by Francis Ray
Richard wasn’t sure if that could be said of Fallon’s feelings for Lance, since they’d just met. He’d returned from seeing her to the valet looking none too happy. Apparently he’d struck out with Fallon. A rarity for him. More so since she was the first woman Lance had taken an interest in since the incident.
However, aware of his cousin’s tenacity when he wanted something, Richard knew he hadn’t given up. It might be interesting to see the two get together. In the meantime, Richard was working on his own romance. He put the popcorn box in Kayla’s waiting hands and glanced at Naomi. He certainly knew what it was like to want a woman and not have her.
“Your diet soda,” he said.
Shaking her head, Naomi accepted the large drink. “You know I’m weak when it comes to sodas and popcorn.”
He wished she’d add his name to her list of weaknesses.
Kayla sipped the soft drink she held in one hand; her other arm was curved around the giant box of popcorn. “Teddy would, too, if he wasn’t asleep.”
“That he would.” Richard ushered them from the lobby. On their first movie outing, Kayla had learned that she couldn’t hold Teddy and the popcorn. She enjoyed being a part of the group and sitting in the middle. Since he was crazy about her, he didn’t mind her being with them.
“I wonder how Brandon is doing?” Naomi asked.
“Fine, since Faith loves him,” Richard assured her. “A couple arguing doesn’t always mean they don’t love each other.”
“I know,” she said. “None of the Grayson women seem to have a problem standing up for themselves, but it can be different for other women.”
Since it was the truth, Richard didn’t argue. He just handed the attendant their tickets. They’d only gone a few steps when he said, “I hope you know you can disagree with me.”
She lifted her soda and angled her head down at Kayla. “For all the good it does me.”
Baby steps. Naomi was learning how loving couples treated each other. He couldn’t think of a more loving or diverse family than the Graysons. Ruth had certainly hit it out of the park with her selections for her children.
“It’s not really a movie if you don’t have food,” he told her. If Richard thought Ruth could help him move from friend to lover and beyond with Naomi, he would have asked for her help long ago.
Ruth had helped Richard once with Naomi, but he hadn’t been interested in her romantically—at least he’d told himself that at the time. In any case, he thought as he followed Naomi and Kayla into the row of seats, those Ruth had matched hadn’t asked for her help. He idly wondered if she was serious about helping Lance.
If anyone needed to move on, it was his stubborn cousin. So it looked like he was on his own. Ruth’s instincts had been dead-on with his friend Brandon, who had been enjoying his bachelorhood. He was passionate about his food, but he was even more passionate about Faith. Richard looked at Naomi and knew just how his friend felt. But Brandon had his woman; Richard wasn’t even close.
* * *
Kayla scooted back in her theater seat, her arm wrapped firmly around the popcorn, her drink in the cup holder. She liked going to the movies with her mother and Dr. Richard. It was almost as if they were a family.
She didn’t remember her father much except that he yelled at her all the time and made her mother cry. Kayla didn’t like to remember the awful time when he’d come to Santa Fe for them. He’d taken her from her mother and gotten in his big car. Kayla had been crying and begging for him to let her go back to her mother, but he wouldn’t listen. Crying, her mother had gotten into the car as well. Kayla was scared, and just held on to her mother while her father drove.
She could tell time now, but then she hadn’t been sure how long they were in the car before she heard a police siren. Dr. Richard had come with the police to get them. He’d held them while her mother cried. Only this time Kayla knew they were good tears, not the bad ones of before.
Kayla looked at her mother smiling and sipping her drink. She always smiled when they were with Dr. Richard. Sometimes she’d look worried and scared and squeeze her eyes tight—her fists real tight, too. Those times made Kayla sad. She wished she knew how to make her mother smile all the time.
Kayla tried hard to be good and take care of herself so her mother wouldn’t have so much to do. She’d heard the mommies at her school talking about how tiring it was to take care of their children and work. One mommy said she couldn’t wait for summer to send her children to their grandparents.
Kayla tucked her head. She had grandparents, but her mother didn’t talk to them. Kayla guessed they didn’t want her coming to visit.
“You all right, pumpkin?”
Kayla looked up to see Dr. Richard smiling down at her. She liked that he had a special nickname for her. He’d started calling her that after he’d helped her carve a pumpkin for the school competition and she’d won the first prize for her class. “Yes, sir.”
“Just checking on the celebrity.” He picked up a few kernels of popcorn and tossed them into his mouth. “You’re the only person I’ve ever met who’s a character in a book. Catherine was right to choose you.”
Kayla felt the warm glow she always did when he praised her. She might not have grandparents to visit, but she had Dr. Richard, Mrs. Catherine, Mrs. Grayson, and now Fallon.
She dug into the popcorn with her hand, munched, and looked around the theater. Like always, there were lots of mommies, but few daddies. She didn’t tell her mama that she wished she had a daddy. One who smiled and gave her lots of hugs, not one who yelled and said bad words.
She looked up at Dr. Richard and leaned closer. Almost immediately he hugged her. She wished he was her daddy. As the lights dimmed, for a little while she could pretend he was.
* * *
They arrived back at Naomi’s apartment shortly after eight. They’d stopped for ice cream and a walk in the park. Richard carried a sleeping Kayla to her room and gently placed her in bed. “She’s worn out.”
Naomi slipped off one of Kayla’s sandals. “She had a wonderful ending to her memorable day, thanks to you. Although we both eat too much when we’re with you.”
“You need a break from cooking. I’ll wait for you in the living room, if it’s all right.”
Feeling nervous for some reason, Naomi tucked her head and reached for the other sandal. “Of course.”
Naomi lifted her head once she heard Richard moving away. She did all right when others were around, but just the two of them made her … restless for some reason.
Kayla tucked in, Naomi pressed her hand over her dress, took a deep breath, and headed for the living room. Passing her bedroom door, she found herself going inside to check her hair. The other women at the restaurant had looked so nice. The odds were none of them did their own hair as Naomi did. It couldn’t be helped. She needed to cut corners and save when she could. After combing her hair, she returned to the living room.
The moment she stepped into the room, Richard looked up from the magazine he was flipping through and smiled. Her stomach got that free-falling feeling from the warm way he looked at her. It amazed her that around other people she might not be noticed, but Richard always seemed to be aware of her.
Her steps were slow as she crossed to the sofa where he was sitting. She admitted to herself that she hadn’t thought about how beautiful Fallon was until she’d introduced her to Richard. He’d been cordial, but even Naomi with her limited experience with men could tell he wasn’t romantically interested in Fallon. Fallon later told her how yummy Richard was, and that Naomi had good taste. Naomi had responded that they were just friends. Fallon had just smiled.
“Would you like something to drink?”
“Nope. I’ve reached my limit,” he said.
Naomi sat on the other end of the sofa, her hands folded in her lap. “Thank you again for the movie, and ice cream. Kayla had a wonderful time.”
“What about you?”
Her head snapped up, her eye
s widened in surprise. “Of course.”
“Just checking,” he said easily.
She relaxed. Richard liked to tease her at times. He was a good friend. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”
He was instantly alert. He reached for her, then clenched his hand. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes,” she assured him, thinking it might have been nice if he had touched her. Her emotions were all over the place where he was concerned, but she felt safe with him. Not for anything would she tell him about her nightmares. She’d burdened him enough with her problems. “I’m thinking of buying a house.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” he said.
The tension eased. She’d been half afraid that he’d think it was a terrible idea. She should have remembered, her ex might have always told her what she couldn’t do, but Richard never doubted that she could do anything. “I’ve been saving since I was hired. I want Kayla to have a backyard. Maybe the puppy she talks about,” she told him. She didn’t mention that a house would also make her feel more secure. The apartment was located in a good neighborhood, but people were going and coming at all hours at the apartment or to the little store behind the complex.
“Sierra helped you find this apartment; she can help find you a house,” he told her.
She shook her head. “When she helped me, I didn’t know she sold property listed in the millions. And that was before she married a billionaire. Now she’s even more out of my league.”
“That hasn’t changed Sierra and you know it,” he told her. “Dinner this evening should have convinced you of that.”
Sierra was friendly, but Naomi didn’t want to impose or make Sierra feel obligated to help because Naomi worked at the Women’s League or was friends with Catherine. “I’ll think about it.”
“If you’ll let me, I’d like to help as well,” he told her.
“I’d like that.” She folded her hands in her lap again. “I don’t know anything about buying a house, and your place is beautiful.”
“Thanks. You and Kayla should come out tomorrow and we can go riding,” he said.
She wrinkled her nose. “I’m terrible at it.”
“You’re getting there. Riding isn’t as easy as it looks.”
“Kayla rides better than I do.” Naomi smiled. “She took to riding as she does everything with you.”
“I’m here for you as much as for her,” he said softly, his gaze direct. “You should know that.”
Naomi was captured by the intensity of his gaze. Her stomach got that fluttery feeling again. Unsure of herself, a bit embarrassed by her reaction to him, a reaction that was happening more and more, she glanced down at her hands clenched in her lap. She wanted Richard’s friendship, but even thinking about anything more made her uneasy. She wasn’t good in a relationship. Her ex-husband’s degrading comments had taught her that.
Richard barely kept from sighing. As much as he wanted to, he wouldn’t push Naomi. She wasn’t ready for anything more than friendship. However, it was becoming more and more difficult not to reveal how much he cared. Two steps forward and three back. At least he didn’t see fear in her eyes.
He came to his feet when what he wanted to do was unclench her hands, gently place them on his chest, and kiss the lip tucked between her teeth. “I better be going.”
She stood as well, relief in her expressive brown eyes that kept slipping away from his. “Thank you again.”
“My pleasure,” he said and watched her gaze skitter away again. Moving around the coffee table in the opposite direction of her, he went to the front door. “Good night.”
“Good night. Drive carefully.”
He reached for the doorknob. “Don’t forget to think about asking Sierra to be your Realtor. She’s honest and she knows her stuff.”
“I will. Thank you for wanting to help. It means a lot.”
He’d do that and more if she only gave him a chance. Her ex had taken a sledgehammer to her self-esteem and self-confidence. Until she believed in herself as much as he did, she’d never be completely happy or the woman he knew she could be, not just for him, but for herself.
“Talk to you later.” He went out the door, closing it after him, then waiting until he heard Naomi slide the two dead-bolt locks into place. It hurt his heart to know she didn’t feel safe. With domestic violence of men against women rising, she had good cause. He just hoped she eventually learned not to let the fear dictate how she lived.
Continuing to his truck parked in front of the apartment, he climbed inside. After checking the rearview mirror, he backed out and headed for his ranch fifteen miles out of town. He might be prejudiced, but he agreed with Naomi that he had a beautiful home.
There were only fifty acres, but the land was as rugged as it was beautiful, with the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the distance. The eighty-year-old home had belonged to his grandfather. His parents had begun the renovations that he’d completed two years ago.
He turned off the main highway. A short distance farther he saw the peak of his house, then he saw the barn that held his horses a short distance away. Beautiful and peaceful and he had no one to share it with.
Putting the truck in the two-bay garage, he headed along the stone path to the back door. His ranch hand would have cared for the ten horses he owned. Four were Arabians, two Thoroughbreds; the others had no pedigree, and that was all right with him.
Entering the back door, he flicked on the light. The phone on the counter rang. He crossed the room and picked it up, noticing the unknown caller. “Dr. Youngblood.”
“Richard, it’s Lance.”
“Is everything all right?”
“Yeah,” he quickly said. “I called you on another matter.”
“All right?”
“What’s the story on Fallon?”
Since Richard was having his own woman problems, he wasn’t going to tease his cousin. They were the only sons of only sisters who were as different as humanly possible. His mother was outspoken and self-assured, while Lance’s mother was meek and needy. He and Lance were just as different. Richard had returned to Santa Fe to set up practice after graduating; Lance had left his hometown in Oklahoma after graduation and seldom returned.
“If you’re asking why she obviously went cold on you and shut you down—if the expression on your face was any indication when you returned to the table and your quick departure afterward—I don’t know.”
“She told me the reason. She loathes people in my profession,” Lance explained. “I thought you might know why.”
“Not a clue.” The phone in one hand, he opened the fridge door for a bottle of water. “You’ll have to find out on your own.”
“Easier said than done, since she wants nothing to do with me.”
Placing the phone between his shoulder and ear, Richard opened the bottle of water. “Since when have you let a no stop you?”
Lance chuckled. “I knew there was a reason you were my favorite cousin.”
“That’s because I’m your only cousin.”
“There is that. ’Night.”
“’Night.” Richard hung up and continued to the bedroom, and his solitary bed. He’d tried not to fantasize that Naomi was there with him, but it was impossible when he saw the wide expanse of the bed.
Placing the bottle of water on the coaster on the nightstand, he unbuttoned his shirt and accepted that he’d probably dream of her again. The dreams were sweet, torrid, playful. He wanted to give her the pleasure of his body as much as he wanted to give her dreams without fear.
One day, he promised as he pulled off his boots, he would.
Chapter 5
Sunday afternoon, Naomi took Kayla to Fallon, who was going to babysit for her. Kayla was excited because they planned to go to the park. Still, Naomi had packed her new favorite book, The Guardian, a Finding Nemo DVD, and snacks before driving to the Women’s League office near downtown Santa Fe. After kissing Kayla good-bye, she got into her SUV. It
was ten years old, but it had low gas mileage and maintenance records from the very first trip to the service center.
She pampered the four-wheel-drive Toyota as if it were a Ferrari. She knew how dependent on others you were if you didn’t have a car. Plus she felt safe driving it no matter the weather. She hadn’t had to worry much about snow in San Antonio. She’d jumped at the opportunity to purchase the car from one of Richard’s clients. The car was one more step to independence, and best of all, she’d done it on her own. Richard hadn’t been pleased that she hadn’t let a mechanic look over the car, but she had trusted Mrs. Carson who was moving into a retirement home and didn’t need the car any longer. It felt good to trust.
After parking, Naomi went up the curved walkway, past the blooming pink and red roses, the well-manicured lawn. If you didn’t know it, you wouldn’t think of the bricked building as a place where people with broken dreams came to begin to heal.
Naomi had been one of those people. She pressed the buzzer to be let inside. Before the sound faded, she heard the click of the lock disengaging and opened the glass door. “Hi, Marie.”
“Hi, Naomi. I heard you have a celebrity in the family.”
Naomi smiled and stopped in front of the elegant French-inspired desk. The office looked beautiful and stylish, with large, healthy potted plants and artwork. Ruth said she wanted the people who came here to know they were valued and had worth. She’d achieved that and more. “Kayla is still walking on air.”
“I would be, too, if I was spotlighted in a book.” Maria came to her feet. She was five feet of bubbling energy with an engaging smile. “My life is too dull for anyone to ever want to write about me.”
Be thankful, Naomi almost said before she caught herself. “You have a wonderful husband and three beautiful children. I’d say your life is far from dull.”
“They drive me crazy, but I’d be lost without them.” Maria opened the hardwood cabinet in the corner and removed her purse. “The oldest has a soccer game this afternoon. Her team hasn’t lost a game.”
