His Forever Texas Rose

by Stella Bagwell

  “Big Mike—is that your father?”

  “Yes. His name is Michael, but since he was a young boy, everyone has called him Big Mike.”

  “I see. I guess you must have been pretty angry with Big Mike when all of this happened,” he said, while trying to imagine the hell that must have been going on in Nicole’s life.

  “Well, I was somewhat angry,” she agreed. “But I’ve always loved Dad and I tried to look at things with an open mind. He had reason to be unhappy. His job kept him away from Fort Worth most of the time, and Mom had become very uninterested in anything going on with him, even when Big Mike was home. They grew apart and his eye wandered—I think it was that simple.”

  “If your mother was so dependent on you, how did you manage to move out here? You mentioned having a brother—did he take over caring for her?”

  She groaned and closed her eyes. “No. Trace lives in Louisiana and works on offshore drilling rigs. I told him to stay there because there was hardly any point to both of us disrupting our lives. And anyway, Mom had plenty of money to hire private nursing care or even a companion to make her feel not so alone. But she refused. She wanted to cling to me instead.”

  “That must have been damned rough on you.”

  “Yes, especially when she would beg me not to leave her,” Nicole agreed. “But you haven’t heard the half of it yet. Less than a year after my parents divorced, Big Mike came back to Fort Worth and begged Angela to forgive him. And, of course, she did. Now they’re remarried and happier than I’ve ever seen them. In fact, they’re like two different people. Like newlyweds who can’t keep their eyes or their hands off each other.”

  “Aw hell, you’re kidding.”

  Her eyes opened to settle on his face. “I realize it sounds like some cheesy movie plot, but that’s actually what happened. And once Mom was off the anxiety and depression meds, I decided it was time for me to break free. So here I am in Arizona living an entirely different life. Except that—”

  “Except what? Surely you’re thrilled that your parents got everything worked out.”

  “I am,” she said. “And my father has told me more than once how grateful he was that I’d stuck through the rough times with Mom. But I—well, I should be ashamed of myself, Trey. Because I—still can’t rid myself of the resentment I feel toward Mom, especially. That makes me sound awful and look even worse, doesn’t it?”

  He shook his head. “No. It seems pretty understandable to me. You didn’t tell your father to go have an affair or divorce your mother. It wasn’t your fault that when trouble hit, she was too emotionally weak to hold up.”

  She studied him for a moment before she sat up straight and covered her face with both hands. As Trey watched her, he feared she was going to cry, and he wasn’t sure he’d know exactly how to console her. But then her hands fell away and she looked at him with a mixture of gratitude and misgiving.

  “Thank you, for being so understanding. And I agree with you. It wasn’t my fault that my parents’ marriage crumbled. Nor was it my place to try to put it back to together. But, as children, we’re supposed to take care of our parents when they’re in need. After all, they took care of us until we became grown-ups, right?”

  “Uh, mine tried. I’ll put it that way,” Trey admitted, while thinking of the years of struggling he and his mother had gone through because his father had moved on without them.

  “I guess—it’s just hard for me to forget all that I sacrificed to keep her from—well, for a long time I feared she might take her own life. She seemed that low in spirit. Then when Big Mike returned, Mom flipped a switch and was suddenly a different woman. That was hard to take. And now I feel like I’ve earned the right to live my own life the way I want to live it.”

  He reached for her hand and pressed it between his palms. “Are you saying your parents want something different for you?”

  Her lips twisted to a wry slant. “Mom calls me every day, urging me to come back to Texas. There are some days I get three or four calls from her, along with a half-dozen text messages. Dad wants to buy me a new house, a car—whatever my heart desires just to get me to live near them. Sometimes, Trey, it gets to be almost more than I can bear.”

  Whatever her heart desires. Exactly what did Nicole’s heart desire, he wondered. And where did he rate among the things she wanted in life? Did he want to be a part of her wishes?

  Even as he attempted to answer the self-imposed question, that unexplained pressure returned to his chest. In an effort to ease the discomfort, he sat up and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

  “Sometimes it takes more than a thousand miles to fix a problem, Nicci. If you don’t want to go back there, then it’s up to you to make your feelings clear to your parents. No matter how much they might protest.”

  She let out a long sigh and then twisted her head just enough to give him a smile. “Roslyn is always telling me I need to get more of a spine. Sounds like you’re giving me the same advice.”

  Deciding it was well past time to lighten the moment, Trey chuckled and, starting at her waist, climbed two fingers up the middle of her back. “Your backbone feels sturdy enough to me. All you need to do is use it.”

  He began easing her down on the bed and she let out a provocative chuckle. “What are you doing? Testing its flexibility?”

  “I’ve decided it bends perfectly.” Once she was settled on the mattress, his hands left her shoulders to cup around the backs of her thighs. “Now I think I need to examine your hamstrings. It would be awful if you pulled one. Everyone at the clinic would want to know why you’re hobbling.”

  Chuckling under her breath, she pushed at his chest until he was lying flat on his back and her warm little body was draped over his.

  “Maybe you should be the one worried about hobbling into work tomorrow.”

  She teased the words against the corner of his lips, and Trey wasn’t surprised to feel a fresh surge of heat rush through his body.

  His mouth curved into a taunting grin. “You’re quite a woman,” he said slyly. “First you starve me, now you threaten to cripple me. What next?”

  Her gray eyes glittered as she gazed down at his face. “How about me making love to you?” she whispered.

  Slipping his arms around her back, he pressed her tight against him and forgot everything except the warm, tender joy filling his heart.

  “I’m all yours, sweet Nicci.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Here you are!” Roslyn sang out as she practically skipped her way into the break room. “I went to the front desk and found Loretta sitting in for you.”

  Nicole pulled out the folding chair next to her and motioned for Roslyn to join her at the utility table.

  “I kept waiting for a lull in the action, but it never came. Luckily, Loretta offered to take over so that I could eat my lunch.”

  Roslyn glanced at her watch. “Lunch! Nicci, it’s two thirty in the afternoon. Why didn’t you yell for help before now?”

  Nicole shrugged. “No big deal. I wasn’t that hungry anyway.”

  And why would she be? she thought wryly. The enchilada meal that she and Trey had finally gotten around to eating at one thirty this morning had stuck with her until recently.

  Roslyn sank into the adjoining chair and looked at her with kind concern. “I know you want to prove to Chandler and me and everyone else here at the clinic that you’re a dedicated worker. But there’s no need for you to go overboard. You’re always here early and leaving late. You rarely take a short coffee break and—”

  Nicole held up her hand to interrupt her friend’s assessment. “Listen, I’m not trying to prove anything. I’m just doing my job. That’s all.”

  Roslyn rolled her eyes, and as Nicole studied her pretty face, she realized the young woman who’d been her friend all those years back in Fort Worth was basically gone. Since Roslyn
had moved here to Arizona, married Chandler and created a family, she’d morphed into a different person. Instead of being little more than Martin DuBose’s sad, dutiful daughter, she was now a happy, confident wife and the mother of two children. She never stressed over the heavy workload at the clinic. Nor did she chew her fingernails if everything wasn’t perfect at home; she took it all in stride.

  “Well, I’m only trying to point out that you don’t have to do your job quite so much.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll pace myself.” She returned the last section of her sandwich to its wrapper before she turned a thoughtful look at her friend. “Ros, when did you realize you were in love with Chandler?”

  Roslyn’s features twisted with comical confusion. “What is this? Are you doing some sort of survey on the subject of love?”

  Hating the idea that she probably looked like a blushing teenager, Nicole grabbed her coffee cup and took a couple of sips. “I’ve been wondering, that’s all.”

  Daring a peek at her friend, she watched Roslyn’s brows form a straight line. No doubt she was worried about her, Nicole thought. She was acting out of the norm. But wasn’t that typical behavior for a woman who’d fallen in love? To go around with her head in a foggy dream?

  “Oh honey, don’t tell me you’re still agonizing over giving up Randy?” she said in a frustrated voice. “I remember how crushed you were when your dreams of marrying him ended. But face, it, when you told him you were staying in Texas with your mother instead of going with him to California, he didn’t care enough to even put up a fight to win you over. A woman wants her man to love her passionately. To do everything humanly possible to keep her at his side. Randy was a sap. He wasn’t the man for you.”

  “He went into the Marines, Ros. You can’t say he lacked ambition or gumption.” Even as Nicole said the words, she realized that Roslyn’s assessment of the situation was right on target. Randy hadn’t cared enough to fight for Nicole’s love. In fact, he’d simply said he was disappointed with her decision not to marry him and walked away without a backward glance.

  Roslyn snorted. “A guy with brawn and muscle can be a wimp in the ways that really count. And in my opinion Randy was a big one.”

  Nicole laughed with relief. “Thank God I didn’t waste any more time on him.”

  Roslyn arched a brow at her. “I do believe you’ve seen the light.”

  Nicole smiled as the image of Trey’s handsome face flickered into her mind’s eye. “Seeing the truth changes everything. Now, back to my earlier question. How did you know it was love with Chandler?”

  She tilted her blond head one way and then the other. “If you’re looking for a simple answer, then I guess I realized I was in love with Chandler when I considered moving on to California. The idea of life without him was like staring into a black hole. It was incomprehensible.”

  Nicole sighed as her thoughts drifted back to last night and the intimacy she’d shared with Trey. Making love to him had changed everything for her. Now all her hopes and dreams and priorities led straight to him.

  Roslyn’s hand was suddenly waving in front of Nicole’s line of vision.

  “Yoo-hoo, Nicci? You’re off in outer space!”

  “Sorry. I was thinking about what you said,” Nicole explained.

  Leaning closer, Roslyn peered at her. “Why, Nicole Nelson, I believe there’s a dreamy fog in your eyes! Have you—” Pausing, she left the table and went over to the open doorway. After a quick glance down the hallway, she shut the door, then returned to her chair and grabbed hold of Nicole’s hands. “Have you fallen in love? With Trey?”

  A hot blush stormed over Nicole’s cheeks. “Go ahead and tell me I’m an idiot. For the past year or more, I’ve been avoiding men at every turn. I haven’t wanted to think about marriage or love or anything remotely connected. My plan was to wait until—well, until I’d gathered some common sense together. I believed I needed to take the time to decide whether that’s really what I wanted.”

  Roslyn laughed. “That’s ridiculous! You don’t have to ask yourself what you want! From the time we were young girls, all you ever talked about was being a wife and mother—having your own family. It’s been your dream.”

  Nicole groaned ruefully. “Sure, I remember that dream. But it turned into a nightmare after going through my parents’ divorce and remarriage fiasco. When I left Fort Worth, I had just about closed the door on wanting anything to do with love. But then I came out here and what do I do? Swoon over a man that I’ve only known for a few weeks! I must be out of my mind.”

  Roslyn shook her head. “Do you remember when I first started working here at the clinic? You thought I’d lost my mind. Me, city-girl Roslyn, helping nurse a bunch of sick animals. You thought I was mixed-up and probably making a mistake about leaving Fort Worth and my pampered life behind. I believe you even thought I was crazy for jumping into marriage with Chandler after I’d just given birth to another man’s baby.”

  Deciding she had no option but to take the honest route, Nicole nodded. “Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m guilty on all those counts. I can also see quite clearly that I was wrong about everything. You made all the right choices.”

  Roslyn’s gave her an encouraging smile. “You’ll make the right choices, too, dear Nicci. All you have to do is follow what your heart is telling you.”

  “I can do that. Trouble is, I don’t really know what Trey is thinking or feeling about me. He, uh, likes me enough, I guess. But he’s not one to talk much about his feelings or his wants for the future. The only plans he’s mentioned is wanting land, cattle and horses. Nothing about a wife or children. And then he keeps giving me these impressions that he thinks I’m too good for him, or he’s not good enough for me.”

  “Nicci, Trey needs time to adjust. You’re a different type of woman than he’s accustomed to dating.”

  Dating? Was that the word for it? The times she and Trey had spent together seemed like so much more. But maybe she was reading too much into his smiles and kisses, the tender way he touched and held her.

  “What do you mean?” she asked. “Has Trey dated a lot? Loretta mentioned that he had a serious girlfriend once. But that’s all.”

  Roslyn shook her head. “From what I know about Trey, his idea of dating is going to the Fandango to drink beer and dance with the local girls.”

  “I see,” Nicole mumbled thoughtfully. “So it’s not his nature to get serious over a woman?”

  “I’ve never seen that side of him. But from what Chandler has told me, Trey had a couple of serious girlfriends in the past. Although, that was several years ago and long before I moved here and married Chandler. But as for you—I’m thinking Trey probably sees you as a princess sitting high up on a pedestal and he’s a lowly court jester.”

  Nicole frowned at the thought. “That’s plain silly. Just because my parents have money or that I’ve graduated from college doesn’t make me a princess!”

  “I understand that and so do you, but Trey needs time to figure it out for himself. That’s what I think.” Roslyn’s gaze swept up to the clock on the wall, and she suddenly jumped to her feet. “Oh my gosh, I need to get back to the recovery room!”

  Nicole began to gather the leftovers of her lunch. “Uh, Ros, I think I must’ve sidetracked you. Did you come in here hunting me for a reason?”

  Roslyn snapped her fingers. “Right! I wanted to invite you to Chandler’s birthday party Friday night at Three Rivers Ranch. Maureen’s shindigs are always fun, so I think you’ll enjoy it. And Trey will be there, too, so you shouldn’t get lonely.”

  She winked at Nicole, then hurried out of the breakroom.

  * * *

  A half hour past the clinic’s regular closing time, Trey and Chandler had left the treatment barn and were on their way to the clinic building when Nicole met them halfway on the beaten path.

  Since Trey had left he
r house in the wee hours of this morning, he’d been so busy he’d not had the opportunity to see her or even send a text. Now as his gaze took in her wrapped red dress sprinkled with yellow flowers and the long hair draped upon her shoulders, Trey felt his heart jump into a happy jig. Has this woman really held him close and rained passionate kisses, not only on his lips, but on every other part of his body? Had she really made love to him as though he was the most desirable, precious thing she’d ever touched? He was still having trouble believing the night had been real instead of a fantastic dream.

  Chandler was the first to speak. “Hey, Nicci, you should be headed home, shouldn’t you?”

  She shook her head. “Not yet,” she answered. “I needed to let you know there’s an emergency call on the phone. A horse has been injured at a roping arena south of town. I’ve put the person on hold—in case you need to speak with her.”

  “Thanks. I’ll take the call in my office,” he said to Nicole. To Trey he added, “I’ll need to get some meds from the supply room. You might make sure the truck has all our equipment.”

  “Right. I’ll wait for you there,” Trey told him.

  As Chandler hurried away, Trey turned his attention to Nicci. The soft smile on her face had him wishing he could gather her up and kiss her right here in the open, no matter who might be watching.

  “Hi,” she said gently.

  “Hi, yourself. I’ve tried all day to find a moment to text you, but it never came. We’ve been swamped.”