by June Faver
She gave a half-hearted smile, but her brows were still knitted.
Colt remained stiff, but when Gabrielle looked as though she might cry, he pulled her against his chest. “It’s okay, Gabrielle. I’m trying here.” He patted her back, and when she dropped her head onto his shoulder, his pats became soft rubs. She was examining him most carefully. Obviously she hadn’t made her mind up about him yet.
Big Jim was relieved to hear Colt talking to Gabrielle in a soft voice. He wasn’t about to congratulate himself yet, but it was a start. “Come join us, Angelique.”
Angelique sucked in a deep breath and went to the table. She started to sit on the other side of Big Jim, but he pulled out the chair between himself and Colton. She hesitated but then slipped onto the chair.
When she saw her mother, Gabrielle turned and held out her arms. Angelique reached for her daughter, and Colton eagerly passed her. Big Jim could not tell which of his children was the most relieved.
Gabrielle’s arms were wrapped tight around Angelique’s neck.
A timer on the stove dinged and Angelique jumped up. “Gumbo’s ready.” She handed Gabrielle off to Big Jim and hurried to the simmering pot.
“Smells great, honey,” Big Jim called. “I’ll take a bowl.”
She looked up at him, delivering a dimpled grin that caused a squeezing sensation around his heart. “Sure, Dad.” She straightened her shoulders and gazed steadily at Colton. “How about you, Colt? Are you up for the gumbo experience?”
Colt managed a smile in return. “Just a cup. I still gotta get home and have dinner with my wife.”
“Gotcha!” Angelique busied herself dishing up the gumbo. She brought a big bowl to Big Jim and a mug of the aromatic gumbo to Colton. Then she dished up a bowl for herself and came back to the table. She had a saucer with some pieces of chicken she had fished out of the pot for Gabrielle.
“Isn’t this a little spicy for Gabrielle?” Big Jim asked, shoveling a spoonful in his mouth.
“Puh-leeze! My Gabi is a NOLA girl. She likes it spicy.”
As if to underline the point, Gabrielle picked up a piece of the chicken that Angelique had cut up in small bites and shoved it in her mouth, her perfect little teeth chomping away.
Colt made short work of his small serving. “That’s really good.”
“Want to take some home?” Angelique offered.
Colt let out a sigh. “Better not. My bride is none too confident about her cooking skills, and I don’t want to discourage her.” He stood and took his cup to the sink. “Bye, Dad. See you tomorrow. Goodbye, Angelique.” He gave a wave and left.
In the silence that followed, only the rhythmic sound of spoons scooping gumbo could be heard.
When he was done, Big Jim set his spoon down. “Glad you’re getting to know your half-brother.”
Angelique gave him a skeptical look, then rolled her eyes. “Is that what that was?”
* * *
Colton drove home…that was, he drove from the ranch house where he had been raised as a boy, where his mother had listened to his prayers and tucked him in, where his dad had taught him everything he needed to know to be a man and become a rancher…to the house he shared with his wife on the same Garrett property.
He parked in front of the house, happy that it was finally built. Inside, his wife and her younger brother waited for him.
But he turned off the ignition and sat in his truck, staring ahead without seeing.
Apparently, his father, the formidable Big Jim Garrett, had completely accepted that this Angelique Guillory was his daughter, the result of a college affair. And yet this girlfriend who Big Jim remembered so fondly had not bothered to tell him that she was carrying his child when she left school. Nor had she contacted him when the child was born. And this woman supposedly never told the girl who her father was until she was dying. He shook his head. And to what purpose?
He was awakened from his reverie by a sharp rap on the driver’s side window. He jerked to attention and saw his wife standing outside, a concerned expression on her face.
Colt opened the door and climbed out of his truck. He leaned down to kiss the lips she offered. “Hi, Misty.”
“Hi, Colt. I was worried about you.” She tilted her head to one side as though that would allow her to have better insight. “I mean, you were sitting out here all by yourself… Is there something wrong?”
Colt shook his head, not sure how to tell his wife that his father had forced him to interact with the woman he suspected of taking advantage of him. That he had held her child and eaten her food. “No, babe. I’m a little tired. Thinking about a hot shower before doing anything else.”
Misty gazed at him steadily, her large dark eyes peeling through his facade, layer by layer. “Is that all?”
“Um, no… Not really.” He took a deep breath and blew it out forcefully. “But I’m not sure I want to open this can of worms right now.” He kissed her again. “Give me a little time.”
She frowned, but accepted his hand and they walked to the house together.
“Wipe your feet,” she said, her voice a little hard-edged.
“Yes, ma’am.” Colt made an elaborate show of wiping the slush from his boots.
Once inside, he shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it in a chair near the door.
Mark was sitting at the kitchen table working on his laptop. School was out for the Christmas holiday, so Colt wondered what had him working so intently.
“Hey, bud. What are you working on?” Colt went to stand beside Mark and look over his shoulder.
“Aw, nothin’.” Mark made an ineffective effort to block Colt’s vision. “I’m just messing around.”
Colt backed away. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to invade your space.”
Mark shook his head. “No, I didn’t mean…”
“Don’t worry about it.” Colt walked to the bedroom he shared with Misty. He unbuttoned his flannel shirt and stripped the belt from his Wranglers. Next, he removed the thermal undershirt. It was important to dress in layers to maintain body heat.
“Mmm. Look at that hunky cowboy.” Misty stood in the doorway, smiling.
He turned to see her regarding him. She appeared to be more friendly than she first had.
Colt managed a grim smile. “Hey, I’m sorry I’m in such a crappy mood. Just had a hard day is all. I don’t mean to take it out on you.”
“I figured you would tell me about it if I shut up for a while.” She quirked an impish grin at him.
Colt heaved a deep sigh. “I really need to get my head straight. I’ve been working with my dad, which was okay, but it’s hard to keep my mouth shut when he’s rubbing his supposed daughter in my face all the time.”
Misty spread her arms and moved toward him. “Oh, Colt. I’m so sorry. I—”
He cut her off suddenly by raising one arm to ward her off. “Just give me a little time. I need a shower. I promise I’ll be human when I come out.”
She dropped her arms, her face looking as if he had slapped her. “Sure. You go ahead. I-I’ll be in the kitchen with Mark.” She turned so abruptly he knew he’d hurt her, but he so desperately needed to be alone to sort out his own emotions.
He watched her leave, torn between sadness and a deep-seated anger. He was angry with Big Jim, and he was angry with the way his father was shoving his supposed illegitimate daughter down his own son’s throat. He was angry that he was so affected by her arrival and that his father completely accepted her without regard for his oldest son’s feelings. He was angry that Big Jim hadn’t asked for a DNA test but just bought her story outright.
Colt realized he was standing in his own bedroom with his jaw clenched as tight as his fist. He quickly stripped off the rest of his clothing and stepped into the bathroom. He turned on the water, not waiting for it to heat up. The shock of icy water against
his flesh jerked him out of his snit. He heaved out a gasp of air and reached for the bar of soap, quickly lathering up his outsides to match the lather inside his head.
Chapter 15
That night Derrick called the landline of the Garrett ranch and asked to speak to Angelique. She was the only person he knew who didn’t have a cell phone, which he now realized was odd in itself. After seeing her picture on a Wanted poster, he was questioning everything about her. He wanted it to all be a mistake. She could not be the person who had stolen over one hundred thousand dollars’ worth of jewelry. She was such an innocent. Surely she had been wrongly accused. The woman was not the type to lust after riches. She was totally down to earth and honorable. Heck! She was the most adorable woman he had ever known.
“Hello, Derrick.”
The sound of her sweet voice knocked him out of his confused state. “Hey, Angelique. I wanted to hear your voice.”
“How sweet,” she said. “I was missing you too.”
“I-I think we should have dinner tomorrow night. I thought I could take you to the steak house. It’s quiet and we can talk.”
“That sounds nice, Derrick…but if you want, I can cook something at your place.”
“No… No, that’s all right. I don’t want you to think I’m a cheapskate.” He belted out a hearty laugh that sounded completely phony to his own ears.
“Oh, I would never think that.” She made a scoffing sound. “I don’t expect you to spend your hard-earned money on me. I’m not a gold-digger.”
“I never said you were,” he hastened to say. “I thought you might like to go out with me. Maybe I want to show off my beautiful girlfriend.”
“Aww…how sweet. But you know I really enjoy cooking, and I made a gumbo today. Big Jim seems to enjoy cooking for me most, though.”
“Honey, I’m sure it pleases him to take care of his daughter.”
Angelique giggled. “That’s what I think too. He’s such a dear man. I wish I had known him when I was growing up.”
He heard the note of sadness in her voice. Derrick had grown up with both parents in attendance, but he’d taken it for granted. Everyone had a family. Except Angelique Guillory. “Yeah, I wish you had too… I’m sure he’s enjoying having his daughter and granddaughter living with him. He’s just showing his love.”
“I wish he would let me cook more often. I really enjoy it. Even Leah’s grandmother comes over here to cook.”
“Maybe it’s that huge kitchen with all the professional equipment. Raising three sons there were a lot of big appetites to feed…and a lot of friends got to partake too.”
“Lucky you.”
“I was hoping we could talk about some things tomorrow night,” Derrick said. “I’ll pick you up at six. Is that okay?”
“Sure. I’ll let my dad know he’s got Gabrielle all to himself.”
Derrick hung up, not sure what his motives truly were. He always enjoyed Angelique’s company, but he hoped to pry a little information from her about her past life in New Orleans. Did she have access to anyone with expensive jewels?
* * *
With her husband taking a very long shower, Misty Garrett felt like pacing…or screaming…or throwing things. However, she refused to act the shrew so she sat at the table in the kitchen, across from her younger brother. “What are you working on, Mark?”
“Aw, it’s nothing really.” He shrugged, but he had been working on it for some time.
“Looks like something to me.” She smiled encouragingly.
He heaved out a huge sigh. “It’s an assignment our teacher posted for extra credit. She said since Christmas is the time when families get together, we could write a two-page essay about our family.” He shrugged. “Ours is kinda messed up.”
She nodded her head. “Big-time.” The brother and sister were the only living members of the Dalton family. When she had been growing up, it was different. Her mother and father were living their dream on their own ranch. Misty was the middle child with an older brother and Mark was the youngest. She had enjoyed a relatively happy childhood…but then her mother died suddenly. Her father had dissolved in front of her eyes. The once-strong head of the family crawled into the bottle and drank himself into foreclosure of the ranch. Her older brother had fallen in with some less-than-savory friends who had eventually murdered him. Dalton was not a name to wear with pride, and yet she and Mark were the survivors.
Misty made a face at her little brother. “Yeah, we’re a pair, aren’t we?”
“It’s not funny. I’ll have to read this in front of the whole class after the holidays.”
“Aww. I’m sorry. You said this was extra credit?”
“Yeah, but I need it. I can raise my grade if I write a good essay.” Mark rested his face on his fists. “This is just not fair.”
“You’ve got time. Why don’t you knock it off for tonight. We’ll work on it tomorrow. I’ll help.”
Mark heaved a sigh and closed his laptop. “Thanks a lot.”
“Let’s eat.” Misty decided not to wait any longer for Colt to decide he was ready to talk to his wife. She and her brother were hungry, and she was going to put food on the table. If Colt decided to join them, that was his choice.
* * *
Angelique insisted on cleaning up the kitchen after another of Big Jim’s signature dinners. There was a loaded baked potato and what he considered a “small” bacon-wrapped filet. It was delicious, of course, but before he could clear the table she ordered him to stay put, have another beer, and she jumped up to clear it herself. “You take your granddaughter to the recliner and turn on the television. Chill out and let me at least get the dishes in the dishwasher,”
Surprisingly, he obeyed, taking Gabrielle off her booster seat and inviting her to join him in his throne, the big leather recliner in front of the huge wall-mounted television. “Come join us when you get done in there,” he called. He ambled to the den, walking slow so Gabrielle could keep up.
“Sure will.” It gave her some measure of satisfaction that she could at least accomplish this small task for him…that she could perform this tiny act, even if he wouldn’t let her do much in the way of cooking.
As she wiped down all the countertops, she considered her date with Derrick the following evening. Twice, he had mentioned that they needed to talk. She wondered if there was a problem. Was he planning to break up with her? Was he going to tell her that he wasn’t interested in any further entanglements with a woman who had a child?
She rinsed the dishcloth and wrung it out. No, surely he wouldn’t take her to dinner if he wanted to break up. He would simply not make any more dates.
And he hadn’t seemed to be upset about anything. In fact he had claimed he was going to be showing off his girlfriend. I’m his girlfriend.
She straightened her shoulders, not willing to allow her anxiety to eat away at her tenuous grip on confidence.
“Are you about finished in there?” Big Jim called to her. “Come on in and relax in front of the television. There are some good shows fixin’ to come on.”
She hung the dishcloth on a rack under the sink. “I’ll be right there.”
* * *
The next evening, Derrick drove into the Garrett family compound. It seemed to be all about living on the land, raising cattle and crops, and being in love.
Not a bad deal at all.
The drive to the house was lined with pecan trees, now dusted with snow. Derrick recalled being tasked, along with Big Jim’s sons, with gathering those pecans. And later they would shell what seemed like tons of pecans. He would always be given a large bag to take home to his mother, who would transform them into pies and other treats.
Good times.
He pulled up close to the house and turned off the ignition and headlights.
Angelique was inside. And he had to find a
way to question her without destroying their relationship. If he could get her to talking about her past life in New Orleans. It should be easy for a man to ask his girlfriend to share her past. Just conversation. I can do this. By the way, honey…did you score a big jewel heist?
Derrick climbed out of the truck and approached the house. The outside light was on. It was motion-activated, so it had automatically turned on when he first drove up, but after he sat inside the truck for a few minutes, it had switched off. As he stepped out, it blasted into brilliance again.
He stepped up onto the porch and rang the doorbell, the chime sounding hollow inside the residence. It was cold but the wind had stopped blowing. Nevertheless, he waited long enough for the cold to penetrate his clothing.
Then the door opened and Angelique’s smile warmed him to his core.
“Well, let the man in, Angelique,” Big Jim’s voice boomed from another room.
She reached out an arm to draw Derrick inside. “You have to come in and say hi to my dad.”
Derrick swallowed hard, suddenly insecure. “Sure.” He stepped inside and managed to give her a quick kiss before following her to the kitchen area, where Big Jim Garrett sat at the table spooning applesauce into a bowl for Gabrielle. She was supervising, pointing with her spoon where he was supposed to dish out more.
“You sure do like this applesauce.”
“I sure do like this applesauce,” she echoed and then laughed when he looked at her and shook his head.
“Dad, you are spoiling my daughter.” Angelique gave him a look of mock exasperation.
“Aw, she ate most everything else. I just cleaned her up, and I’m giving her a little help with this applesauce. It’s messy, y’know?”
Angelique chuckled at that. “Yes, Dad. I do know. Now say hello to Derrick so he can take me to dinner.”
Big Jim waved the spoon at Derrick. “Hello, son. You be sure and drive carefully and get my beautiful daughter home safe. Y’hear?”
“Um, yes sir.” Derrick wondered why he felt as though he was in junior high school again.
Angelique tugged Derrick’s arm. “We gotta go. I’m starving.” She blew a kiss to Big Jim. “Take good care of your granddaughter.”