The Cowboy's Bride

by Cathy Gillen Thacker

  Having seen her video, having known her, Max had been aware of all that. He’d felt that because of her love of animals and the outdoors and riding and roping and Montana, the bull’s-eye property on the Silver Spur was the perfect place for her to build her nest. And he had known it was the ideal place for her to raise the kids she wanted to have, with Cody.

  The problem was the past.

  If she had a chance to do it all over again, she would not have leaned on Cody so much or let him try to save her by helping her run away. Instead, she would have saved herself first and then gone to him, but only when her life was in good shape. Instead, she had ended up inadvertently making her problems—Buck and Pa—his problems, and she was very sorry about that, because that experience seemed to have hurt and embittered Cody in a way that might not ever be undone. No matter how much Max, or she, wanted it so, Callie thought as she finished loading the dishwasher.

  She had just started on the pots and pans when Cisco Kidd showed up, a sheaf of legal documents in hand. Hat in hand, he entered the kitchen. “Hi, Callie.”

  “Could I talk to you a minute, privately?” Callie asked, waylaying him before he had a chance to head back to the study.

  The germ of an idea was beginning to form. If she was going to get rid of Pa and Buck, she would have to do it on her own. And the sooner the better.

  “Sure.” Cisco Kidd set down his hat and briefcase genially and pulled up a chair at the kitchen table. He watched her with thinly veiled interest. “Max asked me to be of assistance to all of you in any way I could.”

  Too nervous to sit with him, Callie paced back and forth. She was taking a risk here, but she had no choice, she reminded herself sternly. “Is there any way you can find out if there are any outstanding warrants on my pa and my brother for me?” she finally blurted out.

  Cisco’s brows rose. “I can call Sheriff Anderson,” he offered.

  Callie raked her teeth across her lower lip. “But can you do that without Cody finding out?” she specified worriedly.

  “I’m a lawyer, Callie. Of course I can be discreet.” Cisco paused to study her bluntly. “Are you sure you should be keeping secrets from him, though? I have a feeling Max wouldn’t approve. He reined you two together for forty-eight hours to bring you closer, not the other way around.”

  Callie’s spine stiffened in indignation. She knew Uncle Max’s attorney meant well, but she didn’t need him making her feel guilty, too. Nevertheless, as she exhaled wearily, she was all too aware she needed Cisco Kidd on her side if she was going to accomplish what she wanted. “Believe me, Cisco, I have no choice.”

  Besides, whatever secret activities she had to indulge in now would be worth it if she could just get rid of Buck and Pa before the wedding, Callie thought as she picked up a scouring pad and resumed cleaning the broiler pan. Buck and Pa had bilked so many people out of their life savings they deserved to be in jail, even if they were her kin. Not to mention what they had done to Cody and to her in Acapulco, Callie sighed regretfully. If not for the two of them, she and Cody might be happily married now.

  Cisco watched Callie resume scrubbing the broiler pan with more than necessary force. Obviously realizing the utmost discretion was called for in this situation, he pushed back his chair and closed the distance between them. He stood looking down at her, his arms folded in front of him and his back to the counter. “What do you want me to do if I find out there are warrants?” he asked very quietly.

  Callie swallowed against the knot of fear in her throat. As she looked up into the young and handsome attorney’s face, she reminded herself she was only doing what was right. “Let the sheriff know they are in the area.”

  Cisco did not look surprised at her decision. Rather, he seemed to support it wholeheartedly, even as he, too, tensed in concern. “Are you saying your pa and brother are here?” he asked her point-blank.

  Callie nodded, flushing all the more as she marshaled her resolve to see justice done. Would she ever stop feeling embarrassed that Buck and Pa were her kin?

  “I thought you were going to tell me when Cisco arrived, Callie,” Cody interrupted smoothly from the doorway.

  At the sound of Cody’s voice, Callie jumped a mile. Though she had done nothing wrong, she felt as if she had been caught red-handed in a secret tête-à-tête, Cisco looked equally uneasy; it was clear he didn’t like going behind Cody’s back. Well, there was nothing to do but brazen it out. A cordial smile plastered on her face, she turned to face Cody. “Well, as you can see for yourself, he’s here,” she said politely.

  “And I’ve got the papers you wanted.” Cisco picked them up from the tabletop and held them out.

  His eyes still on Callie and Cisco, grimly studying them both for any sign of deception, Cody took the papers. His manner even more tense and unapproachable, he perused them carefully. Finally, he sighed. “These look fine.” Reaching into his pocket for a pen, he scribbled his name authoritatively at the bottom.

  “Well, if that’s all...” Cisco took the papers back and slipped them into his briefcase. Anxious to be on his way, he snapped shut the lid. “I’ll be going.”

  Cody nodded, his eyes still on Callie. “Let me know if there’s any more problems with the ranch tonight,” he told Cisco.

  “Will do.” Cisco tersely smiled his adieu and slipped out the door.

  Cody turned back to Callie. A taut silence stretched between them. She knew at once the gloves were off. “Are you going to tell me?”

  Feeling guilty for excluding Cody, for she knew he hated being cut out of the action and relegated to the sidelines more than anything else, Callie picked up the mesh bag of baking potatoes and took it back into the walk-in pantry. I have no choice but to do this on my own if I want him back, she told herself firmly. And she was honest enough to admit to herself that she did want him back, had for years and years now. Even if he hadn’t exactly welcomed her with open arms.

  Slender shoulders squared, her back to Cody, she put the potatoes on the shelf and mentally braced herself for the thorough interrogation she knew was coming. Cody was not the type of man anymore to let anything drop, never mind her tête-à-tête with Cisco Kidd.

  Cody followed her inside the small space, his large, muscular frame solidly blocking the only exit from the storage closet. “What was going on here a few minutes ago?” he demanded.

  Refusing to let either his size or his strength intimidate her, Callie focused on the suntanned column of his throat. She did not want him to see how much she yearned to tell him everything. “I don’t know what you mean,” she said stubbornly.

  Cody planted his hands on either side of her head and backed her against the wall. He towered over her, his blue eyes intent. She could see the pulse working in his neck, feel the evocative warmth of his body. “I think you do,” he said, very softly.

  So what? Callie knew that to give Cody an inch in terms of explanations would be to give him a mile. She did not want him to think he could goad her into submission. She was her own person these days. He might as well know and accept that before they took their relationship even one step further. She angled her chin up at him defiantly and said with complete honesty, “In all the time I’ve known you, Cody, I have given you no reason to distrust me.”

  Cody’s lips curved cynically. He leaned closer, so they were touching in one long, electricity-filled line. “Now that,” he drawled, “is a matter for debate.”

  For whom? Callie’s temper flared. It was bad enough being kin to Buck and Pa without being blamed for everything lousy that they did. She planted her hand on the solid wall of his chest and pushed with all her might. It was like trying to move a five-hundred-pound boulder. “Look, either you trust me not to hurt you or you don’t, Cody.” Either he knew her heart and soul—as she felt deep down he did—or he didn’t.

  “The only thing I really trust,” Cody said, ignoring her efforts to disengage herself as he gathered her in his arms with the same careless strength with which he had
made love to her earlier, “is the passion we share.” The vulnerability fading from his eyes, he dipped his head to hers and began to kiss her.

  Savoring his hunger and his impatience, Callie leaned into the sensuous caress. Her heart pounded as his palms slid up her back to her shoulders, then down again to her breasts. She opened her mouth to the probing of his tongue, fitting herself more accurately to him and moaning softly in the back of her throat. She had never imagined she could feel this way, would want to feel this way, but she did, and that brought home the stark reality of the situation like nothing else.

  “Uh-huh,” Callie told him breathlessly as, hand to his chest, she tore her mouth from his and decisively called a halt. “If we’re going to make love again, Cody,” she said firmly, her mind made up, “we’re going to do it on my terms.”

  Chapter Ten

  “And what terms would those be?” Cody drawled.

  Callie would have liked it if she could have demanded love from him, straight out. But she knew that wasn’t going to happen, not for a long while. Because of what her family had done to him, Cody still didn’t trust her. And without trust, there could be no love. It was as simple as that.

  If she wanted to make a life for herself with Cody—and she was increasingly willing to admit to herself that she did—she would have to do it via the back way, so to speak. She would have to take the biggest risk she had ever taken in her life and give herself to him while asking nothing in return. Maybe in that way she could prove to him how much she really cared about him.

  “Forget what Max is forcing us into. I want to have an affair with you. Where no promises are made, no emotions are involved.”

  For a second, Cody seemed startled. He paused, as if anticipating this to be some sort of trick on her part. “Just sex?”

  Callie nodded. “Sex—” and this was important “— and a truce,” she specified bluntly. “I don’t want to fight with you anymore, Cody.” She only wanted to concentrate on all that was good and positive between them. In an environment like that, Cody would begin to let his guard down, Callie reasoned securely. Their love could grow.

  And he did care about her, in his own way, even if he wouldn’t admit as much to himself yet. Callie was sure of it. Otherwise, he never would have run away with her years ago, and he would have given his heart to someone else in the seven years since then. But he hadn’t, for the same reason she hadn’t. Because if the past twenty-seven hours had taught her anything, it was that there was no one else for either of them and never would be. Just as Max had guessed....

  Cody stepped back. He stared at her, spellbound. “That’s quite a proposition you’ve made.”

  And also the most daring thing I’ve ever done.

  “I’ll have to think about it,” he said laconically, jamming his thumbs through his belt loops and rocking back on his heels. “I’m not promising anything.”

  Knowing Cody was a man who prided himself on his independence, Callie considered it a start.

  His expression abruptly brooding and intent, Cody turned on his heel and left the pantry. Still rocked by the electricity of his kisses, Callie watched him grab his Stetson and denim jacket. “Where are you going?” She had hoped he would stay and take her up on her offer!

  He gave her a brief, sidelong glance. “To talk to Patience.”

  She hurried to catch up with him. “I’ll go with you.”

  “No.” He put out a hand to block her way. “I’ll be back before my thirty minutes is up.” Giving her no time to reply, he slipped out the door without a backward glance.

  18:30

  CODY FOUND HIS SISTER in her writing studio, working on her syndicated advice column to the lovelorn, which was rife with western homilies and sage practical advice. “Where’s Josh?”

  Patience typed in “Save” on her computer, so no data would be lost, and pushed away from her desk. “Checking on a mare who’s about to foal.”

  Cody edged closer. He hated to interrupt her work, but he needed to talk. “Heard from Trace?” he asked casually.

  Patience vaulted to her feet energetically. “He’s got his hands full with Susannah and the kids.” Taking his wrist in hand, she tugged him over to the long window seat in front of the windows. As they sat down, she curled her bluejeaned legs beneath her. “Haven’t you spoken with him?”

  “Not yet.” The truth was, Cody had never felt all that close to Trace. He had always felt himself to be in Trace’s shadow, and even now a subtle, if unconscious rivalry remained between them. It was something he fought. As an adult and a successful businessman-rancher in his own right, he knew he didn’t have to compete with Trace for anything. But a part of him still did. Just as a part of him needed Patience’s compassion. The downside was that she saw too much sometimes and tried to meddle in his life. But right now she had her hands full with her own problems, so that was unlikely, at least until after the wedding.

  “What’s up?” Patience asked.

  Cody stretched his long legs out in front of him. It felt good to finally be able to unburden himself to his big sister. “The will, of course. I’m going nuts trying to carry out Uncle Max’s wishes, never mind meet the terms.”

  Patience reached over to touch his face. “And yet I see you had time to shave your beard,” she teased. Her blue eyes, so like his, gentled with understanding. “Callie have something to do with that?”

  “You might say she had a hand in it.”

  Cody recalled how sensual it had been to have Callie shaving him. How much he had enjoyed having her in his bed. Though he no longer wanted an all-out war between them, he was beginning to feel vulnerable again. He didn’t like that much, either. He glanced at his watch, wishing he had more time to sort all this out. The question was where to start. He could talk about his feelings for Callie endlessly and never tell them all. “Listen, I’ve only got about ten minutes.”

  “Tell me about it,” Patience commiserated. “I’ve never been on such a tight timetable in my life.”

  “I’m here because I need your advice,” he continued hurriedly. “You know a lot about affairs of the heart and —”

  “You’re falling in love with her again, aren’t you, Cody?” Patience interrupted.

  Cody grimaced as she knit her fingers together over one crossed knee. “Is it that obvious?” he asked his sister.

  Patience shrugged. “Maybe not to everyone else, but I can see it,” she replied softly. “Callie has always been the only woman for you.”

  Cody stood and began to pace. He had never felt so restless. “That being the case, what kind of fool am I?”

  “Stubborn. You don’t want this to work precisely because Uncle Max did. I know, ’cause I feel the same way about my own situation,” Patience confided ruefully, making a face.

  “So what are you going to do?” Cody asked, thinking maybe he could follow her example or at least learn from it.

  To Cody’s dismay, Patience shook her head and refused to tell. “The question is, What are you going to do?”

  Cody sighed as the dark clouds rolled in, obscuring his view of the stars. He knew what Max would have wanted. “Marrying her tomorrow is one heck of a risk.” And yet, despite everything, part of Cody wanted to do just that.

  “Not marrying her could be worse,” Patience predicted direly. She rose gracefully and made her way to his side. Comforting hand on his arm, she murmured logically, “When things fell apart before, you didn’t give her a second chance.” Their eyes meshed and held as Patience continued matter-of-factly, “Don’t you think it’s time you did?”

  AFTER MUCH DELIBERATION, Callie picked up the ice blue satin nightgown with the plunging neckline, spaghetti straps and thigh-high slits on each side. Unlike anything she had ever owned, it was the kind of outfit that drove men wild, and Callie had always wanted to drive a man wild. Correction. She had always wanted to drive Cody wild.

  She grinned, wondering what Cody’s response would be when he saw her in this. Maybe when he
did, he wouldn’t find it so easy to walk out on her, she thought. At the very least, he would know what he was missing, she mused as she laid the negligee aside for later, ran a brush through her hair and sprayed on perfume. At the very best, he might end up giving them a second chance to make this relationship of theirs work.

  She heard a door open and shut downstairs. Cody was home. Wanting an indicator of his mood after their latest blowup, she swept out of the bedroom and glanced surreptitiously over the stairs. To her horror, instead of Cody, she saw the back of Buck’s head. She couldn’t believe her lowdown, no-good brother was back! Darn it all, Callie thought as she knotted her hands into fists. Why wouldn’t he get the message and leave her alone?

  “Callie?” Buck called, just as Callie ducked back out of sight. “I want to talk to you.”

  She heard his footsteps move toward the kitchen, then back toward the stairs to the second floor.

  Damn, Callie thought, already breaking out in a sweat as she slipped back into her bedroom. Now what? Cody was due back in just under ten minutes. He couldn’t find Buck here! If he did, their romance was over for sure!

  Buck’s footsteps were heading toward the master bedroom. “Callie, damn it,” he called like a kid playing hide-and-seek. “I know you’re in here!”

  Callie had no choice; she had to confront Buck. Her slender shoulders squared with righteous indignation, she followed him into the master bedroom. “What do you want?” she demanded with a take-no-prisoners look.

  “What do you think? Cash!” Buck retorted, flashing her an evil grin.

  “Well, well, what have we here?” Buck murmured with disgusting glee as he moved toward Cody’s bureau. “The damn fool left his wallet.”

  No, Callie thought determinedly as she tried to cut her no-account brother off before he could make good the theft. Unfortunately, he was bigger, meaner and stronger than she. Tripping her off-balance, he planted a meaty hand on her back and sent her sprawling against the bed. Her body screaming at the rough treatment, Callie watched Buck empty Cody’s wallet and toss it back on the bureau with a thud. Once she would have tolerated this. No more.