Meeting Her Match

by Debra Clopton

“Look, Sheri, I’ve been where you are, and it is an empty life.”

  Sheri stared at him, reading the tone of his voice instead of his words, feeling as if her brain were misfiring information. “Wait,” she snapped as he pulled into the drive behind Clint’s big black truck. “What exactly are you saying?” she asked slowly.

  He leveled serious eyes on her, and if she hadn’t been seeing red she might have been touched that he cared.

  “It’s obvious you like to date, to fool around. I’m not one to judge you. Like I said, I walked in your shoes until a few months ago.”

  “What gave you that idea?” She gritted the words out as though her jaw had been wired shut.

  “Come on, Sheri. I saw the way all the cowboys were eyeing you that day the mustangs were delivered. You were a regular Mae West out there and very comfortable in the limelight.”

  “And?” she growled, her ears hotter than firecrackers and her temper about to blow.

  “Look, Sheri, like I said, I’ve been there. I know what it’s like, and I don’t want to go back there. You’d do well to do the same,” he finished quietly and then stepped out of the truck.

  Sheri stared at the closed door and felt as if she’d just been slapped. How dare he. He thought—he had the audacity to think—she was a loose woman. Just because he had a past, he assumed…ohhhh. He didn’t know her at all. Fuming, she was surprised when he opened her door and held out his hand to help her down from the seat.

  She gave him an icy once-over. “Oh, please,” she snapped, hopping down from the high seat and storming off. “The last thing I need is you opening the door for me.” She took a few steps away from him, spun back around and planted her finger in his chest. “Stay away from me.” She started to walk off, then whipped back around. “You know, you have a lot of nerve to judge me like that. You don’t know me. You don’t know anything at all about me.”

  She was so humiliated she didn’t know if she could make it through the Bible study. When she reached the door she sucked in a calming breath and tried to settle the shaking of her hands. Closing her eyes she placed her palms against her stomach and fought for control.

  When she heard footsteps behind her she rapped harder on the door and willed Norma Sue to answer quickly. She could hear laughter coming through the screen. “Come on,” she whispered, willing the stinging in her eyes to go away, and the door to open before Pace caught up to her and saw just how much his words had hurt.

  Pace watched Sheri yank open Norma Sue’s front door without waiting to be invited inside. The woman was literally fuming she was so mad. Not that he blamed her. He had voiced an opinion that would have been better left unspoken. Though her denial could have been strictly from embarrassment, he couldn’t help feeling a load of remorse. He had judged her, and he didn’t have that right. Once again he’d said something he shouldn’t have. Why couldn’t he keep his mouth shut when he was around Sheri?

  “Well, don’t just stand there, Pace, get in here,” Norma Sue called, stepping out onto her front porch. She held the screen door open for him. He paused at the bottom of the steps, wrapped his hand around the railing and took a deep breath. Back in Idaho he would have been sitting on his horse checking fence line or cooking himself a pan of beans on an open fire out in front of his rover’s shack. He wouldn’t be standing on the porch of a sweet church lady about to force on a happy face and pretend he was having a good time.

  He was way out of his element here.

  He was beginning to wonder about the validity of his whole idea of moving to Mule Hollow. Oh well, he was here and he was going to have to ride it out. Sweeping his hat off, he grasped the door just above Norma Sue’s gray hair. There was no excuse for bad manners. “After you,” he said, forcing a smile.

  She beamed up at him. “You always did have good manners, son. And isn’t that nice of you to bring Sheri?”

  If the Lord had wanted to put him in his place, He did it right then and there. What a hypocrite he was. What kind of manners had he shown Sheri?

  “Hey, everybody,” Norma Sue yelled, entering the house in front of him. “Pace brought Sheri.”

  Pace paused just inside the door as everyone turned to look at him. Including Sheri. Looking at her he felt lower than dirt, and it occurred to him that it was just one step back and he’d be out the screen door and headed toward his truck. He hadn’t signed on for this kind of scrutiny when he’d moved to Mule Hollow. He swallowed hard. Nothing came to mind to say in return to the odd proclamation. So he’d given his neighbor a lift. What was the big deal about that? That the room was extraordinarily silent had him pulling at his collar and wishing he’d worn his neckerchief to hide the color he could feel creeping up his neck.

  Her eyes bright, Sheri smiled suddenly, shocking him since she’d been mad enough to spit tacks only seconds before.

  “Norma Sue, don’t embarrass Pace. It was just a ride. You know me, no way am I passing up a ride with a good-looking cowboy.”

  That’s when he saw it. The glint of challenge in her eyes and the barely discernible edge to her voice. He was going to have to apologize to her, but not here. Not even if it was apparent to him that the smile plastered on her face was purely for show, and she was really madder than a hornet.

  Esther Mae broke the silence as she came flying out of the kitchen in a flurry, wiping her hands on her apron and looking as though she’d just won the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes. “Did I hear Pace gave you a ride over here?”

  “You heard right, Esther Mae,” Norma Sue said, and Pace didn’t miss the look that passed between the two ladies before they both turned back to him.

  Why did he suddenly feel like prime rib?

  “Well, don’t just stand there,” Norma Sue said, grabbing his arm. “Come on in, and let’s get this shindig started.”

  He didn’t miss the laughter in Sheri’s eyes, either. Suddenly, he got the feeling the joke was on him.

  Chapter Eight

  There were a good many people standing around the small living room as Norma Sue hustled Pace around, introducing him to everyone. All the while, he was aware of Sheri in his peripheral vision. First, she was talking to Lacy in the corner near the entrance to the kitchen. They were laughing. When Lacy left the room, Sheri went with her and Pace had trouble focusing on the conversation going on around him. He wondered what Sheri was up to. Plus, his conscience was eating a hole in his stomach.

  He wasn’t certain what was going on with the sudden twinkle in Norma Sue’s and Esther Mae’s eyes. But at the moment, they weren’t his concern. He’d judged Sheri. He kept coming back to the words he’d said, and every time he thought about them he felt more hypocritical.

  He had a past, yes, but just because she appeared to be living a life similar to what he’d left behind didn’t mean he had any right to assume things about her. He needed some air and time to think and he escaped to the outside as soon as he found the chance. Clint and Norma Sue’s husband, Roy Don, were out by the wooden ice cream machines, and he’d never been happier to see the outdoors as he was when he stepped onto the back porch and saw them.

  “You look like you’ve almost had your limit of socializing for one day,” Clint said, grinning.

  “You’re enjoying my discomfort a little too much,” Pace said drily.

  “Oh, believe me, I am.” Clint’s smile broadened.

  Roy Don spat a string of tobacco juice. “You two always did have a way of enjoyin’ each other’s misery.”

  Pace and Clint had spent many days together roaming the ranch when they were barely teens. Both of them motherless, they’d bonded and learned together to work hard and respect the land. They’d also learned to have a good time while getting their jobs done.

  “That’s what friends are for, isn’t it, Roy Don, to be there for the good and the bad times?” Pace replied, catching sight of Sheri coming out the door.

  She was smiling, her eyes twinkling as she practically jogged off the deck. Pace forgot what h
e’d been about to say. Clint said something, and Pace forced his gaze back to his friend, who was now grinning, watching him with speculation in his eyes. Pace scowled but didn’t have time to deny anything. Despite everything that had happened, there was no contradicting that Sheri was a beautiful woman. He was certain Clint saw that he’d noticed the fact.

  “Hey, boys,” she drawled, looking playfully at him.

  Pace immediately went on red alert as she breezed over to stand beside him, all smiles. No one but him knew she was mad enough to tar and feather him given half the chance.

  “Norma Sue says to bring that ice cream in so we can get the Bible study started.”

  Roy Don twirled the edge of his mustache and grinned from Sheri to Pace. “Tell her we’re on our way, little lady.”

  “Will do,” Sheri drawled slowly, winked at Pace then sashayed off like she was back on the red carpet.

  What was that all about? He decided keeping up with Sheri’s personalities was a job and a half. Perplexed, he rubbed the back of his neck knowing full well that Roy Don and Clint were staring at him. His thoughts whirring, he watched until Sheri disappeared into the house.

  “So that’s the way it is. You gonna give me and Clint a hand here, Pace, or you gonna stare at that closed door all afternoon like a lovesick pooch?” Roy Don asked. Pace could hear the laughter in the older man’s slow Texas drawl.

  “Now hold on. You two better not be getting any ideas,” he warned sternly.

  Roy Don let out a good belly laugh. “Son,” he said between guffaws, “it’s not me and Clint you need to worry about. Haven’t you figured that out yet?”

  Pace got an instant playback of the look he’d seen on Norma Sue’s and Esther Mae’s faces, and he had the sinking feeling that Roy Don was more than right.

  Sheri walked to Pace’s truck and waited as he finished his conversation with Clint. The night had been full of surprises, and truthfully she felt a little ashamed. This had been a Bible study and an ambush all rolled into one nice neat package. Something about that just didn’t sit right.

  Not that she’d planned it, but she couldn’t have planned it any better, either. Now that she knew what he thought of her she was shamefully feeling a bit vindicated.

  Pace giving her a ride had been the catalyst she needed to set her plan in motion, and now he would see that there was no stopping this runaway train once it got started. From here on out, all she’d have to do was add a little fuel to the fire every so often and the posse would do the rest. She had asked him to participate with her in this venture to stop them from trying to run her life when really, his cooperation wasn’t needed after all.

  She watched Pace stride toward the truck and pushed away any remorse she might be feeling. The man had insulted her, and this was the ultimate payback. True, she liked to date. She liked going out to dinner, going to the movies. She loved picnics. Hiking. She absolutely loved a good kiss. That didn’t make her a player. She had morals. She had boundaries, and who was he to come in here and immediately think badly of her?

  She crossed her arms and looked straight ahead as he climbed into the truck. She could have gotten a ride home from someone else, but watching his reactions was too much fun. Why, it was so perfect she could almost let go of her anger at the guy.

  She waited for him to say something as he pulled his seat belt on, but he didn’t even glance her way. Instead, he carefully backed the truck out of the drive and headed toward their homes.

  Sitting in the darkness she rolled several conversation ideas through her mind, but didn’t feel compelled to try and make small talk with him. No need to mess up the mood. He was uncomfortable, probably confused. She watched him catching the speculative glances all evening, and the poor man had no idea what was about to happen to him. Yep, she could see that on some level he suspected what was going on, but he really had no idea what wheels had just rolled into motion.

  Good. It would serve him right, Mr. High and Mighty.

  Maybe now he would see what she meant when she said a single person had a right to freedom of choice. He was about to get his very own visual lesson, and that might be the best thing for him.

  “You’re not going to tell me what happened back there, are you?” he said at last.

  “Now what fun would there possibly be in me letting you in on that little tidbit?”

  A heavy silence ensued.

  “If it’s worth anything I shouldn’t have judged you like that.”

  She straightened in the seat. “You’re right. It’s not worth anything.” Oh, she was feeling ornery.

  To her surprise he drove the rest of the way without saying anything else. How insulting…the man had given her a half-baked apology and then he’d just given up.

  Not that she would have accepted his apology—but still, the man could have tried a little harder.

  Like a silent lug he maneuvered his big truck around her Jeep where it was blocking the driveway. As soon as he came to a halt she hopped out and stomped toward the house, more than ready to get away from him.

  Not that he cared. He was already backing out the minute her foot hit the dirt. She had never been treated so inconsequentially in all of her life.

  Why, it was all she could do not to turn around and glare at him. But no way was she going to give him that satisfaction. She just grumbled her frustrations all the way to her door and slammed it after she’d entered. He was long gone by then, and she didn’t have to worry about him seeing how bothered she was by his behavior. It was a no-brainer as to why the man had always lived in the wilderness alone. He belonged there.

  Sheri woke feeling as surly as she felt when she’d crawled under the covers the night before. Glancing at the clock she felt even more churlish. She didn’t have to be at the salon until ten and it was only six. She hadn’t gone to sleep until sometime after midnight so waking up this early was not the best morale booster. How had a simple plan to shake things up in Mule Hollow given her the headache she was having? A headache that wore scuffed boots, clinking spurs and a neckerchief she’d like to twist into a noose around his handsome neck.

  She tried to put him out of her mind, yanking the covers tighter around her head, but Pace Gentry plagued her. Plagued her!

  All right…he interested her. Rude and all, the man would not leave her thoughts. She closed her eyes, then opened them when she heard a sound she didn’t recognize. She sat up, plopped her feet on the carpet, and stumbled to the bedroom window facing the front yard.

  She rubbed her eyes, trying to focus. There was a pair of booted feet sticking out from beneath her Jeep.

  Pace’s truck told her precisely who the boots belonged to. Growling, she stomped to the closet, yanked on her clothes, and stormed outside to see why he was piddling with her vehicle.

  “Excuse me,” she said to his legs. “May I be so bold as to inquire why you’re under my vehicle?” She crossed her arms and tapped her bare foot in the dirt, waiting for him to show his face. The face she’d thought about all night long, whether she’d wanted to or not.

  “Hand me that wrench, please.”

  She frowned. Did he not hear her? Looking around, she grabbed the wrench off the fender and slapped it into the hand he extended.

  “Ouch,” he said, but managed to hang on to the tool.

  She bit the inside of her lip. Hurting him hadn’t given her the satisfaction she’d hoped for, and she felt a bit ashamed.

  May I remind you the man basically called you an easy woman? Right. On that thought she looked around for something bigger to hit him with. Spotting a pretty good-sized tree limb across the road, she stormed toward it.

  “It should work now.”

  His quiet voice halted her steps, and she felt a bit of remorse at her unrepentant hostility. Spinning around she was shocked to see him already standing with his back to her as he pulled the hood closed. He wore a light gray T-shirt that was stretched across his back. There were bits of sand and grass clinging to the material, per
fectly highlighting every lean muscle as he secured the hood. She had the sudden urge to reach out and dust him off. Turning to face her, he met her gaze. It wasn’t fair that he was so gorgeous. He had that morning stubble thing going on, and she had to swallow the lump that formed in her throat, noticing how the shirt contrasted with the deeper tones of his eyes.

  “W-what are you doing here?” she managed, plunking her fists to her hips and ignoring the ker-thunk of her heart.

  “Look, Sheri. I was out of line yesterday. It seems I’m saying that to you constantly. I said some things that I shouldn’t have said. I insulted you, and I had no right. Like I said before, I’ve behaved badly from the first moment we met. I’ve judged you and you’re right, I don’t know you.” He raked a hand through his hair.

  Sheri followed every movement but got stuck on his eyes. They weren’t hard as steel today but soft like a dove’s wing.

  “I’m asking for your forgiveness.”

  Walking to her Jeep, she traced a finger along the hood. He’d made an effort, so that dictated that she had to follow whether she was ready or not. Glancing sideways, she looked up into his eyes again and realized that she was ready. More than ready.

  “You fixed my Jeep?” she asked. He nodded, letting his gaze slide over her face. A tremor shivered through her and Sheri stepped away from him, keenly aware of how close they’d been standing.

  “Okay, I forgive you. Now, I feel the need for coffee,” she said, spinning away, suddenly desperate to put distance between her and the enticing pull of his eyes and that smile and those muscles…. She padded quickly across the lawn. “Do you want a cup or not?” she called, glancing over her shoulder as soon as there was a bit of distance between them. She told herself it all had to do with her plan, but when he quirked an eyebrow and his eyes sparkled in the early-morning light…her mouth went dry and she had to remind herself to focus.

  “Coffee,” he said. “Sounds good.”

  Well, she thought, with lengthy sentences such as that the man wasn’t going to get himself into trouble, that was for certain. Watching him cross the lawn toward her, she smiled as a sense of anticipation rippled through her.