Lone Star Hero

His offer tempted her. She gripped the railing, keeping herself away from him. “He’s good, ready to get back to all his regular activities.”

“There’s a father-and-son flag-football game coming up at the church picnic in a couple of weeks. It’s part of our mentoring program at the church. We’ve been practicing.” He grinned. “More like an excuse to throw the ball around and have fun. I thought I could take Seth. If he’s ready, would he like that?”

“Oh, he loves football. Well, he did, anyway. The last couple of times he played with the YMCA in San Antonio were rough. Tommy had high expectations. He made Seth play quarterback.” She looked down at her feet, and followed the patterns made by the grains of wood. “Well, you know how Tommy is on the field. No room for mistakes.” She looked back at Jake. “He might not want to play anymore.”

Jake grunted and looked to the hills, the sun almost gone. “Yeah, I know Tommy. Spent way too many years on the field with him. But there’s more to football than quarterbacking.” He looked back toward her, his dark eyes intense in the last rays of light. “If you don’t mind, I’d love to take Seth and reintroduce him to the fun of football. It’s flag, so not much hitting. Is that okay with you?”

“Yeah, thank you. It’ll be good for him to be around other boys. He hasn’t made many friends since we came back.”

“You could use a friend, too. You and Ashley can join us. We could grab something to eat afterward.”

For a moment, she imagined them all together, almost like a real family. Her gaze traveled the outline of his house. If she had made the right choice in high school, this warm home and special man could’ve been hers. But she hadn’t. The reality of it hit her hard. As much as she would love to reconnect with Jake, she had to put her life back in order, starting with her kids.

Her kids were the best part of her life. The one thing she got right with Tommy.

Her baggage was too heavy to leave on Jake’s steps. Friendship with Jake sounded good, but now she knew she’d want more.

She made so many wrong choices and it was too late to change them. “Jake, your mother’s right. I’m not what you need.”

He leaned forward, elbows planted on his knees. “Why don’t you and my mother let me decide what I need?”

His intense stare seared right to her heart. She couldn’t handle that look right now. Vickie stepped back. “I’ve got to go. The kids are waiting for me at my parents’ house. Bye, Jake.” She ran to her car, clenching her teeth.

It took two tries for her car to start. She was not good at the dramatic exit. She pulled out of his drive and with one last glance into the rearview mirror, she saw Jake at the top of the steps, watching her. There wasn’t enough light to see his expression.

She needed to focus on the road in front of her. Heading back to her small trailer, Vickie fought the urge to cry for the girl that had not been strong enough to be the woman Jake needed when they were in high school.

* * *

Jake paused in the archway leading to his kitchen. He watched his mother as she lifted the lid to stir the contents of the steaming pot. The rich aroma of the carne guisada encouraged him to forget what he wanted to say. No, he wouldn’t let her cooking distract him. They needed to get some things straightened out.

“Sit, mijo, dinner’s almost done.”

So she wanted to pretend nothing had happened with Vickie. Not this time.

“Mother, I love you, but I’m a grown man. I don’t need you to pick my friends.” Standing at the sink to wash his hands, Jake looked over his backyard. The surrounding hills created a cocoon around the pasture. In the twilight, he could make out his pair of roping horses.

He had put together a life he loved. He just never found anyone to share it with, well, other than Vickie. His mind always went back to her. “You had no right to be rude to Vickie.”

“She’s not your friend. She made her choice and married Tommy Miller. And you do need help. You are almost thirty-one and not married. I should have grandchildren.” She filled two plates with the mouth-watering sauce and meat and set them on the table. Hands in her lap she waited for Jake to join her before continuing. “I remember your pain after she went with that boy to the prom.”

He tried not to roll his eyes. “That’s old history. Vickie’s divorced now. She was married to the wrong man. You should understand that better than anyone.” He dug a fork into his dinner. “If I want to pursue a relationship with Vickie, that’s my business.” He looked at his mother, pointing the meat-loaded utensil at her. “Please be nice to her.”

Across from him, she picked at her plate. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt again. You need to move on, and I need grandchildren in my old age. Your sister has run off and shows no sign of settling down.”

Jake grinned. “Amá, she didn’t run away. She’s studying to be a lawyer.”

“Yes, well, she made it clear she has no desire to get married.” She looked around the large kitchen that opened to a cozy family room. “It’s my fault. Look at this beautiful home you made. You built this home for a family, but the only kids ever here are the youth groups from the church. You deserve a family of your own.” She looked him straight in the eyes, lips firm. “I deserve grandchildren.”

“I think you might have already said that a few hundred times.” He used a warm corn tortilla to soak up the gravy on the beef tips. “There’s a side to Vickie no one gets to see.”

“Maybe you’re blind to what everyone else knows about her. She is her mother’s daughter.”

His jaw flexed. “And I’m my father’s son.”

Maria gasped and reached for his hand. “No. Oh, mijo, don’t ever say that!”

“Did you forget what I did?”

She stood, the chair toddling on back legs before settling down. “No! You will not speak of that. The fault was mine.” She picked up her Bible. “You are not your father, you’re not!”

Jake pushed away from the table and pulled his mother into his arms, hugging her short frame against his chest. “I’m sorry, amá. I shouldn’t have said anything.” He closed his eyes and buried his guilt. “I just wanted you to know the Vickie I know. The summer we moved here, well, she helped me...I don’t know, she helped me in ways I can’t explain.”

“I remember her as a sweet girl, I do, but you are from different worlds.” Her head shook against his chest before stepping away. “I was their housekeeper. It would be easier if you turned your attention to someone more like us.”

“Mother, we’ve already had this conversation.” He sighed.

“Maybe you hang on to your love for her because she’s safe?”

As the words sank in, he stared at his tiny mother. Safe, with no risk of being in a real relationship. Did he? Vickie had always kept him at a distance, no jealous rages to worry about.

His mother went to the sink and ran the washcloth under the water. “You’re a good man, Jake.” Keeping her eyes down, she started wiping the counter. “Juan always bullied—his sisters, me, even his dogs.” Her lips tight, she neatly folded the dishrag and draped it over the pewter faucet. “But enough of that nonsense.”

For a moment Jake’s brain echoed her words. She never, ever mentioned his father by name. Never spoke of him.

“Here, take this.” She slipped a blue piece of paper from her Bible and held it out until he automatically took the handwritten number. “This is Anjelica Ortega’s cell phone number. Her mother gave it to me. We know you’ll be perfect together. She needs an honorable man after losing her husband. Call her. She’s waiting to hear from you. If nothing else, it’s just a date, right? When was the last time you went out for fun?”

With a sigh, Jake took the number and slipped it into his wallet, hoping that simple action would put the discussion to rest for now.

His mother meant well. She truly believed he needed a wife and children to be happy. He had tried dating, and it never felt right.

He remembered Anjelica and Steve from school. They were younger and always together. No one had been surprised when they married a month after graduation and two months later, he went to boot camp. In less than a year, she was a war widow. That was years ago. He hadn’t seen much of her in town.

He hadn’t seen much of Vickie, either. She was always working at the Mercantile or hiding on the ranch. She had made the first step by coming to his home. But then she ran off, putting distance between them, again.

This time he would follow her. There was no reason to tell his one-track-minded mother his new plan.

He pushed his hair off his forehead and flexed his jaw. Right now, his brain needed a break from all this emotional turmoil. He didn’t want to think about Anjelica and her young soldier or Vickie and the coward she had married.

He flopped down on the overstuffed leather sofa and wrapped his fingers around his remote. He just wanted to watch some football for the next few hours. Tomorrow he would map out a plan to get to know Vickie again. Seth needed guidance, too. He knew from firsthand experience that having a bad father was worse than not having one at all. The flag football game would be a good place to undo any damage Tommy might have caused to the boy’s confidence.

Chapter Five

Jake pulled his black Silverado to the front of Vickie’s trailer. He grinned as he leaned over the steering wheel. Who would have thought Vickie Maria Lawson would choose to live in the old worker’s house.

Two decades had passed since his mother had taken the job as the Lawsons’ housekeeper. The rent-free trailer had been one of the benefits. Coming from a tiny, one-room house in the crowded border-town of Eagle Pass, this single-wide trailer felt huge. For the first time he’d had his own room, his own bed.

Stepping out of his truck, Jake heard music blaring from the narrow trailer. The tune sounded like something from their high school days.

On the first step, the worn wood gave and dangerously shifted under his weight. That needed to be fixed. He jotted the note in his mind.

He wondered why she moved in here instead of her parents’ house. The big house, as they called it growing up, could easily fit five families.

He remembered his first trip to the big house. Looking over from his old home, he had once thought the trailer a mansion. A grin followed a chuckle. The Lawson home had awed him with the massive rooms, winding staircases and endless hallways, making him feel he had fallen down the rabbit’s hole into Alice’s Wonderland.

He remembered the moment the oldest daughter, Miss Victoria Lawson, entered the grand room. Struck dumb would be an understatement.

Until the next week, anyway, when he found her in the old barn behind his trailer, sitting in the dirt, wearing a ratty T-shirt. She was feeding three abandoned lambs, laughing as they climbed over her, fighting for the bottle she held.

He smiled. Her laughter from that day would be forever branded in his memory.

The other night he had tried to explain to his mother how Vickie had helped him. She had done so much for him that summer. She had saved him from falling into a deep, dark hole of despair.

She now lived in his old house. If he hadn’t believed before, he absolutely knew God enjoyed a sweet bit of irony.

With a deep inhale, he moved forward. They were no longer kids hiding from their mothers or teenagers trying to figure out life. Maybe this time they could get it right.

The music covered his knock. Jake could smell freshly baked cookies as he eased open her unlocked door. He would need to talk to her about that safety issue, mental note number two.

Pausing in the door frame, Jake leaned his right shoulder against the edge, crossing his arms. He couldn’t stop the smile from growing as he watched Vickie jump around while singing into a whisk. Her high ponytail swung with each movement.

Leaping to the side, her bare feet landed hard on the worn carpet, rattling the thin walls. His grin grew. She had always hated wearing shoes, much to her mother’s horror.

Vickie spun around and screamed. One hand over her chest and breathing hard, she threw the whisk at him.

Laughing, he ducked and the silver utensil went sailing out the open door.

“Jake Torres! That’s not funny. You scared me to death.”

“You left your door unlocked, but please don’t stop on my account.” Closing the door, he moved farther into her living room. He paused and surveyed the small space. “Wow, the trailer looks the same as it did when I lived here, but I don’t remember it being so small.”

Vickie walked to the counter and turned the volume down. “Yeah, well, you realize you’re, like, one hundred times bigger now?” She tried to suppress a giggle. “Back then I was taller than you.”

He savored the sound he’d been denied for so many years. “We were ten.” He tapped his knuckles on the old counter that separated the galley kitchen from the living area. “I can’t believe your dad still has this old thing with the original furniture.”

“I’m saving up my money to buy us a house. No reason to waste it on furniture when this works.”

He slowly looked over the small living space remembering when this little house had made him feel safe for the first time ever.

A family portrait of Vickie and Tommy with the kids hung on the wall giving Jake a kick in the gut and bringing him back to the present.

Vickie had moved to the other side of the Formica counter and started cleaning. “Daddy had a contract to haul it off when I first moved back.” She looked up at him with a gleam in her eye. “My mother just about had a heart attack when I announced I wanted the trailer.”

“But your dad gave it to you, anyway.”

“Of course. He offered to buy me a new house, but I wanted this one.”

“Why?” Jake couldn’t keep the skepticism out of his voice.

“Believe it or not, some of my favorite memories with my best friend happened here.”

He shot one eyebrow up and stared at her. “Really?”

“Yes, really.” She swatted him with the dishrag. “Besides, I need to know I can do this on my own. Not Daddy or Tommy, but me. I need to do this. I pay rent and everything.” Her stubborn chin lifted and she looked him in the eye.

He definitely understood wanting to prove yourself, but she might be going a bit overboard. “So the steps falling in on you or the kids are part of your plan for independence?”

“I noticed they rocked a bit. I thought it was just because they’re old.” She hesitated. “Can you show me how to fix them?”

“Vickie, I’ve been known to build and repair whole houses. I think I can manage your steps.” He leaned his elbows on the yellow-tinted counter. “It’s because they’re so old, they probably need to be replaced. I can get it done in less than a day.”

“No, I can do it. Just tell me what to buy. On second thought, don’t bother. I’m sure I can find instructions online and Dannie at Bergmann’s Lumberyard can help me.”

“Vickie, don’t be stubborn. I can give you a list of supplies and one day next week when we’re both off I can show you how to build steps. I think Seth should help. Where is he, anyway?”

“He’s with my dad in the horse barns. They should be back any moment.” She cleaned the same spot she had already wiped several times. With a heavy sigh, she brought her gaze back up to his. “I’m not sure Seth wants to go to the football thing. I’m kind of making him.” She turned away and opened the worn cabinet, gathering two tall glasses in one hand.

The clinking of the ice hitting glass filled the silence. Vickie pulled a pitcher of lemonade from the green refrigerator. She finally started talking again while she focused on pouring the drinks. “Tommy could be...well, not the most encouraging person at the best of times. But when it came to Seth he was...”

She wouldn’t look him in the eye as she passed the full glass over to him.

“Remember, I know Tommy.” He covered her hand with his, holding her in place until she met his gaze. “Don’t make excuses for him.”

Pulling her hand back, she shook her head. “I just don’t want Seth to get hurt.”

“No worries there. Between Pastor John, Rhody and me it’s more about fellowship and having fun.” He grinned as he swirled the glass, watching the liquid form a tornado with the ice. “Don’t get me wrong, we’re guys, so it gets competitive, but the egos stay home. Seth’ll be fine. It’s flag, so no tackling or hitting.” Jake took a sip of his drink. “Now, what about those cookies cooling by the stove?”

“What cookies?” She blocked his line of vision and held the spatula up like a weapon. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, come on, you’re killin’ me.” He knew they would still be warm and gooey. “You know how much I love cookies straight from the oven. I’ll let you build the steps all by yourself, and I’ll just watch from a distance. Please?”

Squinting, Vickie told herself not to look into his eyes. Whenever he’d managed to make eye contact, she’d never been good at telling him no. “These are for Ashley’s horse club.” She turned with a sigh and slid one on the stainless-steel spatula. Holding it from him, she glared. “Just one?”

He nodded. “Just one, promise.”

She watched him take the chocolate chip cookie. His smile warmed her heart in a way no one else ever could.

He closed his eyes and softly moaned as every morsel disappeared. His jaw worked slowly as her gaze followed the movement of his throat.

He looked back at her. “That tasted amazing.” He stood and moved next to her in the small kitchen. Reaching across the stove put him right in her space. “What about one...”

She popped the back of his hand with the spatula. “You promised.”

He gave a sigh and stepped back as if he had made a great sacrifice. “Yes, I did.”

“I used your mother’s recipe.” Feeling awkward, she moved to the sink and dumped her ice down the drain. “We ate a great deal of her cookies at this counter or in the barn when you managed to steal some.”

Chuckling, Jake nodded. “She refuses to make them for me anymore. Not until I give her grandchildren. Parental emotional blackmail at it’s worst.”

“Why don’t you?”

“What?” He blinked.

Whatever. She knew better. Today she was in the mood to push him. He’s the one that left her and then never got married. “Start a family of your own? You’d make an awesome father.”

He shrugged, intensely focused on his drink. “Never felt right. I was on the move with the marines, and then focused on my law-enforcement career. Now working with the church keeps me busy and there seems to be a great deal of kids without fathers in their lives.”

Well, that put her in her place, since her own kids were pretty much fatherless. She started stacking the cookies in an airtight container.

She stopped and turned to the radio. A giddy feeling made her heart bubble. “Jake, it’s our song!”

His brows shot up in a question. “I didn’t know we had a song.”

Hands on her hips she shook her head at his cluelessness. “As chair of the prom committee, I selected the song for the king and queen dance. I knew we had received the most votes.” A sad smile formed. “I picked it for us.”

His forehead wrinkled. “You danced it with Tommy.”

“’Cause you never showed up.” She pointed the spatula at him. “You had the most votes. You were voted king. Because you weren’t there I had to dance with Tommy.”

He dared raise his eyebrows and give her a stunned look. “I didn’t show up? I waited for two hours under the bridge. You told me you would meet me at Second Crossing Bridge. I was so worried I finally went to your house. Your mother took great pleasure in telling me you went with Tommy. What did you expect me to do?”

“Mother surprised me with Tommy and a limo.” She turned away from him and looked out the window. She had been such a coward. She needed to stop blaming her choices on her mother. “I didn’t tell her I was meeting you. She never told me you came by the house. It should’ve been our dance.” The last sentence dropped to a whisper, her chest tight. Silence and sadness surrounded her. The ticking of the old clock erased the years.

She felt the warmth of his presence as he moved closer to her. He stopped two steps away from where she stood.

“We could dance it now.” His voice low.

She looked over her shoulder. The half grin eased the hardness of his face and the pain in her chest.

“Miss Victoria Lawson, may I have this dance?”

She turned toward him. He stood so gallant, hand out to her, waiting. One heartbeat, two, she hesitated. With a deep sigh, she made a step forward and put her hand in his.

One quick turn and he had them out of the kitchen and in the living room. An arm placed at her waist gently guided her through the small gap. His strong hand intertwined with her fingers. He led her in a tight circle around the old coffee table.

She closed her eyes and the dingy trailer slipped away. A million tiny white lights filled the new space in her vision. The soft material of her long gown swirled around her legs.

Hanging on to the moment, she took in all the details of the night they should have experienced. “Why didn’t you come to the dance?” she whispered, afraid to break the mood but needing to know the answer.

“I did.” His voice low and hoarse. “You were dancing with Tommy.” Another turn as the music faded. “I figured you’d made your choice.”

It was her fault? “I think Mama might have known I was going with you and set it up to make sure I went with Tommy, instead. I thought I would ditch him and find you.” They stood face-to-face in the current reality, no music to transport here to another time. “When you didn’t show, I thought you had given up on me.”

He pressed his forehead against the top of hers.

Vickie remained still, listening to him breathe. Afraid, she kept her eyes closed, head down. “Do you ever wonder where we would be today if I had stood up to my mother and gone with you?”

Jake’s strong hands cupped her jaw and brought her gaze up to meet his dark chocolate eyes. “We were so young.” He gave her his best half grin. “And maybe a bit dumb. I don’t know what would have happened.”

She leaned forward and closed her eyes. “You left town, and I was so impatient and couldn’t wait to start my family. Now I’m a full-fledged, messed-up adult with two kids to raise. We can’t get this right, can we?”

Jake held her face in his large hands, tilting her head up. He studied her eyes with the most forceful look she had ever seen in him. Her throat went dry as he moved in closer. His stare now focused on her lips. She stopped breathing, his head lowered. His breath, sweet from the lemonade caressed her skin.

Ashley threw the front door open and burst into the room. “Mommy! Mommy!”

Jake jumped back and coughed.

Vickie couldn’t stop the giggle that sprang from her wrecked nerves. She blinked a couple of times to refocus.

“What is it, sweetheart?” She wrapped her arms around Ashley’s shoulders as her daughter collided into her. Determined to settle her stomach down, Vickie forced a smile.

“Papa Jack’s favorite mare had its foal last night and we got to see it and touch it. It has a blond coat, like me. She is so pretty. I’m so in love with her.”

“I imagine she fell in love with you, too.” She stroked her daughter’s hair back from her face.

“I think she did. She tried following me out. Her legs are so long.” Ashley turned and faced Jake, now sitting on a bar stool at the counter. “Hello, Officer Torres.”

Seth followed a bit slower and much to Vickie’s surprise, he almost wore a smile, reminding her of the boy she used to know. “Hey, Seth, so did you enjoy the horses, too?”

He shrugged. “Yeah, Papa Jack said he can start teaching me to rope. If it’s all right with you.”

Her father walked in behind the kids with a concerned look on his face. “Vickie, why didn’t you tell me the steps were about to collapse?”