The Cowboy's Claim

by Carla Cassidy

  He thought she was going to protest, but at that moment Garrett poured a bucket of sand over Nick’s head. Garrett’s laughter rode the air as Nick jumped up and pulled his hat off. “Hat,” Garrett said proudly.

  Nick couldn’t help but see the smile that threatened at the corners of Courtney’s lush lips. He wanted to capture just one corner with his own mouth, feel that smile expand against his own.

  “Courtney,” a voice called from the distance.

  Both Nick and Courtney looked in the distance, where Abigail Swisher and her best friend Susan Mayfield headed toward them. Susan’s four-year-old daughter, Ella, ran ahead of them, obviously focused on the sandbox.

  Courtney got up from the table and Nick brushed the sand from his hair and shoulders as the two women approached. “Nice to see you both,” Susan said.

  “Garrett! What a big boy you’re getting to be,” Abigail exclaimed, her smile warm as she gazed at him. “And such a handsome young man.”

  “Thanks, and he is growing like a weed,” Courtney agreed. “And now it’s time to get the big boy out of the sandbox so I can get to work.”

  “I’ll get him,” Nick offered. “I already feel like I’ve been in a sandstorm.” He leaned forward and picked Garrett up in his arms.

  He noticed Abigail staring with an unsettling intensity first at him and then at Garrett. He had a feeling by the end of the day there wouldn’t be anyone in town who didn’t know he was Garrett’s biological father.

  Goodbyes were said, and together he and Courtney fell into step walking toward their vehicles. “I think the cat is out of the bag,” he said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Abigail was giving me and Garrett the eye. By the time you get to the café, everyone in town will probably know I’m Garrett’s daddy.”

  She shrugged her slender shoulders, and he couldn’t help but see the weight of her breasts shift with the movement. “At this point it doesn’t really matter. Sooner or later everyone was going to know anyway.”

  “Does it bother you?” A tightness filled his chest.

  “That you’re his father?”

  “No, that everyone will know that we were seeing each other two years ago.”

  They had reached her car. She held out her arms to take Garrett from him. “Kind of water under the bridge now, don’t you think?”

  He watched as she carefully buckled Garrett into his car seat. As she straightened he realized he was standing too close to her. He could smell her intoxicating perfume, see the bright gold speckles in the depths of her green eyes, and again his desire to pull her into his arms, to kiss her lips hit him full force.

  For an achingly long moment they remained frozen in place. He was vaguely aware of the heat emanating from her body, a heat he had wrapped himself in for seven wonderful months, a heat he wanted to pull against him this very minute.

  She broke the mood, stepping sideways toward the driver door. “I’ve got to get going. Same time, same place tomorrow?” she asked.

  He nodded and moved back so she could get into her car. As he watched her pull away, he told himself he was a fool. To want her. To try to recapture what he’d believed they’d once had.

  Two years ago he hadn’t been enough for her, and nothing had changed to make him more acceptable since then. He was still just a cowboy rancher, only now he had a brother in jail, another brother who was a borderline alcoholic and a ranch that needed more than a little bit of TLC.

  Funny, he knew she was bitter toward him for leaving without a backward glance, but despite his desire for her he realized he had more than a little bit of bitterness still gnawing inside him.

  He still believed that eventually she’d date and marry a fine, successful and respectable man like Grant Hubert, a man who would be everything her parents had wanted for her. Eventually she’d be welcomed back into the fold of her mother and father, and that would only make things more difficult for him.

  He got into his pickup and headed back in the direction of the ranch, a foul mood taking hold of him as he realized there was a part of him that was angry. He was mad that Courtney’s love for him in those seven months they had shared had never been real or strong enough for her to step out of the shadows beside him.

  And even knowing that, what really irritated him was that he wanted what he could never have, the woman he’d thought had existed in the straw-scented stable of the old Yates barn, a woman who had only ever existed in his imagination.

  * * *

  Rusty was having a temper tantrum. The cook at the café rarely showed any emotion, but when he got angry it was a sight to see. He banged pans, cussed like a sailor and threatened anyone who dared enter the kitchen for any reason.

  Courtney had no idea what had set him off this time, but she stood next to Mary at the counter, waiting until the storm passed. “I don’t know why you let him get away with this,” Courtney said softly to Mary. Thankfully the lunch rush had ended before Rusty had blown up.

  Mary smiled. “I put up with him because he doesn’t do this often, he’s a great cook and hard worker. Plus today is the ten-year anniversary of the day he lost his wife and his son in a house fire.”

  Courtney gasped in shock. “Oh, my God, I didn’t know.”

  Mary nodded. “He doesn’t talk about it much. Apparently faulty wiring started a fire in the kitchen while his wife and little boy slept upstairs. Rusty was working nights at a diner and wasn’t home when the incident happened. By the time he got there the house was engulfed. It took half a dozen firemen to keep him from trying to enter the inferno to save his wife and little boy.”

  A dark symphony of emotion rose up inside Courtney as she thought about the kind of loss Rusty had suffered in his life. “How old was his son?” she asked.

  “Just about Garrett’s age,” Mary replied.

  “I can’t imagine that, losing a loved one, losing a child like that,” Courtney said.

  “Sometimes Rusty just needs to bang pots and pans and curse to vent a little of the sadness inside him. But he doesn’t want anyone feeling sorry for him. It’s a tragic part of his life he doesn’t even like to talk about.”

  Within a few minutes silence once again reigned in the kitchen, indicating that the storm had passed, at least inside the café. Outside, the gray clouds had delivered a light rain off and on since Courtney had gotten up that morning.

  For the past week she and Nick had met in the park for his visits with Garrett, but this morning they’d met in her motel room because of the weather.

  The park visits had been fun, and she’d been reminded of the carefree side of Nick. He’d wrestled with Garrett in the grass, pushed him on one of the baby swings and talked to him as if he was a grown-up.

  Despite her tumultuous feelings about Nick even being in Garrett’s life, she couldn’t help the way her heart warmed when she saw him with Garrett. He would be a terrific father if he’d just stick around.

  She’d forgotten about Nick’s innate gentleness. She knew his strength, both physical and mental. She’d seen him angry and knew he never backed down from a fight he considered right. Still, she’d definitely forgotten how his eyes could soften with love, how his touch could be as tender as butterfly wings, and as she saw him that way with Garrett it set up a deep yearning inside her.

  She felt as if there had been no softness, no gentleness or true laughter in her life for the past two years. The last twenty-four months of her life had been all about survival, something her parents hadn’t taught her. She’d taught herself all she’d needed to know except how to spend time with Nick and Garrett in a motel room.

  This morning the visit was uncomfortable. The setting had been far too intimate, the space too small, and she’d been too aware of Nick not just as Garrett’s father, but as a sexy man she’d once made love with.

  She’d watched his arm muscles bulge as he lifted Garrett and remembered how those arms had felt around her. As he’d played patty-cake with Garrett, she’d remembere
d how Nick’s hands had felt sliding down her naked body, touching her with a fire that had made her gasp in delight. Definitely she preferred the outdoors for his parental visits.

  Today she’d actually let him take Garrett to Sophie’s. It had been a leap of faith for her, to allow anyone to take her son anywhere without her. She felt a little guilty for calling to check in with Sophie, who had assured her that Garrett had arrived safe and sound.

  It was just before the dinner rush began that Lizzy Wiles came in and took a seat at a table in Courtney’s section. “Can you take a short break?” she asked when Courtney stepped up to take her friend’s order.

  Courtney looked around. “Sure, I can sit for a minute or two. What can I get you?”

  “Just a tall glass of iced tea and a gossip check-in.”

  As Courtney went to get Lizzy’s iced tea, she knew that she wanted to know what was going on with Nick. Lizzy and Courtney had become good friends immediately after Candy Bailey’s murder. Lizzy had been the only one in town who had known that Nick was Garrett’s father.

  “So, tell all,” Lizzy said as Courtney delivered her glass of iced tea and then slid into the chair opposite her. “He’s back, he knows about Garrett and I’ve heard through the grapevine that the three of you have been seen together at the park every day.”

  “True, true and true,” Courtney replied.

  Lizzy took a sip of her tea, a dainty frown pulling together in the center of her forehead. “You know you have to tell me more than that,” she exclaimed.

  “He wants joint custody.”

  Lizzy’s whiskey-colored eyes widened. “Did you expect that?”

  “Not in a million years.” Courtney leaned back in her chair. “He’s really good with Garrett, Lizzy, but it’s only been a little over a week.”

  “Has he told you why he left town?”

  Courtney shook her head. “And I haven’t asked him. It doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is the two of us working out the situation with Garrett.”

  “I also heard you broke things off with Grant. I imagine a lot of people in town will find it odd that you broke up with Grady Gulch’s most eligible bachelor a day or two after Nick showed up back in town.”

  Courtney sighed. “I know, but I realized that even though Grant is a nice man, he was never going to make my heart beat faster, he was never going to make me long for him to kiss me, to hold me. We had no sexual energy between us, and that’s important, isn’t it?”

  Lizzy gave her a wry grin. “You’re asking me? A woman who gave up all her plans for her future alone because a sad and lonely cowboy looked at me and made my knees weak, made me want to haul him into bed as quickly as possible? That sexual energy is part of love, and as far as I’m concerned, without it all you really have is a great friendship.”

  “And that’s exactly what I felt like I had with Grant, a friendship that was never going to really blossom into anything else.”

  “What about Nick? How does he make you feel after all this time?”

  Courtney felt the heat that rushed into her cheeks. “It doesn’t matter what he makes me feel. I still don’t trust him to stick around for the long haul, and I can’t forgive him for leaving me before.”

  “Too bad. You don’t get those kind of overwhelming feelings of need too often. I had them with Daniel the moment I laid eyes on him. Somewhere deep in my heart I needed him, even though I did my best to fight against it. Living in Grady Gulch wasn’t in my plans, but all it took was one kiss from Daniel to change my life.”

  Lizzy had been on a trek around the country after her mother’s death when she’d landed in Grady Gulch. Her plan had been to spend a couple of weeks working as a waitress in the Cowboy Café and then move on. But, Daniel Jefferson had changed her plans, and now the two were talking wedding.

  “I don’t need Grant or Nick in my life,” Courtney said. “I was doing fine before either of them came along, and I’ll be fine without them. Still, I have to admit seeing Nick with Garrett makes my heart melt a little.”

  Lizzy nodded. “Little boys need fathers. Nick tried to apologize to me for his brother’s attack.”

  Courtney was vaguely surprised. “He did?” The Nick she had known in the past didn’t particularly like confrontation, and she suddenly realized how hard it must have been for him to return to his hometown with everything that had happened, with everything that was happening in his family.

  “Of course I told him an apology was unnecessary. It’s so much healthier to look forward instead of back. Looking back only mires you in places and events you can’t change.”

  Courtney nodded. “I’m taking all of this one day at a time, with no expectations.”

  “While you’re doing that, you should probably work on the anger and bitterness that’s been inside you since Nick left.”

  Lizzy gave Courtney one of her bright smiles. “But, you know me, I don’t believe in hanging on to negativity. It eats you from the inside out.”

  “Point taken,” Courtney replied.

  “You are being careful, aren’t you?”

  Courtney frowned. “Don’t worry, I’m not having sex with Nick.”

  Lizzy laughed but sobered quickly. “I wasn’t talking about safe sex. I was talking about your personal safety. These murders have me spooked for you and everyone who’s working here.”

  “I’m spooked too, but yes, I’m being careful.” She didn’t mention the creepy-crawly feelings she’d had in the middle of the night or at the park. Thankfully, nothing had happened in the past week to make her anxious or experience that strange panicked feeling. She’d written off those moments as part of her anxiety about Nick.

  Lizzy checked her watch. “And now I’d better let you get back to work. I promised Daniel I’d only be in here a few minutes. He’s waiting out in the car. He knew I just wanted some girl talk.”

  “The iced tea is on me,” Courtney said as they both got up from the table. They gave each other a quick hug, and then Lizzy disappeared out the door and Courtney got back to work.

  The evening rush lasted longer than usual, making it impossible for her to think of anything except getting orders and seeing to the needs of her customers.

  Right before her shift ended, a group of teenagers came in, filling several tables.

  Mary had just let Lynette go home, and so Courtney agreed to stay later than usual to take care of the exuberant teens. She made a quick call to Sophie to let her know that she’d be a little late to pick up Garrett, and then she got back to work serving the teens, who were a fun and raucous bunch.

  By the time they finally left, Courtney was exhausted. She grabbed the glass of iced tea she’d fixed herself before the dinner rush began and took a couple of quick sips. The ice had melted long ago and the tea was room temperature, but at least it was wet.

  She carried her glass and joined Mary behind the counter and gave her boss a tired smile. “That was a fun group, but I can’t say much about their tips.”

  Mary laughed. “Unfortunately the youth of this town doesn’t understand the twenty percent rule for good service.”

  Courtney smiled wryly. “I would have been happy with ten percent and fewer gum wrappers.”

  “Thanks for staying so late.”

  “Not a problem,” Courtney replied. “Any news from Cameron on the murders?”

  “No, and it’s eating that poor man alive. You are being careful about locking up when you’re at the motel?”

  “Definitely,” Courtney assured her. “And there are people constantly coming and going there. But, a strange thing happened the other morning. A box of new toys was left in front of my door with Garrett’s name written on it.”

  “Grant or Nick?” Mary asked.

  “Both of them said they didn’t leave the toys.”

  “Rumor has it that Grant isn’t happy about the breakup, that he’s angry with you and hurt.”

  Courtney’s heart gave a twinge of sadness. “I’m sorry about tha
t. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt him, but I knew in my heart he wasn’t the man for me. He was here during the dinner rush, but didn’t sit in my section and didn’t even make eye contact with me.”

  “Ouch.” Mary winced, then continued, “Maybe the toys came from some well-meaning person who knows how much you struggle to make ends meet as a single parent. You know what they say, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

  “Actually, I dropped the box off at the Methodist church. I figured there might be somebody who needs them more than Garrett. It just felt too weird to have toys for him that I didn’t know where they came from.”

  Mary nodded. “I’m sure somebody will find them useful. And now, speaking of Garrett, get out of here and go pick up your son. Give him a hug for me, and I’ll see you tomorrow at noon.”

  “Okay, have a good rest of the night, and tell Cameron I said hello.” Courtney knew the lawman always ended his night here at closing time. She also knew that something simmered just beneath the surface between Cameron and Mary, but as far as she knew their relationship hadn’t crossed the boundary of friendship.

  She downed the last of the tea and then carried her glass into the kitchen and loaded it into the industrial-size dishwasher. As she headed toward the door back into the dining area, a wave of dizziness momentarily stopped her in her path. She steadied herself and drew a deep breath. Apparently she was more tired than she’d thought.

  With a final good-night to Mary, she stepped outside into the dark, wet night and thought of Mary and Cameron. They would make a perfect couple. She frowned. What did she know about perfect couples? She didn’t want to think about anyone else’s relationship. She was having enough problems sorting out her relationship with Nick.

  During the past week, as she watched him play with Garrett, there had been moments when she couldn’t reach for her anger where he was concerned, where the bitterness had been buried by shared laughter.

  She loved watching Nick play with his son, but she didn’t want to love him again. She had told Lizzy the truth. She didn’t trust that he was in for the long haul, and she refused to put her heart on the line for him again.