Ooh Baby, Baby
Page 13
Sue Anne paused for a leisurely sip of cola, smacked her lips and flashed a smug grin. “I hired her.”
“You what?”
Clearly pleased by her brother’s reaction, Sue Anne stretched like a lazy feline, purring with self-indulgent pride. “I hired Peggy to help out with the books.”
“Why on earth would you do that?”
Taking umbrage at his tone, Peggy snapped her head around. “I didn’t exactly drop off a turnip truck, you know. I have a degree in business administration, a minor in finance, and I happen to be quite adroit with the nuances of at least ten of the most widely utilized computerized spreadsheet programs.”
“Uh, sure, honey, sure.” Travis withdrew instantly, although his peculiar expression made Peggy regret the pompous recitation of her résumé. “Just kind of took me by surprise, that’s all.”
She touched his arm, an affectionate gesture that had become second nature to her. In the month since they’d shared that first explosive kiss, she and Travis had been inseparable. There had been many more kisses, some achingly sweet, some desperate with need for something more intimate, a need that grew stronger, deeper by the day.
Peggy knew this man, knew every furrow of his brow, every twitch of his rugged jaw. He was plainly perturbed. “You don’t mind, do you? I mean, it’s only temporary, until Sue Anne gets the hang of this new program.”
“Why should I mind? It isn’t my company.” Despite the muttered assurance, Travis stepped back, avoiding Peggy’s stunned gaze as she found herself stroking thin air. Her hand dropped away while Travis scratched the side of his neck and moved to the leather sofa. “You two just go on with your business.”
Peggy regarded him thoughtfully, trying to identify the odd glint in his eye. He didn’t seem angry—just, well, hurt. Which didn’t make sense to Peggy, although she realized that this wasn’t the time to question him.
Sue Anne had left her swivel chair and was anxiously peering over Peggy’s shoulder. “So, have you found any other screwups? On the ledger, that is.”
“Hmm? Oh.” She refocused on the page she’d scrutinized earlier. “Actually, I was just wondering what ‘fiol’ means.”
Sue Anne eyed the entry in question and chuckled. “That stands for ‘figure it out later,’ kind of my own personal shorthand when I’m not sure what account to use. Usually I let the CPA sort things out.”
“I see.”
“Why are you frowning?”
“No reason, I guess.” Peggy tapped a fingernail on the page. “It’s just that this entry is a check written from the company to your personal account.”
“We needed some extra cash for an insurance payment, that’s all. Hell, we own the damned company.”
“Oh, you haven’t done anything wrong,” Peggy added quickly. “And I’m sure that in the past your CPA has shifted this type of entry into the proper area before completing your annual financial reports. Unfortunately, the computer won’t be quite as forgiving, and by writing the check off as an expense, you’ve set yourselves up as vendors to your own company. At the end of the year, the computer will spit out an automatic 1099 form, showing the amount as personal income.”
Sue Anne’s eyes went blank for a moment, then widened in comprehension. “You mean we’ll have to pay taxes on it?”
“The way it stands now, Uncle Sam will think so.”
“But that isn’t right. We’ve already paid taxes on it once, and besides, that money is just payback for what we’ve already put in.”
“I know. Don’t worry, we can fix it.”
“How?”
“By making certain that it’s properly posted. For example, you and Jimmy used personal funds to start the company. That money is now shown as an outstanding loan on the cab company’s books, so whenever you transfer funds from the company to your personal account, the check should be shown as a payment on the loan. That way the company’s debt is reduced and you won’t be sending a red flag to the IRS on taxes that you really don’t owe.”
Sue Anne closed her mouth, fanned her face with her hand and issued an exaggerated sigh of relief. “Like I said, the woman’s a genius, right, kid?”
Travis’s blank stare sent chills down Peggy’s spine. “Right,” he murmured. “A genius.”
Then he leapt up from the couch as if his butt was on fire, pivoted smartly and strode silently out of the room.
* * *
Travis tested the lasso, spun a sloppy loop over his head, then flicked his wrist toward a black barbecue grill at the edge of the patio. He roped it easily, then tightened the loop. Not a bad throw, he thought, although it felt a bit rusty. If the barbecue had been sprinting across the yard the results would no doubt have been different.
He was definitely out of practice, a situation he’d have to remedy if he expected Cassidy Sloane to partner up with him for team roping and steer wrestling next season. Not only was Cassidy a top-notch roper, he owned a stable full of excellent working mounts, a real plus for Travis, who’d never been able to afford the expense of training and transporting his own horses.
The way Travis figured, qualifying for two additional events would provide an opportunity to pull in extra winnings, money he needed if he was ever going to save up enough for that hunk of ranch land outside Lubbock. He’d been eyeing the property for years, imagining how it would look with a thousand head of prime beef grazing the flatlands. His beef. His land.
Hell, he’d even own his own stable of top-notch working horses, just like Cassidy Sloane.
Then Travis would be more than a broken-down cowboy. He’d be a rancher, a landowner. He’d have something to offer—
“Whoa, you got him, partner.”
Travis glanced up as Peggy crossed the patio and nodded at the rope loop he’d just pulled from the grill. “Danged thing near got plumb away,” she drawled, mimicking his accent. “But you showed the varmint a thing or two.”
Smiling, Travis hooked his thumb through the open loop, draping the remainder of the rope into a loose coil. “I’m real good at roping things that can’t get away.”
She spread her arms, grinning in challenge. “Prove it.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Travis shrugged, shifting the knot in his palm. “You asked for it,” he murmured, swishing the lasso over his head. He aimed, flicked his arm forward and gave the rope a sharp tug as the loop settled around her shoulders.
She squealed and clapped her hands. “Now, that’s talent. I guess you’re not just another pretty face, cowboy.”
He ambled forward, recoiling the rope tail as he moved toward the spot where Peggy was eyeing him the way a hungry horse eyes a fresh bucket of oats.
Lord, but she was beautiful, with all those perky little freckles and a smile brighter than sunlight. It was enough to make a grown man weep.
“Guess you’ve got me,” she murmured as he reached down to loosen the knot around her chest.
“Guess I do.” He swallowed hard as his knuckles accidentally brushed her breasts. He loosened the rope quickly, removing his hand from the danger zone, but not before he saw the tremor vibrate her body, noted the sensual darkening of her eyes. She wanted him, he realized, and his heart line-danced down his ribs. Because he wanted her, too, more than he’d ever wanted anything or anybody in his entire life.
It wasn’t the first time Travis wanted what he couldn’t have. But it was the first time it had ever hurt so bad.
“Is something wrong?” Peggy ducked down, allowing Travis to lift the loosened loop over her head. “You look so, I don’t know, pensive, I guess.”
He tried for a smile, but his cheeks felt like sun-dried leather. Because he couldn’t help himself, he reached out to brush a knuckle along her cheek. “Just a bit tuckered, that’s all.”
She cocked her head, studying him, then stepped forward to slip her arms beneath the worn leather vest he favored to encircle his waist and massage the tight muscles above the dip of his jeans. “Are you sure that’s all?”
Peggy regarded him thoughtfully. “A few minutes ago, when you were in the office, you seemed upset. Are you angry that I’m working with Sue Anne?”
“No,” he said honestly. “Sue Anne’s been having nothing but trouble since the company books went on that new program. She needs the help, and I’m glad you can give it to her. If it helps you out, too, that’s even better.”
Peggy nodded, but a quick glance downward convinced Travis that her eyes weren’t buying it.
The words formed before Travis had a chance to think them through. “I didn’t realize you knew so much about figures and such.”
That seemed to surprise her. She took a step back and craned her neck to look up at him. “Does that bother you?”
“No,” he lied. “Why should it?”
“It shouldn’t.”
“Well, there you go.” He brushed a chaste kiss across her forehead, feeling like a first-class heel. Petty insecurities were bad enough—lying about them was even worse.
The problem was that although Travis knew Peggy was an educated woman—she’d mentioned having met her good-for-nothing louse of an ex-husband at college—he’d never actually realized what that meant for their relationship. Now he did, and it scared the liver out of him. After all, what could a useless horse jockey with nothing more impressive than a high school diploma possibly have to offer a bright, educated woman like Peggy Saxon?
To Travis, the answer was crystal clear. And it damn near broke his heart.
* * *
Peggy leaned over the counter, waiting for the room to stop swimming. Her legs felt like rubber, her arms like lead. With some effort, she opened an overhead cabinet to retrieve a bottle of allergy pills. Even though the medication wasn’t as effective as her usual prescription, the doctor felt it was safer for nursing mothers. The pills had eased her watery eyes and chest tightness, but had done absolutely nothing to alleviate her headaches, dizzy spells or the annoying muscle weakness that had struck with increasing frequency over the past few weeks.
A low-grade fever also added to her misery, along with a queasiness that suggested she’d come down with some kind of flu bug. That was particularly upsetting, because she feared the virus could be passed to the twins. The pediatrician thought that a remote possibility since breast feeding provided the added benefit of strengthening an infant’s immune system. But Peggy still fretted.
Hoping the antihistamine would stay down long enough to do some good, Peggy swallowed the pill dry, then felt her way along the wall to her bedroom and collapsed on the bed. She lay there exhausted, mustering up a modicum of gratitude that Travis wouldn’t be dropping by tonight.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him; she simply didn’t want him to see her all weak and woozy.
Peggy paused by the front window, drawn by a strange vehicle at the curb. She saw a real estate logo on the passenger door, one of several such vehicles that had cruised the area in the past weeks. Good news, she decided. Clearly the neighboring duplex was in the process of being sized up by potential rental agencies. It would be nice to have people close by, although she no longer felt a gnawing need to have neighbors. She had friends now.
She had Travis.
Even when they weren’t together, Travis was on Peggy’s mind. She thought of him constantly, even at the most inopportune times. Yesterday, a scrumptious daydream about Travis walking the twins to kindergarten on their first day of school had been rudely interrupted by the honking of traffic behind her. Judging by the gestures offered by other drivers, the light must have been green for quite a while.
Peggy should have been embarrassed; instead, she’d been patently annoyed by the intrusion. It had been, after all, a particularly wonderful image, one that touched on the deepest hopes she harbored for her babies—that they grow up with a father who cherished them as much as she’d wanted her own father to cherish her.
If she’d dissected the daydream rationally, she’d have wondered why her mind insisted on placing Travis in the role of father instead of Clyde, whom she still believed would choose an active role in parenting their children.
But thoughts of Travis didn’t make Peggy feel particularly rational. They made her feel warm and fuzzy and secure. Most important, they made her feel loved.
* * *
Travis was peering into the refrigerator when Sue Anne sidled into the kitchen. “So,” she said, grinning madly. “Saw you and Peggy in the backyard this afternoon, all kissy-wissy and lovey-dovey.”
Slamming the fridge door, he shot his sister a killing look. “I don’t much cotton to being spied on.”
The caustic remark was lost on Sue Anne, who merely winked as Jimmy ambled through the door, then turned her attention back to her brother. “And to think I was fixing to give up.”
Travis spotted a pretzel bag on the counter and snagged it. “Give up on what?” he asked, dipping his hand inside the cellophane.
“On you, kid. I’d figured you for a mustang too wild to be broke,” Sue Anne said, ignoring her husband’s warning stare. “Then you come a’trotting out with a bit in your mouth, all trussed and harnessed and saddled up smart. Who’d a’thunk it, hmm?”
Crunching pretzels, Travis angled a curious glance from his grinning sister to her clearly distressed husband, who puffed his cheeks and issued a pained sigh. “Y’know, Sue Anne, sometimes you’re harder to follow than a drunken sidewinder. I don’t have a clue what you’re yammering about.”
“She ain’t yammering about nothing,” Jimmy muttered, grabbing his wife’s arm. “Just likes the sound of her own voice.”
“Turn me loose, fool.” Sue Anne scowled at her husband until he released her, tossing up his hands as she pivoted around to elbow her brother in the ribs. “So, when’s it gonna be? Spring’s always good, but judging by the way Peggy was looking at you today, I don’t figure she’ll be wanting to wait that long.”
“Wait that long for what?”
Lost in thought, Sue Anne blinked at her brother as if she’d forgotten he was there. “A wedding, what else?”
Travis choked on a pretzel. Jimmy moaned.
Sue Anne didn’t notice. “It’ll take time to put things together, but we’ll manage somehow. Worse case, I suppose y’all could elope—”
“Elope?” The word squirted out between coughing fits that left Travis beet red and pounding on his own chest. He finally took a wheezing breath and gave his sister a horrified stare. “Are you out of your ever-loving mind?” Before she could respond, Travis spun and stomped out of the room.
Sue Anne’s smile faded as her her wary gaze flicked to her husband. “What did I—” she flinched as the front door slammed “—say?”
Jimmy scoured her with a look. “Talking marriage around a man who don’t even want to be in love is about as bright as stealing raw meat from a badger.”
The truth sank in quickly, sank to the pit of Sue Anne’s soul. She knew her husband was right. The one thing on earth that terrified her brother more than death itself was the fear of falling in love; or more precisely, of losing someone he loved.
Travis stoutly maintained that he couldn’t remember their mother, but Sue Anne remembered. She remembered when Mama died, and she remembered her little brother’s stoic refusal to accept that his beloved mommy wouldn’t be coming back. Sue Anne remembered the pitiful retching sobs, the agonized little eyes that begged to understand, yet couldn’t.
And she remembered the blank stare in those same eyes, all that was left when her brother’s tears finally dried into a vacuous expression that conveyed more eloquently than words that he’d never, ever allow himself to feel such pain again.
That fear of loss had kept Travis on the move over the years, never committing, never letting anyone get too close, a
lways on the run from a fear he refused to acknowledge, a pain he could never forget.
Somehow Peggy Saxon had managed to slow Travis down long enough to penetrate his protective shield. Shoot, the thickheaded fool hadn’t even known what was happening until Sue Anne opened her big mouth.
Now Sue Anne sagged against the counter, shaken by the realization of what she’d done. Jimmy slipped his arm around her shoulders, offering quiet consolation. Neither spoke. It wasn’t necessary. By this time tomorrow, Travis would be gone. And they both knew it.
* * *
It was barely dawn when Travis exited the doughnut shop carrying coffee in a disposable foam cup. As was his routine, he walked up the street toward the spot where he’d parked the cab, passing the same shops he passed every morning. Usually he ignored the window displays, opting to focus on the panoramic sunrise inching over the mountains. Today, however, a flash of white caught his eye, and he found himself staring into the boutique window. What he saw took his breath away.
A red-haired window mannequin displayed a floor-length gown of lustrous white satin. It wasn’t a wedding dress, but it could have been. Travis was mesmerized. In his mind, a flowing veil appeared, obscuring the mannequin face, and a streaming bouquet of white roses dripped from the sculpted hands.
A bride.
A wedding.
A lifetime commitment.
Travis convulsively squeezed the paper cup, then leapt back, cursing as hot coffee bubbled over his hand. Hell, he couldn’t even think straight anymore. He didn’t need this…this frustration, this mental torture. Why the devil was he doing this to himself? His ribs were long healed. He should have been back on the circuit weeks ago instead of piloting a creaking heap of painted metal and getting softer by the day.
Disgusted, he dumped the coffee out, tossed the wadded cup in a trash can and strode up the street, planning to drop the cab off at the Conway’s garage and tell his sister where to forward his paycheck. It wouldn’t be a shock to her. He’d only agreed to help out for a few weeks until he’d recovered enough to rodeo. Well, he’d recovered, and he was suddenly chomping at the bit to hit the road.