Cowboy Come Home (21 page)

Griff stared at the man he never thought he’d meet, his mind spinning. Then he reacted. Standing up, he headed for his bedroom.

Jake grabbed his arm as he reached the door.

“Look, Griff, I know this is hard. But I’m asking you to let the man have his say. He came the day I got back, but I asked him to wait. I think both of you need to face this thing.”

Griff didn’t want to give in to Jake’s pressure. He didn’t want to face the man who had denied him even before he was born. But he wanted a life here in Wyoming, near his cousins.

He bowed his head, his hands on his hips, gathering his strength. Finally, he looked up at Jake. “Okay.” The two of them came back to the table together.

He sat down and had to physically force his gaze to the man across from him. The first thing he noticed was the pain on the man’s face. This meeting wasn’t any easier for him than it was for Griff.

Good.

He sat there, stone-faced to hide his own pain, and waited.

“I knew you wouldn’t want to know me. I screwed up a long time ago, and I’ve never stopped regretting it.”

Just what he wanted to hear. Another rejection from his father. “Then let’s just forget it,” he said gruffly, and started to rise again, but Jake put his hand on his shoulder.

“Come on, Griff, give him a chance.”

“Why? He didn’t want me then and he doesn’t want me now. What’s the point?”

The man across from him half rose out of his chair. “Not want you? How can you think that? I’ve lived my life wondering every day where you were, how you were. Knowing my only son hated my guts.”

“You didn’t even know if my mother carried to term. Or whether I was a boy or a girl. You knew nothing.”

“I knew,” Haney said heavily. He turned to Jake. “I lied to your daddy. I did hear from Margaret. But my wife was still alive. I’d hurt her enough. I couldn’t shame her. She hadn’t deserved it.”

“So you didn’t respond to my mother? You left a seventeen-year-old pregnant on her own?” Griff asked bitterly, his lips curled in contempt.

Bill Haney straightened his shoulders. “I never lied to your mother. I told her I couldn’t divorce Grace. She said she didn’t care. But I did what I could. I sent her all the savings we had.”

Griff was stunned. “You sent her money?” In all her talk about his father, his mother had never mentioned that fact.

“A lot of money. Then, after—after Grace died, I contacted Margaret. I asked her to marry me. She wouldn’t. Said there was another man. Wouldn’t even let me see you.” The man’s shoulders slumped again.

There was a tense silence as Griff tried to take in all the information being thrown at him this morning. His mother had lied to him. Had denied him his father, because she’d wanted revenge for Bill’s earlier rejection. How easily Griff could believe that about his mother. She’d been that bitter.

And how sad that she’d denied herself the love of her family, the love of the father of her child, because she was proud and bitter.

“So she told you about me?” he finally asked, his voice hoarse.

“She gave me a copy of your birth certificate. And asked for more money. But she wouldn’t let me see you.”

Griffin folded his hands and laid his head on them.

“Look, Griffin, I’m not asking you to forgive me. I betrayed my wife because I fell in love with your mother. And I’ve lived a lonely, bitter life as payment. But—but I couldn’t live here, with you nearby, and not tell you. Besides, when I’m gone, you would know. I figured it would be cowardly not to face you before I go.”

A small measure of respect slipped under Griff’s defenses. Then something the man had said bothered him. “What do you mean, when you’re gone I’ll know.”

“I changed my will after Grace died. I left everything to you.”

“I don’t want it!” Griff roared, his mother’s teachings still a force in him.

Bill Haney, now that he’d told his story, seemed stronger. He stared at Griffin, a sympathetic look on his face. “Don’t matter, boy. It’s yours. You have no choice in the matter.”

Griff glared at him, but Red got up from the end of the table and came to sit beside Bill Haney. “I think I’ve wronged you, Bill.”

To everyone’s surprise, it was Bill who argued against Red’s overture. “No, Red. I’ve screwed up my life and several others. You haven’t wronged me. And I can’t do much to make amends. But I’ve got to try.”

Griff stared at him.

Haney stood and nodded his head at Griff. “I’ve had my say, and I appreciate you listening. If—if you have any questions, or want to see the place, let me know. You’ll be welcome.” He turned to go without waiting for an answer.

Griff found it difficult to take it all in. But he’d learned a lot since he’d come to live with the Randalls. Family was important. And his mother wasn’t as innocent as she’d portrayed herself to be. And this man wasn’t as black as he’d thought him.

“Wait.” His voice was hoarse, weak, but Bill Haney heard him, turning around, a faint hope rising in his eyes.

No one spoke.

Finally, Griff spoke again. “I can‘t—I don’t—What do you want from me?”

Haney took one step back toward the table. “Nothing, except maybe to speak, to talk once in a while. I won’t tell no one I’m your daddy, I promise. But maybe, if you don’t mind, I could call you. Not often. I won’t make a pest of myself, I promise. But—”

Griff couldn’t bear the man’s pitiful appeal any longer. He stood and extended his hand. “I can’t promise—Okay, we’ll get to know each other.”

Bill Haney’s face lit up with a smile like none the Randalls had ever seen. He clasped Griff’s hand with both of his and clung to it, nodding his head over and over again. “I’m so grateful, so grateful. I won’t tell anyone, I promise. I—”

“Telling people is up to you, Mr.—Bill,” Griff said, giving in to the tug on his heart. “But I’ll still go by the name of Randall. It’s too late in my life to change my name.”

Haney was still clinging to Griff’s hand, still nodding his head, but a look of wonder came into his eyes as Griff’s words penetrated. “I—I can tell people you’re my son? You won’t be ashamed—I mean, I can tell?”

Griff didn’t answer, looking at Jake for some help.

“Hell, all these chatterboxes already know,” Jake said, smiling. “No point in trying to keep it quiet.” He sent his brothers and Red a silent apology, hoping they’d understand he was trying to ease the tension.

Griff tugged gently on his hand, and Bill released it reluctantly.

“Do you—do you think you might want to see my place? I kind of let it go these last couple of years, but it’s a nice place. I could move into town and give it to you now if you want—I mean, ask Jake. He was wantin’ to buy it. It’s a sweet piece of land.”

“You just saved us a lot of money, Bill,” Jake said. “We were buying it for Griff. He’s a horseman. You should see him with some of Pete’s wild stock. He tames them.”

Bill’s eyes lit up. “Like your mama. She could wind any horse around her little finger.” His joy dimmed. “And any man, too.”

Suddenly, Griffin could take no more. He stood on his shaky legs. “I have to get out of here,” he muttered, and headed for the back door.

He needed to be alone. To consider all that had happened. His life was turned upside down, both from his realization that Camille mattered more than anyone in his life, and the discovery of his father and the lies his mother told.

He headed for the corral.

CAMILLE HAD DRESSED and dried her hair, put on makeup with shaky fingers. She wanted to look her best. It strengthened her courage. She was ashamed of her panic that morning, and she was going to make sure she made every effort to find her happiness. Like her father said.

Griffin was going to have to face her and tell her he cared nothing about her.

She came down the stairs, her chin up, and shoved on the kitchen door. Just in time to hear Griffin tell everyone he was leaving.

Her heart sank.

She caught a glimpse of him storming out the back door, in jeans and a T-shirt and house shoes. He was leaving in his house shoes?

She stared at the frozen scene before her. No one was moving. What was going on?

“Is Griff leaving now?” she finally asked, looking at Megan.

“Not really leaving. He just needed some time to think,” Megan assured her. “At least, that’s what I think.”

“What happened?”

A man she’d met once before, Haney, who owned the ranch next to the Randalls, stood. “He said he didn’t mind.”

His words did nothing to enlighten Camille. “I beg your pardon?”

“I’m his daddy. And he said it was okay.”

No one said anything.

“Poor Griff,” Camille finally muttered. “No wonder—”

“I promised I wouldn’t be a bother,” Haney hurriedly added.

Red stood up and put an arm around him. “A’course you did, Bill. It’s just that Griff needs time to take all this information in. It’s not easy to discover that you’ve got a father, and that—that your mother lied to you.”

Camille put a hand over her lips, to hold back the moan that was moving up her throat. Poor Griff, she thought again. Not only did he have her trying to make him change his mind about marriage. But he also had to deal with all this.

Even worse, she realized he wouldn’t be able to stay here with the Randalls, as she’d hoped he would. Not with his father only a few miles away.

She’d lost. Without even getting to play her final card, she’d lost. The shock of this revelation would have Griff returning to Chicago, to a lonely existence.

Without saying a word, she turned and left the kitchen. Time to go pack.

JAKE ROSE FROM THE TABLE. “I’d better go see about Griff. Mr. Haney, maybe it would be better if you’d give Griff a little time to, uh, take everything in. He’ll call you, in a day or two, okay?”

“Okay.” The man nodded. “I won’t tell anyone until I hear from him. I promise.”

After Mr. Haney left, Jake looked at his wife. “What’s up with Camille and Griff? Did you find out anything?”

“She loves him. But she doesn’t know if he’s interested,” B.J. said.

“This won’t help. We all know Griff wasn’t prepared to be friendly with his father,” Megan said. “He’ll leave for sure, now.”

Jake stared at his family. “Well, I for one don’t intend to let him screw up his life like that.”

“What are you going to do?” Chad asked.

“I’m going to go talk to Griff. Then we’ll figure out a way of getting them together. After all, we’re experts at matchmaking, aren’t we?”

No one disagreed with him.

GRIFF LEANED against the corral, ignoring the bite of the cold air. His head was spinning with Haney’s revelations. His father.

Living only a few miles away.

How could he—?

“Aren’t you cold?” Jake asked.

He spun around, almost losing his balance. “What are you doing out here?” he growled.

“Trying to keep you from getting pneumonia.” He draped a coat over Griff’s shoulders. “And I thought we might talk a little.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“Oh, yeah, there is. Unless you want to lose all chance of happiness.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yeah, you do. Remember the other day when BJ. and I were fighting?” Jake kept his gaze firmly on Griffin.

“Yeah.”

“I almost made a stupid mistake.”

“But everything’s fine now,” Griffin said hurriedly.

“Yeah, because one of my brothers came up with a good compromise. But I want you to know that nothing would’ve made me give up BJ. and Toby and Caroline. Nothing, even if I lost the battle. I know what’s important in life. And I hope you do, too.”

Griff knew. He’d discovered it last night in Camille’s arms. Not sex. Love. A woman he couldn’t walk away from, and didn’t even want to try. Family.

He nodded.

“So you’re not going to let Bill’s announcement ruin your life, are you?”

“Ruin my life?”

“You’re not going to run away, leaving Camille behind?”

“Of course not.”

“You can live here, knowing your father is a few miles away?”

Trust Jake to get right to the point.

“I’m going to try. If Camille will—I don’t know if she’ll take me on. I’ve screwed up a few times, Jake.”

Jake grimaced. “I did, too. I still do. Fortunately, women are good at forgiving us.”

Griffin, after staring at his feet for several minutes, remembered his urgency earlier. “I’d better go find her. I think she might be planning on leaving.”

As he turned toward the house, Jake put a hand on his shoulder. “You sure you want to go face that crowd?”

“What choice do I have? I’m not letting her get away.”

“Well, from past experience, I know a place you can be real private.”

“Where?”

Jake nodded toward the barn. “No one will bother you there. And there are some blankets in the tack room. Spread over some fresh hay, they make a real comfortable place for... whatever,” he said with a grin.

“But if Camille is intent on leaving, she’s not going to make a tour of the barn,” Griff protested. “I’d better—”

“Trust me, I’ll get her to the barn. And I’ll lock the door until you convince her not to go.”

Relief filled Griffin’s face, and for the first time in a long while, he smiled.

CAMILLE HALTED her packing long enough to answer the knock on her bedroom door.

“Yes?” she said, swinging it open.

“You’re leaving?” Megan said with a gasp, the other four ladies behind her.

“Megan, I have to. Besides, if I don’t you know he will.”

“All I know,” Megan said, “is that Jake’s got him in the barn and told us to get you down there. He’s going to lock the two of you in the barn until you convince Griffin to stay.”

She looked quite pleased with the plan. The other ladies were smiling, too.

“I can’t force him,” Camille protested. “If he doesn’t want me—”

“Oh, please,” B.J. said, irony lacing her words. “The man wants you so bad his tongue is hanging out. You just have to convince him his wants include marriage.”

Camille wasn’t sure she believed B.J. At least, she knew he wanted her in his bed. She just didn’t know for how long.