The Bachelor Project

Robin nodded, then automatically took a bite despite her waning appetite. Not filet mignon, but tasty. She refused to think about how many calories she was consuming, even though she no longer had to fit into a creamy-white designer wedding gown—with dozens of seed pearls and yards of lace, she reminded herself with a pang of longing. Not that she’d wanted to go through with the ceremony. But that dress had been her dream wedding gown, and she regretted having to store it for sometime in the future—sometime that might never come.

She felt self-conscious after a minute or so. Ethan and Bess had finished their meals and were taking sips of their beverages just to have something to do, Robin suspected. She placed her burger down and dabbed her mouth with the napkin. “I broke down the boxes and took the trash to the nearest Dumpster,” she told Ethan. “Maybe the raccoons will leave me alone tonight.”

“Oh, they’ll probably come around looking for a meal, but if they don’t find anything, they shouldn’t make any racket.”

“I wouldn’t want to call 9-1-1 again,” she teased, hoping to lighten her mood. “I’ll get a reputation as a crazy city woman.”

“Not as long as I back you up. I’ll be glad to vouch for the presence of wild animals.”

“But not dangerous ones,” she replied before taking a sip of milk shake.

He smiled slightly, his gaze straying to her lips as they puckered around the straw. “You never know.”

Robin felt a blush creeping up her neck. She hadn’t blushed in years. Maybe she was reverting back to high school behavior. Maybe she was just really confused about all her feelings lately. She just hoped Bess hadn’t noticed anything…strange in their banter. Robin didn’t want to give one of her great-aunt’s best friends the wrong idea.

Because she really wasn’t interested in getting involved with anyone. Even someone as handsome and compelling as Ethan Parker. Even if he did make her pulse race. She wasn’t going back to Gig, but eventually she’d return to her real life in Houston. To her business, friends and family. A short fling with a small-town lawman wasn’t in her nature.

“Robin, you must come over and visit me tomorrow. I know you probably have better things to do than spend your day with an old lady, but I’d just adore the company.”

“I’d love to visit,” she said sincerely. “Just tell me when and where.”

“I live with Ethan, you know. He needs someone to take care of him.”

The police chief moaned. “Aunt Bess, you know I can get by on my own. You’re living with me because we both want it that way. You’re family.”

“Of course, dear,” Bess said in a tone that meant I’m rolling my eyes at you.

Robin stifled a chuckle. “Is there someplace we could go for lunch?”

Ethan took one of his cards from his wallet badge and wrote his home address on it for her. “And this is our home number,” he said, looking up with his sparkling blue eyes, “just in case you need to report any midnight visitors and prefer to bypass the emergency operator.”

BESS WAITED UNTIL Ethan went outside to water the garden before she called Sylvia in Houston. Her longtime friend had a condo in the same building as Robin, and spent a lot of time with the girl. When Sylvia had called to say her great-niece had finally come to her senses and called off the wedding, Bess had heard the relief in her friend’s voice. Sylvia obviously hadn’t thought the match was a good one. And she thought Robin needed to get away for a while. Someplace nice and quiet, away from worrisome parents and upset, would-be in-laws. Not to mention the jilted fiancé.

Bess had cringed a bit at the knowledge that Robin’s young man’s hopes had been dashed. After all, she’d been through that before with…But that was another story, and she wanted to focus on Sylvia’s great-niece. So she’d thought of the lovely Franklin house, sitting vacant on that wooded lot. What a wonderful place for Robin to recuperate from her wounded pride.

“Sylvia,” Bess greeted her friend. “I met your lovely great-niece today.” She proceeded to tell Sylvia about the chance meeting between Robin and Ethan at the hamburger place. “You should have seen the two of them tonight. The sparks fairly flew!”

“You don’t say!”

“Yes, I do, and I’m all for it. Ethan has just about given up on finding a wife, and I know Robin is understandably shy about getting involved again. That’s why I think we need to give them a little push in the right direction.”

“What did you have in mind?”

“Well, I think I need a little vacation.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Ethan is already convinced I’m getting forgetful because I didn’t tell him Robin was moving in. He thinks I work too hard. If I went to San Antonio to visit Grace and Margaret at the retirement home, then Ethan would need someone to come by his house and check on him. Maybe fix him a home-cooked meal. Watch a little television with him.”

“I’m not sure…”

“Oh, I know this will work. All I need to do is ask Robin to help me out by looking after Ethan for a short time. Then you can call Ethan and ask him to watch out for Robin while she’s staying in town. You could suggest he take her to a movie, or out to dinner.”

“I thought you only had two restaurants and no movie theater.”

“We’re not that far from Fredericksburg or Kerrville. What could be more romantic than a nice evening drive through the Hill Country?”

“You have a point.”

“Of course I do! Oh, Sylvia, I know I’m right about this. Those two would be perfect for each other, if they could just spend enough time together to realize it.”

“You may be right, and I’ll be glad to go along. There’s just one thing you should know.”

“What’s that?”

“My dear, sweet Robin can’t even microwave a frozen dinner without burning it to crisp.”

“AUNT BESS, I’M HOME,” Ethan announced as he stepped from the late-afternoon heat into the air-conditioned kitchen.

Ethan’s shift had been fairly chaotic for a normally quiet, midweek day in the summer. Some cattle escaped their fence and wandered onto the state highway, leading to a two-car accident. No one was seriously injured, but he and his deputy had spent most of the afternoon directing traffic away from the evasive beasts.

As he pulled into his driveway about a half-hour late for dinner, he hoped Aunt Bess hadn’t fixed anything that might fall, congeal or generally taste terrible if it wasn’t served exactly on time. She was rather proud of her cooking, and rightly so. He’d rather be trampled by a dozen stray cows than disappoint his favorite relative.

A dozen different smells filled the air, but he couldn’t pinpoint what she’d prepared for dinner. The cabinet was lined with various plastic containers, each one neatly labeled in his aunt’s precise handwriting.

“Ethan, I’m glad you’re home,” his aunt said briskly. “I’ve had such a hectic day.”

“You and me, both.” He walked to the normally cheerful, uncomplaining lady and kissed her cheek. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, just this and that. I spent some time thinking about what you said the other day, and I’m afraid you’re right. Perhaps I do sometimes try to do too much.”

“You’re not feeling ill, are you? Did you fall, or—”

“No, no,” Bess said, waving off his questions. “Not yet, anyway. I’m just not as young as I once was, and today I realized I need to take things a bit easier.”

“I’ve been trying to tell you that, Aunt Bess.” Ethan placed his arm around her shoulder, noticing how small she was. Of course, she’d always been tiny, but now she seemed even more frail. He steered her away from the kitchen and back into the living room. “Have you been to the doctor? You’d tell me if something was wrong, wouldn’t you?”

“Of course I would, dear.” She patted his hand as he urged her to sit on the sofa. “But I’ve decided I need a little vacation. I’m going to visit Margaret and Grace in San Antonio for a week or so. I’ll leave tomorrow morning after you go to work. That way I’ll get in to San Antonio after the morning rush.”

“I’m sure you’ll have a great time with your friends. Just relax and don’t worry about a thing here. I’ll be fine.”

“I know you will, although I would feel better if I didn’t think you’d spend every night alone, watching baseball and reruns. Or working extra hours.” Bess sighed. “At least you won’t starve. I made some of your favorites—roast beef, meatballs and lasagna.”

His aunt didn’t paint a very flattering picture of him, although he couldn’t say it was totally inaccurate. He did enjoy an occasional baseball game in the evenings, and he had been known to go back to the office if he didn’t have a lot to do at home. But he also met with citizen groups and spoke on public safety. He filled in as an umpire at Little League games when one of the regulars couldn’t make it. And he worked out in the extra bedroom he’d set up with exercise equipment.

Ethan decided to deflect her fixation on his bachelor state, first by ignoring her comments, then by changing the subject. He’d learned more about evasive tactics in the last two years than he had during his FBI training.

His aunt pushed up from the couch and started toward the kitchen. “There is one thing you could do for me while I’m gone.”

“Anything, Aunt Bess. You know that.”

“Take a little time for yourself. Ask a nice young lady out to a movie and dinner. Don’t work all the time instead of sitting around the house.”

“Aunt Bess, this is a small town. The chief of police doesn’t need to be dating every single woman in the area.”

“How about just one single woman under the age of thirty-five?”

“There aren’t that many.”

“I can think of a few,” his aunt said in a knowing voice.

“I’m sure you can.” And one of them was no doubt the great-niece of Bess’s good friend in Houston. “I’m not looking for a relationship.”

“Then how about a little fun? It’s not normal for a man your age to be so, well…so celibate.”

“Aunt Bess!”

“Well, it’s not.” She left him standing in the doorway, shaking his head as she hustled off to prepare dinner. Just before she placed a casserole in the microwave, she turned back to him with a twinkle in her eye. “I swear, Ethan, half the men in the retirement home get more action than you do.”

SINCE ROBIN HAD LONG AGO unpacked her two suitcases, she had plenty of time to explore the house and make an inventory of items she needed from the store. Unfortunately, her current bank balance wasn’t nearly as healthy as her wish list. She’d have to economize while she was hiding out in Ranger Springs, but at least she had the satisfaction of knowing her bridesmaids had been reimbursed for their gowns and shoes.

Not that any of them had been hurting for money, but she would have felt even more remorse over calling off the wedding if she’d left them with the bill for clothes they’d probably never use again. After all, most of them had half a dozen used bridesmaid dresses hanging in the closet, if they hadn’t been donated to charity or taken to a consignment store. The difference between her and her friends was that her beautiful unused wedding gown now kept her bridesmaid dresses company.

She paused, her fingers clutching the pen and paper, as she imagined her friends and family wondering where she was, what she’d been thinking when she’d canceled the wedding just three weeks before she was to walk down the aisle with one of Houston’s most eligible men. Everyone except Great-aunt Sylvia had accepted her engagement to Gig Harrelson as a given.

Robin wasn’t sure what her aunt hadn’t liked about Gig. He was a former football player—albeit second-string at Texas A&M—with the blond hair and handsome features one would expect from a true “golden boy.” He came from one of the best families, circulated easily in several different social circles, and could relate well to both men and women. Gig was an asset to his father’s banking business and would have made a perfectly wonderful husband.

Maybe she didn’t want a perfect husband, Robin mused. Maybe Gig had been a little too perfect, from his straight white teeth to his designer sportswear. Had her heart ever raced when he’d held her in his arms? Had she felt juvenile excitement at just a glimpse of him across a crowded restaurant?

Maybe getting away to this small town, to a totally different environment, had been the best idea. Not because she wanted a relationship with another man, but because she needed to put the last one in perspective.

Shaking her head, Robin returned to her inventory, but was interrupted again when the phone rang.

“Hello?” she answered.

“Robin, dear, I’m so glad you’re home. I have a favor to ask.”

Since the days were stretching ahead of her like a blank slate, a favor for Bess Delgado sounded pretty good. “What can I do for you?”

“I’m taking a little vacation to San Antonio to visit some friends. Ethan is going to be home, though, and I just hate the thought of him all alone.”

Robin took the cordless phone and started pacing the living room. Oh, no. Surely Bess didn’t expect a stranger to keep her nephew company! Robin sure didn’t want to give the man the wrong idea by spending personal time with him.

“Robin?”

“Yes, I’m here.”

“I know you’re just in town for a short time, but I feel as though I’ve known you for most of your life. Your Great-aunt Sylvia was always telling me about your latest triumphs and tribulations. That’s why I’d like you to spend some time with Ethan. Like most bachelors, he’ll probably spend hours sitting in front of the television unless he has something to do.”

She should tell Bess “no.” All she had to do was think of some really good excuse, something that rang true, yet would let her great-aunt’s sweet friend down lightly.

Instead, she heard herself say, “What did you have in mind?”

“Oh, nothing major, dear. Just sharing a meal. You might suggest he take you around to see some of the sights. There’s a very scenic drive near Wimberley.”

Robin paused at the side window, looking out at the pecan trees and remembering the late-night ruckus that had brought Ethan to her house that first night. Recalling the way he’d held her so firmly and listened so compassionately to her explanation of everything from growing up in the city to running away from her wedding. “Bess, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. I’m sure Ethan has other things to do.”

“Oh, he works hard, but most of his friends around here are married couples, and busy with their own lives in the evenings. And he’s not dating anyone, so that wouldn’t be a problem.”

Robin scrambled for another excuse, this one closer to the real reason she needed to decline. “He might get the wrong idea.”

“You just tell him you’re new in town and you’d like a little company. I can’t imagine him turning you down.”

“I don’t want him to think I’m imposing on him.” Or worse yet, asking him out on a date.

“He won’t, dear. Ethan’s very nice. If he’s told me once, he’s told me a dozen times that he’s not looking for a steady girl.”

A steady girl. Robin had to smile as she strolled across the room. Had she ever heard that expression used? Probably when she’d been flipping through the old-movie channel and caught one of those Doris Day films from the fifties.

“I’d have such a better time with my friends if I knew Ethan wasn’t sitting home alone every night.”

Bess really knew how to pour on the guilt, Robin silently acknowledged. She sighed as she picked up a very good reproduction porcelain St. Charles spaniel on the mantel, then said, “I suppose I could give him a call, just to be friendly. I’m not so sure about suggesting anything as time-consuming as a drive through the country.”

“Whatever you’re comfortable with, dear.” Bess paused, giving Robin the impression the older lady was weighing her next words. “Perhaps the two of you could share a meal at Ethan’s house. I’ve fixed a variety of food. It’s all in the freezer.”

That sounded simple enough, but again, Robin wasn’t entirely comfortable with asking herself into Ethan’s personal world. Going to his house and rummaging through his freezer seemed so…intimate. Interacting with him in his professional capacity, or even seeing him in public was a different matter.

“I’ll think about it, Bess. That’s all I can promise. I just don’t want him to feel uncomfortable.”

“I’m sure Ethan will be glad to hear from you. I just know he’ll get lonely while I’m gone,” Bess added with a sigh.

Robin wondered if she’d have the nerve to pick up the phone and give the good-looking police chief a nice, friendly call. For the second time that week, she felt as though she’d slipped back into high school. Only this time, a member of the older generation was encouraging her to ask a boy out for a date instead of telling her that good girls simply didn’t do that sort of thing.

Robin placed the white-and-brown china dog back on the mantel. Oh, for the good old days.

Chapter Four

Ethan had almost banished Robin Cummings from his mind the day after his aunt left for San Antonio, basically because he’d been busy meeting with the Fourth of July planning committee. Since several streets had to be blocked and traffic stopped on Main Street, his officers were crucial to a successful parade. But as soon as he’d pulled into his drive and cut the engine of his Bronco the following evening, his thoughts returned to the woman he’d already sworn he’d never date.

He hadn’t had a chance when Sylvia had called him from Houston. She’d wanted to talk to Bess, but seemed more than happy to chat with him, instead. And then she’d pulled out the big guns—her fear that her poor, lonely great-niece would languish in the big family home where she was house-sitting, so far from Houston. Hundreds of miles from her friends and family. All alone, with only memories to keep her company….

He would have seemed a total cad if he’d said “no” to the very nice lady who was one of Bess’s best friends. He would have seemed petty if he’d come up with an excuse why he couldn’t possibly share a friendly evening meal with an attractive, single woman. A friend of the family. In the end, he couldn’t avoid a promise to Sylvia that he’d ask her niece out on a “neighborly” date.

After all, he couldn’t have the citizens of Ranger Springs—even the temporary ones—languishing from loneliness, he thought with a chuckle and a shake of his head.

So now he stood in front of the white wall phone in the kitchen, Robin’s number at the Franklin home written on a grocery receipt, his mouth as dry as the Texas prairie in August.

“I promised,” he reminded himself, his voice rusty. What he needed was an icy-cold longneck to help him through this, but even if he used the excuse of a dry throat, drinking didn’t seem right. He didn’t want his brain to be fuddled by alcohol when he called Robin.

With no excuses left, he picked up the phone and dialed her number.

“POLICE CHIEF PARKER?” Had Robin’s thoughts of him conjured up the call? All afternoon she’d been debating how to approach him, and now he’d landed in her lap, so to speak.

“Please, call me Ethan.”

Even better. So this wasn’t an official call. “How are you, Ethan?”

“Fine.” He seemed to be moving around. She heard footsteps, then the rustle of paper. “My aunt’s out of town.”

Should she admit she knew? Somehow, telling Ethan about Bess’s phone call and request seemed disloyal to the older lady. So Robin settled on the very neutral “Really?”

“Yes, she’s gone to San Antonio for a few days to visit friends.” Another pause, this one silent. “I was wondering how you were doing. Settling in okay?”

“I’m fine. No more scary critters,” she said with a chuckle. She settled on the arm of the taupe-and-cream damask sofa, wondering if he knew why he’d called…or if he planned to let her in on the secret.

“Good.” He was moving around again. She heard the pop of a cap, then the sound of him drinking. She didn’t know what beverage he was consuming, but she could almost see the strong column of his neck as he swallowed. The image made her own throat go dry.

“I’m not exactly a brilliant conversationalist, am I,” he said with humor in his voice.

“I’m not doing a great job, either, and I usually spend a lot of time on the phone.”

“In your job?”

“Yes. Talking to clients and suppliers. Setting up appointments and checking inventories. Sometimes I call all over Texas, trying to track down one particular piece I’ve seen at a show or at a vendor’s booth.”

“You’re not working now, are you?”

“No, not while I’m staying in Ranger Springs.” She missed her work, but she couldn’t establish a new clientele for only two months in a town the size of this one. Besides, thinking about her life back in Houston would only make her more vulnerable to a friendly voice and a fetching smile. She needed to keep a clear mind about Bess’s nephew, no matter how much she enjoyed his attention.

After all, he might be lonely, as Bess had mentioned. His call might not be personal. She frowned at the idea of being just another voice on the end of the phone line.

“I suppose you have a lot of free time,” he remarked.

His statement left a lot unsaid, but still caused her pulse to accelerate. “Yes, too much, actually. Since I’ve already toured the town and I can’t redecorate the house I’m staying in, I’m at a loss for things to do.”

Another swallow. Another pause. “Would you like to go to dinner?”

“Because you think I’m bored?” she asked cautiously. “Or do you ask all the newcomers in your town to dinner?”

He fell silent, as if she’d surprised him. Perhaps she had. She’d startled herself by abruptly asking for honesty—but she’d rather watch summer reruns than go on a pity date with a man as appealing as Ethan Parker.

“No, because I’d like to take you to one of my favorite places. And I thought you might like to see a little more of the Hill Country.”

“In that case, I’d love to go to dinner with you,” she said as her heart rate hiked a little higher. And as she told herself again that she shouldn’t think of it as going on an actual date with the police chief. “When?”

“Tomorrow night?”

“Great.” And to pay him back for this date, which was probably part reluctant attraction, part neighborly duty, she could ask him over for a meal. Then Bess would be happy, and Robin wouldn’t have to intrude in the other lady’s kitchen—or in Ethan’s house. After she’d fulfilled her responsibility to Ethan’s aunt, she could make it clear that she wasn’t going to get romantically involved with anyone right now—no matter how appealing and friendly he was.

She’d become so much more aware of responsibility lately, when she’d disappointed the wedding party and guests. But she had an obligation to the truth, too. Getting married for the wrong reasons was an even worse offense. Surely her family and friends would realize that soon. Perhaps many of them already did. Great-aunt Sylvia understood, or maybe she was simply relieved, since she hadn’t been overjoyed even with the engagement.

In two months or so, Robin hoped she could return to her life without seeing disappointment on the faces of those she loved. And if they couldn’t accept her decision to call off the wedding…well, perhaps they didn’t love her as much as she thought.

So she’d keep her word to Bess, and she’d be honest with Ethan. She wasn’t looking for a new life in a small town any more than he seemed to want a serious relationship.

ETHAN THOUGHT THE NIGHT had gone rather well. He’d successfully controlled his attraction to Robin all through the early evening drive on nearly deserted country highways. Robin had been delighted with the steep hills, winding roads, abundant trees and quaint stone houses; he’d been captivated by her enjoyment of the simple ride through the Hill Country. He’d resisted touching her hand, stroking her arm, or running his fingers through her silky blond hair whenever he glanced at her.

All through dinner, he’d been the perfect gentleman. He’d held out her chair, refusing to lean forward and nuzzle her neck when his libido urged him closer. He’d ignored the low light and candles on each table, and the glorious sunset they’d witnessed together through the multipaned windows. He’d laughed, listened and truly enjoyed the companionship during a delicious meal of German specialties at one of his favorite restaurants. They’d both been too full of the good, hearty food to stay for dessert, so there was nothing left to do but return, just after twilight, to Ranger Springs.