A Father's Stake (9 page)

“Forget it.” He put down his window and pressed a button in a raised key pad by the Jeep. She heard a squawk of static, then a voice.

“Who’s there?”

“Jack Carson for Oscar.”

“Come on in,” the crackly voice said. “Down at the pump house.”

Jack drove through the gates as they swung open. The ranch was called
Nava Heaven.
Three separate drives led from the gates, and Jack took the one to the left. They drove under towering cottonwoods that almost formed an arch overhead. Rounding a curve, the trees thinned, revealing a panorama of grasslands beyond. He kept driving, heading for a corrugated metal building where a tractor sat by open double doors.

They had barely pulled to a stop by the tractor, when Oscar came out of the building’s shadows. He squinted, rubbed his face with a red kerchief, then headed over to them. Jack got out and Grace followed.

“Hey, boy,” he said to Jack, then nodded to Grace. “Ma’am. What’re you all doing out this way?”

“Looking for you,” Jack said. The two men shook hands. “We came out to see that Paint you said you were thinking of selling.”

Oscar looked back into the metal building. The whining and thudding of a piece of machinery filled the air. “This’ll wait,” he muttered. “Can’t get the darn thing to the bottom thirty.” He tossed the kerchief onto the seat of the tractor, then motioned Grace and Jack to follow him. “I need a break, come on.”

They made their way back toward the trees, then cut through a passageway made for large vehicles. When they stepped out they were in front of a huge barn with stables on one side.

“Here she is,” Oscar said, going to one of the corrals where a small white horse with two-toned brown markings calmly nuzzled a hay holder.

“This is her. Pretty and even-tempered. A good combination, but my granddaughter’s wanting to get into barrels and she’s a rider, period. I thought we should find a new home for Mosi. Not being rode much can break a horse’s heart.”

The Paint lifted her head, her soft brown eyes on the people coming toward her.

“She’s got a nice form,” Jack said.

“Been here since she was a yearling, trained up fine, good ride for a six-or seven-year-old, but not for a pre-teen. No problems. No bad habits.”

Grace tentatively reached out and touched the silky side of the horse’s muzzle. The animal stood quietly, letting Grace stroke her. “She seems so calm.”

“She is, Ma’am,” Oscar said. “I told Jack, if you’re interested, she’s yours for a month. A trial, because some horses and kids don’t mix. That’s a fact. Got to make sure things are right between the horse and rider, before you make a commitment.”

Grace looked at the horse and braced herself. “I heard you’d want about three hundred for her.”

Oscar came closer, touched the horse on the muzzle and she snuffled softly. “That’ll be fine, or whatever you think she’s worth to you and your kid. I’ll throw in her saddle too. She’s real used to it and it’s comfortable for a little person.”

“That sounds fine to me.”

Oscar smiled at her. “Then it’s a deal.”

Jack stood close behind her. “You’re going to do it?” he asked. “The feed store in town delivers hay and grain, and Parrish has the stable pretty much ready to accommodate her.”

Grace looked into the soft brown eyes of the horse and nodded. “Okay, you’ve got a deal. A month’s trial.” Then she had a thought. “I don’t have a trailer or anything, and I’m not sure—”

Oscar cut her off. “No worry. Jack’s got a trailer, a double. That should do it.” He looked past her at Jack. “That work for you?”

“Sure,” he said.

“Then it’s settled.”

Jack surprised her when he asked, “Any idea where she can get two mattresses. I’m guessing they need to be doubles?” He glanced at Grace and she nodded.

“Actually, I have a couple in storage, almost new, real clean.” Oscar looked at her. “I’ll throw them in with the horse.”

“Thank you,” she said quickly. “Thank you very much.”

Five minutes later, Grace and Jack were in the Jeep again, pulling away from Oscar’s ranch and back toward town. Grace glanced at Jack. The man was silent, watching the road ahead, and gave no indication what he was thinking.

“I appreciate all of this,” she said.

He cast a sidelong look at her, his dark eyes as unreadable as his expression. “It’s a good deal. Oscar won’t do you wrong.”

“That’s a relief,” she said. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“What is the busiest and best restaurant in town?”

“The Place fills both criteria,” he said as they got closer to the hospital. “Upscale, good food and it’s a busy place most weekends, with both locals and tourists.”

It sounded interesting, especially if she did evenings and her mother could find something for the daytime. “What sort of food?”

“Steaks, and everything that goes with them,” he said.

“Sounds good.”

“How about going by there now?” he asked out of the blue.

She looked at him again. “Excuse me?”

“I’m hungry and I’d like some company for a very late lunch.” He looked at her as they stopped at the main street. “What do you think? Do you have time for it?”

Grace didn’t know what to say. For a fleeting moment, she actually thought she’d love to sit in a nice restaurant and talk, but that thought fled as soon as it materialized. Not a good idea, partly because she was refusing to sell Jack the property, but mostly because he was a married man. She glanced at the simple gold band. That wasn’t cool. And she didn’t want to blurt out, “Wouldn’t your wife mind?”

Instead, she settled for, “You must have places to be, people to see, judges to talk to.”

He grinned at her, letting the Jeep idle. “No, I don’t. I was ready to leave for the day when you showed up.”

Then she said it. “Wouldn’t your wife mind?”

For a moment, he just stared at her, then turned abruptly and focused on the cars passing in front of them. “I was just asking you to lunch,” he said.

She was thankful he wasn’t looking at her when she felt the fire in her face. She hadn’t meant to imply anything else, but obviously he’d taken it that way. Before she could say she was sorry, he spoke. “Do you want to come or not?”

His expression was grim. She didn’t miss the way his hands gripped the top of the steering wheel, and she suddenly realized she didn’t want to be responsible for this tension. “Yes, I am, if you still want me to.”

He didn’t say a thing as he eased the Jeep onto Main Street, heading back the way they’d come. Neither spoke as they headed west, then Jack pulled the Jeep into a parking area to the right of a stylized, two-story, Victorian house. Pretty plants lined the front of the property, and there was gingerbread trim and slate-blue clapboard siding.

They got out and walked up to the entry. Inside the home, the foyer was huge, decorated with cabbage rose wallpaper, thick oriental carpets and dark mahogany chairs and small tables. A dark-haired woman dressed in a simple white blouse and midcalf slim black skirt came out to greet them.

“Jack!” She smiled warmly. “Hello there. I haven’t seen you in a week of Sundays.” Without hesitation, she hugged him. “Darn good to see you.” She turned to Grace. “Hello, and welcome to The Place.”

Jack finally spoke up. “Grace, this is Clare Money, owner of the restaurant.”

“And wife of Terry Money, the other owner,” she grinned and held out a hand to Grace, her grip firm. “So, you’re new to town?”

Grace nodded, and wondered what Clare knew about her and the ranch. “Yes, I am. Jack recommended your establishment.”

“Good, I’m glad he did. Doing late lunch or dinner?”

Jack glanced at Grace. “Either,” she said.

“Okay, both.” Clare grabbed some menus, motioning them to follow her.

They stepped through a wide doorway trimmed with heavy burgundy curtains and down into a large circular dining area with tall, narrow windows lining it on two sides. Clare led the way to the back area, and put them at a table with two high-backed velvet chairs and a stunning view of a lush garden and the low lands that rose up to meet the mountains.

* * *

A
FTER
THEY
WERE
SEATED
, and Clare left to get them coffee, Jack turned to look out the windows. He had an overwhelming urge to ask for another table. This one had privacy and that great view. He didn’t really want either right now, not with this woman. But he didn’t move. He watched Grace staring out the window, and wished everything didn’t look so incredible. Her eyes were almost shining with appreciation.

Slowly, Grace turned to him. “This country is incredible, just incredible.” Before he had to think of something to say, she shrugged. “But I guess you’re totally used to it.”

He sat back in the chair. “I guess I am.”

“And you know everyone in town?”

He took in the slight smile on her pale lips. “Most.”

“Well, you know Clare.”

“Sure, I went to school with her and Terry way back in the dark ages. Terry’s from the Rez and Clare came here when she was maybe four or five, from Seattle, I think.”

The dining room was only a third full, if that, and he watched her glance around, then back to him. “Do you know everyone in here now?”

He followed the direction of her gaze, scanning the other diners, then turned back to Grace and nodded. “Guilty. All but one, and I think he’s probably a college friend of those two women he’s sitting with. They said he’d be visiting them around now. So, maybe technically, I do know them all.”

She smiled, her forearms on the white tablecloth, slender hands lightly clasped. “You know, that makes me a little jealous.”

CHAPTER NINE

B
EFORE
J
ACK
COULD
ask why she was jealous of him in any way, a waitress came to the table. “Welcome,” she said, a smile on her round face. “Nice to see you again, Jack. It’s been too long.”

Jack knew Jacquie, too. She was from the Rez, maybe late-twenties, and going to night school to get her teaching credentials to work at the school where she lived. “You’re ready to order?”

Jack knew what he wanted, but Grace hadn’t made a move to look at her menu. “Maybe a few more minutes,” he started to say, but Grace shook her head.

“It’s okay, I’m ready if you are?”

“Sure,” he said.

“I’d just like a plain cheese omelet with cheddar cheese, and mild salsa, if you have it. Also, a side of fresh fruit and whole wheat toast.”

“Absolutely,” the waitress said with a smile, then turned to Jack. “The usual,” he said and she left with nod.

“See, that’s what I mean. You know everyone in here, and all you had to say was ‘the usual.’ The waitress knew exactly what you wanted. And I bet you aren’t in here every day, either, maybe once a week or every two weeks.”

She’d nailed him. “And that makes you jealous, because?”

“I’ve worked in restaurants for years, and every once in a while I’ve had a customer who would come in for a few days in a row, but none ever stuck around. I could walk into any restaurant myself in my neighborhood and they wouldn’t know me and I wouldn’t know anyone either. That’s par for the course.”

He could see where this was going. And he couldn’t deny any of it. “L.A.’s a huge city. Wolf Lake could be dropped down in the center of it and no one would notice.”

“You’re right. Because no one notices, period.”

Jacqui brought their coffees, then headed back to check on their food. Jack knew what Grace meant. He’d been in L.A. for his college and law school, and when he’d come home he’d made maybe two good friends he still kept in touch with. “That might seem nice and comforting to you, but it can backfire. Everyone knows everything about you.” He smiled at her. “That can get a bit uncomfortable.”

“Tell me about it,” she said.

He studied her. “You say that as if you’ve had firsthand experience.”

“No, just everywhere I’ve gone here, people know about the ranch and that....” She shrugged. “You know, the details, and they aren’t happy. Not with me, they’ve been nothing but friendly, but in general they seem to be offended by the whole deal.”

“Wow, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that more than a handful of friends knew what my dad had done.”

“If the whole town is considered ‘handful of friends,’ then you’re right.”

Her eyes held a glint of humor in them, and he was glad she didn’t feel offended by whatever the townspeople had said to her. He didn’t want her run out of town on a rail, just discouraged enough to realize that Wolf Lake wasn’t right for her or her family.

“They mean well,” he said as he reached for his coffee mug. Inadvertently his wedding ring clinked on the heavy ceramic.

He almost drew back, but made himself pick up the coffee and take a sip. Grace had asked him what his wife would think about her having lunch with him. Jack knew if Robyn was still alive, none of this would be happening. “Just tell her you’re a widower,” he ordered himself, but he knew he wouldn’t do that.

“You get used to it,” he said instead, setting the mug back on the table with a dull thud.

Right then, the waitress appeared with their food. Jack’s “usual” was eggs and steak, and he’d been more hungry than he thought. Grace finished everything as well except a half slice of toast before she nudged her plate away from her.

Their eyes met and he found himself smiling easily at her. “You’ve got a good appetite,” he said.

“I always do.” She laid her knife and fork on the almost empty plate. “My mother’s the same way. She can eat a horse and be ready to eat again if you offer her a good dessert.”

His smile grew. “And she’s as tiny as you are?”

“Two inches taller, but I think she’s the same weight as when she was a teenager.” She sipped the last of her coffee.

“Is your dad the same?” he asked, and the smile tightened on her face, then faded away.

“I really don’t know. I haven’t seen him since I was three, and my memory of him is pretty sketchy.”

“Why did he give you the ranch?” The question was out before he realized he was going to verbalize it.

Her face stayed tight, but she answered simply. “I have no idea. He didn’t tell the attorney anything either. The closest I can figure is, maybe he had an attack of conscience about abandoning us like he did, and since he can’t stand to be anywhere for too long, the idea of a ranch didn’t appeal to him, so he got rid of it and eased his guilt in the process. Then again, maybe he doesn’t have a conscience.”

She spoke the words without emotion, but Jack knew there must be a ton of pain behind them. Charles Michaels tossed away his whole family. In a way his own father had done the same thing, not by leaving, but by drinking.

Swallowing his anger at both men, he shrugged. “He doesn’t know what he’s missing,” he said, and didn’t mean the ranch. How could a father walk away from a three-year-old daughter and never look back? That was unthinkable to him.

“Why did your father let the ranch go?” she asked abruptly.

Tossing his napkin on his plate, he said bluntly, “He was drunk, so drunk he didn’t know he’d even lost the land until he saw it in writing.” Jack forced himself not to flinch when an unconnected memory hit him hard. His father, passed out with an empty bottle of whisky, almost two years ago, when Jack had needed him the most. When Robyn had died.

The fight had been explosive on both sides, culminating with Jack walking out of the main ranch house and not speaking to his father for almost six months. By then his dad was sober, and a truce had been formed. Now that truce was shattered.

Before she could probe any further, he asked her, “Was your father addicted to gambling?”

He regretted the question when that familiar blush rose in her cheeks, but it was her eyes that made his breath catch. The pain in their lavender depths was raw as she spoke in a slightly breathless rush.

“No, he was addicted to having no ties, no demands, nobody telling him what to do or where to go. He just happened to support that lifestyle by gambling and, obviously, still does.”

He was surprised at how her words affected him. Abruptly, she stood, and tugged a wallet out of her pants pocket. Before she could take out any money, he tossed some bills on the table to cover their tab. “I’ve got it,” he said, and she didn’t argue.

They drove back to his office, and she was out of the Jeep almost before he’d stopped. “Thanks for taking me out to Oscar’s, and for lunch,” she said.

“I’ll send a man over to Oscar’s with the trailer and get the horse out to the ranch and hopefully the mattresses,” he said before she could rush off. “What time’s good for you?”

She hesitated. “Anytime. Parrish should be there if I’m not.” With a “Thanks for everything,” she swung the door to the Jeep shut.

Jack got out and went around the back of his vehicle to her compact sedan. When she started to pull the door shut, he grabbed it by the frame. He didn’t know what else to say, but felt he had to say something for both their sakes. Then it came to him. “You know, the less we talk about our fathers, the easier things might be for us.”

Grace looked up at him for a moment, her eyes touched by that sadness again. “Yes. I agree.” Her tongue lightly touched her lips. “Thank you for everything.”

This whole situation had gotten so confusing, and Jack knew he needed to refocus. Her decision to try to make the ranch work could be a good compromise for him. The best, of course, would have been a quick turnover in his favor, but at least she hadn’t cut him out as a potential buyer if she decided ranching wasn’t for her. She was staying for the moment and his best bet was to remain as close to her as he could. He’d be patient, until she realized she was in over her head and the best way out was to sell the ranch to him.

* * *

G
RACE
DIDN
’
T
UNDERSTAND
this man who looked down at her so intently.

“How about the perimeter ride I mentioned before?” Jack said. “We can follow the property line all around the spread, and you’ll have a much better idea of what’s ahead than just trying to walk it.”

His eyes held hers expectantly, as if he really wanted to do this. She couldn’t figure out why. What was in it for him? “I’m sure you have other things to do.”

“To be honest with you, I’m working as little as I possibly can right now. I’ve got time on my hands.”

“But I still don’t have a horse, and probably won’t get one, other than Lilly’s.” Even if she had a horse to ride, she wasn’t totally convinced she’d be able to stay on its back.

He waved that concern aside. “No problem. I’ve got a horse you can use, a nice and easy Bay. I’ll come over around dawn tomorrow before there’s any heat, and we can start the tour then?”

She wanted desperately to see as much of the ranch as possible, but it seemed awkward to have the man who wanted her land to show her around. An unsettling thought flashed in her mind. She was actually beginning to enjoy spending time with Jack, even though she didn’t know much more about the man himself than when they’d first met.

“I guess we could give it a try,” she said. “But not tomorrow. I have some important things to do.”

“Okay, the day after, then, early as possible.” He didn’t give her a chance to refuse, just stood back and swung her door shut for her.

Quickly, Grace started the car and pulled out onto the street. Stupid. What if she got on the horse and fell right off, or worse yet, the animal took off with her on it? She cringed at the idea of trying to stay on the beast and carry on a conversation with Jack at the same time.

She was almost halfway back to the ranch before she realized how totally preoccupied she’d been just thinking about riding with Jack. She’d totally forgotten she wanted to get some supplies at the store. Debating whether to turn around or go tomorrow, she decided that going back was better. She didn’t know what would be entailed getting Lilly registered and probably into school the next day.

Making a U-turn, she headed back and in minutes was parking in front of the General Store again. Getting out, she quickly took the two steps up onto the walkway, and would have gone right inside if a tall woman, with black hair falling down her back, hadn’t stepped right in front of her. The two almost collided, but both managed to step in the opposite direction. “Nice move,” the woman said, her loose sweatshirt and jeans as casual as her makeup-free face, but not nearly as relaxed as the fuzzy pink bedroom slippers she was wearing.

Grace chuckled. “You, too, especially with those slippers on.”

The woman glanced down. “That’s what comes from living right next door. I’ve been known to run over here in my bathrobe early in the morning when I run out of food for my guests.”

Grace glanced behind her, then back to the woman. “You work at the bed-and-breakfast?”

“I own it.” She held out a slender hand. “I’m Mallory Sanchez.”

Grace took her hand. “I’m Grace Evans.”

“Oh,” Mallory said, and Grace braced herself for the now familiar response. “I’ve heard about you and the Wolf Ranch.”

“You’re Willie G.’s niece, aren’t you?” Grace said, remembering.

“Please, don’t blame me for that. No one asked me who I wanted for an uncle.” Mallory laughed. “He’s great, actually, just very determined and a bit crotchety at times. I, personally, think it’s terrific that you’re out there. That place has been empty for so long, way too long.”

Grace felt relief and a bit of gratitude that someone had finally said it was good for her to be there. “Thanks for that.”

Mallory read her right. “Oh, you’re getting some flack, aren’t you?”

“No, just, well, under the circumstances and all, this hadn’t been a very welcome change for the people around here.”

“Oh, sure, I understand about the Carsons and the Wolfs. That ranch has been theirs forever, I guess. But they all have their own lives, and more land than you could shake a stick at.” She frowned slightly. “Now, Jack, I do feel for him. After everything, maybe he just can’t lose any more.”

Jack lose? “What about Jack?”

Mallory hesitated. “I meant, after all he’s gone through.”

Grace didn’t understand. “He seems to be doing okay. He’s got his work and his family. I mean, his father gambling away the land was a terrible thing to do, but it’s not life and death.”

There was a look of sadness in Mallory’s dark eyes. “No, it’s not. But it’s important, maybe too important for him.”

“I understand he wants it. He’s even offered to buy it if I decide to sell.”

“I mean, it’s just another loss in his life,” she said softly.

“What other loss has he had?”

“His wife, Robyn, died in an accident about two years ago and we haven’t been sure since then that he’d make it. This land business is the first thing he’s had any interest in since her death.”

Grace stared at the woman. In a town with a penchant for knowing and talking about everyone else’s business, not one person she’d met, including Jack, had even hinted at him losing his wife. With a sickening realization, Grace finally came close to understanding what was behind Jack’s need to get the family land back. “It was going to be a home for his wife and kids?”

Mallory looked around. “Do you have a few minutes?”

“I suppose so.”

“Come on into Oscar’s and we can get some coffee. I know I need it. That’s why I’m over here. I ran out because of all the guests.”

Grace wasn’t sure she wanted to know much more, but she did need an answer to her last question. “Okay,” she said, and followed Mallory into Oscar’s and a handful of tiny tables by the front windows.

“Sit and I’ll get the coffee,” Mallory said, heading toward the kid at the counter who had been in the store earlier.