A County Girl's Heart

by Dena Blake

  Not taking her eyes from Virgil, Kat worked her way around the bed to his side and grasped his hand. “I’d like to stay, if it’s all right.”

  The nurse looked over at DJ. “I’ll have housekeeping bring up another recliner.”

  DJ watched Kat closely as she sat with Virgil, holding his hand. She knew how seeing him incapacitated would make her feel. The sight of Kat sitting there helpless stirred memories and emotions within DJ she’d kept locked away for years. She closed her eyes and forced herself to keep it together. She wanted to help, but she couldn’t do anything to take away Kat’s pain or worry.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Awakened by the creaking door, Kat watched through slitted eyelids as her mother glided quietly across the room. She kept her eyes closed and remained motionless while she enjoyed the remnants of the dream she’d been having. A minor indulgence before dealing with her mother.

  Elizabeth stood next to the bed and touched Virgil’s face lightly. His eyes slowly fluttered open, and he began to stir.

  “Don’t try to move,” Elizabeth said softly, moving her hand to his shoulder. “You gave us quite a scare.”

  Why is she being so nice? He and Arizona were the hired help at the Belmont Ranch before Daddy fired them. Virgil was no different from the driver he’d fired for using one of the Belmont cars to take his mother to the hospital. It didn’t matter to her father that it was an emergency and the woman would’ve died if he hadn’t. The man had done it without permission. Kat lifted her lids slightly. Dreaming was impossible now with this odd conversation filling the room.

  Virgil gawked around the room, seeming disoriented until his gaze fixed on Kat. She clamped her eyes shut. “What time is it?” he asked.

  Kat cracked her eyelids again to see Elizabeth squinting at her watch. “Close to two.”

  “In the morning?”

  “Afternoon. You’ve been out for quite a while”

  He tipped his head toward Kat. “Has she been here all day?”

  “And all night.” Elizabeth’s voice was soft and low. “Stubborn and thickheaded, just like you.”

  “But still beautiful. Just like her mother,” Virgil managed to say, his voice weak and gravelly.

  Kat opened her eyes just a smidge more as she processed the sentence she’d just heard.

  “It’s a good thing too.” Elizabeth touched his hand and let the corners of her lips curve into a warm, generous smile. “It would’ve been tragic if she’d looked like you.”

  Kat bolted up. “What did you just say?”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you, dear.” Elizabeth’s voice was effortlessly even.

  Kat gave her a piercing glare. “Why in the world would you think I could look like Virgil?”

  She shook her head. “That’s not what I said.” Her voice rose slightly. “You must have misunderstood.”

  “Mother. I did not misunderstand. First you said I’m stubborn and thick-headed, just like Virgil.” She tripped as she tried to get up, fumbling with the blanket tangled around her feet. Kicking it from her legs, she let out a frustrated growl and threw it into the chair. “Then you said it would have been tragic if I looked like him.”

  Elizabeth took in a deep breath and propped her cane against the bed before leaning forward and tucking the sheet up under Virgil’s arms. “We should talk about this later. Perhaps you can come out to the house for dinner?”

  Kat stood at the end of the bed, hands planted firmly on her hips. “I’m not coming to the house, Mother. Just tell me what you’re talking about.”

  “Oh dear,” Elizabeth said, letting out a sigh with which Kat was very familiar. “This isn’t the way I’d imagined telling you.” She let out another heavy breath. “Kathryn, your father and I never professed to have a perfect marriage.” Her eyes were still and focused. “Charles had many indiscretions.” She smiled at Virgil and spoke in a voice of contentment that Kat had never heard from her before. “I had only one.”

  “Virgil?” Kat sank down into the chair feeling as though she’d just taken a blow directly in the gut.

  “You see, darling, in my younger days, I had a fondness for horses, just like you. I spent many hours at my father’s horse ranch, which is now the Belmont ranch. Virgil and I became very close, just as you and Arizona did.”

  Kat couldn’t imagine her mother having the same sort of feelings for Virgil as she had for Arizona—being so in love with someone you couldn’t imagine life without them, someone you’d give up everything to be with. If that were so, her mother would’ve had no choice but to leave her father.

  Elizabeth smiled lightly as she reached over and held Virgil’s hand. “Charles was never concerned with what I did or with whom I did it. To him I was just part of a business deal between affluent families.” She returned her attention to Kat. “Until I became pregnant with you.”

  “He knew?”

  “Of course he knew. There was no question. We never shared the same bed.” She let out a short, maddening breath. “Charles only slept with his secretaries and tennis partners.”

  Kat sat motionless, her mind spinning as she tried to absorb the flaming ball of information Elizabeth had just hurled at her.

  “I know, I should have told you sooner,” Elizabeth said. “But with the way things were between us—”

  “And Rebecca?” Kat cut her off mid-sentence. “Who’s her father?”

  “I’ve had only one love in my lifetime.” Elizabeth attempted to move closer, but Kat launched herself from the chair. “Please, Kathryn. You have to understand that life was different then.”

  Kat stood at the end of the bed, giving Virgil an unbreakable stare. The man she trusted more than anyone else in the world had lied to her. “You knew about this all along?” Her voice wavered, barely rising above a whisper. Her heart pounded in her ears, and she could hardly speak.

  “Your mother didn’t tell me until after you and Arizona were married and had built the ranch. The two of you weren’t blood-related, so there was no reason to keep you apart.” Virgil winced, trying unsuccessfully to shift his body. “She asked me to look after you because she couldn’t anymore.”

  DJ came through the door with a cardboard drink holder containing three cups of coffee. “You’re awake.” She looked at Virgil with a huge smile, but he didn’t return it.

  Kat glared at her. Another unforgivable lie. “You knew about this too. Didn’t you?”

  DJ’s forehead crinkled and her face went blank. “Knew about what?”

  Kat narrowed her eyes as her anger bubbled inside. “Of course you did.” The words flew out quickly as the wave of betrayal rushed through her. “You know everything about me. It’s all in that little file of yours.” She swallowed hard, forcing back the tears, and her voice became low and unsteady. “You knew Virgil was my father all along.”

  “What…no,” DJ said. She seemed honestly confused, but Kat had already learned she was a very good liar.

  “I have to get out of here.” Kat rushed by her, splattering the tray of coffee across the front of her shirt.

  The hot liquid burned DJ’s face and chest. She had no idea there was any question about who was Kat’s father. Elizabeth had done it to her again. “What the hell is going on here?” She dropped the empty tray into the trash can and swiped her sleeve across her face.

  “Danica, go after her,” Elizabeth pleaded.

  Totally befuddled and still feeling the sting of hot coffee, DJ rushed out the door. She searched the hallway and caught a glimpse of Kat entering the stairwell. She bolted in after her and caught up with her on the ground floor.

  DJ reached over her shoulder and pushed the door closed as Kat tried to pull it open. “Wait a minute.”

  “Just leave me alone, DJ. You’re as bad as they are.”

  DJ held the door firm as Kat struggled to open it. “You can’t really believe I knew about that.”

  Kat yanked hard at the door again. “Why not? You knew about everything
else.”

  “Kat, I swear, I didn’t know. You have to believe me.” She’d given her no reason to trust her and plenty of reasons not to.

  Kat jerked around to face her, and DJ saw the pain in her eyes. She pounded her fists hard into DJ’s chest, then pushed her and tried to open the door again. “Let me out of here, damn it,” she said, her voice cracking.

  “You’re not going anywhere like this.” DJ would never forgive herself if something happened to Kat.

  DJ held her hand up to her shoulder and let it hover momentarily. She wanted to console her but wasn’t sure how.

  Kat pressed her forehead against the door. “It all makes sense now. I always knew I wasn’t anything like him growing up.” She lifted her head and let out a short laugh. “All along the only man I ever considered any kind of a role model in my life turns out to actually be my father.” She stood rigidly as though contemplating her next protest.

  DJ waited, bracing herself for another flailing-fist attack. She was at a loss as she rubbed her face absently, trying to figure out what Kat needed right now. Comfort, support, space. She didn’t know if any of those would help.

  “It looks like Virgil is going to be all right.” DJ hesitated before touching Kat on the shoulder lightly. “Why don’t you come home with me and rest?”

  “I’m going to the ranch.” Kat turned to face her, revealing the just-try-and-stop-me look burning in her eyes.

  “You can go anywhere in Austin you want.” DJ removed her hand from the door. “I’ll even find you a hotel room. But there’s no way in hell I’m letting you on that highway today.” Her stomach knotted at the thought of letting her go. She wanted to hold her, to help her through this, to just make it all go away somehow.

  “Then I’ll take the hotel. And make it an expensive one.” Kat whirled around and yanked the door open.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Kat took off through the door and into the garage, leaving DJ behind, following her to the car without trying to keep pace. The car chirped, and the doors unlocked. She didn’t wait for her but slid into the passenger seat and waited.

  “How about the Governor’s Suite at the Four Seasons?” Kat would make the lying big-city lawyer pay for this mistake.

  “If that’s where you want to go,” she said as the car squealed out of the garage.

  Kat waited for DJ to talk her out of it, but she didn’t say a word to convince her otherwise. When they parked in front of the hotel, Kat threw open the door and leapt out of the car. She waited for the sliding-glass doors to open and then watched as they fell into place again. She suddenly felt very much alone. She didn’t want to stay here, but she had nowhere else to go. She just didn’t have the energy to fight anymore. In only a matter of weeks her life had been flipped upside down. When she turned and found DJ right behind her, she fell into her arms and wept.

  “Come on. Let’s go.” DJ tucked her under her arm while they walked to the car. She opened the car door and offered Kat her hand. Kat ignored DJ’s gesture as she slid into the seat, grabbed the handle, and jerked the door shut.

  “Do you like Chinese food?” DJ asked as she weaved the car into traffic.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  “You have to eat something.” DJ picked up her cell phone and punched in a number. After rattling off an order, she dropped the phone into the cup holder between the seats.

  Kat stared out the windshield, watching the droplets of rain fall and the wipers slap them away. The sky had darkened. Another storm. Just what she needed to keep her nerves on edge. It had turned out to be a rocky month in more ways than one. DJ downshifted and stopped at a red light. Pedestrians hurried across the water-covered street to the other side. The light turned green, and familiar street names flashed in the headlights as they passed. It seemed she would never be rid of this city.

  “Here we are,” DJ said, slowing as they rolled up in front of the restaurant.

  “I’ll wait here, if you don’t mind,” Kat said, staring at the taillights of the SUV in front of them.

  DJ double-parked and left the car running, and Kat watched her rush through the rain, into the restaurant. Had DJ really not known the truth about her parentage? She couldn’t believe it herself. How could her mother have let her grow up thinking her father hated her, always trying to please him but never doing things quite the way he wanted? The long-forgotten feeling of constant rejection rang through her bones once again. Her life was a colossal clusterfuck right now. And what about her mother’s life? Apparently, she’d had a long-running affair with Virgil. If she hadn’t loved Charles, why had she stayed with him all these years? What did her father have on Elizabeth to make her stay?

  Startled by a tap on the window, she ran her hand along the armrest and found the switch for the window. The motor whirred as the glass zipped down. DJ passed her three large brown paper bags through the window.

  Kat scowled as she peeked over the bags at her. “My God. What did you order?” There was enough food to feed a dozen people.

  DJ rounded the car and slid into the driver’s seat. “You wouldn’t tell me what you liked, so I ordered a little of everything.”

  After they entered the elevator, DJ slid her key card in the slot and pushed the penthouse button, sending the car directly to her apartment.

  Kat was impressed. “My mother must pay you well.”

  Her lips thinned. “Elizabeth’s not my only client.”

  “But she keeps you on retainer, doesn’t she?” Kat shot back, ready to blast her with everything she’d kept inside for the past few days.

  DJ clenched her jaw and sliced Kat a sideways glare. “She and a few other people.”

  The elevator doors opened, and Kat entered the penthouse. She took in the faint scent of the lavender roses flowing from the vase in the foyer, and her body filled with warmth. The subtle fragrance reminded her of the rose DJ had given her just a few nights before, a night Kat would never forget, no matter how hard she tried. She quickly shrugged it off. She didn’t want to feel warm and snuggly with her. Kat had let DJ into her heart, and she’d lied to her. She wasn’t ready to forgive that betrayal yet. Focusing on the decor of the living room, she followed DJ as she led her through it into the kitchen. From the Italian leather sofa to the Steinway piano, she could see by the elegance of the furnishings and the originality of the artwork that she probably wasn’t the one who’d decorated it.

  She spied a picture of DJ and Rebecca on the end table, and her stomach knotted. Even if it was over, she could see that what they’d had together was more than just a casual affair. Another reminder that she had no idea who this woman was.

  “Rosa, I thought I told you to take a few days off.” DJ set the bags of takeout on the kitchen counter.

  “I did, but now I’m back. I bought groceries.” She took a bag of fresh, multicolored bell peppers out of the refrigerator. “Fajitas?”

  “You don’t have to cook.”

  “Don’t tell me you picked up Chinese food again.” She snapped her lips together and dropped the vegetables into the sink. “I’m beginning to think you don’t like my cooking.”

  “You know that’s not true.” DJ chuckled and kissed her lightly on the cheek. “You’re the best cook in Texas.”

  Rosa’s irritation seemed to fade quickly, and her interest was clearly piqued when she saw Kat enter the kitchen.

  “You have a guest?”

  “Rosa, this is Kathryn Jackson.”

  Rosa smiled curiously. “Nice to meet you, Miss Jackson.”

  Kat extended her hand. “Please just call me Kat.”

  “Kat.” Rosa’s smile widened as she assessed Kat briskly before returning her attention to DJ. “It wouldn’t take long for me to fix the two of you a very nice lunch.”

  “I’ve already bought Chinese food.”

  “Then I’ll fix dinner,” she said adamantly, taking out a package of meat. “I’ll put the meat in to marinate, and it will be better by then.”

>   “I appreciate it, Rosa, but we didn’t sleep much last night. We’ll probably crash right through dinner.”

  “Okay then.” Rosa raised an irritated brow before slipping the peppers and meat into the refrigerator. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Around noon, okay?”

  “That’s fine.” DJ smiled slightly.

  Rosa picked up her purse and went to the door. “It was nice meeting you, Miss Jackson.”

  “You too.” Kat smiled lightly as she watched her walk to the foyer. Unable to resist, she went to the table there, plucked a single lavender rose from the vase, and brought it to her nose. Thoughts of DJ naked beneath her overwhelmed her and made her react in ways she wished she wouldn’t. Damn, she wanted to erase that memory, but she couldn’t forget what had become one of the best nights of her life in recent years.

  “Food’s getting cold.” The sound of DJ’s voice sent a chill through her.

  You have to stop this right now. She took one last whiff of the rose, slipped it into the vase, and went into the kitchen.

  DJ had unpacked the containers of food and opened them. “Would you grab a couple of plates out of the cabinet?” she said, pointing to the corner of the kitchen.

  Kat set out the plates and opened a few drawers to find the silverware before sliding spoons into the first few containers.

  “Which of these do you like?” Kat asked.

  “I like it all.” DJ took a bottle of California chardonnay from the refrigerator, opened it, and poured them each a glass.

  Kat filled the plates and carried them to the table. “How long have you lived here?” Kat asked, trying to overcome the uneasy silence.

  “About five years.” DJ dipped an eggroll into the hot mustard and then bit a chunk off.

  Kat lifted the wineglass to her lips. “Have you always lived alone?” She took a sip and looked over the rim at DJ.

  DJ blotted her mouth, her lips easing into a smile. “The only women I’ve ever lived with are my mother and my sister.”

  Kat didn’t let her gaze falter. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I asked.” That wasn’t true. She needed to know. She hesitated only a moment before shooting DJ a deliberate jab. “I’m not sure I should believe you anyway.” The warm smile Kat had become accustomed to disappeared quickly.