Morgan

by Chris Keniston

  “And the town looks so sweet. Were they locals?”

  He nodded. “Sort of. Believe it or not, the town temperance leader, Mabel Berkner, who fought harder than anyone to keep the town dry—the culprit was her nephew.”

  “Oh, that is straight out of a movie of the week.”

  “Rumor has it that the aunt was actually the ring leader.”

  “Good grief.” Her head tipped back with laughter. “If I’m ever low on material I know where to come.”

  His warm smile slipped. “Will you? Come back?”

  How she wished she knew. “If a pilot is ordered then we’ll be back to film.”

  “And if it doesn’t?”

  She blew out a short sigh. “I suppose if I had a reason.”

  “For business?”

  The overhead tune changed, their steps slowed, and the air between them had grown thick. Suddenly thinking seemed impossible, finding her voice even harder. “I don’t know.”

  His head bobbed once, then his chin dipped and his breath warmed her clear to her toes an instant before his lips found hers. The touch was tender, sweet, soft, and all too brief. He pulled back and his eyes seemed to be reading straight to her soul.

  A loudly clearing throat followed by a noisy clattering of dishes broke the connection. Abbie carefully kept her back to the couple and seemed to be taking great care to make as much noise as possible serving the meal.

  Still holding tightly to her hand, Morgan took a step in retreat. “Dinner’s getting cold.”

  Nothing felt right anymore. Not eating dinner, not leaving the dance floor, not letting go of his hand, and certainly not leaving town. How could her world suddenly feel so off kilter in such a short time?

  Chapter Thirteen

  Valerie did a quiet fist pump and spinning around, all but danced a jig in her office. “Yes. Glad you agree.”

  Marilyn waved a thumbs up at her. From the few words Valerie had said during the call, it was unlikely Marilyn knew why Val was so happy, but like any good friend she was ready to cheer her bestie on.

  “Oh, but…” Val stopped pacing and stared out the large plate glass window. “I understand, but my intention…” Pinching the bridge of her nose, Val huffed out a deep breath and slid into the nearby chair. “I see. Yes. Will get on it right away.”

  “For a minute there I thought lunch might be upgraded from burgers and fries to steak and champagne, but the sudden slip in your expression makes me wonder if we just downgraded to soup and salad.”

  Looking down, she tossed her phone onto the desk and turned to Marilyn. “The network loved the sizzle reel. They thought the construction cousins had all the right looks and the right rapport, but they loved the city slicker playing Texan.”

  “I thought you said the construction cousins were all Texas cowboys?”

  “Oklahoma, but from what I could see, it’s all more or less the same thing.”

  “Somehow I don’t think a Texan would agree with you on that, but who’s the city slicker?”

  “Apparently, I am.”

  “You?”

  Val nodded. “I may have dressed the part a bit.”

  “That explains a lot.”

  “Explains what?”

  “Why you wore jeans and boots out for drinks last week.”

  “They’re comfortable.”

  “Yes, that’s what you said then too. So you’re the city slicker.”

  Sometimes Marilyn was a little slow to catch on, but eventually she did. Like right about now. Her eyes grew perfectly round under brows arched high on her forehead. Yep. She’d put two and two together.

  “They want you to actually appear in your own shows?” Marilyn couldn’t have looked more surprised if someone had told her God wanted her to build another ark.

  “Maybe.”

  “Maybe?”

  “They liked the comic relief. A foible for the three perfect siblings.”

  “So they want you to be the quirky character that makes every new show a hit?”

  Val thought of herself in many lights. After all, no real person was only two dimensional, but quirky wasn’t one of the lights she considered her own.

  “Do I get to see what it was you did that was so appealing?”

  “The production company shot the network the sizzle reel and a cut scenes reel.”

  Marilyn chuckled. “In case they didn’t love the good stuff, save it with bloopers.”

  “Not necessarily, but, you know how it is. Sometimes they turn out to be as important to a series success as the show itself.”

  “So now what?”

  For weeks, she’d been asking herself the same question. Everything she did gave her reason to think. Shopping with Marilyn she found herself looking at designer boots and wondering if they could possibly be as comfortable as the ones Toni had given her. Dinner with her CPA at what used to be her favorite upscale restaurant didn’t seem so favorite anymore. Dolling up for the premiere of a film her friend had edited seemed more like work than fun. Relaxing on the beach alone Sunday afternoon felt more alone than relaxing. Instead the chaos of the large gathering of Farradays for a ritual after church meal seemed more restorative than chaotic. And she missed it—him.

  She was going back. This time she’d have a bigger budget and a full team to go with it. Production Manager, Line Producer. She’d been putting the pieces together, hoping her gut was right and the network would greenlight the pilot. After that, the series. Then she’d have a reason to stay longer. All she had to do was convince him to do the same.

  Five fingers waved in front of her face. “Earth to Valerie.”

  “Hm?”

  “I asked now what?”

  “Oh, sorry. I was coordinating in my head.”

  “For the show?”

  Among other things. “Yes. I’ll be leaving Monday.”

  “That fast?”

  A smile pulled at the corner of her mouth. “I’ve been ready for weeks.” Heck, a couple of times, she’d come within inches of booking a flight and heading back, only to remind herself that her world was here. Then again, suddenly she wasn’t so sure where her world was, and since she was all set to pull the trigger on this anyhow, what harm would it do to leave a little sooner?

  “I’ll mash the potatoes.” Finn pulled a hand-held masher from the drawer.

  “Don’t skimp on the butter.” Aunt Eileen slid a sheet of biscuits into the oven.

  “No, Ma’am,” Finn answered quickly.

  Standing by the silverware drawer, Joanna counted out the forks. “Are we expecting anyone else or is this it?”

  “Meg and Adam are coming straight from the airport.” Aunt Eileen retrieved a pitcher of tea from the fridge.

  “Airport?” Morgan wiped his feet at the back door. “Allison called away again?”

  “Not me.” Ethan’s wife came in from the dining room and placed the extra napkins back in the pantry. “I’m staying put for a while.”

  “Meg and Adam offered to pick Valerie up at the Midland airport.” Joanna carried a fist full of silverware to the dining room.

  At the sink, Catherine rinsed out a sippy cup. “That was nice of them.”

  “Seemed the neighborly thing to do seeing as her project has drawn so much attention.” Sean Farraday kissed his wife on the cheek. “Fiona has eaten all of Caitlin’s Cheerios. Do we have any more?”

  Aunt Eileen nodded. “In the pantry on the left. There’s a stack of small pre-filled containers. Take as many as you need.”

  “Got it.” Sean smiled, gave his wife’s rear a gentle pat, and crossed the kitchen.

  “You checking on your horse?” Eileen glanced over her shoulder at Morgan.

  He nodded. “Looks good. The stumble earlier today doesn’t seem to have caused any damage. Nothing’s swollen or heated, but I’ll check on her again later before I go home. Just to be sure.”

  “Good thinking. Better safe than sorry.” Aunt Eileen leaned into Finn, looking at the contents of the pot
.

  “How’s the project coming?” Finn spoke to Morgan as he handed a forkful of mashed potato to his aunt for her approval.

  “Good.” Morgan loved how the family interacted. There were the occasional squabbles and disagreements. The wilting glares from his aunt when she clearly disapproved of someone’s choices. But for the most part Sunday supper was all about connecting. Not everyone made it every week, but most did, some more than others. And of course, everyone pitched in their share. Maybe if any of his brothers were married their house would be the same, but he doubted it. He loved his mother, but she’d always been more of a do-it-herself kind of mom when it came to the kitchen. He pilfered a cherry tomato from the salad Becky was tossing together. “Moving along faster than I expected.”

  “Faster is usually a good thing.” Finn smiled at his aunt’s nod of approval and covered the pot. “Isn’t it?”

  “Yeah. If nothing else I’ll come in under budget when it comes to interest. Every penny saved helps.”

  “At least interest rates aren’t what they used to be.” Ryan came into the kitchen and pulled open the fridge door. “Are we out of tea?”

  “It’s already on the dining room table.” Aunt Eileen pointed to the other room.

  Empty glass in hand, Ryan nodded and spun about. From the living room a sudden burst of extra chatter sounded.

  “And there they are.” Aunt Eileen wiped her hands on a nearby dishrag and hurried out to meet her guest.

  As soon as the grapevine in Tuckers Bluff spread the news of the impending pilot to be filmed, Morgan had been anxiously awaiting Valerie’s arrival. Working with headphones on, he’d missed her call the other day and they had played telephone tag ever since. He had to hear the update from his brother Neil. With at least two of his brothers on board to do the pilot, he’d agreed to participate for completely different reasons. Not that he didn’t agree with Quinn’s reasoning. Most of the brothers were of the mind that if the show were to become a hit, it would be a boom for the family business in Oklahoma. Everybody and their uncle would want to use the construction cousins for their project. Heck, there’d even been a moment of joking around to change the name of the family business to Construction Cousins, but his interest rested more with a certain blonde city girl coming through the front door.

  In complete contrast to the fashionable woman he’d first laid eyes on in the back hall of Abbie’s café, his gaze landed on a casually dressed blonde. Her hair flipping about in a ponytail, her sleeves rolled up her forearm as though ready to take on a day’s work, and her boots had that newly store-bought shine to them—but nothing a day on West Texas dirt wouldn’t fix—and of course her favorite blingy sunshades rested on her head. But it was the Stetson still in her hand that really made him smile. He’d learned early on the hats were more for the sun than the fashion, but she must have been a sight getting on an airplane in sunny Southern California dressed like a true Texan. Nothing about the way she moved around greeting all the adults and cooing with the little ones, resembled a person out of their element trying to fit in. His city girl looked every bit the part of a country woman.

  Listen to him. His city girl. As if a couple of evenings dancing and solitary toe tingling kiss gave him the right to call her his anything. But there was no denying, that’s how he felt. The question remaining was what the heck was he going to do about it.

  The crowd gathered in the front hall thinned and her gaze lifted, meeting his. He’d give anything to know what was going on behind those big blue eyes. An already sweet smile widened and pierced him with a burst of Neanderthal pride. His chest filled and his shoulders straightened, knowing that huge grin that made her eyes twinkle was meant for him. Just him.

  “Okay.” Aunt Eileen clapped her hands. “Dinner’s getting cold.”

  It took a few minutes of shuffling around and a little careful maneuvering on his part to make sure he got to sit beside Valerie. Next, bowls of food were passed about and the din of chatter filled the room, occasionally spiking with a dispersed squeal from one young toddler or another. All in all, Morgan loved it.

  “Sounds like the plans are all in place.” Sean reached for a second helping of creamed corn.

  Valerie nodded. “I’ve been working on setting things up since I left.”

  “You were that sure?” Morgan asked.

  She stabbed at the last bite of beef on her dish. “Yep. I’ve known since the first tickling of the idea that this was going to fly high. Especially with the network looking for another reality show from me. It was pretty much a slam dunk.”

  “Well, at least we’re glad to have you back.”

  “At least?” Valerie looked to Aunt Eileen.

  “There’s been a bit of chatter since you left.” Aunt Eileen set her napkin on the table. “You know how fish stories grow. Seems the same thing happens with ghost stories.”

  Val blew out a short breath. “Yeah, the cameraman was so spooked that he refused to work on this project. I almost lost the whole production company.”

  “I’m afraid the sisters are spooked again.” Sean pushed away from the table and picked up his empty plates. “You might want to take some extra measures to reassure them.”

  “Since the only room to have issues was Ted’s room, I’ve already decided that I’m going to stay in that room. I don’t care if the furniture levitates or Lady Macbeth pops up stirring her cauldron, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

  Most of the family laughed at her stab at ghostly apparitions. Even though Morgan didn’t believe in ghosts, his gut still wanted him to stand sentry at her door, or better yet, park himself all night in her room. Not the best idea he’d ever had.

  “Who’s up for dessert?” Aunt Eileen stood up. “There’s blueberry sour cream and cinnamon apple crumb cake.”

  A choir of voices called out for one or the other as people shifted around, clearing the table and carrying things to the kitchen. The perfect time for Morgan to escape a few minutes and check the barn. “If you’ll excuse me a minute, I’ll be right back.”

  “Checking on the horse again?” Aunt Eileen asked from the doorway.

  Morgan nodded.

  “Oh,” Valerie stood, “may I come too?”

  Morgan’s head snapped around. Was this the same woman who shook merely standing in the same barn with Cinnamon?

  “Good idea.” Aunt Eileen didn’t wait for Morgan to respond. “You can make sure he doesn’t miss dessert sitting with his horse.”

  “Will do,” Valerie agreed.

  Just like the night they’d walked to the pub for dinner, the walk to the barn was made in that same comfortable silence.

  This time, instead of standing back and watching him, Valerie walked up to the stall where Cinnamon’s head hung into the hallway, and reaching up, she scratched down the horse’s nose. “Aren’t you looking sweet.”

  Morgan had to blink. For a long minute he thought his eyes were fooling him.

  “Did you bring any carrots?” she asked.

  “Hang on.” He took a minute to grab some treats from the tack room. “She should like one of these.”

  Before he could tell her how to feed the mare, the treat was on her open palm, the horse was gathering it up, and Val was giggling at the sensations.

  “I’m sorry, but weren’t you afraid of horses. No, wait. Terrified?”

  She rolled her shoulders in a casual shrug. “Everyone fears what they don’t know.”

  “And now you know horses?”

  “Texas is a different world from California. We think we know that, understand that, almost expect that few places are like California, but until you spend time here it doesn’t quite sink in.” She went back to petting Cinnamon’s nose. “Guns, cows, and horses are as much a part of this world as rattle snakes, hot summers, and friendly neighbors.

  “There isn’t much a girl can do in California about guns. I could probably have found a rancher in central California willing to teach me about cows, but it seemed easier and
more practical to learn about horses. Surprisingly for me, the LA area is full of equestrian options. Who knew LA has a plethora of great trails for riding. I’ve made my way through the foothills and along the shore. Maybe some day I’ll add West Texas to my list.” Her gaze locked on his. “You know, and feel like those pioneers must have felt a million years ago. Riding with nothing in the way but grass blowing in the wind and the horizon.”

  He couldn’t hold back a grin at her reference to their conversation that first day in Three Corners. Even though she made it sound casual as heck, it must have taken a lot for her to lose the paralyzing fear she’d displayed not so very long ago. And for what? To better understand his world. Nothing complicated about that. Which made him wonder, what other surprises did his new country girl have in store for him?

  Chapter Fourteen

  So far so good. They’d settled into the brothel last night and Valerie realized she’d won the bedroom lottery. From what she could gather from the few pieces that the sisters told her were original to the room, and now knowing this was the largest room in the establishment, she guessed this must have been the infamous Miss Sadie’s boudoir.

  That word made her smile. The sisters had done a fabulous job of keeping the original feel of the era with an air of modern comforts. The mattress was probably one of the best she’d ever slept on, including her own. She had no idea what Ted had been talking about. She had the best night sleep she’d had in a long time and every single piece of furniture was in exactly the same place this morning that it had been in last night. Except for the dish and that didn’t count as furniture.

  “I’m sorry,” the cameraman from the sizzle shoot who hadn’t been scared off by imaginary ghosts came up to her. “I’m sorry Val, but I just can’t get in close enough without getting in the way for some of these shots you want.”

  “I was afraid of that.” One of the things she’d noticed when they’d done the sizzle reel were the expressions the brothers made while working. Though the brothers all had that Farraday look to them, the only time they actually looked almost identical was when they made certain faces, and those faces were specifically related to some working task. She felt if the camera zoomed in and out on the brothers making that same face, the surprise factor could be popular with an audience. She really wanted it. “Got any suggestions?”