Redheaded Stranger: A Cowboy Love Story (Bluebonnet, Texas)

by Amie Stuart

  "You’re not supposed to ask, man. You’re supposed to read her mind," John teased, a grin creasing his face.

  "Yeah, well, I’d rather ask than sleep on the back porch for two weeks," he shot back.

  Two years back, Connie, John’s wife, had dropped liberal hints about wanting a day at the spa—and away from their four children and her harried criminal defense practice. John had gotten her a new washer and dryer. . . and never lived it down. Though he had learned his lesson.

  Kei smiled up at Alex, flashing her dimples.

  "Well? What’ll it be?"

  "My vacation request came through." She took a sip of her drink and then set the Styrofoam cup down.

  "You want a trip home? For Christmas?" They hadn't been back to Oahu since the wedding, and her mom and dad hadn’t seen Darrach since he was first born.

  "Can I think about it?"

  "You better think fast if we want to make holiday reservations."

  "Give me a couple days, okay?"

  Chapter Two: Keilana

  My husband was in a world of hurt.

  I sat watching him eat his sandwich and joke with John, all the while my mind was on my mid-morning revelation. I’d come down for a break, planning to sneak out to the Starbucks a few blocks away, only to get stopped by the guard at the security check.

  "There’s Agent Boudreaux. She can help you!"

  I’d smiled at Ted, while initially wondering whom I was supposed to help.

  He'd quickly explained. "This man says he's your father-in-law, and Agent Boudreaux –your husband—isn’t answering his phone."

  I forced my smile to remain in place while checking out the older man standing on the other side of the checkpoint. He was tall, dressed in Khaki pants and a sharply creased teal button-down. He wasn't as slender as my Alex—Zander—but the resemblance couldn’t be denied. Especially not in those eyes—the same ones my son had.

  Eyes currently wide with shock.

  If all else failed, just leave it to a woman to fix things. Damn Alex for making such a mess of things!

  "Can I buy you a cup of coffee?" I asked, giving Ted a wave and crossing through the checkpoint to greet my poor, shocked father-in-law. The last thing I needed was to air our family troubles in the middle of the Dallas FBI office.

  "Jerrod, right?" I offered him my hand with a smile and he shook it, then offered me his arm. Without another word, we crossed the semi-busy foyer and stepped into the damp December morning.

  Once we’d cleared the building’s front doors, he stopped and turned to me, a scowl on his face. "Care to explain just how it is I have daughter-in-law I don’t know about?"

  "Buy me a double mocha latte and I’ll tell you everything." I gave him my most charming smile and the stern, weather-beaten angles shifted, giving me the slightest hint of a smile. Albeit a wary one that didn't reach his eyes.

  We drove the few blocks to the coffee shop, stood in line and got our drinks, then settled at an outside table for privacy.

  "So what brings you to Dallas, Mr. Boudreaux?"

  "I think the bigger question is, is it true?"

  I nodded, almost embarrassed to say, "Yes, I’m your unknown daughter-in-law. Sorry for the confusion." Instead, I said, "He was supposed to tell you at Thanksgiving."

  He rubbed his chin, his eyes briefly focused on the ground. "When? When did this happen?"

  "Three years next month. We, um, we met at the Atlanta field office."

  "And you're an agent, too?"

  "Yes, sir, Mr. Boudreaux. I process crime scene evidence," I said with another nod.

  "Jerrod, please. I don't even know what to say. I came here to read my son the riot act." He threw his hands up, his pain and frustration written all over his face. "He did tell you what happened, didn't he? At Thanksgiving?"

  "He did." I popped the top off my latte and scooped up a fingerful of whipped cream thoughtfully. I loved Alex beyond anything, but he could be the biggest jackass. "I'm sorry about how things went with...your daughter—Delaney, right?"

  Many years ago, he’d cheated on his wife . He now had a daughter, a daughter who was currently living with them.

  The older man nodded. "I can’t believe that boy is so mad at me, that he didn’t tell us he’d gotten married. It’s one thing to not come home, but..." With a sigh, Jerrod eased back in the wrought-iron chair and sipped his coffee. Black. Just like Alex. "Why didn’t he bring you to his mother's birthday two years ago?"

  Grimacing, I put the lid back on my cup as I spoke, "I had a miscarriage shortly after we moved here."

  His face fell. "I’m so sorry."

  Nodding, I continued, unwilling to think about the miscarriage. I never did. I couldn’t. Especially now that we have Darrach.

  "I don’t agree with Alex, for the record. I don't agree with him about your daughter, and I don't think he should have kept our marriage from you. But it wasn't my place to tell you," I added with a shrug.

  Unsure of what to say next, I nodded slowly as a DART bus revved its engine and blew by in a cloud of diesel smoke that made us both wince. "So why are you here? Now? Today?"

  "It just seemed like the right thing to do, after Betti lost the baby."

  The bottom dropped out of my stomach and I set my latte on the table, sloshing hot liquid on my hand. "Betti...Ty’s wife?"

  Jerrod nodded, his displeasure obvious in the scowl on his face. "He didn't tell you his mother called last night?"

  "No," I breathed. "He told me he said some awful things to her, something about Ty’s ex-wife...but a miscarriage?" A hand pressed to my mouth, I blinked back the tears that pricked my eyes.

  Jerrod sighed and leaned toward me, patting my hand, despite the sticky latte. "A few days ago. I had to wait for things to settle down before I could get up here, and I was running late, or I would have caught you two at home. I still can’t believe my son didn’t tell me he had a wife."

  "And..." I reached for a napkin to dry my hand with. I almost didn’t want to say the words, not after hearing he’d just lost a grandbaby. It didn’t seem fair. I didn't have the heart or the stomach for it.

  "And?"

  "I can't believe he didn't tell me about Betti's baby," I lied. What else could I have said? It's okay? You have another grandson that you don't even know about?

  And now here my husband sat, smiling, acting like he didn’t have a care in the world, wanting to know what I wanted for my anniversary. I knew exactly what I wanted, but the asking would have to wait for a better, less public time. For the time being, Jerrod’s little visit was my secret. I’d even bribed Ted, telling him that I had a surprise brewing for Alex’s anniversary.

  And boy did I.

  Chapter Three: Alex

  The rest of Alex's afternoon passed uneventfully until they left to wade through rush hour traffic to pick up Darrach from daycare. "My vacation approval came through, too."

  "Good, because I’ve decided what I want for my anniversary present."

  He relaxed in his seat as they hit a slow-going stretch of highway, covering her hand with his, the Tahoe's steering wheel firmly gripped in his other hand. "What’s that?"

  "I want to spend Christmas with your family." She smiled over at him. "In Bluebonnet."

  Alex dropped her hand like it was on fire while he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. He slammed on the brakes with a grunt as a Prius cut in front of them, happy for the distraction, then slowly blew out a heavy breath. "Maybe next year—"

  "No next year! This year. Unless you were planning on waiting to tell them about us until Darrach graduates high school?"

  "Of course, not." He caught her frown out of the corner of his eye. His insides had instantly knotted at her request. There was...no way. "But after Thanksgiving—"

  "All the more reason to. It's time to mend fences and move forward. I’m sorry your dad cheated, I’m sorry you’re having a hard time dealing with the whole sister thing, but I’m having a hard time dealing with this, too. It
's not fair, Alexander! Ten years is long enough to hold a grudge—if that’s what it really is."

  She’d thought this out. Probably longer than just the afternoon. No wonder she hadn’t mentioned it at lunch. Neither she nor Shak had ever understood why he hadn't told his family about her and Darrach. It had nothing to do with her being biracial, or Darrach either. He wasn’t ashamed of them or that. This was about his dad cheating. This was about Delaney. Plain and simple.

  "Of course that’s what it is. You know this has nothing to do with you and Darrach." He didn't blame her for being impatient, he really didn’t, but now...now it was about timing. There was no way he could go to his family now and say he was married and had a bouncing baby boy. An announcement like that would be tantamount to a slap in Ty and Betti’s faces. He turned into the daycare and parked, his mind reeling as he tried to think of a way to change Kei's mind.

  "Well that’s not how it feels. You have until the twenty-third to call or write them, Alexander. I want to meet your family. I want our son to meet his family. That's what I want for our anniversary." She slid out of the SUV before he could stop her, slamming the door with a solid thud.

  Great, just great. What a mess. How the hell could he call his family? How the hell could he go home for Christmas? Worse, how the hell could he tell Kei no?

  He watched Keilana exit the daycare a few minutes later, Darrach on her hip, her lips pursed. She was mad, and it wasn’t often she was angry with him. She barely glanced at him as she strapped the baby in the car seat and slammed the back door.

  "Don't slam the door on him like that," Alex snapped as she climbed in the passenger side.

  She glared at him, her eyebrows puckered together. "Don’t talk to me like that."

  "Kei, you know—"

  "No, Alexander!" She rounded on him, her dark eyes blazing. "No more excuses! This is the perfect way to make up for you losing your temper at Thanksgiving!"

  Swallowing hard, he turned to a wide-eyed Darrach in the back seat who was listening to his parents argue. His lower lip was puckered into a pout. "Hey, buddy," Alex said softly. He got a quivering smile in return. "Did you have a good day?"

  "Can we please go home?" The snap of her seatbelt echoed like a gunshot through the truck.

  Darrach mewled and his father was in complete empathy.

  * * *

  For the first time in their marriage, he and Keilana were having A Major Fight. Not their usual kiss and make-up spats that barely lasted a day. Far from it. And nothing he did or said seemed to get through to her.

  December twenty-third finally arrived. Alex got up, dressed to go for a run and left her present—a diamond pendant and a gift certificate to her favorite spa—on the coffee table. When he returned at seven, the presents were gone and she sat curled up on the couch nursing Darrach. He stood at the foot of the couch, loose-limbed and sweaty from his run, hoping his peace offering was enough. "Happy Anniversary."

  She looked up at him expectantly. Waiting for more. Zander closed the space between them and sat beside her, not caring, for once, that he’d leave sweat stains on the material. Her brown eyes were so hopeful as she thanked him for her presents.

  He swallowed hard. "You're welcome."

  "That’s it?" The hope in her eyes turned to sadness, then anger as a tiny frown puckered her brows. Her lips thinned and her grip on Darrach tightened. "You’re not going to do it, are you? You're not going to call them. Nothing?"

  He'd thought it over. He really had. Besides the Ty and Betti issue, no way was he spending Christmas with his folks. Not even for Kei could he do that. He slowly shook his head. "No, Kei—"

  "Fine." With a nod, she shifted, turning her back to him.

  Alex sat watching Darrach, who eyed him over her arm. "Kei." He reached for her, wondering just how he could explain the why of it to her in a way that she would finally understand.

  She jerked her shoulder away. "It’s going to be a long week."

  Their vacation week together officially started today.

  "I’m going to take a shower." He leaned over and kissed Darrach’s head, then headed for the stairs, where the sound of his name brought him up short.

  He turned to face her, swallowing his disappointment and sadness at her anger. An anger he rightly deserved.

  "I love you."

  "I love you too, Angel."

  He stripped off his sweaty clothes once he reached the second floor, dumped them in the laundry hamper right inside the bathroom door, then turned back to the brightly wrapped package on the bed. He slowly unwrapped it, smiling at the collage of family photos that Kei had had matted and framed for him. Then he laughed to himself at the funny card she’d included.

  Everything would be fine. She couldn’t stay mad at him forever and Momma’s birthday was in March. Maybe, by then, everyone would have settled down, and he could tell Momma then or invite her up for lunch. Just the four of them. No brothers, no Aunt Susie, no Dad and no Delaney.

  He was halfway through his shower when the bathroom door flew open, bringing in a blast of chilly air that left him shivering. "Kei!"

  "Alex! Dade called. He says you need to come in. Something about the Sparks case. He said you'd know."

  "Did you tell him I'm on vacation?"

  "Special request from upstairs."

  So much for the beginning of his vacation, but it wasn’t the first time and wouldn’t be the last. And at least it would give Kei some time to cool down. "Fine."

  He stepped out of the shower, cleaner but no happier, and quickly dressed. He found Kei across the hall in the nursery, changing Darrach’s diaper. "I'll try not to be too long."

  "Alright."

  He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her, planting a soft kiss on her neck. "I’ll be back as soon as I can," he murmured, reaching out to squeeze Darrach’s chubby foot with a grin.

  She relaxed against him. "Take my car."

  "Are you sure?" The constriction in his heart eased up at her peace offering.

  "Go on," she gave him a gentle nudge with her elbow. "Take my car, you know you love it."

  "Thanks. Dinner tonight? Any place you want—The Mansion, maybe? If we can get Connie to babysit." He stood in the doorway watching her, feeling like a hopeful puppy.

  "I’ll call Connie while you’re gone." She smiled at him for the first time in almost three weeks, but that didn’t erase the sadness in her eyes.

  He crossed the room and cupped her face, kissing her again in a slow, easy play of tongue that made him anxious to get there and back. "I swear I’ll make it up to you, Angel."

  She just nodded as he leaned over and blew raspberries on Darrach’s naked belly. The baby squealed and let out a big belly laugh in response. Up to now he’d been quiet, as if he sensed his parents’ unhappiness. "I’ll be back as soon as I can."

  Downstairs, Alex filled a travel mug with coffee, then grabbed the keys to her Z4 off the key rack by garage door. With a click of a button, the door slid up, and he circled the car, climbing behind the wheel with all the eagerness of a sixteen-year-old with his first girlfriend. He slowly backed down the drive, engaging the automatic garage door behind him. There wasn’t much Kei was particular about, but her car was definitely one of them and she rarely let him drive it, claiming he dogged on it. Which he did...just not when she was with him. Of course, telling a man not to dog on a sports car was like setting a woman loose in a mall and telling her not to buy anything.

  With a smile, he downshifted and headed for the freeway.

  Chapter Four: Keilana

  I stood in Darrach’s nursery, him in my arms cooing and tugging at my hair as I waited for the sound of my car to fade away. A deep sigh of relief escaped me and I padded across the hall to our room on slippered feet, ready to put my plan into motion.

  I had hoped that pushing Alex to try again with his family would work, but he'd balked. His refusal to give me something so simple for an anniversary present stung. As did the reason why. H
e still hadn't mentioned his sister-in-law's miscarriage and his sin of omission had left me furious. It didn’t matter whether Alex had caused or contributed to it; he'd kept it from me.

  Initially, we’d intended to go to Bluebonnet after settling in Dallas two years ago, but I’d had the miscarriage. Alex had reluctantly gone without me and stayed gone barely twenty-four hours. He’d confessed that seeing his father and mother, who were obviously not happy, had been difficult and he couldn’t stand the tension. I'd respected that and let him take the lead regarding his family.

  But no more. Not after my visit with his father.

  At best, I had an hour to pack and get the hell out of town before Alex returned. I hated doing this to Alex; I hated doing this to us, but I didn't see any other way.

  I laid our largest suitcase on the bed and yanked two more totes out of the closet, and then got busy packing. My mind ran at a hundred miles per hour and so did the rest of me as I chattered to Darrach and dressed. He crawled around after me and I’d stop periodically to kiss and hug him. Darrach followed me across the hall to his room, crawling on chubby knees, making sweet baby noises as I loaded his diaper bag and a tote bag with necessities, then dressed him in warm clothes. Bless his heart, this wasn't the first Christmas I'd imagined for him.

  By the time I hauled everything downstairs, deposited the baby in his exer-saucer and packed some food for him, thirty minutes had gone by. My heart never slowed and my hands shook while I loaded the Tahoe. And I nearly came out of my skin at a knock on the front door, momentarily panicking at the thought of Alex returning too soon.

  Except, of course, Alex would never knock at the front door.

  Weak with relief, I made kissy-faces at Darrach as I flew past him and checked the peephole. Connie Shakela stood on my tiny front porch, dressed to the nines and her blond hair perfect.

  Sighing, I slid the chain back and turned the deadbolt. I couldn’t not answer the door, so I pasted a bright smile on my face and debated my next move. "Hey, what's up?" I panted, fully aware that I was sweating and shaking from nerves. "Where are the girls?"