But when the man turned, Cole saw only a smile. He nodded at Pete. “Don’t tell me Jed makes his ranch manager muck out stalls.”
“Hey, Cole.” Pete set the shovel aside and crossed the space between them to offer his hand. “He told me you were back in town and starting work today.”
“That must’ve come as a surprise.”
“What? Jed hiring someone on and telling me after the fact? No surprise there. He might call himself retired, but he’s still got a strong hand on the reins.”
“Always did have.”
“True. Hang on a minute.” Pete went into the small room partitioned off as an office and returned with a hammer and an old tin can filled with nails. “There’s a pair of gloves on the workbench in the tack room. Go grab ’em.” As they made their way outside, he added, “We’ve got some rails out by the corral that need patching. It’ll get you limbered up for this afternoon. I’ll be sending you out to the south border to check on the stock. You’ll need to take a look at the fencing there, too.”
“Trouble?”
Pete shook his head. “Just maintenance and some overly adventurous cattle. You know the drill.”
At the corral, Cole wrestled a split and warped rail into submission while Pete hammered it into place.
“As for Jed and his tight rein,” Pete said, “I wouldn’t have it any other way. He might be past seventy, but he’s still sharper than a tack. In case you were wondering.”
“Should I be?”
Pete shrugged. “No idea. Just throwing that out there for old time’s sake.” They moved on to the next rail. “Now, your return to town, that did come as a surprise. I always figured you for having itchy feet. But maybe you scratched them enough.”
“Maybe.” Just the thought of tying himself down permanently in Cowboy Creek made him want to head out of town.
On feet that weren’t itchy, only damned cold.
Pete swung the hammer a final time, sending the nail into place. “Let’s head in, and I’ll take you through the barn. Jed wants you working the corral, giving lessons to the guests as needed.”
“Then I’ll have to get familiar with everything you’ve got.”
Pete nodded. “You can pick out a mount for today’s ride, and another for tomorrow. You’ll see a few familiar faces. But even with the new stock, we don’t have anything you can’t handle.”
Cole followed him back toward the barn.
Jed had told him the ranch manager had a couple of kids of his own. Lucky for Pete, he’d found out about his kids at the usual time—before they were born.
He wondered how the man would deal with a situation like one he was facing. A situation he’d already managed to mess up. Yeah, he’d stood his ground with Tina. Had argued over his right to spend time with his son. Had talked the talk...
And then when the time had come to walk the walk, he’d gotten those cold feet. He hadn’t come near the ranch since the night of their conversation.
No matter how much he might wish otherwise, this change in his life wasn’t something he knew how to handle. Hell, he understood horses more than he did kids.
What if he couldn’t be the daddy his son deserved?
* * *
IN THE HOTEL’S roomy kitchen on Sunday morning, Tina ironed the load of cloth napkins she had just removed from the dryer. She had kept herself as busy as possible for the past few days...to keep from thinking of Cole.
He had started work on the ranch, as scheduled, and she had spent those long days waiting for him to reappear at the hotel. He hadn’t. Whether that meant she should thank her good fortune or worry about what revenge he was plotting, she didn’t know. Either way, the uncertainty had left her barely able to close her eyes the night before.
It didn’t surprise her a bit that his interest in her son hadn’t lasted very long. Neither had his interest in her, years ago. She was grateful in both cases.
Seeing him again had made her recall the girl she’d once been, the girl who’d forever had the bad luck to have a crush on him. The girl who’d once wanted a family with him.
They’d had a child together, though Cole hadn’t known that.
Till now.
Neither had anyone else.
Of course, everyone in Cowboy Creek knew four-year-old Robbie. She could just imagine their well-meaning but frantic conversations when they had found out she was pregnant.
Do you think the daddy’s one of Jed’s full-time ranch hands?
Or a wrangler who worked there only for a season?
Maybe he was a guest who stayed at the Hitching Post and never came back again.
She didn’t know what conclusions they had come to. After telling Ally the truth, she had left everyone else to speculate all they wanted—and hoped they would never stumble upon the truth. Soon, thanks to Cole, they would never have to guess again.
She regretted only that she had never told her grandparents. But now the time was coming for her to let them know the truth about Robbie—and Cole—she wasn’t sure she would ever find the right words.
“I’m glad we had a few people in the dining room this morning,” Abuela said.
Happy for the distraction from her worries, Tina nodded. Luckily, they usually did get a small crowd for their Sunday brunch. Today had been no exception, although the dining room had cleared out now.
Things were looking up for the hotel, as well. A young couple had checked in the night before, and two other parties had booked rooms for the coming week.
They would fill a couple of rooms with family, too. Her cousin Jane had already arrived, and Andi and her children were due in from the airport at any time.
With so many people around, Tina hadn’t found the chance to talk to her grandparents alone.
“Of course, you’re glad to have guests in the dining room, Abuela. You’re always happier when we have more mouths to feed.”
“That’s what I do,” Abuela said simply. “But I’m sorry you had to take Maria’s place.”
The waitress who usually worked the morning shift on the weekend attended classes part-time at the community college. In a panic, Maria had taken the day off to study for an upcoming midterm exam.
“Maria is a good girl,” Abuela said, “but when it comes to her schoolwork, she’s not very organized at all. I’m so happy you were always dependable, never waiting till the last minute to study for your tests.”
Tina stared down at the napkin she was pressing.
Yes, she was dependable and reliable. As Jed often said, she was as steady as they made them—which meant her one slip had always been so much harder to explain.
“Filling in around here is what I do,” she said lightly. Waitress, maid, ranch hand for some of the dude ranch activities—she’d done all those jobs and more. Running a family-owned business meant pitching in whenever you were shorthanded. “I’m just glad I never had to fill in for you. I’ll never be the cook you are, no matter how many lessons you give me.”
“That’s not a bit true. You are an excellent cook. And someday you will be an excellent wife.”
Tina flinched. Quickly, she covered her reaction by grabbing a few more napkins from the basket.
Abuela couldn’t know how much those words had hurt.
She loved both her grandparents and knew how much they loved her. Unlike her parents, they had always been there for her.
For a while after learning her parents had abandoned her, she had felt lost and alone, except with Abuela and Jed and at her home here at the Hitching Post. The attic room upstairs became her sanctuary. The hotel she loved, with its hundred years of history, became her connection to the past. And her dreams of the future were filled with images of the family she had with Cole.
* * *
A SHORT WHILE LATER, hearing Jed’s footsteps approaching the kitchen, Tina managed a smile.
He entered the room grinning. “We’ve got a couple more guests in for brunch. Cole and his sister’s boy.”
His words s
tartled her, but she fought to behave naturally.
She unplugged the iron and went to return it to the shelf in the walk-in pantry. Over her shoulder, she said, “The dining room’s closed.”
“Not for old friends, it isn’t. Go see what he wants to eat, will you?”
Like it or not—and she didn’t—she had to face Cole.
On her way out of the room, she picked up an order pad from the china cabinet near the kitchen door. She forced herself to walk down the hall and through the reception area.
From the dining room, she heard Cole’s deep voice followed by her cousin’s husky laugh.
At the doorway, she stopped. In the otherwise vacant room, Cole and Jane were seated at a table for four near a sunlit window, and Robbie and Scott knelt on chairs at a large table in one corner of the room.
Delaying the inevitable, she focused on that corner table. To her dismay, the boys had already pushed aside the cutlery and lined up a row of plastic farm animals on the tabletop between them. She would have a hard time tearing Robbie away from his play.
She could understand her son’s interest in Cole’s nephew. Other than an occasional guest at the hotel, Robbie was almost as cut off from companionship his own age here at the ranch as she had been as a child. The ranch manager had a couple of kids, but as far as Robbie was concerned, Pete’s five-year-old daughter was “too bossy” and his two-year-old son was “no fun.”
Reluctantly, she tore her gaze away from the boys and looked at Cole.
Jane spotted her standing in the doorway. “Tina,” she said brightly, “where have you been? You’ve got a hungry man waiting here.”
“Have I?”
“Yes. I hope you’re ready to take his order.”
In answer, Tina held up the pad.
“Then I’ll turn him over to you.” After smiling at Cole, Jane rose from the table. As usual, Tina’s older cousin wore black from head to toe and had shoulder-length dark hair. From the chair beside the one she’d been sitting in, she lifted one of the two cameras she had brought to the ranch with her. “Think I’ll go shoot some local color.”
As she left the room, Tina plastered a professional smile on her face and went toward Cole’s table.
In all the years since he had left Cowboy Creek, she had never let herself imagine him here at the ranch again. That would have been too poignant a reminder of the dream that would never come true.
Now that he was sitting in front of her, he was a reminder of all she needed to protect. “What are you doing here?” she demanded, keeping her voice low.
“Layne’s working this morning, so I thought I’d give her a break and bring Scott over for brunch. Since I was headed here, anyway.”
She didn’t miss the unstated warning. He intended to make good on what he had told her the other night. He intended to see Robbie whether she wanted him to or not. She looked from the pot of coffee in front of him to his comfortably sprawled position at the table. Both told her he wouldn’t be in a rush to leave.
He gestured to the empty chair across from his. “Join me?”
“I’ve already eaten.” She clamped her hands around the order pad. She had work to do. A long list of reasons to stay away from him. A longer list of reasons to take Robbie out of this room. She had an even more pressing need to find out what Cole was up to. “Robbie is only a four-year-old,” she said, speaking softly but struggling to keep her tone even. “You can’t just walk in here out of nowhere and turn his life upside down.”
“You really think that’s what I’ve come to do?” He waved as if to brush the question away. “No, don’t answer that. I think I already know.”
“Then, what is it you’ve got in mind?”
“Take a seat and you’ll find out.”
At the end of their conversation at his truck the other day, she’d wanted only to get him off the ranch.
Now that he was here again and pushing her, she wanted to push back. But that could turn the situation into a custody battle, a fight with them on different sides and her son caught in the middle. She couldn’t risk that.
After a glance at the corner table where the boys sat engrossed in noisy play, she took the seat across from Cole. “What is it you want?”
“To spend some time with my son.”
“But I told you, no one here—” She cut herself off, again unwilling to finish the thought ringing inside her head.
No one here on the ranch knows you’re my child’s father.
Saying it aloud would make it more real—and make her feel somehow more vulnerable to any retaliation Cole might have planned.
“Yeah, I remember,” he said drily. “Nobody knows. Well, Jed and Paz are the only ones who count. Once you tell them, we can work around everybody else.”
He glanced toward the boys, then back at her. “There’s no point in arguing,” he said flatly. “I want to be a part of my son’s life. And once he gets used to having me around, I intend to tell him I’m his daddy.”
She flinched, still not able to handle hearing those words.
Somehow, she had half hoped he had changed his mind about Robbie, about working here, about staying in town to help his sister. When he hadn’t shown up this morning, she had hoped he had left Cowboy Creek again forever.
But no, here he was, just as adamant about spending time with Robbie as Robbie would be about having playtime with Scott.
Like father, like son.
Chapter Five
Cole finished his brunch platter in the dining room, where the only sound came from the boys playing with their toys.
He stared as Tina’s son...his son knelt in his chair and leaned forward to slide a plastic giraffe across the table. The kid looked so young, and nearly the same size as Scott. Short for his age, like Tina had been, and with hair almost as dark as hers. Those similarities wouldn’t have given him a clue that he’d fathered the child, but there was no missing the boy’s eyes, so unlike Tina’s bottomless dark brown ones. Eyes as blue as his own.
From the direction of the lobby, he heard voices, laughter, the sound of a door closing.
A few minutes later, Jed appeared in the wide doorway of the dining room. Jane, dressed all in black, stood on one side of him. On the other, a slim blonde woman in a brightly colored shirt and pants held a baby in one arm. Pressed next to her stood a boy who looked to be a few months younger than Scott.
Jed wrapped his arms around the women’s shoulders. “Look who I’ve got here. Cole, of course you saw Jane just a bit ago.” He hugged the dark-haired woman with the cameras. “But you might not recall meeting my other granddaughter. This is Andi and her kids.” He beamed at the trio.
Cole nodded and forced a smile but said nothing. Making polite conversation wasn’t high on his list right now. Much as he’d looked forward to some time this morning to reconnect with his old boss, he didn’t care to sit down to a meal with the man’s family. At least, not right this minute.
He hadn’t simmered down yet after that conversation with Tina. Obviously, she didn’t like having him around. But he wasn’t going anywhere.
Jed urged the women forward. “Cole, bring your coffee over to the big table and join us.”
Andi shuffled a few steps with her little boy holding her pants leg in a near-death grip.
Maybe the kid had picked up on the tension Cole could almost feel radiating from him. Not that he had anything against Jane and Andi. He remembered them both, all right, from when he’d worked for Jed. The two girls and their families had spent summer vacations and school holidays at Garland Ranch. It looked like they were continuing the tradition.
Jane had seemed relaxed enough when they’d talked earlier, but the blonde, Andi, seemed ill at ease. Or as if she had something troubling her.
Tina, who had just come back into the room, looked almost as distracted. She surely must have a lot on her mind.
What had she thought of his absence for the past few days, especially after the way he’d insisted on spending
time with Robbie? She wouldn’t have missed him, that was for sure. More likely, she probably felt relieved not to have him around.
And she must dread the thought of breaking the news to their son.
For a second, he almost felt sorry for her. But then he thought again of how she’d deceived him.
“Well, come on,” Jed urged, “everyone take a seat. You girls and this little guy must be hungry after your travels. Tina, you get them all settled in while I go tell your gran that Andi and the kids have arrived.”
Jed left the room with more spring in his step than Cole would have expected from a man his age. Obviously, having his granddaughters visit had made his day.
Reluctantly, Cole grabbed his mug and the coffeepot and moved to the center table.
From the corner, Robbie called, “Mama, Scott and me are gonna go play with the ponies, okay?”
She nodded. “All right, but stay in the sitting room with them.”
“I know. That’s the rules.”
He rushed across the room, leaving the plastic animals he’d been playing with scattered all over the tabletop. Cole had trouble holding back a smile. Naturally, any kid of his would choose horses over a handful of other animals.
Scott hotfooted after Robbie as if the pair were best buddies. As they might have been, if things had been different.
No, as they might very well be. How the hell would he know?
He swallowed another wave of resentment at Tina.
Suddenly, he thought of Layne. Had she known and kept quiet about Tina’s pregnancy, too?
He refused to think that of his own sister.
But he wouldn’t put anything past Tina.
* * *
ONCE ROBBIE AND SCOTT had left the dining room, Tina didn’t know where to look. At her cousin Jane. At her other cousin Andi and her children. Or at Jed, who stood beside the table in the center of the room.
She definitely didn’t want to make eye contact with Cole, who had just taken the chair next to hers.
She glanced down the length of the table, where Jed stood beaming at Andi’s children. Her little boy was now almost three and her baby only a few weeks old. Neither Andi nor Jane had visited for quite a while, and though Jed seldom complained how infrequently he saw them, she knew how much he missed them all.
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