by Robin Deeter
Wheels asked, “Yeah. How long was I out?”
“Two days. You had quite the concussion.”
“No wonder my head hurts, but I’m not complaining. It could always be worse,” Wheels said.
“True. What all can you feel? Any loss of sensation anywhere?” Vin began examining his nephew.
Although he winced, Wheels didn’t complain. “No. I hurt all over, thank God. After going airborne and being thrown back down, I’m damn lucky. You won’t hear me whine about it. When can I go home?”
“Not for a few days. I want to make sure there are no complications and you need to rest that shoulder. How did it get dislocated?”
Wheels told them the whole story, laughing when Vin said, “We wondered why you didn’t have any pants or shoes on.”
Wheels replied, “It was either get out of my britches or go for a long flight. I chose going pant-less.”
Hearing about his ordeal, Nora realized how close she’d come to losing her husband and, even though she fought it, she couldn’t stop the tears of relief that coursed down her face. Her shoulders shook and she held Wheels’ hand to her forehead.
“Aw, sugar. Don’t cry. Come here,” Wheels said.
He tugged a little on her hand and she carefully sat on the bed by him. Wheels pulled her down to his chest, giving her a one-armed embrace.
“Shh. It’s okay. I’m gonna be fine. You’ll see. I’ll be good as new in no time, but until then, you’re gonna have to push me. You gotta keep up your strength because between you and Mama’s cooking, I think I gained some weight.”
Vin chuckled and Nora laughed through her tears. Satisfied with his patient’s condition for the moment, Vin gave the couple some privacy, closing the door behind him when he left.
Nora stayed where she was, drawing comfort from her husband’s embrace and giving it in return.
Wheels was growing tired, but he wanted to set things right between them before he slept.
“Nora, I’m so sorry about the way I acted about everything. I know that you only did it out of love for me and I shouldn’t have gotten so upset. You were so brave about going to Wendy and I’m glad now that you did.”
Nora raised her head, meeting his gaze. “I love you so much and I’d do anything for you. I know how much you sometimes worry about it, and I want things to be good between us. I love making love with you, even if things don’t happen.”
He caressed her cheek. “I know and I’m an idiot for being so prideful about you talking to Wendy. It was so stupid of me and I’m sorry for getting mad last night. I promise that I’m not gonna be embarrassed anymore and let this be such an issue.
“I want things to be good between us, too, and they’ve been incredible. You’ve been incredible. I know how lucky I am and I’ll spend the rest of my life making you happy, I swear. Can you forgive me?”
Nora smiled and kissed him carefully. Wheels cupped the back of her head, drawing her closer so that he could press his lips more firmly against hers.
When they parted, she smiled again. “I’ve already forgiven you, but I swear if you get mad again about this, I will never make you another raisin-filled cookie again.”
Grinning, he said, “That’s almost the worst punishment there could be. I swear that I’ll behave.”
“And what would the worst punishment be?”
His expression turned completely serious and his gaze softened. “Losing you. That would be the worst punishment in the world.”
The tears in his eyes made Nora’s heart ache. She gently half-embraced him. “It’s all right. You’ll never lose me, Wheels. I love you and you’ll never get rid of me.”
“I love you, too, and I’ll never let you go,” he vowed.
“I guess that means we’re stuck with each other,” Nora said.
“Thank God.”
Pulling back, Nora saw his eyelids growing heavy. “It’s time for you to rest now. I’ll be right here.”
He gave her a sleepy smile and let himself sink down into slumber.
*****
Carly rode in her carriage as the driver took her to the new park to survey the damage that had been done by the storms the night before. She’d been relieved when Ray had come to see her last night after he’d gone to the hospital. He’d told her about Wheels’ ordeal and although she didn’t know Wheels well, she’d been glad to hear that he’d been found and would most likely recover.
She planned to go see him later that day simply because he was Ray’s friend. It was important for her to be involved in Ray’s life completely, and that included getting to know his friends better.
As they passed through town, she spotted Ray and smiled at the sight of him. She was about to call his name and wave when she saw that he was with a woman. Ray cupped the woman’s face and kissed her cheek before embracing her. Shock stole Carly’s breath and she shut her mouth.
Her cheeks burned as she quickly sat back against her seat. She glanced at Hector, who rode with her and his expression said that he’d seen it, too. However, he didn’t comment and Carly was grateful. She didn’t want to discuss it. All the rest of the way to the park, she seethed with anger and jealousy, yet tried to tell herself that what she’d seen had been innocent.
It was a losing battle. It had rattled her and she couldn’t concentrate properly on what the landscaper and contractors told her when they reached the park. Finally, she told them that she had confidence in their abilities to put things right again and let it at that.
Arriving back at her office, she shut herself inside, instructing Janice to hold any calls and to not let anyone in. Work was her refuge in times like these, and she buried herself in it, forcing her mind to concentrate on the town budget and to complete paperwork that needed filed.
With her strong will, she blocked out all thoughts of Ray. She would deal with that later, but for now, she found solace in the many tasks ahead of her.
*****
It worked until the man himself showed up late that afternoon. He knocked on her door and called out her name in a sing-song voice.
Carly would have normally been amused by his playfulness, but not then. She opened the door, letting him in.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
Ray smiled and moved to embrace her, but she eluded his grasp. “Don’t.”
“Are you playing hard to get? That’s okay. I don’t mind chasing you,” he said, lunging for her.
“Stop!”
Her cold, forceful tone got through to Ray and he realized that she wasn’t kidding around. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Carly straightened her spine and met his gaze unflinchingly. “I saw you today with that woman. You were kissing and hugging her right in broad daylight.”
“Ah, I see,” Ray said, smiling. “Jealous, are we?”
“This isn’t funny, Ray. I told you that I wouldn’t tolerate cheating and yet there you were with another woman, standing there for all the world to see!”
Ray’s smile disappeared. “Carly, I’ve been completely faithful to you, I swear. I would never cheat on you. Listen, Luanne was upset and I was trying to comfort her.”
“And just who is this Luanne to you?”
“She’s one of Sandy’s girls and my friend. She just found out that she’s pregnant and she’s really scared. When she gets farther along, she’ll have to quit for a while and she doesn’t know what she’s going to do.”
Carly had never thought about what a prostitute would do if she became pregnant. There were so many things she’d never thought about before. “Please don’t tell me that she’s going to have a … get rid of it.” She couldn’t say the detestable word.
Ray knew that this was a hard subject to deal with for her. “No, she’s going to have it, but take it from me, without family to help, it’s hard for a whore to raise a kid.”
Carly frowned at his use of the word “whore”, but he never shied away from it. To his way of thinking, using the actual wo
rd for the job instead of a polite term was only right.
“I understand how upsetting that might be for her, but I won’t have you going around displaying that kind of affection in public. If I get the wrong idea about it, imagine what other people will think.”
Ray saw her point. “You’re right. I’m sorry. She caught me off guard and I couldn’t stand seeing her cry. She’s been a good friend to me. All the girls have.”
Carly’s jaw clenched. “You cannot continue to be friends with them, Ray.”
His brows drew together. “Why not?”
“Ray, I’m the mayor and you’re my fiancé, soon to be my husband. Your association with them will reflect on me. I know that other town officials frequent the Chowhound and take advantage of their services, but it’s different for me. I always have to keep up appearances and my fiancé consorting with soiled doves does not look good at all.
“It will give people the idea that I can’t keep you satisfied. They won’t realize that you’re not sleeping with them. They’ll assume that you’re still a philanderer and I’ll be a laughing stock!” Carly said. “You really shouldn’t go to the Chowhound at all anymore.”
Ray’s temper flared. “There’s no way in hell that I’m gonna stop going to see Sandy and the girls. Sandy is having a real tough time and she needs all the support she can get right now. It’s been hard on the girls, too. I’m not just going to abandon them.”
Carly’s voice rose slightly. “Look at this from my side, Ray. I understand that you’re friends with them and that you love them, but you’re in love with me and going to marry me. Your first allegiance is to me. I’m the most important person in your life now, and propriety dictates that I can’t have any ties to those kinds of people.”
Ray’s nostrils flared as his anger burned hotter. “Those kind of people? I’m that kind of people, Carly.”
“No, you were, Ray. Past tense.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know!”
Ray did see Carly’s side, but he couldn’t leave his friends in the lurch, either. “Look, I’ll cut down on the amount of time I spend there. Maybe go just once a week and during the day when not many people are around. Just so I can visit.”
Carly wanted to be reasonable, wanted to compromise, but thoughts of how her peers would spread false rumors that Ray was cheating on her crowded her mind. That kind of gossip had ruined more than one career in politics and because she was a woman, she was held to even higher standards.
She shook her head. “That won’t work. You don’t know what it’s like for me, Ray.”
He put his hands on her shoulders. “Yes, I do. I see it all the time. Why do you think I’m always trying to get you to do fun things?”
The concern in his eyes almost broke her resolve. “Your support means so much to me. Outside of Catherine, I’ve never had anyone stand behind me the way you do.”
“I always will.”
His touch set off a yearning inside, just as it always did. It made it hard to think. Again, she moved away from him. “I appreciate it and this is another way you can support me.” She smiled at him. “After all, that’s one of the conditions of our deal. You have to be respectable, and going to the Chowhound isn’t very respectable.”
Her attempt to add some levity to the conversation fell flat.
Ray’s features tightened and his eyes darkened with anger. “So we’re back to that. I’m just the hustler you hired to marry you and get you knocked up, right?”
Carly’s mouth dropped open, her eyes wide. “How could you think that? It may have started out that way, but—”
Ray cut her off. “It hasn’t changed. After everything I’ve told you, after I let you into my heart, something I’ve never done with any other woman, you still think of me as your employee! You think you can just tell me what to do and I’ll kowtow to whatever you want. You’d better think again, Mayor Branson.”
“That’s not how I feel, Ray. It’s not, but you have to face the fact that as my husband, you’re going to be held to certain standards, too.”
“And those standards include turning my back on people I care about? I won’t do it. Other men might, but I won’t let you lead me around by the nose. If you really accept me for who I am, you’ll quit acting like a stuck up society witch and act like a real person,” he said.
Carly’s chin came up even though his words were like barbs in her heart. “I am not being stuck up. I’m being reasonable, something you apparently know nothing about. I accept you, and you know it!”
“I’m not so sure now,” Ray said. “Has it all been an act to get me to do what you want me to? To keep me content so that I towed the line?”
Her hands balled into fists. “I’ve never lied to you! I’ve never been anything but genuine. I’ve let you in as much as you’ve let me in. You said that you saw past my public persona, that you’ve gotten to know the real me. Maybe that was a lie to keep me satisfied until you got what you wanted from me!”
Sudden distrust sprung between them as their gazes locked. Ray went into defense mode, his walls going up around his heart, something he’d done his whole life. The problem was that the gates didn’t close quite all the way and pain slid in through the small crack.
His eyes remained trained with hers as he said, “The deal is off. I’ll pay you back the money—”
“Ray, no!”
She tried to put a hand on his arm, but this time he was the one who moved away from her touch.
“I’m a man, Carly. A real man and I’m not gonna let any woman tell me what I can and can’t do. I’m not gonna let anyone tell me what to do or where I can or can’t go. Maybe some of the men in your circle would allow that just to get at your money, but I won’t. And I don’t want your money,” Ray said, eyes glowing with fury. “We’re done. I’ll pay you back for Izzy’s fall tuition, but I don’t want anything else from you.”
Carly paled, her mind spinning from his declaration. Razor sharp agony rent her heart, making her chest ache. “You don’t mean that.”
Ray’s fierce pride made him ignore the hope in her voice and eyes. “Yeah, I do. I won’t live that way. It’s over.”
The finality in his voice numbed Carly’s mind and she couldn’t think for long moments. Then her years of training in remaining calm in the face of great pain rose to the fore.
In a voice completely devoid of emotion, she said, “Very well.”
The chink in the walls around his heart widened another fraction when Carly took off the engagement ring he’d given her. The one he’d chosen so carefully, picking it because it sparkled like her eyes.
She held it out to him. “This belongs to you.”
Her cool attitude made him vicious. He wanted her to hurt as much as he did. He extended his hand, palm up. Carly dropped the ring into his hand, making sure that they didn’t touch.
Ray closed his hand around it. Shooting her a cruel smile, he said, “Thanks. I’m sure I can still get a good price for this. It was fun, Carly. Sorry it didn’t work out. You’ll have to find some other sap to marry and get you in the family way. Good luck finding anyone as fun as me, though.”
His cutting words hit their mark and, try as she might, Carly couldn’t keep a tear from escaping her eye. She couldn’t speak, because if she did, she would break down and she wasn’t about to give him that satisfaction.
Ray had thought hurting her would feel good, but it didn’t. It made him feel petty and small. He almost gave in to the urge to take her in his arms and kiss away her tears, to beg her forgiveness and soothe away her hurt. Instead, he turned away from her and left her office without looking at her again.
Carly stared at the door he’d just closed behind him. It was symbolic of closing the most wonderful chapter of her life. She trembled as the reality of the situation hit her. In a matter of minutes, the happy future that had been in her grasp was gone, her hopes dashed like driftwood against a rocky shoreline.
Wrapping her arms around her middle, Carly tri
ed to quell the shaking in her body, but couldn’t. She sat down in one of the chairs since her legs had turned to mush. She stifled the sobs that wracked her slim frame with her hands.
No one could know what had happened, but especially her father. He would pounce and never let her hear the end of it. He would torment her relentlessly. Even as her heart sank, awash with grief and pain, Carly’s keen mind began formulating a plan.
Chapter Twenty
Ray hauled his horse to a skidding stop outside of his bunkhouse. He jumped down and ran inside. He pulled his saddlebags from underneath his bed and started shoving clothes in them. As he took socks from the top drawer of his dresser, his fingers brushed over the key to his safe deposit box.
Taking it out, he held it up, twirling it around. The box the key opened contained the money that Carly had paid him the last two months. He’d never touched it because he didn’t want to use it for his own gain.
Since Carly had already paid for Izzy’s fall tuition, Ray’s expenses were few since he lived out on Sundance Ranch. Therefore, he’d just banked the money, intending to surprise Carly by setting up a college fund for their baby when they conceived. Their baby.
The thought of being a father had scared the hell out of Ray at first, but he’d quickly gotten excited about the prospect. He’d been chomping at the bit for the wedding, the day when he’d no longer take any measures against pregnancy. So many times, he’d pictured Carly pregnant with his child, had imagined what it would be like to feel his child move within her.
I should’ve known that it was too good to be true. I should’ve known better than to hope that for once in my sorry life, something good would work out for me. I should’ve never touched her.
He shut his eyes tight against the burning tears, willing the gate in the wall around his heart to shut firmly. With supreme effort, he succeeded in shutting down the pain. As Ray finished packing, he told himself that this was for the best. A marriage with Carly would never work. They were too different, lived in two different worlds that could never mix together.