Redeeming the CEO Cowboy

She stood immobilized, fascinated by Casey Thomas. What else was new?

When he reached the front of his house, Susie was ready to turn back to her work. But he stopped and angled his head toward her kitchen window. Deep baby blues zeroed in on her, meeting her unflinching stare. Geesh! She didn’t have the nerve or good sense to turn away. He grinned and waved, mouthing “Good morning.” His smile did ridiculous things to her. A knot formed in her throat and she swallowed past it to wiggle her fingers his way.

She stepped away from the window, reminding herself she had a business to run. She couldn’t go around lusting after Casey, of all men. Or losing sleep over him.

After putting the finishing touches on her pastries, she entered Ally’s bedroom. She was just waking and Susie whispered, “Good morning, Muffin. Time to get up. We have deliveries to make.” Susanna bent to kiss her forehead and ruffle her curls.

Ally darted her gaze around the room and in those first few seconds, curious fear entered her eyes, before she realized where she was. One day she’d wake up and not have to remind herself that her mother was gone, and that her life would never be the same. Susanna prayed that day would come soon. Ally was young enough to acclimate to new surroundings. Susanna had met with a psychologist before taking Ally in and learned that a regular routine and stability were the keys in her acceptance of the situation. She needed no more surprises or traumatic experiences in her young life. She had to feel secure.

“Ready to get dressed? I saved two vanilla cupcakes for you. I have lots and lots of frosting leftover too. Would you like to frost them?”

Ally’s eyes widened and she smiled, pushing her covers off and hopefully the sad memories, too. “What flavors?”

“You have a choice of cherry chip or chocolate marshmallow.”

“Chocolate marshmallow!”

“Okay, then. Chocolate marshmallow it is.”

Susanna hoisted Ally off the bed and set her down. The little girl wiggled herself out of her nightdress and Susanna helped her get her arms through the sleeves of a purple and white Sweet Susie’s logo T-shirt. Jeans came on next and then socks. Ally slipped her feet into well-worn hot pink Velcro tennis shoes all by herself. “Good girl. We’re almost all set. Let’s go wash your face and hands and comb your hair. Then we’ll have breakfast and do some frosting.” Ally raced to the bathroom and after she was cleaned up, they went to the kitchen.

Shortly after breakfast, a light knocking on the front door disrupted Susanna’s muffin count for the last box. She slid a glance out the kitchen window and wrinkled her nose. “Casey,” she muttered.

Darn. She had to open the door. He knew she was home. She kept her curtains open to let in early morning sunshine and anyone who was looking could see her bustling about the kitchen.

Sliding her palms down her apron and straightening her ponytail, she made her way to the entrance. “I’ll answer the door, sweetie,” she said to Ally, who was busy licking chocolate marshmallow frosting off her fingers. “Not too much now. Just one bite of the cupcake.” Her mothering skills needed polishing, but at least Ally finished all of her oatmeal this morning before she got her treat.

Susanna took a deep breath, and then gave the door a gentle yank. She came face-to-face with Casey.

“Mornin’,” he said, his gaze instantly darting to the lettering on her apron. Sweet Susie’s...Tasty Pastries and More.

“Hello.” Clean-shaven this morning, his hair combed back, his eyes the deepest azure blue she’d ever seen, he wore a seriously gorgeous beige Armani suit. Wow. He hardly looked like the rough and tumble rodeo rider she’d grown up with. He gestured with his index finger. “What’s the more?”

“The more? Oh, on the apron? I do cakes and all kinds of desserts, really.”

“Keeping your options open?”

“Yes, I suppose...it makes good business sense.”

“But your specialty is muffins and cupcakes?”

“That’s right.”

“I can smell your baking from my house.” He lifted his nose and took a whiff. “Smells amazing, Susanna.”

“Thank you. I...uh, would you like a muffin or two?” If only her mother hadn’t drilled good manners into her. Last night, she’d felt like a heel seeing him come home with a bag of take-out from Burgers-N-Stuff. They weren’t the best burgers in town. Because he was Audrey’s brother, and for no other reason, she should have offered to bring him supper on his first night back in town. She glanced at her watch. She was fine on time. “I have to load up soon to make my deliveries but you’re welcome to come in for a few minutes.”

Say no. Say you have urgent business and you have to be on your way.

“Love to.”

Bummer.

He reached for the screen door and Susanna turned around and began walking. “The kitchen’s a big mess right now. I clean up after I make deliveries.”

As they entered the kitchen, Ally saw Casey and she came forward, peering curiously at him.

“Hi, Ally,” he said, bending to her level and softening his voice. “Hey, I like your shirt. Do you help Aunt Susie with baking?”

She nodded. “I frosteded two cupcakes.”

“That’s real nice.” Casey pointed to the tip of her freckled nose. “Did you frost your nose, too?”

She giggled. “No.”

“Not on purpose,” Susie said.

Ally wiped her nose and removed the frosting. Her mouth turned down. “Where’s Charger?”

“Oh, Charger’s at my house right now. He’s doing just fine, taking a nap.”

“Well deserved,” Susanna said. “You ran him for all he was worth.”

“Yeah, about that.” Casey rose to face her. “It’s part of the reason I came by.”

Her eyes shifted away from his direct look and she turned to the cabinet to grab a plate. Keep busy, Susie, and keep pretending nothing happened between the two of you. “It is?”

“I go jogging just about every morning. It didn’t occur to me that Charger would make such a darn racket in the neighborhood. He didn’t wake Ally up, did he?”

“No, I don’t think so. She slept well past the time I...looked out my window and saw you.”

He sighed with relief. “Okay, that’s good to hear.”

She placed one of each kind of muffin she’d baked this morning on a plate and gestured toward the table. “Would you like to have a quick cup of coffee with a muffin?”

“No thanks,” he said, sliding into a chair that faced her messy sink and the chipped tiles on the counter. This kitchen, as well as the rest of the house, was a far cry from the luxury Casey was accustomed to now. Audrey had told her he’d invested in a construction company years ago and after the owner retired, Casey became the new CEO. “I don’t want to hold you up. I’ll just have one of these.” He grabbed for the cranberry cheese muffin, took a big bite and chewed thoughtfully. “This is really good.”

“Thanks.” She picked up a raspberry-filled lemon cupcake and set it in a cake box. She was about to say he’d just ruined the calorie burn from his jog, but guys didn’t worry about things like that—not the way women did—and she didn’t want to sound snarky.

She closed the box and sealed it with Scotch Tape.

Casey grabbed another muffin and starting chewing again. “Mmm. What’s this one called?”

“That’s my Sweet and Sassy Caramel-Apple muffin.” When she’d tested out the muffin, she’d refined it to make the apple a little tart. Sweet and Sassy had become a best seller. Her small business needed to provide something a little different in order to survive. Competition was fierce and Susie was learning the ropes one secret ingredient at a time.

“It’s delicious.”

“Thank you.” Was there anything more awkward than having Casey sitting in her kitchen taste-testing her pastries? It was a good thing she had to leave soon and their time together would be cut short.

“So you make deliveries every day?”

“Yes, except on Sunday. I cater to the local coffeehouses and some offices. I do...just about anything that comes up. Parties, birthdays, reunions, anything I can.”

“Must be hard getting it all done.”

A chuckle blurted from her lips. “You just have to look around this place to see how well I’m doing.”

Casey blinked and his expression softened. He didn’t bother to glance around her messy kitchen counters.

Oh, boy, she hadn’t meant to say that. No one knew how she plotted out every second of every day and still didn’t have enough time to do it all. She wasn’t one to complain. She certainly didn’t want his sympathy. He just made her so darned nervous. Without giving him the chance to offer an obligatory polite answer, she asked, “Did you have something else you wanted? When you came over, I got the impression you—”

“What time does Ally go to sleep?”

Where did that question come from? Was he worried about Charger’s barking again? It couldn’t be anything else, could it? Blood pounded through her veins and she took a beat to answer. “Eight-ish...why?”

“I’d like to talk to you tonight, after Ally goes to bed.”

No. No. No. She put her head down, staring at a drop of creamy batter on the floor. “I usually call Mom after Ally goes to bed.”

“It’s important,” he added.

She didn’t want to be alone with him ever again, especially not at night, without Ally as her shield. She had to be up early. She had a headache. She had a friend coming over. Half a dozen other pitiful phony excuses entered her mind.

Finally, she lifted her lids and met his gaze. His blue eyes bored into her in a breathtaking way and all of his charming sincerity hit home. Oh, man. She couldn’t wiggle out of this without looking like a liar. Except for calling her mom to check in and say hello, she had no plans tonight. It was the same old, same old. She sighed. “Okay.”

On a solid nod, he rose from his seat and pointed to the boxes. “Where do these go?”

“In my minivan.”

“I’ll help load them.”

“No, it’s not necessary.... Don’t you have to be somewhere?” she asked. He was dressed to kill. He must have a zillion more important things to do than load up her cupcakes and muffins.

He shrugged and carefully lifted a box in his arms. “Let me worry about that. Is your van in the garage?”

“Yes, uh, thanks.”

He headed toward the door leading to the garage.

With Ally beside her, she grabbed a box and followed him. The garage smelled musty and contained the heat of summery days. It was dark inside until she pressed the garage door opener. Daylight poured through and she squinted as she walked to the end of the van. Balancing a box in one hand she opened the back hatch with the other.

Casey peered inside the van. “Nice set up,” he said. “Did you buy it this way?”

“No. It was converted for me.”

When she didn’t say more, Casey probed, “Your boyfriend do it for you?”

She pursed her lips. Heavens, she didn’t have time for a boyfriend. Dating was a thing of the past. “My mother.”

She guided her box onto one of the metal shelves and Casey did the same with his. His elbow brushed the slope of her breast where her Sweet Susie’s apron met her blouse. Her breath came up short, but she continued on, trying to ignore the warm buzz rippling through her.

“Mom gave me the van on her wedding day. She had the back converted with shelves for my cake boxes and then commissioned a designer to paint my logo on the sides of the van.”

It was a ten-year-old minivan, all that her mother had apologetically said she could afford, but it was in good enough shape for her purposes. Her mom really splurged on the logo design and on the day of her second wedding to Chip Huffman, a man who loved her to distraction, she’d taken Susanna outside, to show her the van. “Accepting this is the best wedding gift you could ever give me. I think your dad would think so too,” she’d said to Susanna.

There was no way to deny her mother the pleasure. Her mom had seen her struggle to get her pastries to customers by stuffing her cake boxes in the trunk and backseat of her beat-up sedan. Often, Susanna would pray to the pothole gods and drive as slowly as eighty-five-year-old Mrs. Simpson from five houses down to deliver her pastries in one piece. Eleanor Hart had skimped on her own wedding just to be able to surprise Susanna with the gift. Susanna had been so grateful and overwhelmed, she’d cried for five full minutes.

“Your mom is a special lady,” Casey said, his smile easy.

Well that was something they both agreed on. Her mother had tended to her dad for years, pretending his declining health hadn’t taken a toll on her as well. But Susanna knew what it had cost her mother. Several years ago, her mom met Chip Huffman through a mutual friend and she’d fallen in love with the Georgia peach grower. Susanna had encouraged the relationship—her mom deserved some happiness in the second half of her life. And now, her mother was living in Georgia, soon to celebrate her third wedding anniversary.

“She is...thank you.”

After that, they worked like a team to get the rest of the boxes loaded, Casey refusing to take no for an answer. He waited while Susanna buckled Ally into her car seat and hoisted herself into the driver seat. As she backed out of the garage, he followed her on foot along the driveway. The garage door closed behind him and he waved. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Shoot. For a minute, she’d forgotten about that.

Her fingers dug into the steering wheel and she sighed as the van ambled down the street.

One thing was certain: Casey Thomas wasn’t coming over tonight to talk about the dog.

Two

“Morning, Susie and Ally,” Miranda Fillmore’s voice boomed as she walked out the back door of The Coffee Connection. Dressed in a chocolate-brown apron, the forty-something coffeehouse manager greeted them with her usual cheerful smile.

Ally waved to her from the car seat. “Hi!”

“Good morning, Miranda,” Susanna said, bounding out of the minivan. She had to make five deliveries this morning, all before eight o’clock, so she’d learned how to work fast.

Miranda hid something behind her back as she approached Susanna. Away from Ally’s line of vision, she whipped a bright pink coloring book and a new box of crayons under Susanna’s nose. “Can she have these?” she whispered.

“Oh, of course.” Three fairy-tale princesses wearing tiaras and frilly gowns adorned the coloring book cover. “She loves anything with princesses.”

Susanna appreciated Miranda asking about giving her the gift. Being new to mothering, Susanna made daily decisions for Ally she wasn’t used to making. Most of them seemed like common sense, but she’d still gone online and read books, researching child rearing tips and techniques regardless. She didn’t want to slip up and do something wrong when it came to Ally.

“I thought so.” Miranda said. “What little girl wouldn’t? I was hoping it would brighten her day.”

“Spreading a little joy is always a good thing.”

Miranda walked to Ally’s side of the minivan and opened the door. “Here you go, Ally. These are for you. I hope you like to color.”

The little girl’s eyes lit up as she reached out to claim the unexpected gift. “Princesses!” She hugged the book to her chest, and then studied the slender new box of washable—thank you, Miranda—crayons.

Susanna’s heart warmed. Since Ally had come to live with her, her clients had been overly accommodating by allowing her a little later delivery time and sending someone out to help her unload the boxes. All of them seemed to understand the plight of a working single mother, and were very kind and attentive to Ally. “What do you say, Ally?”

“Thank you!”

“It’s very sweet of you, Miranda,” Susanna said.

“You’re both very welcome.” Miranda walked over to her. “But what’s sweet are these lovelies.” She reached for the box with The Coffee Connection written on top. “What did you bring me today?”

“The usual assortment of two dozen muffins and the cupcake of the day, which is peanut butter with chocolate ganache frosting.”

“Yummy. Those will go by lunchtime,” Miranda said. “I hope you brought me a dozen of those?”

“I sure did. Well, I’m off. Thanks again for thinking of Ally. She’ll be coloring all afternoon, I’m sure.”

“You’re welcome. Bye now.”

Susanna drove off. After she made the rest of her deliveries, she steered the minivan toward home. She didn’t mind being up and out early, but she felt bad for disrupting Ally’s sleep every morning. Once she opened her own shop, her traipsing around town in Sweet Susie’s minivan would come to an end. For a moment, she let herself daydream about the lavender and white painted shop, its bakery cases filled with dozens upon dozens of her pastries. There would be café tables and chairs under a giant blackboard chalked with the day’s cupcake specials. She’d have two employees and a delivery man. Everyone would wear lavender.

Sure, Susie...keep dreaming.

She sighed quietly.

Ally would be going to kindergarten in two years and she’d have more time to build her business. If she could hold on until then....

A few minutes later, she pulled up to the house and drove into the garage. Ally had fallen asleep. Susanna took her time working on the straps to ease Ally out of the car seat. Ally opened her eyes once, draped her arms around Susanna’s neck and curled her body against hers, snuggling in. Susanna kissed the top of her head as she made her way into the house. In the bedroom, she lowered Ally down onto her bed. The child nestled her face into her pillow and Susanna tiptoed out of the room.

In the kitchen, Susanna filled the sink with detergent and rinsed her bowls, muffin tins and utensils, giving each one a good scrub. She had an ancient dishwasher that would go on the fritz every so often, but today she was an optimist. She loaded it up, hit the sanitize button and closed the door. “Do your magic,” she said and walked away to clean countertops and pretend she didn’t notice the peeling paint on the walls and the permanently scuffed floors. The house really needed a makeover, but Susanna would be happy with a brand spanking new double stainless steel oven that would bake four dozen anything in one shot—one with even heat distribution that turned into a convection oven with the press of a button.

Susanna walked into Ally’s room and stole a peek to make sure she was still asleep, then retrieved her laptop and set it up on the kitchen table. When her cell phone rang and the caller’s name popped up, she smiled and answered. “You just saved me.”

“From dishes or from doing the books?” her friend Mindy asked.

“The books.”

“Well, you can thank me later. How’s Ally?”

“She’s doing okay. Taking a little nap right now.”

“Give her a hug for me when she wakes up.”

“I’ll do that.”

“So I need the scoop. Did he show up?”

“He?”

“You know who I mean. My junior high school fantasy crush. Casey. Is he really back in town?”

Susanna’s face scrunched up. She’d almost forgotten Mindy’s fascination with Casey Thomas when they were growing up. She and Mindy had been friendly as youngsters, but not besties, the way she and Audrey were. But their friendship had developed once they were adults. “Yes, as of yesterday. How’d you find out so fast?”

“I bumped into Lana Robards at the market this morning. She said she saw Casey jogging in the neighborhood.” Mindy’s hearty laughter bubbled through the cell phone. “She said he was enough incentive to take up running again.”

“She just got divorced,” Susanna blurted. Something painful knifed through her stomach. She didn’t want to think about why hearing that bothered her so much.

“Not just. It’s been a year. And it must be lonely for her on the weeks she doesn’t have her kids.”

Darlene and Darryl were four-year-old twins living with one parent one week and one parent the next under the terms of their joint custody agreement. It was tough and Susanna often wondered how the children were adjusting.

“But I digress. So tell me your impressions. Is he still dreamy?”

“Are you forgetting about Ted, your loyal, wonderful hubby, or that you’re six months prego?”

“C’mon Susie, give me something to spice up my ho-hum life. I’m a grade school teacher with summer-itis. Since school let out, I miss my students and my work. And Ted’s been smothering me with kindness.”

“You love every second of it. You don’t fool me.”

“So,” she whispered. “Just tell me, is Casey still hot?”

Susanna rolled her eyes. “Yes, okay. Casey is still good-looking.” Mindy would have melted into a puddle of drool today if she’d seen him dressed in that gunmetal gray tailored Armani suit. “He’s a little more solid, not as lean as in his bronc-busting days.”

“Mmm. Solid is good. Have you spoken to him?”

She so did not want to have this conversation. “A little.”

“And, what’s the scoop? Why’s he here? How long will he be staying next door?”

Being a teacher, Mindy had to know all the facts. “All I know is that he’s here on business. I have no clue how long he’s staying.”

But he’ll be coming over to my house tonight after Ally goes to sleep. Her eyes squeezed shut and she rubbed the left side of her temple. She had hours before she had to think about that.

“But not permanently?”

“No.” Audrey had assured her this was only temporary...and the more temporary the better.

“Oh, Susie...you’ve got to work on your spice skills. You didn’t give me anything juicy.”

“I’ll remember that in the future.”

“Hey, I almost forgot the real reason I called. One of the teachers I work with is throwing her daughter a sweet sixteen party. I told her about Sweet Susie’s and how fabulous your desserts are. She’s going to call you later today to cater a chocolate party for her.”

“Wow, thanks. That sounds like fun. I can certainly use the extra work.”

“Welcome. Oh, and Suse...it wouldn’t hurt if you invited Casey over for dinner one night. He’s single, you’re single. Who knows?”

“Oh, no. Don’t even go there, Mindy. You’re not matchmaking for me. The last date I went on was a disaster and lasted all of forty-five minutes before I showed him the door.”

“That wasn’t my fault. I didn’t know the guy I set you up with was a-a....”

“I’ll say it. He was a grabby-handed sex addict.”

“I’ve apologized for that a dozen times. Besides, it would be different with Casey. You know him.”

Too well. He’d broken her heart once already. She didn’t want an encore performance. “Not interested.”

Mindy sighed melodramatically. “Most single women would jump at the chance to date a hot guy like Casey, but my friend only gets her jollies from a hot oven.”

Mindy was darn right. And that’s exactly how it was going to stay.

* * *

Casey thought after taming wild broncos half his life, he’d be used to confrontation. But the idea of speaking with Susanna about the sins of the past left a bitter taste in his mouth. Taking his little sister’s vulnerable friend in the living room of his home hadn’t been one of his proudest moments. The guilt weighed heavily on him. They’d never spoken of it. Susanna probably wanted to forget it had ever happened. How could he blame her? That night, Susie had come to his house looking for Audrey and some comfort. She’d been devastated learning of her father’s debilitating disease, knowing his life would be changed forever and death wasn’t far in his future. But she’d found Casey instead, and he’d taken her virginity. Tonight, he had to right the wrong. There was no doubt in his mind.

“Has to be done,” he said, his voice breaking the silence. The pup’s head shot up from his sprawled position on the bedroom floor. His tail wiggled and he rose to stretch his neck. His round chestnut eyes zeroed in on Casey. “Hey, I wish I could take you over there tonight, but I can’t count on that yapper of yours not going off.”

Charger’s head tilted.

“Don’t give me that pathetic look. You’re staying.”