by Sandy James
Will’s knowing eyes—used often to size up people—focused hard on Grace.
She seemed oblivious as she finished icing the cake.
“Been staying out at the Twin Springs, has she?” He twirled the ends of his moustache. “Folks gonna talk.”
Her head snapped up. “I don’t give a rap what anyone says. I’m here to see Jake, then I’m moving on. Now if you’ll all excuse me, I have some dishes to wash.” She picked up the empty bowl and marched into the kitchen, head held high.
“Em?” Will asked. “Can I have a moment alone with Adam?”
Hoisting herself out of the chair, Emily accepted her father’s helping hand. “I’ll keep her busy for a few minutes.”
She shuffled after Grace into the kitchen.
“What’s the real story with this woman, Adam?” Will asked the moment Emily was out of earshot. “Hate to think she’s here to stir up trouble for my son-in-law.”
“Grace won’t cause you any grief. She’s exactly what she says she is. She’s been tracking Jake for a long time. I think she carries a burden of guilt for having left him at the orphanage when their mama died.”
“That’s what she told you?” Will’s teasing tone wasn’t a surprise. “Opened up like that, did she?”
“Never that plainly.”
“Then how do you know she’s what she says she is—that she and this Matthew are Jake’s kin?”
“She almost died trying to find him. By the time she made it to the ranch, she was burning with fever.”
Trying to convince his friend that Grace was genuine came easy. Yes, there was more for her to share. Much more. But her concern for Jake appeared sincere.
“What harm can it do to tell the boy he’s got a couple of relatives? Let him decide what he wants to do about it.”
Grace swallowed her anger that she and Adam were targets of gossip. She came back into the saloon, carrying forks and plates as Emily followed in her wake. The men stopped talking midsentence. She wasn’t sure what that meant but figured Will was trying to ferret out her motives. Adam would set the man straight and convince him she had nothing in mind but meeting Jake.
She trusted Adam.
That revelation came as a shock—enough of a surprise she got a little dizzy.
With the exception of Matthew, she’d never trusted anyone before. Especially men. Trust got a person hurt. Not even family could be totally depended upon to do the right thing. Her father had taught her that lesson well. Matthew was the only exception.
But she trusted Adam.
And that frightened the hell out of her.
“Who wants cake?” She tried to keep her inward alarm from tainting her tone.
If she hadn’t set the plates down, she would’ve dropped them when she saw the silhouette of a man standing between the swinging doors, holding them open as he took in the scene.
Jake.
He looked so much like Matthew at that age he took her breath away. She was elated to see none of Stephen in his face.
“Finally,” she whispered.
“Jake!” Emily lumbered over to his side.
He wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder.
She leaned her head against his chest. “You won’t believe who’s here to see you, sugar.”
The couple strode into the bar, and he pulled out a chair for his wife. She took a seat and smiled up at him.
Then she turned her face to smile at Grace. “This is your sister, Grace Riley. You have a sister. Isn’t that wonderful?”
He whirled to face her, a fierce scowl fixed on his hard mouth. “Sister? What do you mean sister?”
Judging from his reaction, finding out he had a relative was unwelcome. Not that she blamed him, especially after all Adam had told her about Jake’s childhood.
His frown deepened as he narrowed his eyes at her. “Don’t know what kind of cruel game you’re playing, lady, but I ain’t got a sister.”
“Easy there, son,” Adam said. “Give her a chance to explain.”
“I ain’t got a sister,” he insisted, turning that glare on Adam. “I don’t know who the hell she be. Don’t rightly care. But she ain’t my sister.”
Grace swallowed her hurt at her unrealistic hope he’d accept her without a struggle and bravely stepped toward him. Her palms were moist as she clenched her hands into fists.
There was nothing to do but face this head on, despite her fears. “I am your sister, Jake. Our brother Matthew is here too. We came to find you.”
The glower he shot at her wounded like a knife in the belly. “If you’re family, where were you when they took me to that damned orphanage in Denver?”
She shook her head, feeling the sharp sting of guilt she knew would never leave. “I didn’t know about what happened to your adopted parents. I didn’t know about the orphanage, either. If I had, I would’ve come for you. I lost track of you after the Curtis family adopted you. I–I didn’t think you’d want to know about me—that you’d be happier with your new family.”
His face flushed red. “If Adam hadn’t taken me in, I’d still be living on the streets, stealing to survive. You ever eat garbage, lady?”
“I’m so sorry, Jake. I truly am.” She wiped away a stray tear with the back of her hand. God help her, she wanted to run to Adam and beg him to make this right.
No one can ever make this right.
“Please, please forgive me,” she begged. “I just want to get to know you. Please, Jake. I’m your sister.”
“Lady, you spill that lie one more time, and woman or not, I’m gonna knock your teeth out.”
Adam stepped between them. He put a steadying hand on her shoulder, and she drew strength from the comforting gesture. “Calm down, Jake. Hear the lady out.”
“Heard all I intend to.” He stomped across the bar, sawdust jumping with each heavy step until he reached the staircase. “Emily? You coming?”
“I’ll be up shortly, sugar.”
A few moments later, the slamming of a door echoed from the second story.
Emily spoke first, giving Grace a hesitant smile. “He doesn’t mean it, Grace. You were such a surprise, and this is just…hard on him.”
Afraid she’d burst into tears if a single word escaped her lips, Grace simply nodded.
“It’ll take some time for him to accept this,” Adam added, squeezing her shoulder. “He’ll come ’round.”
Her broken heart told her otherwise.
“I reckon I’ve got a good solution to all of our problems,” Will declared with a sly grin.
Pulling out a chair for Grace, Adam helped her take a seat. Having known Will for going on twenty years, he was well aware of the mischief the man liked to make. While most of his plots and plans usually turned out well in the end, they’d been known to cause some worry for more than a few people. From that grin, Adam just might be the one who found himself inconvenienced.
He sat down next to her and covered one of the hands she’d pressed to the table with his own. “Since this solution of yours obviously involves us, care to enlighten everyone?”
“Jake needs time to get used to the notion of having a sister. If she’s staying out at your ranch, he won’t get a chance to know her.”
Adam sure didn’t appreciate the direction this conversation was heading. “Drop the other boot, Will. You’re cooking up a scheme.”
“Grace should stay here for a spell. Give her a chance to get to know her brother.”
“It’ll stop any gossip about her staying out at the Twin Springs, her being healthy now and all,” Emily added with a smile, clearly warming to her father’s plan. “There’s an empty bedroom on the second floor. Grace can bed down there.”
“No,” Adam replied, not even giving the plan any real consideration. He squeezed her small hand tightly before realizing he might be hurting her. But damn, he didn’t like this idea. Not one bit. “Grace is coming home with me. We’ve got a cattle drive coming soon.”
“I appreciate
the offer, Will,” Grace said. “But I can’t take your charity.” She glanced to Adam. “I can’t take your charity, either. You don’t need me on that drive.” A shuddering sigh escaped her lips as she dragged her hand from under his and dropped it in her lap. “I reckon it’s best if Matthew and I head out now. We could still catch up with a long drive we heard about if we leave tomorrow.”
“You’re not leaving, Gracie.” Adam’s tone was strained. “Not after you’ve come so far. Give the boy some time. He’ll come ’round.”
“Never said I’d be givin’ you charity,” Will added. “Nope. No free rides at the Four Aces.” A huge grin made his gold tooth twinkle in the light. “What exactly can you do, Grace?”
“She can cook,” Emily said with an enthusiastic nod. “And with the baby coming, I won’t be able to anymore.”
“Damn fine blessing that is,” her father replied. “Give you room and board if you’ll stay and cook, Grace. Maybe give Emily a hand getting things ready for the baby and helpin’ her after my grandbaby’s born.”
“Absolutely not.” Adam had no intention of allowing Grace to stay at the Four Aces. While he liked and trusted Will, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he needed to protect this woman, even from the hostility of her own brother. Once the customers started pouring into the bar and got even a glimpse of her, she’d have ten offers of marriage within a heartbeat.
Hell no, she wasn’t staying in town. Not without him.
“Adam,” Grace said in that calm voice he’d heard her use whenever she was trying to bend Matthew to her will, “you’ve been so kind, but—”
“You’re not staying here, Gracie.”
“Don’t you see? I need to do this. It isn’t fair for me to take and take and never give. I can work for Will. I can earn my way in the world. I’ve been taking care of myself since I was fifteen. Besides, in a few weeks, I’ll be gone.”
He scrubbed his hand across the back of his neck. There were no logical reasons he could throw at her to force her to stay at Twin Springs. Yet he simply couldn’t find it in himself to agree with her decision.
This woman was a riddle that he was committed to solving. He enjoyed her company, and the longer he spent with her, the more he saw that she needed him.
Even more, he was beginning to think that he needed her as well. “We’ll talk about this at supper.”
“Adam…”
“After supper. We’ll talk then. Now, it’s time to head home.”
Chapter Seven
Grace handed the plate to Matthew without taking a biscuit.
Her appetite was gone, and anything she ate would be a lump in her nervous stomach that churned more each time she remembered Jake’s angry expression, the hateful tone of his voice. Not that she blamed him. God only knew how he’d react if he ever learned the whole truth.
“He shouldn’t have shouted at you.” Matthew passed the plate of remaining biscuits back to Grace—a silent scolding for her not eating much. “You did right by that boy. You gave him a family instead of a childhood spent in the back of a wagon with nothing but roughneck cowboys to teach him about life.”
“He didn’t really shout,” she said. “He was just…upset. I can’t imagine what’s going through his mind, finding out he’s got kin after all this time.”
Adam took the plate from her, dropped a biscuit on his own, and passed the dwindling supply to Ty. “Shock or not, he was rude. I don’t want you staying there. You shouldn’t have to face that anger every morning ’til he accepts the truth. You’ve gotta give him some time.”
Matthew furrowed his brow. “Staying? What you do you mean staying?”
From the time he’d been a child, they’d always been together. He’d sacrificed so much to help her, spending years working cattle drives to keep her away from Stephen Shay as that devil stalked her as though he were a lawman searching for a criminal with a hefty bounty on his head. He deserved a life of his own, and being at Twin Springs, he might have finally found that life—especially if the feelings between him and Victoria could be nurtured until they fully bloomed.
Just another reason to be moving on.
Her mind was set. “I’ve been offered a job as a cook, and I intend to take it.”
“Where? At that–that saloon?” Matthew asked. “You’re not working in a saloon, Grace. It’s not proper.”
“Oh, spare me.” She rolled her eyes as she grasped his meaning. “I’ve worked alone with men my whole life. I’ve got no reputation to protect.”
He still frowned. “Why can’t you stay at the ranch? I can keep an eye on you here.”
Adam grunted and nodded.
Now wasn’t the time to remind Matthew that the reason he needed to look out for her had died. “Because I can’t keep imposing on Adam and Victoria.”
“You’re not imposing, Grace,” Victoria said, taking the last biscuit.
Adam grunted again.
He was good and mad, and she knew she should be trying to soothe him. He’d been so kind. The man saved her life, but that wasn’t reason enough to stay on at Twin Springs. She would ruin his good name among the townsfolk, and she didn’t want the law showing up on his doorstep to arrest her for murder.
Every night she prayed to God for forgiveness for all she’d done, and every night she became more certain she was destined to be alone as penance for her sins.
Her already shaky composure vanished like a frightened wren. She would’ve pushed her plate away and fled upstairs to sob into her pillow but resorted to moving food around with her fork. Hopefully nobody noticed she was on the verge of tears at the notion of Adam ever knowing what she’d done. She belonged in jail not on a beautiful ranch with a man so wonderful that thinking about him made her heart ache.
“What’s wrong?” Adam asked.
Grace hated how easily he could read her. No wonder he took all the matches in the kitty whenever they played cards. “I’m fine.”
“You don’t look fine.”
She shrugged and swallowed hard. “Despite your kind offer, I am imposing. I’m going to White Pines tomorrow. I can’t keep accepting your charity.”
“I’m not offering charity. You can earn your keep just as easily at the Twin Springs as you can at the Four Aces. Daisy’s gone. I need a cook and housekeeper.”
“You’ve got Victoria to cook for you until Daisy gets back.”
“Daisy might not come back, and what about the cattle drive?”
“She’ll come back. She loves you and Victoria. And we both know you don’t need me on that drive.”
Matthew busied himself with shoveling food into his mouth, but he watched them both, hardly blinking.
Victoria shot him the same scowl she used every time they ate to point out that his table manners were less than impeccable.
Grace had tried hard to teach him to eat more refined, but when a body grew up fighting a bunch of hungry cowboys to get enough to fill his belly, manners weren’t all that important.
With a shake of her head, Victoria turned her attention back to Grace. “I can’t cook as well as you do. I’d miss your company, too. Please stay.”
“Oh, Victoria. I thank you for that, but I need to go. I wish I could explain it so you’d understand. I have to move on.”
Adam stood up and carried his empty plate to the sink. He dropped it hard enough it shattered.
His show of temper should’ve made her uneasy. Every time cowboys got too unruly, she retreated to the chuckwagon to wait out the storm, hoping none of them ended up beaten up enough to need her to stitch up a wound.
Yet that urge to run for safety wasn’t there.
He gawked at her barely touched plate of food. “Since it appears you’re done eating, we’re going for a walk.”
Uncharacteristically sarcastic, he indicated the door with a flourish of his hand. Then he grabbed her shawl from one of the pegs and held it open, waiting for her to join him.
Avoiding him wouldn’t help, and a walk would giv
e them some privacy. Her heart was heavy as she thought of all the things that might have been between them. If only she was somebody else. If only they’d met in another place or another time. If only she hadn’t done all she’d done.
It didn’t matter if she wanted to stay. She wouldn’t bring shame to Adam’s doorstep. No, there was no other choice for her than to run as soon as she had enough money.
As Matthew said, that was what she did best.
For the first time in her life, the notion of leaving made her heart as fragile as glass. She’d always been willing to go on another cattle drive or hire on another chuckwagon. Disappearing came easy. She’d met and fed almost every cowboy in the West.
Yet not once did the notion of leaving anyone cause her pain.
As much as she hurt at the mere thought of walking away from Adam, actually doing so might kill her. He was a part of her now, buried deep in her heart, and losing him would be akin to having one of her limbs ripped from her body.
Grace let Adam wrap the shawl around her shoulders and lead the way out of the house. As they walked down the long road, she didn’t resist when he took her hand in his, instead wanting the warmth and comfort he provided to seep into her veins.
They strolled along, quiet and contemplative until they reached the road to White Pines—the place they’d shared the incredible kiss that had replayed in her mind a million times. Hard as it was to acknowledge, Grace wanted him. Simply remembering his words—remembering that he wanted her as well—was almost enough to make her change her mind and stay on the ranch.
And do what?
Pass a few weeks together as if the rest of the world didn’t exist?
Become his lover?
Sweet merciful Lord, that was tempting. Even her fear of the physical act of mating couldn’t keep Adam out of her thoughts. Every time he touched her, he burned a little more of that fear away until nothing was left but the gnawing emptiness inside her that only he could fill.
But they could never be. She couldn’t take Adam as a lover. She couldn’t hide out on the ranch, wishing the rest of the world would simply disappear.
She couldn’t make this real.
