by Linda Warren
The thud of hooves drew his attention, and he glanced over his shoulder to see Elias ride up. His brother slid down beside him.
“I thought you were meeting a woman?”
“I am. I wanted to talk to you first.”
It seemed odd that Elias wanted to comfort him. Maybe he had a soft side after all. Or it could be Grandpa.
“Did Grandpa send you?”
“Nah. But he’s worried.”
“I’m fine. I just need some time.”
They sat in silence for a moment and then Elias said, “You know, everyone comes to you for advice and you take care of their needs without any thought of your own. It’s time to think of yourself.”
It wasn’t like Elias to be so thoughtful, and Quincy appreciated the gesture, so he chose to be flippant instead of sincere. Sincerity would only make them both uncomfortable. “Have you been nipping at something?”
“Nah. I’m saving that for later.” Elias leaned over. “Smell me.”
“I’d rather not.”
“Come on.”
Quincy sniffed and frowned. “Is that vanilla?”
“Yeah. I put it on one time instead of cologne and believe me, the girls liked it. They were eating it up saying I smelled so good.”
“There’s no vanilla in our bathroom.”
“I keep my cologne in the kitchen so I can grab it as I go out the door because sometimes I forget. One time I was in a hurry and grabbed the vanilla flavoring by mistake.”
Quincy laughed. He couldn’t help himself. It was what he needed to ease some of the tension inside him.
They both watched the flow of the water, and then Quincy just had to ask because he needed to hear someone else say it. “Do you think she’ll take him back?”
“They have a past, and Paxton’s going to milk that for all it’s worth.”
“Yeah.” Quincy already knew that.
“But I’m hoping Jenny has learned her lesson.”
Quincy did, too. He wanted all of Jenny. All of her heart. Everything. She had to make a clean break with Paxton or there was no future for them.
After Elias left, Quincy went to help Rico with the feeding. In the late afternoon, he drove the tractor into the equipment shed. They’d put out enough round bales to last through Christmas. The weather was taking a turn toward winter, so they’d have to keep a close eye on everything. Rico had checked the fence line on the McCray side and everything was quiet there.
As he walked into the house, Grandpa met him at the door. “Where you been?”
“Working.” He headed for the bathroom to wash up.
“I want to talk to you,” Grandpa called.
Quincy sighed. The last thing he needed was Grandpa giving him advice, but out of respect he would listen. He washed his hands and his face and went back into the living room.
Grandpa was sitting at the kitchen table. “Come here.” He seemed awfully eager about something.
“I need to give Mutt his pain pill first.”
“I already gave it to him.”
Quincy pulled out a chair and sat down. Grandpa had a small box in his hand. It looked like a jewelry box. What was that old man up to?
He pushed the box across the table. “I want you to have this.”
“What is it?” He made no move to take it and an eerie feeling came over him.
“Your grandma’s wedding rings. I wanted to bury them with her, but your dad said I might want to keep them and give them to a grandson one day. That way they would stay in the family. I want you to have them.”
“Grandpa, thank you for the gesture, but I’m not getting married.”
“You never know.”
Quincy didn’t want to deal with this. The pain was enough, and he didn’t need his family trying to bolster his courage.
When Quincy made no move to open the box, Grandpa did. There was a platinum antique wedding and engagement ring. Quincy remembered his grandmother wearing them. When she was working, they stayed in a little dish on the kitchen windowsill.
“When we got married, we didn’t have much money. We bought cheap gold bands for our wedding. Hers broke one day and she cried like a baby. We had a good calf crop that year so I went out and bought her some nice rings. She cried even more when she opened the box. Jenny’s a lot like your grandma. She worked side by side with me for years. I couldn’t have made this ranch what it is today without her. She—”
“Stop...” Quincy got to his feet. “Stop this, Grandpa. I’m not marrying Jenny, and right now I’m not sure about anything, but I know I need time alone.”
“Okay. Take your time.”
Quincy frowned. “Aren’t you the one who told me to stay away from Jenny?”
“Ah.” Grandpa waved a hand. “Don’t be throwing my words back at me. Things have changed and so has my attitude. If you want this girl, you go after her. Paxton will survive.”
But Quincy wondered if he would. He went to the refrigerator. “I’ll make you a sandwich and then I’m going to the barn.”
“Eden brought some pizza over. I’ll have that. What are you having?”
“I’m not hungry.” Quincy placed the pizza on a paper plate and put it in the microwave. The front door opened and Paxton came in.
Quincy removed the pizza and set it in front of Grandpa, bracing himself for what Paxton had to say.
With his hat in his hand, he said, “I came over to apologize for my behavior today.”
“Thank you,” Grandpa said instead of Quincy. “I hope you have your head on straight now.”
Paxton twisted the hat. “I’m not real sure. All I know is I’m really mixed up.” He glanced at Quincy. “Can I talk to you?”
Quincy followed him out to the front porch. Mutt raised his head and then went back to sleep.
“I’m sorry I hit you,” Paxton said. “There’s a lot going on in my life and none of it is good and I wanted to blame someone.” Paxton stared at his hat. “You were right when you told me I should be up front with Lisa. I was so besotted, I couldn’t see the real woman behind all that beauty.”
Quincy reminded himself to breathe. “Is it over?”
“Yeah. I haven’t told anyone this, but she wanted me to sell my share of the ranch so I could fund her acting career.”
“You don’t have a share until Mom passes away or she gives it to you before then.”
“That’s what I told her, and that’s when I really saw the true Lisa. It wasn’t a pretty sight. I never want to see her again.”
“Is that why you want Jenny back?” The words burned Quincy’s throat, but he had to ask them.
“Jenny and I had a long talk and we’re cool now.”
“What do you mean?”
“She forgave me and I needed to hear that.” Paxton shoved a hand into a front pocket of his jeans and hunched forward in his heavy winter coat as if the weight of the world was too much for him. Quincy wanted to ease his pain, but for the first time he realized he couldn’t do that. Paxton’s pain was his own and Quincy had to let him work through it.
“You know Dad always said a Rebel man loves forever and I always thought Jenny was my forever girl, but she’s not. She was my first girlfriend, and I’m not sure if I’ll ever love deeply like Dad talked about. I don’t think I have that capability like Falcon and Egan.” He lifted his eyes to Quincy. “And you.”
Quincy inhaled a long breath. “Paxton, you messed up in Vegas and the Lisa engagement fell apart. So what? That’s life. We all go through struggles. No one gets a free pass from heartache. But you’re a Rebel. Pick yourself up and get back to rodeoing. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. You’re a damn good bull rider, so go out and prove that to me and to yourself and prove all those naysayers wrong.”
Suddenl
y, Paxton stuck out his hand and Quincy shook it. The wind whipped through the trees with an eerie sound as the brothers made peace. Paxton was the first to speak.
“I didn’t mean that about the brothers’ code. I was just upset.”
“I know.”
“Don’t worry about feeding or any work on the ranch during the holidays. I got it.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
Paxton placed his hat on his head. “I’m letting go and moving on. There’s a whole world out there and I’m going to find what’s right for me. I know now it’s not Jenny.”
His brother walked off into the darkness, and Quincy stood there for a long time, coming to grips with everything that had just happened. There was no need to ask what had happened between Paxton and Jenny. It was enough to know that he and Jenny had a future, if she could forgive him.
He went back into the house. Grandpa was stuffing pizza into his mouth and drinking beer. He looked up at Quincy.
“Paxton okay?”
“Yeah. I think he is.”
“He’s a good kid.”
The ring box sat on the table and Quincy stared at it for about a minute before he picked it up. Everything he wanted was within his reach. But was it what Jenny wanted?
Chapter Seventeen
Quincy drove over to his barn. As he got out, the cold wind jabbed at him like an ice pick. The temperature was dropping fast. He quickly opened the side door and slipped inside. On the left was his horse stalls and on the right was the barn. He flipped on a small light so as not to disturb the horses. They neighed at his presence.
Sitting on stacked bales of hay, Quincy took the ring box out of his sheepskin-coat pocket. Grandpa’s eyes had grown huge when he’d picked up the box on his way out. He hadn’t said anything, which was just as well because Quincy didn’t understand why he’d taken it. And here he sat staring at it. It was too soon for any talk of marriage. Feelings had to subside and rational heads had to prevail. Paxton would be okay. He just needed time to figure out the rest of his life.
Jenny needed time, too. He hadn’t seen her in so long and he felt as if a part of him was missing. He needed to talk to her and soon. It was Christmas after all.
A sound grabbed his attention. He placed the box on the hay and got to his feet. Was it sleeting? He walked to the back door and slid it open slightly to hear icy rain dancing across the tin roof. Damn! He’d better get back to the house while he could. He turned up his collar, switched off the light and went out the side door to his truck parked at the end of the barn.
As he rounded the truck, a flickering light out in the Walker pasture caught his eye. Was it his imagination? He waited just in case, but everything was dark. Reaching for the door handle, he saw it again, the same as the night Clyde had fallen. But the light was closer to Quincy’s barn. Huddled in his coat, with the sleet pelting his hat, he walked toward it. Then it disappeared.
But he could see someone trying to open the double sliding doors. He could tell who it was. Jenny. What was she doing out in this weather?
“Jenny.”
She swung around. “Oh, Quincy.” She sagged against the door. “Quincy.” The word came from deep within her. It was almost a cry. “You scared me. I...I...wanted to—” She stood there stammering as if it was a sunny spring day and didn’t seem to notice the freezing cold or the sleet peppering them. “Are you ever going to believe I love you and only you?”
The sleet whipped into his face, chilling him to the bone, but it didn’t stop the warmth from flooding his heart. “Yes. I’m going to love you no matter what, Jenny Rose.” The words came out in a throaty whisper, but she heard them. She ran toward him and he caught her in his arms, holding her tight against him. His lips found hers and they clung together, taking and giving everything they needed at that moment when they both knew their relationship was going to work.
“We have to get out of the weather,” he whispered into her neck, and carried her into the barn and deposited her on the hay. He left her long enough to get blankets and a towel out of his office. The smell of horse, hay and dusty blankets surrounded them and Quincy never found it more appealing. “You crazy lovable woman. What were you doing out there?” He gently wiped her hair with a towel.
“I was working with White Dove and I saw your barn light and decided I had to see you. I was almost here when the light went out and then it started to sleet.”
“Did you walk here?”
“Yes.”
“Jenny.” He wrapped a blanket around her and they settled into the loose hay.
“I have to call Lindsay or they’re going to be worried about me.”
Quincy reached for the phone in his pocket and called the Walker house. Luckily, he still had a signal. He told Lindsay that Jenny was fine and he’d bring her home as soon as the storm stopped.
They sat for a moment in silence. “Warm?” he asked.
“Yes. You’re like a heater.”
He tucked wet strands of hair behind her ear. “I’ve missed you, Jenny Rose.”
“I’ve missed you, too.” She snuggled closer. “I talked to Paxton. I want to tell you that before anything else is said.”
“I did, too.”
“He’s a mess and doesn’t know what he wants.”
“He’s going through a rough time, but I think he’ll be fine.”
She snuggled even closer and he could smell the scent he associated with her even though it was dampened by the sleet and rain. “I love you with a deep everlasting love that I’ve never felt before. Paxton is my friend and he will always be my friend.”
He swallowed the lump in his throat. “I wanted every part of you, but I soon realized there are a lot of people who depend on you, even the McCrays. Even Paxton. And you give selflessly of yourself. I know that now. I also know beyond any doubts I have your heart. Completely.”
She kissed his neck and opened his shirt, raining kisses along his heated skin. “I love you and you better not ever doubt that again.” She nipped his chest with her teeth. “Got it?”
“I love you with every breath I take.”
It might have been storming outside, but the sun was shining in his heart, and he gathered her as close as possible. All his dreams had come true, and now all he had to do was love her the way she deserved.
“We’re going to do the cha-cha lying down right here in this barn with all the horses watching.”
“They can’t see us.”
“That’s a shame.” She slipped his shirt and coat from his shoulders. “Because I plan to be loud and noisy and love you like there’s no tomorrow.”
And she did just that. All Quincy’s doubts disappeared and a long time later, he held her beneath the blankets in the hay while the storm ebbed away outside. They even forgot it was freezing. They’d generated enough heat to keep them warm.
“How did you know I was at the door?” she murmured against his skin.
“I saw the flashlight.”
She turned to look at him. “I didn’t have a flashlight.”
“I saw a light.”
She rested her head on his chest. “Oh, wow, this is spooky. This is like when my dad fell and you saw the light.”
“I thought the same thing.”
“I think, and I’ll never tell anyone else this, but my mom has been guiding me toward you. She’s...”
“Always looking out for you.”
“Yeah.” She rubbed her face against him. “No one would understand but you.”
They lay for a long time amazed and grateful that sometimes life had surreal moments that couldn’t be explained.
“What are we going to do about Paxton?” Her hand splayed across his chest, and he caught it so he could focus.
“We had a long talk and I believe he�
�s going to be fine. He’s just had a lot of bad stuff happen lately.”
“How can we be happy if he’s miserable?”
“By being honest and straightforward. He knows how I feel about you. We’ll just take things slow.” He saw the ring box he’d left on the hay and he stretched out his arm to reach it. “But maybe not too slow.”
The moment she saw the box, she squealed, “Quincy!”
“This...”
She took the box and opened it. But it was dark where they were laying and she couldn’t see. She jumped to her feet without a stitch of clothing on and ran to where the light was shining.
“Oh, Quincy.”
He rose up on his elbows to watch her. Her rounded breasts and curvy body sent his thoughts in another direction. Focus. “Come back here. You didn’t let me finish.”
She flew back to him and snuggled beneath the blankets. “Oh, heavens, it’s cold.”
“Because you’re naked.”
“Are you complaining?”
“No. Never.” He removed the box from her clenched hand. “Now. Let’s do this the proper way.”
She kissed him slowly. “I just want to do it.” Then she laughed, and he felt happier than he had in his whole life.
“These rings belonged to my grandmother. They’re old and you might want something new and up-to-date. That’s what I wanted to talk about.”
“Are you kidding me? Those rings are gorgeous, and if you don’t ask me in a split second, I’m going to smack you.”
He tried hard not to laugh. “I think I’m supposed to be on one knee or something.”
“Quincy!”
“Jenny Rose, will you marry me?”
“Yes. Yes. Yes!”
He slipped the engagement ring onto her finger and it fit perfectly. Another surreal moment. Jenny began to cry, and then she laughed, and then she wrapped her arms around his neck and just held him.