by Sherry Lewis
“I’m doing that, Cam.”
He nodded slowly and changed rhythm on his knee. “What are you going to give him for Christmas?”
Marti tried to hide her dismay. She hadn’t even thought about buying Gil a gift. “I haven’t thought that far ahead.”
“He’s already got your present.”
Wonderful. Now she’d have to buy him something or look bad in front of Cameron. “Has he?”
“Yeah. It was expensive, too. But I can’t tell you what it is.”
Great. An expensive gift. Marti forced a weak smile. “What are you going to give him?”
“I’m not sure yet.” Cameron slid down on his tailbone. “I don’t know what he wants.”
“Well, you’ll have your own money. I suppose you’ll be able to buy him whatever you want.”
“Yeah.” A cloud crossed Cameron’s expression, but it disappeared so quickly she wondered if she’d really seen it. “Yeah,” he said again.
“What are you going to do with the rest of your money?”
He shrugged casually. Too casually. “I don’t know yet.”
All-too-familiar concern stirred inside her, but she refused to make it real. Instead, she turned into Rick’s driveway and changed the subject again. “Where do you want me to drop you?”
Cameron sat up a little straighter and nodded toward the house. “Just out front. Rick’s probably still home.”
Marti pulled in beside Rick’s truck and shifted into Park. “You won’t be late, will you?”
Cameron climbed out of the car and looked back inside at her with a lopsided grin. “Not if I can help it.”
Marti’s heart soared. “Do you want me to pick you up after work?”
“Sure,” he said with another shrug. “If you want to.”
When he closed the door between them and walked away from the car, Marti nearly laughed aloud. If she wanted to? She’d move heaven and earth to win another smile like that from Cameron or to spend another ten minutes in his company without fighting.
She put the car into reverse and checked the rear window before backing out. But someone stood behind her car and blocked her path. She could only see the bottom of his jacket and the top of his jeans, but she knew immediately it was Rick.
Her heart gave a lurch and her hands grew clammy inside her gloves. While she watched, he came out from behind the car and approached her window. He waited until she rolled down the window, then propped both hands on the car door and smiled down at her. “Good morning.” Simple words, but his smile and the deep timbre of his voice shook her to the core. He held her gaze, and the look in his eyes felt almost intimate.
She tried to smile back, but her lips felt stiff. She tried to ignore the masculine scent that drifted through the open window, but it brought back the memory of their kiss in a rush. She managed to respond, but her voice sounded weak and shaky. “Good morning.”
“You’re up and about awfully early.”
“I am. I’ve got to go into Gunnison. I’ve put off grocery shopping long enough.”
He dragged his gaze away and checked his watch. “You’ll have quite a wait. The store doesn’t open until nine o’clock.”
“I know. I’m going to visit my aunt first.”
Rick nodded toward the house. “I was just going to make a fresh pot of coffee. Do you want to join me?”
Every instinct urged her to accept. Logic warned her to say no—especially with Cameron watching every move she made. “I’d like to,” she said honestly, “but my aunt is expecting me, and she’s already a little upset with me for not stopping by sooner.”
He looked so disappointed, her heart gave another skip. “Another time, then.”
“Yes,” she said softly. “Another time.” Why not? she thought. She enjoyed his company. She didn’t want to avoid him. After all, her decision to give Gil another chance didn’t mean she couldn’t have friends of her own.
But when Rick touched her arm and the familiar tightening of desire curled in her stomach, she knew she was making a mistake. And when the surge of heat crawled up her arm from the place where his gloved hand touched her jacket, she knew she’d have to work very hard to avoid this man in the future. If she didn’t, she’d undermine everything she was trying to do with Cameron.
SOMETHING CAMERON didn’t like filled him as he watched Rick talking to his mom. Her face turned all red and that goofy-looking smile stretched across her face, and made Cameron feel kind of sick.
What in the hell did she think she was doing? Flirting? She wasn’t supposed to be flirting with Rick. She was supposed to be getting back together with his dad. She probably thought Cameron couldn’t tell what she was doing. She thought he was too stupid to know. But he knew. Anybody with two eyes would know.
As he watched, his mom laughed at something Rick said, and the anger tightened like a fist in his gut. Oh, yeah, she complained all the time about he way his dad had flirted with other women while they were married—but look at her. She was doing exactly the same thing. What did she have to complain about?
She said something Cameron couldn’t hear. Rick’s face looked kind of odd, and for a minute Cameron thought his mom would get out of the car. Thank God, she didn’t. But her smile turned all funny, and Cameron felt his own face heat with embarrassment.
Didn’t she know she was making a fool of herself? Rick didn’t want her here. He was just being polite. Couldn’t she tell that?
Obviously not.
A rush of sympathy for his dad tore through him. How was Cameron supposed to fix the mess he’d made if she was going to do stuff like this? How could he undo everything and get his mom and dad back together again?
Suddenly angry, Cameron crossed the snowy yard back to the car and leaned against it. He sent his mom a look she had to understand. There. Her smile faded. Good. She knew he was on to her.
Rick dragged his eyes away and smiled at Cameron. “So, are you ready to hit it again today?”
Cameron nodded. Rick might try to look upset by the interruption, but Cameron could tell he appreciated the rescue. “Sure. What are we doing?”
Rick stepped away from the car. His mom tried smiling at him, but Cameron didn’t smile back. Her smile slipped and she looked away again, working the car into reverse as she did. For some reason, Rick put his hand on the window again and leaned down to look at her. “I’ll talk to you later, okay? There’s something important I need to ask you.”
Cameron scowled. He didn’t like the sound of that at all. Rick made it sound as if he wanted to see her again.
His mom nodded. “Yes, of course.” She tilted her head to see Cameron better. “Maybe when I pick up Cameron after work.”
Not if Cameron’s life depended on it. He brushed hair from his eyes and glared at her. “You don’t need to pick me up. I’ll walk home.”
Her smile died on her lips, and Cameron felt a surge of satisfaction.
Rick frowned at him, but he didn’t say anything until after she’d backed the car around and driven away. “Why don’t you want your mom to pick you up? Are you having problems again?”
He sounded as if he felt sorry for her. Cameron shook his head. “No.”
“It would mean a lot to her if you’d let her pick you up. She wants things to get better between you.”
Cameron shrugged without answering. Things wouldn’t get better if she went around flirting with other men. Acting as though she wasn’t going to get married to his dad again. Giving guys like Rick the wrong impression. “Why do you care?”
Rick’s eyes widened for a second, and Cameron could tell the question surprised him. Good. Maybe Rick needed to think about what he was doing, too.
Rick’s eyes narrowed again. “I care because I like you both. Your mom’s a friend.”
“Yeah? Well, don’t worry about it.” Cameron started away, then turned back to look at Rick again. Maybe he didn’t know what he was doing. His mom probably hadn’t told him that she was getting married agai
n. And maybe Kendra and her family showing up early had made him forget what Cameron had told him about the diamond ring his dad had bought.
Rick was an okay guy and Cameron was pretty sure that if he knew about Cameron’s mom and dad, he wouldn’t let her flirt like that with him.
He tried not to look angry. “We’re not having any trouble,” he said. “In fact, everything’s great.”
“Really?” One of Rick’s eyebrows shot up. “I’m glad to hear it.”
“Yeah.” Cameron worked his hands into his pockets. “Did she tell you the news?”
“What news?”
“She and my dad are getting married again.”
Rick’s face froze. Cameron was right. He hadn’t known. He must be embarrassed as hell. Or mad at her for flirting around with him when she was about to marry somebody else.
“No,” Rick said slowly. “She didn’t tell me.”
“Yeah. Well. They are. In fact, we’re all spending Christmas together. Great, huh?”
A weird expression crossed Rick’s face. “Yeah. Great.”
Cameron felt better now. Much better. He’d get the situation with his mom and dad worked out. He had to.
ADJUSTING HIS SUNGLASSES against the glare of the sun, Rick slowed his truck and pulled into the parking lot of Greta’s Groceries.
He was glad to escape the wood splitting for a few minutes to pick up chips and soda to go with the lunch Lynette had volunteered to fix. He’d been plagued with thoughts of Marti since she drove away the day before—since Cameron had dropped his bombshell. He’d been thinking about her all morning, since well before sunrise, and he needed to do something to take his mind off her. Chopping and stacking firewood certainly hadn’t worked.
He parked to one side of the small building and climbed down from the cab of his truck. Just as he started across the parking lot, the sound of another vehicle approaching made him look back at the road.
Marti waved when she saw him, but he could tell even before she reached him across the parking lot that something had upset her.
He didn’t ask what. If she wanted him to know, she’d tell him. Instead, he nodded a greeting and hooked his thumbs in the front pockets of his jeans. “We meet again.”
“Yes.” She tucked a lock of hair behind one ear. “Did Cameron make it to work on time this morning?”
“He did, and he’s still there chopping firewood until I get back.” An expression of such relief flashed across her face, Rick wanted to say something that might set her mind at ease. “He’s doing a good job, you know. I’m lucky to have him helping me.”
She smiled again and looked down at the toes of her boots. “You probably think I’m a horribly overprotective mother.”
“Not at all. I think you’re a very worried woman—and not without reason.”
She sighed softly, but lifted her gaze again. “Thank you.”
“For nothing.” He touched one hand to the small of her back, intending only to urge her inside out of the cold. But when she looked into his eyes in that second before she started walking, anticipation curled through him. He knew he should pull his hand away, but he didn’t. He liked having her beside him.
When they reached the steps to the porch, he removed his hand reluctantly and followed her up the stairs. The soft curve of her hips in her jeans caught his eye and stirred the same need he’d given in to the night he’d kissed her.
Without warning, she glanced back at him and he could tell from the look in her eye she’d caught him ogling her. He forced a smile. “You’re just the woman I wanted to see this morning. I think we’re going to have a problem, and I’m hoping you can help me come up with a solution.”
“With Cameron?”
“No. Actually, it’s with my family.”
She cocked her head to one side and eyed him curiously.
“My brother-in-law is planning to rent some snowmobiles,” he said. “They want to run them in that big field of your dad’s.”
She groaned aloud and pressed the heel of one hand to her forehead. “Oh, please, no.”
“You don’t think he’ll go for that?”
She let out a brittle laugh. “No. Not exactly.”
“Well, then, I’ll just have to do my best to keep them on my side of the river.”
“Even that probably won’t be good enough,” she said. “Dad’ll have a fit when he hears them, even if they don’t cross onto Lazy M property.”
He turned slightly to move out of the sun’s glare. “Great.”
She didn’t miss his sarcasm, but she smiled slightly. “Great isn’t the word.”
“I don’t suppose there’s any way you could convince him not to let them bother him...”
She shook her head quickly and made a face. “I don’t think so. He’s too stubborn. I’ve never been successful at convincing him of anything. He’s sure your cabins are going to ruin the Lazy M.”
“I’m not keeping them,” Rick told her. “In fact, my Realtor called with an offer this morning.”
She flicked a glance at him. Could that be disappointment he saw in her eyes? “Was it a good offer?”
“No,” he said with a shake of his head. In fact, the offer had been a lucrative one made by a company interested in building a small factory on his property. In spite of the money, Rick hadn’t accepted. Somehow, being here again made him appreciate the serenity of the place all over again. If he sold—when he sold—he wanted buyers who loved the land as much as he did.
Marti glanced at him again and smiled slowly. “This is selfish of me, I know, but I hope you find good people to take your place. Dad thinks it’s my fault he had to sell the property to you.”
“Your fault?” Another strike against Henry Mad-dock in Rick’s book. “Why?”
Because of the divorce. Without Gil to help him, he couldn’t manage the whole thing on his own. I think that’s why he’s so determined to see me reconcile with Gil.”
Rick tried not to look overly interested. “And are you going to?”
She shrugged lifelessly. “Cameron still hates me. It’s no secret that he believes I’ve screwed up everybody’s lives. I told him I’d give his dad a second chance—not a reconciliation, exactly, but a chance to prove that he’s changed. So, Gil’s at the house all the time, and he acts as if he’s changed, but I have trouble believing that he really has.”
Cameron had sounded so certain that Marti was planning to marry Gil again, Rick couldn’t help the surge of relief that swept through him. He battled the urge to pull her into his arms and make everything all right for her. It wasn’t in his power to make anything all right. “And here I am, making it all worse by asking you about snowmobiles.”
She waved his words away with one hand. “You’re not doing anything.”
He liked hearing her say that, but he wasn’t at all certain it was true. “I’d be glad to come over and talk to your dad about using his field if you think it would help.”
“I don’t think it would. The only person Dad’s listening to these days is Gil.”
Rick had no intention of talking to Gil. He climbed the steps to stand beside her. “I’ll talk to your dad.” He paused, smiled halfheartedly and tugged open the door. “One of these days.”
She laughed softly and stepped into the store. Inside, the scent of coffee and cinnamon rolls filled the air.
Greta looked up when they entered. She’d decked herself out in Christmas garb—a red Santa sweatshirt, candy-cane earrings, bells at her wrists and on her neck. In spite of his usual aversion to the holidays, Rick smiled.
She hurried out from behind the counter and wrapped Marti in a huge hug. “How are you, sweetheart?”
Immediately, the distress in Marti’s face lessened. She looked young, worry-free, and more beautiful than ever. Rick suddenly wanted very much to find some way of keeping that expression on her face.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Fine.”
Greta held her at arm’s length and looked her up an
d down until the candy canes danced on the older woman’s ears. “Well, you look wonderful. But Cherryl tells me you and she still haven’t gotten together.”
“Not yet,” Marti admitted. “I’ve left her a couple of messages, but I haven’t heard back from her.”
“Well, you know that daughter of mine,” Greta said. “She’s been busy with the restaurant and the kids and Christmas. Even I have trouble catching up with her. But keep trying. She’ll never forgive you if you leave without seeing her.”
Rick hesitated for a moment, torn between the desire to finish his conversation with Marti and the dawning realization that she’d moved on. He turned toward the potato-chip aisle and made a selection quickly, then walked to the back of the store and the refrigerator that held the soda.
Dimly aware of the bell over the door tinkling when someone new came in, he pulled out a six-pack of cola and started to turn around. But when he remembered that Lynette refused to drink anything with caffeine, he replaced the cola in the cooler. Just as he reached for an acceptable choice, someone’s hand brushed his shoulder.
He turned quickly and came face-to-face with Marti. Her smile reached all the way to her eyes, and they looked so clear, so bright, so inviting, he couldn’t tear his gaze away.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ignore you like that. Greta is my best friend’s mom, and she’s always been like a second mother to me.”
“It’s all right. No harm done.” Her hand lingered on his shoulder. Her scent enveloped him. Her eyes refused to let his go. And he realized suddenly that, no matter how hard he might try, how much smarter he’d be to walk away from her, or how wrong he’d be to bring even more trouble into her life, he couldn’t change the way he felt around her.
By some miracle, and only because they weren’t alone, he resisted the urge to wrap his arms around her and kiss her. He could feel Greta watching them from behind the cash register. He didn’t care—not at the moment, anyway—but he didn’t want to make Marti the object of speculation among her neighbors.
With effort, he ignored the tempting fullness of Marti’s lips, the swell of her breasts beneath her jacket and the luscious curve of her hips. But he wasn’t ready to leave her. Not yet.