Ultimate Texas Bachelor

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  “Some are. Travis’s aren’t, because he breeds them for temperament.” Brad pressed a kiss in Lainey’s hair. “And Tabasco Red has lived on Annie and Travis’s ranch since he was a bull calf. The boys grew up with him, and they know he’s as gentle as a kitten and used to being around little kids. I was going to tell you that when we first brought him here to sire my first generation of calves, but you were so freaked out about cattle in general, I just figured I’d wait and show you later when you got used to being around ’em.” Brad paused, shook his head. “I never had any idea Petey would try and go near Tabasco Red.”

  “So he wasn’t in any danger?”

  “Right.” Brad shifted Lainey over onto his lap. “Although, all the boys know better than to go over the fence unless they are in the company of an adult cowboy. That’s what the kids were arguing about before Petey scaled the fence. Kyle and Kurt wanted Petey to do it, but in the company of their older cowboy-brothers. Because they knew that was allowed.”

  Lainey sighed. “But in Petey’s view, desperate times called for desperate measures, and he thought Bart and Bunny were here to take him away and it was the only way he and Kurt and Kyle could think to prove Petey’s manhood in the nick of time.” Tears welled in Lainey’s eyes as she shook her head. “I should have known something was terribly wrong.”

  “You did.” Brad lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. “You just didn’t know what, exactly.”

  Lainey laced her arms about his neck. “I should have been able to get him to tell me what was going on.”

  Brad stroked her hair. “You’re a good mother, Lainey. The best.”

  She choked back a sob, and embarrassed she couldn’t seem to get ahold of herself, wiped her eyes. “If anything ever happened to him…” she whispered hoarsely.

  “I know,” Brad said soothingly. He paused, looked deep into her eyes. “I feel the same way. Which is why, Lainey, the two of you have to leave the Lazy M tomorrow morning, first thing.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “W-what? Why?” Lainey asked.

  “Because,” Brad retorted heavily, his guilt apparent, “Petey’s already been through far too much lately and it’s the only way I know to protect you.”

  Lainey blinked and slid off his lap, onto the seat of the glider. “By sending us away?” she echoed hoarsely. Impossible, how much that hurt.

  Brad caught her wrist before she could bolt. His voice was low, intense. “Suppose Bunny is telling the truth and she didn’t send that photographer. Then that means he’s not after you and whatever dirt he can dig up—he’s after me.” The haunted look was back in Brad’s eyes. “The last thing Petey needs to see is his mother on the cover of a tabloid.”

  Lainey agreed with that portion of Brad’s assessment. Her brief experience as a journalist told her something else about the rest. “I don’t think the photographer was from a tabloid. A tabloid would have published the photos of us last week, particularly in light of what that New York City newspaper gossip column published. Tabloids don’t necessarily wait to get a whole story—they go with whatever they’ve got. Speed and scooping all other news outlets via actual photos of whatever is going on is the priority.”

  Brad frowned. “You think he’s freelance?”

  “Maybe.” Lainey savored the warmth and tenderness of the hand encircling her wrist. She moved her hand so her fingers were meshed with his. “If that tourist guy had no legitimate connections, he was just trying to get different pictures of us to sell to lots of places…and that might take a little longer.”

  Brad slouched against the back of the glider as he considered that. “And if he’s not?”

  “Then I don’t know who he is or why he was here unless he’s just someone who is plain nosy and wants something to show his friends. In any case, the revelation of our relationship with each other is going to be news….”

  He shook his head. “Not if it doesn’t come out until interest in me dies down.”

  Ignoring the feel of his rock-hard thigh pressed up against hers, she looked down at their clasped hands, then back at him. “What are you saying?”

  Brad swallowed. He seemed to know she wasn’t going to like what came next. “This afternoon I was ready to come clean, go to the press like you suggested, tell my story, and let the dust settle once and for all. But I realize now that speaking out at this point would only generate a whole new wave of public interest in me, and I can’t subject Petey—or you—to that, Lainey.”

  His mind was clearly made up. “So you’re breaking up with me?” She did her best to contain her broken heart. Realizing she was suddenly doubting Brad and his feelings for her, when up until now she’d had absolutely no reason to, she stood and moved to the edge of the porch. Her back to him, she looked out at the broad expanse of the Texas night sky. The summer night was clear and warm. A half moon nestled in the stars winking overhead.

  “No.” He crossed to her side and drew her into his embrace. “Just putting what we feel for each other under wraps for a while.” He stroked a soothing hand down her spine. “We’ll still see each other.”

  “Just not in public.” She sighed. “Not where anyone can find out about it.”

  Brad’s mood was as pensive as her own. “Right.”

  Lainey was silent. She knew it wasn’t what Brad was saying, but it felt like he was ashamed of her…and that was devastating. Hadn’t she promised herself when she was with Chip that she would never put herself in that situation again? She swallowed, did her best to respond with maturity and grace.

  “I see.”

  “Do you?” Brad asked gently, his gaze lovingly roving over her. He slid both hands through her hair, lifting her face up to his. His heated glance drifted lower and he massaged her shoulders tenderly. “’Cause I don’t think you do. What I am trying to tell you here—” he paused to reassure her with another long, direct glance “—is that I want us to be together over the long haul. But to make that happen, we’re going to have to protect what we have and keep it secret.”

  THE ONLY GOOD THING about Brad’s sending Lainey and Petey back to Dallas was that she had the time—and space necessary—to honor her promise to her old college roommate well within the required publishing deadline.

  Sybil called her Tuesday evening. “I got the article you e-mailed me.”

  Lainey braced herself for what she knew had to be coming next.

  “There’s nothing in it about Brad McCabe.”

  Lainey sighed, glad Petey was already in bed. “Right.”

  “Nor do you tell why Brad dumped Yvonne,” Sybil continued, sounding even more displeased.

  Lainey winced. “Right again.”

  Another pause. Sybil, sounding more boss than friend, continued calmly. “Did you misunderstand what I asked you to do?”

  No. Lainey hadn’t. She had known exactly what kind of salacious, groundbreaking, cover-level story Sybil wanted out of her. That was the hell of it. Lainey gathered her professionalism around her like a protective cloak. She knew the work she had done on Yvonne—and even Gil Hewitt—was good. She had to concentrate on that and feel proud of it, while at the same time owning up to her own shortcomings. “I can’t write about Brad McCabe with any objectivity. I thought I could. But I can’t.” So she hadn’t. Problem solved. Sort of, anyway.

  Sybil let out a short, impatient breath. “That sweet-talking Casanova got to you, didn’t he.”

  Lainey told herself Brad’s womanizing days were over. Not that they had ever existed beyond his desire not to get emotionally involved with someone he wasn’t cut out to be partnered with for life. “What do you mean?”

  Sybil scoffed, as blunt and straight-talking as ever. “Brad McCabe has a reputation for making women lose their head, and obviously he’s made you lose yours!”

  Lainey knew she was in love with Brad. But it wasn’t like that. Brad hadn’t used her any more than she had used him. It was just a tough situation, that was all. One Lainey was determ
ined to extricate herself from sooner rather than later. “I never should have signed up to write about someone I knew as a kid,” she said, excoriating herself honestly. “It’s an insurmountable conflict of interest.”

  “It’s also your big chance to catapult yourself into the big-time. Or have you forgotten how much you’ve always wanted to be a journalist?” Sybil demanded, practical as ever.

  Lainey wanted to be loved and cared for more—her relationship with Brad held the promise of that.

  “You’ve been seeing him, haven’t you,” Sybil pressed, beginning to sound a little angry now.

  Lainey didn’t want to lie to her old friend, so she said nothing.

  “He found out what you’re up to and—”

  “He doesn’t know anything,” Lainey corrected.

  Sybil made a low, dissenting sound. “I wouldn’t bet on that. From what I’ve heard, Brad McCabe is one smart cookie.”

  Lainey ran her hands through her hair. “Smart. Dumb. Who cares?”

  “Personalities readers care. They want to know what happened to make TV’s sexiest bachelor go berserk and dump a very sweet and loving girl!”

  “As the article I sent you attests,” Lainey countered tightly, “Yvonne is anything but sweet and loving.”

  “I don’t care what the other girls or even Gil Hewitt had to say. I want to know when and how and where did Brad find that out? I’m presuming, of course, that is the reason he broke up with her.”

  “I can’t tell you that,” Lainey said. She rubbed at the headache starting in her temples.

  “Lainey, as it is,” Sybil explained patiently, “I cannot—I will not—publish this article. There is very little in it that hasn’t been either printed or speculated about before. We’re looking for a great big scoop, not a guessing game and a re-hash.”

  She sighed, beginning to feel like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders once again. “It’s the best I can do.”

  “Well, it’s not good enough. You still have another forty-eight hours before deadline. There’s still time—”

  “I’ve had all the time I need,” Lainey interrupted firmly.

  “Please don’t do this,” her friend begged. “Do I need to remind you that you threw away any chance at a career for yourself when you hooked up with Chip? Lainey, honey, I can’t bear to see you doing the same thing again!”

  “Bear it or not, it’s what I have to do,” she said. “I’m sorry, Sybil. I know I let you down. Thank you for the opportunity, anyway.” And she hung up the phone.

  “I DIDN’T THINK STAYING AWAY from each other was going to be this hard,” Brad said, four days later.

  Lainey walked into the conference room at McCabe Computer Games testing facility in Laramie. Petey was there to evaluate the latest changes in the computer game he had been testing all summer. Lainey was there to see Brad. She went into his arms, glad Lewis had thoughtfully provided the two of them with a conference room where they could talk privately, without having to worry about being caught by someone with a telephoto lens.

  “Although—” Brad drew back after a lengthy hello kiss, then another, and another “—you look like you are faring much better than I am in this situation. You look—” he studied her tenderly “—like a huge burden has been lifted from your shoulders.”

  “It has been.”

  Lainey smiled at him, feeling a little less sure now.

  Nevertheless, she knew what she had to do—tell him everything and then see where they stood, if he was as capable of forgiving her as she deemed him to be. She couldn’t go on hiding something this important from him. It was too much to bear. And she needed to make certain that, unlike Chip, Brad could accept that Lainey was not perfect. She made mistakes. Occasionally took a wrong turn. Or made a wrong choice. That didn’t mean she was a bad person. Just human. Fallible. Ready and willing to learn from her mistakes and move on.

  Lainey was in the market for unconditional love now.

  Not a love that hinged on her looking and behaving a certain way, and only that way.

  She wanted a love that let her feel free to be.

  She wanted Petey growing up the same way.

  “How are things with the in-laws?” Brad asked gently.

  “Better than you could imagine.” She sat down on the edge of the conference table, braced herself and looked up at him. “Bunny’s decided to hand over the dispersing of the trust funds to one of the attorneys who drew it up.”

  “She can do that?”

  Lainey nodded. “Chip had a provision built in, in case something ever happened to Bunny or she felt it was too much to handle. She and Bart talked it over and decided it would be best to have the trust administered by a third party from now on.”

  “That certainly sounds a lot less stressful for you,” he said.

  She nodded. “Claire set up a meeting. We all talked at length about my situation yesterday and agreed it would be best to sell our house in Highland Park. I can use the proceeds to resettle in Laramie.”

  “How does Petey feel about that?”

  “He’s as ready for change as I am—although,” Lainey conceded, smiling ruefully, “he’d prefer to live on a ranch, rather than in town. But I told him he can visit his friends who do live on ranches, so he’s happy about that. In the meantime, I’m going to open my own professional organizing business, and probably do some freelance writing on the side, too.” She wanted to start living on what she made, and let the money Chip left them be for Petey’s education, and any emergencies that came up.

  “I didn’t know you wanted to be a writer,” he said.

  She studied the hem of her cotton skirt, where it rode up above her knee. It was time to confess all. Her stomach fluttered with a thousand butterflies as she admitted softly, honestly, “For a long time now.”

  “Because of what happened to your dad?”

  Lainey nodded. “The truth is important. Reporters have the ability to keep things honest and aboveboard.”

  “When it’s done correctly,” Brad stipulated.

  “Right.” Unfortunately, that was a lesson she had learned a little too late when it came to Brad. “Anyway, I studied journalism in college and worked on the Tech newspaper before I dropped out to get married.”

  Brad looked impressed with her accomplishments, yet wary of her profession. “You know reporters aren’t my favorite people these days,” he teased, “but I guess I could change my mind about that, if you become one again.”

  “I hope so,” she said. She gripped the table edge on either side of her, her nerves beginning to get the better of her.

  “I know so.” He smiled and sat down on the edge of the table next to her. “Because you’d never be the kind of vulture that’s been after me since I went on TV.”

  Guilt swept through Lainey, followed by uncertainty. Was this the time to tell him everything? How could she not?

  “Lewis and I’ve been doing some rearranging, too,” Brad said.

  Lainey winced, recalling the six boxes she had yet to unpack that were stacked up in the utility room, taking up all the available space. “I’m sorry. I know I’m not quite finished organizing everything there yet.” She’d left in such a hurry, at Brad’s behest, that she hadn’t had time to complete her tasks. “But I promise I’ll get to it as soon as you think it’s okay for me to come back out to the Lazy M.”

  “Well,” Brad drawled, smiling broadly, looking like he had a secret now, “that all depends.”

  “On?” Lainey queried.

  He reached into his pocket and withdrew a small velvet box. “How fast I can get you to say yes to the idea of marrying me.”

  LAINEY STARED at Brad, stunned speechless. Her reaction wasn’t the one he had been hoping for. Brad gulped and rushed on, telling her all that was in his heart.

  “I know it sounds sudden,” he said softly as he guided her to her feet and into his arms. “And I guess in some respects it is.” He paused and looked deep into her eyes. “But I
know you’re the woman I’ve been waiting my whole life to meet. And I want you—and Petey—with me. The only way we can do that in a respectful manner is by making a true and lasting commitment and marrying each other. So…Lainey, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

  In place of the jubilant “yes” and kiss he had been expecting, tears welled in her eyes. “Oh, Brad…” she murmured, seeming distraught.

  To his dismay, she looked like she wished he hadn’t asked.

  She splayed her fingers across his shirtfront, his only solace the fact that she did not move away. “If you only knew how much I want to say yes. But I—I need to talk to you about something else—something important—before we discuss that.”

  “Okay,” he said slowly, once again bracing for the worst.

  Before she could get another word out, the door to the conference room was flung open. Lewis rushed in so quickly he was practically tripping over his own feet. He had a rolled-up magazine in his hand. He looked at Brad, Lainey, then back at Brad again. “Oh, man!” Lewis said.

  Brad glared at his younger brother. “You know, Lewis, sometimes your timing really—”

  “Bites. I know.” Lewis swallowed hard and shut the door behind them. “Listen, I really don’t want to be the one to tell you this, but…you know how I set up that search engine on my computer for stuff about you when you first went on Bachelor Bliss?”

  Like they needed to be talking about the parameters of Lewis’s computer now? “Yes,” Brad said patiently, knowing it would be faster to just let Lewis say what he had to say than try to shoo him out.

  “Well, it still pulls stuff up every time I get on the Internet,” Lewis explained.

  “Terrific,” Brad muttered, even more irritated when he noticed that Lainey looked upset.

  The last thing he needed was Lewis spoiling an already going-downhill-fast mood. “I really don’t care what they’ve written about me,” he informed his brother tersely. He sent Lewis a look telling him to leave. Now.

  “You will care,” Lewis countered, just as firmly.