Where Have All the Cowboys Gone? (28 page)

He ran his hand through his hair. ‘I was conceited enough to believe that Anna moved to Springtown because she wanted to resume a relationship with me. I should’ve known she had other reasons, but that’s my problem, not yours.’

When Lauren made no move to get up and take the letters, Grayson paused, then he said, ‘I’ll leave all this information for you to look over. If you still doubt my word, call my father. He’ll tell you exactly what an ungrateful son of a bitch I am.’

‘Will he also tell me you’re not going to succeed him at Turner Enterprises?’

Grayson looked pained. ‘That was a cheap shot. I never intended to take up that position.’

Lauren glanced around the plush office suite and then studied Grayson’s expensive suit. ‘I can see that now. You really don’t need your father’s money do you?’

She tensed. Would he pick up her verbal peace offering?

To her disappointment, he gave her a bland non-committal smile. ‘Whether you choose to believe him or not is up to you.’

He picked up another sheaf of papers. ‘I also talked to your father.’ His smile this time was more definite. ‘I had to mislead him into thinking I agreed with his methods of controlling you to get this information. If you call him, I’m sure he’ll be delighted to tell you that I deceived him. For the record, I have no intention of doing any business with him either.’

Lauren watched his long fingers sift through the papers on the desk. ‘I checked out his claims to have influenced your business deals. Unfortunately, he did initiate some of the original contacts. But all the companies I contacted insisted that they kept you on because of your superior business skills and talent, not your father’s.’

Lauren felt a glut of emotion build in her chest. Despite his anger, Grayson had done all this for her?

‘As for the PBR commercials, I can only swear that I had nothing to do with them.’ He added another set of documents to the pile. ‘I’ve taken myself off the board of Prairie Dawg Boots so that you can deal with Jay and Barry with a clear conscience. And I promise you that, if you contact me in the future, I will always disclose any interest I have in any company you are considering dealing with.’

Lauren studied the papers on the desk. Grayson had just shown her how a real businessman acted. He’d pushed emotion aside and dealt with the issues, treating her like an equal who was capable of understanding them. Then why did she feel like crying?

‘Thank you for doing this.’

Grayson sat back, an odd smile on his face. ‘Hell, it’s the only way I know how to deal with a problem. Run at it head on.’

Lauren gathered her courage. ‘I’m sorry about how I treated you at my mother’s party.’

Grayson waved a dismissive hand. ‘After I talked to everyone concerned, I realised you’d had to deal with a whole series of blows. I’m not surprised you cut up rough at me.’

Lauren studied his face. Despite his words, she knew he must have felt angry with her refusal to listen to him. He’d shown his vulnerable side to her before. Did this ‘purely business’ meeting mean he’d decided she no longer had a right to share his feelings? Had he decided to move on?

Grayson stood up and shut his briefcase. ‘Thanks for listening. When you’ve read through the documents, let me know if I can help you further. I’ll be here for a few more days.’

Lauren stood too, tears close to the surface. He was going? Not even an attempt to kiss her and tell her that he didn’t want to lose her?

‘What about our marriage?’ Lauren said. ‘Where does this leave us?’

Grayson patted his jacket pocket and produced a brown envelope. ‘I almost forgot. I got my lawyer to draw up the divorce papers. You just need to sign them and send them back.’ He placed the envelope carefully on the table. ‘I never wanted to trap you, I want you to be free.’

As Lauren reached for him, he headed for the door. His voice sounded husky when he finally spoke without turning around. ‘I wish you all the best. Let me know if I can help you out in any business capacity in the future.’

Before she could speak, he wrenched open the door and walked out. Lauren stood frozen in panicked indecision. Then she ran after him. He was stepping into the elevator. She managed to jam the door open with the toe of her boot. He slumped against the back wall of the elevator as if he was exhausted.

‘Grayson?’

He straightened up and his intense blue eyes met hers. ‘Stay the hell away from me, Lauren. I’ve played it your way. If you’re going to offer to have sex with me whenever I turn up in San Francisco, I’m not interested. I can’t do this any more.’

She retreated, shocked by the distress in his gaze, and let the elevator descend without her.

Lauren walked back to Grayson’s office and gathered up the papers he’d left on the desk. She noticed two glowing references from her first two clients. Grayson had walked away from her and left her free to pursue her business dreams and her life. The opulent office surroundings blurred as her eyes filled with tears. She’d won. She’d asserted her independence. So why did she feel like shit?

Grayson got out of his truck and stretched his tired muscles. After the last two weeks travelling the length and breadth of the country, it was good to be back on the ranch. He thought of his last stop at Jay’s house and his brother’s acceptance of his invitation to visit the ranch and check out the industrial site.

His smile died. At least he’d have some company to look forward to. He whistled for Petty, heard his high shrill puppy barks from inside the house. Grayson frowned. How had Petty got in there?

He tried to relax. It was possible Petty had sneaked in while his housekeeper did her daily check and got locked inside. Gray could only hope that the puppy had access to the litter box in the mud room or it was going to be a real stinking welcome home.

He glanced up at the oak tree that shaded the western side of the ranch. The leaves were starting to turn. Summer was almost over.

Grayson fumbled for his key as Petty’s barks reached a crescendo. The screen door of the mud room swung open and Petty leapt straight into his arms. Grayson buried his face in Petty’s soft fur and carried him through to the kitchen. The scent of coffee tugged at his senses and he looked up.

Lauren sat at the kitchen table. She wore jeans and one of his old shirts. Scarcely daring to breathe, Grayson set the excited dog down and helped himself to a mug of coffee. He pulled out a chair, the scraping noise loud in the silence, and sat opposite her.

Lauren put down her mug. ‘I was hoping you’d be back today.’

Grayson sipped cautiously at his coffee. It tasted good. ‘What can I do for you?’

She took a deep breath and locked her gaze with his. ‘I’ve been thinking about what you’ve told me.’

‘And?’

Lauren frowned. ‘Just let me say my piece without interrupting, will you?’

Grayson sat back and gestured for her to continue.

‘I realised that you are nothing like your father and nothing like mine.’ Lauren swallowed hard. ‘I almost let my own fears destroy any chance we had to build a relationship.’

He liked the sound of that. A cautious spark of hope kindled in his gut.

‘I’ve always been afraid of making a mistake like my mother did and being stuck in a marriage because of duty or guilt. I shouldn’t have assumed all marriages are like that.’ She dropped her gaze, stared at his coffee mug. ‘Can we start again? Can you give me enough space to find out who I am and what we can be together?’

Grayson reached out and took her hand. His fingers shook. ‘We can do whatever we want. It’s our marriage, nobody else’s. If you want to live in San Francisco during the week, go ahead. If you want to relocate your business to Oregon, we can do that too.’ He squeezed her hand. ‘You were right too. In my attempts to get back at my father, I’ve neglected my business opportunities in the last three years. It’s time I balanced my life more evenly as well.’ She finally looked at him. ‘We can make it work, honey, I promise you.’

Lauren stood up, her chair crashed to the floor as she reached for him. He dragged her over the table and into his arms and held her tight. Her hair smelt of his shampoo and her uniquely sensual self.

‘I love you, Lauren. I know this isn’t what you wanted to happen right now in your life, but we can deal with it. If you’re worried about your mother, we can have her live down here with us. I can protect her from your father.’

Lauren stroked his cheek. ‘I’ve already spoken to my mom. She understands what I have to do. She told me to live my own life and not worry about hers.’

‘She’s a nice lady. Make sure she knows she’s always welcome here should anything bad happen.’

Lauren smiled through her tears. ‘I already told her that. I knew you’d agree.’

Grayson kissed her fingers. ‘We’ll sit down together and work out a business plan that allows both of us to work and still take care of the ranch business.’ He grinned as Lauren began to unbutton his shirt. ‘After we’ve celebrated our marriage in a more traditional fashion.’ He caught her chin in his fingers. ‘Do you want a big wedding? We can have one if you want.’

Lauren finished on the buttons and rubbed her palms over his muscular chest and aching nipples. She started on his jeans. ‘No way. I’m happy with the ceremony we had in Vegas. It’s our marriage and it’s about us. We’re the only people who know how we want it to work. We don’t need anyone else’s approval.’ She slid his zipper down and put her hand inside to stroke his cock. ‘And you’re so rich, we don’t need any wedding gifts, do we?’

Grayson caught his breath as she tightened her grip. ‘That’s one way of looking at it, Mrs Turner.’

He gulped as Lauren squeezed hard and said, ‘It’s Ms Redstone to you. I’ll consider hyphenating if we ever have kids.’

‘It’s a deal.’ Grayson picked her up and swung her into his arms. He kissed her warm mouth until she made a needy sound deep in her throat. ‘Now let’s go and shake on it.’