Harlequin American Romance May 2014 Bundle: One Night in Texas\The Cowboy's Destiny\A Baby for the Doctor\The Bull Rider's Family (25 page)

“Maisy’s dead. She doesn’t have a say in the town’s future.” A cold feeling enveloped Buck and he shivered.

“I wouldn’t go pissin’ off Maisy, if I were you,” Bernie said.

Buck didn’t believe in ghosts. The cat’s purring grew louder and he decided to move on. “See you later.” He left Bernie standing in the middle of the street and hurried to the garage. He walked around back and climbed the stairs then knocked on the door.

When the door opened, Buck suddenly lost his voice. Destiny had changed out of her business suit and into a pair of lounging pants that hung low on her hips and a tank top that exposed her tanned belly.

“What is it, Buck?”

The question jarred him out of his stupor. “Got a minute to talk?”

“Sure.” She flipped the lock then opened the door. Buck stepped inside the tiny apartment. He noticed two doors off the living area and assumed one was a bedroom and the other a bathroom. The main room was sparsely furnished—only one photograph of a gray-haired couple rested on the sofa table.

“Sit down,” she said. “Would you like a drink?”

“I’m good, thanks.”

She went into the kitchen area and removed a bottled water from the miniature fridge. There was no stove, only a hot plate and a microwave. She sat in the chair across from the sofa and tucked her feet beneath her. Where was the confident mayor who’d stood up to Custer and Mitchell a short while ago? She looked young and vulnerable, as if she drove a Honda Civic and not the Wide Glide hog parked in the garage.

“Buck?”

He blinked. “What?”

The warmth in her eyes elevated his testosterone another level. “You’re staring at me,” she said.

“Can’t help it. Every time I see you, you look different.” He studied her outfit. “I’m trying to figure out what else you are that I don’t know yet.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve seen the jilted bride, the motorcycle mama, the car mechanic and tonight a mayor.”

Her face turned red, and he suspected there was another part to Destiny but she wasn’t sharing it. “I ran into Bernie on the way here. He said Maisy doesn’t want the town sold.”

“Maisy talked to Bernie?”

“I don’t believe in ghosts. I’m just conveying his message.” Buck cleared his throat. “That was impressive the way you caught Custer off guard when you clarified the payout offer. I think he believed he could pull the wool over everyone’s eyes.”

“I chitchatted with Custer’s secretary before seeing him and she spilled the beans.”

“The town needs a lawyer, Destiny.”

“We can’t afford one.”

“There’s no way you’ll prevent Custer from taking what he wants. If I were you, I’d cast your vote with those who want to sell and negotiate a better deal.”

“I’m not giving up on Lizard Gulch.”

“You’re young and you own a wrecker. You can open a business anywhere.”

“Can I?” She jumped up from the chair and paced in front of the couch. “I barely have any savings, certainly not enough to pay the first month’s rent for an apartment in Kingman let alone buy a property for my car-repair business.”

“Work for someone else until you save enough money.”

“I don’t want to.” She swept her arm in front of her. “This is where I want to live. This is home now.”

“I don’t understand why a woman your age wants to hang out with old people.” He raised his hands. “I have nothing against geriatrics. Shoot, I was raised by my grandparents.” He shook his head. “But most women your age are out shopping, barhopping, having fun and looking for Mr. Right to settle down with.”

“I have no interest in picking up guys in bars or—”

“What about school? Did you ever consider going to college?”

She shook her head. “Did you?”

“I took a few courses at the junior college but stopped wasting my money when I figured out what I wanted to do.”

“You mean rodeo?” she asked.

No.
For the past couple of years Buck had talked with his brothers about opening a body shop. He didn’t mind working for Troy Winters, but now that he’d seen what Destiny had—her own wrecker and garage... “I mean someday I want to become my own boss.” He felt guilty not confessing that he was a mechanic, but not so guilty that he wanted to come clean.

“I make very little money at what I do, but I like that I don’t have to answer to anyone but me,” she said.

“Maybe you should negotiate a better deal for yourself with Custer,” Buck said. “If you convince everyone in town not to fight him, he might compensate you even though you don’t own the property the garage sits on.”

She scowled. “I would never use the others to gain an advantage for myself.”

“I don’t get it,” he said. “You’re not related to any of these people, and they’ve lived here longer than you have. Why all the concern over what happens to them?”

“They don’t have anywhere to go. Most of them are estranged from their families,” she said.

He admired Destiny for her generosity and concern, which made him think of his grandparents and how they’d never banned Buck’s mother from coming home regardless of how many times she’d gotten pregnant.

“Don’t worry about us. I have another month before Custer puts the heat on.” She sounded confident, but Buck read the worry in her eyes.

“What are your plans for tomorrow?” he asked.

“Nothing, why?”

“Let’s get out of here.”

“Where do you want to go?”

“I’ve never seen Devil’s Lake south of Flagstaff,” he said.

She nibbled her lower lip, and Buck worried she was thinking of excuses not to go. He stepped closer—close enough that he could tuck a curl behind her ear. His fingertip lingered against her soft skin a second before he brushed his lips against hers.

Her sigh spurred him on, and he deepened the kiss. When they came up for air, her eyes remained closed.

“Okay,” she whispered. “We’ll go to the lake tomorrow.”

Chapter Six

“I thought we were going to Devil’s Lake today.” Buck’s voice rang out inside the garage Thursday morning.

“We are.” Destiny wiped her hands on her coveralls. She’d risen at the crack of dawn to fix the axel she’d taken apart on Buck’s truck. She’d been an idiot to strand him in town. Last night when he’d kissed her, she’d realized she’d gotten in over her head with the sexy cowboy. She’d tossed and turned in bed, imagining all the things she’d like to do with him—the sort of things a pregnant woman probably shouldn’t think about. She’d woken this morning determined to send Buck on his way—after their picnic.

“I discovered I had the parts I needed in my storage bins, so I canceled the order for the new axel.”
An axel she’d never ordered in the first place.

“Is that so?” Buck sounded as if he didn’t believe her.

“Take a look if you want.”

Buck lay down on the creeper and slid under the truck then ten seconds later he reappeared. “You weren’t kidding.”

“After the trip to Devil’s Lake you can take off.” The sooner he left, the sooner she could focus on finding a way to prevent Lizard Gulch from being bulldozed off the map.

“How much time do you need to get ready?” he asked.

“None.” She ripped apart the snaps of the coveralls, revealing a tank top and jean shorts. She nodded to his feet. “Do you have other shoes besides cowboy boots?”

“I’ve got a pair of running shoes. I keep them in the truck in case I twist my ankle when I rodeo.”

She stared at his jeans. “Are you wearing swim trunks under those?”

“I didn’t know you wanted to swim.”

“We might as well since we’re driving all the way up there,” she said.

“We’ll stop at the motel room on the way out of town, and I’ll grab the trunks Melba loaned me for the pool party.”

She reached for the keys to the Harley.

“Let’s take my truck.” He retrieved the cooler he’d left at the end of the repair bay. “I bought sandwiches and drinks. If we’re out in the sun all day the air-conditioning will feel good.”

Destiny caught the way Buck’s gazed roamed over her body, and she wondered if he suspected she was pregnant.
No.
If he thought she might be expecting, he wouldn’t have kissed her last night. Regardless, his offer made sense, especially in her condition. “Okay, we’ll take the pickup.”

Fifteen minutes later they were headed out of town with cool air blasting in Destiny’s face. The first twenty minutes of the ride she answered Buck’s questions about the town’s residents, then the next thing she knew he was shaking her shoulder.

“What?” She blinked. “Are we here?”

“You fell asleep in the middle of our conversation.”

How embarrassing. “Sorry.”

He parked in a lot not far from the lake then shut off the engine, hopped out and opened her door. Daryl had never been this considerate. When it came to men maybe she should set the bar higher.

“If you don’t mind waiting—” Buck pointed to the public restrooms across the parking lot “—I’ll change into my trunks and leave my jeans in the pickup.”

“Sure, go ahead.” Destiny used the few minutes alone to gather her wits and wake up. She hoped falling asleep at the drop of a dime wasn’t going to plague her through the entire pregnancy. It was bad enough that she suffered morning sickness during the day.

When Buck returned, he grabbed the cooler and they entered the trail. As they walked side-by-side in comfortable silence, she mulled over the craziness of the past week. Had it only been six days since she’d come upon Buck on the side of the road? It felt as though she’d known him much longer.

“Be careful.” He guided her past a rock that jutted into the path.

When they got their first view of the lake, Destiny said, “It’s bigger than I imagined.”

“I didn’t know boats were allowed on the water,” he said. A houseboat floated in the middle of the lake. The heavy scent of burning charcoal wafted through the air as families and children crowded the beach area, playing in the sand and cooking on portable grills.

Buck shielded his eyes from the sun. “Where do you want to sit?”

“What about the rocks over there.” She indicated the large boulders at the far side of the beach area.

Holding hands they walked through the crowd. He helped Destiny step onto the lower rocks then up to a larger boulder shaded by a tree. They spread their towels across the stone and sat.

“This is perfect,” she said. In too many ways that were dangerous.

He opened the cooler and handed her a water. They people-watched for a few minutes, then Buck spoke. “Aren’t you going to take off your T-shirt and shorts?” The sparkle in his eyes hinted at mischief.

“Are you eager to get me out of my clothes?” She kept a straight face.

“I want to see the tattoo peeking out of your swimsuit top.” He grinned. “I couldn’t tell for sure what it was at the pool party.”

She whipped off her shirt.

“You’re wearing your scary bikini.”

She laughed. “Scary?”

“Most people think skulls and crossbones are morbid.”

She moved aside the material, revealing a flower. Buck caught her off guard when he traced the petals, his touch setting off a series of quivers in her belly. “I thought this might be an animal tail, but they’re bluebells.”

“Most guys don’t know one flower from the next.” She straightened the bikini before Buck’s finger found its way farther inside her top.

“My grandmother kept a wildflower garden,” he said. “She was always frustrated that she couldn’t grow bluebells in the desert.”

“Tell me more about your family,” she said.

“We’re an interesting bunch. My siblings and I all have different fathers.”

“After the childhood I had,” she said, “not much shocks me.”

“My mother believed the perfect man for her was out there somewhere and she spent her whole life searching for him.”

“My mother hated men, but she needed them to survive.” Needed their money and was willing to do anything for a buck.

“Even when my mom came home for a few months, she never really acted like a mother,” he said.

“How did you get along with your father?”

Buck stared into space. “I don’t know who my father is.”

“You never asked your mother?”

“She said she’d tell me if I wanted to know. I asked her if my father had ever contacted her about wanting to see me, and when she said no, I told her that I didn’t have any interest in connecting with him.”

“You aren’t the least bit curious about the man?”

“Nope. He’s known all these years where I live and not once has he made an effort to see me.” Buck slapped at an imaginary fly on his arm. “He isn’t worth my worry or concern.”

“I wish I didn’t care about my father,” she said.

“Who is he?”

“I have no idea. My mother gave me the first names of two of her regular customers as possible candidates in case I wanted to try and track them down.”

“First names?”

“She never asked the last name of the men she had sex with.” Destiny expected to see repulsion not sympathy in Buck’s eyes. “We lived in one truck stop for six months until a police officer caught my mother turning tricks in the bathroom. We moved on to another place after that.”

“You had a tough go of it. I resented my mother for leaving us kids for months at a time, but I had my grandparents and the farm was home. I can’t imagine what your day-to-day life was like.”

“It could have been worse. There were people along the way that helped me and my mother. We got free meals at the restaurants in the truck stops and they pretended they didn’t know we used the showers. One waitress brought my mother a bag of used children’s clothing for me.” Destiny smiled. “Inside that bag was a pink dress with ruffles. I felt like a real princess when I wore it.”

Buck had the urge to touch her but held back, uncertain if she’d appreciate his sympathy. “I can’t picture you in ruffles.”

“I was five and believed my mother’s lies.”

“What lies?”

“That one day we’d have a real home and I’d have a father. That we’d be part of a family. And she promised me I’d ride the school bus like all the other kids.”

“But it never happened,” Buck said.

“No.”

“Did your mother ever reach out for help? What about putting you in foster care if she couldn’t take care of you?”

“I was ten the first time I threatened to run away, but she guilted me into staying, insisting I was her only reason for living.”

“That’s a lot to put on a kid.”

“For all my mom’s faults, she never did hard drugs or drank herself stupid. And even though she claimed she hated men, I think sex with strangers was her addiction.”

“Did the Carters check into your mother’s whereabouts after they took you in?”

“Before the Carters were able to adopt me, social services made an attempt to locate my mother but they never found her.”

“Do you think something bad happened to her?”

“Maybe. I don’t think about her anymore.” Destiny nudged his arm. “What about your mother? Do you see much of her?”

“She passed away when I was teenager. Grandma believed it was from a broken heart.”

“No man will ever break my heart, that’s for sure.”

“Daryl didn’t even put a dent in it?”

“Nope.”

“If you didn’t love him, why’d you two set a wedding date?”

She couldn’t tell Buck that they’d agreed to marry because of the baby. “People get married for all sorts of reasons.” How had the conversation switched from mothers to Destiny’s botched marriage plans? “Back to my mother...I’m not saying the way she raised me was right, but after I’d settled in with the Carters, I noticed plenty of other kids had it worse than me. I hadn’t been beaten or abused, and none of the men my mother had sex with ever raped me. For that I’ll always be grateful.”

“Your mother stole your childhood from you.”

“I’ve put those years behind me and moved on. Besides, Lizard Gulch is the home I’ve always dreamed of.”

“But for how long?”

“I’m not giving up the fight to save the town,” she said.

“Men with money and influence like Custer and Mitchell play dirty and never get caught.”

“I won’t let them steal our home out from under us,” she said, even though Buck had made a valid point. Custer would do everything in his power—legal or not—to get his hands on Lizard Gulch.

“If Custer wins, where will you go?” Buck asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Your best bet would be to move to Phoenix or Tucson and look for towing jobs.”

“I don’t just want to tow cars. I enjoy being a mechanic, too.” Her heart sped up when Buck’s gaze drifted to her mouth. For an instant she forgot they were visiting a lake along with hundreds of other people.

“Destiny,” he said.

“What?”

“You’re not like any girl I’ve known.”

“And I bet you’ve known a lot of girls.” Buck’s handsome face and engaging personality undoubtedly attracted women of all ages. Curious, she asked, “What kind of girls do you prefer?”

“I’ve mostly dated country girls.”

She envisioned a blonde with pigtails running through a pecan grove. “I bet you like the Goody Two-shoes girls.”

“I’ve dated plenty of those gals.” He tugged one of her curls. “Everything about you warns me away, but I can’t stop—” he leaned closer “—thinking about kissing you.”

Her heart pounded as the scent of his aftershave filled her head. She smoothed her fingers across his cheek fascinated by the gold flecks sparkling in his brown eyes. In that instant she wished she was someone else—anyone but a pregnant unwed mother-to-be, about to lose her home and livelihood.

She sighed when his lips caressed hers. It would be so easy to fall in love with Buck. Sylvia had invited Destiny to live with her in Florida after Simon died but she’d been ready to strike out on her own. When she’d landed in Lizard Gulch, she’d found a family of misfits willing to take her in, and she was grateful for their kindness toward her. As much as she considered them family, she yearned for the love of a good man—a man she and her child could build a life with.

You won’t find that man if you hide out in Lizard Gulch.

Buck angled his head and deepened the kiss, teasing her with the tip of his tongue. She snuggled closer, losing herself in his embrace. Today she’d enjoy being with Buck, pretending they were a couple with their own happy-ever-after waiting for them on the other side of the lake.

* * *

B
Y
THE
TIME
Buck parked his truck behind the garage, darkness had fallen. After he and Destiny spent the afternoon at the lake, they’d stopped at the Rocky Mountain Café thirty miles east of Lizard Gulch and eaten supper. For such a small thing, she’d packed the food away and then when they’d hit the road again, she’d fallen asleep.

Destiny was a tough girl with plenty of street smarts and comfortable in her own skin. She was the kind of woman a man could spend the night with and not have to worry about an uncomfortable morning-after scene. He wanted to take her upstairs right now, but he’d caught the look of vulnerability in her eyes when she’d talked about her mother and childhood and he’d thought maybe she needed a friend more than a lover right now.

He opened his door and the interior cab light went on. “Destiny.”

Her lashes fluttered up.

“We’re home.” He’d meant to say
you’re
home. He ignored the Freudian slip and blamed it on missing the farm and his siblings.

“I dozed off.” She pressed the back of her hand against her mouth and yawned.

“Did you know that you snore?” he said. “Like a tow-truck driver.”

“I do not.” Her gaze shifted to the street. “Are you leaving tonight?”

Buck had no reason to stay, except that he wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Destiny. “Tomorrow’s soon enough. It’s late and I have to settle my bill with Melba, not to mention paying you for fixing my truck.”

A pink tinge spread across her cheeks. “It’s on the house.”

No doubt she felt guilty about tampering with the axel on his pickup. “How do you expect to make a living if you don’t charge your customers?”