by Carrie Carr
They hauled the whole mess of 'em to jail, and I think things should be a little quieter now.
I know this is more than I usually write, but I wanted to make sure you heard it from me, before some damned gossip called you. That Cauble girl is a sweet one, and I think your granddaughter is quite taken with her. She's moved out to the ranch, and Martha has nothing but great things to say about her. As much as we fight, I've got to admit that Martha has good judgment when it comes to folks. But hopefully you'll meet her someday, and decide for yourself.
Take care of yourself, Travis. Kiss your pretty wife for me, and tell her if she ever gets tired of your ugly face to give me a call.
Your friend,
Lester
Melanie exchanged looks with her husband. "It sounds like she's had a rough time of it lately, doesn't it?" She leaned back against the pillows in exhaustion.
"She's a strong young woman. I just wish--" Travis noticed his wife's increasingly pale features. "Why don't you get some rest, and we'll talk a bit later?" He pulled the comforter up around her chin to ward off the chill she always seemed to have lately.
"No, not just yet." She looked up at her husband sadly. "You know I don't have much time left, Tray. Don't let me waste it sleeping." Melanie reached for her left hand, and tugged at her ring. "I want you to do something for me. For us."
Travis blinked the tears from his eyes. "What is it, my love?" He watched as she pulled her wedding ring off her finger, for the first time in over fifty years.
She opened his hand and placed the ring inside it, closing Travis' strong fingers around the silver band and jewels. "I want Lexie to have this. Please try to reach her again. She needs to know her family. I don't want you to be alone when I'm gone."
"Please don't talk like that, Lainie. You're going to be just fine." Travis choked on his words, knowing them for the untruths they were. I'm losing her. First Victoria, now my Melanie. A man shouldn't have to outlive his entire family. "As soon as you're well enough, we'll both take a trip to the ranch."
"Tray." Melanie voice faded into a near whisper. "We both know that I'm not going to get any better. And I'm not strong enough to take the trip. Promise me that you'll try to talk to Lexie. She always looked so much like our Victoria, didn't she?" Her eyes closed for a moment, then reopened. She looked up into the anguished face of the man who had shared her life with her. "Don't cry, beloved."
He pulled her hand up to his face and kissed the paper-thin skin. "I'm sorry, my love." His tears continued to drop onto her fingers. "I swear to you that I will try again with our granddaughter. She deserves to know about her family."
Melanie closed her eyes again, relieved. "Thank you, dearest. Now why don't you lie down with me, and hold me for a while? I need to talk to you," she finished in a near-whisper.
"Anything for you, my heart." Travis removed his suit coat and lay down next to his wife. He pulled her gently to him and felt her snuggle close.
The next morning, Travis woke up to find his wife gone. During the night, Melanie Edwards had passed away in her sleep, a small smile upon her lips. He buried his face in his hands and cried, mourning the loss of his wife and best friend.
Lex accepted the small box reverently. "I wish we hadn't wasted all those years apart," she whispered. "I would have liked to have known you both when I was growing up. All I ever really wanted was to have a real family." She blinked as several tears dropped from her eyes while she studied the package in her hand. "What's in this?"
Travis put an arm around Lex and pulled her closer to him. "Open it, honey."
"All right." Lex lifted the lid and gasped in surprise. "Wow." Nestled atop dark blue satin sat a shimmering silver ring. It had a large square diamond in the center, with sparkling clear-cut sapphires on either side. "That's beautiful."
"It belonged to my great-great grandmother. In each generation it has been passed along as a wedding ring, except for Victoria. Your father refused to allow her to wear it. I gave it to my Melanie on our wedding day, and she had always wanted you to have it." Travis looked at the ring fondly. "Do you think that Amanda would like it? I know that your grandmother would be thrilled to keep it in the family."
Lex stared at the ring for a long moment. "Grandma didn't really even know me." Lex looked up into Travis' face. "Do you honestly think she would have liked me? I'm not what you'd call normal."
The older man looked at her sadly. "Honey, she loved you. We've kept tabs on you all these years, you know. Lester has kept us up to date on just about everything you've done. He and I grew up together."
"Really? You and Lester are friends?" Lex tried to reconcile this distinguished gentleman with the rough cowhand. "You've got to be kidding me. You two are nothing alike."
"He became a cook on this ranch because I wanted someone close by to keep an eye on Victoria. I'm sorry to say this, but I never liked or trusted your father." Travis ran a hand across Lex's cheek. "I was afraid he was after your mother for her money. It wasn't until after she died that I realized that in his own way, he did love her."
Lex wiped at her face with her hand. "Do you think so?" She thought back to all the time she had spent with her father. He never once told me he loved me. I didn't think he was even capable of such an emotion. She shook her head mentally. But I guess the same could have been said about me, until Amanda came along.
Travis nodded. "I know he did, little one. He fell apart completely at the funeral." He reached over and wiped at Lex's face with his fingertips. "Why don't you go get cleaned up? We can talk more later."
"That's probably a good idea, Grandpa. Amanda will be awake any time now." Lex leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Thank you for not giving up on me."
"I couldn't give up on you any more than I could give up on myself, Lexington." Travis stood and pulled her up with him. "I'll see you downstairs later for breakfast, all right?"
She wrapped her arms around Travis and hugged him tight. "You sure will. Thanks for everything, Grandpa." Lex kissed his cheek again and practically ran from the room.
He watched her leave with a big smile on his face. "Well, Lainie," he addressed his deceased wife quietly, "looks like we've got a granddaughter again."
AMANDA WRINKLED HER nose when a light touch ran down her face. Another feather-like sensation made one eye open slowly. "Lex?" She blinked both eyes open and studied the woman leaning over her. "What's going on?"
"Good morning." Lex leaned down and gave Amanda a long, sensual kiss. "Did you sleep well?"
"I always do, when I'm with you." Amanda reached up and fingered dark hair, which was damp. "Did you just get out of the shower?"
Lex grinned. "Yup. I was kind of dirty, so I thought I'd better clean up." She ran a gentle fingertip down Amanda's cheek. "I talked with Grandpa for a few minutes this morning."
Amanda squirmed to a more upright position on the bed. "Really? What did you talk about?"
"All sorts of things, actually." Lex rolled over to lie on her side, facing Amanda. She propped her head up with one hand. "I was in the storage room, and he came in and scared the daylights out of me. I landed face first in one of the big boxes in the corner."
Amanda giggled. "Bet that was a sight." She mirrored Lex's posture and ran her free hand down Lex's arm. "You didn't hurt yourself, did you?"
"Nope. But I bet I looked funny with my butt sticking up out of that damned box. Grandpa pulled me out, and then we sat and talked for a bit." Lex captured the small hand and brought it to her lips. "We even talked about you." Don't chicken out, Lexington. That's a perfect opening, now use it.
"Me? Why?" Amanda asked, then blushed. "He's okay with us, isn't he? He certainly seemed okay last night. Unless he thought about it during the night and changed his mind. Is he having second thoughts?"
"No, nothing like that." Lex rolled over, crawled off the bed, and walked into the bathroom. "Hold on a minute." She walked back into the room carrying something in her hand and dropped to one knee on Amanda's sid
e of the bed. "I told Grandpa how much you mean to me. He asked me what I was doing in the storage room, and I explained that I was looking for something that I packed away years ago."
Amanda sat up and faced the kneeling rancher. "What was that?" She could feel Lex's nervousness as if it were tangible. When Lex held out her hand, Amanda automatically accepted it.
"When I first took over the master bedroom, I packed up all of my Dad's things and put them in storage. The one thing I wanted to give to you, I haven't been able to find." Lex kissed Amanda's hand. "I wanted to give you something to show you how much you mean to me."
"Oh, baby, you don't have to give me anything." Amanda curled her hand around Lex's cheek. "You show me all the time how you feel."
Lex nodded. "I try to. But I wanted to give you more than just words, or actions. I want you to have a symbol of my love for you. That's why I was looking for my mother's wedding ring." She bent forward and placed her head on Amanda's lap. "I've already given you my promise to love you forever, Amanda. I just wanted to give you a token of that promise." She looked up with tears in her eyes. "It took almost losing you for me to realize just how precious you are to me. I can't allow one more day to go by and not show you how I feel."
Amanda looked down at Lex and at the remembered pain in those eyes. When Lex took her left hand and kissed it again, Amanda almost cried. "Oh, sweetheart."
"I couldn't find mother's ring. But Grandpa gave me something that I think is more fitting." Lex pulled her other hand from where she was hiding it behind her back, opened the box, and pulled the ring out. "This ring belonged to my great-greatgreat grandmother. Grandpa said that it has always been passed down from generation to generation as a wedding present." She slipped the jewel-encrusted band on Amanda's finger and kissed the small hand again. "I would be truly honored if you would wear this ring and accept my promise to love you forever, Amanda Lorraine Cauble." Lex waited nervously to see what Amanda's response would be.
"Lex." Amanda looked closely at the ring. "My God, it's incredible." She choked back a sob of happiness. "I'll cherish it as I do you." She reached out and pulled Lex to her in a strong embrace. "Always and forever, Lexington Marie Walters."
Lex sealed the pledge with a tender kiss. She pulled back slightly to look into Amanda's eyes, full of unshed tears. "Always and forever, my love."
About the Author
Carrie Carr is a true Texan, having lived in the state her entire life. She makes her home in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex with her wife AJ. She's done everything fromwrangling longhorn cattle and buffalo, to programming burglar and fire alarm systems. Her time is spent writing, traveling, and trying to corral their two dogs--a Chihuahua named Nugget, and a Fox Terrier named Cher.
Carrie's website is www.carrielcarr.com for information about merchandise, personal appearances, and personalizedbookplates for her books. She can be reached at [email protected].
Other Titles Available in This Series:
Destiny's Bridge
Rancher Lexington (Lex) Walters pulls young Amanda Cauble from a raging creek and the two women quickly develop a strong bond of friendship. Overcoming severe weather, cattle thieves, and their own fears, their friendship deepens into a strong and lasting love.
ISBN 1-932300-11-2
Faith's Crossing
Lexington Walters and Amanda Cauble withstood raging floods, cattle rustlers and other obstacles to be together...but can they handle Amanda's parents? When Amanda decides to move to Texas for good, she goes back to her parents' home in California to get the rest of her things, taking the rancher with her.
ISBN 1-932300-12-0
Love's Journey
Lex and Amanda embark on a new journey as Lexington rediscovers the love her mother's family has for her, and Amanda begins to build her relationship with her father. Meanwhile, attacks on the two young women grow more violent and deadly as someone tries to tear apart the love they share.
ISBN 1-930928-67-X
Strength of the Heart
In the fifth story of the series, Lex and Amanda are caught up in the planning of their upcoming nuptials while trying to get the ranch house rebuilt. But an arrest, a brush-fire, and the death of someone close to her forces Lex to try and work through feelings of guilt and anger. Is Amanda's love strong enough to help her, or will Lex's own personal demons tear them apart?
ISBN 1-930928-75-0
The Way Things Should Be
In this, the sixth novel in the Lex and Amanda series so many readers have come to love, Amanda begins to feel her own biological clock ticking while her sister prepares for the birth of her first child. Lex is busy with trying to keep her hands on some newly acquired land, as well trying to get along with a new member of her family. Everything comes to a head, and a tragedy brings pain - and hope - to them all.
ISBN 1-932300-39-2
Also From Carrie Carr
Something To Be Thankful For
Randi Meyers is at a crossroads in her life. She's got no girlfriend, bad knees, and her fill of loneliness. The one thing she does have in her favor is a veterinarian job in Fort Worth, Texas, but even that isn't going as well as she hoped. Her supervisor is cold-hearted and dumps long hours of work on her. Even if she did want a girlfriend, she has little time to look.
When a distant uncle dies, Randi returns to her hometown of Woodbridge, Texas, to attend the funeral. During the graveside services, she wanders away from the crowd and is beseeched by a young boy to follow him into the woods to help his injured sister. After coming upon an unconscious woman, the boy disappears. Randi brings the woman to the hospital and finds out that her name is Kay Newcombe.
Randi is intrigued by Kay. Who is this unusual woman? Where did her little brother disappear to? And why does Randi feel compelled to help her? Despite living in different cities, a tentative friendship forms, but Randi is hesitant. Can she trust her newfound friend? How much of her life and feelings can Randi reveal? And what secrets is Kay keeping from her? Together, Randi and Kay must unravel these questions, trust one another, and find the answers in order to protect themselves from outside threats--and discover what they mean to one another.
ISBN 1-932300-04-X
"An excellent story about two women who've gone through the School of Hard Knocks. You can't help but root for Kay and Randi as they try to make sense of their lives. This is Carrie Carr's best novel yet!"
~Lori L. Lake, author of Gun Shy and Different Dress
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