Cowgirl for Keeps Read online

  * * *

  Anna saw how his eyes cut to one side and waited for the inevitable excuse. Or outright lie.

  This was Kelly, after all.

  The man who'd charmed her, but quickly shown a side she'd had no interest in—his partier side.

  But to her shock, he straightened his shoulders slightly and looked her right in the eye.

  "I made a lot of mistakes. For years. I hurt you, and I'm sorry."

  Her chest tightened up. For long moments, she felt as if she couldn't breathe.

  "So... what? This is penance? You're going to fix my kitchen to earn my forgiveness?"

  She hadn't meant the words to sound so cold, hadn't meant to snap at him like that, but his statement surprised her. Angered her, really. She didn't like feeling vulnerable. She didn't like being vulnerable, and if this kitchen proved nothing, it proved she was that.

  And she didn't like the expectations he'd laid on her with both his presence and his apology.

  "There's nothing I could do to deserve your forgiveness," he said quietly, and she had to look away from the shadows in his eyes. Her gaze fell to the side, and she saw the clench of his fist at his side.

  "But I'd like to do something tangible. If it wouldn't be too much of a bother for me to be in your home. Working in your home."

  She shook her head, thoughts whirling and a little panicked. "It's not necessary."

  She couldn't think about him here, in the house where she and Ted had spent most of their married life. Where Gina had been born.

  "At least let me draw up a sketch. You might change your mind when you see what the kitchen could be."

  She'd already dreamed of what her renovated kitchen could be, and those plans had gone up in smoke like so much had since Ted's death.

  Before she could give a final "no," thundering footsteps announced that the children had had enough of Paul's company.

  Kelly seemed to understand how upset she was and made his way through the house and out the front door without saying goodbye. Numb, unable to focus, she trailed through the house and onto the porch. The kids ran around crazily in the yard as Paul lingered on the steps.

  She couldn't imagine what Kelly had told him about their past. The minister certainly wasn't a pushover and was protective of his congregation. Last year when an online scammer had tried to steal money from one of their elderly members, he'd helped sort out the situation before any money had been lost.

  "You've been looking for someone to help you repair the kitchen," Paul said.

  She clung to her elbows, had her arms wrapped around her middle. "Yes, but..." Not him.

  "Are you afraid of him? Any reason you should be?"

  At that, she had to shake her head. "It was never... like that. He liked to party. Liked to drink. He was never mean or abusive, just someone I... didn't want to be around." That was partly it. She and Ted had fought about it frequently.

  "He's clean."

  She shook her head slightly before she'd even realized she'd done it.

  Paul sighed, maybe at her unforgiving spirit. "He put me in contact with his sponsor, with the program he's worked."

  Kelly had been in AA? Or something like it?

  "He's one of the leaders in their program now. He's not the same college kid you knew. Maybe God sent him to you."

  Did God really care about her kitchen being repaired?

  But she couldn't argue that Kelly's appearance held providential timing.

  Her birthday was in three weeks, and the one thing she'd wanted more than anything else was a brand new kitchen and to host a party like the ones she and Ted had hosted together.

  It looked like she might get her wish. But with Kelly? Why would God play that trick on her?

  2

  "He offered to fix your kitchen for free?"

  Anna's gaze flew around the interior of the coffee shop, which was, thank heavens, sparsely populated at this time of midmorning. Most patrons at this hour came in, visited the counter, and left.

  Mikey and Gina sat two tables away, heads bent over the table. Gina had a coloring book in front of her, and Mikey a video game. That should give her about ten minutes to chat with Melody and Lila. Lila had easily slipped into friendship with the two of them.

  "I think he's looking to assuage a guilty conscience," Anna said, stirring the straw in her coffee cup. In the background, a fancy coffee machine hissed and spat.

  "So..." Melody's leading comment trailed off, but it was Lila who continued.

  "Why don't you let him?" She tossed her braid over her shoulder.

  "It's... complicated."

  The other two women sat side by side across from Anna, and now they exchanged a loaded glance.

  "Complicated as in... he's attractive and you haven't really been interested in anyone since Ted?" Melody asked.

  She had felt something last night when she'd first seen Kelly. It had been more of a punch than anything else.

  He still had the looks he'd been graced with back in their college days, but looks weren't everything.

  "Complicated as in Ted almost broke our engagement because of him." Not to mention the knock-down fight they'd had on their wedding night because of Kelly's actions.

  "You've wanted your kitchen redone since before Ted passed," Melody reminded her. Three pairs of dangly earrings danced as her head bobbed in animation. "And sunk all that money into it."

  With nothing to show for it. She'd gotten scammed. It still left a bitter taste in her mouth every time she thought about it.

  "If it were me, I'd let someone work for free to finish the project," Lila said. Of course she'd say that. Impulsive Lila wouldn't have considered it for more than thirty seconds.

  "Even if seeing that someone every day would bring back painful memories?" Anna sipped her coffee and let her eyes slide to the kids, who were, amazingly, still sitting in the booth.

  Lila's eyes shadowed. Anna hadn't meant to touch a nerve. She still wasn't clear on Lila's reasons for coming back to town. After her enigmatic comment about being the prodigal, Lila hadn't visited her family's ranch since her arrival.

  Melody had moved to Redbud Trails right around the time Anna and Ted had moved into town five years ago. Being one of very few women around her age, after Ted had died, they'd become as close as sisters.

  But it was clear neither woman understood just what Kelly had been to her in the past.

  Bells at the door jangled and out of habit, Anna swept a glance behind her.

  And promptly sank down in the booth, shading her face with one hand. Heart thudding, she looked up to see her two friends' eyebrows raised, obviously trying not to smile.

  "It's him," she mouthed.

  "What was that?" Melody asked, maybe a shade too loud.

  But anything Anna might have said was muted by Mikey and Gina's joyful shouts.

  "Mr. Kelly!"

  With any hope of him remaining oblivious to her presence evaporating, she sat up. Too slowly to nab either of her children as they raced past the booth toward the contractor.

  She heard the tone of Kelly's greeting but couldn't make out his words.

  "He's more than attractive," Melody whispered. "He's hot!"

  Facing off with her friends and their dancing eyes hurt her stomach, but turning to check on her babies even more so.

  They stood on each side of Kelly, talking a mile a minute, beaming up at him.

  * * *

  Kelly had seen Anna's truck, the same one that had been parked outside her farmhouse last night, and turned in to the coffeehouse's small lot before he could talk himself out of it.

  If he'd been smart, he would've headed out of town after her cool reception last night. He'd come to Redbud Trails to make amends for their shared past, and in the depths of his soul, he'd hoped for forgiveness.

  He'd not only not been forgiven, but he was pretty sure if not for Paul, she'd have ordered him off her property. She hadn't agreed to let him help. And he had no reason to believe she w
ould. Ever.

  But apparently she could still render him stupid, because he'd stayed up until the wee hours of the morning furiously sketching the changes he'd like to make in her kitchen.

  He held the sketch in his shaking hands, trapped between her children as they shot rapid-fire questions at him. His eyes adjusted to the dim interior after being out in the bright midmorning sunlight, bringing the modern decorations into focus.

  "Have you ever built a tree house?" from Mikey.

  "D'ya use a hammer? And a drill?" from the little girl, Gina.

  He felt the weight of Anna's gaze from several feet away, where she sat with two women, who were grinning. He couldn't see Anna's face, so he decided to take her friends' grins as a good sign.

  "I've never built a tree house, no. And I use a lot of tools."

  Mikey strangely looked disappointed, but Gina lit up like a Christmas tree. "Cool!" She ran over to Anna. "Mr. Kelly has lots of tools, just like daddy used to!"

  He waved off the barista behind the counter. He was so wound up that coffee would give him jitters.

  He shored up his courage and followed Gina, getting a good look at Anna as Mikey tagged along just behind him. Her blonde hair hung between her shoulders and chin and had some curl at the ends. Her brown eyes shadowed as she considered him.

  But her friends didn't seem to notice.

  "Hi," the red-headed one said. "You must be the contractor Anna's been telling us about. Anna's friend from college."

  Anna whirled back to face her friends. He couldn't see her face, but could guess at the expression she pulled.

  She'd called him her friend?

  Suddenly his heart was thudding in his ears like he was a teenager talking to his first crush.

  "I'm Kelly."

  "Lila."

  "Melody."

  Anna didn't look up at him. Maybe the redhead had assumed the friend part.

  "You mind if I sit down for a minute?" he asked.

  The brunette across the table smiled even more widely. "Why not?"

  He thought Anna muttered, "I mind," but she inched over just enough for him to squeeze on the edge of the vinyl seat. His knee brushed against Anna's, and she scooted farther toward the wall. Gina clambered up into the empty booth behind them, standing so she could look between their shoulders to the table.

  Kelly laid the three sheets of paper out on the slightly-sticky table surface, arranging them to show the 3D rendering of her kitchen as he'd imagined it.

  "Oh, wow," Lila murmured, even though she was viewing it upside-down.

  "Mom! It's a brand new kitchen. Lookit!" From his elbow, Mikey was bouncing up and down. Another pang of hope hit Kelly's heart, hard.

  But Anna's head was down, and she remained silent.

  He wanted to do this for her. More than he'd wanted anything in a long time. Maybe it was asking for heartache, because he knew if she allowed him to renovate her kitchen, it didn't mean she would forgive him.

  But a remnant of the old Kelly, the one who had dared to dream big, wouldn't let him give up yet.

  * * *

  Anna stared at the sketch, aware of the expectant silence at the table.

  They were all waiting on her to say she liked the sketch, the idea of her new kitchen.

  And that was the problem.

  She didn't like his idea. She loved it.

  How had he intuitively known that she'd wanted something more modern? He'd sketched the upper cabinets lighter and the lower ones darker. A new backsplash made of small tiles, and new granite counters. Let her wipe up her drool now. And stainless steel appliances rounded out the space that looked nothing like her torn-apart kitchen now.

  How had he known? They hadn't even talked through any details last night, only her nonexistent budget.

  Gina shifted from the booth behind, jostling Anna's shoulder and breaking her fixation on the drawing.

  She flicked a glance up to see Lila and Melody watching her. She didn't have the guts to glance in Kelly's direction, not with the hush that had fallen over the table.

  "It's nice," she offered.

  "Nice?" Lila echoed, disbelief clear in her tone.

  "I can come up with something else—"

  "It's exactly what you wanted," Melody burst out.

  She wrinkled her nose at her friend.

  "Yes," Lila said. "Of course, her answer is yes."

  But she felt Kelly's gaze acutely. Waiting for her answer. "Annie?"

  No one had called her that in years—except Ted.

  "Mom, you should let Mr. Kelly fix our kitchen," Mikey said with the simplicity of a child.

  Everyone thought she should agree.

  And there was a part of her that wanted to.

  But... Kelly.

  Finally, she dared to look at him. She hadn't gotten this close to him last night. His caramel eyes were the same, with a few more lines creasing the corners. Maybe a few more shadows—ones that she didn't want to think about for too long. His lips dipped in a half-smile that told her he understood her reluctance more than anyone else at the table.

  She didn't want to need him.

  But she did.

  "Fine," she agreed, looking back down at the drawing. Her heart thumped loudly in her ears. "When will you start?"

  3

  The sun was a bright ball just over the horizon as Kelly turned his pickup toward Anna's place the next morning.

  He was really doing this.

  Boy, there was nothing out here. Just cattle-dotted fields on both sides and the ribbon of dirt road kicking up dust in his rearview.

  He burned his lips on the to-go coffee he'd picked up at the diner. The proprietor—apparently also the cook, because he'd come out from the kitchen in a grease-stained apron—had pestered him about renovating the diner's interior. He must've overheard the conversation from yesterday.

  Kelly hadn't planned to stay in Redbud Trails after he'd made amends with Anna.

  But he also hadn't planned on the spark of attraction that still flamed between them.

  She'd barely looked at him that first night, but there had been no mistaking it as they'd sat next to each other in the diner. Awareness had skittered up his arm and across his spine when their elbows had brushed.

  She'd avoided his gaze most of the time, but when their eyes had met, just for a moment...

  He'd felt that connection clear to his toes.

  He'd come to Redbud Trails to make amends. He'd known about Ted, had learned about the other man's death through a friend of a friend, but he'd thought whatever had been between him and Anna had died long ago.

  He didn't have any business hoping that something might grow between them in the two or three weeks he was here.

  She didn't seem to want to feel anything for him, if her manner were any indication.

  Regardless of what she felt, he couldn't stop his attraction.

  He'd had relationships after her. Just nothing that lasted. In the back of his mind, there'd always been Anna.

  He had to stay grounded. He'd checked in with his sponsor via text first thing. There was a chance this could all go bad—like it had when he'd tried making amends with his old man.

  Could he handle it if Anna turned her back on him? He prayed it wouldn't happen. She was lucky number thirteen—the last of those he'd wronged in a major way. Part of his recovery program was to accept responsibility for what he'd done and attempt to make amends with those he'd wronged.

  Starting with rebuilding her kitchen. And hopefully her trust. And then asking her to listen.

  His mind was so focused on his mission and half-stuck in the past that he almost didn't see the cows strung across the road until it was too late. He slammed on the brakes, and his truck fishtailed slightly, but came to a stop well away from the milling animals. Thank goodness.

  There were a lot of them. All blocking the road to Anna's place. He gauged the short distance from where he was to where he knew the road turned left up ahead. These could be Ann
a's cows.

  Where had they come from? He spotted a downed line of barbed-wire on the north side of the road just ahead.

  They didn't seem to be in any hurry to move, and there was nowhere for him to go.

  He rolled down his window and shouted. Banged his fist against the side panel of his door.

  The nearest cows looked at him placidly, seeming content to lower their heads to the grass at the side of the road. Unmoving.

  He groaned.

  He'd managed to pry Anna's phone number from her before he'd left the diner yesterday, and now he dialed it on his cell phone, still leaning on his elbow out the truck window.

  She didn't say hello. "You're backing out?"

  He was so surprised he chuffed a bark of laughter—but her verbal shot struck low in his gut. "I'm stuck in traffic."

  There was a beat where he couldn't help but wonder if this whole thing was a mistake.

  But he'd promised to fix her kitchen, and he'd broken enough promises in his life.

  He waited for her to say something. When all he got was silence, he continued. "There's a couple dozen cows spread out across the road. Any chance they belong to you?"

  Another beat, and then she was shouting, "Mikey! Gina!" loud enough that he had to pull the phone away from his ear.

  The line went dead. He looked at the phone as if it could tell him whether she'd hung up on him or the connection had been lost.

  What now? No doubt he could come at the road to her place from the opposite direction—if he could get his phone's GPS to give him directions this far from civilization—but if these were her animals, wouldn't she need help getting them back where they belonged?

  It wasn't ten minutes later when she came flying across the plain on horseback. Was that Gina behind her, clinging to Anna? Anna's hair flew out in a golden streamer behind her hat, and when she got closer, he could see the determination firming her mouth.

  There was Mikey on a second horse, following fast behind her.

  Kelly got out of his truck, intending to greet her or something, but she only waved him off.

  Dismissed.