The Rodeo Man's Daughter (Harlequin American Romance)

by White Daille, Barbara

  Tess put her palms flat on the desk and breathed deeply again. After all these years, how could she confess to her closest friend? But how could she keep on the way she was now, holding back the truth from her?

  And from Caleb?

  A chilling wave of guilt rushed over her. Shivering, she pushed the thought aside. She couldn’t tell him. Not now. Not ever.

  But the time had come for her to confide in Dana.

  “You’re right,” she admitted. “I do need to talk to you. About Caleb. He… I…” She could find no easy way to say this. “We went together senior year in high school. Just for a while, right before he left town.”

  “Yes, I know.”

  She almost choked on her indrawn breath. “You what? How? For how long?”

  “Since high school.” When Tess’s mouth dropped open, Dana laughed. “And how? Come on—I was your best friend. I knew when you suddenly had no time to hang around after classes. And when you started leaving my house early on the weekends.” She smiled and added gently, “And I saw the way you looked at him when we got to school every morning.”

  “You didn’t. I didn’t.”

  “Yes, you did.”

  “Oh, great.” She slumped and ran her fingers through her hair. “Did everyone figure it out?”

  “No, just me.”

  “Well, that’s some consolation.” She looked up. “I’m sorry I never told you, Dana. I couldn’t let anyone know. If Granddad had ever found out…”

  “You don’t need to explain that. Why do you think I kept it to myself? So, now Caleb’s here. And you are…?”

  “In a mess. A real mess. I don’t know why he had to come back again.” She couldn’t keep the bitterness from her tone. “He’s not planning to stay, whether he buys property or not. Nate worships him, and he told her point-blank he doesn’t belong in Flagman’s Folly.”

  “And you haven’t told him about Nate?”

  “No, and I sure don’t—” The blood drained from her face. She gripped the edge of the desk. “You know that, too?”

  “I guessed. And just to make sure, I cornered Roselynn and Ellamae when I saw them at Ben’s. Your mother confirmed it.”

  “She didn’t!”

  “Of course she did. Your aunt wouldn’t budge when I asked. But you know your mother’s nothing like Ellamae.”

  “Nobody’s like Aunt El,” she muttered, thinking of the campaign her aunt was running to reintroduce Caleb all over town. A sudden chill shot through her. How much had her aunt overheard earlier? How much had her own unwise decision hurt her?

  She shook her head, forcing herself to stay on track. “Mom couldn’t keep a secret if she— Oh…” She laughed weakly. “Of course she could, if she’s known about Caleb all these years. Aunt El has to know, too. But how?”

  “Not from me.”

  “Dana…” She hesitated. “I’m sorry I never told you about Nate, either.”

  Dana shrugged and looked away, making her feel worse than ever. “Everyone has secrets.”

  “I don’t anymore. Not from you. But I haven’t told Caleb anything.” She still couldn’t. How could she have let herself forget that long enough to get so close to him?

  In as few words as she could, she shared the story of her long-ago trip to Gallup to find him, of how he had treated her, of how she had flung out the news about her marriage.

  Of the way he’d wished her luck.

  “What would I know about luck?” she asked scornfully. “If I’d understood it at all, I’d have known getting involved with him was the unluckiest thing that could have happened.”

  “But then Nate happened,” Dana said softly.

  Tears sprang to Tess’s eyes. That was one thing—the only thing—she could never regret. “Yes, I have Nate. Thanks to Caleb. And,” she added, her voice shaking, “I have to get him out of here before either of them finds out.”

  CALEB LOOKED AROUND the kitchen in amazement.

  Roselynn had already cooked a mess of stuff to bring to Sam Robertson’s that afternoon. And now she and Ellamae had started in cooking again. Far as he could tell, between them, they’d cleaned out the store. And still they’d forgotten a couple of things.

  When Ellamae had left to go to Harley’s, Roselynn came up with a long list of items she needed him to get down from the highest shelves in the pantry.

  “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all you’ve done around here,” she told him.

  “My pleasure.” He meant it. Especially this minute, when work could take his mind off the talk he’d had with Tess such a short while ago. And keep him from dwelling on how close he’d come to doing something he shouldn’t have.

  He’d worked up a sweat fixing the shed in the yard. Tess’s hands on him had made him hotter. They’d been alone, the house deserted. He’d wanted to pick her up, sheet and all, and carry her inside. When he’d stroked her face, the look in her eyes told him he might just have gotten his wish. If Ellamae hadn’t come along.

  If Ellamae hadn’t saved him from himself.

  “Tess tries to help out,” Roselynn said with a shrug. “But neither of us has money to burn.”

  He did. He’d just somehow gotten offtrack about his idea of setting it to flame. Gotten too hot over Tess to keep his thoughts and his hands where they belonged. And damn him for forgetting his plan to make Tess see what she’d walked away from. Instead, he’d started obsessing about everything he had missed.

  He had to struggle to focus on her mama.

  “And she’s got so much on her mind with Nate.”

  “I noticed. A lot of friction between them.” But anyone could tell they and Roselynn and Ellamae all loved each other. The way a family should.

  Sighing, she reached for the baking dish he’d handed down from the stepladder. “You’re right, those two are always at sixes and sevens. It’s awful to see. You must think they don’t care for one another at all.”

  He shook his head. “I’m certain it’s the opposite. They just don’t let it show often enough.”

  “That’s so true.” She set the next baking dish beside the first one. “I try to take on some of the responsibility with Nate, but you know Tess. She’s always too hard on herself.”

  “Yes, she is.” Too quiet, as well. “Must be a challenge having to raise the child on her own. With your help, of course.”

  She smiled. “I’ve tried to do what I could. It’s not easy. Nate’s a bit rebellious at times.”

  “I noticed that, too.”

  They both laughed, but he sobered quickly. Their talk reminded him of that first day he’d come back, when Tess had told him her marriage hadn’t worked out. Maybe it had fallen through before it even got started. He went with his hunch. “Tess never married at all, did she?”

  “No, she never did.” She hesitated, then said, “She didn’t tell you about that herself?”

  “Yes.” He added grimly, “Though not in so many words.”

  “She’s had plenty of chances.” Roselynn sounded proud, the way a mama should sound when she talked about her kids. “Joe Harley’s asked her more than once. But she’s always said no. She’s always put Nate first, you see. After you left, I think she felt—” She cut herself off and swallowed hard.

  As if trying to take back her words? Too late. In these past few weeks, he’d already taken note of some things that didn’t add up. She’d just given him another item for his list. “Why would you think my leaving had anything to do with Tess?”

  “I didn’t. I mean, I don’t.”

  “And what’s Nate got to do with this?”

  “Nothing. Nothing at all. That was just me running my mouth again, as usual. If Ellamae hadn’t left for the store already, she’d tell you so.” She
started fussing with the dishes on the counter.

  He frowned. That first night he’d spent here and many times since, he’d seen how quickly she had left the dining room when the conversation made her uncomfortable.

  The same way Tess had fled just a little while ago.

  What was it Ellamae had said about Roselynn that night? That her sister “won’t allow you much without a sugar coating on it.” How much was she sweetening the truth now? He needed to know.

  Stepping down from the ladder, he moved to stand in front of her. “Roselynn,” he said in the voice he’d use to calm a spooked mare, “what is it you’re trying not to say?”

  “I don’t know what you mean.” She kept her gaze on the baking dishes.

  Between her innocent slip and her unwillingness to explain, he now had enough to figure things out—and he sure as hell didn’t care for the total he’d come to.

  “Roselynn,” he said again, “is there something Tess won’t tell me that I ought to know?”

  “Please, Caleb,” she said urgently, “don’t ask me that.” She scooped up both dishes, clanking them together. Finally, she met his eyes. “That’s between the two of you.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Don’t worry, I’m turning off the lights,” Tess reassured Dana as they prepared to leave the office. That done, she followed her friend outside and pulled the door closed behind them. “I don’t want you to—”

  Abruptly, she stopped.

  At the curb behind Dana’s van sat the rented pickup truck with Caleb at the wheel. And she thought she’d managed to escape him for a while.

  “Here comes Nate.” Dana pointed along Signal Street.

  The three of them converged on the truck at the same time.

  “All aboard for the Whistlestop,” Caleb said.

  Nate opened the passenger door and climbed in, moving to the seat in the rear of the cab. “C’mon, Mom.”

  Tess hesitated, not wanting to sit that close to Caleb again. And especially not wanting to get in that truck after what had happened between them in it.

  Nate sat staring at her impatiently. Though Caleb’s dark sunglasses hid his eyes, she could tell he watched her, too. Even Dana stepped back so that Tess could climb into the cab.

  “Talk to you soon,” Dana said.

  As she nodded and climbed in, she gave thanks that this would be a quick and painless trip. Nate’s chatter made the short ride go even more quickly. Still, she gave a sigh of relief when they reached the parking area of the inn.

  Caleb opened the driver’s door, and Nate jumped to the ground and ran toward the house.

  When Tess reached for the passenger door handle, she was startled to feel his hand clasp her wrist. She looked at him in surprise. He released her arm, closed the driver’s door and rested back against his seat.

  “Let’s compare notes,” he said.

  He could have chosen a better time than this. But she couldn’t say that. She couldn’t risk reminding him again of why they hadn’t discussed the property last night. She grabbed her canvas bag from the seat beside her and began rummaging in it for her pen. “All right. Where do you want to start?”

  “With Nate.”

  Her fingers closed convulsively on the notebook she’d just slid from the bag.

  “You know,” he continued, “the first day I met her, she told me she wasn’t too happy with what you’d called her. ‘Anastasia.’ That’s different. How’d you come up with it, anyhow?”

  Her nails dug half-moon dents into the notebook’s cover. She had to swallow hard before she could answer. She had to sound natural. Unconcerned. “I…looked it up in a baby-naming book. I thought it was pretty.”

  “And so it is. Goes nice with the rest of her name, too. ‘Anastasia Lynn LaSalle.’ You’ve called her that a couple of times when she’s mouthed off to you. Of course, you didn’t have to find that last one in a baby book, did you?”

  “No, I didn’t.” She loosened her grip on the notebook but took a firmer hold on her emotions. Nothing to worry about here. He was only making conversation, more than likely prompted by Nate’s chatter. “Now, what about that property we looked at just after lunch yesterday? The acreage is suited to what you need, and I’m sure we can get the asking price down. I’ve calculated—”

  “Before we get into prices, let’s calculate a few other things.”

  “Such as…”

  “Years.”

  She frowned, puzzled. “For a mortgage?”

  “For a marriage. Yours.”

  Her fingers convulsed again. If she gripped any tighter, she would risk a handful of ink when the pen broke in two. But there was no getting away from it. These weren’t idle questions Caleb was asking. The confrontation she’d dreaded since the first day she’d seen him again had now begun. That didn’t mean she’d go down without a fight. “What does my marriage have to do with anything?”

  “A lot. Maybe more than I’d thought. You told me a while back it ‘didn’t work out.’ How many years would it be if you were still married now?”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  “I’m calling you on that one, Tess. I think it is my business. You were never married at all.”

  “What makes you think that? Just because Nate has my maiden name? That doesn’t mean a thing. Besides, whether I was married or not—or will marry Joe Harley or not—has nothing to do with you.”

  “Maybe not. But it’s got something to do with Nate. And I should’ve seen that sooner. She’s nine years old. I’ve been gone for ten. That’s a simple enough calculation for me.”

  “Don’t be so crude. Or so conceited.” She forced a laugh. “I had plenty of time to—to find another boyfriend after you left.”

  “I’ll give you crude, Tess. You teased me long enough before you let me into your jeans. What are the chances you’d give away your favors to someone else only a couple months later?”

  She gasped. Yes, his words had shocked her, as he’d planned. But worse, they’d hit the truth, too. She wouldn’t have gone with someone else so soon after she’d given herself to him.

  Nate came out of the back door and jumped down the steps, then headed in their direction. The huge grin on her face made Tess’s heart hurt.

  “Nate’s mine, isn’t she?” he demanded.

  With shaking hands, she shoved her notebook and pen back into her bag. She had to get out of here.

  He clasped her wrist again. “I’m not leaving this truck till you answer.”

  He would feel her tremors. Would see them. She couldn’t help that. But as tears sprang to her eyes, she turned her head away. At least, she could keep him from seeing those.

  Nate ran across the yard toward them.

  Tess blinked furiously again. She couldn’t let Nate see her this upset, either.

  “Tess.” He spoke her name gently. But relentlessly.

  She slumped against her seat. Why did this conversation have to happen here? Why did it have to happen at all?

  Nate was just a few yards away and coming closer, and still he pushed. “Tell me.”

  “Nate is not yours,” she burst out, her voice low but harsh with threatening tears. “She’s ours.” She reached blindly for the handle and yanked it, slid from the truck and slammed the door closed behind her.

  “You coming in the house?” Nate asked.

  “Yes.” She’d go anywhere, do anything to avoid having to be alone with Caleb again. From behind her, she heard the driver’s door slam shut.

  Surprising herself and Nate, she wrapped her arms around her daughter and squeezed tightly, wishing she would never have to let go.

  To her shock, Nate returned the hug with equal enthusiasm.

  CALE
B STILL FELT THROWN by the news he’d learned.

  Not discovering he was Nate’s daddy. No, that was the best of it all.

  After he’d left Roselynn, he’d walked around with his legs as shaky as the day he’d gotten out of his hospital bed to see if he could stand again. Maybe that’s the way real daddies felt when they first saw their babies. He’d missed that step—and a few thousand others.

  Thanks to Tess’s deceit.

  Her refusal to tell him about Nate only underscored the feelings he’d grown up with, the beliefs that had been reinforced in his time on the circuit. Don’t get too close to people. He’d almost done that, almost trusted Tess. Almost shared his fears about having come so near to dying. Only to find she’d kept this secret from him all along.

  Deep inside, he had to admit he understood that. At least, part of him did. He could see why she hadn’t told him about the baby at first. That night in Gallup, he’d obsessed over winning his event, claiming his prize. Gaining the proof that showed how right he’d been to leave Flagman’s Folly. And then wanting to show that proof to Tess. He’d sure messed that up.

  Yet, another part of him didn’t understand Tess’s betrayal at all. That had been one night, one conversation. Since then, she’d had years to make another attempt to contact him, and still she’d kept the truth hidden. Even when he’d come back to town, she hadn’t told him.

  A while after he’d left Roselynn, he’d driven to Tess’s office. Finding Nate and Dana there had put an end to any chance of talking to Tess alone. And when they’d gotten back to the inn, she had nearly run from the truck into the house.

  Now he heard her footsteps in the hallway coming from the direction of her room. Easing his door ajar, he stood in the opening, waiting. No way would she get by him again, as she’d done downstairs, sticking close to Nate from the minute they’d come into the house so he wouldn’t have a chance to talk with her alone. She’d come up here the same time as Nate, too, managing to cut him off again.

  But she had run out of options for evading him.

  Roselynn and Ellamae had never left the kitchen. Nate had gone into her room but had barreled down the stairs a few minutes ago. No one left up here but the two of them.