A Cowboy's Pride

Just weeks before their nuptials, she’d received a major network job offer she couldn’t resist. When he told her he didn’t feel comfortable leaving the ranch, which had hit a rough patch, they’d called off the wedding. She couldn’t understand why he felt more responsible for taking care of the ranch than being with her, and he couldn’t understand why she cared more about a job than him... Clearly their priorities hadn’t been in sync.

Now as much as then it seemed...

They studied each other for a long moment then she shook her head, her face an open wound. He was pretty sure he didn’t look much better. “You’d hate it there.”

“And you hated living here. Deep down I knew this wasn’t the life you wanted. You love the spotlight and I’m...”

“Closed off,” she finished for him. “We were too young to make such a big decision.”

A gust of wind fluttered a strand of hair across her face, and he gently tucked it behind her ear. “We’re lucky we avoided making a big mistake.”

“Very lucky,” she said quietly, sounding immensely sad.

“Will you talk to someone about canceling the episode?”

“I can’t.”

He reined in his frustration. “Then promise me this won’t turn into a circus. You’ll stick to the feud story and nothing else. Not my mother’s suicide or the ranch’s troubles.”

“I’ll follow wherever the story takes me, and I’ll do my best to prevent anything from harming your pa’s big day. I care about him, too.”

“I guess we still have that in common at least.”

Then she smiled, just a flash, and something moved in Cole’s chest. Something warm, and something he hadn’t felt in a long time. “Let’s go back,” she said, jumping from the fence.

He paused to study the mother and calf a moment longer, his mind on Katie-Lynn and the danger she posed...not just to his family, but to his susceptible heart if he wasn’t careful.

CHAPTER THREE

LATER IN THE AFTERNOON Katlynn knocked on her parents’ screen door and peered into the modest, cluttered home. Strange how small it looked. Foreign. She was the outsider looking in.

“Hello?” she called for the third time. “Anybody home?”

She paused and listened for footsteps.

In the distant kitchen, red-orange flames curled beneath a kettle set on a gas stove. Open cereal boxes, empty bottles of soda and scattered corn chips littered the counters. Flies buzzed around a thawing package of ground beef. When was the last time this place had been cleaned? She made a mental note to contact a local housekeeping service for her arthritic mother.

“It’s Katlynn!” she hollered.

Steam rose from the kettle, and her nose curled at the smell of burning plastic. What was cooking? White foam frothed over the pot’s lid and spilled down its sides, sizzling when it hit the grate.

“You’re going to start a fire!” Katlynn dashed inside. She leaped over children’s toys as she crossed the living room’s obstacle course, skidded to a stop before the stove and flicked off the burner.

The volcano of lather settled, revealing baby bottles, teething rings and, inexplicably, one warped plastic flip-flop.

“Fire? Who said fire?”

Katlynn twisted around and spied her mother. Her short hair was smashed flat against one side of her skull as if she’d been sleeping or lying down. White frizz sprung from the opposite side, fluffy as a seeded dandelion. An oversize housecoat covered all but her sharp collarbones, bony elbows and swollen ankles.

“I handled it, Ma.” Katlynn bussed her mother’s creased cheek. “Why are you boiling a flip-flop?”

“Frankie’s teething. It’s his favorite chew toy.” Her mother brushed past Katlynn and poured the kettle’s contents into a strainer perched atop a stack of dishes in the sink. “What are you doing home? You didn’t lose your job, did you?”

“I’m taping episodes here.”

Katlynn used every facial muscle trick to keep her expression neutral. Lose her job... What a crazy idea...only it wasn’t, not with Scandalous History on the chopping block. Everyone associated with the show, from the producer down to the maintenance crew, depended on her to pull off a hit, a story brimming with intrigue and scandal, all the while not harming the Lovelands’ truce with the Cades or creating a media storm.

She’d promised.

And she never went back on her word.

Except once, as Cole reminded her.

Spending time with him this morning had been like stepping into the past. She’d felt disoriented, her perspective turned upside down, her body, her feelings, her thoughts, drawn to Cole. When he’d held her, briefly, she’d wanted to lay her head on his broad shoulder and share her troubles the way she once had. But that’d be owning up to failure, something her pride wouldn’t allow.

“This is a nice surprise.” Her mother pulled open the fridge and stooped to rummage inside it. A moment later she produced a box of animal crackers.

“You refrigerate those?”

“Timmy likes to eat them cold.”

As if on cue, Katlynn’s nephew galloped past her and tugged on his grandmother’s hem. “Are you gonna play with me, Grammy?”

“Hey, Timmy.” Katlynn scooted down to his height and mussed his wispy brown hair. “I’m your aunt Katlynn.”

The four-year-old buried his face in her mother’s housecoat then peeled back the material to peek at her, one-eyed.

“Who’s that?” he whispered loudly.

“Your aunt, honey.” Her mother smoothed down his cowlick. “Why don’t you give her a hug?”

“No.” Timmy snatched the animal crackers and bolted down the short hall to the house’s three bedrooms.

“Don’t mind him. He’s just never seen you before.” Her mother motioned for Katlynn to follow her into the living room then shoved a pile of coupon flyers off the couch, clearing a space.

The sofa sagged to the ground as Katlynn dropped into it. She hauled herself back to the edge and examined the shabby furnishings, dismayed by the conditions. Crate boxes served as a TV stand for the old set. A shadeless table lamp, its lightbulb exposed, stood on the floor beside a torn armchair. Stuffing spilled from the back of the seat and covered the matted maroon carpet as if it’d snowed.

“How are you, Ma? Did you get my check last week?”

“Keeping busy. Haven’t had a chance to deposit it yet, but thank you. Though you know you don’t have to do that.”

“I know,” Katlynn assured her mother. “It makes me feel good to help out.” Since her father’s work injury a couple years ago, her parents survived on his disability checks and Katlynn’s contributions, which, she now saw, were woefully inadequate. She’d instruct her assistant to send three times the amount.

What would happen to them if Katlynn’s show was canceled? Her determination to nail this episode rammed into a higher gear. The Cade-Loveland segment would be the show of the season...no...the series.

Her ma patted Katlynn’s knee with a gnarled hand, the sight raising her alarm. Her crooked fingers looked worse than she remembered. “You’ve always been a hard worker. Had your first job when you were, what? Eleven?”

“Ten,” Katlynn corrected, gripping her mother’s stiff hand.

“That’s right. You were cutting lawns with that old rotary push mower you found in the shed. Never knew how you had the strength to haul it around the neighborhood.”

“We all pitched in back then. Pa said every bit counted. Is he here?”

“Keith ran him to Denver for an MRI.” Ma pinched a couple of yellow fronds from a fern plant in a ceramic baby shoe.

“Is his back worse?”

“Same. It’s just an annual checkup.”

“Did you get my messages?” Katlynn glanced around for the phone but spied only an empty jack. “I called the landline and your iPhone. You still have it, right?”

“Sorry, honey. I know it was a Christmas gift, but I couldn’t figure it out. Plus, we hardly ever get reception out here so I gave it to John.”

Katlynn’s oldest brother—who hadn’t relayed her voice mail messages. Typical. “I’ll buy you another while I’m in town and show you how to use it.”

Her mother shook her head. “I don’t want you wasting your money on us. It’s best if you keep it in the bank. You never know when you’re going to need it.”

Katlynn stared at her. When was the last time anyone refused her gifts? How strange to be around someone who wanted nothing from her. “Let me worry about that, Ma.”

Still. Her mother had a point. If the show was canceled, she’d be out of work for who knew how long before she landed her next gig. She’d gotten lucky to even win an audition for Scandalous History. After her agent’s mother’s bridge partner mentioned her son’s project, a historical investigation show, she’d sent in Katlynn’s head shots and CV, which included her double major in broadcasting and history.

During the audition, Katlynn and the executive producer connected over their shared love of Wild West lore, a conversation that continued over lunch and ended in her being offered the plum job the following week.

Digging into an old-time-Western family feud was exactly the kind of story to fire her imagination and, hopefully, the audience’s. Regardless of her irritating attraction to her ex, she’d savor this project, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to solve a historical mystery.

“Can I get you anything to eat?” Ma’s deep-set eyes ran over Katlynn. “You look too thin.”

Her mouth dropped open before she caught herself. “I’m good, thanks. Don’t go to any bother.”

When was the last time she’d eaten a home-cooked meal?

The stick-to-your-ribs kind?

Every LA restaurant seemed to be vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free places where ordering a steak felt like a felony.

Her mouth watered just thinking about juicy barbecue.

“It’s no trouble. Hardly ever have time to spend with any one of my kids, so when I do, it’s a treat.”

Katlynn’s eyes stung, and she threw her arms around her mother, pulling her close, smelling the fresh scent of the outdoors on her housecoat.

“What’s that for?” Ma asked when Katlynn released her, smiling.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too, honey. Wish I’d known you were coming. I’d have cleaned up the place. It’s been a little crazy around here lately, plus my arthritis is acting up. The change in weather always gets me.”

“I wish you’d let me fly you out to LA. I know some wonderful doctors who—”

“Dr. Walker’s treated our family for generations. He knows me better than any of those fancy doctors. I’m just fine, honey. So, tell me about you. What kind of story are you doing here?”

“I’m investigating the Cade-Loveland feud.”

Her ma’s hands rose to cover her rounded mouth. “Have you seen Cole?” she said through her fingers.

“Yes.”

“How’d it go?”

“Fine. We’re both adults.”

Liar. You mooned over him the moment you saw him again.

“As long as you’re okay. Always hoped you made the right choice, but here you are, famous and all. Guess you got what you wanted in the end.”

“Right,” Katlynn agreed briskly. If she’d gotten everything she wanted, though, why did she spend thousands talking to a life coach and a therapist about her loneliness?

“I have to meet with my production team in a bit, but I wanted to stop by and ask if I could stay here while we’re filming. The Holsford Hotel double-booked my suite, and they don’t have any other rooms.”

“Did you talk to Frank or Joanie?” her mother asked, naming the owners of the small town’s only hotel. It’d been in operation for almost a hundred years and conjured up a glimpse of the Old West with its painted facade and saloon-style reception area.

“Yes, and they apologized for the mix-up and offered to boot the other people who booked it. Except it’s a newlywed couple, and I can’t ruin their honeymoon.”

“I see.” Her mother chewed on her lip a moment, and the horizontal lines cleaving her forehead deepened. “It’s only... Michelle and her three kids just moved back. She caught Benny cheating on her. Again. And your brother Martin lost his job, so I put him up in the basement. Keith still hasn’t moved out, so...”

“You don’t have room for me.”

“I’d put you up on the couch, only Keith’s friend Steve is sleeping on it. They’re starting up a medicinal cannabis operation.”

“Cannabis?” Katlynn echoed, noticing grow lights piled in the hall along with clay pots.

Her mother nodded, pride lighting her eyes. “He’s finally found something he’s passionate about. Said it’s his calling. Plus, it’ll help lots of people. Who would have thought your brother would go into farming? Once he gets the plants started, he’ll transfer them into the field behind the corn. Says they grow better in the middle of another crop.”

“You realize cannabis is the scientific name for marijuana, right?”

Her mother’s eyes bulged. “Like the drug?”

“Just like it.”

“That bugger...” Red flamed in Ma’s cheeks. “And here I told the church knitting group all about it. They’re fixing to be Keith’s first customers, after me, since he said it’s good for arthritis. Now what’ll I tell ’em?”

“Plans changed. Plus, it’s legal in Colorado. Just make sure Keith has a license to sell it.”

Her ma sank back into the couch. “How’d you get so smart?”

“It’s genetic.” Katlynn kissed her mother’s cheek and rose.

A baby wailed, a startled cry as if waking from a nap. With a heave, her mother freed herself from the sofa and stood. “Shoot. That’s Frankie. I watch the kids during the day while Michelle’s at work. She got a promotion, you know. Heading up the bakery section at the grocery store.”

Katlynn smiled at her mother. She took equal pride in her children’s accomplishments, no matter what they did. How strange to be treated like everyone else. No one rushing to compliment her, fetch her favorite drink, roll out the red carpet... If she’d expected a big fuss, a celebration to welcome the returning, prodigal child, she was very mistaken.

Yet it didn’t hurt like she’d imagined. Instead, the sense of being no one special, out of the limelight’s glare, loosened her muscles and made her breathe easier, despite her evil shapewear. “Michelle was always the best at birthday cakes.”

The baby’s wails escalated into a screech.

“I’ll be by tomorrow, if that’s okay.”

“Anytime, honey, you know that. Only, your brother John’s working a double, so I’ll have his four kids. And your aunt Betty’s dropping by because her grandchildren like to play with two of John’s boys so—”

“It’ll be busy,” Katlynn finished for her, resigned to the fact that her mother’s schedule was, as always, too full to fit her. “How about you call me when things are a little less crazy. You have my number.”

Her ma pointed at a scrap of paper stuck to the cluttered refrigerator by a marijuana leaf magnet. “I’ll fix your favorite meal. Chicken and biscuits.”

“Thanks, Ma. That’d mean a lot,” Katlynn said, even though Michelle was partial to the meal, not her. “And you know the magnet’s a marijuana leaf, right?”

“Keith got them at some convention in Denver...” Her mother’s eyes widened. “And I gave some out at the church group. What’ll they think of me?”

“That you’re a sinner in need of penance.”

“Glory be.” Her mother sighed. “You sure you’ll find a place to stay?”

Katlynn opened the screen door, stepped outside and turned. “I’ll be just fine. No need to worry about me.”

Her mother patted her on the cheek. “Nope. Could always count on you to never give us a moment’s worry. It’s what made you special.” And with that, she hurried after the baby, leaving Katlynn staring after her, mouth agape.

Not needing her parents’ attention, not causing them concern, had made her stand out? She’d always done her best not to add herself to their list of things “to handle,” but it’d never occurred to her they’d noticed.

Inside her rented sedan, she reviewed her housing choices.

Staying in a Denver hotel meant an hour-plus commute every day, not to mention her hair and makeup team remained at the Holsford Hotel.

Tom had offered to share his suite with her, but he had a reputation, as well as two ex-wives. She’d been in the business long enough to understand offers like his also came with expectations and gossip-rag headlines.

Which left Boyd’s offer to stay at Loveland Hills. Eyes on her back-up monitor, she reversed out of the twisting driveway and onto the gravel road. The powerful engine purred as she pressed on the gas and zipped around the shoulderless curves.

If she accepted, she’d have greater access to the story—a plus. On the other hand, she’d also be near Cole, and the show demanded all her focus—a big negative.

Could she stay at Cole’s house and keep her professional distance?

She met her eyes in the car mirror, her nerves jumping in her stomach. She’d worked too hard, on herself and her career, to be swayed by an old flame. Whatever feelings she’d experienced today were just echoes from the past. They had no bearing on her life now...she wouldn’t let them.

She blew out a long breath then spoke to the car’s AI system.

“Siri, dial Loveland Hills Ranch.”

* * *

“KATIE-LYNN’S STAYING HERE?” Cole paced in his family’s kitchen, clenched hands shoved in his pockets.

“Her mother doesn’t have room for her.” Boyd swiped a washed plate with a towel and slid it into the rack above the sink.

Cole grabbed a dish towel and thrust it inside a glass, swirling it as he imagined Katie-Lynn sniffing around the place, exposing all their secrets. “I don’t like it.”

“I think it’s awesome!” Sierra breezed into the kitchen in a cloud of her orange-blossom scent, her blond hair wet from her shower, her red cowboy boots matching the sleeveless blouse topping her floral, ruffled skirt. She plucked the dried cup from Cole’s hand and stowed it in a glass-fronted cabinet. “Finally, another female to balance things out around here. Plus, she was my friend before you stole her, Cole.”

“What’s your objection?” Boyd slid another plate into its slot on the drying rack. “Do you still have feelings for her?”

“No!” He choked out his response, his throat tightening around the automatic denial.

Sierra thumped him on the back. “Not buying that, big brother.”

“I haven’t thought about her since she left.” He swiped at his stinging eyes, filled a glass of water and drained it.

“Then why haven’t you dated anyone else?” asked his younger brother Heath, joining them. He carried his six-string slung across his back, one of the guitars he handcrafted as a hobby when he wasn’t ranching or gigging at local honky-tonks.

“Too busy keeping track of you troublemakers.”

Heath shook longish bangs out of his purple-blue eyes. “That’s your story?”

“Yep. And I’m sticking to it.” Cole caught Sierra’s eye-roll. Why did they think he pined for Katie-Lynn all these years?

Because you have been...

The heart-shaped diamond engagement ring still in his nightstand called him out—just as loudly as Sierra and Heath.

But seeing her today, noticing how much she’d changed, proved that even if he had carried a torch, it’d been for a girl who no longer existed. Katlynn was someone he didn’t know.

“I’m heading out for my sound check.” Heath donned a brown cowboy hat and curved its brim. “See you two there?”

“We wouldn’t miss it. You’re doing the new set, right?” Sierra placed the last glass in the cabinet and shut its door.

“Classics and originals.” Heath shot them a quick smile then ducked outside.

“He’s nervous,” Sierra observed, hooking a pot on the rack above their table.

“Don’t know why he wastes his time with those songs,” Pa grumped. “Ain’t like he’s going to Nashville or getting famous.”

“He’s not trying to be a country star, Pa.” Cole sprayed cleaning fluid over the cleared table and rubbed a paper towel over it, gathering crumbs.

“And what if he was? What’s so wrong about that?” Sierra huffed, one fist on her hip.

“It’s a road full of disappointment,” Pa observed quietly.

Silence swelled, heavy enough to ache, as they finished the after-dinner cleaning. Cole supposed they all thought of Ma and how her unfulfilled dream to sing professionally drove her to drink. She’d taught Heath to play guitar and fiddle, the only one of her children interested in music...or who’d shown any talent for it. The rare times Cole saw her smiling, heard her laughing, was when she and Heath played together, those music sessions usually followed by even heavier drinking.

“You kids ruined my life!” she’d scream, stumbling around the ranch, searching for her stash of booze. “I wish you’d never been born.”

Or...

“You trapped me!” She’d sometimes hit his father while hurling accusations. “Got me pregnant so I’d be stuck on this miserable ranch.”

Cole must have made a noise because Sierra’s hand pressed his, yanking him back to the present, away from the mother who’d blamed him, her oldest child, for all her woes, for holding her back from her dreams. “Cole? You okay?”

“Fine.”

“Anybody home?” called a familiar, beautiful voice.

His body clenched as if bracing for a blow.

“In here, Katie-Lynn!” shouted Sierra, still staring up into his face. “Sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” he muttered under his breath, needing his sister to move her eagle eye off him. “And she’s Katlynn now.”

When Katie-Lynn appeared in the kitchen, Sierra flung herself across the space and hugged her old friend tight. “Good to see you, girl!”

“You, too.” Katie-Lynn’s eyes met Cole’s over his sister’s shoulder, and he ducked his head and draped his damp towel over the drying rack. “Thanks for letting me stay, Mr. Love—”

She broke off when Boyd waved a spatula at her.

“Boyd,” she amended with a slight catch in her voice. Cole glanced up and caught the pretty flush rising in her cheeks, her eyes still on him.

“Want to come line-dancing with us? Heath’s playing, and he’s doing some originals, too.”

“Oh—uh—I’m not sure,” Katie-Lynn wavered, her gaze now shadowed by her long, lowered lashes.

“It’ll be fun,” Sierra implored.

Katie-Lynn smoothed a hand over her sleek black dress, drawing his attention to the lush curves beneath the expensive fabric. Unwelcome heat flared inside him. “I’m not exactly dressed for the Hoedown Throwdown.”

“I’ll loan you something. We’re probably still the same size.” Sierra stepped back, sizing Katlynn up. “Give or take.”

“Um. I have interviews set up in the morning, so I should probably just go on up to bed.”

“At eight o’clock?” Sierra scoffed, ever the dog on a bone when she wanted something bad enough. As the only girl among five brothers, she’d learned fast how to assert herself.

“She’s too fancy for country line-dancing,” Cole heard himself say, the words flying from his tongue without his permission.

“Excuse me?” A slight twang entered Katie-Lynn’s voice as it rose a half octave. “I’ve probably forgotten more steps than you’ll ever know.”

“Those sound like fighting words,” Boyd observed, leaning against the counter.

Cole stepped close and Katie-Lynn angled her face up to his, her chin jutting. “I don’t believe you.”

“Want to bet?” Katie-Lynn challenged, her cool, controlled mask slipping. Before him stood the competitive country girl who used to dare him to climb trees as high as her, race horses as fast, catch as many trout. And he’d lost almost as often as he’d won. Not that he’d cared. Then.

“You’re on,” he said, unable to resist her sparkling eyes.

“It’s a dance-off!” Sierra rubbed her hands together. “And I’ll be the judge. Cole, what are you betting?”

“If I win, Katie-Lynn finds another place to stay.”

Katie-Lynn’s head shake silenced his father’s and Sierra’s protests. “No need to worry. I’m not planning on losing.” Her nose flared, and her left eyebrow twitched up.