by Marin Thomas
Right then a horn rent the air and they swung their attention to the road. A red truck sped toward the barns, dust billowing in its wake.
Brody. You came back! “That’s Brody.”
Mark cleared his throat. “Melissa and I are heading up to the main house.” He nodded to the red Dodge. “Let us know if he’s interested in the job.”
Kat managed a nod as the couple got into their sedan. Mark honked when he passed Brody’s truck on the road. As the Dodge Ram drew closer, Kat recognized her son sitting in the front seat. Not again, Ricky. As soon as he got out of the truck, Kat issued a threat. “You better not have run off again, Ricky Sovo, or this time I am grounding you for life.”
Her son had the audacity to grin at her. Kat switched her attention to Brody. They locked gazes, then the corner of Brody’s mouth lifted in a smile, which sent Kat’s pulse skyrocketing. Had he returned for Angel’s photograph or did she dare hope he’d changed his mind about her…them?
Brody couldn’t take his eyes off Kat. His memories of her didn’t do justice to her earthy beauty. Ricky kept talking but he didn’t hear a word the kid said, because all his senses were attuned to Kat. He rounded the hood of the truck, but stopped at the sober stare Kat sent him.
Did you assume you’d waltz back into Kat’s life and she’d greet you with open arms?
Forcing one boot in front of the other, he crossed the drive until he stood in front of her.
“Kat.”
“Brody.” Her voice wavered.
The tension in the air was so thick he doubted a sledgehammer would crack it.
“Hey, Brody.” Ricky poked his arm. “Look what you forgot.” He pointed to the photo of Angel that Kat held in her hand.
Brody braced himself for the sharp piercing pain he always experienced when he stared at the picture of him and his daughter—taken four months before Angel had fallen ill. Kat handed him the photograph. A sadness filled Brody but the pain was nowhere near the agony he usually experienced.
“Ricky. Brody and I need to talk. Why don’t you—”
“I know, get lost. But, Mom, I swear I just went into town to check if anyone had seen Brody. I was coming back.”
“You told me you were going fishing with Stevie.”
“I didn’t want you to get your hopes up if I couldn’t find Brody.”
“We had a long talk, Kat, and Ricky won’t be taking off anymore without telling you.”
Ricky nodded. “I promise, Mom.”
“I’m holding you to that promise, young man. Now go to the trailer and unpack our things.”
Ricky frowned, then his eyes widened. “The Bakers let you keep your job?”
“Yes, they did.” Kat’s eyes watered. “You’ll be going to school in Bandera this fall.”
Ricky fist-pumped the air. “Cool!” He sprinted to the trailer.
“Congratulations, Kat.” Panic swelled inside Brody. Ricky didn’t need Brody to make it possible for him to attend school in town. Kat didn’t need him to help her make ends meet. “I’m glad the Bakers realized what a great asset you are to their operation.” An awkward silence settled between them and Brody felt his courage slip.
“Why did you come back?” Kat asked.
He took off his Stetson. “I’m tired of running.”
Kat’s eyes widened.
“I don’t know where to begin.”
Kat nodded toward the cabin porch and he followed her. They sat on the steps, Kat keeping two feet of space between them. He rubbed his brow then blew out a deep breath. “I’ve been on the run since Angel’s death and not until you asked me to stay and help after Clyde and Roger left did I consider quitting rodeo. Living at the Wild Rose with you and Ricky went against everything I’d done in the past to survive.” His mouth curved in a half smile. “You’re the first person I’ve met who’s made me want more from life.”
“Then why did you leave?”
He searched for the right words to explain his jumbled thoughts. “Being with you loosened the tight band that’s been squeezing my chest since Angel’s death. For the first time in a long while, when I was around you I was able to breathe easier.” He gazed into Kat’s pretty brown eyes. “I felt safe with you even though I didn’t deserve to feel that way.” Kat’s fingers slid through his and he tightened his grip on her hand, grateful for her compassion.
“I wanted to stay, but I was afraid of failing you and Ricky the way I’d failed Angel. I decided it was safer to keep my distance.”
“Safer for whom?” Kat asked.
“Me.” He cleared his throat. “I had to go back on the road because rodeo was the one thing I could do that wouldn’t affect anyone but me. The only person who’d ever get hurt was me.”
“And you didn’t care if you got hurt.”
“No. Until you accused me of being on a suicide mission, I hadn’t wanted to believe that I was capable of such a deed, but it was true. Deep down I think I’ve been looking for a way to end the guilt and snuff out the pain.” Brody shook his head. “After Angel died, I embarked on a course of self-destruction, because I believed I didn’t deserve a second chance at happiness or even a second chance at being part of a family.”
“Do you still believe you’re unworthy of love, Brody?”
“No.” He pressed a finger to Kat’s mouth. “I’m a wreck on the inside. I’m not good enough for you and Ricky. But you made me realize that life is precious and I’d be a fool to waste the years I have left riding bulls.”
Tears pooled in Kat’s eyes and one escaped. Brody wiped the moisture with his thumb. “I’ll go to my grave believing my selfishness played a part in my daughter’s death, but if I can honor Angel’s memory by not making the same mistake with you or Ricky, then maybe that’s all I need to understand. I can’t think of anything I want more than to put my bull riding days behind me and be a part of a family again.”
Tears burned his eyes. “I realize we haven’t known each other long, but—” he swallowed hard “—I love you, Kat.” He tipped her chin and brushed his lips across her mouth in a fleeting kiss. “You can do a lot better than me, but if you give me half a chance I’ll work hard to be a man you can depend on. A man who won’t let you down. A man who’ll support your goals and a man who’ll try his damnedest to make your dreams come true.” He brushed his lips across hers a second time. “And I promise I’ll do everything in my power to never disappoint Ricky.”
“What are you asking, Brody?” Kat whispered.
“I’m asking you to marry me, Kat. Make me whole again. Give me a reason to live. A reason to enjoy life. A reason to believe my daughter forgives me and wants me to be happy.”
“Yes,” Kat whispered. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Brody sealed his proposal with a kiss, then pulled back and frowned.
“What is it?”
He told himself it didn’t matter. That he should be grateful Kat was giving him a chance, but… “Do you…I mean, do you think one day you might be able to—”
“I love you, Brody. I’m so sorry about Angel. If I had the power I’d bring her back to life for you, even if that meant we couldn’t be together.”
Brody believed Kat. Only a parent, driven by their love for a child would make such a sacrifice.
He pulled Kat close, soaking up her strength, her forgiveness, her love. “I’ve been thinking of employment options. I want to make sure I can help support you and Ricky and—”
“The Bakers are expanding their operation to include Spanish Andalusians and they need an extra hand to help train the horses.”
Brody held his breath, afraid to hope.
“They offered the job to you, Brody. I told them I hired you and how you brought in the hay and helped clear the logjam in the stream. But there’s a catch.”
“What’s that?”
Kat’s lips quivered. “You’d have to take orders from a woman.”
“I think I can handle that.” Brody nodded over his shoulder. “And the cab
in?”
“Is ours for however long we want to make our home here.”
“How long do you want to stay?”
“Long enough for Ricky to graduate from high school. Then I don’t care where we go.”
“What about kids, Kat? I don’t know if I’ve got it in me.” The idea of being responsible for a tiny baby terrified Brody.
“We’ll take it one day at a time. Right now I couldn’t be any happier than I am. If you and Ricky and me is all we ever are, then I’m the luckiest woman in the world.”
“I’m the fortunate one.” Brody grabbed her hand and hauled her off the step. “Let’s tell Ricky the good news.”
“Wait.” Kat tilted her mouth toward his. Brody didn’t need any further prompting. Their kiss was warm, gentle and full of forgiveness and promise.
“Hey, does this mean Mom agreed to marry you, Brody?” Ricky yelled from the trailer steps.
Brody broke off the kiss. “I told Ricky when I spotted him hitchhiking back to the ranch that I was on my way here to ask you to marry me.”
Eyes twinkling, Kat hollered, “Yes, I’m going to marry Brody!”
“Whoo-hoo!”
“I second that,” Brody said, his mouth inching toward Kat’s. “Whew-hoo.”
ISBN: 978-1-4592-0842-1
THE BULL RIDER’S SECRET
Copyright © 2011 by Brenda Smith-Beagley
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 publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario M3B 3K9, Canada.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
For questions and comments about the quality of this book please contact us at [email protected]
® and TM are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.
www.Harlequin.com
*The McKade Brothers
**Hearts of Appalachia
***Rodeo Rebels
