"Who was with him?" She held her breath, waiting for his answer.
"My father."
"What?" she gasped. She knew that Grady hadn't seen his father in at least nine years.
"Ron didn't know how to make things up to me, or how to make things right between us, but he figured that mending fences with my father was the first step."
"And did you?" She held her breath again.
"We have a lot of history, Becca, and there's a lot of pain between us. It's not going to be glossed over that easily. But we made a start. And I saw a couple of things real clearly."
"What was that?" She was afraid to move, afraid that what Grady was saying would disappear in a puff of smoke.
"The first one was that although I told myself I'm nothing like my father, I've been fooling myself. I'm so much like him that it's scary. He's a bitter, dried-up old man who has no one, and I won't let myself have anyone. He's pushed everyone away who wanted to be close to him, starting with my mother and continuing with me, and now I'm doing the same thing to you and Cassie."
"You're not bitter and dried up," she said, wanting to go to him but knowing that she couldn't. Not yet. "You're a very loving man."
"Give me a few years," he said. "I'll be just like him. When I was a kid, all I saw was that he wasn't there for me, wasn't willing to hold out his hand to me to bridge the gap that was developing. I was too angry with him to even try to talk to him, to understand what he was doing, let alone to see his point of view." He gave her a bitter smile. "What kid is willing to listen to his father?"
"You can be so much more than that," she said, willing him to believe her.
"That's the second thing I learned from him. That I have to be willing to take chances, to reach out for what I want. Because if I don't, I'm going to lose it all just as surely as he did. He wasn't willing to take that chance, and how did he end up? He's alone and lonely. That's what I claimed I wanted, but it isn't, not really. I told myself that I was afraid that I was going to hurt you, and Cassie, and I was. But deep down I was scared that you would leave. So I figured that I would just do it for you first. I couldn't get past my fear to admit what I really did want. I was afraid that if I asked for it, it would all disappear like smoke in the wind."
"And what do you want, Grady?" she whispered, her heart swelling.
"I want you, Becca. And I want Cassie. I want us to be a family, in every sense of the word. I want you to marry me. I'm slow to catch on and I know I'm nine years too late, but I love you, Becca. Teach me how to love you the way you love me. Help me be a good father to Cassie, and, if you're willing, to the brothers and sisters that Cassie might have."
"I love you, too, Grady. I always have, and I know I always will." She stepped into his embrace, and he folded his arms around her. "You're all I've ever wanted," she said.
"You could have fooled me," he said as he nuzzled her hair. "The way you've been avoiding me this week, I figured you'd suddenly gotten smart and wised up about me."
"I wised up about myself," she said, leaning back to trace the cleft in his cheek. "I wanted you too badly, and I didn't want to beg. I didn't want to put you in that position. So I stayed away."
"What did I ever do to deserve you?" he said, his voice humble.
"Where do you want me to start?" She smiled at him, her heart soaring, and traced his mouth with her linger. As she watched, his eyes blazed bright blue.
"How about right here?" He lowered his mouth to hers, and she melted into his kiss. It was a declaration of possession and a passionate vow. Desire leaped to life inside her, and she felt an answering tension in Grady. His hands shook as he cupped her face and tasted her mouth. When she opened her eyes and looked at him, he was staring at her, his eyes steady on hers.
"I'm not perfect, Becca," he warned. "I'm used to doing things my way, and I'm going to make mistakes."
"I'll make mistakes, too," she said, reaching up to kiss him. "We'll learn together."
He lowered his mouth to hers again, and suddenly both of them were frantic with need. Sliding his hands under her blouse, he unsnapped her bra and cupped her breasts in both hands. Catching her breath at his touch, she shuddered when he flicked his thumbs over her nipples. As she grew hot and began to throb with desire, she unsnapped his shirt and ran her hands over the hard planes of his chest. His hair curled beneath her fingers, and she leaned down to taste his hard male nipples.
Grady sucked in his breath, and the next moment he leaned back, his eyes hot and wild with passion. "Where's your bedroom?" he muttered.
"This way." She took his hand and led him up the stairs and into her room. He wrapped her in his arms and laid her down on the bed, and the next moment they were locked in each other's arms.
"I want to lie with you, like this, every night of my life," he murmured, his words punctuated by kisses. "I want to wake up with you every morning, to fall asleep with you in my arms every night."
"Yes," she whispered, blazing with need for him. "I want to make love with you every night, to feel you beside me when I wake up during the night."
"I need you, Becca." He peeled away her clothes, and his, and she felt the desperation that fueled him. She felt it, too, the need to claim him, to make him her own.
"I want you, Grady. Now," she said, her nails scoring his back. His grip on her was almost painfully tight, but she reveled in it. As they came together, she wrapped her legs around him, pulling him deeper inside her, until she wasn't sure where she ended and he began.
She soared over the peak almost immediately, and he followed her. As he poured himself into her, he murmured her name, over and over. Becca held him tightly with her arms and her legs, loving the feel of his weight on top of her, wishing she never had to move again.
After a long time Grady shifted, pulling her against him, cradling her head against his chest. "Is Cassie really going to be gone all night?"
"I don't pick her up until tomorrow morning."
He nuzzled her hair. "So we can spend the night together?"
"Just you try to leave."
"I want to get married quickly," he said, stroking his hand down her side. "We can't send Cassie to a sleepover every night."
She felt tears gather in her eyes. "As quickly as we can manage it," she agreed.
She felt him tense and gather himself, and she leaned away to look at his face. "What's wrong?"
"How do you think Cassie is going to feel about us getting married?" he asked.
"You're kidding, right?" But she could see that he was serious. "She's going to be thrilled. You heard what she said the other night. How could you imagine that she wouldn't be happy about us getting married?"
"She'll be moving out of town, away from her friends. And on top of that, she's used to having you to herself. Now she's going to have to share you."
"But now she'll have a father, as well as a mother. I think she'll consider it a fair trade."
"Maybe I can sweeten the pot a little."
She propped herself on her elbows. "You mean you're going to bribe her?"
"I didn't say that." He tried to look wounded. "I'm going to use the incentive system to make her move a little easier."
"What are you planning, Grady?" she asked, loving the light in his eye. It had been a long time since she'd seen him so relaxed, so happy.
"I'm going to give her Pete."
"Oh, Grady, you don't have to do that. I'm sure Pete is a valuable horse." She felt her eyes fill with moisture again.
"Can you think of a better reason to give him to my daughter? In a few years he's going to be one hell of a barrel-racing horse. And I think Cassie's going to be one hell of a barrel racer. So they can learn together."
"And I can't think of a better person than my rodeo man to teach them." Her heart overflowed as she smiled at him.
"I thought my life was over when I couldn't perform in the rodeo any longer." He reached down and kissed her deeply. "But now I see that it had to happen before I could get on
with the rest of my life."
"You're not going to miss the rodeo?"
"I'll always miss it. It was a part of my life for a long time, a part I loved. But the way I felt about the rodeo is a pale substitute for how I feel about you and Cassie. You make my life complete, Becca. If I had to give up the rodeo in order to find you again, it's a sacrifice I'd gladly make. The rodeo was all glory and accomplishment, but its charms were only surface ones. What I feel for you is a part of my soul. I love you, Becca."
"And I love you, my rodeo man."
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RODEO MAN Page 23
