Lonestar Secrets (31 page)

"We want our eight million," he snapped. "Not some stupid stocks. Don't get cute with me. It's not good for your health. Or the broad's."

The phone went dead. Shannon closed it and stared at Jack. "Eight million dollars," she said, her voice awed. "I don't understand."

"Maybe it's something to do with that number on the chip. We'll have to wait and see what Rick's friend finds out."

Shannon's earlier elation drained away. She had no idea what to do next. About anything.

24

SUNDAY AFTERNOON AFTER CHURCH, AS HE DROVE THE TRUCK ALONG THE deserted road, Jack passed a pinon that was as twisted by the wind as he was by his emotions. He glanced at Shannon from the corner of his eye on the way. She wore a cute little pink dress that showed off her tanned arms. Very froufrou and unlike her normal attire of jeans and T-shirt.

He was too aware of her: the long curtain of silken hair, the way she chewed on her lower lip when she was thinking, the strength of the love she showed the girls even Faith, who didn't respond. After her secrets, he wanted to pretend she was nothing more than a guest in the house, but all week, it seemed as though she was going out of her way to be appealing.

"Let's play Candy Land after lunch," Shannon said.

"Daddy said he'd take us horseback riding," Faith said. "Just me and Kylie. Not you."

Shannon's smile faded, and she turned her head, but not so fast that Jack missed the liquid sheen of her eyes. "We'd like you to come with us," he said, then wished he hadn't.

"You can take the girls and have fun," she said. "I've got a book I've been wanting to read."

"Mommy has to go," Kylie said. "You're being mean, Faith."

Faith had been taking a big sister's leadership role. Jack watched in the rearview mirror to see how she would take her younger sister's assertive tone.

"My mommy is in heaven." Faith frowned, then turned to look out the window without saying anything.

Jack studied her in the mirror. Having her mother back had been her dream since Blair died, but Faith was unable to accept the love Shannon extended. He wasn't sure how to get to the root of the problem. Maybe have a talk with Faith. Or maybe Blair's parents, though he suspected it would take more than that. They hadn't seen her since Faith found out the truth.

Was Faith jealous of his relationship such as it was with Shannon? Jealous of Kylie? Maybe Faith wanted her own mother, not someone else's. Still, the two girls had become inseparable, so that didn't seem likely.

Jack parked the truck. "Everyone get changed. I'll have Enrica pack us a lunch. Take your swimsuits too." The girls unsnapped their seat belts and slid out of their booster seats in the back. He got out to open the door for them. They jumped from the backseat and raced to the house.

Shannon stopped, her hand poised on the door handle. "Swimsuits?"

"There's a great pool this time of year in the back canyon. It will be cold though." He grinned when she shivered.

"I know the place," she said. "You three go on "

"The girls would be disappointed to leave you behind." She was still shaking her head, and the words "I want you to come too" slipped out of his mouth.

The sway of her head stopped. Her gaze examined his. "You do?"

"Yes. Very much." He let her see into his soul a bit before he broke the connection and looked away. He hadn't wanted to trust her again, but his wall had developed a hairline crack. Much of her distrust was his fault, so he didn't have much of a right to beef. The more he'd thought about it, the more he'd realized he wouldn't have told her he was sick either.

"I'll get changed." Her voice was resigned as she got out of the truck and jogged up the walk to the house.

Was she afraid to be with him, or did she hate the canyon? It could be a spooky place, and legends abounded of lost gold, evil spirits, and flash floods.

While the family changed, he got the horses and ponies saddled. Faith's pony, Topsy, billowed out her stomach when he laid the saddle on her back. "Oh no, you don't," he murmured. He kneed her hard and she let the air escape. Faith hated to see him do that, but if he let the pony get by with it, the saddle would slide down the minute Topsy exhaled. Faith would be on the ground and maybe dragged.

His three girls came out of the house. The realization he thought of them like that made his smile freeze in place. The children were so like Shannon too. Maybe that was where these stray emotions came from. He couldn't help but be somewhat attached to her when his daughters were so similar.

Psychobabble, that's all it was. He was trying to rationalize something that couldn't be explained. He managed a smile. "Ready?"

The girls squealed and ran to the ponies. Shannon brushed past him closely enough for him to catch the scent of her hair. He watched her hips sway as she walked to her horse. Every woman should look as good in jeans as she did. Spending the day with her was trouble.

He mounted Rascal and led his family over hardpan past sagebrush, yucca, and prickly pear. A gentle wind blew back his hair and filled his nose with the scent of the desert sage, creosote, and clean air. He couldn't remember when he'd been so contented.

He slanted a glance at Shannon. She rode in the saddle like she'd been born there, her knees guiding the mare, her head up and surveying all they passed. Her tan cowboy hat framed her beautiful face.

He'd fallen in love with her.

THE CLEAR MOUNTAIN POOL WAS AS CLOSE TO PARADISE AS SHE WAS LIKELY to get this side of heaven. Shannon dangled her feet in the cold water and shivered when the breeze touched her bare skin. Almost before the shiver began, Jack dropped a towel around her bare shoulders.

She glanced up. He was smiling, and the expression in his eyes drew her. She shook off the notion that he was expressing anything other than kindness. "Thanks."

"If you want to get out of that wet suit and get dressed, there's a cave back there. I checked it for critters, and it's clear."

The girls still swam and shrieked in the cold water. The pool was only three feet deep, perfect for the children. "I'll wait until the girls are ready to change." She felt great and had for the last two days. Enrica had begun pushing some homeopathic concoctions down her as well as doing acupressure treatments. Shannon hoped it was working.

He sat beside her and dropped his bare feet back into the water. Her pulse was too erratic to dare a glance his way. "Have you talked to Tucker about our offer?"

"Not yet. I'm letting him sweat a little." The warmth in his voice had turned as cold as the water.

Shannon paddled her feet in the cold water. "My parents used to bring me here. Up that path and around on the other side of the mountain is the cave I told you about," she said in a low voice.

"The treasure?"

She nodded. "If you tunneled through the rock right behind us, the Spanish artifacts and gold would be right there, heaped on rock shelves like the day it was hidden. I've never seen anything like it."

Jack turned a speculative glance behind him. "You trying to see if I'll break? I won't. Your secrets are safe with me. I wouldn't go looking for that treasure unless you wanted me to. And I don't think that's ever going to happen."

He put his arm around her and she leaned into his embrace. Maybe fell would be a more appropriate way to put it, since the shock of his gesture stole her strength. His cold skin was starting to warm in the heat of the sun. If she dared, she'd tip up her head and invite a kiss, but she didn't want to press her luck.

Jack gave her a squeeze, then removed his arm. "I think I'll get dressed." He rose and moved away from the spring.

The girls came sputtering up out of the water. Kylie climbed into Shannon's lap. Her cold little body made Shannon gasp, but she wrapped a towel around her daughter and drew her closer. She held out her other arm for Faith. "Cold, sweetie?" To Shannon's surprise, Faith glanced at her father's retreating back, then crawled into Shannon's lap. She wrapped the other side of the towel around the shivering child.

It probably wouldn't work, but a thought struck her. She leaned over the still water with the girls. Their reflections shimmered back up at them. "Look at us, girls."

"We look just like you, Mommy," Kylie said. "Me and Faith. Are we going to be as pretty as you?"

"Prettier," Shannon said, sitting back with her arms tight around the girls.

Faith touched her face and stared at her. "Are you really my mom?" she whispered.

Why the sudden interest? Shannon hugged the little girl tightly. "You tell me, Faith. Look at my eyes and hair. My mouth. Then look at your own in the water."

The child studied her, then leaned over the water again and stared at her reflection. When she sat back against Shannon, the stiffness had gone out of her small body. "Maybe you are," she whispered.

"It's okay to love me and love your other mommy," Shannon said, pressing a kiss against her daughter's hair. "We're a family now you, me, Kylie, and Daddy. I won't take the place of your other mommy."

"I can't hardly remember how she looked," Faith said in a small voice.

Shannon's heart broke for her daughter. "It's okay," she whispered. "You'll see her again someday in heaven. And she's watching out for you now, praying for you, loving you."

Faith stiffened. "She'll be sad if I love you," she wailed, tears beginning to flow.

So that was it. "No, she'll be glad you have a new mommy to take care of you. She was sad to leave you and was worried about you being alone."

"No, no, she wasn't," Faith said. "She left because she wanted to go. She didn't love me enough."

Shannon rocked her children, one sobbing and the other trying to console. "I'm sure she wishes she'd been wiser," she whispered. "I know you don't understand, but even mommies make mistakes. But I know she loved you very much, sweetheart. And I love you. I'll never leave you willingly."

"Me too, Mommy?" Kylie asked.

Shannon's arm tightened around Kylie. "I love you both just as much." Had Kylie felt neglected during Shannon's attempt to show Faith her love? "More than anything."

"More than Daddy?" Kylie asked.

Shannon heard the rumble of a laugh over her head and glanced up to see Jack looming over them. Amusement gleamed in his eyes.

"Let's go get dressed and we'll look for butterflies," she said. Her distraction worked, and the girls slid off her lap and ran to get their clothes. Hugging the towel around her, she scrambled to her feet.

"Faith seems to be warming up to you," Jack said.

He was standing too close for Shannon's peace of mind. The clean scent of the spring still clung to his skin.

He reached out and caught a lock of wet hair. "You hair smells like sunshine all the time. How do you do that?"

"I ... it's my shampoo," she stammered. She should go help the girls get dressed, but she couldn't move.

His thumb stroked her cheek. "You're driving me crazy, Shannon," he muttered.

She stared into his eyes and couldn't say a word. His lips brushed hers and she was still frozen in place.

A small hand tugged at her fingers. "Mommy, you said we were going to look for butterflies."

Shannon's laugh betrayed her nervousness, and she stepped away from Jack even though there was nowhere she'd rather be. "I've got to get dressed," she said.

"Too bad," he whispered.

She ran for the cave and her sanity.

SHANNON SAT ON A BAR STOOL AT THE COUNTER. SHE PROPPED HER ELBOWS on the granite top and leaned her chin into her palm. The children were in bed, and Jack was checking on the horses before turning in himself. It was only her and Enrica, and Shannon had questions she'd longed to ask when no one was around.

She watched the plump housekeeper wipe down the counters one last time. "Enrica, what was Mr. Jack's first wife like?"

Enrica put down the dishrag. Her dark eyes appraised Shannon. "Miss Blair was flesh-and-blood woman with faults like you and me. She love Mr. Jack and Faith. But she is gone now. You good for Mr. Jack. He need strong woman to work beside him. Mr. Jack, he love you now."

Shannon shook her head. "I'm not so sure, Enrica. I'm a nuisance to him." But in spite of her denial, she couldn't help remembering the expression in his eyes out at the mountain pool.

Enrica's smile flashed, then disappeared, and she shook her head. "Mr. Jack stubborn. He don't want to love you, but I see it in his eyes when he watch you. He need help to admit it. You tell him you love him."

Shannon opened her mouth to deny loving him, but she closed it again. This was one secret impossible to keep. "You're right," she whispered. "But I don't want him to know. Don't tell him, Enrica."

"You tell him," Enrica said again. She walked around the counter and cupped Shannon's cheek in her rough brown hand. Her dark eyes bored into Shannon's. "Mr. Jack, he need you. You tell." She dropped her hand and left Shannon in the kitchen.

Could it be true? Shannon wished she could believe it. There were times she thought she caught a glimpse of love in his eyes before he quickly cloaked it. Like today up at the swimming hole. That kiss had left her breathless with hope, but she'd been afraid to believe, afraid to let down her guard.

Sometimes she daydreamed about what life would be like if Jack loved her. What if she were brave and managed to speak? But what if she told Jack how she felt and saw only pity in his eyes in return? It would be more than she could bear.

Shannon hadn't yet seen any real sign of love from him. He mostly kept his distance, though today things had seemed to shift. Maybe Enrica was right. Shannon had faced other challenges in her life. She'd never run from anything. Losing her parents had been hard, but at least she'd seen the way her dad watched her mom with love in his eyes. Dad might have always been after a quick buck, but everything he did was for her and her mother. And her girls needed the security of knowing their parents would never split. They would thrive in a loving home where they saw parents who modeled a good marriage. She couldn't let her fear rob her girls.