For Love's Sake Only (10 page)

“The Zellermans are interested in investing in the Dollar.”

“Well, we’re still in talks,” the elder Zellerman interrupted, shocking Ty and his son both. But Charlotte wasn’t shocked. There was nothing about his behavior that was surprising at all.

“In talks?” Russell questioned, his confusion shared with two of the other men in the room. “I was under the impression that we were done with talks.” Flushing, the man looked over at Charlotte before glancing away. “Papers haven’t been signed yet. I might need a bit more time.”

“Time, huh?” Ty’s words were as sharp as a blow, his gaze cutting through the older man like a fiery torch. “Seconds before my fiancée walked into the room, you were creaming to sign on, but now, now you need more time.”

“I ... I ...” Stumbling over his words, Beaumont looked from Charlotte to Ty as if trying to come up with his story.

“We do want to sign,” Dean interjected, looking at his father with distaste in his eyes.

“As you know, Tyson, I’m in charge of the company these days; my father is a mere ...

figurehead.” He added the last word as if it were repugnant.

“Then perhaps you need a new figurehead.” Enclosing Charlotte’s icy hand with his own, Ty faced the Zellermans head-on, sealing his fate and hers. “But I think I’ll have to decline your offer. I’m not sure if you’re the right company for the Dollar.”

“Wait ...”

Charlotte had heard enough. “Excuse me,” she whispered, before bolting out of the room, to the surprise of everyone.

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What had she been thinking? Things were never going to change, not even in the middle of nowhere on a ranch. And now their love was costing Ty money, money she knew he needed to expand the land like he wanted. Running up the stairs, Charlotte was in the room before she knew it, staring at nothing and everything all at the same time.

Tears ran down her face as she glanced at the bed where they had just professed their love, where she had less than an hour ago accepted his proposal, and Charlotte wanted to die.

The pain was so intense it almost brought her to her knees. Opening the closet door, she gathered her clothes, intent on packing and going home, when she heard the bedroom door shut behind her.

“What the hell are you doing?”

Turning around slowly, she faced the man she loved and did the only thing she could think of to salvage his life. “I’m leaving.”

Ty couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so upset. What had started out as a great day was quickly heading down the shitter, one flush at a time. He had really been counting on the money from the investors to branch out a bit more. It would have been well spent on staff and horses, but he would never stoop so low as to work with a closed-minded prig like Beaumont. Not for any amount of money.

His ranch meant the world to him, but Charlotte meant the galaxy, and Ty would rather lose everything than be without her.

The deal with the Zellermans was over, as far as Ty was concerned. He really liked Dean. Ty knew he had the gift of making money hand over fist, but Beaumont was one sorry son-of-a-bitch whose name Ty wouldn’t have his ranch associated with.

The moment he had seen the look of distaste on Beaumont’s face was the moment the deal went south. And despite Dean’s protest, Ty wasn’t going to change his mind. He’d get the backing from someone else, or not expand at all. It was just that simple.

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Or at least he thought it was. Now looking at Charlotte’s tear-soaked face, Ty was lost.

How could she think of leaving, when he’d willingly give up everything for her? “What is this all about?”

Charlotte gripped her clothes to her like they were a lifeline. Stepping toward her, Ty stopped in his tracks when she held her hand up to ward him off. What the hell was going on here?

“Talk to me, Charlotte.”

Shrugging her shoulders, she looked down at the clothes, refusing to meet his eyes.

“What do you want me to say?”

“You can start with why the hell you’re gathering your things?” he fumed. He was in no mood to play guessing games.

Charlotte raised her head to look at him. “It’s over, Ty.” Ty froze, his body pausing in mid-motion. Even his breathing seemed to still as he stared at her from across the room. “What did you say?” His words where sharp, like the crack of a whip, bringing a fresh round of tears to Charlotte eyes. He hadn’t meant to make her cry, but he was too worked up to comfort her right now. How could she say that? Think that?

“I said, it’s over. We’re over.”

“Never.”

“You say that now, but what will you say next month or the month after that when you find doors closing to you everywhere you turn?” Ty felt the tension leave his body. This he could fix. “I rejected their offer, Charlotte, and kicked them off our land.”

“Your land.”

“Our land,” he reinstated, not willing to let something as stupid as Beaumont’s prejudices ruin their relationship. “Nothing’s changed.” 76 Lena Matthews

“Everything’s changed. I thought things would be different here. That it wouldn’t matter here.”

“They don’t matter here.”

Charlotte gave a sad little smile. “It matters everywhere.” Ty felt as if a cold fist was gripping his heart. She was completely serious, and utterly scared. “He’s just one person, Charlotte. One.” Shaking her head, Charlotte watched him with sad look on her face. “That one sale would have helped you bring your dream to life.”

“You’re the only dream I want to bring to life.” Ignoring everything she said, Ty walked over to her and took her in his arms. Pulling her into his embrace, Ty held her to him, trying to stop the terror that was taking hold of his soul. “I love you, Charlotte. Nothing else matters.”

“Stop it, Ty,” she cried, jerking herself out of his arms.

“Do you really think I care whether or not that deal goes through?” His fear quickly turned to anger. This was fucking ridiculous. “Or, better yet, do you think I want to do business with a man like that? Hell, no.”

Charlotte reached out and caressed Ty’s cheek as tears trailed down hers. “Do you really think that he’s going to be the only one? There’s a world full of Zellermans, and you can’t afford to tell them all to fuck off.”

“This is just an excuse you’re using to run.” Ty grabbed her hand, and pressed it firmly to his cheek. “It’s what you always do when things get rough, Charlotte, you run. But you can’t run from me. I won’t let you.”

“Ty, I’m never going to fit into your world, any more than you would willingly fit into mine. You love this ranch, and it’s a part of who you are. If you lost it because of me, you would end up resenting me, and I could never handle that.”

“But you can handle leaving me?”

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“No, but I have to. For both of our sakes. I love you, Ty.”

“Liar,” he thundered, pushing her hand away. “If you loved me you’d stay. You’d forget this foolishness and we’d find a way to work this out.”

“We can’t fight the world. And it’s silly of you to think we can.”

“Silly. Don’t talk to me about silliness. This whole damn conversation, argument, is silly.”

“Why won’t you listen to reason?”

Ty stared at her in amazement. Reason. What the hell did she know of reason? “Are you even listening to yourself? Less than two hours ago we were lying in that bed making plans for our future, and now you’re talking about leaving because people won’t like the fact that we’re not the same race.”

“I could deal with them not liking it, but I can’t deal with you suffering because of it.”

“Like you give a damn about me suffering.” Turning, Ty jerked open the door and stormed out of the bedroom.

To hell with her. To hell with the whole damn thing. If she was going to toss their relationship away because she was scared, then he didn’t need her. Life was scary, and Ty wanted a woman who would ride into a storm with him, not cower at the first sign of rain.

In time, he would stop hurting.

Barreling into his office, he slammed the door shut behind him. It was a good thing the office was empty, because if he had seen either of the Zellermans, older or younger, Ty would have put his foot through their asses.

Walking to the bar in his office, Ty poured himself a glass of whiskey, staring down into the russet liquor that reminded him so much of Charlotte’s eyes.

“Is everything okay?” Russell asked, coming up behind Ty. So intent on his thought, Ty hadn’t heard anyone enter. “You okay, man?”

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“Fine.” Taking a deep drink, Ty turned to look at his worried friend. “Everything is fine. Did you get them off my land?”

“Yeah, much to the dismay of Dean. He’ll be kicking his father’s ass all the way back to Sacramento.”

“A man after my own heart.”

“Is Charlotte okay?” He repeated his question.

“She’s just fine. She should be down in a bit, bags in hand.” Russell eyes widened in surprise. “She can’t blame you.” Ty chuckled harshly. ”Oh, no, she doesn’t blame me. See, she’s too busy saving me.”

“From?”

“The world.” Tightening his grip on the glass, Ty could feel himself getting angrier by the second. “Charlotte’s under the impression that because of her, my livelihood will go to hell in a handbasket.”

“Do you think that?”

“Of course not,” Ty thundered, surprised his friend would even ask. Without her his life would be hell. It had only been five minutes and he was already feeling the fires beckoning from below. Charlotte was wrong.

Russell slapped his hand on the bar, breaking the silence. “Ty, are you going to sit in here pouting while she leaves?”

That brought Ty’s head up. Was he? Hell, no, he wasn’t.

Pushing the glass into Russell’s hand, Ty turned on his heel and stormed across the room. He was almost out of the door when Russell called out to him. “Where are you going?” With his hand on the door, Ty looked over his shoulder at his friend and a devilish smile stretched across his face. If Charlotte thought he was going to lie down and take this, Spurs & Mistletoe: For Love’s Sake Only

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she had another think coming, like the flat of his hand on her luscious ass. “To make that hardheaded woman listen to reason. Even if I have to lasso her ass to me to accomplish it.” 80 Lena Matthews

Chapter Eight

Charlotte had gotten outside and down the front steps before she realized what a humongous mistake she was making. Why the hell was she allowing a small-minded man to determine the fate of her future? She was never one to let other people influence her decisions, so why was she listening to them now?

Because you’re afraid, her mind chided.

Like she didn’t know that. But now, instead of just being afraid of what the future would hold, she was afraid she had pushed Ty away. Setting her hastily packed bag on the front porch, Charlotte stared out into the vast green pastures she’d already begun to think of as home and wanted to cry anew.

Her heart was in the right place, but whether Ty would see that or not was a completely different story. She had done it all for his sake, for the ranch’s sake, for everything but love’s sake.

But she didn’t want to lose him. Damn it all to hell.

“Fuck!” She yelled to the heavens, accidentally startling Ida who was walking up the steps.

“Wow. What did I miss?”

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Embarrassed about her outburst, Charlotte flushed. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there.” Ida merely smiled. “I’ve had days like those myself, honey. Don’t even worry about it.

Is the meeting over already?”

“Over, and then some.” Sighing, Charlotte ran her hands through her short hair in frustration. What was she going to do? She’d reacted without thinking, and now everything was a giant mess.

Ida stepped up on the porch, her smile slowly sliding from her weathered face when she spied Charlotte’s bag on the ground. “Is everything okay?” There weren’t enough words in the English language to explain the cluster-fuck that was her life. “Not by a long shot.”

“What ...”

Charlotte walked away, not sure what else to say. She didn’t mean to be rude, but short of saying I’m a big stupid loser, which left a lot to be desired, nothing came to mind.

Walking aimlessly around the grounds, Charlotte went over her options again. There were only two that truly seemed viable. She could either try to kiss and make up, or try to hide and lick her self-inflicted wounds. Although, knowing Ty, he wouldn’t let her stay hidden for long.

Troubled, Charlotte headed inside the barn where she and Ty had made love not so long ago. It was one of her favorite places to visit on the ranch, so she wasn’t too surprised it was where her aimless wandering had led her.

They’d come here many times over the last few weeks. Sometimes just to talk, others to visit whatever animal Ty was babying at the moment, but whenever they came, he would always tease her about taking her into the tack room. Sometimes he did. This was their place.

A musty room filled with hay. It wasn’t romantic, but it was theirs.

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Charlotte walked to the stall and leaned on the wooden gate. Chiana was no longer standing in the stall. Instead a pretty ebony mare was in her place. Calling softly to the horse, Charlotte stuck her hand over the gate, running her hand down the horse’s forehead softly.

Looking into the mare’s deep, dark eyes, Charlotte made a decision. Well, not really a decision, since she’d known from the moment she stepped outside that she had made a mistake. More like a choice. A choice to grow up and to stop running away.

Ty was right. From the start, she’d run from him, using her fear as a shield. It was like Charlotte was waiting for him to make a mistake so she could say, “Ah-hah, I knew you weren’t perfect.” But he wasn’t perfect, and Lord knew she wasn’t. This morning was proof of that if nothing else was.

Perfect or not, she was his, just as much as he was hers. And Charlotte loved the stubborn fool too much to take one step off this land. Ty was stuck with her, whether it was good for him or not.