blue with a patch over his eye.”

  “A Blue Heeler? I could go for that. I don’t know if Megan has one with a patch over its eye, but I can call her and find out.”

  “Okay, and you need to get Mom a pool of her own. She’s going to miss hers.”

  John ruffled her hair. “You’re going to make me pay for this, aren’t you?”

  “Yep.” Christy laughed. “There’s just one more thing I want.”

  “Oh, and what is that?” John braced for another deman
d, one he might not be able to fulfill.

  “I get to be in the wedding. I didn’t get to be in her first one.”

  Susan laughed at that statement. “That’s because you weren’t born yet. And I’ll make sure you get that wish. I want all of you to be a part of it.”

  John pushed himself off the couch and went over to where Susan sat. He knelt on one knee. “I haven’t had time to get a ring, but we can pick it out together. Susan Hunt, would you do me the honor of being my wife? I promise I will love you for as long as I live, I will care for you and the children whatever may come our way, and I will never, ever leave you.”

  She cupped his face in her hands. “Since you put it so nicely, yes. I would love to marry you. I even promise to change your diapers when you’re old and decrepit and can’t do it yourself.”

  “Eww,” Christy said. “That’s gross.”

  John laughed. “Sorry, sweetheart. Private joke. I’m going to start taking better care of myself so that won’t happen for a long, long time.”

  The End

  About Tori Scott

  Tori has been seriously writing for fifteen years, publishing her first book with Red Sage Publishing in 2008. She discovered Indie publishing and fell in love with the idea of writing stories the way she wanted to write them and never looked back. She’s been published in magazines, newspapers, and anthologies, as well as taking part in several boxed sets with other authors.

  She lives in East Texas with her husband and her Catahoula mix named Bo. When she isn’t writing, you’ll find Tori working alongside her husband, fixing up the house they built themselves, traveling the country with the goal of visiting all fifty states and as many of the National Parks as possible while doing research for her books, or visiting her children and grandchildren.

  Connect with Tori Online:

  Twitter @ToriScott

  Facebook

  Tori Scott Fan Page

  My blog

  Email: toriscott@gmail.com

  Other Books by Tori Scott

  BLAME IT ON TEXAS (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book One)

  BLUE MOON OVER TEXAS (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book Two)

  THE BLUEST EYES IN TEXAS (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book Three)

  BENEATH A TEXAS STAR (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book Four)

  BETWEEN LONESOME AND TEXAS (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book Five)

  BEHIND A TEXAS BADGE (Lone Star Cowboys series, Book Six)

  WHAT A COWGIRL WANTS (Lone Star Cowboys series bonus novella, Book Seven)

  LONE STAR JUSTICE (Southern Justice series, Book One)

  ROOKIE JUSTICE (Southern Justice series, Book Two)

  SUPERSTITION

  THE SATISFACTION COLLECTION

  Satisfaction Guaranteed: Book One (Cara and Gray)

  Perfectly Satisfied: Book Two (Reggie and Sam)

  Finally Satisfied: Book Three (Angel and Mitch)

  LEAN ON ME

  THE CHRISTMAS WISH

  FROM THE SPICIER SIDE OF TORI SCOTT

  UNDERCOVER VICES

  CHEMICAL ATTRACTION

  DOUBLE EXPOSURE

  Cowboy Burn

  Smoke, Inc.

  Gem Sivad

  Pittsburgh artist, Harley-Jane Arthur plans to sketch herself out of debt. With that in mind, she’s thrilled when she gets a commission for a kid’s party in an upscale part of the city. If all goes well, she should earn enough to pay her January utilities, put a down payment on a new roof, and buy a bottle of Red to toast New Year’s Eve—alone.

  Gable Matthews, a.k.a. Cowboy, has waited patiently for years, hoping Janie will notice him. When she’s stranded during a snowstorm, rescuing her provides an opportunity to finally get her attention.

  Snowbound in Gable’s apartment, they wait out the storm. But while they countdown to New Year’s Eve, more danger than a raging blizzard lurks outside.

  Chapter One

  Just call me Harley-Jane Arthur, starving artist. I tried to quiet the impolite rumble of my stomach, but it wouldn’t cooperate. I’d passed on the cake earlier for fear I’d smear icing on my work. I regretted it now.

  “Thank you so much. I think Carlie will agree, you’ve made this an unforgettable party.” John Carson, my employer for the day, handed me a plump envelope as he helped me into my coat.

  “We wanted something unique. And you made it so.” Laura Carson, mother of the birthday girl, enthused over the day’s events.

  Though I wanted to count the money before I shoved it in my pocket, being relatively couth, I tried to concentrate on the parents instead.

  “It’s always hard to come up with something special for birthdays between Christmas and New Year’s Eve,” I agreed.

  “You are more than welcome to stay. The girls would love it.”

  I had to suppress a shudder. I’d just spent three hours entertaining a dozen ten-year-old, many of whom had parents who’d elected to leave the kids for a sleepover rather than brave the storm.

  Staying was not an option.

  To get away from the pre-adolescent mania, I’d walk if I had to. But, hopefully that wouldn’t be necessary. I frowned down at new faux leather boots I’d worn when I’d not been expecting the balmy fifty-five-degree weather to turn into a winter blizzard.

  Evidently, neither had the weather forecasters. The icy whiteout had caught everyone unprepared. I peered outside the window at the street that looked more like a sheet of glass every moment.

  “Thanks for the offer, but you won’t have to find a corner for me. I called an Uber driver and he’s on his way. He’ll get me to the T-Line.” I admit, I felt desperate as I watched for a glimpse of the car.

  “Well,” Laura offered hesitantly. “The forecasters are now calling for more wind and snow. I doubt if the train will be running much longer.”

  “Then I’d better hurry,” I muttered. I spotted a car valiantly laboring up the street and hurried away from the window.

  “Carlie and her friends will always remember today because of you. Thank you so much.” Laura walked me to the door still oozing praise. I hoped she’d tell all her friends.

  Inside my right glove, my fingers ached from three hours of non-stop pencil grasping. The envelope in my pocket made every moment worthwhile.

  I’d earned five hundred dollars, twenty-five sketches, one per girl, one each of Carlie and friend, and one group picture I’d transfer to canvas and paint when I arrived home.

  “You have a great New Year,” drifted after me as I stepped into the cold and heard the door click shut behind me. I immediately doubted my decision.

  “It is ffffreezing out here,” I complained to no one. Just as well I didn’t intend it for ears. The wind took that moment to shift directions, blast me with ice shards, and smack me in the face with my own words.

  Before I stepped from shelter, I pulled my phone out and called for backup.

  “Looks like I might be late getting home tonight, Kenny. Can I get you to do my chores?” Cell service faded in and out as I begged my neighbor for help and received confirmation my livestock would be tended.

  Even over the storm, I could hear the excited conversation in the background. Then the voice at the end changed.

  “Where are you? Gable’s downtown. He can come and get you.” Kenny’s mom offered help in the form of her brother.

  Cowboy Matthews to the rescue. Yippee ki-yay. “That’s not necessary,” I answered quickly. “Tell Kenny I said thanks, again.”

  Lifting my tote, I used it to shield myself as I left the porch, stepped ankle-deep into a drift, and waded through piles of wet yuck to get to the sidewalk.

  “Damn, damn, damn.” With every step, the new boots made it clear they weren’t created for snow walking. Icy water seeped through fake leather, wetting my socks and feet. The view from the Carsons’ window hadn’t prepared me for this.

  After I disconnected, not thirty seconds later my phone pinged. I knew the caller without checking the ID. My voice was more than a little brea
thless when I fumbled to answer.

  “Hi, Gable. Beth said you were downtown. I’m already on my way home. I just needed Kenny’s help because I’m running laaate—”

  The wind chose that moment to whip around the corner and push me farther along the sidewalk. My voice wavered as I adjusted my stance, trying to find balance.

  “Doesn’t sound like you’re on your way home. Where are you?”

  “I’ll be at the T-Line and on the train before you can get here. Thanks for the offer.”

  “The address,” he growled, ignoring my refusal.

  “Mount Lebanon,” I answered, giving him the name of the suburb without specifics. I disconnected and faced a more immediate challenge than Gable Matthews—not freezing to death in the winter storm.

  Good thing I called for a car earlier. Before I had time to shove the phone into my pocket, it chimed again. I fumbled with it, ready to tell Gable again that I didn’t want a ride. He big-brother-bossed his sister around, and by extension, sometimes, me.

  “Stuck downtown. Can’t get up the hill to pick you up.” The Uber driver delivered the bad news and disconnected.

  I started to turn, intending to go back to the Carson house. Without warning, blizzard winds billowed around me, catching the canvas tote and pushing. Relentlessly, I slid down the hill, away from the birthday party and toward the train station. I managed to stop, but literally could not get back up the sidewalk. I contemplated crawling, but my feet started another downward slide before I decided.

  After sleet had fallen earlier, it had coated the sidewalks and turned the streets to ice. Then, icy rain had changed to snow, covering the slippery mess with a thick, wet blanket. The wind cleared some spots, revealing the treacherous base. In other areas, snow varied from thin crusts to drifts.