Always a Cowboy

by Linda Lael Miller

  “She’s fine. And I asked how you were. Which means I wanted to know.”

  “I guess. Well, thanks. Um, I’d better get to work. Drinks?” She flipped back the pad she was holding, pen poised, but her hand wasn’t steady and her smile was forced.

  Luce homed in on it. She just knew. He’d been in love before—he’d said so—and it was with the woman standing in front of her.

  She couldn’t blame him. The woman was one of those delicate blondes with a flawless complexion. She wasn’t heavy, but not thin, with nice curves. She could still pass for a high school cheerleader.

  Drake ordered a bottle of chardonnay, Mace’s label, of course.

  Luce knew she shouldn’t ask, but she couldn’t help it. “What’s the story?”

  He did his usual thing. “Long time ago.”

  “But you were serious.”

  “We were young.”

  “Quit with the three-word sentences and tell me. It seems to me that we’re committed to a permanent relationship now. And I have to say, I don’t understand why any woman would give you up.”

  His smile resurfaced. “I appreciate that, Ms. Hale.”

  She raised her eyebrows in question.

  “High school romance. It might’ve gone further, but she got involved with someone else. Never liked the guy, but it was her life and her decision. Not a big deal.”

  Luce sensed that it had been a big deal for him. A healed wound still left a scar. He wasn’t the kind of person to take betrayal lightly and she knew exactly what that felt like. A different waitress showed up then with their wine, which confirmed that the old romance—the broken romance—was significant for them both. Luce had the feeling that they weren’t going to see Danielle for the rest of the evening.

  After the tasting ritual, the new waitress poured them each a glass. Drake didn’t comment on the change in waitress. This would be life with him; if he didn’t want to talk about it, he wouldn’t bring it up. On the other hand, if she brought it up, he wouldn’t argue but would respond directly.

  “Shall we toast?” She admired the golden liquid in her glass. “This looks like that wine Mace served at dinner recently. I loved it.”

  “Could be. He’s an alchemist. All I saw was a label I recognized. I usually drink beer.”

  “Like I haven’t noticed.” She noticed everything about him. He looked fantastic dressed up, but she still thought he was sexy as hell in jeans and dusty boots, wearing his favorite hat.

  He raised his glass. “To us. To our future.”

  “Our bright future.”

  Their glasses touched and she knew she’d remember that light, delicate sound for the rest of her life.

  The menu was an eclectic mixture of Italian, classic Spanish and, of course, things like elk steak and buffalo chili. She chose linguini with a delicate crab sauce; Drake opted for paella and, of course, ate every bite. Their plates had just been cleared when Danielle came rushing up to the table. She’d disappeared from the dining room at least half an hour before.

  “I’m so sorry to interrupt, but I’m so glad you’re still here.” There were tears in her eyes and her mouth was trembling. “Can you help me? I’ve been waiting for my dad to pick me up because my car’s in the shop. My mother just called. They think he had a heart attack and they’re doing tests, but I need to go to the hospital right now. Can you give me a lift? I can’t call Reed, and even if I could count on him, it would take him a while to get here. I know we’ve had our differences, but...please? My dad’s in intensive care. My mother was hysterical. I could barely understand her on the phone.”

  Drake didn’t hesitate. “Take a deep breath.” He stood and pulled out his wallet to extract a credit card. “We haven’t gotten the bill yet. Luce, can you take care of it with this, please? I’ll run and get the truck.”

  “Thank you.” There were tears running down Danielle’s face and Drake handed over his napkin so she could wipe her face before leaving the table.

  Was it possible to fall even more in love?

  Luce wasn’t sure, but he was convincing her otherwise. As he swiftly walked out the door, she put her arm around the shoulders of a complete stranger. “He’ll get you there. Let me go take care of the bill.”

  “Catherine probably has it ready,” she said through a small sob.

  She did, and the young waitress processed it quickly, obviously aware something was wrong. “Is Danny okay?”

  “She’s pretty upset because of her dad. We’re running her over to the hospital.”

  “Tell her if she needs me to pick up some of her shifts, I will.”

  That news brought on a fresh spate of tears when Luce got to the doorway where Danielle was waiting. “After all those years with Reed, I swear I’m not used to people being nice to me. I knew Drake would help.”

  Luce had the feeling there was something else she was saying. Even after I treated him badly... But this wasn’t the time to worry about that. She stood in the doorway, and when the truck pulled up, she helped Danielle inside, settling her in the backseat of the extended cab.

  As it turned out, the regional hospital was about twenty minutes away. Drake drove with his usual calm, but maybe a bit faster, while Danielle talked to her kids on her cell. Evidently, they were home alone, and worrying about their grandfather.

  Luce felt double-sorry for those children. Their parents were in the middle of what sounded like a messy divorce, and now this.

  It was a memorable way to spend the evening of her engagement, no doubt about that.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  HE COULD’VE IMAGINED a better end to the evening, but maybe some things were simply meant to be.

  Drake was happy that Luce seemed okay with doing this for someone she’d just met, and he was still flying high from her saying yes to his proposal.

  A lifetime ago, he and Danielle had lost their virginity to each other, spent warm summer nights by the river talking about their future and been practically inseparable. Was he glad she regretted marrying Reed? No, definitely not. He’d like to think he wasn’t that mean-spirited. Besides, then he wouldn’t have been free to find the right woman, all these years later.

  He parked as close as possible to the main entrance. “We’ll go in with you.”

  Danielle had been sobbing quietly for most of the drive. With the combined stress of the pending divorce, having to move out of her own home, starting a new job and now this, Drake wondered if she could even locate the intensive care unit on her own. She looked almost dazed. He was uneasy about just dropping her off.

  Luce met his eyes and nodded. From the ridiculously small stylish purse that matched her outfit, she’d extracted a packet of tissues for Danielle. She’d also turned to cast worried glances at their passenger more than once.

  Luce murmured, “We’ll come with you, make sure you and your mother don’t need anything. What about the kids? Will they have had dinner? We can stop and pick up a pizza or something for them.”

  “Nathan is fourteen. He can heat up some leftovers, but it’s kind of you to offer.”

  He wouldn’t have thought of that, but he certainly wasn’t opposed to doing it. “They could probably use a pizza. I know I would’ve preferred it at their age. We can also give them an update on their granddad once you’ve seen your mom.”

  “That would be wonderful.” She looked miserable but sounded grateful.

  He went to the desk to be directed to the intensive care unit. Coming here brought back memories of his father’s death that he didn’t want to revisit, but it wasn’t as if he hadn’t been back a couple of times since then. Once for a broken wrist when he’d been handling an unruly cow. On a later occasion it was because he’d had to admit his stomach pain was getting worse; they ended up removing his appendix.

  All in all
, though, he’d just as soon skip hospitals.

  The friendly woman at the reception desk pointed him in the right direction and they hurried over to find Danielle’s mother, Louise, in the waiting area, white-faced and exhausted. The community was small, so Drake saw her now and then at different events, and she looked as if she’d aged about ten years since they’d last run into each other. That was at the fall farmers’ market, where he’d obligingly stopped to buy some pumpkins for the front porch. Picking out pumpkins wasn’t really one of his skills, but his mother had asked him to do it. Louise had been there, and she’d helped him. She’d been his first-grade teacher, and at one time, he’d envisioned a future with her daughter. So they did have some history.

  After she and Danielle had hugged, he asked gently, “How’s Walter doing?”

  “He’s going through bypass surgery. He’s in serious condition, but stable.” Louise wiped her eyes. “He’s always been so healthy. He’s never even had a cold that I can recall.”

  “I know,” Drake said. Danielle’s father was a cattleman through and through. “He’s tough. Remember that.” He paused. “This is Luce Hale. We can stop by the house and check on the grandkids, if you want. We’re glad to help in any way we can.”

  Louise smiled weakly and acknowledged Luce with a nod, then said, “I’d appreciate your looking in on the children. Please remind them to feed my cat. He’s getting old. He needs medication for his joints and it has to be sprinkled on his food. So if you could—”

  “Done.”

  He wanted to help, as he’d said, but he also wanted to get the heck out of this shell-shocked environment. Luce didn’t say anything at all until they got back to the truck. When she’d clicked her seat belt in place, she finally spoke. “I hope you understand that I’m both confused and impressed by your sense of self. Or maybe more to the point, your sense of selflessness. Your kindness and generosity.”

  There was no real response to that in his estimation. He chose “Ah.”

  She reached over, gave his arm a squeeze. Her tone was light, but her expression was serious. “Listen to me, Carson. You can handle anything without blinking an eye. This has been one crazy evening and you just seem to take it in stride.”

  “What else are you supposed to do? Could you order that pizza? Let’s say half sausage and half pepperoni. Leave the vegetables off, since some kids like ’em and others don’t... Have I mentioned I hate lima beans? Don’t ever serve them to me, please.”

  “Have I mentioned that I don’t cook? You aren’t in any danger of lima beans and I’ve never heard of them on pizza.”

  She hadn’t mentioned that she didn’t cook, but then, this could only be described as a whirlwind romance. They hadn’t had time to talk about details—important ones—like that.

  “I think lima bean pizza might be a big hit in certain circles,” he said, realizing his life had dramatically changed this evening, “but I’m not destined to be a fan, and I can pretty much guarantee those kids won’t be, either. So let’s stick to the pepperoni and sausage variety. The number’s in my phone.”

  “With Harry there, you still buy pizza?”

  Legitimate question. “I sure do. Lunch for the hands once in a while. She deserves some time off.”

  “And when she fixes you lima beans?” Luce was laughing as she took his phone.

  “I eat them,” he admitted, “but not happily. She makes this thing called lima bean stew that both of my brothers love, so she serves it fairly often. Tomatoes, onions, whatever else is in there I like, but not the lima beans.”

  “The things we do not know about each other.” She pressed a button and a moment later ordered a thick-crust pizza from the only decent place nearby.

  When they’d picked it up, he drove to Louise and Walter’s house. To his dismay, he saw a car parked outside—a car he recognized. He somehow doubted Reed was welcome at the house where Danielle had grown up, but at least he was paying attention to his children.

  He told Luce, “I wish we hadn’t offered to deliver the pizza because that’s Reed’s car. Danielle’s soon-to-be ex. He and I don’t like each other. Not exactly a state secret. I should warn you. Reed probably won’t be very cordial.”

  “I’m getting the impression he’s not what you’d call a prince.”

  “You have no idea.”

  “I have some idea. Danielle’s very...what’s the word? Downtrodden might work.”

  He hated that, too. The Danielle he remembered was bright and beautiful, with high hopes and a buoyant disposition. The woman he’d seen tonight bore almost no resemblance to that memory, and he disliked seeing the unhappiness in her eyes.

  Reed, of course, met them at the door.

  * * *

  LUCE WAS A good judge of people, or in any case, she thought she was, and the man staring them down didn’t impress her. He was nice-looking with dark brown hair and regular features, wearing what she was starting to think of as the typical Mustang Creek uniform of jeans, boots and a button-up shirt. But he wasn’t friendly, as Drake predicted. He leaned against the doorjamb with one shoulder and crossed his arms in a classic gesture of defiance. “Oh, look, it’s Romeo. My wife called our son and said you were coming. May I ask why?”

  Luce instantly understood why Drake resented hearing the Romeo nickname from certain people.

  To his credit, Drake ignored the open animosity. “Just dropping this off. Ran into Danielle at the restaurant when she got the news about her dad. She wasn’t sure what the kids would eat. I figured one less worry would be good.”

  “Knight in shining armor, huh? I always wondered if she’d leave me for you. When Danielle said she wanted a divorce, you were the first reason that came to mind. We split up and a few weeks later she runs straight to you. How long have you two been seeing each other?”

  Luce was conscious of two things. One, that the man had been drinking, and two, that fists could easily come into this conversation. They were about the same height and weight. Reed Keller might be impaired, but he was also very angry. A risky combination.

  “We haven’t,” Drake said flatly. “At all.”

  “I don’t believe you. She’s been seeing someone.”

  “I don’t care if you believe me or not. Your marriage failed, but I had nothing to do with it.” Calm as ever, Drake held out the cardboard box. “Before you get belligerent, have I mentioned this is my fiancée? Give your kids the pizza. Tell them their grandfather’s in stable condition.”

  Danielle’s husband seemed to notice Luce for the first time. He said sardonically, “You going to get married to him, Ms. Whoever-you-are? Save yourself and don’t. That’s my advice. I don’t care who it is, Carson or not. Just...don’t.”

  Drake didn’t exactly drag Luce down the sidewalk, but almost. She was surprised he didn’t pick her up and carry her; maybe he wanted to keep his hands free for a fight.

  When they were back in the truck, he started the engine and muttered, “That actually went better than I expected.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me! I was ready to call 911. That guy is a real jerk,” Luce said. “How did she live with him for so long?”

  They pulled away from the curb. Drake took a moment to answer, the streetlights outlining his profile. “He isn’t always a jerk. I don’t like him, but that’s a problem between him and me. In case you couldn’t tell, he doesn’t like me, either. He got her pregnant, but he did marry her. Yes, he wanted her to stay home, not go back to school and not work. I guess he was pretty controlling. But...she made her own choice, too. She’s smart, so she knew—to some extent, anyway—what she was buying into when she married Reed. As far as I know, her family didn’t pressure her to do it, even though she was pregnant. And I don’t think he’s ever lifted a hand to her or his kids, because around here I would’ve heard about it. I’m not a fan, but w
hat you saw tonight was a guy whose wife is determined to divorce him and he’s apparently hurting because of it.”

  Luce still felt rattled by the acrimonious exchange. After a moment, she asked, “You always so fair-minded?”

  “I was just assessing the situation. Being rational. Looking at both sides.”

  He meant it, she knew he did. “She made a poor decision. Choosing between you and him? I should’ve said a very poor decision.”

  “I hope so. Since you agreed to marry me.”

  She had. It still felt surreal.

  He went on. “Yet I think you were just advised that might be a poor decision. Let’s not talk about how I dragged you off to take an ex-girlfriend to the hospital. The night is young. Who knows what might happen next?”

  It’d been an eventful evening. He’d had only one glass of wine, while she’d had two, and she was feeling uninhibited. “My bedroom or yours?”

  “I like that plan. The evening’s looking up again. Either one. You pick.”

  “Whichever isn’t going to draw attention to the fact that we’re spending the night together.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We’ve discussed this before. We’re both consenting adults.” His sidelong glance was brief but held a world of meaning.

  “Your mother talks to my mother and I want them both to approve of me.” She confessed what was hardly a secret. “I know, I’m a grown woman and all, but I’m not promiscuous and I’d rather not be viewed that way.”

  Drake broke out laughing. “No one, sweetheart, would ever view you that way. Luce, you’re the quintessential nice girl. Why else would I fall so hard?”

  It was probably his way of explaining that she’d betrayed the fact that she wasn’t very experienced in bed. She couldn’t decide if she was chagrined by his comment or not. “I suppose that’s a compliment.”

  “I’m in love with you. I asked you to marry me. What do you think? I like everything about you.”