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“Morning, Luke.” She kept digging in her purse, not sparing him a glance.
“Did you lose something?”
“No. I did not lose anything.” She threw the strap over her shoulder, car keys in her hand. “And please don’t call me Sweet Bec.”
Sweet Bec had been his pet name for her and it had slipped out. Or maybe he just wanted to annoy her. Her eyes met his and Luke thought if looks could kill, he would be dead. He hooked his thumbs into the pockets of his jeans. “Why? Does it make you remember?”
“Don’t flatter yourself.” Her hand touched her hair, the only sign he made her nervous. The stylish short cut came below her ears and her fuzzy curls had been tamed. He wasn’t sure if she’d had them straightened or whatever women did to their hair. The fetching freckles across her nose were no longer visible. Neither were her glasses. Evidently she now wore contacts and makeup.
She looked different, older and definitely more mature. For a moment he was nostalgic for the young Becky who’d constantly pushed her glasses up her nose and who could light up his life with just her smile. He wondered if she’d forgotten how to smile.
Had he been the cause of its demise?
“How are your folks?” she asked when he didn’t respond.
He shifted gears to the present. “Fine. My dad is out of his eye drops. The clinic is loaning us some until I can get into San Antonio.”
“I told your mom I’d drop them by if she needed me to.”
Becky was a nurse and worked in the River Bluff High School. She helped out at the clinic, too. She helped anyone who needed her. That was typical Becky. His mom depended on her advice and that irritated Luke. He wasn’t sure why, but in a small town it was hard to keep their lives separate.
“I can take care of my parents.” The words came out harsher than he’d intended.
“Mom! Mom!”
A young boy came running toward them. Luke stiffened. He knew who the kid was. He’d seen him around, but he’d never spoken to him and didn’t want to now. With the controlled discipline he had learned in the army, he stood ready to meet Becky and Danny’s son.
“Shane, what are you doing here?” Becky asked, irritation in her voice. “I told you I’d be at the clinic about an hour and you and Brad were supposed to finish your homework. I was just on my way to pick the two of you up for school.”
“Mrs. Grant got a call that her mother had fallen and was in the emergency room in San Antonio. She and Brad left real fast. She wanted to bring me over here, but I told her I’d walk.”
“I don’t like it when you change plans on me.”
“Chill, Mom. It’s only two blocks and I’m not six years old. Besides, it was an emergency and I know you wouldn’t want Mrs. Grant taking time to drive me to my mommy.”
Becky’s lips tightened. “No. And don’t be smart.”
“Ah, Mom.” The boy threw his arm across Becky’s shoulder and hugged her. “Stop trying to be so tough.”
Luke found he was staring at the boy. He had to be about fourteen or fifteen, tall for his age with wavy brown hair and blue eyes. He looked just like Becky, except for the hair. He didn’t see a lot of Danny in the kid.
“You’re Luke Chisum,” Shane said unexpectedly.
“Yes.” Luke found his voice.
“Do you think you’ll be hiring at the Circle C Ranch for the summer? I’m saving money to buy a truck when I turn sixteen.”
“It’s just the end of February and I’m not sure yet about the summer, but we’re always looking for good cowboys. You’ll have to speak to my brother, Hank. He does all the hiring.”
Shane grimaced. “He’s not too friendly. I already asked and he told me to come back when I was older.”
“Shane, you never said you spoke with Hank.” Becky frowned, obviously displeased. “Your father’s going to help with the truck.” She glanced at Luke. “We don’t need to discuss this in front of Mr. Chisum. Come on, it’s time to get you to school.”
“Dad wants to buy me one of those little Ford Rangers. It’s like a toy. I want a Chevy Z71 with four-wheel drive, all-terrain tires and—”
“Shane…”
Shane winked at Luke. “My mom’s really an angel, but some days you have to search for those wings.”
Mother and son got into a silver Tahoe and drove away. Shane waved and Luke waved back. The kid had a great sense of humor. He was Danny Howard’s kid, though. Luke couldn’t seem to get beyond that. Becky and Danny were divorced, but it didn’t keep that seed of jealousy from sprouting in Luke. How could she have married him?
The past hit him smack in the face then. He felt eighteen and angry. Why did life have to be so cruel?
BECKY CLENCHED and unclenched her hands on the steering wheel. She had to mentally calm herself. Every encounter with Luke was the same—emotionally draining. Why did he have to come home? After all these years, she’d thought he was out of her life for good. But she knew he would never be completely out of her heart.
Unable to stop herself, she glanced in the rearview mirror. In jeans, cowboy boots and a Stetson, Luke was unbelievably handsome. He always had been. And the years had added another dimension—one of maturity. His dark hair and eyes were the same, except his eyes weren’t as mischievous or flirtatious. They were serious. Luke Chisum was now dead serious. His dare-me arrogance was gone, but his cocky smile showed up now and then—like a few minutes ago.
Does it make you remember?
All the time.
She put it down to first love—the all-consuming love of a teenager. Yet it all had been based on a silly dare. And that dare had sent her self-esteem into the biggest nosedive of her young life.
Luke Chisum could have had any girl he wanted. She should have known there was a reason he’d asked naive Becky to the dance. She’d been so young, and wanted to have fun like the other girls, so she hadn’t given it much thought. When a friend had told her the truth, it had broken her heart.
To make matters worse, she’d heard the kids talking. One day after gym class she realized she’d forgotten her purse in her locker. As she hurried back to get it, she heard Bobbie Sue and Stefi, two girls in her class, talking about how gullible Becky was to think Luke really loved her. They went on to say that Luke was just after the sex, all the guys were.
And she noticed the boys glancing at her with pity in their eyes. She just wanted to crawl away and die. All she could think was Luke didn’t love her as he’d said. He was in the relationship for the sex. That knowledge almost killed her and led to restless dreams where he was laughing with his friends at just how easy she’d been.
Through the pain, though, she recognized she might be blowing everything out of proportion. The healing process took a long time and when she was finally ready to listen to Luke, he was gone. She wrote several letters, but never mailed any. His leaving reinforced her original beliefs. If Luke had really loved her, he wouldn’t have been so eager to leave River Bluff.
Even though she couldn’t get Luke out of her head, she’d plunged headfirst into a relationship with Danny. After a couple of years, they’d known the marriage wasn’t working and had gone their separate ways.
But they had Shane.
Becky lived her life for her son. She worked in the River Bluff school system so she could be near Shane. Raising a young boy wasn’t easy, especially since Shane was getting older. The thought of him driving was giving her nightmares. Just like his father, he drove like a race-car driver—fast and reckless.
“Luke Chisum’s cool,” Shane said, pushing the buttons on the radio and twisting in his seat to the beat of Rascal Flatts.
She took a deep breath. “Do not, and I repeat, do not ask the Chisums for a job again. Your grandpa has plenty of work for you to do.”
“Mo-o-om,” he dragged out her name in a pained tone. “Grandpa pays pennies. The Chisums pay top dollar. If I work all summer, I could buy the coolest truck.”
“Shane, did you hear what I just said?” She used her strongest voice, the one Shane knew well.
“Yes, ma’am.” He slumped in his seat. Silence filled the cab.
“Your father called and wants to know if you’d like to come for the weekend.”
She heard a muttered, “No.”
“You haven’t seen your father and his family for two months.” Danny had remarried and had two more children. Shane felt left out.
“They live in the city and there’s nothing to do there. I always have to babysit. Besides, Grandpa and I are working on the four wheeler. We almost have it running again. Call Dad and tell him I’ll come another time.”
“You call him tonight and tell him that.”
“Mo-o-om.” He dragged out her name again in protest.
“You’ll call him.”
Divorce was hell on kids. Danny understood Shane had a life in River Bluff and didn’t pressure him too much to come and visit. Noreen, his wife, had a lot to do with that.
Becky pulled into the parking lot.
“Just think, Mom.” Shane unbuckled his seat belt, back to his happy self. He never stayed upset for long. “When I get my truck, you won’t have to drive me to school anymore.”
Turning off the ignition, she glanced at him. “But remember I’ll still be here.”
“You know, Mom, those elementary kids need a nurse a lot more than us grown-ups. You might want to think about transferring.”
She pinched his cheek. “In your dreams, hotshot.”
“Mo-o-om… Oh, there’s Abby. Gotta go. See you after school. Remember I have basketball practice.” He grabbed his backpack and in a burst of energy was gone.
Becky watched as he joined Abby and more of their friends, flashing his registered-on-the-Richter-scale smile. Her son was handsome, charming and a handful. That caused her many sleepless nights. Shane was like his father in so many ways.
And she was grateful no one saw that but her.
CHAPTER TWO
LUKE SPED DOWN THE ROAD to Great Oaks, the Chisum home. Huge live oaks lined the lane on both sides, their large branches intertwining and creating a canopy effect. The trees had grown on the property long before Luke was born. His great-grandmother had planted them and had named the two-story Victorian house, built by her husband.
Every time he drove beneath the trees, he felt that sense of vulnerability, just as he had in town. He’d been adopted as a newborn by the Chisums and he was always acutely aware he wasn’t a blood Chisum. His brother, Hank, made sure he never forgot that little fact.
Hank had been sixteen when Henry and Lucy had decided to adopt. Hank had resented his new brother from day one. Luke was now thirty-four and only tolerated by him, at best. The tension at home had been another reason he’d bolted for freedom, but Hank hadn’t been the catalyst that had sent Luke out into the world. Becky had. If Luke hadn’t been so eaten up with jealousy over Becky and Danny, he would never have left the Circle C or his parents.
Luke may not have been blood but his roots ran deep with the Chisums. He loved them, even Hank, though it would probably take a bottle of Jack Daniel’s to get him to admit that out loud.
Parking at the garages, Luke noticed Hank’s Ford King Ranch pickup. He’d been visiting his daughter, Chelsea, in San Antonio. Hank and his wife, Marla, were separated and Chelsea lived with her mother. He hadn’t come home the night before so maybe he and Marla were trying to work things out.
Marla was a city girl and hadn’t taken to living on a ranch. Luke had been in the military for a year when his mom had written that Marla and Chelsea had moved out for good. Hank had bought them a house and nothing had changed in that situation for fifteen years. Chelsea was now twenty-two, finishing her last year of college. Luke barely knew his niece.
Luke had to give Marla credit. She really tried, but not many people could put up with Hank’s moodiness.
Luke slipped out of his truck and took a moment to breathe in the fresh country air. He caught the scent of cypress wafting from the Medina River. Oh, yeah, he was home. Just being here gave him a sense of peace. He’d left here a boy feeling ten feet tall and bulletproof. That was a trick of his young, arrogant mind. He’d seen the world as no eighteen-year-old should—through blood and tears. He’d come back a man with his head squarely on his shoulders, knowing no one was invincible and a bullet showed no discretion.
He glanced in the direction of the barns, corrals, bunkhouse and the rolling hills beyond. Everything lay in the dormant stages of winter. Cedars, spruces and craggy ledges stood out among the bare, weblike branches of the trees. Leaves in different shades of brown blanketed the ground.
Soon spring would turn the landscape into lush hills, green valleys and sunny vistas that were stunning in their simplicity and beauty. To Luke, no place on earth could compete with the scenery in River Bluff. No place.
Cowboys were saddling up for a day on the range. Luke waved to Pee Wee, Newt, Ramrod, Hardy and Paco as they loaded hay onto a flatbed trailer. This was cowboy country. An old-fashioned way of doing things was still alive in the county, even though dude ranches were a common sight around River Bluff. But not at the Circle C. Real tobacco-chewing, bowlegged cowboys worked here.
“Hey, boy, when’s the next poker game?” Happenstance Jones, cowboy extraordinaire and ranch foreman, walked from the house, his worn boots making a shuffling noise on the pavement. At seventy-two, Hap wasn’t known for picking up his feet.
“Wednesday night.”
“Where?”
“Jake’s place.”
“Might join ya.” Hap bobbed his head up and down.
“Be happy to take your money.”
Hap snorted, laying a hand on the hood of Luke’s truck. “You just gettin’ home?”
Luke pushed back his hat. “Hap, those days of staying out all night are gone.”
“What are you talkin’ about?” Hap spit chewing tobacco on the ground. “You’re in your prime. You’d better ride that bull while you can, boy, because before you know it, you’ll be ridin’ toward eighty like me.”
Hap looked every year of his age. He had brown leathery skin from too many hours in the sun. A bony body and bowed legs added to the effect. But Luke knew his mind was still as sharp as the razor the housekeeper, Clover, made him use on the odd occasion. Most of the time he had a gray stubble and a look that was known to frighten small children.
Luke folded his arms across his chest. “Hap, I never thought you worried about age.”
“I don’t. That’s up to the good Lord. I’ll die with my boots on and a smile on my face.”
“Since I’ve never seen you smile that might be totally impossible.”
“Really?” Hap rubbed his stubble. “I’m smiling now. Can’t ya tell?”
Luke studied the strained, wrinkly face. “Nope. Looks more like you have gas.”
Hap walked off, shaking his head. “Boy don’t know nuthin’.”
Luke strolled into the house with a grin on his face. “Hey, Clover.”
Clover Jankowski, the housekeeper, turned from the sink and wiped her hands on her apron. With an ample bosom and stout body, Clover had a direct way of speaking that irritated most people. But Luke knew she had a heart of gold once you chiseled through the stony exterior.
If Hap didn’t smile, Clover was the reason. In a bad mood, she was known to be as mean as a rattlesnake, and her sharp tongue could be just as deadly.
Luke never understood their relationship. Both came from an orphanage in San Antonio and had started working on the Circle C as teenagers. Hap and Clover always had breakfast together. Trading insults was part of the menu. On Saturday nights they went dancing. Sunday mornings they attended mass together. Whatever their relationship was, it worked for them.
“You get the drops?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Took you long enough.”
