The Cowboy and the Angel

by T. J. Kline

  Derek looked at Joe leaning against the white van beside the car, gloating. He would kill him.

  “We have proof, just be careful.” Scott nodded at Robert who pulled out his cell phone, holding it at his side, out of sight.

  Derek didn’t need the details. The fact that this snake would threaten Angela was enough to rile him to violence.

  “What the hell did you say to her?” Derek said, approaching Joe.

  “Just reminded her of the truth, pal.” He pushed off the van and stepped up to Derek. He was either extremely brave or knew about Derek’s ribs, giving him overconfidence in his abilities to fight Derek right now. “I tried to warn you that she’d use you. You wouldn’t listen. But, hey, thanks for the great story.”

  Derek held his hands up, taking a step backward so that he was no longer chest to chest with the smaller man. “You seem awfully sure that’s what she’s doing. But maybe she isn’t, and you can’t stand it that she chose me over you.”

  “Cowboy, I’m warning you. You better take another step back or someone is going to get hurt.” Joe stepped forward and punched Derek’s chest.

  Derek grimaced as pain exploded through his ribs. Stars danced in his vision as he fell to his knees. He heard the box hit the porch.

  “Stop, please!” Angela ran down the stairs toward them.

  Derek felt the second impact from Joe’s foot against his jaw.

  “I warned you.” Joe laughed breathlessly as he took a step back.

  Angela shoved Joe away from Derek as she kneeled by his side, coming between them. “Scott!” she yelled. His brother rushed to his side, helping him stand while Robert walked toward them, his cell phone pointed at the group in plain view.

  She spun toward Joe. “What is wrong with you? I’m packing the car. Can’t you just leave? I’ll be at the station tonight.” Angela turned to look into Derek’s eyes as he struggled to breathe. She didn’t take her eyes from Derek’s face. “Are you okay? We need to get you back to the hospital.”

  “You know, this video should come in handy if you decide to press charges, Derek,” Scott commented with a laugh.

  “What video?” Joe looked from one face to another and spotted the phone in Robert’s hand. “Robert?”

  “I’ve seen you manhandling her enough. I’m not letting you blackmail her, too,” Robert warned.

  “Well, isn’t that heroic coming from a lying drunk?” Joe reached for the phone but was surprised when Robert deftly shifted it from his reach. Joe glared at the older man. “Give me the phone.”

  Scott took the phone and held it up, continually videotaping Joe. “Why don’t you come through me to get it?”

  Joe turned to Angela, glaring at her. “Is this your choice then?” Derek stood to his full height in spite of the pain in his ribs and put his arms around her protectively. “I’m going to destroy you both.” He pointed at them.

  Angela slipped from Derek’s arms. “I have to go,” she whispered, looking sorrowful, as if she couldn’t believe what she was saying. Derek was sure his face registered the shock he was feeling.

  “I’m not letting you go anywhere with him.” Derek looked from Joe to Angela. “What is he talking about?”

  “You’re an idiot for inviting her here. I have enough footage that I can bury you. I can make it look like you’re doing your animals, abusing them . . . whatever I want it to look like. I even have the drugs planted here.”

  Derek took a step back and looked at Angela. Scott laughed. “By all means, keep talking. You do realize this is all still being videotaped, right?”

  Angela laid a hand on Derek’s chest, and he could see the tears forming. “I refused to do the story.”

  “She’s lying,” Joe argued. “She made sure Skip had all the footage he needed. Who do you think planted the drugs?”

  “You mean this?” Mike pulled the vial from his pocket. “Robert already told us how you wanted him to plant it.”

  “I don’t know where they got the footage or how. It’s not even of you.” Angela glanced from Derek to Scott and back to Joe.

  “But he wants to make it look like us,” Scott predicted. Angela nodded, the tears spilling onto her cheeks. “And if you went with him?”

  “He promised to bury the falsified story and let me report mine. He was going to ruin Findley Brothers.”

  Derek ran a hand through his hair and down his face, his fingers resting on his swiftly bruising jaw. “And you believed him?”

  “I couldn’t take a chance, Derek.”

  He placed his hands on her shoulders. “When are you going to trust me? Why didn’t you just tell me?”

  “I couldn’t. He said that if I told you . . .” She couldn’t meet his gaze. “I was doing it for you. Please understand, Derek. I had no choice.”

  “You.” Derek pointed at Joe, looking far more confident and smug than he should. “You’re going to leave and there will be no story at all. Nothing. If I so much as hear the word rodeo mentioned on your station, I’ll take the video I have, clearly showing your face, to the police.”

  A dark cloud of fury settled on Joe’s brow. “You can’t do that!”

  “Watch me. I can and I will.” Derek looked at his brother. “I don’t think we ever signed a release for any video of our rodeos to be used, did we?”

  “Nope,” Scott answered with a smile, shaking his head. “I think the paper is still lying on my desk at the house. Now that you mention it, I don’t recall ever seeing a press pass on this guy either.” He clicked the button on the phone, turning off the video.

  “You know, none of this would ever hold up,” Joe warned.

  “Maybe, maybe not,” Derek said, shrugging. “But I’m sure the other stations around here would love to have footage of you beating up an injured cowboy and to hear how you’ve assaulted your own reporter. And there’s always the accusation of sexual harassment.”

  “What accusation?” Joe narrowed his eyes at Angela. “You’re finished,” Joe threatened, pointing his finger at her. “Not only are you fired, but you’ll never work at another station again.”

  “I have a feeling that once our lawyers contact your station, you’ll be the one looking for a job, not Angela.”

  Joe edged toward the front of the van. “This isn’t over. Not even close.”

  “Don’t ever threaten her again,” Derek warned as he stepped toward Joe. The smaller man jumped backward, in spite of his earlier sucker punch, and hurried to the driver’s side of the van. Derek could see the worry creasing Angela’s forehead as the van backed up and headed down the driveway toward the road. He brushed his thumb over her forehead, smoothing out the lines.

  “When are you going to learn to trust me?”

  “I do,” she insisted. “But he said . . .”

  “I don’t care what he said. Open book means you don’t hide anything from me, Angel.” Derek noticed that Silvie, Jen, and Sydney had found their way onto the porch, probably at some point during his fight with Joe. “Or them.”

  “Derek, he’s not going to let this go that easily.”

  Derek looped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. “We’ll take care of Joe. First, you need to kiss me and thank me for rescuing you.” He bent down, taking her lips hostage, tasting her. Robert cleared his throat.

  “Yeah,” Scott agreed. “Thanks for making that awkward for the rest of us.”

  “All right,” Mike teased. “Show’s over. Let’s all go back inside and get some food. You guys do still work, right?”

  As everyone headed back into the house, Angela remained on the porch. Derek wrapped his arms around her waist as they stared out over the corral.

  “Actually, I don’t,” Angela said. She looked discouraged as she glanced at her father, who was retreating into the house. “For the first time in my life, he has a job and I don’t.”

  Derek shrugged. “Then stay here longer.” The thought of her staying indefinitely sent spirals of desire to his loins.

  S
he gave him a sarcastic grin over her shoulder. “Are you asking me to shack up, Mr. Chandler?” He didn’t miss the gleam in her eye and knew she was joking. Suddenly, it didn’t seem like a bad idea.

  He grabbed her hips and turned her in his arms, giving her a lopsided grin that he hoped was charming. “Might be fun.”

  “And do what? Live off Mike’s hospitality?” She shook her head. “I need a job.”

  “Well, there is this thing we call the Internet. I think I know this sexy reporter who constantly used it to do research. And I know this guy who could get you into any rodeo you want.” He paused for effect. “You could report on every event, with behind-the-scene access and interviews, and broadcast it.”

  ANGELA’S EYES LIT up at his suggestion. A web show? She could certainly edit her own film; she’d done it before. To do what he was suggesting would take some time to build an online following but no more than putting together a new reel and landing another job. She bit her lower lip. It was definitely within the realm of possibilities.

  “Don’t do that,” Derek groaned.

  “What?” She looked up at his dark eyes, wondering how in the world she’d ever come to this place, in love with a cowboy.

  “Bite your lip like that. It makes me want to nibble on it, too.” He smiled down at her and she could see the mischievous gleam in his eye. “You know I love you.”

  She smiled up at him. “I think you mentioned that earlier.” She saw the flicker of amusement in his eyes.

  “You love me, too,” he assured her.

  “I don’t recall ever saying that,” she teased, knowing with every fiber of her being that it was completely true.

  He nodded. “That’s where you’re wrong. You did say it. Last night.”

  Angela furrowed her brow. “I think I would have remembered.”

  “Not if you were falling asleep at the time.” A blush crept up her neck to her cheeks as she vaguely recalled their conversation after they made love and she began to drift to sleep. “See, now you remember.”

  He sucked at her bottom lip, nipping the soft flesh with his teeth. “Marry me, Angel.”

  She gasped—whether from his request or his kiss she wasn’t sure. “You barely know me.”

  He unclasped the necklace and slipped the ring from the chain. Grasping her hand, he slipped the ring onto her finger. “I’m pretty sure I know you better than anyone else ever has. Do you want to say yes?”

  She looked at her mother’s ring on her hand. She’d lost so much as a child and carried so much regret that she’d never allowed herself to live. Derek had shown her that she could be vulnerable and still remain strong. She could love someone and be loved in return in spite of her flaws. He’d shown her how to lay her burdens down in order to grasp happiness with both hands. Her mother and father might have been in love at one time, but they pushed each other away. Derek wasn’t her father, and she wasn’t her mother. She reached for his waist and pulled him closer, sliding her hands up the corded muscles of his back, and looked up at him.

  She nodded, blinking back tears that clouded her vision. She wasn’t sure if they were tears of joy or anxiety.

  He ran his thumbs over her jaw. “I know you’re scared. But I know this is right.”

  “Say yes already.” Mike’s voice was loud through the screen as Derek and Angela spun to see the entire family watching them. She laughed.

  “We’ll have as long of an engagement as you need.” He twined his fingers through hers, her mother’s ring pressing against her finger. “I love you, Angel.”

  She searched his eyes and saw that he meant every word he said. He would wait for her as long as it took for her to be ready. “I love you, Derek. I have never met a man like you.”

  He gave her an impish smile, and she could see a remnant of the boy who must have tugged at Silvie’s heartstrings. “Will a week be enough time to convince you to marry me?”

  She laughed as Jen and Sydney burst through the door and hugged them both. Scott and Clay clapped Derek on the shoulder, causing him to wince and then laugh. She looked over Derek’s shoulder in time to see Mike’s arm around Silvie, looking proudly over their family. Her father stood in the background, smiling, his eyes watery as if he were about to cry. She moved away from Derek and met her father at the door.

  “I don’t understand why you lied, but you’re the only father I’ve ever known.” She wound her arms around his waist and pressed herself against his chest. “I know it’s going to take time, but I want us to be a family.”

  “Angie-girl, you have no idea how happy that would make me.” He ran a hand over her hair and looked at Derek. “He’s a good man,” he whispered to her. “He’ll take good care of you.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered, and she felt another chipped brick fall from the wall she’d built around her heart.

  “No, thank you for all that you’ve done to try to help me since you were little. I’m so sorry, Angie.”

  “We’re moving forward from here. No more looking backward.”

  Angela realized she meant it. She didn’t want to live in the past with its regrets and recriminations any longer. There was too much for her to look forward to. Derek’s arms circled her waist, and she heard his sharp intake of breath.

  “We need to get you to the doctor,” she insisted.

  “I’m fine. Listen to you, already nagging like a wife.” He nuzzled her neck.

  She frowned at him. “To the car, now.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Get used to it. This is just the beginning.” Scott laughed as Sydney punched his arm.

  “You sure you don’t mind marrying a manure jockey?” he teased.

  A blush flooded her cheeks at the memory of their first meeting. He’d taught her so much about herself in a short period of time. “I think I can manage to be happy as Mrs. Manure Jockey.” She kissed his jaw where it was beginning to swell from Joe’s attack. “Now, get into that car before I give you another goose egg on the other side.”

  Epilogue

  * * *

  ANGELA TURNED OFF the computer and leaned back from the desk, raising her arms above her and stretching the stiff muscles of her back.

  “Done?” Derek leaned against the doorway of her office.

  “For now. I have more editing for next week’s segment, but the voiceover copy is done.” Since leaving the station, she’d started an online rodeo show and had been picked up by a small local news station. She loved being her own boss without the stress of someone telling her what to report and when. She reported what she wanted and it allowed her to go to every rodeo with Derek.

  His eyes flashed with mystery. “Then come here, I have something to show you.”

  “Is it from the lawyer?” She knew they were expecting the finalized court documents against Joe. Derek’s lawyer had contacted the station and Joe had been fired, but he’d decided to try to take his story public. It backfired when Findley Brothers sued him for libel and won, forcing him to pay far more than he’d ever be able to afford.

  “No, I forgot to tell you we got those yesterday, along with the restraining orders. I think Joe’s learned his lesson about tangling with a cowboy.” He winked at her. “But I think you’ll like this even more.”

  She followed him through the house. It had taken nearly six months to finish it to Derek’s exact specifications, but it had turned out beautiful: a majestic three-story cabin with plenty of room for the large family they were talking about starting right after their wedding next week, on her mother’s birthday.

  Derek curled his fingers around her hand and pulled her through the front door toward the stream. She could see it from a distance: a magnificent wooden gazebo overlooking her favorite spot by the water. As they neared the structure she could see personal touches, from intricate carvings of her favorite flowers on the pillars to their initials and wedding date carved into the designs on the railings. She ran her fingers of the carved surface, awed by the effort and beauty of hi
s creation.

  “This is beautiful. I can’t believe you made this.”

  Derek shrugged off her praise. “I had help.”

  She wound her arms around his waist. “I love it. I’m glad it’s still warm enough that I can use it.”

  “I thought we could use it this weekend.” He leaned back against the railing and pulled her to stand between his legs, his hands curving on her spine, molding her body against his. “We could get married in here. Put some lights up there and a few flowers.”

  She looked around her at the arches and carved vines twisting around the beams. “I think it’s perfect the way it is.” She pressed her lips against his, allowing her desire to ignite his, her hands finding the back of his head. She curled her fingers into his hair and drew him closer. “Cowboy, do you have any idea how happy you’ve made me?”

  “I’m hoping you’re going to take me back inside and show me.” He gave her a wicked smile.

  “I think I can take care of that.”

  Derek grew serious and he leaned his forehead against hers. “You’re sure you’re ready for this?” He brushed the back of his knuckles against her cheek. “I want you to be completely comfortable with this decision.”

  She kissed him, stepping closer, pressing herself against him, and she heard him groan deep in his throat. “I can’t wait to marry you.”

  Derek stood, lifting her as he did. She curled her legs around his waist as he carried her back to the house, took her into their bedroom, and laid her on the top of their new king-size bed. He’d made everything about this house an oasis for her, reminding her how much he cherished her, and she wanted to show him she adored him for it.

  “Derek,” she whispered as his lips worked magic over the tender flesh of her neck. She pulled her shirt over her head. “I have a wedding present for you.”

  His palm slid over her hip to the button of her jeans. “I know. You told me you wanted to buy the . . .”

  She shook her head. “I didn’t buy this.” He drew back to look down at her, and she smiled up at him and reached for his hand. “I know you want to start trying to have a baby right after the wedding.” She moved his hand to her stomach.