Something told Alexis this part of the story was true, that this town had lost miners—husbands—and fathers. Her heart ached for the townspeople. She knew all too well about loss.
Cord crossed his arms and rocked back on his heels. “When the young woman stepped off the stagecoach, she was devastated by the news. Having turned against her family’s wishes, she couldn’t return home. Alone in a new town with not much more than her wedding dress and a broken heart, she refused to give up hope that her true love would find his way back to her.”
A faraway glint in Cord’s eyes had her wondering if he, too, had had an unfortunate romance. And did it have anything to do with the town’s animosity? The uncomfortable thought caught her off guard. She told herself Cord’s personal life was none of her business. She needed to keep her thoughts on the business at hand, and right now that included a history lesson about Haggerty.
Alexis enjoyed listening to the soothing tones of Cord’s voice. “Is there more?”
He nodded. “The young woman returned here every day, waiting for her betrothed to find his way back to her. It’s believed that on a full moon, you can see her pacing in front of the mine entrance.”
“Is the story true?”
“I’m not sure. But once I found a set of footprints outside the mine.”
“Are you serious?”
His lips spread into a smile, and his dimples eased the worry lines etching his face. Her heart lurched into her throat. If she thought the brooding look on him was sexy, the smiling version of him was downright captivating. The gleam in his eyes and the shrug of his shoulders let her know he’d added the part about the footsteps to tease her.
With effort she drew her gaze from his handsome face to the mine entrance. “Have you ever thought of writing down the history of this place? Sounds like you’d have enough to fill a book.”
He kicked at a rock. “Uh…no. No one would be interested.”
“I am, and I’m sure there’d be others. It’d be a way for you to honor you ancestors.”
His smile faded as his lips pressed together into an uncompromising line. What in the world had he taken offense to this time? She sure didn’t understand him, no matter how hard she tried. “I’m not a writer.”
“But if you wrote down what you know, someone else could reword it—”
“Don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“Mess with things you don’t understand.”
“But you’re the only one who knows all of the details about this ghost town, and the people—”
“You’re not getting what I’m saying. I can’t…” He turned and started to walk away.
She rushed to catch up to him. “Can’t what?”
“Leave it be.”
She placed a hand on his shoulder. She could feel the corded strength beneath her fingertips. “Tell me. I want to understand.”
He stopped suddenly, and her hand fell away. He turned to her with those dark, unreadable eyes. “You wanted a tour, I’m giving it to you. Don’t push your luck. We can still visit the sheriff’s office.”
Was he serious? It was highly doubtful. If he’d intended to have her charged with trespassing, he’d have done it by now. No, there was something he’d almost let slip—something important. But what? And why didn’t he want her to know?
She stared at his back as he strode away. There was so much more to the reclusive cowboy than his need to cling to his heritage, and she intended to find out what he was hiding. Maybe if he let down his barriers just a little, others would see him through new eyes—like she saw him. She assured herself that she wasn’t getting emotionally invested in him. She knew all too well not to let a person get too close. In the end, she’d be the one to get hurt. And she refused to let herself become vulnerable again—not even for a lonely cowboy.
Not wanting to be left behind, she rushed after him. Honoring his wishes, she changed the subject. “Do you really believe in ghosts or spirits or whatever you want to call them?”
“There’s a lot of unknowns in this world. I try not to be closed-minded.”
“Too bad more people aren’t like you.” She stopped to scan the perimeter. The sight of a graveyard in the distance drew her interest. “Let’s walk over there.”
She took off without bothering to check if Cord was behind her. Row upon row of tombstones faced her. Most of the markers were so old the weather had worn away the names, leaving her to wonder about the people laid to rest here.
Cord’s voice came from behind her. “This land was a symbol of a new beginning for my great-great-grandfather. He sold his businesses in the East to move here. He worked night and day to carve out a life for himself.”
“I can’t imagine giving up everything you’ve worked for only to start over again from scratch.”
“Not surprising,” Cord mumbled.
“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?”
He slid his hands in his pockets. “Just doesn’t surprise me that you wouldn’t be willing to give up your five-star restaurants and boardrooms to follow your heart—”
“Hey!” She poked him in the chest. “You don’t know anything about my heart or what I’m capable of.”
Before she could poke him again, his strong fingers wrapped around her hand and held it captive against the pounding inside chest. “Whoa there. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She should yank her hand away. She should tell him he had struck a very sensitive nerve. She should turn and walk away. Instead, she tilted her chin up and met his concerned gaze. Those warm chocolate eyes drew her in and held her transfixed.
Why in the world had she let his words affect her so deeply? He wasn’t Steven, the man who’d accused her of not being happy for him after he’d used her father’s name and connections to get a bigger title with a bigger company on the West Coast. When she’d asked him for time so that they could work through this huge change in their life, Steven had said all of the right things, while simultaneously doing all of the wrong things with another woman behind Alexis’s back.
A guilty look crossed Cord’s handsome face as his steady gaze continued to hold hers. “Sometimes I don’t think before I speak.”
“And sometimes I overreact.” She hoped to put him at ease, even though her heart was racing.
His gaze dipped to her lips. She knew that look—the desire was evident. And this was all wrong. She’d just got done stitching her heart back together. She wasn’t going to let herself get hurt again.
She pulled her hand from his, immediately missing his touch. It’d been so long since she’d let down her defenses and enjoyed the warmth and tenderness found in the mere act of holding hands. It surprised her how much she longed for a longer connection, a deeper connection.
Giving herself a mental shake, she walked around the graveyard, trying to center her turbulent thoughts. While most of the gravestones were worn smooth, two large markers stood out. “Are those graves new?”
“They belong to my parents.” A slight hitch in his voice let her know how much he missed his family. “Mama wanted to be buried here with her ancestors, and Papa would have followed my mother to the ends of the earth.”
The knowledge that his parents were laid to rest out here shocked her. No wonder he didn’t want to sell the land. A knot of emotion tightened inside her as she struggled with a moment of indecision. If she pushed ahead with her plans, Cord would lose. And if she gave up, she would lose her one chance to put HSG back in the black without her father finding out how close the company had come to filing for bankruptcy. She was doomed no matter which way she turned.
“I’m sorry, Cord.” She reached out and squeezed his hand.
A tremor of awareness coursed its way up her arm and finally settled in her chest. Her sympathies encompassed more than him losing his family. Because even though she now knew how important this land was to him, she couldn’t walk away.
Cord’s brown eyes warmed as he tightened his long fingers aroun
d hers. “Now, are you beginning to understand why I can’t sell you Haggerty?”
“I had no idea there was a cemetery out here. No one mentioned it. I’ll make certain they fence off this area so no one disturbs it. You have my word on it.” It wasn’t a sales pitch. She’d definitely make the fence a priority.
He jerked his hand away as though her touch had scalded him. “Even after telling you how important this ghost town is to my family, you’re still insisting on including it as part of the deal?”
As much as she’d like to make Cord happy by walking away from this land deal, she couldn’t. This sale was necessary—for both their sakes. The Southwest contained only a handful of ghost towns. Mr. Santos had a lead on one in Arizona that was about to be listed, but nothing was definite yet. Still, Alexis found herself hoping for an alternative solution.
“The plan for the resort won’t work without it. We’ll work something out to protect this area.” She waved her hand around at the cemetery. “Don’t worry. It’ll be fine.”
“No, it won’t. You can’t understand unless you’ve lost someone close to you.”
His words ripped a scab off her old wound. The pain was quick and intense. She struggled to swallow down the unexpected wave of pain. “What makes you think you’re the only one to feel pain and loss?”
His head rose, and his eyes narrowed as if he was trying to determine whether she was being truthful. “Who did you lose?”
“My mother.”
The lines bracketing his mouth and eyes eased. “I’m sorry. It’s tough when a parent dies.”
He misunderstood her. Though she didn’t want to delve further into this subject, she felt obligated to correct him. “She’s not dead.”
“But you said—”
Alexis took a deep breath, all the while chastising herself for opening up this subject. “I said I lost her. I guess it’d be more correct to say she walked out on me and my father.”
What had gotten into her to go down this road? She didn’t even discuss the woman with her father, which seemed to suit him just fine. The fact Alexis resembled the woman was enough of a challenge for her father without her bombarding him with questions.
Alexis gazed into Cord’s eyes, finding understanding and support—two things that she found herself craving. Since when had they moved from a business relationship to something more, something she couldn’t quite name?
Cord’s unwavering stare compelled her to continue, to let him know that sometimes the death of a loved one wasn’t the worst thing that could happen. “My mother was beautiful and spoiled. My father gave her the best of everything, but when she got bored of playing mother and wife, she ran off with an associate of my father’s. She never looked back, unless you consider the legal battle she waged to try to strip my father of his company.”
“Surely she saw you. You’re her daughter. What about visitation?”
“She didn’t want to be bothered. I tracked her down when I was a teenager, but she gave me a list of excuses why a visit wouldn’t be convenient. She was preparing for her third marriage, and her future husband didn’t like kids. You see, you aren’t so bad off. At least your parents loved you and would be here if they could. My mother is alive and wants absolutely nothing to do with me.”
His arms lifted as though he was going to hug her. She was surprised by the powerful wave of anticipation that washed over her at the thought of being held in his powerful arms. Something told her that once she was held securely in his embrace, nothing could or would hurt her—at last she’d be safe.
As though he’d sensed the scary direction of her thoughts, he stepped back. “I…ah… don’t know what to say.”
Disappointment flooded her body. “You could admit my idea for protecting the cemetery is reasonable and agree to the sale.”
He cleared his throat. “I can’t. I promised my grandfather I’d always protect Haggerty. It’s all that’s left of my heritage, of my family.”
Their gazes locked. She found herself drawn in by his chocolaty depths. The more she worked past his prickly defenses, the more she liked him. She’d never imagined that they’d have so much in common. If this was another time, another place, they might be able to build on that connection—
She had to get a grip on her rambling thoughts. Cord wasn’t any more interested in a relationship with her than she was with him. She had to stay focused on her plans for the resort and not on how much she enjoyed his touch. And now that she understood Cord’s ties to the land, her initial excitement over the prospect of building the resort dimmed considerably.
When had Cord begun to matter so much to her?
CHAPTER EIGHT
Voices of the past murmured in the breeze. The whispers teased Alexis’s imagination, conjuring images of what Haggerty might have been like more than a hundred years ago. Her fantasy contained a street full of powerful horses with nostrils flaring, the rattle of buckboard wagons, and the hum of conversation between muscled cowboys wearing dusty hats and chaps.
She cast Cord a sideways look. He was a modern-day cowboy, but something told her that he could have toughed it out with the best of them in the good old days. She, on the other hand, was quite happy with indoor plumbing and electricity. Very happy indeed.
They strolled down the dirt lane past the broken hitching posts and came to a stop in front of the crumbling remains of a building. The lines of Cord’s tanned face had eased. Perhaps he’d be willing to share more about the town’s history. She’d have all sorts of things to report back to her father to hopefully placate him for a while. And it would keep her mind from wandering into dangerous territory—thoughts of what it’d be like for Cord to pull her close and kiss her.
She walked closer to the barely-there structure. “Do you know what this used to be?”
“A church. My great-great-grandparents were married here.”
He certainly hadn’t exaggerated about his strong ties to the land. Her heart thudded against her ribs as she imagined being married out here in a flowing white dress while holding a fistful of wildflowers—and staring up at Cord’s smiling face.
Wait. This wasn’t helping her to focus her mind on business. What was the matter with her? It must be a side effect of the desert sun’s strong rays. She ran the back of her hand over her warmed forehead. Her life was in New York—in the city—a place where this cowboy wouldn’t fit in. And at this critical juncture with the business, there wasn’t time for distractions—no matter how good they looked.
She stepped through the gaping hole in the sidewall. She crossed the dirt floor, stopping next to the crumbling wall that now stood only waist-high. After brushing aside some loose pebbles and a bit of disintegrated adobe, she tested its sturdiness. Surprised to find the wall solid, she leaned back and took stock of her surroundings.
On the far side, stones were still aligned for the fireplace, although time and weather had eroded most of the chimney. A sorrow came over her when she thought of all of the people, including Cord’s ancestors, who’d sacrificed everything to conquer this land but had ended up losing their savings, their dreams, and some even their lives.
A movement caught her attention. She focused on the round stones by the fireplace. She squinted into the shady corner and spotted a coil of red rope. Strange—what would it be doing here? She stepped closer, only to find herself face-to-face with a snake.
She jumped back. A lungful of air rushed up her throat and erupted in a scream. Cord’s large hand clamped over her mouth, cutting off the shriek. His other muscled arm wrapped securely around her middle. She pressed back against his solid chest. Her gaze never strayed from the snake.
“You’re safe.” He spoke softly next to her ear. “If I let go, will you promise no more screaming?”
She nodded, but she refused to take her gaze off the scaly reptile. Goose bumps raced down her arms. Had she forgotten to mention how much she really, really despised snakes?
Cord moved his hand from her mouth. His othe
r arm lingered around her waist, and she didn’t rush to pull away. Slowly, they backed away. Once safely by the doorway, she turned to find him smothering a chuckle, which necessitated a playful punch to his solid bicep. “This isn’t funny. What if we’d been bit?”
“He isn’t going to hurt us. There’s a saying you should learn. ‘Red and yellow kill a fellow, but red and black is a friend of Jack.’”
“What does it mean?”
“Remember how the snake’s red and black stripes were side-by-side?” When she nodded, he added, “That particular snake isn’t poisonous.”
“Who’s going to stand here long enough to check the coloring?” She grabbed his hand. His rough calluses rubbed over her palm as she pulled him back to the dirt road.
“Are you reconsidering putting a resort out here? Venomous or not, your guests might not take well to meeting up with all the critters slithering through the desert.”
Amusement twinkled in his eyes as his lips lifted, showing the dimples in his cheeks. How could one man be so sexy and at the same time so frustratingly annoying?
“If you think this is going to change my mind, think again. No snake is going to scare me off.”
“Really? Looks like it just did.”
She glared at him. “I need a drink.”
The smile lingered on his lips as she marched past him toward the vehicles. She grabbed a couple of water bottles from the cooler in the SUV and offered him one.
“You came well-equipped,” he said, peering into her vehicle. “A flashlight. A medical kit. You must have bought out the Hitchin’ Post. I bet you made Sam real happy.”
“I like to be prepared.” The snake may have caught her off guard, but when it came to business, she planned for the unexpected. “And Sam was quite helpful.”
She took a long, slow drink, swirling the fluid around in her mouth before swallowing and soothing her scratchy throat. The water tasted so good, she took another large swallow before screwing the lid back on and tossing the bottle into the backseat.
Refreshed, she followed Cord around Haggerty as he indicated the buildings in various stages of destruction, beaten by weather and time. In some instances, the only evidence a structure had ever existed was the foundation popping out from the ground.
A Moment To Love Page 8
