Texas Ranch Justice

by Karen Whiddon

  “I...” Fumbling for the right words, Scarlett was surprised when Travis spoke up before she could explain.

  “That’s something Scarlett and I need to discuss in private,” he said, his no-nonsense tone letting everyone at the table know that would be the end of any discussion.

  Grateful, Scarlett knew better than to thank him. Soon enough, he’d be demanding she answer Vivian’s question.

  And while she knew she could—and would—explain, she also knew Travis would feel like she’d deliberately kept something hidden from him. In a way, he’d be right. Though she hadn’t had malicious intent. She just hadn’t known the right way to bring the subject up.

  The band started setting up while the tables were being cleared. “They’ll push a lot of the tables out of the way to make the dance floor larger,” Vivian explained. “Just about everyone dances.” She eyed her daughter. “Since my date got sick, would you mind sharing your date some so I can dance too?” Vivian pouted.

  Flushing, Amber shrugged. The set of her mouth indicated she did mind, but also knew there was no way she could decline without making a scene over nothing.

  Scarlett finally abandoned any attempt to pretend to be eating and allowed them to take her plate. She’d mostly been pushing food around anyway. Between being attacked and knowing she’d have to discuss her conversation with John Mellon with Travis, her stomach felt tied up in knots. She’d be lucky not to get sick.

  Everyone had eaten their desserts. Though Travis had been kind enough to bring Scarlett a piece of chocolate cake earlier, she knew there was no way she could eat it. Amber’s date, Mark, kept eyeing it, so she finally slid it across the table to him. He devoured it in a few bites, flashing her a thumbs-up in the way of thanks.

  Finally, the band began tuning up their instruments. A man stepped up to the microphone and introduced the group, explaining that they would be taking requests also.

  A slow song came on. Travis touched her arm, inclining his head toward the dance floor. Swallowing, she nodded and pushed to her feet.

  As they joined the other couples, he swung her into his arms. She tried—oh, how she tried—to let his strength calm her, but she only felt even more unsettled.

  “Were you going to tell me?” he murmured, nuzzling her ear with his mouth and making her shiver.

  “There really wasn’t anything to tell,” she replied. Immediately she knew it was the wrong answer. He stiffened, though they kept moving in response to the music.

  “Maybe we could talk about this later?” she ventured to ask.

  “Oh, we will.” He held her gaze. “Though I’d really rather know now exactly what I’m dealing with.”

  “I promise you, it’s not what you think. Please, let’s try to enjoy this ball as best as we can and we’ll discuss it on the way home.”

  Judging from the grim set of his jaw, he wasn’t happy, but he finally nodded. They danced the remainder of that song, but he led her back to the table to sit out the next one, which was more up-tempo.

  “Oh, to be so young,” Vivian said wistfully, watching as Amber and Mark strutted around the dance floor. Travis eyed his friend, but didn’t comment.

  Head aching, stomach clenching, Scarlett felt as if she might be sick. Unfortunately, the thought of going to the restroom again terrified her, so she sat glued to her chair and wished the night would end.

  Finally, after the costume contest winners had been announced, it did. Vivian had left earlier to, as she put it, find something more fun. Amber and Mark could barely keep their hands off each other and Scarlett suspected if Travis wasn’t Amber’s brother, they would have gotten even more demonstrative. They took off a few minutes after Vivian, leaving Travis and Scarlett alone at their table.

  She could only hope Travis would soon put her out of her misery.

  But he didn’t. People continually dropped by the table on the way out, wanting to meet Scarlett. The men flirted with her and the women fawned over him. She smiled until her cheeks hurt, and called up every acting skill she hadn’t used since high school to pretend she was having a good time. Inside, she kept telling herself that she hadn’t done anything wrong and once she explained that to Travis, all would return to normal. He’d stop looking at her as if she’d betrayed him and they could go back to the burgeoning relationship for which she’d had such good vibes.

  At least she fervently hoped that would be the case.

  Finally, as the band played the last song of the evening, Travis once again led her back onto the dance floor. Though his gaze seemed shuttered and his face expressionless, he held her close as they swayed to the music. She let herself pretend that they were together, in love. Closing her eyes, she gave herself over to the sensation of being held in his strong arms, of his powerful body shielding her. How desperately she wished that they could leave here and go somewhere private and make love to reaffirm this thing they’d been building between them.

  When the song ended, the remaining attendees gave the band a sincere ovation. Travis tucked Scarlett’s arm into his and led her outside.

  The parking lot had emptied and there were only maybe thirty vehicles remaining. They walked in silence to his truck and Travis once again opened the passenger side door and helped her get up into the cab.

  He waited until they’d pulled out from the parking lot to speak. “Were you planning on telling me that you had a meeting with a guy from Wave Oil?”

  The resentment in his voice made her bristle. “First off, I wouldn’t exactly call it a meeting. This guy came up to me on the street when I was in town earlier today and asked to buy me a coffee.”

  She took a deep breath, aware of how that sounded. “I know I probably shouldn’t have gone, but it was downtown Anniversary, two doors from the coffee shop. It seemed safe, so I went.” She shrugged. “He really just wanted me to talk to Hal.”

  “Are you going to?”

  “Yes.” She saw no reason to lie. “Hal’s already mentioned his medical bills to me once. The way he spoke, he was already considering other alternatives.”

  “Not drilling.” The angry set of Travis’s mouth matched his tone. “He and I have discussed it many times. He’d have to be on the verge of losing the HG Ranch to bankruptcy before he’d allow drilling on our land.”

  Our land. She lifted her chin. “Then you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. Yet you seem to be. Why?”

  “Because you’re the daughter he never knew he had. If you ask him to do something, he might just do it to please you.”

  “Maybe so,” she allowed. “But why do you think I would ask him to allow drilling if he really didn’t want to?”

  When he didn’t answer, she made a face. “Please tell me you’re not back to thinking I’m somehow in cahoots with Wave Oil.”

  “I don’t know what to think.” The rawness in his voice spoke of his inner turmoil. “All of this nonsense with Wave Oil has been going on long before you came here. It’s dividing our town. Some people think it’s great, a sign of progress. Others, mostly the farmers and ranchers whose land Wave wants to drill on, don’t want any part of it.”

  “I’m beginning to feel that way myself,” she said, her tone dry. “I didn’t ask for any of this. Now I’m wondering if the perception that I’m on Wave Oil’s side might have something to do with the threats and attacks against me.”

  From the way Travis inhaled, she could tell he hadn’t thought of that.

  “And one more thing,” she said, forcing herself to be brave. “This...thing you and I have started. If you can ever get over your distrust of me, I can see it actually going somewhere.”

  “Bad timing.” Again, Travis’s expression had shut down. “You bringing that up now feels forced, as if you’re trying to get close to me in order to sway me to Wave Oil’s point of view.”

  Hurt and sorrow filled her as the impact of his words
sank in. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. If anything comes between us, it will be your absolute refusal to believe I have ulterior motives. I think you’d better take me home.”

  He gave a tight nod and did exactly that. They didn’t speak again the entire drive back.

  Luckily, Hal had gone to bed and she made it to her room without having to answer any questions about how the evening had gone.

  She spent a restless night, tossing and turning, struggling with feeling guilty for something she’d had no control over. Worse than that was Travis’s reaction. Somehow, he felt justified in continuing to believe she was working with Wave Oil despite knowing her.

  Still, she resolved to discuss everything with Hal, including the fact that after this, she was bowing out of any talks about drilling or not drilling.

  * * *

  After showering and dressing, she felt a bit more like herself. When she went downstairs to grab a cup of coffee, Hal was already there. He looked better than she’d ever seen him. He sat up straight, his gray hair combed, wearing a nice button-down Western shirt. When he smiled at her, his green eyes sparkled.

  She stared. “You seem chipper this morning.”

  “Thank you. I feel pretty darn good.” He took a deep drink from his coffee mug. “I’m even thinking about having Delilah give that physical therapist fella a call. I want to try standing and walking again. I know I’ll have to build up to it, but I actually feel good enough to try.”

  “That’s fantastic.” She kissed his cheek and went to make her own coffee.

  “Did you have a good time at the ball?” Hal asked.

  She stiffened. Glad she had her back to him, she carefully considered her answer. She didn’t want to upset him by letting him know she’d been attacked yet she didn’t want to lie. She decided to focus on the things she’d enjoyed.

  “The costumes were amazing,” she said, turning to face him with her mug in hand. “And they had a good band.”

  “Did you and Travis dance?”

  “We did.” She took an appreciative sip. “I had no idea there’d be such a crowd. Amber seemed to really like her date, even if she did have to let Vivian dance with him.”

  “She did?” Hal shook his head. “Why? What’s that woman up to now?”

  “Oh, Frank got sick, so Vivian didn’t have a date to dance with. It was fine. She only danced with Mark twice.”

  “That means you didn’t get to meet Frank.” He sounded disappointed. “I was hoping to hear what you thought of him.”

  Taking a deep breath, Scarlett decided to go ahead and bring up meeting John Mellon.

  “Hal, something sort of strange happened to me when I was in town yesterday,” she began. “I wanted to ask you a question.”

  “You look so serious,” he said, pressing the remote to mute the TV. “What’s going on?”

  “When I was in town yesterday, a man named John Mellon approached me. He wanted to talk to me about allowing Wave Oil to drill on the ranch.”

  Hal’s expression darkened. “Isn’t that just like them? Targeting my daughter. I’m sorry, sweetheart. What did you tell him?”

  “That I was the wrong person to talk to about that. I told him he needed to get with you. And he said Travis wouldn’t allow it.” She swallowed. “He insinuated that Travis is making decisions without your consent.”

  Hal snorted. “Sneaky SOB. Those oil companies will do anything to get their way.”

  Relieved, she smiled. “I take that to mean you directed Travis to decline any meeting with Wave Oil.”

  “The topic never came up,” he admitted. “But Travis knows how I feel.”

  This bothered her. “Hal, I’m not trying to be intrusive, but this John Mellon guy knew you had tons of medical bills.”

  He bristled. “I do. But that’s none of his beeswax.”

  “That’s what I told him,” she hastened to reassure him. “But he also said allowing a drilling site would enable you to pay them.”

  “Did he now?” Hal squinted at her. “Are you advocating for Wave Oil these days?”

  “Now you sound like Travis,” she grumbled.

  “You told Travis this?” Hal’s eyes went wide.

  Slowly, she nodded. “Kendra dragged John Mellon over to our table and he made a point out of bringing up the fact that we’d met. I’m sure she did it on purpose.”

  “No doubt.” Hal’s quick response felt gratifying. “But why are you even talking to me about it?”

  “Because I promised John Mellon I would, since I don’t see the harm in having an open-minded discussion.”

  “Which makes it sound like you’re in agreement with Wave Oil.”

  Again, his words echoed Travis’s.

  “I’m not in agreement with anyone. Actually, I’m neutral. After this talk, I hope to never have to discuss this again.” She took a deep breath. “My entire point of bringing this up is to let you know you have alternatives. One other one is me. Mom left me financially well-off. I’d be more than happy to take a look at your medical bills and see what I can do to get them paid off. If you need money, that is. If you don’t, then pretend we never spoke.”

  Hal shook his head and unmuted the TV, indicating the conversation was over. Then, as she turned to leave the room, he silenced it once more. “I’m going to talk to Travis.”

  Surprised, she eyed him. “Why?”

  “Because it’s ridiculous how he’s letting this Wave Oil thing drive a wedge between the two of you.”

  “Too late,” she said, not bothering to hide her misery. “After he found out about the meeting with John Mellon last night, we talked.”

  Scowling, Hal shook his head. “How did he take that?”

  “Not well.” She grimaced. “Not well at all. He actually seems to believe I want to coerce you into signing a lease with Wave Oil for some sort of personal gain.”

  Hal sighed. “I’ll talk to him,” he said. “And, Scarlett, as much as I love you and am overjoyed to have you in my life, I do what I want to do. Travis should know this. It’s long past time I cleared the air around here.”

  * * *

  The morning after the ball, Travis found himself at loose ends. Vivian left to check on Frank, and Amber and Mike had plans to attend the Harvest Fair. He’d originally planned to ask Scarlett if she wanted to go with him. Delilah always entered several of the baking competitions and he’d really wanted to show up and cheer her on.

  Oddly enough, he found he didn’t want to attend alone. Despite the fact that he’d done so the last couple of years, the notion held no appeal now. He’d actually been looking forward to showing Scarlett around, to seeing her reaction to the best and most heartwarming displays that Anniversary had to offer.

  When Hal called and asked Travis to stop by, Travis jumped at the chance. Not, he told himself, because he wanted to see Scarlett again, but so he could get out of the house. Then, because he’d never been in the habit of lying to himself, he admitted it was so he could see Scarlett again.

  Proof that he was a fool.

  When he pulled up in front of the house, Scarlett’s car was gone. Oddly disappointed, he went inside and made his way through the empty living room, into the kitchen where he found Hal at the table, eating a large sandwich.

  “Do you mind getting me a glass of milk?” Hal asked. “Vivian made my lunch and tried to get me to drink a new kind of smoothie, but I had her put it in the fridge. I’m tired of pretending to like those damn things.”

  Grinning, Travis grabbed a glass and poured milk into it.

  “Just so you know, Scarlett and I have been discussing whether or not to allow Wave Oil to drill,” Hal drawled.

  Travis spun around so fast he nearly tripped over his own feet. Milk sloshed onto his hand. As he stared at his stepfather, his stomach flip-flopped at the knowledge that he’d been rig
ht about her all along. Despite her denials, despite the way their bodies fit together. Despite everything. “You did?” he managed to keep his tone casual. “You sound as if you might actually be considering it. Do you mind if I ask why?”

  “The same reason everyone else wants us to drill. Money.” Hal sighed. “No one considers what allowing such an operation will do to the land or our livestock.”

  Which meant he wasn’t considering it.

  “I agree.” Relieved, Travis let out a breath he hadn’t even been aware he’d been holding.

  “But Scarlett did bring up a good point,” Hal continued, scratching his head. “Those medical bills keep piling up and I don’t have any way to pay them. One small drill site and I could take care of them all, at least according to the man Scarlett met with.”

  Travis stared. “She told you about meeting with that guy from Wave Oil?”

  “She did. She also mentioned she discussed it with you.” Hal frowned. “I’m guessing they knew who she was and targeted her.”

  Shaking his head, Travis tried to tamp down his feeling of betrayal. Even after vehemently denying any involvement with Wave, Scarlett had still gone ahead and talked to Hal and tried to convince him to cooperate with Wave Oil.

  He should have known his gut instincts were right. But he’d allowed himself to be taken in by her beauty and her sweet nature. Right. He nearly snorted out loud.

  Some of his thoughts must have shown on his face.

  “Son, do you even know Scarlett at all?” Hal asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Even an old man like me can see what’s been happening between the two of you.”

  Surprised, Travis wasn’t sure how to respond.

  “Don’t be an idiot,” Hal continued. “Open your eyes and your heart. Just because Kendra turned out to be rotten to the core, doesn’t mean Scarlett is.”

  “You might be a little bit biased,” Travis responded. “I’m just struggling with the fact that she’s been cozying up to Wave Oil.”