Once a Cowboy (14 page)

Helen got up and showed the decaying bracelet to him. His hand shook as he touched it.

“Mrs. Hayes switched the ID bracelets. Travis Braxton became Brodie Hayes that night.” Alex paused. “He still is Brodie Hayes and probably always will be.”

“No, he isn’t,” George shouted.

Alex exhaled a deep breath. “Mr. Braxton, you can’t turn back the clock. I wish I could. There has to be some give-and-take for this to work out. You can’t expect Brodie to be Travis Braxton just like that.” She snapped her fingers. “And Brodie can’t expect you to forget about him. Somewhere there has to be a compromise.”

There was complete silence.

“What do you want us to do?” Helen finally asked.

“Let me continue to talk to him. Once he puts Mrs. Hayes’s death behind him, I think he’ll be more open to discuss the future.”

“Okay. That’s what we’ll do,” Helen said. “I’ve already seen him so I can wait a little longer.”

Maggie walked Alex to the door. “Thank you for being so patient with them.”

“I know they’re hurting and I’m so hoping that this has a happy ending.”

“Me, too.” Maggie gave a slight smile. “My twelve-year-old son, Cody, can’t believe Brodie Hayes is his uncle. He wants to tell everyone in school, but I told him we had to wait.”

“That’s probably wise.”

Alex drove away feeling good about the visit. Brodie would have some time to think and get his life into perspective before the Braxtons confronted him. She was hoping he’d make the right decision.

T
HE TRIP WAS
about an hour, but the traffic was heavy so it took longer. She finally pulled into her driveway, turned on the sprinklers and ran inside.

Naddy grabbed her as soon as she came through the back door, and swung her around. “Hallelujah. I just hit the jackpot.”

Alex caught her forearms. “Calm down. What are you talking about?”

Naddy held a hand to her chest and collapsed into a chair. “Heavens. I’m too old to be going in circles. My head’s spinning.”

“What’s all the excitement about?”

Naddy’s gray eyes grew big. “You’re not going to believe this. The dead girl in Vegas is the girl that went missing fourteen years ago.”

“Wow. That’s great work.”

“You bet it is, honeychild. There was a twenty-five-thousand-dollar reward for any information that might lead to finding her. Didn’t even know that, but I got a call a little while ago from a detective and he said the family’s attorney would be in touch. Man, I’ve hit the
jackpot. Ethel and me are going to Atlantic City.” Naddy charged toward her bedroom.

“Wait a minute.” Alex caught up with her. “You’re
not
going to Atlantic City and you’re
not
blowing twenty-five grand.”

“Says who?”

“Me. You owe me a chunk of it and we’ll budget the rest, so much a month.”

Naddy shook her head. “You’re such a spoilsport but I know you can’t help it. You’re Buck’s daughter.”

They heard the back door open and knew it was Buck. Naddy quickly regaled her son with her story. Buck responded the same way that Alex had.

He pointed a finger at Naddy. “You’re not spending every dime of that.”

“Bucky boy, I could be dead tomorrow so I’m living while I can.”

Alex headed for the stairs, letting them fight it out. But she was beginning to think that Naddy might have the right idea—live life to the fullest because tomorrow was always a gamble.

W
HEN SHE CAME DOWNSTAIRS
, Buck was alone in the kitchen. Naddy’s door was closed.

“Crazy old woman,” Buck muttered.

Alex got a Popsicle out of the freezer. “Yeah. But it’s her money. I’m sure the family is relieved knowing what happened to their daughter. Maybe now they can put her to rest.” Alex picked up her purse, thinking about the case that had caused her to leave the police force. Those parents had put their daughter to rest. Alex wouldn’t
change anything she’d done on that case. She’d put her heart into it and she would again. That was just her.

“Where’re you going?” Buck asked.

“Out.”

“To see the cowboy?”

“Maybe.”

“Girl, why can’t you let this go?”

She peeled the paper off the Popsicle and thought she’d be honest with Buck…and herself.

“I think I’m in love with him.”

Alex left Buck with his mouth open—for once he had nothing to say. Just as well. She wasn’t sure she would have wanted to hear his reaction. Nevertheless, she’d wanted to share her feelings with her father. Maybe she needed to hear the words out loud. This was a wonderful feeling she’d discovered, and Alex felt like shouting it from the rooftops.

She drove through the hot night, headed for Brodie’s ranch. He wouldn’t be home yet, but she wanted to be there when he returned. The drive gave her time to think about love and how, when it was right, a woman knew. From the first moment Brodie stepped out of his truck something happened inside her. Her pulse leaped, her palms were sweaty, and her heart knew that Brodie Hayes was special.

Through the weeks that followed the way she felt hadn’t changed, except now she recognized her emotions for what they were. Brodie was the part of her she’d been searching for—the missing part that made her complete.

Buck might laugh at that, but Alex believed in love, and she believed in happily ever after. It didn’t matter what Buck thought. Only Brodie mattered. She wasn’t sure he felt the same about her, but she would be there for him, though—no matter what.

She parked and got out. Away from Dallas the night air wasn’t so stifling. The dogs appeared out of nowhere and she sat on the step, petting them. Leaning back against the door, Alex waited.

B
RODIE COULDN’T WAIT
for the plane to touch down. This day would always be etched in his memory—the day he said goodbye to the woman who’d raised him. The woman who wasn’t his mother. So why did it still feel as if she had been?

With no luggage to wait for it didn’t take them long to get through the airport. Colter drove them to the funeral home to pick up Brodie’s truck. They said goodbye and he knew Colter and Tripp were worried about him. Hell, he was worried about himself. Right now it didn’t feel as if he’d ever recover from this ordeal.

He took Cleo to his mother’s house. Flipping on a light, he asked, “Are you going to be okay?”

“Sure.” Cleo laid her purse on the sofa. “Melvin will be over in the morning.”

“That’s good. You won’t be alone.”

She fingered her beads. “Melvin asked me to move in with him before Claudia passed, but I couldn’t because Claudia needed me. Now I’m thinking about doing it.”

“You’re welcome to stay here as long as you want.”

She shrugged. “It’s not the same without Claudie.”

“Whatever you want to do is fine with me.”

She gave him a hug. “I feel so bad that this happened to you.”

He tried to smile and failed. “Heck. I’m tough. I’m a bull rider. I’ll get through this.”

“I just want you to be happy—like your friends.”

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

She hugged him again. “Be happy, Brodie.”

He kissed her cheek and went to his truck, totally drained of every emotion. It was time to go home, to find some sort of peace.

T
HE BEAM OF
his headlights picked out the Jeep parked in his yard. Alex was here. Suddenly he wasn’t so tired anymore. Getting out he saw her sitting on the step, sound asleep, the dogs keeping guard.

It was after twelve. How many women would wait in the darkness all alone? Alex was one of a kind. He eased himself down to sit beside her.

Startled, she jumped straight up.

“It’s just me.”

“Oh.” She pushed her hair out of her eyes. “You scared me.”

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to do that.”

She plopped next to him and he pulled her into his arms. Being with her felt as natural as breathing.

“How was your day?” she asked.

“Awful. Tiring. Claudia and Brodie Hayes are now with Thomas, the way it should be. But I’m still here. I’m trying to make sense of that.”

“You will. You just need time.”

“Maybe.”

She rubbed her head against him. “It’s so peaceful out here.”

“And very warm.”

“Mmm, I hardly noticed.”

He cupped her face and kissed her. She tasted of strawberries and he smiled. “You’ve been eating a Popsicle.”

“Guilty.” She ran her tongue along his lower lip and his loins tightened with an uncontrollable urgency. Tonight he needed her in another way—the way a man needs a woman.

He kissed her deeply as the intensity of their emotions surrounded them. “Alex.” He kissed her nose, her cheek, and nibbled on her ear. “I want you. If that’s not what you want, let’s stop now.”

“I’m not stopping, cowboy.” He could feel her smile.

He stood and unlocked the door. Inside, he flipped on a light, but all he wanted to see was her soft brown eyes. Taking her hand, they walked to the bedroom.

Sitting on the bed, the moonlight streaming through the window, he drew her between his legs. “This time I want to be awake when you take off my boots.”

She removed his hat and tossed it into a corner. “I’d like for you to be awake during the whole thing.”

“Deal.” He slipped her tank top over her head and unsnapped her bra. Her skin was smooth, silky, heavenly. Her breasts spilled into his hands. He took his time getting acquainted with each one, caressing, stroking with his tongue. She moaned a sensuous sound and he reached up to take her lips. They fell backward onto the bed.

She quickly kicked off her sneakers and slid out of her jeans. He held her naked skin against him. But it wasn’t enough. He had too many clothes on.

Sensing his need, she tugged on his boots until they were off, then she leaned over him. “I always wanted to undress a cowboy.”

“Will any cowboy do?” he breathed into her neck.

“One with a big old truck.” A gurgle of laughter erupted from her throat.

“I’m your man.”

“Mmm.” She slowly unbuttoned his dress shirt and slipped it from his shoulders. Her lips trailed down his chest to his belt buckle and every need jerked alive inside him. He shimmied out of his pants and they were skin on skin, heart on heart. She was as soft as he was hard. His mouth tasted every inch of her, from her lips to the tips of her toes. He didn’t leave any place untouched.

“Brodie,” she moaned on a ragged breath. Taking the initiative, her lips began a thorough search of his body. He caught her head and pulled her up to him.

“I need you…now.”

“Condom?”

He fumbled in the nightstand until he found one and quickly sheathed himself.

“You do that so well.” She growled deep in her throat.

“Practice makes perfect.”

She tugged on his chest hairs. “That’s not something you should tell me right now.”

“Oh, Alex, sweet Alex.” He took her lips hungrily, wrapping his arms around her.

Alex felt as if she’d died and gone to heaven. His
touch sensitized every part of her and she wanted all of him, totally, completely.

Her hand slid down his body, loving the texture of his skin, his hardness and his masculinity. She massaged and stroked until he flipped her onto her back.

“You’re driving me crazy.” His voice was a husky whisper. “I want you—now.”

His lips captured hers as he thrust into her. She lost it then, wildly meeting his thrusts, clawing his back on a ride of pure undiluted pleasure. Her body convulsed into an orgasmic awakening.

She held him as he trembled his release. Breathing heavily, he rolled away and pulled her to him. Kissing his chest, she knew she’d never had sex like this before. She wanted to tell him how she felt, but it was the wrong time.

I love you, Brodie Hayes.

Nestling against him, she drifted into sleep and dreams of happily ever after.

B
RODIE WOKE UP
feeling relaxed for the first time in weeks. He pulled Alex closer, just savoring this moment with her. She’d saved him and now he was ready to face the future—whatever that might be.

Alex stirred and raised her head. “Morning, cowboy.”

She looked just like he knew she would, her eyes dark and dreamy.

“Morning,” he replied, grinning. She reached up and kissed his dimple, then her lips met his.

“Mmm.” He kissed her deeply. “This is a nice way to wake up.”

She slid her leg across his hip and straddled him.

“This is even better. Who knew the lady P.I. was cool on the outside, but wild in bed.”

She pushed back her hair with both hands. “Was I wild?”

“You were magnificent.”

She frowned. “I’m not usually.”

“Usually?” He lifted an eyebrow. “Have there been many usuallys?”

She looked down at him, her eyes bright. “I can count them on one hand minus a couple of fingers.” She inched a finger down his chest. “How about you, cowboy?”

“I don’t have enough fingers,” he replied and couldn’t stop the grin that spread across his face.

“I thought so. I mean a man who keeps condoms in his nightstand, well…” She let out a shriek as he rolled her onto her back.

But you will be my last,
he thought as his mouth covered hers and they forgot everything but this moment and each other.

A
N HOUR LATER
Alex sat at the kitchen table in Brodie’s shirt. He’d fixed breakfast and she sipped coffee, not wanting this time to end.

“I guess I should get dressed and head back to the city.”

Brodie wore nothing but his jeans and her senses spun at just the sight of his broad shoulders and bare chest.

“Do you have to go to work?”

“Not really.”

“Then stay the day. I’ll show you the ranch.” He took a swallow of coffee. “Do you ride?”

“You bet, but I haven’t in a long time.”

He shoved back his chair. “Let’s get dressed. I’ll put the dishes in the dishwasher while you’re dressing.” He carried plates to the sink. “If I go with you, we’ll probably never leave the house and I really need to check my cattle.”

“Give me five minutes—tops.”

In fifteen minutes, they were at the barn, the dogs following behind. Brodie gave her a hat and she put it on, feeling more and more like a cowgirl. Since it was early the heat wasn’t so bad, but the sun would be scorching later. She waited while he went to get the horses. He led two inside.

“This is Star. She’s a gentle mare.”

“Oh.” She stroked the horse’s face. “You think I need gentle?”

“Yep. Until I know how you can ride.” He swung a saddle onto Star’s back.

He showed her how to gird the saddle tight and she listened avidly. They turned as they heard the pounding of hooves. A young boy rode into the barn.

“Hey, Brodie. You’re back.” He jumped from the saddle.

“Hey, Joey,” Brodie said. “Thanks for looking after the ranch.”

“No problem. I did everything you told me and made sure there was plenty of water in all the troughs.” Joey kept staring at her.

“This is Alex Donovan.” Brodie made the introduction. “And this is Joey, who hasn’t learned all his manners yet.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stare, but you’re so pretty.” His face turned a bright red.

“Thank you, Joey. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Ah…ah…yeah.” He quickly swung back into the saddle. “I better go. ’Bye.” He rode away.

“He’s a little shy.”

“But a fan of Brodie Hayes?”

“Sort of.” He pulled Star forward. “Let’s ride, lady.”

Alex hadn’t been in the saddle for a while, but she adjusted quickly. The ranch covered many acres. The land was very flat with a couple of creeks running through it. Some pastures had been cleared to make hay fields. Others had towering oak trees with green coastal growing beneath them. Red-faced cattle grazed contentedly.

“What kind of cattle are those?” she asked as they rode through a herd.

“Hereford.”

They checked several water troughs to make sure the water was flowing. Brodie dismounted at a windmill and looked things over. She glanced up at the huge blades turning in the wind, creating energy to pump the water. Water was vital to a rancher—even she knew that.

At midday Brodie stopped by a slow-flowing creek. A large oak’s branches hung over the water. “Ready for a break?”

“Sure.”

He pulled a blanket from his saddlebags and spread it beneath the tree. She flopped down searching for ants and other critters. He handed her a canteen.

“What’s this?”

“Water. Don’t want to get dehydrated out here in the heat. And I have peanut butter crackers.”

“I love a man who’s prepared.” She took a swig.

“I’m always prepared.”

“Yes. I know.” She gave him the canteen. “Are there any condoms in that bag?”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Do you want to find out?”

She suppressed a laugh. “Not here in broad daylight. Maybe later.”