Heart So Sweet: Book 3 in the Great Plains Romance Series (11 page)

Lily clucked her tongue. “He should be looking for you, not the other way around.”

Rose pointed out a table with several empty spots. As the elderly sisters settled in their seats, Rose reached out and patted Susannah’s hand. “Thank you, dear. And don’t worry about the sheriff. Perhaps he hasn’t returned from Rapid City yet.”

Susannah’s mouth went dry. “Rapid City? No, my brother was in Rapid City, not the sheriff.”

“Well, that’s not what Mrs. James told us.” Rose glanced at her sisters, then all three ladies looked at Susannah, smiling.

Susannah excused herself, trying to ignore the coldness creeping into the pit of her stomach as she rushed to find Tate. Had he really gone to speak to Lucas? She was desperate to learn the outcome but terrified by the fact that Tate hadn’t told her he was going—or that he was back. Surely if everything went well he would have come to find her, let her know that he’d worked things out with Lucas?

The fact that Tate hadn’t found her—and that he seemed to be making himself scarce —weighed so heavily on her that she stopped looking for him. Clearly Lucas hadn’t forgiven Tate, which meant that he’d never accept her relationship with Tate.

Susannah’s reaction to this realization surprised even her. She was furious—furious that her brother couldn’t or wouldn’t set aside his history with Tate to allow her just a little happiness in life. Susannah had put her own life on hold, giving up her free time to help Lucas raise Jenny and now even taking over the daily operations on the ranch. She didn’t regret her decisions for a moment, but dammit, it was time Lucas put on his big boy underwear and make this small concession for her. Determined to let him know exactly how she felt, she started to scan the picnic tables lined up along the sidewalk once more.

She saw Jenny first, and her niece came running to greet her.

“Aunt Suz, how do I look?” She twirled around in her jeans skirt and cotton top.

Susannah forced a smile. She would not let Jenny know that she was raging inside. “Stunning, as always.”

“Let me see how you look.”

Susannah twirled as well, noting that the new dress she bought seemed to be attracting a lot of attention.

Jenny noticed as well. “You’re going to be dancing all night long.”

“I hope not! I need to spend some time with my favorite niece.”

Jenny rolled her eyes. “I’m your only niece.”

“Yep, but you’re still my favorite.”

Jenny led her to the table that the family had commandeered. Daniel and Jonathan sat on the far side of the picnic table, drinking beers and calling out to people as they walked by. Andrew was standing next to the picnic table, scowling. Lucas sat on the side closest to the dance floor, but kept his back to the table. His arms were crossed and he was watching the people dance. Susannah stared at him, trying to draw his attention without causing a scene in front of her niece, but his eyes were trained on someone on the dance floor. He was following the person back and forth, without moving his head. She slid onto the seat next to him, wondering who he was watching so intently, but there were too many people, too many possibilities.

During a lull in the music, she leaned closer to him. “Care to tell me about your trip? Anything unusual come up?”

He shook his head, never taking his eyes from the dance floor.

“We need to talk. In private.” She couldn’t hide the iciness in her voice.

He looked at her now, his eyebrows raised in concern. The gesture enraged Susannah even more.

Jenny ran up and grabbed her hand. “Aunt Suz, the funnel cake guy’s here. C’mon.”

Susannah looked at Lucas. “I won’t let you ruin this for me. You owe me this.”

He turned back to the dance floor, making no indication that he had heard her.

Jenny pulled her up, trying to drag her toward to the food vendors. Susannah threw Jonathan a look begging for help, but he just shrugged at her. She let her niece lead her through the crowd while she scanned the faces for Tate. Twice she thought she saw him, but a closer look proved her wrong both times. She would find him and tell him to forget about Lucas and her whole family, if need be. If they couldn’t accept her happiness, well, then they weren’t really her family anymore, were they?

That thought drained the anger from her. Was she really willing to give up her entire family to be with Tate? She couldn’t imagine Lucas not allowing her to see Jenny. He might hate Tate, but he would never do that to his daughter. Jonathan and Daniel would eventually accept Tate, but they wouldn’t be able to stand up to Andrew, would they? Lucas might not like Tate, but he would never attack him. So it was just Andrew, which Tate said he could handle.

The line for funnel cakes wound back and forth multiple times, and Susannah groaned. She thought about trying to talk Jenny out of waiting, but it was an annual ritual for them, and she knew her niece would be heartbroken if she did. Suddenly she wondered what would happen if she and Tate had children—would their uncles accept them, welcome them into their home, take them out for ice cream, and teach them to ride? Or would she be facing a life full of holidays and firsts that she could not share with her brothers? The more her thoughts swirled in her head, the sicker she felt. She tried to tell herself that it was the sweet smell from the fried dough of the funnel cakes, but she knew better.

She couldn’t imagine a man more perfect for her than Tate, and if he brothers couldn’t accept him into the family, then she didn’t want to be part of that family anymore.

Twenty minutes later, when they were only halfway through the line, her uneasiness nearly brought her to her knees when she saw Tate meandering through the crowd. Her heart pounded, and she willed him to look her way. She wanted to call out to him, tell him not to bother with Lucas or the rest of her family, but she couldn’t have that conversation in front of Jenny.

Fate was stacked against her tonight. Tate saw Lucas sitting at the table and made a beeline for him. Susannah watched Jonathan nudge Daniel, and the two of them moved away from the table, leaving Tate and Lucas.

And Andrew.

Andrew was standing just behind them and to the side, but even from this distance Susannah could see his angry scowl. She was just about to break her niece’s heart when Trish and Dalton James walked up.

“Well, hello there, beautiful ladies.” Dalton flashed them a perfect smile. “I don’t think we’ve met. Dalton James.” He thrust his hand at Jenny, who shook it firmly.

“Jenny Clark.”

“Ah, your daddy must be Lucas.”

“Yes, sir. He’s sitting right over there.”

They all looked to where Lucas sat, now frowning deeply, while Tate spoke to him.

Trish glanced at Susannah, then back to her husband. “Sweetie, why don’t you take Miss Jenny for a spin on the dance floor while I talk to Susannah?”

Dalton held out his arm toward Jenny. “It would be my honor, miss.”

Jenny giggled as she let herself be escorted into the crowd, and everyone made room for them, applauding them as a new song started.

As soon as Jenny and Dalton started dancing, Susannah made a beeline for her brothers. She pushed through a throng of people just as Tate stood up. He turned and they stood facing each other for what seemed like several moments. He then tipped an invisible hat. “Miss Clark.” She watched him walk away, but he never looked back.

When she turned to face Lucas, he was still frowning. “How dare you!” She was practically shrieking, but she couldn’t help it. She was using all of her control to hold back her tears. “After everything I have done for you, for Jenny, you couldn’t let me have this one piece of happiness?”

“Hold up, there.” Andrew snaked his way around the edge of the picnic table until he stood mere inches from her. “Is that how you got Daniel and Jonathan free? By whoring with the lawman?” He hissed it at her, so she was the only one who could have heard.

But everyone saw her slap him across the face so hard that the crack echoed above the noise around them. A hushed silence fell, with even the musicians taking the cue to stop playing.

“Don’t you ever speak to me like that, Andrew Clark!”

Andrew growled as he raised his hand to slap her back.

Susannah didn’t back down. “So that’s how it’s gonna be? Then take your best shot.” She turned her face slightly, giving him full access to her cheek.

Chapter Nineteen

Instead of striking her, Andrew howled in pain. Lucas stood behind him, holding his arm back.

“You strike her, brother, and I’ll kill you myself.” Lucas’s voice was calm, which made it all the more terrifying. “Momma would be ashamed of you, hearing you speak like that to your own sister.” He let Andrew shrug his arm out of the hold, but he stood close to his younger brother. “We’re not going to have a problem here, are we?”

“A problem? A problem!” Andrew was sputtering in rage. “What, and I suppose you’re fine with our sister giving away the goods to Tate?”

“Yes, I am.”

Susannah’s heart soared, and she wanted to hug Lucas, but she knew now was not the time.

“Really? After what he did with Mary Ellen?” Andrew spit on the ground at Lucas’s feet. “You disgust me.”

“What did he do to my mother?” Jenny stood at the edge of the crowd, which was watching the Clark family unravel in public. Susannah realized that only some were shocked by the spectacle itself. Most were shocked to hear Lucas speaking. “Daddy? What did he do to my mother?”

“Nothing, sweetheart, he didn’t do anything. Your Uncle Andrew is just confused.” He flashed a glare toward Andrew, daring him to contradict him, then held out his hand to Jenny, who took it. “Tate Trudell is my best friend. We lost touch for a while. But thanks to your aunt, we’re gonna be friends again. That’s all.”

“And my mother?”

He leaned down to whisper. “Let’s save that conversation for the ride home.” He winked at her. “Hey, weren’t you supposed to bring me a funnel cake?”

Jenny groaned and rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner. “The line was so long!”

“How about we head home and make banana splits instead?”

“With whipped cream and cherries?”

“Absolutely. Just lemme tell your aunt one thing, okay?”

He turned back to Susannah, but before he could say anything she was throwing her arms around him and hugging him tightly. “Are you really back?”

“You’re choking me, Annie.”

She pulled back and giggled. “Sorry, I’m just so happy.”

“So you love him?”

“Yes!”

He grabbed her hands and held them tightly. “He came here for you.”

She was nodding. “I made him promise to get your approval, but I didn’t think he’d do it here, in public.”

He squeezed her hands. “No, he came back home, to Bender, for you.”

“What?”

Lucas smiled and pulled her into an embrace so he could whisper in her ear. “He saw you when he came back for his father last year. Said it was love at first sight. He moved back home to be with you, Annie.”

She couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across her face. “Lucas, you and I have a lot to catch up on, but for now, I gotta go find the man I love.”

She finally found him standing on the bluff behind his cabin, his back turned to her as he looked out over the river and the farmland down below. He had run the Christmas lights out to the bluff and hung them from the trees, creating a romantic ambiance. She noted the blankets spread out on the ground and flushed.

“Thank you.” She said it so quietly she thought he might not have heard, but he turned to look at her.

“It was important to you.”

She took a step closer to him and reached out to stroke his cheek. “I think it was important to you, too.”

He nodded. “I’ve missed him.”

“Why did you wait so long to come back?”

He shook his head. “There was never anything between me and Mary Ellen.”

“But?”

“I think she was just a very lonely person. She wanted Lucas all to herself, so she made up some story about me loving her. I knew that as long as I was here, she and Lucas would never have the married life he deserved.”

She nodded. She could understand his motives, knowing that he was loyal to the end. “But after she died...that’s when he really needed you.”

He looked away for a moment, and she gave him the space he needed. When he looked back, she could see his eyes were glassy from tears.

“I did come back, as soon as I heard, but he wouldn’t talk to me, wouldn’t let me even be in the same room with him. I figured the best I could do was leave him to grieve on his own.”

“Until last summer.”

“Until I saw you.” His words hung between them, and they stared at each other for several long moments, neither one moving. Tate finally broke the silence. “I love you Susannah Clark, and I want to be with you for the rest of my life.”

She shook her head, then laughed at his frown. “No, don’t call me that.”

He smiled, pulling her so close that their lips almost touched. “I love you, my sweet Annie.”

Acknowledgments