by Sara Orwig
Shannon shrugged. “I do tune out your brother and the remarks are more than just snippy. He isn’t going to like the child center. Doesn’t matter. The construction company has already started renovation.”
“That’s great.”
“Lila, you’re perfect for the job because you’re a production set designer. C’mon. Help us while you have some time.”
Thinking over the request, Lila looked into Shannon’s bright blue eyes beneath short, sassy blond hair. Lila had come home to rest, to talk confidentially with her mother, not to take on another job. If she accepted, though, it might keep her mind off her problems and it would be an interesting project. She would be with Shannon, a hard worker who was always fun. “You know, I’d enjoy collaborating with you and the idea is exciting. Besides, sometimes I like to shake up my dad. I’ll do it, but if it gets to be too much, Shannon, I’m out.”
“Fantastic and fair enough. I don’t want you to participate if it’s too much, but it won’t be. I’d like your input.”
“That sounds easy.”
“It should be fun to do. Any chance you can meet me at the club Monday morning?”
“Sure. My schedule is open. As long as it’s not early Monday morning.”
“No, we won’t meet early, because I have my ranch chores,” Shannon said as they walked down a wide hall into the big dining room that had a table holding silver trays and crystal dishes of hors d’oeuvres.
“Hi, Amanda, Nathan,” Lila said while Shannon echoed her greeting to the couple, who stood holding hands and had been gazing at each other until they were interrupted. Amanda and Nathan Battle, Royal’s sheriff, turned to look at them. Lila felt an invisible punch in her middle when she saw them holding hands, clearly in love.
“The newlyweds,” Lila said, smiling at them. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” they said in unison, then looked at each other and laughed.
“We were just taking a moment away from the crowd to talk. The party is fantastic, Lila. Your folks know how to throw a party,” Amanda said. Amanda’s glow and obvious joy continued to give Lila a pang. What would it be like to be deeply in love, to have it returned? From the way Amanda looked, it seemed it would be bliss.
“We’ll head out to get some barbecue,” Nathan said.
“Don’t go on our account,” Lila told him. “We’re here for some artichoke dip and then we’re going outside to eat.”
“Eat all you want,” Nathan said, smiling and wrapping his arm around Amanda’s waist as they left.
“They’re so much in love I doubt if either one of them knows what was just said or even who was in here. Now, I think we were talking about getting together at the TCC Monday,” Lila said.
“We were. Actually, the later the better for me. How about lunch? While we eat, I can bring you up to speed on what we plan. After lunch we can go look at the location. It’s the old billiard room.”
“That will be good. Lunch will be the best time for me,” Lila said, crossing to the sideboard to pick up a plate and napkin.
“At three on Monday, there is a TCC meeting and I plan to attend, but you and I will be finished by then,” Shannon said.
“I’ll bet my dad is suffering over the thought of turning the billiard room into a child-care center.” Lila laughed and Shannon joined her.
“It’s time to shake them up a little,” Shannon said. “Besides, they’ll get a new billiard room. That renovation will be next.”
“Shannon, do the Gordons have the construction contract?” Lila asked, realizing for the first time that she might see a lot of Sam.
“As a matter of fact, no, they don’t.”
“Why not? I’d think they would have been awarded the contract without any conversation about it,” Lila said.
“I wondered about that, too. I was told they bowed out because of a ‘conflict of interest,’ but frankly, in my opinion, they wanted to avoid it because they hate to see the center become a reality.”
“Could be. The Gordon brothers are as old-fashioned as my dad.”
“Maybe they’re that way because they lost their mother when they were so young. Perhaps their dad just settled into a chauvinistic manner toward women.”
“Probably. Even with a mom, my dad’s influence, unfortunately, is stronger on Hack than my mom’s.”
Lila and Shannon browsed, each selecting small bites of the pale, steaming artichoke dip and dainty bits of pineapple, strawberries and kiwi. As soon as both had tall glasses of ice water, Lila waved toward the wide hallway. “Let’s go sit on the porch, where we can talk. Everyone’s in the back or in the house.”
They walked outside on the porch and sat in tall cushioned rocking chairs. The music was diminished, the sounds of the crowd muffled, while shadows grew longer and the sun slanted lower. “You look great, Shannon. Married life becomes you.”
“You have to meet Rory. Right now he’s back in Austin. My foreman is ill and I’m needed here, so I’m at the ranch.”
“You’re newlyweds, very happily married. What else? Bring me up to date on your life,” Lila said.
Shannon shrugged. “While I’m here, it’s just the same old, same old. I run the family ranch,” she replied, raking her blond hair from her face with her fingers.
“I don’t know how you do it,” Lila said, shaking her head. “I’ve never figured out how you manage the Bar None all on your own.”
“Just one of the boys,” Shannon replied dryly, and Lila laughed. “I’m not alone anymore, not since getting married. It’s just that Rory is busy in Austin.”
“Too bad you have to be apart.”
Shannon shrugged. “When my foreman is back on his feet, I can go to Austin. Right now, this is a rare moment, this party, and I’m enjoying it. I’ve told you about me. Let’s talk about you, unless you don’t want to. We’re good friends or I wouldn’t ask—what’s wrong?”
“Wrong?” Lila said while her heart missed a beat.
Shannon shrugged. “If you don’t want to talk about it, I understand. I thought you might need a friend right now.”
Shocked that Shannon could so easily tell that something was wrong in her life, Lila ran her fingers in a circle over her knee and debated confiding in her friend. So far her mother was the only Texan she had talked to.
“All right. It’s confidential for now. Since I’ll be here anyway in a couple of weeks, I came home early to rest and talk to Mom. Not my dad. Never Hack. I’m pregnant, Shannon.”
“Great grief.” Shannon’s eyes widened. “Someone in the movie business? An actor? A star? A producer who’s married?”
“Hey, wait,” Lila said, laughing and feeling a lift to the worries that weighed on her only moments earlier. “Stop jumping to conclusions. A married producer? I wouldn’t go out with one of those. I shouldn’t have gone out with the man I did,” she said, becoming somber again. “Shannon, he’s local. He’s here at the party.”
“You don’t have to say who it is. Are you going to tell him?”
“Not until I make some decisions. When he finds out, he’s so old-fashioned he’ll want to marry me.”
“Oh, great grief. If it had to be a local, why didn’t you pick someone who’s open and liberal and not still thinking a woman’s place is in the kitchen and bedroom?”
“Hindsight is always better.”
“I’m sorry. I’m not helping. I can understand why you don’t want to marry him, but if he’s old-fashioned, he’s going to want to marry you. Oh, boy, is he going to want to marry.”
“I’m not marrying one of the locals to move back here and give up my career and my independence.”
Shannon tilted her head to study her friend. “When are you breaking the news?”
“I wish it could be after I’m back in California and there�
�s half the U.S. between us, but I’ll probably tell him before I go back. Okay—absolutely between the two of us. It’s—”
“Don’t tell me,” Shannon said, covering her ears. “I don’t want to know.”
Lila laughed. “You do make me feel better. I can tell you and you’ll probably guess anyway.”
“No. I don’t need to know. I don’t even want to know, because it will be easier later if someone gets to quizzing me. You know, you can keep that quiet only so long,” she said, glancing over Lila. “I guess that’s why you’re wearing a dress that covers your middle.”
“That’s right. I’m three months along.”
“Oh, my. How long will you stay in Texas on this movie-production business?”
“Probably till the end of the month. Sometimes it’s shorter, sometimes longer, but once I start really working, I don’t think I’ll see the significant person often.”
“Does your mom understand? Your dad isn’t going to.”
“She’s supportive. I don’t even understand what got into me.”
“I think it’s called hormones,” Shannon remarked dryly. “And he’s probably adorable because we have some good-looking, fun, great guys here.”
“Oh, yes,” Lila replied, thinking that was a fitting description of Sam. “As for Mom, we’re close. Mom has two sides to her. The one my dad sees and others think she is, and then there’s a side that’s not that way at all. Mom manages to get her way with my dad. He just doesn’t realize it. She’ll help me.”
“Good. Sorry, Lila. You’ve complicated your life.”
“That’s an understatement. Thank heavens I can leave Royal and go back to California.”
Two men emerged from the front door and turned toward them. Lila recognized both of them as ranchers from a neighboring county.
“Hey, ladies,” Jeff Wainwright said. “I thought I saw you two out here. You’re missing the fun and a really good hoedown in the barn. Right now they’re having line dancing. Want to give it a whirl?”
Impulsively, Lila accepted, thinking it would be good to move around, expend some energy and forget her pregnancy for five or ten minutes.
If only she could forget. The first sight of Sam had taken her breath. She had thought she wouldn’t have any physical response to him, but she had been wrong. Worse, she had been unable to control her response. With a sparkle in his clear blue eyes, he’d stood facing her. His navy plaid Western shirt had the sleeves rolled high, revealing firm biceps. The shirt tucked into his narrow waist and the faded tight jeans showed his muscled lean frame. He looked sexy and filled with vitality—a good-looking, appealing man. She couldn’t deny that part.
Also, it had felt good to tell Shannon about the pregnancy, to have a friend who knew what she was going through. And a level-headed friend, too.
In minutes Shannon was dancing with Buck McDougal while Lila danced with Jeff. Sam was on the dance floor with Piper Kindred, one of Royal’s paramedics. As she turned, Lila noticed the ex-rodeo rider, Ryan Grant, on the sidelines watching Piper intently. Lila looked away, thinking about how she tried to avoid watching Sam or even looking at him, but it was impossible. He was light on his feet, sexy. It didn’t matter how much appeal he had—his personality, his opinions, his most basic beliefs all were opposite from her own. He was old-fashioned and would never understand her career or her attitude.
She thought about that night with him. Her dad had seen Sam in Royal and talked him into dinner with them in town. When Sam had said he would take her home, her dad had gone ahead to the Double H, her family’s ranch. She and Sam had flirted through dinner and afterward, until Sam invited her to his place for a nightcap and she accepted.
The flirting grew more intense until she was in his arms. A night of wild passion, laughter, loving, a night she had known she would always remember. Now there was no doubt. A few weeks later, she had learned she was pregnant.
Lila’s thoughts came back to the present while she danced in the barn. They had gone from line dancing to a square dance and she noticed Shannon had dropped out and was gone.
They square danced, changing partners as the steps were called out to the fiddlers’ music. When they called “Promenade left, promenade right,” and she moved to the next dancer, she faced Sam and the look in his eyes made her heart pound. He wasn’t saying a word, yet sparks flew and she felt at any second he might grab her and kiss her wildly.
She danced away from him and the moment was gone, but her heart still raced and she wondered if they would talk again or if he would ask her to dance. She gave a shake of her head as if to clear her thoughts. She needed to stay away from Sam. She didn’t want him to guess that she was pregnant. She had to be mentally prepared for when he learned the truth.
Finally, she told Jeff she’d had enough dancing. As they left the barn, she glanced back and met Sam’s smoldering gaze. Even with the length of the barn between them, the minute she looked into his eyes, a current spiraled, tickling her insides. Why did she have such a physical response to him? She did not want to know Sam better or go out with him again. Yet now she had not only bound her life with his indefinitely, she would have to struggle with his old-fashioned, narrow view of the world.
The tempting smells of the barbecue were beginning to have the opposite effect on her. To get away from the cooking, she crossed the yard until she saw a friend.
“Sophie,” she called, catching up with her high school friend.
Sophie Beldon turned to wait, her light brown eyes friendly as she smiled. “This is a great party, Lila. Your family really knows how to do this. I think everyone in these parts looks forward to August because of your family barbecue. It’s legendary.”
“Thanks. They’ve been doing it long enough. It’s good to see you. Where are you headed?”
“Some quiet corner—if there is such. I’m getting looks and people ask all sorts of questions. Some act like I have the answers and just won’t say anything about Alex’s disappearance.”
“Sorry. That must be tough. You’re his executive secretary, so everyone probably thinks you know something about him. I’m sure everyone has been shocked to hear Alex has disappeared. Still no word?”
“Nothing. What’s bad—they don’t know whether something’s happened to him or his disappearance is something he has deliberately done. He had a quiet side where he kept things to himself. I’ve always thought of my boss as a man of mystery. Or it could be just circumstances where communication has failed and Alex thinks we all know where he is.”
“That seems impossible. You’d hear from him, I’d think.”
The blonde shrugged. “Who knows. You can’t rule out any possibility, but his disappearance has some people on edge.”
“Reasonably so, I’d say. You dealt with him daily. You should know the most about him,” Lila said, stopping in the shade of a tall oak to the east side of the house and away from the crowd.
Long lashes framed Sophie’s eyes while her brow furrowed. “I get looks from Nathan Battle, but Nathan’s fair, so I’m not worried about his opinion where I’m concerned. I really don’t have any idea about Alex and what’s happened to him.” She studied Shannon in silence a moment as if debating something. “I know I can trust you—I’m working now for Zach Lassiter. He’s Alex’s business partner.”
“I’ve heard Dad talk about him. From what I hear, no one seems to know much about his past.”
“Talk about a man of mystery—Zach is more mysterious than Alex was. I don’t think anyone knows much about Zach. I thought if I could get close to him, I might find out something about Alex’s disappearance.”
A chill ran down Lila’s spine. “Sophie, be careful. You have no idea what’s involved in Alex’s disappearance. It could be foul play. You really don’t know anything about Zach Lassiter and it sounds as if no one else in Royal does. What
you’re doing might be dangerous.”
“I’ll be careful, and I don’t see how Zach can suspect my true motives. It’s a business. I can’t keep from wondering what he knows about Alex, because they worked closely together.”
Lila shook her head. “I don’t think you should take such a risk. Be really careful about what you do. You’re not a trained detective and you don’t know anything about investigations. Does anyone else know what you’re doing? Does Nathan Battle?”
“Heavens, no. You do now, so there’s one person who knows. I promise, I’ll be careful. I see friends headed our way.”
Lila turned to see three more friends she had been close to in high school and her private conversation with Sophie ended, but as she listened to the light chatter of her friends, she still had a nagging concern about Sophie. She wished she had urged Sophie to say something to Nathan, although Nathan and Amanda had recently married, so he might not have his mind on Alex’s disappearance. Still, Lila felt certain Nathan would advise Sophie to stay out of it and her friend might actually listen to him.
* * *
Later, lines formed at the long tables covered with food while servers at each end carved chunks of meat and ribs. Lila went inside to eat more fruit, passing up the steaming barbecue, knowing her dad saw to it that they cooked so much there would always be some leftovers if she wanted any later.
After dinner, fiddlers swung into music for more dancing and Lila enjoyed herself, dancing with many of the Texas Cattleman’s Club members who always attended the Hacket barbecue. She danced with Ryan Grant, one of the newest members. His tangled brown hair fell over his forehead as he concentrated on dancing. He was light on his feet, which didn’t surprise her, because she had danced with him before.
The next dance was with rancher and widower Gil Addison. She knew his four-year-old son, Cade, was with the other kids. Her parents always hired local nannies to watch the small kids during the barbecue. She enjoyed Gil in his quiet way and was sorry he was raising his son alone.