Cary watched as he entered the store and stopped to talk to Millie. It seemed like everyone worried about Millie. “Good old Millie. Everybody’s friend.”
She carried the last of the cans to the truck and stacked them on the floorboard. If she wanted to stay here, and she needed to stay here for a few more weeks at the least, she’d find a way to be Millie’s friend, too.
Micah arrived with the food from inside and added it to the truck. He nodded to the cab, and they both climbed inside. They drove for a few miles before Micah broke the silence. “Maybe you were right.”
A giggle burst from Cary. “Maybe? Gee, thanks.” The giggle turned to an outright laugh. She wanted to say more, but she was having a hard time catching her breath.
Micah pulled the truck off to the side of the road, switched off the key and turned to her. He was trying hard to keep the smile from his face. “What’s so funny?”
“You admitted you were wrong. Must be a hard thing to do, to climb down from your throne.” She swiped at the wetness around her eyes and took several deep breaths, trying to regain control. She straightened her spine, but when she raised her gaze to him, she was overcome with laughter again.
Micah started the truck and took off down a back road.
“Where are you going?” Cary barely got the words out between gasps.
“I’m taking you to the hospital. If you don’t quit soon, you’re going to need medical intervention for laughter overdose.”
“Wait. Aren’t we supposed to meet your foreman at home?”
“Clinton Barnes has been taking care of himself for longer than you’ve been alive.”
“Looks to me like he could use some help with Millie.” Cary reached into a bag of fruit and pulled out an orange. She began breaking off the peel and stacking the bits in a neat pile in her lap, largest on the bottom, smallest on the top.
“Now you’re alphabetizing the orange peel?” Micah glanced at the orange pyramid in her lap. “And what do you mean about Clint and Millie?”
No matter how hard Cary tried to control her slight OCD tendencies, whenever she was tense they popped to the surface. Without looking at Micah, she put the peels into the grocery bag out of sight. “Didn’t you see how Mr. Barnes watched Millie the first time we were in the store? He’s got it bad.”
Micah rolled up his window as they turned into the ranch driveway. Dust clouds rolled from beneath the tires and billowed out to cover everything within fifty yards with blanket of gray. “I think you’ve been reading too many romance novels. Clint and Millie are friends, just friends.”
She watched him. He really believed what he said. The man was oblivious to what was right in front of his face. Well, she wasn’t going to argue with him over something that didn’t concern her. “If you say so.”
“I’ve lived around these people my whole life. You’ve only been here a little over a week. I think I’d know if my friends were….” Micah stopped the truck beside the house. “What? Don’t you have anything to say to that?”
Cary bit her lower lip. She should agree. She should stay out of the drama of small town life. She should, but she couldn’t. “Have you ever bothered to ask Clint what he thinks of Millie? He’s interested in her as more than a friend, and she’d like nothing better than to get it on with you. Open your eyes.”
“Bullshit!”
Chapter Nine
Micah grabbed two boxes of groceries and made for the house. His first impression was proving to be correct for more than one reason. It was a very bad idea to hire Cary Crockett. Not only did she have the ranch hands mad about the meals every other day, now she was planting ideas in his head. No way was he going to get involved in Clint’s life. The whole idea of Clint and Millie was ludicrous.
“Well, have you?” Cary followed him into the kitchen carrying a box filled with canned goods.
He’d thought they’d dropped the subject, but no such luck. “No, and I won’t. It’s none of my business.”
“Is it your business to string Millie along and keep her from even looking at your friend?” Cary turned her back and began putting the canned goods onto the shelves in the pantry.
“I’ve got work to do.” He stopped at the backdoor. “Do you need any help?”
“I’ve got it.” She looked over her shoulder. “I’m sorry for butting in where I don’t belong. It’s a habit I’m trying to break.”
Micah managed a slight smile before walking away. There were calves to feed and stalls to clean, and the work might get his mind off Cary for a few minutes.
As Micah crossed the barnyard, Clinton Barnes pulled the old red Ford pickup onto a patch of shade behind the barn and climbed out. Puffs of dust floated up from beneath his boots as he walked to the rear of the truck.
Should he ask the man about Millie? The thought of talking about touchy-feely things with an employee made shivers crawl down his spine. But Clinton Barnes was more than an employee. He was a friend.
“Get everything we need to fix the fences?”
“We’re one bundle short of fence stays, but other than that we’re good.” Clint dropped the tailgate and pulled out one heavy roll of barbed wire and stacked it on the ground by the side of the barn.
Micah grabbed another roll and repeated the process.
Clint continued to work without saying a word, which wasn’t unusual. Some days, Micah and Clint could work side by side for eight hours and not say more than a handful of words.
This time instead of it being a calm silence Micah got more nervous by the minute. Should he ask Clint how he felt about Millie? Shit! Even the word feelings gave him the heeby-jeebys. Maybe he’d wait for a while and see if things worked out between the two.
“You ever ask Millie out?” Where the hell had those words come from?
Clint’s head jerked up, and he stared at Micah.
Now he’d gone and embarrassed himself worse than that day in junior high when he’d tried to impress Katy Sue. “Never mind. You don’t have to answer that.” Micah hurried to the other side of the truck bed and gathered an armful of fence stays.
He dropped the load beside the barbed wire and turned back to the pickup only to see Clint leaning against the truck fender, his arms crossed and his expression closed. “What made you ask that?”
“I’m sorry I did. Can we drop it?” Micah asked. As he watched, Clint’s head shook slowly back and forth. “I have some things I have to do in the—” He couldn’t go to the house, because Cary would want to discuss this very thing, and he couldn’t go to the barn, because Clint would be working there.
“Why did you ask if I’d invited Millie out?” Clint hadn’t moved, and Micah knew he wasn’t going to let the subject go.
Micah sat on the tailgate. He pulled off his East Hope Feed & Seed cap, wiped his forehead with his forearm then settled the cap back on his head. “You’re going to think this is funny. On the way home, Cary said she thought you liked Millie.” God, he sounded like a junior high kid.
“Go on.”
“That’s it.”
Clint unfolded his arms and grabbed two sacks of staples. He threw them in a pile and the added the T-post clips. He looked at Micah for a moment then began removing the large pile of metal fence posts from the truck.
He waited for Clint to say more, but the man must have talked himself out. This had been a mistake. Micah had known that from the moment the words left his mouth. “We’ll start on this in the morning.
Clint nodded then went back to the posts.
Micah tried not to hurry away, tried not to look like he was fleeing the scene of a crime. As he opened the front door, Willa Wild met him.
“Pa, we’re going on a picnic.” She danced around him like a hyper active puppy.
The thought barely materialized when Goodun raced from the kitchen and skidded to a stop at his feet. Willa Wild yelled yippee, and the puppy let out a yip.
“Mama said we can go on a picnic to the lake, you and me and her. Oh, and Go
odun. It’s gonna be so much fun.” She bounded up the stairs, but halfway she stopped and turned back. “We never get to do things together.”
As his daughter disappeared up the stairs, Marlene came down, descending like a queen holding court. Her long red hair was loose and hung past her shoulders. Dressed in a red and white bikini, she twirled before wrapping a bright blue cloth around her hips. Leave it to Marlene to go on a picnic in a bikini even though it was much too cold to get in the water. She was pretty, but all he could see was a problem.
“Why did you tell Willa Wild we’d go on a picnic?” He watched as she crossed the room and sank onto the couch. “I don’t have time for this.”
Marlene made a show of flipping her hair over her shoulder. At one time he’d loved her long hair. “You don’t have time for your daughter? I thought you were super-dad.”
Life was a funny thing. There’d been a time that he couldn’t get close enough to this woman. Now he wished there was a legal way to get her out of their lives.
“I’m not here much. I think the least you can do is let our daughter have a good time with her mother and father once a year.” She gave him the cat smile she reserved for when she knew she had the upper hand. “Or, I can arrange to stay here more often.”
And there it was. Her ace in the hole. If he played by her rules, she only came around every few months. She probably wouldn’t come around any more often if he didn’t give her what she wanted, but he didn’t want to take a chance. “How long is this going to take?”
She stood, and gave him the look that said she’d won. “A couple of hours. You can spare that for your daughter, can’t you?” With a flip of her hand, she disappeared into the kitchen.
Frustration flowed through every vein as he considered spending two solid hours in Marlene’s company. He could do this if he concentrated on Willa.
“Pa,” Willa called as she stomped down the stairs in her bathing suit and her cowboy boots. “We can go swimming, can’t we? Mom’s got her suit on, too.”
The sight of her twig thin legs disappearing into the scalloped top of her cowboy boots made him smile. She stopped and struck a model pose. The turquoise suit hugged her tiny body while the pink and white ruffle bobbed around her hips. “Go get yours, Pa.”
Micah picked up Willa Wild and smiled. “You know it’s too cold to go swimming in the lake.” Her bottom lip stuck out, and he took hold of it between his thumb and forefinger. “You go get your jeans on, and I’ll ask Cary if we can take Goodun.”
She wiggled in excitement, and when he put her down, she clomped up the stairs as fast as she could go. Micah walked into his office and closed the door. Today had been one uncomfortable calamity after another. First Cary and Millie, then his conversation with Clint and now, to top things off, he had to pretend he was enjoying a day with Marlene.
Why couldn’t he spend the day with Cary and Willa Wild? He sat in the big leather desk chair and let his imagination run wild.
~~~
“Mmmmm, motorboatin.” As Cary turned the steaks she was marinating for dinner tomorrow, she hummed Little Big Town’s hit and danced her way around the kitchen. The roasts for tonight were coming along nicely. Fresh green beans with bacon simmered on the stovetop. She peeked into the oven to check the cheesecake.
“I need you to make a picnic lunch for today.” Marlene stood just inside the door, her hands on her hips. “I need it to be special, and I need it in a half hour.”
Cary rose slowly and turned to face Willa’s mother. She hadn’t decided what Marlene was to Micah. “Kind of short notice.”
Marlene walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a diet coke. Dressed in a red and white polka dot bikini top and a deep blue sarong, she looked like she’d stepped out of a Victoria’s Secret swimsuit ad. “Micah told me you could fix us something to take to the lake. You are hired to cook, right?”
The woman had her there, and if Micah wanted a picnic, she’d provide one. The task would be easier if a sharp pain didn’t shoot through her heart at the thought of Micah and Marlene. He’d told her there was nothing between them, but it looked like he’d forgotten to tell his ex-wife. “Come back in fifteen minutes, and I’ll have something ready.” If the woman said thanks, Cary didn’t hear her.
Cary braced her hands on the countertop. She pulled in a deep breath then let it out slowly. She’d thought Micah’s kisses meant something. She’d been wrong. Even if he was hanging around Marlene because of Willa Wild, the last thing she needed was to get in the middle of family dynamics.
The thought of Willa Wild gave Cary an idea. She’d make a lunch her little buddy would love. She cut watermelon and cantaloupe into balls and added cherries. There was fried chicken left over from the night before so she slipped that into a large bag she found in the pantry. Into a plastic bowl, she scooped several servings of leftover potato salad. This wasn’t a fancy feast, but it was perfect picnic food.
Now for dessert. She pulled the stool into the pantry and found the Oreos Micah had hidden. She packed them on top so the little girl would be sure to see them. Nothing was too good for Willa Wild, and if it made Micah mad, so much the better.
Marlene was back in exactly fifteen minutes for the food. She picked up the bag and left without a word. Cary watched out the kitchen window as Micah lifted Willa Wild into the truck and fastened her seat belt. He stepped back and held the door for Marlene. Cary could see him nod to the redhead before closing the door. Marlene’s laugh carried into the kitchen, but it was Micah’s smile when he looked at his ex-wife that hurt the most.
If it weren’t for her fear of Mad Dog, she’d be out of here. Did she dare call Pansy again and see how things were going at home, maybe get some money? It had only been a couple of weeks since she left home, and surely Mad Dog couldn’t trace a call. If she kept it short—.
Cary pulled her cell out of her pocket and turned the thing on. She’d purposely left it off. She scrolled down to see she had one new voice mail. After putting in her pin, she listened.
Pansy’s voice came through but the words were garbled. Hope you’re fine came through clear and do you know. Do I know what? She listened several times, but the words after were unintelligible. From what Cary could make out, Pansy didn’t sound panicked, just curious and a little worried.
As the phone rang, Cary almost hung up three times. Was this a big mistake, or was she being paranoid?
“Oh my god, Cary. Are you all right?” Pansy tended to talk a mile a minute and her words now came faster than usual. “Tell me you’re all right. I’ve been so worried. I tried to call and even left you a message, but then I thought maybe I shouldn’t, so I didn’t call again.”
“Pansy. Stop talking.” She’d needed to talk to a friend. How the magpie chatter of her best friend could be calming, she didn’t know, but it was. “Are you okay?”
“Of course I’m okay. I’m not the one who ran away from the bad guys. Tell me you’re safe.”
Cary heard the crinkle of paper on the other end of the line. That would be Pansy was eating Twinkies. The woman lived on them. “I’m fine.”
“Don’t tell me where you are.”
“I won’t. Have you seen Mad Dog or any of his minions?” Cary sank into the lawn chair and put her feet on the porch rail.
More crinkling then Pansy spoke. “He’s stopped by the restaurant a couple of times and asked to speak to me. He’s really nice. Said you’d been dating, and he couldn’t get ahold of you. He said he was worried. Like I’m going to believe that. Are you really okay?”
Cary smiled. If she had to have only one person in the world on her side, she’d choose Pansy. Pansy’s appearance threw people off. They thought of her as a ditz, but Cary knew she was wicked smart and brave. “I’m fine. I don’t think Mad Dog can find me here. I just really needed a friendly voice.”
“Oh, honey. You call me any time. But don’t do it too often. I think he’s watching me. I’ve caught sight of a big guy following me a couple of ti
mes.”
“I was going to ask you to withdraw some money from my account, but we’d better wait. I have to go now. Thanks, Pansy.” Given a choice, she’d have stayed on the line with Pansy all day, but she had to be careful. No sense tempting fate.
Every bit of energy drained out of Cary’s body, and she yearned for a nap. All she wanted was a life without hassle, but she was stalked by the drama dragon. She stood and reached for the sky, stretching her tired muscles. Instead of a nap, she’d take a walk. There was nothing like a little exercise to make a girl feel better—exercise and a giant bowl of chocolate.
She walked to the barn, stopping at the pen with the calves. Their rate of growth astounded her. They were already running and playing. When they saw her they came over and bawled for some milk.
“You know it’s not feeding time. Too much milk will give you a tummy ache. Willa Wild told me, and Willa Wild knows calves.” As she poked her fingers through into the pen, the smaller calf latched on. “You’re little, but you’re mighty aren’t you?”
She hadn’t been on the ranch long, but she already knew this was the kind of place she wanted to stay. Not the Circle W. It had one too many women as it was, but something similar.
A movement at the end of the barn caught her attention. Clinton Barnes came through the door, a smile on his face. “Hey, Miss Cary. Come out here to visit with the babies?”
“I have a while before I need to start dinner. You’re back early.” She’d been drawn to Clint from the first time she’d seen him. He was kind and acted like she belonged here.
“I gotta ask you a question.” Clint picked up a piece of straw and split it in half then leaned against the stall door.
“What have I done wrong now?”
“Done wrong? Nothin’ that I know of. Come with me.” When they reached the barnyard, he turned toward the creek. “Been down here?”
She shook her head no then followed him down the gentle hill. Giant cottonwood trees towered over the creek and threw shadowed stripes across the water. A gentle wind ruffled the leaves and grass. Clint stopped by the edge then climbed out onto a huge branch that hung over the water. He held out his hand.
Gimme Some Sugar Page 8