At the entrance to the room, Sadie stopped so suddenly that Lincoln bumped into her. Judson Grant sat at the table.
“Sadie, how lovely to see you.” He stood, but froze when he noticed Lincoln and gave him a shaky nod. “H-hello.”
“Judson,” Lincoln said.
“Hi, Judson.” Sadie searched for something smart and witty to say. “Um…”
“I take it everyone here knows each other?” Mom breezed in. “Sadie, you sit here next to Judson. Don’t look at me like that. I invited Dr. Grant because he’s new in town and looked hungry.”
“I didn’t—” Judson began. “I mean—”
“I’m sitting next to Lincoln,” Sadie said in no uncertain terms.
“Yes, of course,” Mom said, waving her hand in their direction. “I thought you’d sit between Lincoln and Judson.”
“Perfect,” Sadie muttered under her breath.
This unfortunately reminded her far too much of the time when Sadie was sixteen and her mother invited two boys over for dinner that she believed were both adequate prospects to take Sadie to the junior prom. Never mind that Sadie didn’t want to go with either one of them.
As usual, Dad joined them at the table last, and he did a double take at seeing both Lincoln and Judson flanking Sadie. He sent a silent question to his wife, slowly shaking his head.
“Hi, Daddy,” Sadie said, sliding him an equally silent SOS.
“Hello, sweetie,” Dad said, bending to kiss the top of her head. “Lincoln, great to see you, son. And I guess you must be the doctor.”
“Judson Grant, sir.”
“I hope you like pot roast,” Mom said, joining them.
“Love your pot roast,” Lincoln said.
Mom smiled at Lincoln, then directed her attention to Judson. “Lincoln has eaten with us many times. He’s a friend of my son, Beau. They practically grew up together. But please tell us about you, Judson. How long have you been a doctor?”
Sadie turned to Judson, who pulled out his pager. “I apologize. I-I’ve just been paged.”
“I didn’t hear anything,” Mom said.
“It’s on silent buzz. I didn’t want to interrupt dinner should it go off.”
“That’s a shame,” Mom said. “We haven’t even started eating yet.”
“Duty calls.” He stood and shook her father’s hand, then Lincoln’s. “I apologize but this happens sometimes. Life of a doctor. You understand.”
He patted Sadie’s shoulder and then made fast tracks to the front door.
“Nice seeing you,” Sadie called out. The poor man.
“I’ll be right back,” Lincoln said and followed Judson out.
“That’s strange,” Mom said. “Who could be paging him? I thought he hadn’t even set his practice up yet.”
“Wanda,” Daddy said. “What did you do?”
“Oh, for the love of Pete, you’re both looking at me like I’ve committed a high crime! Is it wrong for Sadie to see all the possibilities open to her?”
“Only when I’m single!”
“I do not see a ring on that finger, young lady.” Mom shook a finger. “And a doctor could give you a comfortable life. Seems worth considerin’.”
Sadie stood. “You insulted both of these men tonight. Lincoln, because you obviously can’t accept him as anything but Beau’s friend. Poor Judson didn’t deserve this, either. Did you see how he ran out of here? He’s terrified of Lincoln!”
“Oh, dear. Well, I’ll apologize to him. I didn’t mean to offend him.”
“You’ll apologize to Lincoln, too,” Daddy said. “If you think there’s something wrong with Sadie marrying a rancher, then maybe you think there’s something wrong with the man you married, as well.”
Sadie sucked in a breath. She heard the pain in her father’s words and the kick to her stomach was strong enough for her to lose her appetite. “Daddy.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Mom said. “Lincoln is a rodeo cowboy, too.”
“So?” Sadie crossed her arms.
“You don’t think I’ve heard all the stories? I know what a buckle bunny is.”
“Dear God, Wanda,” Daddy said, shaking his head. “Are we having dinner or not?”
“Sorry, dear. Are we taking up too much of your time? Want to go back out to the vineyard and sweet-talk the grapes some more? Go on, we can wait.”
Her father sneered. “Why? What did I miss? Got a new item for my honey-do list?”
“Item twenty-one is still waiting. And it’s only been five years!”
Sadie resisted covering her ears as the bitter fest went on. She’d never heard her parents argue like this and suddenly she was worried about a lot more than her mother’s lame matchmaking attempts.
* * *
Lincoln got to Judson just as he’d clicked the door open to his black BMW.
“Sorry about tonight,” Lincoln said, offering his hand.
He believed he’d somehow scared Judson and wanted him to realize he wasn’t spoiling for a fight. Having solved problems early on in life, Lincoln believed he could fix almost anything. And he wanted to clear things up between him and Judson.
“I’m the one who’s sorry.” Judson shook. “When Wanda invited me over for dinner, I thought it would simply be family.”
“But you did expect Sadie to be here.”
He shrugged. “I wouldn’t have minded either way.”
“Look, I apologize if I gave you the wrong impression the first night we met.” Lincoln tipped his hat and scratched his temple. “Because I’ve been a little slow on the uptake.”
“You?” Judson cocked his head, looking doubtful.
“I’m kind of an idiot when it comes to romance.”
“That’s hard to believe.”
“Believe it. Sex is one thing. Love is quite another. But listen. I have no doubt you’re the better bet for Sadie.”
“What? No, I—” Judson backed up a step, putting up his hands.
“Seriously. I’m not going to hit you. Obviously, you’re a doctor, you’re on time, you bring flowers, you call. I’m a rancher, I don’t drive a luxury sedan, I’m rarely on time for a date, I forget to call first, and don’t bring flowers.”
“Gee, don’t be so hard on yourself. There must be some reason Sadie chose you.”
Lincoln chuckled, moving in for his final statement that would clear the air once and for all.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to give her up. I can work on all that other stuff. It took me a long time to notice her, but I’m not walking away from her easily. No matter what you, her mother, or anyone else thinks about me.”
“Sounds like she chose the right man.”
When Lincoln walked back inside the house, there remained a strange tension in the air.
“I apologize,” Wanda said, turning to Lincoln. “This should have been a dinner with our family, you, and Sadie. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
“She really didn’t, son,” Mr. Stephens said. “You’re already like part of our family.”
“Not a problem. I like Judson. Good man.” He squeezed Sadie’s hand because she looked more worried than she should be.
If she thought this would scare him off, then she had no idea how tough this cowboy could be.
Chapter 18
It took a couple of email exchanges for Lincoln to cement plans to meet the man who claimed he could be Daisy’s father. Rusty Jones agreed to meet at a diner in San Antonio, far away from prying small town eyes. From time to time over the years, Lincoln frequented the Greasy Spoon with some of his rodeo circuit friends. Rusty should feel right at home.
Lincoln, not so much. He might be just a bit freaked out that he would be meeting an old rodeo cowboy who’d enjoyed buckle bunnies so much he might have an illegitimate child who’d been raised by another man. For now, Lincoln refused to believe that it might be true. He was simply smart to go on a fact-finding mission on behalf of his father. On behalf of Daisy. As an added bonus, if he found
out some more information on his mother, no harm done.
For years, he’d been curious about where she’d gone and with whom. Never disloyal enough to Hank to look her up, but nevertheless interested, though after a while no one else cared. Lincoln figured this was because he, as the oldest, remembered her best. Whether or not he shared any information obtained about his mother with the rest of his family, he’d consider later.
The morning was cold, tinged with a heavy hint of a true autumn. Lincoln arrived early, as he’d planned. The smell of bacon, coffee, and hash browns hung thick in the air. The din of dishes clattering and customers chatting were comforting. Routine.
“Hey, cowboy.” Opal Ray slapped a menu down. “Breakin’ any hearts today?”
“Hope not,” he said. “But I am meeting someone.”
“Of course you are.” She put down another menu, smiling wryly. “Good luck with that. Coffee?”
“Yup.”
He winced because she’d witnessed his, for lack of a better word, “dates.” She obviously assumed this morning was more of the same. This was his “kiss off” joint. His “it’s not you, it’s me” place. Far away from Stone Ridge, and in a public area so he could avoid a scene. Not that he ever expected one, but after getting slapped in a parking lot once, he played it safe. He didn’t mind the slap, being tough enough to take it. He did care about the hurt associated when a woman took a swing at him.
He’d never intended to hurt anyone and always wanted to let a woman down gently. Easy. Break it off in such a way where she believed it was her idea. So that she understood she deserved better than him because, more often than not, this was the genuine truth. After a while, he’d become a master, though he wasn’t proud of that fact.
He’d wanted to change that part of his life, but just a few weeks ago, tired and stressed, he’d almost slid back into old and set patterns. Nearly allowed finding someone temporary to be his cure for the stress building in him. No strings. And then Sadie…happened. His entire life changed. Hadn’t seen that coming. But he still wondered whether he possessed what it took for a relationship to last. For the marathon behind a real and lasting marriage like his grandparents had.
A Google search on Rusty showed old photos of him so Lincoln knew what to expect. But even so, he’d have pegged the sixty-five-year-old slightly bowlegged man that ambled inside the diner as the retired Wrangler World Championship rodeo rider. He looked a lot older than Hank, who at fifty-five, already had a full head of white hair.
Lincoln raised a hand to get his attention, and the man strode in his direction and slid in across the booth from him. “Ya must be Lincoln. Thank ya for meetin’.”
“Go ahead and order whatever you want,” Lincoln said, sliding the menu across the table. “It’s on me. We’ll sit here for a few minutes. I’m willin’ to listen to what you have to say.”
“What about Hank?”
“He couldn’t make it,” Lincoln lied.
“Ah,” Rusty said. “Can’t say that I blame ’im.”
Opal Ray came by and took their orders. Not hungry, Lincoln ordered flapjacks anyway.
Rusty ordered a banquet. Flapjacks, grits, bacon, eggs over easy, sausage, and coffee. Made Lincoln wonder about the last time Rusty ate a full meal. Then again, Lincoln could also put the food away when he didn’t have a rock the size of Texas sitting in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want this man to destroy his family, and if he were right about his mother, Rusty could do that. And Daisy would never be the same.
He doubted any of them would be.
“When’s the last time you saw my mother?”
“First of all,” Rusty said, taking a swig of his coffee. “I want to let ya know this ain’t easy for me, neither. Not proud of the life I led. All I cared about was mahself, the rodeo, and mah buckles. Mah wins. In my defense, I didn’t have much family to speak of.”
Lincoln ignored that and steered the conversation. “Maggie Mae Carver was my mother’s name.”
Rusty blinked. “I know. The last time I saw her, she claimed she’d left y’all. We had some fun, and she was off again. I thought probably right back to ’er family. You have to understand, the first time we met, I had no idea she was a married woman.”
“Yeah. Figured she didn’t announce that.” Lincoln took a swig of his coffee. “But the second time?”
“Like I said, not proud of that. Ya probably know what the circuit scene is like. You a good lookin’ man. Must have to peel ’em off ya.”
Lincoln cleared his throat. “Back to my mother.”
“It’s awkward talkin’ to a son about this. This is your mother.”
“No time to be shy. It’s not like I hold her in high regard. And we haven’t seen her since she left.”
“Never again?”
“For all we know, she’s no longer among the livin’.”
He’d considered it. Maggie Mae wasn’t close to her parents, either, leaving her home somewhere in Oklahoma at age fifteen. There would be no other family ties, or anyone who would contact them about her death. The attorney Hank hired for the divorce sent the dissolution papers to an address in Galveston, the last known address for her.
“Lord, hope not.” The food arrived and Rusty wasted no time digging in as if this might be his last meal. He spoke between bites. “Would be such a shame. Gorgeous woman, your mother.”
“The last time you saw her. Is that when she told you about Daisy?”
Rusty’s fork paused midair. “That ’er name? Daisy?”
“Daisy Lee Carver.” Lincoln put the emphasis where it belonged.
“Look, I don’t want anythin’ from y’all. Or from her. I just need to know.” Rusty took another bite and chewed, seeming to silently assess Lincoln. “Your mother contacted me a few months after the last time I saw her. Said she was divorced now, and that her little daughter could be mine.”
Lincoln’s gut clenched. He’d been about to take a bite of flapjacks before they got cold. “You mean she wasn’t even sure?”
Rusty closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “That’s why I wanted to talk to Hank, man to man. This ain’t somethin’ a son should hear about his own mother.”
Irritation and anger pressed through him. Had he been informed by a woman that he could be the father of her child, he’d have insisted on a DNA test. He’d have to know immediately. No way a child of his would be wandering the world not knowing his real father.
“And you waited all these years to look us up?”
“Yeah,” he said, shoulders slumped. He patted his mouth with the paper napkin. “I didn’t settle down till my fifties. I quit the circuit and went to work for my brother as an auto mechanic in Dallas. Been leadin’ a quiet life. Never had a wife, no kids. And mostly, I tried not to think about the girl. Figured she was better off with the man that she believed was her father.”
“Hank is her father. And you’re right about that. She’s better off so why find us now? Do you need something?”
Rusty didn’t look too healthy. Maybe Hank was right about his intentions.
“I’m sure I deserve that,” Rusty said with a scowl. “But no. Don’t need anythin’ from y’all. Might even have somethin’ to leave to her someday.”
“She doesn’t want for anything. Our family owns a cattle ranch and we do okay. Daisy’s an auto mechanic.”
Rusty smiled. “Is that right?”
Now that Lincoln figured he wouldn’t hear much more about his mother, or at least anything he’d want to hear, negotiations could begin. It didn’t escape Lincoln that if Rusty found Hank, he could also find Daisy. No point in trying to hide her. Rusty wouldn’t need any of them to approach her once he located her and he could proceed to upend her entire world. Therefore, Lincoln should be reasonable. Appeal to the man’s sense of decency, and hope he had some.
“Here’s what I think,” Lincoln began. “I might have felt differently if you’d come around a long time ago, but now…look, no good can come fr
om this. Just learning that there’s any question about her paternity would be harmful enough for Daisy. We’d have to go through the entire ordeal even though there’s clearly a fifty-fifty chance she could still be Hank’s.”
“What are you sayin’?”
“I’m sayin’ that I’d like you to walk away. Forget about Daisy. Listen, she’s not your daughter.”
“We don’t know that. She’s an auto mechanic, just like me.”
“But even if biology were to tie you, she’s very close to our father. Learning this would destroy her, when there might not be any need.”
“I see.”
“Am I makin’ sense to you?”
Rusty chuckled, shaking his head. “Feel like I’m lookin’ at myself, thirty years ago. You think you have all the answers. I did, too. I was a cocky sum’a bitch. Only cared ’bout the buckles and the bunnies. Havin’ myself a grand ol’ time. Never thought I’d have need to settle down with one woman. What for, when there were so many?”
They were both quiet for a moment, Lincoln hoping to God Rusty was wrong. He wanted to believe that he was more like Hank, who devoted himself to his family. But at the moment he feared there were too many similarities with Rusty than he cared to consider.
“Can I at least see her? She don’t have to know who I am. But I don’t know how many years I have left.”
“Why? Are you sick?”
“Nope but won’t live forever.”
Lincoln bristled, his gut churning. A memory slid through him of waiting in the chute straddling an eager Lucky, waiting for his turn. He could beat the time. Or lose. In the end, it was always a gamble. A risk.
There was only one way he’d agree to Rusty seeing Daisy and he hoped Rusty could see the sense in it.
“From a distance,” Lincoln said carefully. Slowly. “One look. If that’s all you want, to see her, you’ll agree. This way, she isn’t hurt. You get what you want, and we protect her.”
“I ain’t all that picky. Maybe that would be for the best.”
After the meeting, Lincoln drove straight to Daisy’s place of work. He wouldn’t have admitted it but hearing about Rusty’s auto profession unnerved him. Daisy had been interested in mechanics from a young age, always working on Jackson’s matchbox cars with her plastic tools when other girls played with dolls. She did some of that, too, on occasion. One side of Daisy was decidedly feminine, and another side made her just one of the guys.
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