Second Chance Cowboy (4 page)

The older man didn’t
answer.

“
I thought it was the right
choice.” Chance shrugged in defeat. “I couldn’t bear to watch
machines force air into his lungs another day. I wanted him to
live, dammit.” His heart broke all over again. Chance swallowed
hard to force back the pain. “Maybe if I’d given Carly more time to
come to grips with what needed done. Maybe if I’d waited another
few weeks before I signed those papers.” His voice caught on an
uneven sigh. “Maybe things would’ve been different.”

“
You could have waited, but
she’d fought you no matter what. She’d have stayed at his bedside
mothering his lifeless body until someone got the guts, like you
did, to say the time had come.”

Harry was always levelheaded. His wise
words touched Chance.

“
Chance, what could you
have done? Once the doctors told you he’d never recover from the
damage to his heart the choice was already made.”

The loss of a child was unexplainable.
He’d shouldered the guilt. “I’ve always been a healthy man, Harry.
I can run a mile without breaking a sweat, but even if Devon were
still alive, he’d never play, let alone run. How could he have been
born with congenital heart disease? His tired body gave up before
his spirit had. Even moments before he went into a coma, he was
smiling.” Chance rubbed his jaw and sighed. He wanted to cry. He
wished he could, but no tears came. When Devon died, the ache had
torn through him, ripping his heart out. “She thought I killed him
by signing those damn papers. Hell, sometimes I feel like I
did.”

“
Chance, Carly went through
depression. When one is hurt that deeply, they can’t be blamed for
lashing out at those closest to them.”

Chance dragged his hand across his
face. “She tortured me,” he said without remorse. He’d been to hell
and back over the last three years.

“
And you don’t have any
blame in this?” A wired brow popped up in challenge.

Meeting his gaze dead-on, Chance
shifted in the chair. “Are you saying I deserved her animosity? You
above everyone else know how she blocked me out. She wanted to cut
me into small pieces.”

“
I’m saying maybe you had a
part to play in the demise of your marriage. If my memory serves me
you hung out at Maloney’s bar more nights than you were home there
at the end.” Throwing up his hands, Harry groaned with a shake of
his head. “You’re both to blame for the mess. What happened is in
the past and who knows what I would have done in your shoes, or
hers for that matter.”

“
Carly doesn’t want to be
married to me, so she deserves the truth,” he stated quietly.
Chance would want to know the truth.

“
And put her through the
anguish all over again?” Harry demanded earnestly. “You want to
tell her she not only has lost you as a husband, but a child, too?
Don’t forget, she’s living in the past, a time when she was happy
and in love.”

“
Damn, Harry, you know I
wouldn’t want her hurt.”

“
Then don’t tell her.”
Harry’s eyes searched his face. “I’ve been over this again and
again, Chance. You two belong together. She’s still in pain and I’m
afraid, unless someone can reach her, she’s going to hurt for a
very long time.”

Chance rubbed his forehead with the
pads of his thumb and forefinger. “If I thought this could be an
opportunity for a new beginning, but she’s seeing
Whitfield.”

“
Whitfield is pointless.”
Harry shrugged with indifference. “Let me take care of him. Same
with Doc Maxwell. He’s one of my closest friends and he understands
Carly isn’t just any patient, but one with a sensitive past who
deserves a special hand. He too thinks we need to be careful. If
those painful memories come crashing in at the same time—” His
shoulders slumped. “She could drift into depression
again.”

Chance eyed him in bewilderment.
“You’re serious about this, aren’t you?”

“
Dead serious.” There was
no hint of uncertainty in his seasoned face. “We can find a gentle
way to tell her the truth. Maybe throw in bits and pieces to help
her adjust. Once Maxwell clears her physically, we’ll bring the
truth to light if her memory hasn’t come back yet. But what I do
know is, my daughter wants to be with you. I believe this is fate’s
way of a second chance at happiness for my girl.”

“
What am I supposed to do?
Pick up where we left off and pretend nothing has happened?” Chance
knew the other man had no qualms, but he certainly did. Pulling the
wool over Carly’s eyes held a depth of risk. If her memory came
back and she realized what they’d done, there would be hell to pay.
But again, a good argument might jar her memory.

Chance wanted to help her and take
care of her.

“
Exactly, Chance, but this
time, if you don’t mind my advice, don’t let your stubborn pride
keep you from telling her how you feel.” He smiled. “A real man
isn’t afraid to grovel when it’s important enough.”

Chance didn’t say a word.

“
Now, why don’t you explain
to me what happened two nights ago between you and my lovely
daughter?” Harry got up and headed for his desk.

“
Good try, but it ain’t
happening. My lips are sealed.”

Harry lifted a brow. “Shall I ask
Carly?”

“
You’d have to wait until
she got her memory back,” Chance replied with a cocky tilt of his
chin.

“
You’re right.” He shrugged
it off. “I’ll forget by then. Anyway, we need to make a mental list
of the preparations necessary to make this work for Carly. Then you
will be ready, Chance.”

“
Ready?”

“
Ready to go upstairs and
greet your wife.”

Chapter Three

CHANCE CHECKED THE missed call on his
cell and dropped the phone into his shirt pocket. He should never
have agreed to this scheme. He’d spent the last hour preparing to
make the plot seem true.

Sadly, the mess him and Carly had made
of their relationship would take longer than an hour to clean
up.

The longer he planned the less real
the ruse became. Everything needed to be right. Any blips in the
plot and hell, he could lose her again. He loved Carly and he
wanted this to work. If he could help her memories come back in a
safe way, he would try. He’d made a call to Thelma, his
housekeeper, who’d been with the Taylor family for twenty-five
years, to inform her of the strange situation. After screaming
hallelujah, Thelma had burst into tears.

Harry took clothes, beauty products
and favorite personal items of Carly’s to the Swift Wind. He had
snuck them out of her room while she zonked on pain meds. They
should be okay on that aspect. Would she even remember what her
favorite things were?

Everything in the house remained
unchanged. The furniture, pictures on the wall, down to the rugs
and the throw pillows on the couch. He didn’t give a rat’s ass
about domestic things, he never had. It wasn’t like he spent much
time inside the house anyway.

Carly had worked hard on the house to
make it a home for them.

Home sweet home. At least he
hoped.

With that thought, he marched up the
staircase, feeling his shoulders tighten. Each step carrying him
closer to Carly’s bedroom was more like a stake being driven in his
heart.

He wanted her and he cared for her
well-being, but he didn’t like feeling that he was on the wings of
a losing situation.

Hell, what was the alternative? He did
have choices, didn’t he?

He could go into Carly’s bedroom and
tell her the truth. He could lay it all out. He could explain they
were divorced and she hated him. He’d be doing her a favor,
wouldn’t he?

Chance could only imagine that
conversation. “
And by the way, we had sex two nights ago—
not
once, but five times
—and you were on fire, until you woke up
with claws bared and hellcat etched across your
forehead.”

Yeah, that’d go over well. While he
was at it, he could drill the nail further into his coffin by
reminding her of the day she left him. Her exact words were, “Hell
will freeze over before I step foot on the Swift Wind
again.”

He took off his hat and slid his
fingers into his hair.

Hell hadn’t frozen over, but the devil
knocked at his door.

* * * *

Carly sat up in bed when she heard the
heavy footsteps coming up the stairs. Time seemed to stand still
until the door creaked open. Anticipation slithered up her spine
when Chance walked through the doorway.

He was a breath of fresh
air.

Her chest tightened. Something wasn’t
right. He looked...different. Was it his eyes? They were deeper in
color. Could it be the lines of stress around his mouth?

His gaze met hers. “I’m sorry,
Carly.”

“
What can I say, Chance?
I’m a clumsy person. I knew the stairs mixed with three-inch heels
would eventually make me pay.” She laughed and pushed her hair
behind her ear.

Whether Chance was different or not,
she’d never been happier to see him. She wanted to jump out of bed
and fall into his arms, but Doc Maxwell warned her to relax. She’d
heed the man’s words for now, not wanting another dizzy spell to
wash over her.

“
It’s all so silly.” She
waved a hand through the air. “I wasn’t sure you’d come. You’ve
been so busy on the ranch, and you’ve been away on business and
after our argument... I’m sorry I left, Chance.” She bit her bottom
lip and played nervously with the edge of the sheet.

“
I came when I
heard.”

Carly narrowed her eyes when he shoved
his fists into his pockets and shuffled his feet. He acted like a
thief caught with stolen diamonds. This wasn’t like Chance. An
invisible barrier loomed like a dark cloud between them.

“
You’re still angry about
our argument,” she whispered.

“
Argument?”

“
Over the pink
curtains.”

“
Ah, right. The
curtains.”

Clasping her hands tightly in her lap,
Carly suddenly had a feeling of wanting to hide under the covers.
She wasn’t sure why it seemed that she was at a standstill,
suspended in time, while the world passed by.

“
No, I’m not angry. I
promise.”

“
You seem
disconnected.”

She shouldn’t be surprised. She’d left
him out of anger, disappeared to the McAllister to cool off and to
wait for his apology. How could she have been so
ridiculous?

Their separation had only been two
days, and yet, it had felt like a lifetime of
loneliness.

“
I’m not sure what I should
do.” Chance shrugged.

“
You could start with a
proper hello.” She couldn’t hide her eagerness. She lifted the
corner of the blanket in invitation and her toes wiggled in
anticipation.

“
Hello.”

She dropped the cover in
rejection.

“
I meant a kiss, Chance,
and some fondling would be nice.” She tucked her bottom lip between
her teeth. Was the man playing hard to get? Okay, she’d play along.
“I think make-up sex sounds great. How about you?”

He made no move to act upon her
provocation.

“
Fine, Chance.” She flung
the coverlet off her, not able to hide her irritation. Sure, he had
reason to be annoyed with her for leaving, but why hadn’t he come
to get her? Carly started to get up, but Chance stepped closer to
the edge of the bed and touched her shoulder lightly. The warmth
soaked into her skin. She wanted to pull him into bed and make up
for the last two days, but the concerned lines on his forehead
deepened, stilling her from following her desire.

“
I’m sorry, Carly. I know
I’m not acting myself. You’re bruised up and I don’t want to hurt
you.”

“
I’m hurt, but not an
invalid.” He blocked her from moving, cupping her elbows in his
palms. His expression changed. Was he frightened? Why? Had he
believed she wasn’t coming home?

“
Shouldn’t you stay here
for a few days, until you’re stronger?”

Carly wouldn’t have been more jolted
if he’d slapped her in the face.

Tilting her chin, and with a wave of
her hand in dismissal, she jumped out of the bed before he could
stop her again. Standing on her tiptoes, she wrapped her arms
tightly around his neck, and planted a kiss on his smooth cheek.
Breathing in the smell of soap and musk cologne on his skin, her
frustration melted away.

“
I’ve missed you,” she
whispered against his lips.

Carly swore she’d never leave him
again, not even for a day, even if she needed to hog-tie him and
whip him into submission.

Pressing closer into his body, she
nestled into his solidity. Her cotton gown became an irksome
obstruction between their bodies. She wanted to be naked in his
arms, to have his mouth inflicting pleasure to her
senses.

He stood statue-still.

“
They’re only bruises,
Chance. I won’t break if you hug me.” She stared up at him and did
her best impression of a seductress.