Connor’s throat constricted with gratitude toward his brother. He swallowed past the ache and said, “Thank you.”
“You realize that when you ask King to help he’s going to tell you to take a short hike off a tall cliff,” Aiden said in a gruff voice. “I hate like hell for you to bow down to that son of a bitch.”
“I’d walk through fire for Eve. Bowing down to King Grayhawk is child’s play.”
Connor had been plenty brave in front of his brother. Facing the man himself was another matter. He took a deep breath and opened the door to the café. His heart was beating hard in his chest, and he licked at the sweat above his lip. Kowtowing to King Grayhawk might seem like child’s play, but confronting one of the great monsters in your life was not.
He was immediately assaulted by the smells of bacon, biscuits, and coffee, the clatter of cutlery and dishes, and the murmur of dozens of voices. The man he was seeking sat with three others at a booth in the back corner. Connor strode into the café as though he belonged there. The sudden hush was testimony to the fact that he was a Flynn in Grayhawk territory.
Like a cop who needs to watch for the bad guy, even when he eats, King Grayhawk was seated on the aisle with his back to the wall. When he looked out into the restaurant to discover the cause of the quiet, he couldn’t help but see Connor’s approach.
Connor watched King stiffen, saw his shoulders brace and his chin come up a notch, ready for what he surely expected was some sort of confrontation. Connor had decided to speak with Eve’s father in a public place, in front of his friends, for the same reason Eve had arranged for him to meet his father in church—the hope that King would be forced to speak civilly to him.
On the other hand, having his friends close by might also preclude any sort of compromise on King’s part. Connor realized he was going to need to separate King from his cronies in order to discuss the favor he needed.
When he reached the booth he said, “I need to speak with you privately.”
“I’m having breakfast,” King replied.
“It’s important.” When that got no response he added, “It’s about Eve.”
The wedding of a Grayhawk and a Flynn had provided plenty of juicy gossip in a small town like Jackson, and it was clear from the frown on King’s face that he didn’t want this possible conflict between the couple to become more grist for the mill.
King pulled the napkin from his lap and set it on the table, then rose and said, “Follow me.” He headed for the back of the restaurant, pausing at the service counter long enough to say to the man behind it, “Bubba, I need your office.”
“Sure, King.”
Connor realized from the ease with which King asked and Bubba answered that Eve’s father must have done this a number of times when he needed privacy to conduct business.
Compared with the restaurant, which was decorated with Conestoga wagon wheels and sported a western print on the cloth cushions in the booths, the office was definitely a part of the twenty-first century. King took a seat in a high-backed black leather swivel chair behind a glass-topped desk, leaving a shorter-backed black leather chair on wheels in front of the desk for Connor. He hesitated, then settled into the chair.
Having arranged the situation so he was in the position of power in the room, King asked, “Why are you here? Is Eve all right?”
Connor’s pulse began to pound as he realized how much was at stake. If he didn’t approach King in the right way, Eve was going to be forced to leave to pursue this assignment. She would receive other offers in the future, he was sure, to travel to do her work, but by then he hoped the kids would realize she was going to be a part of their lives for good and always, and he and Eve would have cemented their lives together as a couple. He just wanted a little time together at the beginning of their marriage to show her how much he cherished her. How much he valued her. How important she was to his happiness and the happiness of their children. So this was a very important conversation.
Connor began, “I don’t know if you were aware of it, but Eve received an offer from National Geographic to photograph a herd of wild mustangs in Nevada.”
From the way King’s brows rose, he hadn’t known about the offer. “This is what you called me away from breakfast to discuss? I know the girl can take pictures. What’s the problem?”
“My kids need her.” Connor hesitated, then added, “And I need her.”
“So tell her to stay home.”
“I don’t want her giving up her dreams for mine.”
King snorted. “Sounds like you have a problem.”
“It’s one you can solve,” Connor said, continuing doggedly in the face of King’s snarly response. “Again, I don’t know how much you know about my ranch, but—”
“I know everything. Including the fact that Angus has pulled the plug on your trust, and you’re about to be flat broke.”
Connor flushed. “Then you know how important it is for Eve to take this assignment. We need the cash. I’ve figured out a way she can stick around Safe Haven and still do the job for the magazine.”
“I’m listening.”
“I need you to convince the BLM to settle a herd of wild mustangs on the four thousand acres of leased land I have at Safe Haven. And I need it done before the mares in the herd drop their foals this spring.”
King guffawed. “Oh, is that all I have to do?”
“After two terms as governor of Wyoming, are you suggesting you don’t have enough friends in high places to make it happen?”
“The BLM is run by the federal government,” King pointed out.
Connor lifted a brow. “So? You don’t have any friends in Washington?”
King templed his hands before him. “Why should I do this?”
“I love your daughter and I want her to be happy. I believe being able to do her work and still be home to care for the children is important to her. And it’s little enough, don’t you think, after that trick you pulled on her and her sisters.”
King scowled. “Don’t be judging what you don’t understand.”
“I understand Eve came to me because you threw her out. I thank you for that, because without your callousness we never would have found each other. If you can’t do this, tell me now and you’ll never hear another word out of me. But if you can, I’m asking you to make it happen.”
King stared out the window into the alley behind the restaurant, so it wasn’t the view he was considering.
Connor waited him out, forcing himself to stay silent.
“I can’t guarantee anything, but I might know someone with enough clout to get this done,” King said at last.
“Thanks,” Connor said.
“I haven’t done anything yet.”
Connor stood. “You’re willing to try. That says a lot.”
“Take care of her.”
“It’s the reason I wake up in the morning,” Connor answered simply.
“I’ll be in touch when I have an answer. Now get the hell out of here and let me go finish my breakfast.”
Connor didn’t walk out of the restaurant, he floated out on a wave of euphoria. King was going to help. Eve would be able to take her amazing photographs without needing to travel to another state. If the BLM cooperated. If they could find a herd of horses with pregnant mares to move. And if they could get them moved in time.
Connor had a lot of faith in King Grayhawk to make it all happen. Like Connor’s own father, he was a man able to move mountains. Connor’s only fear had been that King wouldn’t care enough about Eve to help. He was glad he’d been wrong.
Now he just had to wait and hope for the magic to happen.
Chapter 28
“MOMMY, MOMMY! COME quick!”
Eve came running, her heart in her throat, when she heard Brooke’s cry for help. She still wasn’t used to being called “Mommy,” and her heart nearly stopped when she heard it yelled at the top of her daughter’s lungs. She shoved open the screen door and bolted onto the
back porch, expecting blood and tears. Instead, she found Brooke pointing at a tractor-trailer that had pulled up behind the house.
Eve heard horses neighing and realized the truck was full of them. “What in the world?”
The driver opened the door to the cab and stepped down. “Hope I’m in the right spot, ma’am. I was told to deliver these mustangs to Safe Haven.”
“This is Safe Haven.”
“Is Connor Flynn around?”
“What is this?” Eve asked, gesturing toward the truck full of horses.
“His herd of wild mustangs.”
“His herd?” Eve put a hand to her forehead to keep the sun out of her eyes as she took a closer look at the horses, which had no numbers branded on their necks, as they would have if they’d been adopted after a BLM roundup. “Where did these wild mustangs come from?”
“Idaho,” the driver said. “Got an order from the BLM to relocate them to Safe Haven.” He opened the order and read, “One stallion, sixteen mares—four of which are pregnant—four two-year-old colts, three yearling colts, three two-year-old fillies, and three yearling fillies. Thirty mustangs in all. I need Flynn to sign off that he got them.”
“I don’t know exactly where—”
“Daddy!” Brooke called. “Look what we got!”
Eve whirled and saw Connor loping toward them from the Main Lodge, a wide smile on his face.
“They’re here!” he said jubilantly.
“You were expecting this?” Eve said.
Connor nodded. “Not this soon, and not for sure.”
“How did this happen?” Eve asked, her pulse thrumming with excitement.
“I’ll tell you everything as soon as I sign for them.” He signed the manifest and gave the driver instructions where to offload the herd.
Eve turned to Connor, her mouth filled with laughter, her eyes filled with tears. “What did you do?” she asked. “How did this happen?”
Connor grabbed her under the arms and swung her in a circle, woo-hooing the whole time.
“Do me, Daddy,” Brooke yelled.
“Do me, Daddy,” Sawyer begged.
He set Eve down, then picked up one kid under each arm, and buzzed the porch like an airplane, finally dropping them on their feet.
As Eve helped to steady the two dizzy children, Connor threw his head back, shoved his arms into the air, and shouted, “We have wild mustangs! Mommy doesn’t have to go to Nevada!”
“Yay!” Brooke said, clapping her hands and jumping up and down.
Sawyer clapped his hands, but Eve wasn’t sure he understood why they were celebrating. Brooke did. Eve had sat down on the bed next to her stepdaughter the previous evening and explained that she was going to have to leave in a few days to go take photographs of wild horses in Nevada.
“I don’t want you to go,” Brooke said emphatically.
“I don’t want to go. I have to go. It’s my job.”
Brooke had flung herself against Eve and sobbed, “Please don’t leave, Mommy.”
Through a blur of tears, Eve had seen Connor standing in the doorway, his hip canted, his face grim.
It was the first time Brooke had ever called her “Mommy.” Eve’s stomach was so tightly knotted that she thought she might vomit. But there was no escape from the trap in which she was caught. Brooke wanted her mother. And Eve had to leave.
Nothing Eve had said to Brooke, no promises of Skyping or phoning or texting or returning soon, had been able to console the little girl. Eve had spent the night crying in Connor’s embrace as he tried to comfort her. Throughout it all, he hadn’t said a word about arranging for a herd of wild horses to be brought to Safe Haven.
“Can me and Sawyer go down to the corral and watch them let the horses out of the truck?” Brooke asked.
“Sure. But hold your brother’s hand and wait at the stable for us,” Connor replied. “We’ll be right there and walk you down to the corral.”
Eve watched as the kids trotted away, then turned to Connor and asked, “Why didn’t you tell me about this last night?”
“I didn’t want to offer false hope. I didn’t find out for sure it was going to happen until early this morning, when the mustangs were already on their way.”
“I need to call my editor. I need to—”
“Yes, you do,” Connor interrupted. “But don’t be surprised when she isn’t surprised.”
Eve’s jaw dropped. “You contacted my editor?”
“Just to be sure this would be all right with her, if I could get it worked out. She’s expecting your call. That is, if you’re okay with taking your photographs here, rather than Nevada.”
“Am I okay with it? Are you nuts?” Eve’s grin spread across her face. She couldn’t stop it. “I’m over the moon with it! How did you manage to talk the BLM into letting you host a band of mustangs?”
“King made it happen.”
“My father arranged this?” Eve felt a rush of love for someone who’d lately been a villain in her life. “All on his own?”
“I might have pointed him in the right direction. But he was the one who talked to all the right people.”
Eve threw her arms around Connor’s neck and kissed him.
He enthusiastically returned the favor. “What was that for?” he murmured against her lips.
“Because I love you. And because I have a confession as well.”
He kissed her again. “This sounds serious.”
She lowered her gaze and said, “I’ve arranged a fund-raiser.” She looked up into his eyes and continued earnestly, “Matt agreed to let me use the facilities at Kingdom Come—mostly to thank you for checking with Devon to confirm that Pippa is living with your brother on his ranch in the mountains—and Leah helped me arrange everything so it could be held the last Saturday before I left.”
“This is happening tomorrow?” Connor asked incredulously.
Eve nodded. “Uh-huh. I couldn’t decide whether to tell you or not. I decided to make it a surprise.”
Connor’s eyes narrowed. “What, exactly, are you raising funds for?”
She took a deep breath and admitted, “Safe Haven.”
Connor let her go and took a step back, his excitement dimming as though a sudden thundercloud had covered the sun. “I don’t need charity.”
She reached out to hook her arm through his and started walking toward the corral, dragging on his arm until he fell into step with her. “It isn’t charity, Connor. It’s fund-raising. There’s a big difference. You’re not the one benefiting from these donations—it’s the veterans who stay at Safe Haven. And the more money we have in our war chest, the more soldiers we can help. Right?”
Connor nodded.
“So I scheduled a barbecue at Kingdom Come and invited all the locals to attend and make a contribution for a good—a noble—cause: to help the men who’ve fought to keep them free.”
“Matt gave you permission to do this at Kingdom Come?”
Eve nodded. “Leah helped me set up a website for donations, and every one of your brothers RSVP’d that they’ll be there.” She shot him an anxious look and said, “Angus is coming, too. Oh, and all my sisters will be there. And King, of course.”
Connor stared at her in awe. Or consternation. Or disbelief. Or maybe all three.
“Say something. Are you okay with what I’ve arranged? Have I made a mistake?”
Connor kissed her quick and hard. “I think the idea is brilliant.” He patted Eve’s hand and chuckled as they started walking again. “Everybody in town will likely show up just to see what happens when all those Grayhawks cross paths with all those Flynns.” He shot her a cheeky grin. “That alone should be worth the price of admission.”
Eve caught her lower lip in her teeth, suddenly realizing that she’d set the scene for a knock-down, drag-out fight between two powerful families. What had she done?
Chapter 29
“HOW DO YOU think it’s going?” Eve asked Leah as she surveyed the three
hundred or so people who’d shown up for the First Annual Safe Haven Barbecue and Dance. She had to speak loudly because the country band was playing the Cotton-Eyed Joe, and everyone on the dance floor set up on the lawn was yelling “Bullshit!” at intervals during the song.
Leah finished clearing one of the many tables covered with a red-checked cloth, adjusted a chair in the grass, and perused the bustle on the immense front lawn at Kingdom Come, where an entire spitted beef was being turned over a fire. “Good music. Good food. Good drinks. Open wallets. What’s not to like?”
“The glares shooting between Grayhawks and Flynns,” Eve said as she glanced from the table where her father had set up camp with Matt and his son, to the table where Connor’s father was surrounded by his sons and Matt’s daughter. “Why on earth would the Flynns show up at an event being held at Daddy’s ranch?”
“That’s Aiden’s doing,” Leah said. “I have it straight from the horse’s mouth—excuse the expression—that ‘Connor is doing important work that needs to be supported.’ Aiden made sure that everyone from Angus on down showed up today and made a significant financial contribution.”
“I’m glad Devon showed up with Pippa, so Matt can see that she’s all right,” Eve said.
“On the other hand, Pippa hasn’t spoken to her father. There’s more going on there than meets the eye,” Leah said speculatively.
“You might be right,” Eve said. Leah was definitely right, but as far as Eve was concerned, Pippa’s secret was hers to keep for as long as she could.
Leah crossed to a convenient trash can, but before she could dump the paper plates and beer bottles she’d collected a waitress took them from her, smiled, and said, “I’ll take care of those for you, ma’am.”
Eve’s attention was distracted by the sight of Matt headed for the table where Pippa sat beside Devon. Eve dropped all the paper plates and beer bottles she’d collected into the appropriate cans and moved swiftly toward the confrontation she was afraid was about to happen. Matt wouldn’t dare create a scene. Not in front of all the benefactors they’d managed to get here today. But even as she approached the table where Devon and Pippa were seated, Matt’s voice got louder and harsher.
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