Choose Your Heart

by Callie Hutton

  Kerry flicked on the radio. Lady Antebellum’s I Need You Now sounded as she eased into the left lane to pass the slow moving car in front of her.

  A huge smile covered the bottom half of her face. She was going home.

  Chapter Eleven

  Surrounded by a small circle of cowboys, Sam Johnson sat on his rear in the Texas dust and glared at Damian. “What the hell is the matter with you?”

  He rubbed his sore knuckles. “Ain’t nothin’ the matter with me that wouldn’t be fixed by hirin’ some decent hands around here.”

  The man who’d been with the Rocking G for ten years stood, brushed off his pants with his hat, and rubbed his chin. “You mind telling me what that was for?”

  “I told you to fix that fence along the south border, and it’s still not done.”

  “Oh yeah. Maybe that’s because you also told me later on to let it go and help Mikey chase down those cows what got out.”

  Damian leaned in and pointed at the man. “They got out ‘cause you didn’t fix the fence in the first place.”

  “What’s goin’ on here?” His dad walked up, glaring at both men as they faced each other.

  Sam jerked his chin in Damian’s direction. “He’s had his head up his ass for weeks now.”

  “I would think y’all would have little time to be squabbling like a couple of kids.” His father tugged on his hat and widened his stance, shifting a wad of tobacco from one cheek to an the other.

  Anger knotted Damian’s stomach, the fury almost choking him. He’d been itching to slam his fist into something all day, and Sam had given him the excuse he needed.

  “Why don’t you go find that sweet little piece you were banging a few weeks ago and have at it?” Sam mumbled as he turned to go.

  Shock yielded quickly to rage as Damian grabbed the cowboy’s shoulder and spun him around, his fist raised. “What did you say, asshole?”

  Sam shrugged off the heavy hand gripping him and narrowed his eyes. “If you lay your hands on me one more time, boss or not, I’m going to flatten you.” He turned his head and spit on the ground.

  His pa yanked Damian by the arm, turning his body to face him. “Is that what this fussin’ is all about, boy? You better git your mind off your pecker and back on the job.”

  He took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself. “The hell with all of you. I’m headin’ into town. It’s quittin’ time anyway.”

  Showered and changed into clean clothes, Damian shoved his front door open and headed to his truck. His blood still boiled from the run-in with Sam.

  In all honesty, he’d been a pain in the ass lately, and he knew exactly why. Ms. Kerry Mackenzie. She had him tied up in knots, and he had to do something about it soon.

  The Lonesome Steer had the usual crowd, already playing pool, drinking, shuffling around the dance floor.

  This place is getting old. Hell, I’m getting old.

  “Hey, Damian, what can I get you?” Keira Rankin, Gus’s daughter, swiped the table with a white and blue striped bar towel, and then flung it over her shoulder.

  With long blonde hair, soft doe eyes and heart-shaped face, the co-owner always had a smile on her face and a friendly, open personality.

  “I’ll have a burger and fries. And a beer.”

  “Comin’ right up.” She winked and then headed toward the kitchen.

  Damian crossed his arms over his chest, tipped his chair against the wall, and re-settled his hat to cover his eyes. How could a woman he’d only known for a few days cause him such grief for weeks? He’d asked his brother, Don, the same question yesterday as they rode the fences, checking for more breaks.

  “I hate to tell you this, little brother, but if she’s the one...” He’d turned in his saddle and gave him a knowing look. “You won’t have any peace until you go after her.”

  “She’s stubborn.”

  He shrugged. “Show me a woman who isn’t.”

  “You didn’t have any trouble with Charlene. Y’all were married within days of meeting each other.”

  Don grinned. “Oh, she gave me trouble all right. But I didn’t let her go until she saw things my way.”

  Damian snorted. “What did you do? Hold her prisoner?”

  “Pretty much.” Don gazed at the brilliant ball of orange setting in the West, casting a glow over the land as it made its final descent into the horizon. “Could be you need to go to Albuquerque and kidnap your woman.”

  “Very funny.”

  Don then kicked up his horse and shouted over his shoulder. “You sure as hell haven’t come up with anything better.”

  “Here ya go.” Damian was yanked back to the present when Keira placed the overflowing platter in front of him, along with his beer and squeeze containers of ketchup and mustard.

  He nodded his thanks and dug in.

  Ten minutes later, he wiped his mouth with a paper napkin and shoved the plate away. Grabbing his beer, he wandered over to the pool tables and slapped his money down to be next player.

  He leaned one shoulder against the wall and sipped from the icy cold bottle while he waited. Being Thursday, Gus’s daughter stepped up to the small stage and fiddled with the microphone and Karaoke machine for the evening’s entertainment. Screeching from the mike had driven him away more than one Thursday night.

  “You’re up.” Gil Meyer, lanky cowboy and longtime bar buddy, nodded in his direction, and then returned his cue stick to the worn frame on the wall.

  Damian chalked up and set the rack on the table. Had it only been a few weeks since he and Kerry had played at this very table? His stomach clenched, and his blood raced to his groin at what had taken place later that night. How could she just walk away?

  He leaned over and slid the stick between his fingers, back and forth, before knocking the cue ball, scattering the others, and driving the number nine into a corner pocket. “High balls.” He directed his comment to his opponent, Manny Davis.

  The game ended quickly, with Damian running the rack, and then facing a new challenger for the next round.

  Well into his third game, he glanced up from where he concentrated on his next shot and his heart dropped to his feet. Unsure he wasn’t dreaming, he stood slowly as Kerry, dressed in messy scrubs, her gaze darting frantically over the crowd, spotted him. She licked her lips, then headed in his direction.

  Oh God, what am I doing? Sweaty hands fisting on her shoulder bag, Kerry took a deep breath and wended her way through the crowd. Her heart thumped so loudly it blocked the wailing coming from the microphone where a drunken young woman attempted to sing a Taylor Swift song.

  Damian slowly rose from his position over the pool table, his face a mask. Was he in shock? Or not happy to see her? Her heart thundered in her chest, causing black dots to dance before her eyes. Wonderful. She would probably reach him and pass out at his feet like some romance novel heroine. Maybe she should have thought this through. This trip might not have been such a good idea after all.

  He laid the cue stick on the table, and never shifting his gaze from her, said something to the other man he’d been playing. Between the noise of the honky tonk and her own heartbeat, she couldn’t hear what he said.

  Tears welled in her eyes as she savored the sight of him. His hair had grown longer and lines bracketed his mouth she hadn’t noticed before. But everything else was as she’d remembered. His tight fitting shirt and snug jeans. Strong hands that had skimmed over her heated skin and brought such pleasure to her during their one night together.

  He moved around the pool table and stopped in front of her. “Kerry? Are you really here, or has my mind finally snapped?” His lips tilted into a half smile.

  Unable to speak with the lump in her throat stealing her voice, she merely nodded. She wanted so badly for him to take her in his arms, but at the same time afraid she would dissolve into a blubbering mess if he so much as touched her.

  “Is everything all right, darlin’?” He kept his hands at his side, but looked
her up and down.

  Again, she nodded. Slowly, she touched his arm. In an instant, he grabbed her, and as feared, she burst into tears.

  “Come on. Let’s get out of here. It’s too noisy.” He slung his arm around her shoulders as they headed to the front door.

  As they left, two young women entered, giving Damian a blatant once over. But he didn’t seem to notice and simply ushered her to his truck and opened the door to help her in.

  Once settled alongside her, he reached into his glove compartment and retrieved a box of tissues. Kerry pulled out several, wiped her eyes, and blew her nose.

  Damian rubbed her shoulder until she composed herself. “You want to tell me what’s goin’ on?”

  “This is difficult.”

  He crossed his arms and leaned back on the seat, studying her from underneath the brim of his Stetson.

  Kerry wiped fresh tears from her eyes. “Say something.”

  “It seems to me I said a lot before you left Amarillo. Now it’s your turn.”

  “I was wrong.”

  He nodded. “Good beginning.” His features remained stiff, his eyes watching her every move carefully.

  Oh God, he’s not going to make this easy. Perhaps she deserved it after allowing him to make love to her, and then running. And she had run. From him, her feelings, and the chance to have a powerful love. Her heart beat so hard it hurt her chest. What if this had been a terrible mistake?

  After a couple of deep breaths, her voice returned. “I want to ask you a question.”

  His lips moved into a slow, lazy smile. “Okay. I guess it must be a pretty important question, or you would have called instead of driving all this way.”

  Encouraged by his smile, reminding her of the Damian she’d fell in love with, she continued. “It is.” She wadded the tissues in her fist, then shredded them.

  He reached over, and covered her hand. His head dipped so he could see her eyes. “What is it, darlin’?”

  “Um. Is your offer still on the table?” She swallowed a nervous giggle, feeling like a complete idiot.

  He sat back, his eyebrows rising to his hairline. “My offer? On the table? Why do I feel like I should be sitting here in a suit and striped tie?”

  “Please don’t…joke. I’m…scared.” She clasped her ice cold hands together tightly, trying to control the shaking. If he turned her down now, her heart would shatter. He’d given her no indication of his feelings, his face only easing once with a smile. If only he’d hold her, this would be so much easier.

  Almost as if he’d read her mind, he slid across the seat and pulled her to him, his strong arms an anchor, soothing her fears a bit.

  “What are you afraid of, Kerry?”

  She raised her tear rimmed eyes to his face, loving everything about it. One drop escaped from its perch and slid slowly down her cheek, pooling at the edge of her mouth. “Now that I’m here, I’m terrified you’ve changed your mind.” She licked the salty liquid from her lips.

  He placed his index finger under her chin, and flashed her a stomach-clenching smile. “Changed my mind about what?”

  It was now or never. She fisted her hands, her nails digging into her palms, and took a deep breath. “Do you still want me?”

  In the silence that followed, everything around her faded. It was only her and Damian in the entire world. And the rest of her life sat between them. Had she been too late? Once again she fought the black dots dancing in front of her eyes as he studied her for what seemed an eternal amount of time.

  “As?”

  She glanced away, wondering if she could ever get the words past her lips. The words she’d ran through her mind for hours as the miles separating the two of them grew shorter and shorter. She chewed her lip and had the childish desire to close her eyes tightly and cover her ears. “As in, do you still...want to marry me?”

  Damian blew out an explosive breath, then tilted his head back, a huge grin on his face. “Darlin’, earlier tonight I seriously considered high tailing it to Albuquerque and kidnapping you.”

  Relief flooded her body, along with a surge of joy she barely contained. She swiped at her wet cheeks and grinned through her tears. “Seriously?”

  “My brother suggested it, and the idea sounded better as the night wore on.” He cupped her cheek with his hand. “And to answer your question, yes. I love you and still want to marry you. I’ve never been as miserable in my entire life as I have the last few weeks.” He rubbed his thumb over her lips. “And I have witnesses. With bruises.”

  Kerry placed both her hands on his shoulders. “I love you, too, and also have never been so miserable. And if you don’t mind taking a trip with me to close up my condo and haul all my stuff up here, we can get on with our life. Together.”

  “Together. The best word in the English language.”

  Damian took possession of her mouth and enveloped her in his strong arms, exactly where she wanted to be.

  A word about the author...

  Callie has been making up stories since elementary school, and writing gave her a way to turn off the voices in her head. After having a number of articles and interviews published in newspapers and magazines, she took on what she’d always dreamed of: Writing that book. She currently has a number of both historical and contemporary romance books published.

  She lives in Oklahoma with her husband and adult children who move in and out with alarming regularity. Add three rescue dogs and the household is complete—and full. She enjoys hearing from her readers, and would love to have you visit her on Facebook.

  Visit her website for more information.

  www.calliehutton.com

  Thank you for purchasing

  this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.