The Texas Renegade Returns

Chance lowered the brim of his hat to the morning sun. “Yeah, well, look where that got you. Cara is barely speaking to you. You’re in hot water at the Cattleman’s Club and you’re still not sure if the people who kidnapped you are planning a second course with you on their menu.”

Dios! Chance was right. And Alex hated to stand corrected. Alex adjusted his black Stetson on his head and blew out a sigh. “There’s nothing better than having a morning ride with my friend to clear my head. Gracias, McDaniel. You are overly kind.”

A smirk spread wide across Chance’s face. “I’ve been told that before. By your sister.”

Alex laughed. “She’s the kind one. My sister has a heart of gold. If you ask me, you got damn lucky the day Gabriella came into your life. And if you ever forget that...”

Chance gave a slow nod of his head. The right side of his mouth cocked. “Nope, never gonna forget that. Your little sis gave me a run for my money. If she’d made it all the way back to Mexico, I would’ve tracked her down and brought her home, where she belongs. I know what I’m getting with that woman.”

Alex believed him. Chance was crazy about Gabriella. And his little sis loved Chance enough to defy their father. In some ways, Gabriella had been smarter and stronger than he’d been. Pleasing bullheaded, powerful and ruthless Rodrigo del Toro had become an obsession for Alex. He’d wanted to make his father proud. To prove himself worthy of taking over Del Toro Oil one day. Coming to America, posing as Alex Santiago and living the life he’d always wanted was too big a temptation to refuse. Alex hadn’t thought too much about the repercussions of that decision. He hadn’t thought about hurting the friends he’d made here. And he certainly hadn’t thought he’d fall in love with the daughter of his rival, the heir to the very company Del Toro Oil hoped to buy out.

Alex swiveled his head from one end of the range to the other. Rolling hills covered with budding wildflowers and prairie grass lay across the land. No one was in sight. “Listen, Chance. I asked to ride out here with you for two reasons. I think you know what I’m going to say, but let’s get out of the sun.”

“Fine by me.”

Alex pulled up on his reins and his mare halted under a mesquite tree. He dismounted first and ground tethered his palomino. Chance did the same. Under the umbrella of long outreaching branches, checkered light filtered down and partially blocked the sunlight. The two of them sat down on a blanket of coarse grass. Alex leaned back against the tree and yanked a blade of grass from its root as he stared out onto McDaniel land.

“I’ve told you before, I will clear your name of any wrongdoing in my kidnapping.”

“Crock of crap as it is.”

“I never thought it was you. Not your style.”

“What in hell does that mean?”

His face cracked into a small smile. “You’d try to punch my lights out in a fistfight. You’d challenge me to a duel. You’d kick my ass if you thought you had cause. You’re no coward. You’d face me head-on. Only a coward would have me run off the road and shanghaied, left to rot in a Mexican town.”

“Glad you have such a high opinion of me.”

“You and me, we’ll be family soon. I hope our friendship is strong enough to survive this.”

“I’m hoping so, too. Didn’t much like it when Cara fell in love with you. I thought she and I had a future together. We fit. We came from the same background. But I stepped aside so that she could be happy. And look how you’ve hurt her.”

Alex drew a deep breath. “I know. Believe me, I’m trying to make up for that. But it’s trickier than you might imagine. For the past few weeks, since my memory has returned, I keep rehashing the details. I’ve got people poking around behind the scenes, trying to tie it all together, trying to figure out the mystery. And only one name keeps cropping up. It all makes sense. It’s the only person with something to gain by having me kidnapped. I think Paul Windsor got wind of my real identity. He never liked me. He never wanted me with Cara. After we got engaged, I think he hired those thugs to come after me. They roughed me up and dumped me across the border.”

“You think he figured out who you were? Didn’t want to see his daughter tangled up with you and decided to get rid of you?”

Alex began nodding his head. “Yeah. I’m almost certain it was him.”

“You got any proof?”

“Some. But what I do have is motive. If he knew what I was up to with Windsor Energy and that I planned on marrying his daughter—”

“He’d want you out of the picture.”

“That’s right.”

“Okay, let me know if I can help with that. Even though Cara’s old man never gave me any trouble when we were dating, if he’s guilty of this crime he needs to be off the streets. It’s hard thinking anyone in the club could do something this criminal. I guess you never know about people.”

Alex nodded.

Chance looked him up and down, with warmth vacant from his eyes. “Of course, you had me fooled, too. You succeeded in deceiving me and everyone who called themselves your friend. Once, I thought you could do no wrong.”

Alex tossed the blade of grass down. A breeze picked it up and it landed ten feet away. His eyes homed in on the sliver of grass and his mouth quirked. If only he could do that, get from point A to point B that quickly. He knew where he wanted to be, back in everyone’s good graces. He’d had the world by the tail and he’d let it slip through his fingers. He might never live down what he’d done. His gaze slid to Chance sitting right next to him. He’d been his best friend. And how did he repay him? By stealing his girl and lying to him. Alex was lucky Chance gave him the time of day.

“I hope I can make it up to you. I’ve been thinking, since my father is still in Texas and will be staying at my house until Gabriella is properly wed, what if I gave you a wedding? Gabriella can have the wedding she has always wanted, big or small. I know you are itching to get hitched, as you say.” Alex smiled. “It’d be my honor to do this for both of you.”

Chance lowered his head. Apparently, he found the grass interesting as he stared, unblinking. Overhead, branches rustled in the wind and chirps from nearby crickets interrupted the silence. “Well, now,” Chance said, lifting his lids and squaring their gazes. His voice rasped, “That’d be a darn good start at repairing the damage. I think Gabriella would love that.”

Quiet breath released from Alex’s chest. “I’ll ask my sister today.”

“That’ll make her happy,” Chance said.

“I hope more than Cara was.” Sensations whirled in his gut. He still smarted from Cara’s brisk dismissal of him last night. She wasn’t cutting him any slack. At least he’d gotten a chance to tell her his feelings for her were stronger than ever. He wasn’t going away. His stubborn streak ran a mile long. “She’s not thrilled with me these days.”

“If you love Cara and want her back, this thing with her father isn’t going to help. You go after him, you stand to lose Cara, too. She’ll be hurt by this.”

Alex couldn’t deny that. “What choice do I have?”

Chance shrugged. “None, I guess. You’re right. It’s tricky.”

“I appreciate you hearing me out, Chance. I hope one day you’ll fully welcome me into your family. Giving you a wedding is just the beginning.”

Alex put out his hand.

Chance gave it a glance and then nodded. As they shook on it, Chance said, “If Gabriella wants this wedding, you’ve got yourself a deal.”

He smiled.

It would be the best deal he’d made all year.

* * *

Gabriella could be dangerous with a rolling pin in her hands, but she’d forgiven him for the most part, so he ambled to the doorway of Chance’s kitchen, eyeing his little sister working at the counter. Wearing an apron decorated with cherry-topped cupcakes in pink and white and chunky turquoise jewelry around her neck, she stood beside the range top, rolling floured dough into paper-plate-size circles. Steam rose from the griddle and she wiped at the beads of sweat on her face with her forearm, her long dark hair pulled back out of her eyes. She lifted her creations and dropped them onto the heat. They sizzled.

He leaned against the door frame and watched his sister’s precise movements with amazement. She’d never been an adept cook. Living with Chance had changed his sister. “Tortillas like Tía Manuela used to make.”

Gabriella turned sharply at the sound of his voice and blinked rapidly. “Alejandro?”

“I had business with Chance today. He let me into the house a minute ago.”

“You remember Tía Manuela?”

“We would go there on Sundays after church. She’d make us a batch of warm tortillas and fill them with potatoes and beans. They were delicious and we’d always fight over the last one.”

Gabriella’s dark eyes grew round. “She would tell you to let me have the last one.”

“And I would because I knew she would make up another batch just for me. I would then eat three more and mi hermana could not keep up with my appetite.”

The memory was a good one. Alex smiled as his little sister’s eyes watered. “Alejandro, I am happy your memory has returned.” She turned off the burner and took a step toward him and embraced him. She’d only recently learned that his amnesia was gone.

He nodded. “Yes. I am haunted with memories of playing tricks on my sister and having the wrath of Papa come down on my head. As you know, I remember everything.”

Alex was grateful most of his memories with his sister were good ones. He hadn’t given her too much trouble while growing up. Except for normal harmless big-brother antics, Alex and Gabriella had a loving relationship. He, like his father, had been protective of her, and she didn’t always appreciate being sheltered and overprotected. He recalled her rebellion when Papa had allowed Alex to move out of their secured mansion to live in an apartment in Mexico City...to become a man.

Gabriella had cut her long luxurious hair to a bob style that measured no more than three inches around her head and had a tattoo inked on her shoulder. By then a furious Rodrigo del Toro had had enough. Luckily, Gabriella’s tattoo disappeared on its own after one week as she’d claimed. That single saving grace resulted in her not being punished. But she’d definitely made a statement. Alex had admired her guts in her temporary rebellion.

Gabriella pulled away from their embrace to take his face in her gentle hands and stare into his eyes. “I wish those awful things had not happened to my brother. Do you know any more about the ones who did you harm?”

He glanced away from her soul-searching eyes. “It is better not to discuss it. You do not need to know the details.”

“I am not a child. I can handle the details. I’m concerned for my big brother,” she said, studying his face. “I will not wilt away knowing the truth. Are you in danger now?”

“I’m cautious, Gabriella. But I feel the danger is over. I plan to find out who did this to me and do my best to put to rest any rumors that Chance had anything to do with my abduction.”

For Gabriella’s safety, Alex wasn’t going to confide in her about his suspicions. The fewer people who knew his memory had returned, the better leverage he would have. “And you, my sister...you are no wilting flower. You have made me proud standing up to Papa. He has babied you long enough. You are in good hands with Chance. He will take care of you.”

Her mouth opened instantly. “Alejandro!”

“Let me finish. Chance will see to your needs, I have no doubt, and you will take care of his. You will be equal partners. Is that not what marriage is all about?”

Her expression softened as she contemplated. “Sí, it’s what I always believed marriage to be. Alejandro, please be careful.”

Alex used his thumb to wipe a spilled tear off her cheek. “I will be. Until I find out who was responsible for the crimes, no one but family will know my memory has returned. I revealed my secret to Cara last night. She owns my heart, Gabriella, and I only hope she will one day forgive me, but she has promised not to tell anyone and I trust her.”

“I will continue to keep your secret. You know you can count on me.” Her smile was big and warm and shining with love. “Today is a happy day. I will focus on that. Will you stay for some of Tía’s tortillas?”

“You don’t have to ask twice. I wasn’t leaving until I had me a bellyful.”

She chuckled, her light, joyous laughter stirring memories of their childhood at Las Cruces, their family’s estate. “Now you sound like Chance.”

“And every other Texan in the county.”

Gabriella’s smile radiated through the kitchen, brightening his mood. She turned to the griddle as Alex stepped beside her. “I have another surprise for you.”

“What could be a better surprise than your memory returning?”

“Well,” Alex said, “I have a great deal of making up to do.”

“Agreed.” With spatula in hand, she flipped the tortillas over. “There are so many you have deceived.”

The hairs on the back of his neck rose. Gabriella was a little too eager to agree with him. “And even though you were my tagalong little bra—” The spatula smacked his forearm. “Hey, that’s hot!” Damn, his sister was quick.

She grinned. “You were saying, I was a—?”

“The best sister in the world?” He rubbed the sting from his forearm.

“Better,” she said with a nod. She wielded the spatula his way and gestured for him to go on.

“I want to throw you a wedding, Gabriella.” All joking aside, Alex couldn’t think of anything he wanted more for his sister. “Before Papa returns to Mexico, you could speak your vows at my home in Pine Valley. I’d make sure you’d have the wedding of your dreams. Whatever you wanted, I would provide.”

Slowly, Gabriella lowered the spatula. He eyed the thing and was glad his arm was out of danger now. Lifting his gaze to his sister again, he marveled as the sweetest expression stole over her face. Growing up, Gabriella had never been a problem to him. He simply loved to tease her, and now it was important to him that she allow him this honor. “Oh, Alejandro.”

Tears of gratitude and love swam in her eyes and his heart warmed. “That is very kind of you. Chance and I want to be married quickly, but we have not made our plans yet. We want nothing big, but only to be married with our family and friends in attendance.”

“Done.”

“Are you certain?”

“I’m sure. Let me do this for you and Chance.”

She began nodding. “Gracias, Alejandro. Thank you. Thank you. My heart is filled with happiness today.”

“Mine is, too, mi hermana. You deserve it.”

She smiled again and offered him a seat. “Let me finish cooking. I will give my big brother the entire batch of tortillas.”

“With beans and potatoes?”

“Sí. It is your favorite.”

* * *

Alex left Chance’s house with a full belly. Why was it that food from the past always tasted better? Always satisfied more? Up until a short while ago, Alex didn’t really know which foods were his favorites, which ones were held over from his childhood, which foods turned his stomach. Now all of it was back, and Tía Manuela’s fresh warm tortillas had put a smile on his face as he gunned the engine of his SUV and drove down the path that led him off McDaniel’s Acres. Before he reached the gate, his gaze hit upon a blonde woman entering the stables. His mind flashed, familiar and female, and his heart pumped hard against his chest.

Cara?

He braked suddenly and parked the car on the side of the road. Taking brisk steps, he entered the stables and squinted from lack of sunlight. Once his eyes adjusted, he scanned the aisles, searching for the woman he’d seen just seconds ago. Footprints marked the ground and hay rustled, but otherwise all was quiet. How far could she have gone?

Then movement caught his eye. Down along a row of stalls, all the way at the end, he found Cara with her arms folded on top of a stall door, her eyes fixed on a mare. Her hair was drawn back in a loose ponytail and secured with a rubber band. She wore white jeans and tennis shoes, obviously not riding gear, and a flimsy pale blue button-down blouse. The ball cap on her head screamed Dallas Cowboys in bold blue-and-silver lettering.

Alex couldn’t keep from staring at her and strained to hear the soft, soothing words she granted the horse. Finally, his feet moved and he headed down the long aisle, catching the eye of Striker, the mare he’d taken out this morning with Chance. He clucked his mouth, and the horse’s ears perked up. Cara stayed focused on the mare, even as his boots parted hay and crunched as he moved closer.

Without her knowledge, he took in every graceful move she made. Relished each uttered sweet word drifting to his ears. When he stood within five feet of her, she turned her head to one side and found his eyes. He was caught off guard by the softness on her face, the kindness in her expression. He’d expected anger or rebuke when she noticed him, but instead her lips lifted slightly.

Alex halted and caught his breath. His heartbeats fired rapidly. “Cara.”

“Hello, Alex.”

He drank in her blue depths and the mellow tone in her voice. Dios, how he loved her.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Visiting my friend.” Her gaze dropped over the stall to a bay mare. “I rescued her a few months ago and Chance lets me keep her here.”

Alex moved closer to glance at the horse that had put Cara in a melancholy mood. The mare was average size, probably a mustang, marked with two white stockings on her front legs and a coat that was a little duller than the ones in Chance’s well-cared-for string.

“I thought you were afraid of horses?”

“I’m getting over that. This horse has changed me. She’s special.”

“She must be to get you to come into the stables without blinking an eye. What’s her name?”

“Mercy.” She stared at the horse. “When I laid eyes on her that was the first thing out of my mouth. Mercy. She was abused and neglected. There were maggots living in her coat. They were eating her alive. I didn’t think she’d survive. She was starved and jittery. It broke my heart to see an animal suffer that way.”

“Terrible. How often do you come to visit?”

“As often as I can, but it’s not always possible. Chance has been good about it. He gives me updates on her condition.”

“She’s going to survive.”

“I think so. She’s still nervous with people. She’s got trust issues and I don’t press it. As long as she’s cared for, I’ll wait until she’s comfortable enough with me before I step inside her stall.”

“That is probably wise. I’m sure she appreciates your visits. She will come around.”

She shrugged and directed her gaze to the recovering horse. “It’s not a hardship for me. I...I missed her today.”

The hint of sweet vanilla teased his nose as Alex stepped closer to Cara. He inhaled deeply to savor her scent over the more potent musty barn smells of earth and straw. Images flashed in his mind like a flip book, one scene after another. Cara giving him cooking lessons. Cara just stepping out of the shower. Cara sprawled out across his bed, waiting for him. “I know something about missing someone you care about.”

The slightest flicker in her eyes told him she’d heard his comment. “Cara, look at me.”

Her eyes closed as if she was in silent prayer. A few seconds ticked by, and he used that time to move a step closer. His heart hammered hard as he waited. And finally she turned and opened her eyes. They fluttered like butterfly wings.

She wasn’t as immune to him as he’d feared.

“Alex, what are you doing here?”

“I met with Chance earlier. We rode.”

“I mean, what are you doing here?”

“I got lucky. I was pulling away after seeing Chance and my sister when I spotted you coming in here.”

“Oh.” She nibbled on her lip and looked away. No eye contact. He wondered if his candor broke through some of her defensive walls. “Did you follow me?”

They’d already wasted enough time, months, and he’d be damned if he let her slip through his fingers now because of his foolishness and her pride, so he told her the absolute truth. “I am not following you, if that’s what you’re asking.” He couldn’t blame her for wondering. Yesterday, he’d hijacked her from her office. Today was simply a blessed accident. “But as soon as I saw you, I followed you inside the stable.”

Her eyes lifted to his.

He brought his hand to her face and touched her cheek gently with his fingertips. Breath puffed from her chest in a whispered sigh as she closed her eyes and absorbed his warmth, telling him what he wanted, needed to know, with unspoken words. “You haven’t forgotten what it was like between us?”

Her head moved. “No.”

“We had heat, Cara.” He drew deep from the well of her sweet scent and brought his mouth to hers. His lips hovered over hers and he rasped, “We still do.”

She kept shaking her head, but her eyes betrayed her. She still cared, she still loved him. No longer fierce and protective, those orbs of blue welcomed him with timid acceptance. He had to prove to her he wouldn’t hurt her again. If she gave him another chance, he would show her pleasure and try his damnedest to make her happy.

“Alex.” He took her plea as invitation and not rejection.

He thumbed her chin up and brought his mouth down. A squeaky noise erupted from her mouth as soon as their lips met and Alex smiled then, unable to hide his satisfaction. She was everything to him and he wanted to be everything to her. Again.

Her mouth was exquisite and he wanted more...already, so much more. He’d been too long without her, and the evidence wasn’t too far south of his belt buckle.

He put his hands on her waist and drew her up against him. Her body fit him perfectly. She was snug against him as the kiss deepened. He nipped at her lower lip and she opened for him, her breaths as ragged and rapid as his own.

He swept through her luscious mouth and groaned as she met his demands. Licking her with his tongue, he tasted the sweetly heady combination of wholesome and sexy all rolled up into one. Cara had been forbidden fruit, the daughter of his rival, his best friend’s girl, yet he hadn’t been able to keep away from her. He couldn’t now. Her taste permeated his core, giving him an erection that strained fiercely, killing him in small measures. His juices flowing hot and liquid, he splayed his hands around her backside and with a quick, gentle jerk, her hips collided with his. “This is our heat, Cara.”

She answered with a low, aching moan rushing from her lips.

He let his hands roam over her jeans and cursed the damn sequined pockets barricading him from feeling more of her. He ached to touch bare skin, to feel her warmth and curve his hands over the twin swells of her cheeks. He broke contact with her mouth only long enough to take another ragged breath. “I remember you. What we had.”

“Alex.” She jerked her head back far enough to meet with his eyes. She gulped air, her eyes liquid clear and hungry. “We can’t...”

He blocked out her refusal and grabbed her hand. Tugging her along, away from the stalls, away from any daylight, he found an empty office at the end of the barn that was no longer in use. He pulled her inside, noting an old pine desk and dusty papers covering a metal file cabinet. The door locked and the plastic blinds were already lowered on the indoor window.

She glanced at the desk, her brows arched in silent thrill. He was way beyond that, thrill too shallow a word for what he felt for her, but he could not take her on that filthy desk. He thought too much of her. She deserved more. He settled against the wall, and pulled her to him. She landed flat against his chest, her curvy body flush against him. He groaned at the perfect fit, the way she filled in the hollow spaces both of his needy body and his vacant heart. He’d blown it with her. There was no sugarcoating the obvious. He would make her remember the couple they’d once been one little gasp, one smoldering kiss, one fantastic orgasm at a time.