Pulse Points

by Mary Lynn Baxter

  “Hey, Mom. How’s it going?”

  With her heart lodged in her throat, Kasey swung around, her mouth open. “Brock?”

  “Oh, honey,” she cried, dashing forward and giving her son a big hug. When she pulled away, she realized she had tears in her eyes. “It’s so good to see you.”

  “It’s good to see you, too.”

  She knew she must sound like she’d been winded, but that was exactly how she felt. Hopefully Brock hadn’t seen or overheard anything he wasn’t supposed to.

  It was after she released him that she noticed his gaze fixed on Tanner, his eyes lighted with curiosity. Her heart instantly sprang back into her throat, making further speech impossible.

  “Hello, Brock.” Tanner crossed the room with his hand extended. “I’m Tanner Hart.”

  “Mr. Hart,” Brock said. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Same here.”

  Kasey’s gaze darted from one to the other, terror keeping her silent. Brock and Tanner in the same room. Impossible. That was something she had hoped would never happen.

  But it had and she had to contend with it. Still, her first and last thought was to take her son and flee the premises. What if Tanner recognized subtle similarities in their features? While none were particularly striking, Kasey was aware of them.

  He was tall and robust like Tanner and had the same light brown hair with flecks of blond. But then so had Mark. Another plus were Brock’s blue eyes, a replica of hers. Bottom line—Brock looked like himself—a great-looking, confident young man with a bright future in front of him, a future she’d protect at all cost.

  “I’m an old friend of your mom and dad’s,” Tanner explained.

  It was Tanner’s matter-of-fact statement that forced Kasey to gather her scattered wits about her and function as normally as possible under the circumstances. “And a client,” she stressed. “In fact, we were working on his project.”

  “Cool,” Brock said, walking over to the table to look at the billboard concepts.

  “I guess I’m still in a state of shock that you’re here,” Kasey put in, determined to derail any personal contact between Brock and Tanner. If only Tanner would leave. Since he didn’t seem in any hurry to do that, she’d have to work around him.

  “Got anything to drink?” Brock asked.

  “I’ll get you a Coke,” Tanner said, turning his back and heading for the small fridge.

  Brock nodded toward Tanner with raised eyebrows, a question in his eyes.

  Kasey ignored his blatant gesture, though her heart did another somersault. “You’re looking good,” she told Brock, clearing her throat. “Handsome as ever.”

  “Aw, Mom.” Brock’s big foot pawed the carpet.

  Kasey realized she’d embarrassed him. However, she’d meant what she’d said. Pride swelled in her as her eyes remained on him. Although it had only been several weeks since she’d seen him, it seemed like much longer. Maybe it was because so much had happened during that time.

  However, being with her son never failed to put things in proper perspective. In the long run, nothing mattered except Brock’s well-being.

  “So how long are you planning to stay?” she asked into the descending silence.

  “I’m not sure,” Brock said in a hedging tone. “Depends.”

  “Okay. Look, why don’t we head for the house? I’m sure you’re starving.”

  “Man, am I ever.”

  “Why don’t I take you two out to dinner instead?” Tanner smiled. “I know a great steak place.”

  Brock’s eyes cut to Kasey. “Sounds great to me. How ’bout it, Mom? Wanna go?”

  No, Kasey wanted to shout. Damn Tanner. She fought the urge to attack him like a banshee. How dare he encroach on her time with her son? He had to know she resented his sustained presence. Short of being rude and making a scene, she had little choice but to bite her tongue and endure.

  Yet she heard herself ask, “Are you sure you wouldn’t rather I fix something at home?”

  “Nah,” Brock said, “that’s too much trouble and I’m too hungry.”

  “Then let’s go,” Tanner responded. “I’ll bring you back to get your cars.”

  “That okay, Mom?”

  “Fine,” she said, though she felt like she had lock-jaw.

  Thirty minutes later they were seated in a restaurant that Kasey could never have afforded, their orders taken and drinks in front of them. Resentment continued to swell inside her at Tanner’s high-handed interference. But again, she kept that thought quiet, reminding herself how important it was not to raise a red flag.

  “So has spring training started?” Tanner asked.

  Brock’s eyes lit up. “You’re a football fan, huh?”

  “You bet. Actually I’m a big Baylor Bear fan.”

  Kasey felt his eyes on her. “Did you know that, Mom?”

  “No, I didn’t.” She tried to keep her growing agitation from showing, but she wasn’t sure she’d pulled it off. Tanner’s gaze on her was piercingly direct.

  “We should be pretty tough this season,” Brock said, “if everything comes together.”

  “Are you a starter?” Tanner asked.

  “If I stay healthy, I will be.”

  Kasey’s hand went to her chest. “Don’t say that. The thought of some big oaf hurting you makes me crazy.”

  “You wouldn’t know it if they did.” Brock grinned. “When I’m on the field you keep your eyes closed.”

  “Who told you that?”

  “Never mind. But it’s the truth, isn’t it?”

  “So what if it is,” Kasey admitted, a churlish note in her voice.

  Both guys laughed.

  “Hey, Mom, how come you haven’t asked me why I’m home?”

  Kasey was taken aback. “I didn’t know you needed a reason. You never have before.”

  “True,” he said a trifle down-in-the-mouth. “But I usually call.”

  “Is something wrong?” Kasey asked, feeling an added tightness in her chest.

  “Not wrong exactly.” Brock slid his gaze off her. “I got laid off today.”

  Kasey gave a start. “Oh, no.”

  “I knew you’d go ape shit which is why I didn’t tell you over the phone.”

  “What happened?” she asked, ignoring his colorful description.

  He shrugged. “Not enough work. And since I was the last hand to be hired, I got the ax.”

  “You’ll just have to find something else. That’s all there is to it.”

  “That’s not easy, Mom. You know I have practice every day. That severely cuts down my choices.”

  “I know that, son,” Kasey countered with forced patience. “But the deal was, if you stayed in Waco, you had to work.”

  God, she hated having this discussion in front of Tanner. At the moment, she wanted to pinch her son’s head off for bringing it up over dinner. She dared not contemplate on what was going through Tanner’s mind. Not that she cared, she told herself.

  “Well, I can’t come home.”

  Kasey picked up on the strident note in Brock’s voice, deepening her anger and her despair. “Look, let’s not talk about this any more now. I’m sure Mr. Hart’s not interested, so—”

  “That’s where you’re wrong,” Tanner said. “In fact, I was about to offer a solution.”

  “Oh?” Terror squeezed the breath from her.

  “How would you like to work for me, Brock?”

  Twenty-Four

  “I wish you’d stop pacing. You’re making me dizzy.”

  Buck Butler glared at his wife, fighting the urge to tell her she stayed dizzy. But he refrained. Now was not the time to take on Clare, not when her dear old dad was contributing heavily to his reelection campaign.

  He had put up with her wild spending sprees, her endless charity functions and her dedication to the bottle. All for money. Even though he was from a prestigious family with ties long past the Civil War, they didn’t have money. When his parents died, they were
broke. He had soon learned that pedigree without big dollars to back it up wasn’t worth much, except that it had gotten him Clare Riley.

  But his allegiance to a woman he despised behind closed doors was wearing thin. He didn’t know how much longer he could bear to remain married to her.

  While he had no claim to fame in the looks department, she was even worse. She was much too thin, causing deep wrinkles in her face and extra flesh to sag from her neck. Even though dear old dad had offered to pay for a face-lift, she wouldn’t hear of it. Pain was not her thing. On the other hand, if Dad had offered him the opportunity, he would have jumped on it.

  Cosmetic surgery for him. Wouldn’t that knock a few dicks in the dirt and give Clare’s snotty friends something really juicy to talk about? Looks aside, it was the daily grind of living with an airhead that was making his life miserable. When the kids left home, he had promised himself he’d move out and file for divorce.

  But then he’d entered politics and the rest was history.

  At the moment, Buck longed to be with Joy, his latest fling who was young and energetic and made him feel like he could jump over the moon. However, he hadn’t seen her in several months. With the senate race full steam ahead, he’d been afraid he’d get caught literally with his zipper down, so he’d kept away.

  God, he could just imagine the brouhaha an affair would cause. Clare and her old man would hang him out to dry even if Harry had reaped mega benefits from his son-in-law’s stint as a Texas senator of standing.

  Buck aimed to keep that status no matter how many cold showers he had to take or how many martinis he had to down to keep himself on track. He loved his job, loved the power it brought him. Once he served another term in the senate, he planned to move onward and upward. He had his eyes set on Washington, D.C.

  If Tanner Hart thought he was going to derail his plans, then he was dead wrong.

  “For crying out loud, sit down,” Clare said in a strained, petulant tone. “What has you in such a dither, anyway?”

  “If I’m bothering you that much, why don’t you leave?”

  Her coffee cup shook as she set it down. “That’s a rude thing to say.”

  “So it’s rude. Get over it.”

  Her pale features tightened. “You’re becoming unbearable to live with, Buck.”

  “Get over that, too.”

  She stood tall and straight, seeming to gather her dignity about her. “I’m going to pretend we didn’t have this conversation because I know you’re upset.”

  He laughed a bitter laugh.

  “You’re behind in the polls. That’s bound to have you upset.”

  The fact she knew that shocked him. Probably one of her rich-bitch friends told her, gleefully rubbing it in. Or better still, it was Daddy who had broken the news. A new poll had come out yesterday. It showed Hart slightly ahead of him. Screw polls. He hated them and tried to ignore them, but no one would let him. Now his wife was getting on the bandwagon. Screw her.

  “It hasn’t upset me,” he bit back, stopping his pacing and looking at his watch. “Because it’s only temporary.”

  “When are you due back in Austin?”

  “Tomorrow,” he said in a clipped tone.

  There was a long moment of silence during which he felt her eyes burn into him. He turned away.

  “I’m not going to give you a divorce.”

  The hair froze on the back of his neck. Yet he managed to whip around and stare at her. “Where the hell did that come from?”

  “I know about your little flings, Buck.”

  Again speech failed him.

  “You think I’m an idiot, that I don’t know what goes on with you, but I do.”

  His first thought was to deny the accusation, but from the look on her face, he thought better of it. She’d caught him with his hand in the cookie jar, and it was going to take some finagling to get it out.

  “How did you find out?”

  “I have my ways.”

  “Dammit, Clare, don’t try to best me at this game,” he retaliated in a harsh, aggressive tone. “You won’t win.”

  He was posturing, but he had to try and save face any way he could. Raising his voice had always been an effective tool to intimidate her. Why not now?

  “I hired a private detective.”

  Again, he was too flabbergasted to speak.

  “And it wasn’t Daddy’s idea, either.” Clare lifted her shoulders and smiled an empty smile. “I was just curious who you spent your time in bed with since it’s not me. And hasn’t been for years.”

  He felt anger contort his face. “And whose fault is that?”

  “Not mine.”

  The ease with which she challenged him added to the bitter gall that rose up the back of his throat. “I don’t have to stay here and listen to this garbage.”

  “Yes, you do. If you want to win the election, that is.”

  “Don’t you dare threaten me.” He walked closer and got in her face. “Daddy isn’t my only asset, so you just back off.”

  “Or what?”

  His features twisted. “You’ll be sorry.”

  Clare backed up. “I don’t think so. Holding on to your senate seat is all that matters to you. You’re not about to do anything that will jeopardize that.”

  “I wouldn’t be too sure,” Buck said harshly.

  “Who knows, we might not have to worry about it. Tanner Hart might just beat you.” Her voice was rich with dark humor. “Now, wouldn’t that be something?”

  She was getting her rocks off by baiting him. He coiled his hand, prepared to reach out and slap her, only she stepped farther out of harm’s way. However, her taunting didn’t stop.

  “I’d be real careful where I dipped my wick. Daddy wouldn’t be nearly as understanding or forgiving as me.”

  “You bitch.”

  “I won’t give you a divorce. For all the misery you’ve put me through, you don’t deserve one. My only aim in life is to punish you with my continued presence in your life.”

  Realizing that he was close to losing the hold on his temper, Buck clenched his fists to his sides. “Once this race is over, I’m leaving you.”

  “We’ll see,” she said in a light, arrogant tone.

  His fury climbed to new heights, but again he held it in check.

  Clare smiled. “I’m going to my room now. Have a nice day, darling. I’ll see you this evening.”

  With that, she turned and walked out of the room, leaving him choking on his own spittle.

  “Excuse me, sir.”

  He addressed the housekeeper without turning around. “What is it, Sophia?”

  “You have a visitor, sir, in the parlor.”

  “Thanks,” he muttered.

  Sensing he was once again alone, Buck sucked in a deep breath, then let it out. He did that maneuver until he no longer wanted to put his fists through the wall. Still, he checked his image in the huge mirror hanging above the buffet. None of his seething emotions were visible. Outwardly he appeared cool as ice.

  Plastering a smile on his lips, Buck made his way to meet his guest, his hand outstretched. “Hello, Daisy. It’s so good to see you.”

  “Same here, Senator.” Her eyes roamed around the room. “Nice pad.”

  “Thanks.” He gestured toward a comfortable high-backed chair. “Please, have a seat. Would you care for coffee and pastries? Or just coffee?”

  “No thanks to both.”

  “Then we’ll get down to business.”

  “That’s what I’m here for. To whip up on Tanner Hart.”

  Buck smiled, feeling his self-confidence return in force. “Lady, I like your style.”

  “Mom, talk to me.”

  “I’ve already had my say.”

  “Come on, you’re not being fair,” Brock whined.

  She had found her son in the kitchen munching on a bowl of cereal long before he should’ve been up and long before she’d even had her first cup of coffee. Now, she was sitting at the t
able with him, working on her second cup and having a conversation she didn’t want to have.

  “Why can’t you just find another outdoors job in Waco?” She knew she was being unrealistic, that what she’d asked was close to impossible. But desperation was making her take desperate measures.

  Working for Tanner was simply not an option. However, she apparently hadn’t gotten that across to Brock.

  “Mom, it was dumb luck that got me the job I just lost,” Brock declared, that whine still in his tone.

  “I thought you wanted to be outside.”

  “I did, but I really had no choice since that was the only part-time job available. But now that I have a chance to work in my field, how can I turn that down?” He shoved his empty bowl out of the way. “And why should I?”

  Because I’m terrified you’ll find out the truth.

  Of course, she couldn’t voice that numbing fear. Ever. But she had to come up with a valid reason soon or she was going to lose this argument and lose face at the same time.

  “I just don’t think it’ll work.”

  “Well, I do.” His tone was as blunt as hers was lame.

  “He’s here and you’re in Waco.”

  “Mom, you’re not thinking. He’s asked me to improve and maintain his Web site. That can be done anywhere. And since Computer Science is my major, he’s offering me the perfect opportunity to do what I love and to make money as well.” He paused and took a breath. “And isn’t money what we… I need most to stay at Baylor?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then I’m going to do it.”

  “Even if I don’t approve?” she asked with a heavy heart.

  “This time, yes.”

  She held her silence as she got up and crossed to the sink. Although she stared out into the morning, already bathed in harsh sunlight, Kasey didn’t so much as blink against the glare. Her mind was in a turmoil. Damn Tanner for interfering further in her life, for dropping that bombshell in the middle of dinner.

  The second after Tanner had made his offer, fear had closed Kasey’s throat so tight she couldn’t speak.

  “Gee, Mom, did you hear that?”