A Cowboy's Redemption

by Marin Thomas

  She couldn’t hide in her room all day and she couldn’t go back to sleep if she tried. She might as well have it out with José before Dani woke. After changing clothes she looked in the mirror and cringed. Her mouth was swollen from Cruz’s kisses. There would be no denying what they’d done.

  Steeling herself for a confrontation, she went into the kitchen. José sat at the table staring into a cup of coffee. When he didn’t look at her, she removed a mug from the cupboard, poured herself a healthy dose of Folgers and sat across from him.

  “It just sort of happened.”

  Her comment brought his head up. “Nothing sort of happens with you, Sara.” He shifted his gaze to the wall behind her. “I remember when Antonio brought you here for the first time. I knew then that you were the levelheaded one in the relationship. Antonio, God rest his soul, was a dreamer.”

  That was true. Tony had had plans and dreams of starting up a mobile health clinic in the barrio. He wasn’t sure where he’d find funding for it, but the logistics hadn’t mattered. He’d assumed others would figure that out when the time came.

  “You think I don’t know what kind of husband Antonio was?” José stared Sara in the eye.

  “What do you mean?”

  “He confessed to me that he didn’t spend enough time with you and Dani, but he couldn’t stop himself from working.”

  Jealous that Tony had confided in his father, Sara held her tongue.

  “Antonio left you and Dani alone a lot, but—” he nodded to the back door “—Rivera is not the right man for you. You can do better.”

  “Better how?”

  José narrowed his eyes. “What do you know about his family?”

  She dropped her gaze.

  “You can tell a lot about a person by his relationship with his family.”

  She resisted the urge to ask if his relationship with Tony was the reason Tony had put himself before his loved ones, but didn’t because José meant well and only wanted to protect her and Dani from getting hurt. “Cruz doesn’t talk about his family.”

  “You need to ask him. He just got out of prison. Why didn’t he go home to see his mother? What about his father? Does he have brothers and sisters?”

  If she told José what Cruz had shared with her about his father it would only upset him, but she resented José for putting a damper on what she and Cruz had just shared. Although his concerns were valid, she’d rather live in a fantasy world and pretend Cruz had no past.

  “A man like Cruz has enemies. Being with him could put you and Dani in danger.”

  Sara hadn’t considered that someone from Cruz’s past—a person who wanted to do him harm—might use her or Dani to get back at him. She gulped her coffee. She’d been selfish and foolish to encourage Cruz to stick around. She’d condemned her deceased husband for only thinking about himself and she’d committed the same sin, putting her needs and desire to be with Cruz before what was best for Dani.

  “I’m hungry.” Dani stood in the kitchen doorway rubbing her eyes.

  José patted his knee and Sara’s daughter climbed into his lap and snuggled against his chest. “Mr. Cruz said he’s gonna fix the flat tires on the bike he found in the barn.”

  “What bike?” Sara asked.

  “The blue bike.” Dani straightened and clasped her grandfather’s cheeks with her tiny hands. “Papa, Mr. Cruz said you could teach me how to ride.”

  “I could,” José said.

  “I wanted Mr. Cruz to teach me but he said grandpas were better teachers.”

  Sara set a mug of water in the microwave to heat for Dani’s oatmeal. There was no denying her daughter was growing close to Cruz and she guessed José’s criticism of the man might have a bit to do with jealousy.

  “Mama?”

  “What?”

  “I like Cruz ’cause he talks to me when I’m bored.”

  Sara kept busy making the oatmeal so she wouldn’t have to see the knowing look in her father-in-law’s eyes.

  “My daddy never talked to me.”

  “Your daddy was a busy man, honey.”

  “How come?”

  “Remember he was a doctor and he helped people?”

  “How come my daddy didn’t never help me?”

  José set Dani in the chair next to him, then left the table. A few seconds later Sara heard his bedroom door open and close. For everyone’s sake she should tell Cruz to move on and then hire someone else to finish the repairs on the barn. But after making love with Cruz, feeling his loneliness...knowing that she’d filled a void in him—even if it was temporarily—letting go was more difficult.

  Tony had never held her in his arms the way Cruz had—with an urgency that bordered on desperation. A heady feeling for a woman who’d always felt as if she were an afterthought.

  Sara set the bowl of oatmeal in front of Dani. “Your daddy did help you, but you were too little to remember.”

  “Oh.”

  “Hurry up and eat,” Sara said, refilling her cup of coffee. She stopped in front of the kitchen window and stared at the trailer. Was Cruz still sleeping or had he snuck off to the barn when she hadn’t been looking?

  She was hungry for another glimpse of him, recalling the way his hands had stroked her body. Warm tingles spread through her and she breathed deeply, almost believing she smelled his masculine scent in the kitchen.

  “There’s a man at the door, Mama.”

  Sara stepped away from the sink and discovered they had a visitor. That the man had come to the back door surprised her. “I’m sorry,” she said, “the restaurant isn’t open on Sundays.”

  “I’m looking for Cruz Rivera.”

  What did he want with Cruz?

  “My name is Ed Kline.” He reached into his shirt pocket and removed a business card. “I’m Cruz’s parole officer. He said he was doing handyman work in Papago Springs and his truck is parked out front of the restaurant.”

  “Cruz has been making repairs to my father-in-law’s barn. He’s staying in the trailer across the yard.”

  “Thank you, ma’am.” Ed Kline made a beeline for the trailer. Sara watched but Cruz didn’t come to the trailer door. The parole officer headed for the barn and disappeared inside.

  “Mama?”

  “What, honey?”

  “What’s a parole officer?”

  “I don’t know,” she lied. “I think he’s a friend of Mr. Cruz.” Whatever his reason for coming here today, it wasn’t a social call.

  * * *

  “YOU DIDN’T CHECK IN with me last week.”

  Cruz spun and came face-to-face with his parole officer. The shorter man was stocky with a thick neck—probably a wrestler in high school or college. “I’ve been busy.”

  Kline moved closer and stared at Cruz’s face. “So the rumors are true?”

  “What rumors?”

  “You got into a fight at the rodeo in Deming yesterday?”

  “I didn’t get into a fight. I got hit.”

  “Same difference.”

  “Not really. I didn’t defend myself. I walked away.”

  Kline’s gaze bore into Cruz as if he were judging for himself whether or not Cruz was lying. “I brought some forms you need to fill out.” He motioned to Cruz’s face. “If you plan to keep being used as a punching bag you might want to sign up for the government health care program I mentioned.”

  “Is there another reason you drove all this way to find me?”

  Kline nodded. “Seems you’ve got some friends in high places.”

  Cruz had no idea what the man was talking about.

  “Judge Hamel called our department after you were paroled. She spoke to a few people on your behalf and you’ve got a couple of job offers sitting on my desk.” He gestured to th
e barn. “There’s no need for you to work for room and board.”

  Cruz suspected Judge Hamel had contacted Gil Parker, the owner of Gateway Ranch, where Shorty had been employed and Cruz had worked off his community service hours. He wasn’t ready to be around people yet. He liked that it was just him fixing José’s barn. “I’ll think about it once I finish this job.”

  Kline shook his head. “I don’t normally track down parolees. If they don’t respond to my calls I turn their name in to the police and let the officers find them.”

  “Why are you here, then?”

  “Because you’re so darn special, Rivera, that’s why.” He snorted. “The judge and a few others in higher places don’t want anything to happen to you. As a matter of fact, you’re a bit of a celebrity after all the rodeo records you set in prison.”

  Celebrity. Hell, he’d trade his star power any day for a normal life and anonymity.

  “You can’t go around to rodeos getting beat up. If you’re going to keep competing you have to stay out of trouble.”

  “What do you know about rodeo?”

  “I was a bull dogger in my day. Rodeo cowboys are a tight bunch and they especially don’t want someone like you out-shining them in the arena.”

  “Then they should learn to ride better.”

  Kline nodded. “I agree, but the fact is no judge is going to score you high enough to make any money. Not an ex-con. Staying on the circuit will land you back in prison, because one of these days you will hit back and get arrested.”

  “I can’t stop. Not yet. Made a promise to a friend that I’d stick it out until I was ready to settle down somewhere.”

  “Then you’d better settle down soon. If anything happens to you, my head will be in the meat grinder.”

  “Don’t worry. I’m sticking to the smaller rodeos. I won’t be going back to any PRCA-sanctioned events.” He didn’t care to meet up with Vic again. The idea that his friend was living the life Cruz had planned for himself made him angry and sad. He was better off avoiding Vic.

  “Here.” Kline handed Cruz a phone card. “There’s five hours of talk time on the card. Use it. I want to know what rodeos you’re riding in and I want to know when you leave Papago Springs.” Kline walked to the barn entrance. “And you’d better fill out that damned paperwork and mail it in. I don’t want Judge Hamel breathing down my neck if you get hurt at a rodeo and can’t pay for a doctor.”

  “Aren’t you going to search the trailer and my pickup?”

  “Nope. You know why?”

  Cruz remained silent.

  “Because you’re too smart to screw up again.”

  Chapter Ten

  “I’m ready.”

  Guilty of being caught staring out the window when she should be cleaning tables, Sara flashed a hesitant smile at her father-in-law.

  “Looks like Cruz is off to the dump again,” she said. Since Monday he’d taken several loads of junk from the barn to the landfill. All that was left to do was order clean hay for the horse stalls and hook up the new water hoses—then the barn would be ready to rent out.

  “You didn’t hear me,” José said.

  “I’m sorry. What did you say?”

  “I’m ready to move back to Albuquerque with you and Dani.”

  For a moment Sara didn’t know what to say, then she found her voice. “That’s great. Once we find a renter—”

  “We don’t need to find a renter before we leave.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “The sooner we go, the better.”

  She dropped her gaze, pretending to wipe at a stubborn stain on the table in front of her. “Is this sudden change of heart because of...” Five days had passed since José had discovered she’d slept with Cruz, and things between them had been cordial but strained.

  “The restaurant is losing money.”

  The business had been running in the red for several years.

  “Better to cut my losses.”

  She had a difficult time believing him after he’d dug his heels in for years. Even Tony had tried to convince his father to retire after Sofia had passed away, but he’d refused.

  “I’m not getting any younger and Dani will be grown up before we know it. I want to spend time with her.”

  Sara wished that for her daughter, too. “Then we have a lot of packing to do. I’ll contact the Realtor and tell him to get started on the paperwork to list the property.”

  José left the room and Sara sat down and willed her thudding heart to calm. This was what she’d wanted all along after Tony died. So why did it feel wrong?

  Because you have to say goodbye to Cruz.

  They hadn’t spoken more than a few words to each other since Sunday but that hadn’t bothered her. They’d both needed time to adjust to what had happened between them. But she hadn’t thought they’d be parting ways afterward. She’d believed they’d have until the end of July—another month to be together. Then, when her leave of absence from the clinic ended, she’d return to Albuquerque.

  No sense agonizing over José’s decision. Maybe it was best to end things with Cruz sooner than later, even though the yearning to make love with him again was almost too powerful to ignore. She tossed the cleaning rag aside and went into her bedroom. She might as well make a detailed list of things that needed to be done. First things first. She’d contact the Realtor and get the property listed.

  * * *

  WHEN CRUZ RETURNED from the dump, he found Sara waiting for him in the driveway. And she wasn’t smiling. He’d done his best not to be caught alone with her since he’d made the mistake of making love to her. Sara had kept her word and had shown Cruz how tender and intimate making love with a woman could be. He hadn’t thought himself capable of tender touches, whispered words or deep, long gazes into a woman’s eyes, but Sara had shown him that prison hadn’t stripped him of everything—he was still able to show emotion. Feel emotion. Which made it all the more difficult not to pull her into his arms and whisk her off somewhere private.

  His gut clenched at her troubled expression. Had José guessed that Cruz had crossed the line with his daughter-in-law? He wouldn’t doubt it. The older man had barely said a word to him all week.

  He parked the truck and got out. He hated the thought that Sara might have to pay penance for the few hours they’d spent together.

  He stopped in front of her and studied her worried expression. All he’d thought about the past few days was the burning need to kiss her. Hold her. Caress her silky hair and trail his fingers over her naked hips. He hungered to hold her close and breathe in her scent.

  When he recalled their lovemaking, it was the snuggling that he’d enjoyed most. The sex had been hot and untamed but afterward, when they were lying in each other’s arms, Cruz had felt most at peace.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  “I have something to tell you.”

  “What is it?”

  “José has agreed to move to Albuquerque.”

  That was good news, wasn’t it?

  “He wants to leave Saturday morning.”

  “This coming Saturday?”

  She nodded.

  Damn. The fantasy world he’d been living in was coming to an abrupt end. Ignoring the pang in his chest, he said, “What can I do to help?”

  “I called the Realtor and he’s listing the place tomorrow.” She gestured toward the house. “José’s packing the canned and boxed foods. The rest he’s giving to Charlie. I phoned Jill to let her know José was moving and wouldn’t be here to check on her father.”

  How was Sara going to fit everything in her SUV and José’s truck? Maybe he should follow them and take some of their things in his pickup. As soon as the thought entered his mind, he nixed it. He’d violate his proba
tion if he returned to Albuquerque without his parole officer’s permission. Kline had asked Cruz to keep away from the city the first six months after his release so he wouldn’t become involved with a gang. Not that he would be tempted.

  As much as he wanted to support Sara, he couldn’t risk word getting back to Kline that he’d been to Albuquerque. No way was he returning to prison for a parole violation. Once he was behind bars the warden would make sure Cruz stayed there a good long while.

  “I’ve rented a small trailer and I’m driving into Las Cruces tomorrow to have the dealership install a hitch on the back of my car.”

  “Have you ever towed a trailer before?”

  “No, but it’s not that big. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  She didn’t have to convince him. Beneath all her soft beauty was a layer of steel. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t asked her this before. “Would your parents or maybe a sibling help you make the drive?”

  “I’m an only child. My mother and stepfather live in France. I only see them every few years.”

  No wonder it was important to Sara to keep close with José. The man was all the family she and Dani had left. He wished he could help her with the move.

  “We’ll be fine.” Her shoulders straightened. “I talked it over with José and he said you’re welcome to live in the trailer as long as you want or until the place sells.”

  Staying in Papago Springs was out of the question—too many memories. Saturday morning he’d hit the road and ride the circuit full-time.

  “Is there a chance you might take that job working at your friend’s ranch?” The spark of hope brightening her blue eyes made his chest ache.

  “Maybe one day I’ll end up there.” Working for Fitzgerald and living an hour from Sara would be pure torture. “What needs to be done before Saturday?”

  “I called TLC Ranch. They’re delivering a load of hay for the horse stalls tomorrow. I’ll need that stowed in the barn.”

  “Anything else?”

  “We could use your help loading the furniture in the morning.”

  “You got it.” He nodded to his truck. “I promised Dani that I’d take her for ice cream this weekend. Maybe I could take her now, since you’re leaving Saturday.”