by Linda Turner
Nick nodded. “Then when Angel left L.A. and showed up here at Joe’s, it pushed him over the edge. He couldn’t stand the idea of her being involved with another man. If he couldn’t have her, he intended to make sure no one else could either. So he set the fire in the woods near Merry’s, then went back to Joe’s and, in the excitement of everyone leaving, was able to leave some meat laced with tranquilizers for Buster. With him out of the way, all he had to do was wait until the guard checked the front door, sneak up on him from behind, and knock him out.”
Just that easily, he’d cleared the way to kill her and Joe and he hadn’t cared who he’d hurt in the process, Angel thought. He’d destroyed not only Joe’s house, but Merry’s and her clinic, as well as hundreds of acres of forest before the fire was finally under control. And it was all her fault. If she’d never come there, never lured Eugene Tyler to the ranch and given him a reason to hate the McBrides, none of this would have ever happened.
Staring at the charred remains of what had once been Joe’s home, she knew he had to hate the day she’d walked into his life. She’d brought him nothing but trouble and cost him everything he owned.
Her throat raw from the smoke she’d inhaled, she choked, “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what to say except that you won’t have to worry about me causing you any more grief. We’re almost finished filming here—next week we go to Utah. Then I’ll be out of your hair forever.”
Standing at her side, Joe swore, but she didn’t dare look at him or she would lose what little control she had left. “Nick, if we’re through here, would you mind giving me a ride to the set? The studio had another trailer brought in for me—I’ll stay there tonight.”
Surprised, he said, “Of course, if that’s what you want. But wouldn’t you be more comfortable at Myrtle’s? She’s got plenty of room and I know she’d be thrilled to have you.”
“And there’s always my place,” Sara McBride added. “Joe’s going to go to Zeke’s, and Merry can double up with Janey. There’s a couch in my sewing room that converts to a bed, and you can have it all to yourself.”
Angel couldn’t believe her generosity. How could she be so kind to her after Joe had nearly died because of her? Impulsively hugging her, she said thickly, “Thank you. But you’ve already got a full house, and I think I really need to be alone for a while. I’ll be fine at the trailer.”
Left with no choice, Nick said, “If you’re sure that’s what you want, I’ll take you now.”
He escorted her to his car, but not before he shot Joe a silent look that demanded he do something. His jaw set in granite, Joe didn’t say a word. Left with no choice, Nick helped her in the car and drove away.
Silence fell like a rock. Janey, who seldom lost her temper, surprised everyone by glaring at Joe in exasperation. “What are you doing? Can’t you see she loves you? Go after her!”
“You heard her,” he said stiffly. “She wants to be alone.”
Unable to believe he’d fallen for that, she rolled her eyes. “Surely you can’t be that dense. She’s hurting, Joe. You just lost everything you own, and she blames herself. If you don’t go talk to her, she’s going to think you do, too.”
Scowling, he snapped, “That’s ridiculous! Who gives a damn about things when she could have been killed?”
Pleased, Janey grinned while the rest of the family tried to hide their smiles. “Exactly. So why don’t you go tell her that? She needs to hear it. And while you’re at it, you might tell her you love her, too. She already has a reason to leave. Give her one to stay.”
How had she known he loved her? he thought irritably. He hadn’t known it himself until he’d seen his house engulfed in flames and known Angel was in there. He’d come so damn close to losing her that just thinking about it, even now that he knew she was safe, scared the hell out of him. She’d stolen his heart when he would have sworn he didn’t have one to steal.
And she was leaving. Just like Belinda, she was going to walk out on him and go back to the big city—and take his heart with her. Unless, as Janey suggested, he gave her a reason to stay.
“Let me clean up first and then I’ll talk to her,” he said in a rough voice. “Zeke, can I borrow some of your clothes? Unless I go to her in my birthday suit, I’ve got nothing to wear.”
Delighted, his brother grinned. “I’ve got a new pair of jeans and a shirt at the house that I haven’t worn yet. Consider them my contribution to the cause.”
The trailer was small and simply furnished and stocked with everything from makeup to clothes. It could have been bigger than a palace and decked out in diamonds and gold and a wardrobe fit for a queen, and Angel wouldn’t have noticed. Standing under the shower, washing the soot of the fire from her hair, she’d never been more miserable in her life. What did she care where she stayed when she’d lost Joe?
Not that she could lose something she’d never really had, she reasoned with a sob as she turned off the water and reached for a towel. He’d wanted her, but a part of her had known he was never going to chance his heart with someone like her. He’d made it clear right from the beginning that he’d wanted nothing to do with a woman like Belinda, nothing to do with a city girl like her. And it turned out, with good cause. She’d brought the wickedness of the city to his ranch, and he’d been the one who’d suffered because of it. All things considered, he’d no doubt be glad to see the last of her.
And that hurt. Because she knew that what they’d shared had been much more than desire. She’d felt it every time he touched her, kissed her, made love to her. It was there in his eyes every time he looked at her. If he’d just let go of the past and admit it—
And what about you? a voice in her head demanded. Have you told him that you love him? Or are you going to just walk away without fighting for the man you love? When did you become such a quitter?
In the process of tugging on a nightshirt, she stopped, startled, her eyes wide as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. A quitter? she thought, stung. She’d never been a quitter in her life. She’d fought her father and the odds to become a successful actress and never thought of giving up without fighting for what she wanted.
So why are you doing any less for the man you love?
Why, indeed? she thought, stunned. Dear God, she had to find him, talk to him, tell him! Then if he let her walk away next week without a word to stop her, at least she’d know in the lonely years to come that she’d tried.
Scrambling around for something to wear, she knew she should have waited until later to talk to him. Sunrise was only a few hours away; he had to be as exhausted as she was. Then there was her father—she had to call him and let him know that she was okay and the nightmare was finally over.
But all she could think of was Joe. She couldn’t let another hour pass without telling him how she felt about him.
Later, she couldn’t have said what clothes she finally pulled on. She just grabbed the first thing that came to hand—a red knit dress—and tugged it on, then found a pair of brown loafers under the bed. She was still slipping into them when she ran to the door and pulled it open…only to gasp in surprise at the sight of Joe standing there, his hand raised to knock.
“Joe!”
He, too, had bathed and changed into clean clothes, but she hardly noticed. He was there. Nothing else mattered. Her heart expanding with love, she pulled the door wide. “How did you know I needed to talk to you? I—”
“I won’t keep you long. I just wanted to tell you—”
“…know I should wait, but I can’t. I’ve already waited days as it is—”
“…that I know you have to leave, but there’s something you should know—”
“I love you!”
“I love you!”
They spoke at the same time, each talking over the other in a rush to get the words out before they lost their nerve. Then it hit them what they’d said.
For what seemed like an eternity, they just stood there, staring at each other, shock r
egistering in their eyes. Then a slow smile curled the corners of Joe’s mouth. Stepping inside, he shut the door behind him. “Why don’t we back up and start over?” he suggested huskily. “This time, one at a time.”
She didn’t need a second prompting. “I love you.” The words came so easily, straight from her heart, and setting her aglow. “I know this isn’t what you wanted at the beginning, but I couldn’t stop myself. You were so wonderful with Emma, and even when you tried to convince yourself that you wanted nothing to do with me, you were right there to protect me every time I needed you. How could I not love you? You touched my heart, and I had to tell you even if you didn’t want to hear it.”
“I love you, too,” he admitted softly, lifting his hand to her hair to play with a curl by her ear. “And you’re right, I didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to get hurt again, and I knew you could hurt me in a way Belinda never could. All this time, I thought I was holding my own, protecting my heart, then tonight, when I got to the house and realized you were in there—”
Unable to finish, he swallowed, forcing the tightness from his throat, and hugged her close. “Let’s just say, I don’t ever want to go through anything like that again. If I lost you—”
“You won’t,” she promised thickly, blinking back tears at the thought of how close they’d come to losing each other. “The bad’s all behind us and there’s nothing but happiness ahead of us.”
“I want us to get married.”
It was the last thing she expected, the last dream she’d dare let herself hope for. After all the heartache he’d had with Belinda, she’d have sworn he’d never want to get married again. “Are you sure?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” he replied without hesitation. “I know we’ve got some things to work out. Your career means a lot to you, and that’s in L.A. I don’t care much for cities, but I can learn to tolerate anything if that means having you in my life. I’ll talk to Zeke about taking over the ranch for a while—”
“No!” Horrified that he would even consider giving up something he loved so much for her, she cupped his face in her hands and kissed him gently on the mouth. “No,” she said again. “I’ve never liked L.A., Joe. Never cared about living the life of a movie star. If I could have my dream life, it would be here, on the ranch, with you and Emma.”
“But your career—”
“Doesn’t require me to live in California. I can live anywhere. So I choose here, where Emma can grow up like other kids, with parents who are there for her, and you can keep doing what you love. I’ll continue to make movies, but only once a year so that I won’t be away from the two of you any more than I have to be, and the rest of the time, I’ll just be a regular wife and mother. If that’s okay with you.”
He didn’t have to tell her that was more than okay—his broad grin said it all. They’d both found what they’d never thought they would. Drawing her close, he kissed her like he would never let her go. And when he finally let her up for air, together they spoke the words that were in both their hearts.
“I love you.”
Epilogue
As the credits rolled for the premiere showing of Beloved Stranger, the audience clapped and cheered wildly. Delighted, Angel squeezed her husband’s hand and graciously accepted the praise of the friends and family who surrounded her and Joe and Emma in the Denver theater. Critics all over the country were already predicting that this was the movie that would put her career over the top and earn her an Oscar. There’d been a time in her life, when she was just getting started and was hungry for success, that she would have sworn that that was all she needed to make her happy. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
Flanking her other side, her father leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Your mother would have been proud of you.”
He couldn’t quite bring himself to admit that he was proud of her, but he was a stubborn man and Angel understood that there were some things his pride would never let him say. And that was all right. In the eight months that had passed since the fire, she and her father had come a long way in their struggle to make peace. The fact that he was there at all to celebrate her success meant more to her than any words.
Blinking back tears, she smiled. “Thanks, Dad. I’m glad you could be here.”
With a sleepy Emma draped over his shoulder, Joe slipped his arm around Angel’s waist and her world was complete. She had her husband, daughter, father and in-laws there and wanted to laugh aloud with joy. Whoever said that happily-ever-after only happened in the movies hadn’t known what they were talking about. She was living it, and life didn’t get any better than that.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-1812-3
A RANCHING MAN
Copyright © 2000 by Linda Turner
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Silhouette Books, 300 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017 U.S.A.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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*The Wild West
†The Lone Star Social Club
‡Those Marrying McBrides!
Table of Contents
Letter to Reader
Books by Linda Turner
About the Author
Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Epilogue
Copyright
