Jake (18 page)

Meg laughed. “Now that you mention it, I think it’s exactly what I need right now.” She turned to Cory. “Want to try one?”

He looked surprised before giving a nod of his head. “Okay.”

“Two chocolate shakes,” Meg said. “Extra thick. And I’ll have a burger with no onions.” Again she glanced at Cory. “Want to give the burger a try?”

He nodded.

“Coming right up.” Dora turned to Jake. “The special today is slow-cooked roast beef on Ma’s sourdough.”

Jake brought Dora’s hand to his lips. “You had me at slow-cooked roast beef.”

She was giggling like a girl as she turned away and filled three glasses with water.

Jake turned to Meg. “I thought all you wanted was strong, hot coffee.”

“That was before Dora reminded me of that burger and shake.”

Jake leaned past Meg to say in a loud whisper to Cory, “That’s why this place is always so crowded. Those two women know how to make you hungry even when you’re not.”

All three were laughing as they waited for their lunch.

Meg leaned back, thinking how good it was to be able to laugh again. Back at the cemetery, and later in the judge’s office, she’d felt as though she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. Right now, right this minute, she was remembering how it had felt to be eight years old, and sitting at this very counter next to her dad, nibbling a juicy burger and slurping a thick chocolate shake, without a single worry in the world.

When their order was ready, Flora carried the tray to the counter herself instead of serving their plates to Dora by way of the pass-through. As she handed them around she peered at Meg and Cory.

“Your daddy had a reputation in this town for being a hard-nosed, no-nonsense rancher, and he was that.” She leaned closer, so that she couldn’t be overheard by everyone in the place. “But anybody who found themselves dealing with private misery knew they could always count on Porter to lend a hand.”

Meg shot her a puzzled look. “Private misery?”

Flora shrugged. “A rancher who couldn’t pay his taxes might find a note from the county saying his bill had been paid by a mysterious benefactor. A girl in trouble—” Flora shot a quick glance at Cory and was careful with her choice of words “—in need of somebody to pay for a doctor to deliver her baby, or maybe help her relocate to a new place for a fresh start, would find an envelope with cash or a bus ticket.”

“And you think my father—?”

“I don’t think. I know.” Her tone lowered, softened. “Let me tell you what I know. When I was younger, I used to spend all my time making plans. Oh, the grand plans I made. And then one day, while I was busy making my plans, life happened. My husband died, leaving me with a baby, a ranch I couldn’t run, and a pile of debts. I was in here, cooking and crying on old Harding Pool’s shoulder, when he told me I could have his diner if I could come up with fifty thousand dollars so that he could retire to Florida to be with his granddaughter. He may as well have asked for the moon. I didn’t have two dimes to rub together. All I had was a failing ranch. But the next day, out of the blue, a very young, very brash, and handsome man offered me fifty thousand dollars for my ranch.”

Meg shook her head and turned to Jake, who looked every bit as surprised as she felt. “I don’t understand.”

“I didn’t, either. But that same handsome, brash young cowboy had been the only customer in the diner the day before, when I’d been spilling my troubles to Harding. And within a week that same handsome, brash young cowboy brought me a check for fifty thousand dollars, which I then signed over to Harding Pool in exchange for the deed to this diner.”

“So a cowboy you’d never met before changed your life?”

Flora nodded. “He took my failing ranch off my hands, gave me a chance to raise my baby while earning a living, and never told a single soul. And neither did I.”

Meg’s jaw dropped. “Wait a minute. Are you talking about—?”

Flora laughed and patted her hand. “I am. That brash cowboy was your daddy. And that old ranch, that had become hardscrabble and neglected, thrived under his care. Just like this old diner has thrived under mine.”

Meg shook her head in wonder. “He never said a word.”

“That’s just like your daddy. He never told anybody about all the nice things he did. But I hear things.” Flora smiled. “I know my reputation for spreading news. It’s true. Every bit of it. But I also know when to keep a secret. And your daddy knew that if he asked, I’d carry his secrets to the grave. And so I have. I’ll continue to keep quiet about most of the things I know about him until I meet my Maker. But I just figured his children ought to know there was more to Porter Stanford than the face he showed this town. That man knew what heartbreak felt like. He knew what it meant to be alone, and desperate for comfort. He knew that his hair-trigger temper in his younger days contributed to his problems and got him in more trouble than he could shake a stick at. But he learned from his mistakes. Instead of wallowing in misery, he put on a good show, strutting like a peacock, courting the ladies, spending his money like a drunken cowboy after roundup, and pretending that nothing mattered except a good time. But underneath, he had a heart of gold. A heart that was broken too many times to count.”

She put a plump hand beneath Cory’s chin and lifted his face so that the shy boy was forced to meet her eyes. “And the things he was most proud of in his whole life were his two children. He felt that he’d failed the first, and that he’d been given a chance to make amends with the second. And that’s the truth.”

Meg and Cory were so startled, the two of them merely stared at her in stunned silence.

As she started to turn away Meg grabbed her hand. “Wait. Flora.”

The woman turned.

Meg swallowed, wondering how to put into words all that she was feeling. Instead, all she could manage was “Thank you.”

Flora’s eyes softened. “You’re welcome, honey. I hope you’ll stick around long enough to get to know the town and the people your daddy loved.”

“I…” Meg glanced sideways toward Cory. “I don’t know what I’ll be doing. I was planning on being gone by the end of the week. Now, I guess I’ll just take it a day at a time.”

“And that’s the way it ought to be, honey. A day at a time.” Flora turned. “Now I’d better get back to my grill. I’ve got a lot of hungry customers to take care of.”

“Well?” Jake watched as Meg polished off her burger and took the last few sips of the shake. “Was it as good as you remembered?”

“Better.” She sighed. “I haven’t had a lunch like this in years.”

“Yeah. Poor thing. Having to make do with spinach salad and sparkling water while you go over a million points of the law with your clients. I can imagine that those fifty-dollar lunches in the big city could be pretty boring.”

Meg laughed. “If you’re trying to goad me into an argument, I’m afraid you’ll have to wait until I’m feeling lean and mean. Right now I’m feeling so mellow, I doubt there’s anything you could say or do that would even tempt me to rise to the bait.”

“Quick, Cory.” Jake winked at the little boy. “If you’ve done anything really rotten lately, this is the time to confess, while your sister can’t work up the energy to get mad at you.”

The boy managed a grin before returning his attention to his milkshake.

Dora walked over to slide the bill across the counter to Jake. “How was Ma’s roast beef sandwich?”

He put a finger to his lips. “Don’t breathe a word of this to Phoebe, but it may have been the best I’ve ever tasted.”

Dora was cackling as she turned to the pass-through and shouted, “Better watch out, Ma. Phoebe Hogan might come gunning for you.”

“What did I do this time?” the old woman called.

“Won Jake’s heart with your slow-cooked roast beef.”

“It gets ’em every time,” Flora said with a laugh. She peered at Meg as she added, “Cowboys are so easy to please. Good cookin’, good lovin’, and they’re yours forever.” As an afterthought she said, “No charge for the advice, counselor.”

Meg chuckled. “Thanks. I’ll keep it in mind. But I doubt I’ll be around here long enough to add a cowboy to my conquests.”

Flora looked from Meg to Jake. “Oh, I’d say it wouldn’t take you much time at all for that cowboy next to you. He looks primed and ready.”

She was still laughing at her own joke as Jake paid the bill and led the way toward the door.

As he held it open for Meg and Cory he turned and winked at the old woman. “You’re a sly one, Flora.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment, Jake.”

“That’s how I meant it. By the way, thanks for the history lesson. You’ve certainly altered my perception of Porter Stanford.”

With a grin he strolled out and climbed into his truck, where Meg and Cory were already settled.

“I can drive you back to the church to pick up your car, or we can leave it there and you can ride home with me. Your call, Meg.”

She thought a minute before saying, “I’ll follow you back to your place in my car.” She turned to Cory. “Want to stay with Jake, or ride back with me?”

The boy shrugged. “I’ll ride with Jake.”

So much for building a bond with her half brother, Meg thought. Aloud she merely said, “Okay. I guess we know who won that popularity contest.”

All she could manage on the ride back to church was a weak smile.

Chapter Fifteen

Jake parked the truck at the back door of the ranch house. As he climbed out he called to Cory, “Want to check on Shadow?”

The boy nodded.

Jake turned to Meg, who’d parked behind them and was just climbing out of her car. “How about you?”

She shook her head. “I think I’ll go upstairs.”

“Okay.”

She watched as Jake led the way to the barn, with Cory following.

As she stepped from the mudroom to the kitchen, she was relieved to find it empty. She wasn’t in the mood for conversation. In fact, today’s events had left her in a strange, thoughtful mood.

She’d begun the day with a mixture of sadness and anger, both directed toward her father. Sadness at his dying, and anger at him for letting her down. In her mind he’d failed her as a father and the fierce protector she’d thought him to be.

The things she’d learned from Flora only added to her pain. If he was the kind, considerate neighbor Flora had described, how could he have been so unconcerned about his own daughter? It didn’t make any sense.

In her room she tossed the manila envelope on the desk without giving it another look. She wasn’t ready to tackle her father’s will yet. She would save it for another time.

She kicked off her high heels and stripped away the business suit and silk shirt, replacing them with boxer shorts and a clingy tank top. Barefoot, she opened the closet door and began methodically hanging her clothes.

Spying the unmarked cardboard box from her father’s closet, she picked it up and carried it across the room. Ignoring the desktop, she set it down in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows and their view of the sun setting over the distant Tetons.

She turned on all the lights in the room before sitting cross-legged in front of the box. She pried off the top and peered inside.

It was filled to the brim with envelopes.

Picking up the first, she was surprised to note that it was addressed to her in her father’s scrawl.

How was that possible? She’d never seen it before. The envelope was still sealed. She knew she’d never received a letter from her father. And then she saw, in her mother’s distinct script, the words
Return to sender
.

Meg read the date it had been mailed. 2005.

She began sifting through the rest, noting the dates. The deeper she dug into the pile, the earlier the dates, until she found the oldest ones dated the same year that she’d left Wyoming for Washington, D.C.

She tore open the oldest envelope and hungrily began to read the letter inside, addressed to
My Dear Darling Little Meggy
:

Now that you’re no longer here, all the light has gone out of my world. I can’t stand to do any of the things we used to do together. They just aren’t fun anymore. I’ll be counting the hours until you come back to visit…

Meg’s eyes filled and the words became a blur. The more she read, the more her eyes swam until she could no longer blink away the tears.

She hurried to the bathroom to fetch a box of tissues. Then, while she alternately wiped her eyes and tore open letter after letter, she sat on the floor and read a father’s heart-wrenching outpourings of love for the daughter he’d been denied.

Cory wrapped his arms around Shadow’s neck and buried his face in the colt’s soft, silky mane while Jake examined the wound.

The boy’s words were muffled. “You think he’s healing?”

“Yep. Healing nicely. The antibiotic is doing the job.”

“That’s good.” Cory looked over as Jake got to his feet. “Think I could spend the night out here again?”

“I don’t see why not. As long as you keep your cell phone handy.” Jake nodded toward the sleeping bag hanging over the side of the stall. “Need any help with that?”

“Naw. I can handle it.”

“Okay then.” Jake stepped from the stall and moved to the spot where a very pregnant golden Lab lay watching him.

He bent down and did a quick examination before running his hand over her head. “Those pups will be here soon, Honey. Very soon now.”

The Lab licked his hand, causing him to smile. “I know. The calm before the storm. Hang tough, Honey.”

At the door of the barn he turned to see Cory spreading his sleeping bag in Shadow’s stall. “’Night, Cory.”

“Yeah. ’Night.”

Outside, Jake latched the barn door. Before making his way to the house he plucked his cell phone from his pocket and called the bunkhouse to ask one of the wranglers, who would be making rounds of the outbuildings after dark, to keep an eye on Cory in the barn.

Satisfied that the boy would be safe, he turned toward the house. Seeing most of the windows dark in the upper rooms, he knew that the family had already retired for the night.