Max 2 - A Love Remembered

by Annette Broadrick

  ''You've notified the sheriff?" Tim asked quietly.

  Sam nodded. "First thing this morning. He said he'd be out as soon as he could to see what he could pickup."

  Mrs. Brodie brought in their breakfast. Sam refused anything to eat and promised to let them know if there was any more information, then left.

  "What do you think?" Elisabeth said after Tim had allowed the silence to continue between them.

  "About what?"

  She just stared at him until he grinned. Something in his eyes caused her to drop her gaze and fiddle with the handle of her cup.

  "You're right," she said in a low voice. "It's really none of your business what happens around here. I know that."

  He shook his head. "Anything that concerns you will always be my business, Elisabeth, regardless of whether I continue to stay here or accept your edict and leave. I can't argue with you about our reasons for getting married or any agreements the two of us made when Charlie wasn't around. All I have to go by is my own feelings. And I feel committed to you. After last night I feel even more committed."

  "That's what I was afraid of!" she cried. 'That's why I didn't want us to make love. I didn't want anything to trigger that macho condition in you that would make you feel obligated to me."

  ''I don't feel obligated. I'm here because I want to be."

  ''Nonsense. You're here because Charlie got his own way again."

  Tim grinned. "The man wasn't God, you know. He couldn't control everything."

  "He did a great imitation of thinking he could, though."

  Tim reached over and placed his hand on hers and felt her quiver at his touch. "Everything's going to be all right, Elisabeth. Let's just give it some time, all right?"

  They sat there looking into each other's eyes. Tim could see the uncertainty and the pain in hers. He hoped she could see the concern and caring in his.

  "What are your plans for today?" he finally asked.

  She moved her hands to her lap. ''I thought I would try to do a little writing."

  ''Anything in particular?"

  He could almost see her withdrawing into herself. ''Oh, just the usual scribbling I always do to entertain myself, as Granddad always used to say."

  "Do you find it helps to write?"

  "Yes," she responded coolly. "I often find that I like the people I write about a great deal more than the ones I'm around."

  "Ouch." He leaned back in his chair and studied her. The warm, vibrant woman he had known was gone. In her place was the lady filled with pride who was fiercely independent. Well, he would allow her that pride and independence because he knew he could do nothing to change it. He understood both traits, having an abundant amount of his own.

  If she didn't want him, he would accept her decision. He didn't have to like it, he just had to accept it. He also had to keep his promise to Charlie.

  Rising, he nodded to her and said, "If you'll excuse me, I have some calls to make."

  "Aren't you leaving this morning?"

  "I know how eager you are to get rid of me, but there are a few details that Charlie asked me to take care of. I'll try to complete them as quickly as possible and get out of your hair." He left the room quickly, closing his mind to their situation.

  He still had a job to do. He'd deal with how he felt later.

  The first call he made was to Greg's office. Tim was relieved to learn that Greg was in.

  Greg answered his phone by saying, "Is this really the Tim Walker I used to know, the one I haven't heard from in so long Tve forgotten what he looks like?"

  ''Don't get smart."

  ''It certainly sounds like my old buddy, Timothy. How've you been?"

  "Busy. Is it too late to celebrate Cindy's birthday?"

  "Certainly not. Her first one has come and gone, of course. You know how time flies. But she's graduating from college now and we're going to throw a big bash that you're welcome to attend."

  "Cute, Duncan. Really cute. How does Brandi put up with you?"

  "She has a much better sense of humor than you do, I suppose. Where'd you misplace yours?"

  Tim sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Good question."

  Greg's voice sobered. "Problems?"

  "You could say that."

  "Anything I can do to help?"

  "Do you have any idea how relieved I am to hear you offer? Yeah, I could use some help."

  "Name it."

  "Is there a chance you could come to Colorado for a few days?"

  "When?"

  "As soon as you can get away."

  "Alone?"

  "Yeah."

  "Denver or the cabin?"

  "Neither. Cripple Creek.''

  There was a long silence. "Cripple Creek?" drawled Greg.

  "I'm staying at Charlie Barringer's place. Have you been here?"

  ''No, but I suppose I could find it. Didn't I just read somewhere that he'd passed away?"

  "The funeral was yesterday. He left a few things he wanted to have cleared up. I'd feel a hell of a lot better if I had you around to guard my back."

  "Hold on. Let me check my calendar."

  Tim doodled on the writing pad that had been placed on the desk, drawing squares, rectangles, circles with arrows pointing from one to the other.

  "I think I can rearrange things so I could leave early tomorrow morning. That should put me there by dark,"

  "Thanks." Tim gave Greg directions, then said, "I suppose I'd better explain something before you get here. I'm, uh, married to Elisabeth Barringer, Charlie's granddaughter.''

  An explosive silence greeted him.

  "Married?" Greg finally whispered as though the breath had been knocked out of him.

  "At least temporarily," Tim added grudgingly. "I'll try to explain when you get here. It's all a little confusing at the moment."

  "Do you want Brandi to know? She's going to be devastated that you didn't tell us sooner."

  "I'd thought of that. If you don't mind, I'd rather you didn't. As soon as I get this matter cleared up, there may be nothing to tell her."

  ''We'll talk," Greg said quietly. ''It sounds like you need to. I've never known you to do anything so out of character as to jump into a marriage with someone you don't know." He paused. "Or am I assuming wrong about your just having met her?"

  "Your assumption is correct."

  "Hang in there. I'm on my way."

  Tim managed a grin. "The cavalry to the rescue. Just like old times, right?"

  "I'll see you," Greg replied, ignoring the reference to the fact that Greg had once saved Tim's life when they'd been in the service. That was how they had met. Tim had never forgotten, and Greg always refused to discuss it.

  After he hung up, Tim sat for a few moments, then decided to find Sam and wait for the sheriff. He had to do something, keep his mind occupied, keep the thought of Elisabeth at bay. That was the only way he knew to survive.

  Tim spent the following hours riding with Sam in his Jeep, going over possible places to enter the ranch that were isolated enough for rustlers to risk coming on the property.

  They agreed to hire extra help to spell the regular hands during off-duty hours. While they were checking the area, Sam obligingly pointed out the spot where Tim had been found a few days before.

  Tim acknowledged to himself that he hadn't really believed Charlie's concerns were valid until he'd been attacked. He would not be careless again. He and Sam got out and walked the area, looking for signs that others had been there recently. The signs weren't hard to spot, as though the men who had made them hadn't been concerned with early detection.

  Tim explained to Sam what he thought was happening and why, and accepted his offer of help when the time came. Now, more than ever, Tim knew that Charlie had accurately judged Jason and Marcus.

  He found it strange how money and power affected some people. For some there was never enough. Since Charlie had been so concerned, Tim had assumed that he was leaving most of his estate to Elisabeth,
which would naturally create an aggressive fight. Neil, his attorney, had pointed out that Charlie had known better. By evenly disbursing his estate, Charlie knew that no judge would consider throwing out the will when the only reason for contesting it was spite. In monetary value, Elisabeth had only received her due.

  Tim's job was to make sure that she was allowed to live in peace.

  He thought of her questions about his job and how she had suggested that he might be an IRS agent. Perhaps it was an idea he could utilize. There was more than one way to get a person's attention, after all.

  Tim made a note to call Max when he returned to the house.

  ❧

  Elisabeth sat at the computer in the room she had converted into an office and stared out the window. She had used a need to write as an excuse to closet herself away from everyone. Mrs. Brodie knew not to disturb her until she decided to come out. Even her grandfather had always respected her need to be left alone.

  Her grandfather.

  She sighed, restlessly getting up. He seemed to be the basis of everything that was happening to her. At least her strong feelings for him seemed to control her behavior.

  How had she allowed herself to be caught up in such a situation?

  As far back as she could remember, Elisabeth had been taught by her mother that a woman had to be strong, that she had only herself to rely on, that sometimes emotions could betray a woman, causing her to make foolish choices.

  Invariably her mother used herself as an example. She had been in her early twenties, living in Tucson, earning an adequate living working in an office, when she'd met Elisabeth's father. He'd had an appointment to see Cathy's boss regarding some real estate. She had been flattered by his attention and accepted his invitation to dinner that night.

  Cathy had never been able to explain to Elisabeth how she could have known so quickly that Chuck Barringer was the man she wanted to have in her life. Since meeting Tim, Elisabeth could better understand her mother's reaction. Elisabeth had discovered the lack of control she had over her own emotions the day she'd walked into her grandfather's hospital room and seen Tim for the first time. Even now she couldn't begin to understand the thunderbolt experience it had been. Was it because of some hereditary flaw she and her mother carried that all their logical thinking processes disappeared when a certain type of male appeared in their lives?

  Her mother had only been able to shake her head, unable to find the words to explain what had happened. Elisabeth could only accept that from their first evening together, Cathy and Chuck had known that something momentous had happened between them and that it was too important to ignore.

  Chuck had been honest about his situation. He and his wife were separated. Because of his wife's family, background and concern for social standing, she would not consider divorce.

  None of that had mattered to Cathy. They had discussed the implications of a possible pregnancy. As much as Chuck had wanted to father a child of Cathy's, they had known it was impractical and unfair and had taken precautions to ensure that she would not become pregnant.

  Because of the papers he carried, she had been one of the first people to be notified of his unexpected death. Even now Elisabeth could see her mother's face whenever she talked about that time in her I'll. Death was the only eventuality neither of them had planned for.

  Cathy had quit her job so she could travel with Chuck, she had planned to go with him when he went to Europe, but at the last minute she became ill, and Chuck had had to go without her. Had she been with him, she might have died as well. Elisabeth had a hunch that Cathy might have wished for such a fate.

  But then her mother's face would light up as she told the next part of her story. How the illness that had prevented her from traveling with Chuck had not gotten better. That the news of his death had seemed to worsen her physical condition. That finally, knowing she had to get some help to get back on her feet, she went to the doctor, and he had told her she was pregnant.

  She wouldn't believe it. They had used birth control. How had it happened? The doctor had explained that nothing was one hundred percent foolproof. The fact remained that despite everything, she was going to have a part of Chuck after all. Elisabeth became Cathy's miracle baby.

  Elisabeth smiled at the memory. She had many happy memories of her mother. Cathy had wasted no time finding a place where she could have a child and raise it. She had devoted her life to raising Elisabeth.

  Cathy had loved her little daughter. She'd laughed when no one believed Elisabeth belonged to her because she looked just like her father. Cathy's hair had been dark, her eyes gray, and she had been petite. Elisabeth knew from a picture she'd seen of him that she looked like her father. She really hadn't cared, as long as her mother didn't mind.

  Elisabeth always listened to Cathy's stories about her love for Chuck, the choices she had made and the joy of having Elisabeth in her life. But in Elisabeth's mind she had perceived the problem Cathy would never point out: You can't count on love. You can only count on yourself. Things happen. People leave you, sometimes not because they want to, but because life works that way.

  Cathy had proven Elisabeth's theory to her by dying when Elisabeth was still so young.

  At fourteen, Elisabeth had known that she was capable of looking after herself and had been determined to prove it. That was when Charles Barringer barged into her life and demanded the right to look after her.

  She smiled at the memory. Granddad was a great one for demanding. He'd wanted to take her home with him, wrap her up in tissue and soft cotton and have her do nothing for the rest of her life, protected from the world.

  He had been too late to change who she was and how she dealt with I'll. Most surprising of all, he had accepted her. Oh, he had enjoyed battling with her, more for the fun of the argument than that he had any desire to win. He'd enjoyed crossing swords with her, but had always fought fair.

  Until now.

  Bringing Tim Walker into her life when she was at her most vulnerable had been a sneaky, underhanded thing to do to her. And he had known it. How, she didn't know, but her grandfather had known. She'd seen the look of delight on his face at her reaction to Tim.

  How could he have done this to her? All her careful plans, her sensible views about life and herself, her ability to think logically and practically had immediately dissipated like puffs of smoke in a sudden wind.

  Would it have made any difference to her if Tim had been a stranger to her grandfather as well as to her? Probably not, she decided honestly. After that first few hours together, when it seemed as though they had always known each other, she was ready to place her heart in his hands.

  She had done just that. She knew that Tim now believed she had only married him to please her grandfather. She was eager to grasp at that particular straw in an effort to give herself time to evaluate what was happening to her.

  After he was hurt, she had been determined to distance herself from him. During his memory loss he had made it clear that marriage wasn't a part of his life-style.

  She had known and understood that. Hadn't she felt the same way? Until she met Tim, of course.

  Elisabeth understood herself a little better. It wasn't that she didn't love Tim or that she didn't need Tim; she didn't want to need him. She wanted to stay invulnerable to hurt.

  Losing her grandfather had been a reminder, if she had needed one, about the pain of loving, then losing, someone.

  Turning back to her manuscript, Elisabeth felt relief that at least she had her make-believe world she could escape to whenever life became too consuming for her. Thank God she had gained some level of professional security in her chosen field.

  Thinking of her career reminded her of the argument she and Tim had had the day he had been hurt. He had come looking for her, too impatient to wait for her to surface. He had seen the letter from her editor, as well as the royalty statements that had arrived, which she had neglected to put away. Elisabeth hadn't expected anyone to come into
her office and had grown careless.

  She had gotten angry at Tim's questions, angrier still that he should criticize her decision not to share her success with her grandfather. She had reacted by becoming defensive, until they were both shouting. It had been a silly argument in some ways, but it pointed to the heart of her dilemma. She had spent too many years keeping people at a distance. Her reasons for not sharing her professional success with her grandfather had been based on the knowledge that he would not really appreciate what she was doing, and she didn't want him to ridicule her efforts.

  Perhaps she'd had something of the same feelings about Tim finding out. As it happened, she never learned his reaction. By the time she was able to talk to him again, he had no memory of discovering her secret.

  Elisabeth realized she was hoping he would leave before all his memories returned. Making love with him had been a mistake. It had merely served to strengthen her resolve about the relationship. She was weak around him, without willpower. She couldn't take much more.

  The sooner he left the better. Eventually she would be able to get on with her life alone. She didn't want to consider the fact that it might be too late. The damage had been done.

  Chapter 8

  Dinner that night was strained, although each of them took pains to be polite. Elisabeth's thoughts kept returning to the time when they would go upstairs and once again share a bed. Why had she thought they could sleep together and not be drawn to each other? But she had wanted to be near him, particularly once he'd been injured. After the doctor explained that there was little that could be done except to allow him time to heal, she had insisted he be kept at the house.

  She had cherished those hours with him. She had spent the time sitting beside him, watching him, studying him and, when he murmured disjointedly, discovering how her calm voice and soothing touch seemed to comfort him.

  She had also wanted to let him know that she had finally agreed with him about her work. The next time she'd been to see her grandfather, she'd told him the truth about her career. He hadn't been as surprised as she expected. He was very proud of her for showing the initiative and stubbornness to stick with it.