The Cowboy and the Princess (14 page)

Starting over fresh with a clean slate was enormously appealing. The idea tempted. What if she could stay Annie Coste forever? It was a silly fantasy, but she did not want to let go of it.

She thought of Princess Ann’s reasons for her hiatus in
Roman Holiday.
The screenwriters had glossed over her deeper motivations. And she’d run away for only a day. A twenty-four-hour fling had sated Annie’s role model. But one day was not nearly enough for Annie. In fact, she hadn’t been gone for even a full twenty-four hours and her eyes had already been opened to so many new things. How wretched to have her eyes opened, and then never to be able to hold on to the wonders that she saw.

Misery slumped her shoulders. Would her departure from the straight and narrow path make going back to her old life that much more difficult?

And Brady? Where and how did he figure into all this?

Not knowing what was going to happen, but realizing she had already put something in motion that could not be undone, Annie hung up the receiver. Her heart was alternately both heavy and light as she meandered down the street in search of the Java Hut.

She found the coffee shop a few minutes later, stood in line for her order.
Look at me. Here I am, queuing up for coffee like a regular person.
A small thrill ran through her. She ducked her head and grinned.

Feeling very proud of herself, she carried the drinks in a cardboard container toward the exit. A cowboy held the door open for her, tipped his hat, smiled. “Howdy.”

“Thank you.” She smiled. A giddy sense of adventure boosted her sagging spirits. She had to live in the moment. It was the only way she could truly enjoy her time in Jubilee.

Back out on the street, she headed for the corner, the morning sun warm on her face. The air smelled of yeast bread from the bakery at the end of the block. Snatches of conversation from passersby filled her ears. Talk of horses mostly. Happiness tasted like honey on the tip of her tongue.

That is, until she rounded the corner.

There, at the intersection between John Wayne Boulevard and Bridle Lane, a long black limo sat at the traffic light.

Her heart catapulted into her throat. She stopped in her tracks. Somehow, Chandler and Strawn had tracked her to Jubilee. All they had to do was turn their heads and see her. Panic slipped hot through her veins. She glanced right, and then left. Spied a hiding place in a thin alley running behind a Western furniture store.

The rational part of her brain said:
You don’t look like yourself. Short, black hair. Cowgirl clothes. Fetching coffee. They probably wouldn’t recognize you. Not at this distance.

But she didn’t want to take that chance. Not when she’d just begun to unfurl her wings.

She dived for the safety of the alley.

Great, run. Call attention to yourself.

The tip of her cowboy boot hung on an irregular edge of a paver stone sticking up from the edge of the sidewalk. The cardboard carton of coffee and tea flew from her arms. She stuck out her hands to brace herself as hot liquid splashed her. Her knees hit the paver stones. Thank heavens for the thick denim of her jeans.

She lay on the ground, palms stinging and feeling like a fool. Mariah had given her a simple assignment and she had made a big mistake.

“Miss? Are you all right?” It was Chandler’s voice. “We saw you take a tumble.”

She didn’t dare look back, but she heard the limo engine purring at the curb directly behind her, felt the heat of her bodyguard’s gaze on her spine. Without answering, she leaped to her feet and raced down the alley as fast as her legs would carry her. Thrilled to escape, but terrified that it was only a short-lived reprieve.

Her handlers had already tracked her to Jubilee. It was only a matter of time before they figured out what she was pretending to be.

Chapter Eight

You might be a princess if . . . you’re embarrassed by public displays of affection.

W
hile Annie spent Saturday observing the staff of The Bride Wore Cowboy Boots put on a stylish Western wedding, Brady helped Joe out around the ranch. To his relief, Joe did not bring up Annie’s name again. Unfortunately, Brady’s brain refused him the same courtesy.

When he was exercising the horses, instead of thinking of ways to rehabilitate Miracle, as he should have been, Brady’s mind conjured pictures of Annie. How she’d looked last night in his bed. How soft her skin felt beneath his skin. How sweet her lips had tasted. The image of her supple, naked body had been branded on the backs of his eyelids. All he had to do was close his eyes and
poof
, there she was.

When the work was done, Brady and Joe sat on the front porch sharing a beer and watching the cars go by on the road to the wedding chapel. Ruby had gone home for the evening and Jonah was curled up in his father’s lap, sleepy-eyed and sucking on his thumb. Trampas was lying on the floor between their rocking chairs. Lady Astor rooted around in Mariah’s flowerbed, looking muddy and happy.

“What happened to your face?” Joe asked, motioning to Brady’s cut.

Brady told him about the fight in the truck stop parking lot.

“Ever the white knight, huh?”

“As if you have any room to talk.” Brady snorted. He nodded in the direction of Mariah’s wedding chapel.

“Point taken,” Joe conceded, tipping his porch chair back on two legs and resting his booted feet on the porch railing.

“I guess protecting women is just the cowboy way.”

The cottonwood trees rustled their leaves overhead and sunlight trickled through a dappled pattern over the flagstone walkway. A long, companionable moment passed.

“Ever thought about staying a little longer?” Joe asked.

“And do what?”

“Work for me. I need someone to run the equine center we built in Dutch’s honor for disadvantaged youths. You’re as good with kids as you are with horses.”

“Me?” Brady hooted. “Good with kids? Where did you get that idea?”

Joe pointed at Jonah, who was staring at Brady as if hypnotized. “You’ve got that low, deep, soothing voice.”

“I don’t know a damn thing about kids.”

“But you know about horses. Give it some thought.”

Yeah, work for Joe while Annie was working for Mariah? Right. That was too close for comfort. “You couldn’t begin to pay me what I’m worth,” Brady quipped.

“That’s true, but there’s nothing that says you can’t have people bring their injured horses to you. No reason you always have to go to them.”

“You know it’s easier on the horses for me to go to them than for them to come to me.”

Joe shrugged. “It was just a thought. I’d like to see more of you. I miss you.”

“Aw, now, don’t go getting all girly touchy-feely on me. Next thing you know you’ll be asking if I got a spare tampon you can borrow.”

Joe reached over and punched him on the arm.

Brady grinned, took another sip of beer, noticed the parade of vehicles that kept motoring past the house. “Mariah sure has made a go of her wedding planning business.”

“I’m damn proud of her.”

“I’m happy you and Mariah found each other. After you lost Becca, you were a train wreck. You worried the hell out of me.”

“Now who needs a tampon?”

“To good women.” Brady held out his beer and they toasted, clinking the necks of their bottles together.

“A bunch of us are going to the rodeo tomorrow. It’s the last day. Why don’t you come along?” Joe asked. “Mariah’s inviting Annie.”

Annie
. “Look, there’s nothing going on between us? I just gave her a ride and place to sleep last night. That’s it.”

“So you won’t mind then if she comes along? She’s new in town and Mariah doesn’t want to leave her on her own.”

“When did you and Mariah have an in-depth conversation about Annie’s well-being?”

“It’s called a cell phone, buddy. Text messaging.”

“You guys aren’t trying to play matchmaker, are you? Because you know how I feel about settling down.”

Joe shifted Jonah in his lap. The baby had fallen asleep. “You say that now, but things can change in a blink of an eye.”

“Yeah, well, not everyone is cut out for marriage and fatherhood. Some of us had pretty bad examples.”

“So, the rodeo. Last performance is tomorrow afternoon at five. You and Annie can ride with Mariah and me.”

Annie and those honeysuckle lips. Annie, the vulnerable virgin with secrets.

For some unfathomable reason, Brady shrugged and said, “Okay.”

B
y the following afternoon Annie had started to relax a bit after almost being caught by her bodyguards for the second time since she ran away, even though she tensed every time she heard an unexpected noise. Mariah had given Annie an odd look when she’d returned to the office, splashed head to toe in coffee.

She had apologized profusely for dropping their order, but Mariah had waved away her protests with a smile and took her over to Western Wear Palooza for a new outfit. Annie bought a pair of black jeans and a blue poplin blouse with a fitted waist.

Now, here they were at Will Rogers Coliseum, Annie wearing her new outfit, getting her first taste of a rodeo. For years, she dreamed of seeing a rodeo in person. Everywhere she looked she saw cowboy hats and cowboy boots and big shiny belt buckles and Wrangler blue jeans.

Annie shivered happily, feeling completely at home. How was it she felt more at home in Jubilee, Texas, than she did at Farrington Palace? She vowed to savor every second because she knew at any moment Chandler and Strawn could appear again, and this time, she might not be so lucky in evading them.

Because Joe was a former bull riding rodeo champion, he had scored a VIP box for the rodeo. Annie, of course, was accustomed to grand treatment, and in all honesty, she would have preferred to sit with the hoi polloi. She already knew what the view looked like from the top and she took advantageous event seating for granted, but Prissy and her husband, Paul, could talk of nothing but the front row seating as they walked into Will Rogers Coliseum.

Prissy was dressed just as eclectically today as she’d been dressed the day before, and she chattered nonstop. Paul was as quiet as his colorful wife was exuberant. Annie learned that he had recently returned from a second tour in Afghanistan and was on medical leave, having lost the hearing in one ear from being too near a bomb blast.

Once they were inside, Prissy was immediately drawn to a kiosk selling souvenirs, and Paul trailed after her.

“I’m just going to pop into the ladies’ room,” Mariah told Joe. “Annie, you want to come?”

Annie nodded, followed Mariah into the ladies’ room.

“Paul’s the sweetest guy you’ll ever meet,” Mariah filled her in. “Loyal as a border collie but with the energy level of a basset hound.”

“Good combination.” Annie chuckled.

“I’m happy Paul’s stateside again. He’s hoping to get stationed at Fort Hood. Of course, that would mean I’d lose Prissy if they moved to Killeen, but who I’m really worried about is Lissette.”

“What is bothering Lissette?” Annie asked, washing her hands at the sink while Mariah ran a brush through her hair at the mirror. Lissette and her husband, Jake, were meeting up with them a little later.

“Jake keeps signing up to go back to the Middle East. His time was up. He’d served his country, done his due. Lissette thought he was going to get out of the army and then he reupped without telling her.”

“Why?”

“Jake lost his best friend in the Towers on 9/11. He can’t seem to let it go. He ships out again next week.”

“How is it that they don’t live near an army base?”

“Killeen is only a couple of hours away and Lissette preferred to live in Jake’s hometown while he’s gone. Jubilee is halfway between her folks’ place in Dallas and the army base, and Jake’s mom lives here too. But I worry about Lissette’s son, Kyle.”

“What is the matter with Kyle?”

Mariah lowered her voice, glanced over her shoulder to see who might be in the ladies’ room with them, but they were alone. “I think the child might be autistic, but Lissette is having trouble facing that possibility. My heart just aches for her. She’s such a talented baker. She used to be a pastry chef before she married Jake. She’s changed so much over the last few months and not in a good way.”

“I am sorry to hear of this.” Annie could not think of anything else to say, she did not really know any of these people, but she understood that it was often easier to talk to a stranger about personal concerns. Even though she felt odd hearing about Lissette’s difficulties, it made her feel good that Mariah trusted her enough to share this information.

They left the ladies’ room to find Brady, Joe, Prissy, and Paul waiting outside the door talking to a couple Annie hadn’t yet met.

Prissy had a brand-new purple cowboy hat perched on her head. “Look what Paul bought me.” She grinned.

Rosalind would have said Prissy’s taste was all in her mouth, but Annie liked Prissy’s unabashed individuality. She didn’t seem to care what anyone thought. It was a frame of mind Annie envied.

Beside Prissy stood a black-haired woman as tall as Joe and Brady. She was wire thin but muscular, and she patrolled her gaze over Annie like she was frisking her. The man she was with was closer to Annie’s height than the Amazon’s.

He wore a big smile and a bigger Stetson. His eyes crinkled up into joyous slits the minute he saw her. When he smiled, he looked a bit like a younger version of the country-and-western singer Clint Black.

“Hi,” he said. “I’m Cordy Whiteside, Joe’s ranch foreman. I missed meeting you yesterday and this is . . .” He paused to sling his arm around the tall woman’s waist. “My fiancée, Ila Brackeen.” Cordy puffed his chest out proudly. “She’s a deputy for the Parker County Sheriff’s Department.”

Annie could picture that. She pitied the criminal who ran up against the formidable Ila.

The crowd was growing. As more people came streaming through the door, the group shifted toward the back wall to get out of the main flow of foot traffic.

Ila nodded at Annie. “Nice to meet you. I do advise against hitchhiking.”

Annie looked at Brady. “You were quite serious about the no-secrets thing, were you not?”

Brady shrugged. “I warned you.”

“His brutal honesty is both his greatest strength and his biggest flaw,” Ila said to Annie, then to Brady, she said, “I also advised against picking up hitchhikers. But I guess it’s a good thing neither one of you followed that advice or you wouldn’t be here together.”

“Here we are. Sorry we’re late.” Lissette came rushing up, tugging on the arm of an arrestingly handsome man striding behind her. He had a military buzz cut, broad shoulders, and piercing blue eyes.

“I just realized, we’ve got half of the Jubilee Cutters Co-op right here. Who’s watching the horses?” Cordy teased.

“The other half,” Joe said.

“Cutters Co-op?” Annie repeated, feeling dumb and out of the loop. “What’s that?”

“We all belong to a group that takes care of each other’s ranches and horses when we’re out of town,” Ila explained.

“Along the line of house sitting?” Annie asked.

“Except more work.”

“Why do you do it?”

Ila gave her a weird look. “Because we’re like family. Families look out for each other.”

“Oh.” Annie felt like a girl alone in a hot air balloon with a spent pilot light, frantically cutting sandbags to keep her dream afloat. No matter how much she might wish it were so, she wasn’t a part of their warm community, and it made her exquisitely sad.

“Well, everyone’s here now,” Mariah said. “Let’s go find our seats. The rodeo is about to start.”

Joe led the way and everyone paired off to follow him. Brady came up behind Annie and put a hand to the small of her back. It felt startlingly sweet, the familiarity of his touch.

He guided her up the steep steps of Will Rogers Coliseum. Below, the arena stretched out with clean, fresh dirt. The smell of beer and popcorn filled her nose.

“Can we get popcorn?” she asked Brady.

“Once we find our seats I’ll go back for it.”

She smiled at the joy skipping through her, but Queen Evangeline’s voice drowned it out. “Filthy concession food. Filthy commoners.” Ruthlessly, she shoved her dead mother’s voice aside. She was old enough to make up her own mind about people. She could like whatever she wanted to like, and she liked being here with people from the cutters co-op, smelling concession stand food and horses and leather and Brady’s tangy aftershave.

“Here are our seats,” Mariah called from her place on the steps ahead of them. She moved into the aisle, scooting down to make room for everyone.

Once they were settled, the men went after refreshments, leaving Annie sandwiched between Ila and Mariah, with Lissette and Prissy on the other side of Mariah.

“I am so delighted to be here,” Annie exclaimed. “This is just as I imagined.”

“You’ve never been to a rodeo?” Ila sounded shocked.

Annie shook her head. Ila intimidated her a bit. She wondered what the deputy sheriff would think if she knew who Annie really was.

“Where you from?” Ila leaned in close. Her fingernails were clipped short and she had ragged cuticles and wore no nail polish. Annie knew what her mother would have had to say about a woman sheriff and it would not have been complimentary.

“You have such pretty eyes,” Annie said. It was true. Ila’s eyes were a mesmerizing shade of brown—the color of expensive aged Scotch.

Ila’s cheeks pinked. “What?”

“Your eyes are very pretty.”

“Thanks.” Self-consciously, Ila reached up to brush the fringe of bangs from her eyes. “You cut your hair yourself, didn’t you?”

Alarmed, Annie touched her spiky locks. How had the deputy known? Her dread fear was that the sheriff’s office had received some kind of all-points bulletin to be on the lookout for a runaway princess and Ila knew all along who she was and was just waiting to trap her. But that was silly. Wasn’t it? “I am experimenting with a new look.”