The Cowboy's Texas Family

by Margaret Daley

  “I’ll be there. Don’t know about Darcy.”

  “I tried her at the Blue Bonnet Inn, but she wasn’t there. It’s important she comes. I figured you can persuade her.”

  “Sure.” He didn’t know if he could persuade her to do anything, especially keeping Corey here.

  “We’ll also talk about where we stand in finding the people in Cyrus’s will. I’m afraid even if we have the right Avery, I’m the one who’ll let everyone down. Tanner tried to find my grandfather and couldn’t. I’ve tried too, but he seems to have vanished.” Gabe swept his arm across his body. “All of this will be for nothing. We’ll have to move back to the original ranch and only serve half the boys.”

  “I can’t imagine what that would do to the boys. For so many of them, this is the chance they needed to make something of themselves.” Nick stepped outside the barn. “I have to go home, but I’ll track Darcy down if I need to.”

  Relieved, Gabe followed him to their trucks, which were parked side by side. “I’ll leave a message on Flint’s phone, but if you see him, let him know.”

  “I’ll be back later.”

  “Good. I’m heading to the main house to meet with Bea. We need to start thinking about what our options are if we can’t fulfill the will.”

  As Gabe strolled away, Nick climbed into his pickup and blew out a long breath. So much for staying away from Darcy.

  * * *

  Darcy stood on Fletcher’s porch, poised in front of the door. She curled and uncurled her hands. Part of her wanted to hear why he had asked her to come to his house. Then she remembered Saturday night, and all she wanted to do was get in her car and return to Mobile. But she couldn’t leave without Corey. She hadn’t even told him yet she wanted to adopt him. What if he didn’t want to be part of her family?

  All yesterday that one question had plagued her. She wanted to talk to Nick about it, but he never returned her call. That was for the best. She was falling in love with him and couldn’t see him living anywhere else but on his ranch and in Haven.

  The front door swung open. Fletcher stood in the entrance, his solemn expression slowly vanishing to be replaced with a small smile. “I’m glad you came. I wasn’t sure you would, but we need to talk and I don’t think we should do it where others could overhear. Yesterday at church there were enough people talking about us. Come in.”

  Darcy hesitated, her teeth digging into her bottom lip. Should she risk another confrontation just because she was curious about what he wanted to say?

  “Please, Darcy.” He moved to the side to allow her into his house.

  Without a word, she entered, not surprised by the massive mahogany table in the middle of the foyer, which displayed a vase of fresh flowers in the middle of winter. The hardwood floor held a high sheen with an expensive-looking woven rug under the table—more a piece of art than carpet.

  “Let’s go in here.” He gestured to the left.

  The rich ambiance of the entry hall spilled over into his large living room. The focal point was the huge marble fireplace with a few bronze Remington statues and a painting of an older woman above the mantle. “Who is that?”

  “Luella Snowden Phillips. Would you like something to drink?” Fletcher asked so politely, his behavior different from how he’d acted the other day.

  “No, I can’t stay long. I tutor at the boys ranch after school.”

  He sat at the opposite end of the ivory-colored couch. This whole house shouted, “No children allowed.”

  He crossed one leg and reclined as though he had not a care in the world. “I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about our conversation the other night.”

  “So have I,” she bit out, wishing she hadn’t said anything. She didn’t want to care, but she did.

  “When I found out who you were, I was stunned. I said some things I shouldn’t have. I had a knee-jerk reaction to a piece of big news I never thought I would hear. But when I got over the initial shock, I realized you could be my daughter. I did some checking. You’re twenty-seven, and twenty-eight years ago I was in love with Charlotte.” He looked away and swallowed several times. “I’d wanted to marry her and have a whole house full of children. She was everything to me, but then one day she disappeared, leaving me a note telling me not to look for her. She broke my heart.”

  As she did mine, Darcy thought. She and Fletcher had something in common besides family.

  “I never let myself fall in love again. I hated the helplessness. I couldn’t do anything to change the situation. I’d bought an engagement ring and was going to ask her to marry me that weekend. I never got the chance.”

  Loneliness dripped off each word, and Darcy hurt for him. She tried not to. There were so many reasons to be angry with him, but she couldn’t.

  “I never knew she was with child and that she gave birth to you. You have my coloring, but the shape of your mouth and nose is just like hers.”

  Darcy slipped her hand into the side pocket of her purse and removed her birth certificate. “In Alabama, I got my original one that listed my biological parents.” She placed it on the couch between them.

  He glanced at it and then lifted his gaze to hers. “I’ve been used to people trying to get something from me, and when you first told me, that was my reaction. But you don’t need my money. Your adopted family is wealthier than I am. You’ve stated how much you love your adopted parents, so why did you come looking for me?”

  “When I was diagnosed with celiac disease last year, I decided to search for my birth parents. Celiac is hereditary, and I wanted to know what else might be a problem in the future. I’ve always wanted to marry and have children, but that gave me pause.”

  He patted his head. “Baldness and high blood pressure run in my family. Nothing else that I know of.” His mouth twisted in a contemplative look. “You’ve been here for a while. Were you ever going to tell me who you are?”

  “Honestly, at first I was going to until I found out about you.”

  “Ouch. Any particular reason?”

  “You only think about yourself. You didn’t come to Ned’s and Corey’s assistance. You’re against the boys ranch even though there’s a lot of evidence that indicates how important it is and it was a pet project your grandmother started.”

  “What about all the thefts and even the barn fire?”

  “There’s no evidence pointing to the boys at the ranch, and in this country there needs to be evidence to accuse someone of a crime. Yes, some of them do things wrong, but what child doesn’t? Have you ever tried to put yourself in their shoes? Corey is your cousin. He would have been a good one for you to take an interest in.”

  Fletcher flinched.

  “I’m not so sure if the boys’ suspected misbehavior is your problem. You’ve been vocal for a long time about the boys ranch, even before these recent events.” Darcy pointed to the portrait of Luella Snowden Phillips. “Do you think she would agree with you about shutting down the ranch when she poured so much into it?”

  He frowned. “She did and so did my father. Sometimes I think they forgot all about me while they were helping the boys.” He surged to his feet and turned away. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

  “But you did. You felt neglected while all the others got their attention. I can see how that could be hard on a child.”

  He whirled around. “You do? You don’t think I was being selfish?”

  “All kids need to be reassured they’re loved. That is one of the things the ranch does for the boys.”

  “Once when I said something to my father for not coming to school to see me in a play, he dismissed it. He said it wasn’t important. One of the children at the boys ranch was scared to go home and needed consoling. I was the lead in the freshman play and had worked hard so my dad would be proud of me. He never saw it. That was only one of
many instances where I came in second in both my grandmother’s and father’s eyes. I never could please them.” He avoided eye contact with her and stared in the empty fire grate.

  She hadn’t grown up feeling lacking in her parents’ eyes, but she’d gotten a taste of what it meant to be rejected by one when she had tried to see her birth mother. Even with positive self-esteem, she’d begun to doubt herself and wondered what could be wrong with her.

  Her throat tight, Darcy covered the distance between them and laid her hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I sometimes have been so focused on a mission, I forget the ones around me.” She dropped her arm to her side. “I’m going to be here for a while longer. I wish you would spend some time with me at the boys ranch. They always need tutors. Helping them to learn has been so rewarding for me. At least join my group. I usually help Corey and a couple of others after school.”

  He didn’t say anything.

  “Please. You might enjoy yourself.” She hesitated, not sure if she should say any more. “I want to get to know you in the time I have left in town. Come with me this afternoon. I need to be there in fifteen minutes.”

  “Okay. I’ll follow you to the ranch. If I decide to leave, you won’t have to bring me back here. You can stay.”

  She smiled. “Thanks, but I hope you don’t leave.”

  On the drive to the boys ranch, Darcy kept looking at the rearview mirror to see if Fletcher was still behind her. There were boys at the ranch who had gone through what he had growing up. Corey, for one. His father didn’t have time for him and the child felt neglected. She prayed that Fletcher saw some of himself in the kids and that would change how he looked at the ranch.

  She parked at the house, but as she climbed from her car, Nick strode toward her, a frown on his face. Was he mad because she hadn’t returned his call while she was with Fletcher today? She’d intended to later, after she saw Fletcher and told Corey about her plans. Nick hadn’t returned hers yesterday, so he had no right to be upset about that.

  Nick stopped a few feet from her, his glare fixed on Fletcher. “What’s he doing here?”

  “Visiting the ranch with me.”

  As Fletcher paused on the steps to the porch and waited for her, Nick focused on her. Intense. Troubled. “We need to talk.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  After Nick informed her about the Lone Star Cowboy League’s emergency meeting, he asked, “What is Fletcher doing here? Hasn’t he done enough damage, trying to rally people behind his cause to shut down this ranch? Is he here looking for more to complain about concerning the boys ranch?”

  “We had a nice talk today, and I persuaded him to come and see the good this place does for the boys.”

  “And you think he’s going to change? People, especially those like him, don’t.” Once he’d believed what she did, but he’d been disappointed too many times to feel that way now.

  “People like him?” Although she could see why Nick had said that, she became defensive.

  “Set in his ways. Too proud to admit he made a mistake.”

  “I’m not so sure he’s the only one around here like that.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Maybe you should...” She shook her head. “Never mind. I’m late and Corey gets anxious when I am.”

  He clasped her arm. “Have you told him you’re seeking guardianship of him? That you want to adopt him?”

  “After I tutor the boys, I will.”

  “And he’s—” Nick glanced at Fletcher “—going to be with you?”

  “No.”

  She spun around, marched to Fletcher and then stomped up the stairs.

  “Are you dating him? I see you with him a lot.” A hint of hostility echoed through Fletcher’s words.

  She ground her teeth and entered the main house. “He’s a friend. That is all. We have a common interest in Corey.” Now if only she could convince her heart that was all. “We meet in the living room.”

  She found Corey, Aiden and Liam Ritter, another child close to her cousin’s age, sitting around the coffee table. “I brought a visitor to help me today.”

  Corey straightened, his shoulders thrust back. “Why?”

  “Because the more help you have, the faster you’ll get your homework done and then y’all can go out and do your afternoon chores at the barn. Isn’t today when you take care of the goats?”

  All three boys nodded.

  “Then let’s get busy.” She gestured to Fletcher to take a place next to Corey.

  Darcy helped Aiden and Corey while Fletcher attempted to explain subtraction to Liam in a creative way having to do with horses. He even drew an illustration of what he was trying to get across to Liam.

  “If there are only two horses, how can you take four of them away? The rancher has to get more from the pasture with fifty. He borrows ten and adds it to his two. How many does that make now?”

  Liam scrunched his forehead and squinted at the paper. “Twelve.”

  Fletcher grinned. “Right.”

  “Now you can take four horses away from twelve.”

  Liam quickly wrote an eight on the paper.

  Corey yanked on Darcy’s arm and then bent close and whispered, “What’s he doing?”

  “He’s helping. It must be working because Liam is getting the right answers. I told Fletcher how much Liam loved horses.”

  “So do I. I want to learn to do tricks when I ride like you do.”

  “Maybe one day. First you need to become an accomplished rider.”

  “Nick is helping me.” Corey aimed a sideways glance at her as he wrote his story about the rodeo. “Nick is a good guy. Dontcha think?”

  “Sure. He does a lot for the boys ranch.”

  “I want to learn to be a farrier. I’ve been watching him take care of the horses’ hooves.”

  “Just like us with our feet, we have to take good care of theirs.”

  “Yeah, we couldn’t ride them otherwise.” Corey bent over the paper and started to write his next word. He stopped. “How do you spell barrel?”

  “What do you think it starts with?” Darcy said barrel slowly, emphasizing each letter.

  “A b. I hear an r and an l at the end.”

  “Good. It’s b-a-r-r-e-l.”

  The rest of the tutoring session sped by, which surprised Darcy. She didn’t think Fletcher would like doing something like homework with the boys, but the more he worked with Corey and Liam, the more relaxed he seemed, and he even smiled several more times.

  “Liam and Aiden, I need to talk with Corey before he helps with the goats. Will y’all show Mr. Phillips where they are?”

  Fletcher went without protest, but he paused at the entrance into the living room. “You’ll be joining us? I won’t be able to stay much longer.”

  “Yes, but if you need to leave before we come, the boys are fine. Cleaning their pen and giving the goats feed are part of their chores.”

  When the others left, Corey asked, “Why am I staying back? Did I do something wrong?”

  “Because I have something to tell you that makes me so happy and excited.”

  His eyebrows rose. “What? Are you gonna move here?”

  “No, but the reason I came to Haven in the first place was to find members of my family. You are one of those.”

  “I am? How?”

  “Mr. Phillips is my father. He didn’t know until I told him this weekend. Some great parents adopted me when I was a baby. He never knew he had a daughter before I came.”

  “Then why aren’t you staying here with him?”

  “I have two parents in Mobile, whom I love very much. My job is there. I love helping people with their legal problems. Mobile is my home. I don’t live far from a beach. My father ha
s a boat, and he goes out fishing in the Gulf all the time.”

  “I love to fish. My dad...used to take me several years ago until—”

  Darcy held his hand. “I love to fish too. We’ll have to go sometime.” The emotions she was trying to keep in check swelled in her throat. She swallowed hard and continued, “Do you know what that makes us? We’re cousins. I’m so happy we are. Being a relative makes it easier for me to apply to be your guardian.”

  “Guardian? Is that like a parent?”

  “Yes. In fact, I want to adopt you. It takes a little longer, but I want us to be a family. You are special to me.” She hugged him and then looked into his face, praying he felt the same way.

  He grinned from ear to ear. “I love you.”

  “Back at you.”

  He threw his arms around her and plastered his body against her. “I’m gonna have a home?”

  “Yes.” Her eyes misted with tears. Thank You, Lord, for making this easy on Corey. When she thought she could talk without choking on her happiness, she said, “We’d better go check on Aiden, Liam and Mr. Phillips.”

  Corey jumped to his feet, excitement brightening his features. “Wait till I tell them I’m gonna have a home.” He raced from the room. The sound of the front door opening was followed by “C’mon, Darcy.”

  “Coming.” She swiped away the tears on her eyelashes.

  As she strolled to the goats’ pen, Corey ran ahead. When she arrived, the boys were inside, including Corey and Fletcher. Liam was telling Fletcher the names of each of the goats. Nick stood off to the side, leaning against the four-foot fence, his arms crossed over his chest, watching everything Fletcher did.

  She came up behind Nick on the other side of the enclosure and whispered, “Has Fletcher sabotaged anything yet?”

  “It hasn’t been ruled out that he wasn’t behind the barn fire.”

  “Darcy is going to adopt you?” Aiden exclaimed from the goat’s pen. “When will you be leaving?”

  Corey cocked his head to the side. “I don’t know.” He whirled toward her and Nick. “When?”