Cathy Gillen - The Texas Lawman's Woman

Colt braced for the rest, suspecting by the regret in her voice that it had been bad.

“Unable to live on a budget, Tully secretly got a couple of cards with predatory lenders. You know, ones with thirty percent interest rates. When he maxed those out, the credit card companies sent us to collections.”

“Which is when you found out.”

Shelley’s chin took on the stubborn tilt he knew so well. “Tully still didn’t think it was a big deal. But I couldn’t live that way. And coupled with the fact that I was pregnant, well...it was clear we were definitely not meant to be together.”

“So you ended it?” he asked in a soft voice.

She nodded. “To my relief, Tully agreed to a divorce. He didn’t like my ‘uptight’ attitude any more than I liked his irresponsibility. My attorney managed to get Tully’s new debts assigned only to him. Rather than see him go to the poorhouse, his parents bailed him out again. And I got the house I had inherited from my folks, free and clear. It’s in the divorce papers. I just verified that much.”

“But the title to this house wasn’t changed at the time of your divorce,” Colt guessed as Austin climbed out of his arms and off the seat of the swing.

Shelley sighed. “No. It wasn’t,” she said, watching her son toddle over to get his little red truck. “And it should have been.”

“So now what?”

Austin wedged between Colt’s legs and ran the wooden vehicle up and down his jean-clad thigh.

She cast a worried look at him, wondering if Colt minded his leg being used as a racetrack, complete with a lot of vrooming noises. She spoke above her rowdy son. “We cross our fingers and hope that Liz is able to talk a judge into throwing out the default judgment against me. So I can keep my house.”

Colt let her know with a slight lift of his hand he didn’t mind her son’s playfulness. “And then?”

“I’m going to get the title changed and make sure the one hundred and fifty thousand dollar debt Tully incurred with the credit line against my house is assigned only to him. In the meantime—” she reached over and resituated Austin up on her lap, the action pulling the hem of her skirt several inches higher on her thigh “—I’ve got my first set of dance lessons to teach this afternoon, and let’s not forget that the bride and groom are supposed to be in Laramie this evening.”

Acutely aware her legs were sexier than ever, Colt said, “Ah, yes, the wedding.”

Looking more sweetly maternal than ever, Shelley ruffled her baby boy’s hair and hugged him close. “Right now, that’s about the only thing, save this little guy, that can make me smile.”

* * *

“TURNS OUT I’M GOING TO NEED more help with this wedding than I thought,” Kendall told Shelley over the phone, later that afternoon.

Shelley walked toward the community center drop-off day care, where her son would stay while she taught dance classes. “I’m maid of honor,” she told her longtime best friend. Although the two of them had lived thousands of miles apart the past few years, they were still like sisters. Sensing this was going to take a minute, Shelley ducked outside and found her way to one of the benches on the property. “That’s my job.”

Kendall paused. “How are you at tasting and selecting a wedding cake?”

“Sounds like a fun job.” Shelley rummaged through her bag for her notepad and pen. “No question there. But isn’t that done by the bride and groom?” She got ready to write.

Kendall inhaled deeply. “It was supposed to be. We have an appointment with the Sugar Love bakery in Laramie at seven this evening. The only problem is, Gerry and I are still in Bethesda.”

Maryland? Shelley thought in shock, momentarily putting down her pen. “Why? What happened?”

“Gerry started running a little fever this morning, so we went by the naval hospital to have him checked out by his doc there, and it turns out he has a mild pneumonia.”

“Oh, no!”

“The staff treated and released him, but they don’t want him to fly right now. We’re going to have to drive to Texas when he’s given the all clear to travel, and that won’t be for a few days. The good news is—” Kendall’s voice cracked “—the movers hadn’t actually packed up any of our stuff yet, so we still have a place to stay, although there are boxes everywhere.”

“Oh, hon....”

“Now, don’t start,” Kendall ordered in a low, quavering voice, “or you really will make me cry.”

Right. Deep breath. Shelley focused on the practical and asked calmly, “What can I do to help?”

“Keep my appointment at the bakery and pick out a cake. We’ve been best friends forever. You know what I like.”

Shelley made a few notes. “Anything with coconut, butter cream frosting and strawberries.”

“Pretty much. Although Gerry’s favorites are dark chocolate and pecans, so whatever you can come up with that will look wedding-ish and still fit our budget, which the bakery already has, would be great.”

“Don’t you worry.” Shelley wrote some more. “I’m on it.”

“You’re sure? I know you just moved in, too.”

“It’s not a problem. Honestly. You just take care of Gerry. I’ll manage everything here.”

Luckily, Shelley’s sitter was available to watch Austin, and would stay until she got back from the bakery. By the time she got her son in his stroller and walked the short distance from the community center to her home, the sitter was already there.

With the two of them already playing happily, Shelley went upstairs to change out of her leotard and skirt, into a spaghetti-strapped sundress and flats. It was only when she walked out to the driveway that she realized she hadn’t taken care of the Prius’s flat tire yet.

But someone had.

She stared down at her car, perfect as could be.

And there was only one knight in shining armor who would have had the audacity to ignore her instructions to leave the flat tire be and fix it anyway. Steam practically coming out of her ears, Shelley drove her car halfway down the block, parked and got out. Sure enough, Colt McCabe’s pickup truck was sitting in the driveway, and his dog, Buddy, was lounging on the porch of his Craftsman-style charcoal-and-white home.

Aware she had just enough time to handle this without being late for her appointment at the bakery, she marched up to his front door. Buddy rose, tail wagging, as she rang the bell.

Colt answered. Decked out in a dark blue button-up shirt, neatly pressed jeans and brown dress boots, he looked ready for a date. He smelled incredible, too. Like sandalwood, soap and leather.

His gaze roved the floral fabric of her formfitting dress. Smile deepening, he returned his attention to her eyes. “Well, isn’t this a nice surprise,” he drawled, holding open the storm door. “Come on in.”

Figuring it would be best not to have this conversation on the porch, where any of the neighbors could witness it, Shelley walked on in, Buddy on her heels. He brushed against her, clearly wanting to be petted.

Colt snapped his fingers and pointed at a thick corduroy pillow lying in front of the field stone fireplace. “Buddy. Cushion.”

Inside, his house was neat and clean. In the living room, a coordinating multicolored braided rug covered the wide plank floor. The upholstered sofa and comfortable club chairs were covered in a masculine dove-gray tweed fabric. Table lamps were formed out of a heavy dark bronze. A burnished mahogany coffee table, captain’s desk and end tables completed the decor.

Shelley supposed the casual elegance and pulled-together decorating scheme shouldn’t surprise her. Though Colt did his best to ignore it, he came from money, too. Lots of it.