Here Comes the Bride (11 page)

Gabe looked questioningly at his brother.

“You—you stupid ass! God only knows why, but she’s got it bad for you, brother. Hell, even I can see that an’ I’ve just got here.”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m sure she’ll get over it.”

“I don’t think you’re givin’ her enough credit, Gabe. I say let her stay—if for no other reason than Rosa could probably use some help ’round here, couldn’t she?”

“Women—ladies—don’t belong out here, Bart, you know that. Look what happened to Mama.”

“Jesus Christ, Gabe, that was twenty-five years ago. It’s not like it used to be out here. Hell, there’s even talk of the railway goin’ through in the next couple years.”

Gabe shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. Women like her belong with their own kind, not out here slopping pigs and cleaning chicken shit out of coops day after day.”

Bart eyed his brother carefully. When he spoke, his voice was low. “She’s not Catarina, Gabe.”

“I know that!” he bellowed again. “I never said she was—hell, I wouldn’t want her to be. But the fact remains, she’s Boston high society, not Porter Creek pig slop!”

“Catarina stayed because she thought the Calloway money would be enough for her. She left because it wasn’t. She wanted to live in the city; live high, have frilly dresses and silky underthings. Tess obviously don’t want that. She wants to be here—with you for some crazy reason. And if you think I’m even gonna think about askin’ her why, you’re sadly mistaken. Holy-oh-hell, I get a headache just thinkin’ ’bout how long it would take her to answer me.”

Gabe smiled toward the house. Bart was right, Tess was nothing like Catarina. Nothing at all. She was sexy, smart, funny, and knew exactly what she wanted. Catarina was a looker, there was no doubt about that, but the only thing
she
knew was that she wanted a rich man and it didn’t matter if she loved him or not. Money would buy her all the things she needed to be happy. Tess left her money behind to follow a dream she wanted more than anything else in the world. And for some godforsaken reason, that included Gabe Calloway.

Gabe shook his head sadly. “She can’t stay,” he repeated more to himself than to Bart. “It’s not the place for someone like her.”

“Gabe . . .” Bart began.

“Let’s talk about something else.” Not talking about Tess was one thing, not thinking about her was another.

The sun dipped lower beyond the horizon, em-blazing its crimson afterglow across the sky. Gabe couldn’t help but wonder if Tess could see it. She would stare in wonder until the very last speck of color disappeared out of sight—you’d think she’d never seen a sunset before. Gabe longed to call her outside, to share the moment, but he forced himself to stay rooted to his spot.

Bart cleared his throat loudly, intruding on Gabe’s thoughts.

“I got me somethin’ to say then, Gabe, and I’d be obliged if you’d let me get it out.”

Gabe nodded.

“I’ve come to the reasonin’ that maybe after Mama died I wasn’t the easiest kid in the world to deal with. I did some mighty fool things in my day and never thought ’bout the whys or the wherefores. I just done ’em.”

He stopped, inhaling deeply before he continued.

“You and Miguel had this place runnin’ like a fresh greased wheel, and I was always just ‘the other Calloway kid,’ Rosa’s little helper.” He held up his hand when Gabe started to interrupt. “Now I ain’t blamin’ you, I know now you were doin’ what you needed to do to keep this place runnin’ and now that I ain’t such a gawkarse, I surely do appreciate it. You had to make a lot of hard decisions and even harder sacrifices for the sake of this damned ranch, and I sure as hell wouldn’t change places with you for all the tea in China.”

He pushed back his hat and scratched his chin.

“The thing is, Gabe, I ain’t the same saphead I used to be. I’ve had time to look back on how things were and why they were that way. Guess I spent a lot of years bein’ pissed ’cuz I never felt like I was part of this place. It was yours. And Miguel’s. But now I know, we’re just different, you and me. Even if I’d a been you, I still don’t think I’d a taken on this place the way you have. It never interested me the way it did you. But even so . . . I want you to know . . . I’m sorry for the trouble I caused. I know it weren’t always easy having to chase after me and fix the messes I got myself into, and I’m sorry.”

Bart’s voice wavered as he trailed off, forcing him to cough over it.

“Oh, hell,” Gabe said, exhaling loudly. “It ain’t all your fault. I was so hardheaded and set on proving to Miguel and the rest of this damn fool town I wasn’t like the old man, I guess I never gave you a chance to prove yourself. It always seemed faster to do it myself than to try and explain how or what needed doing. I guess I figured you’d rather run around and have fun than hang out here and castrate bulls.” He paused, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Truth be told, some of the shit you pulled made me wish I could be more like you.”

The brothers shared a couple of lopsided grins.

“You’ll stay for a while then?” Gabe asked again.

“I reckon.” Bart nodded with a wry smile. “Like I said, Rosa could probably use some help around here, and if you’re bent on sendin’ Tess on her way . . .” He shot Gabe a grin, then added, “I best get my tail over to Rosa’s right now or I’ll be in for a whoopin’ an’ a half tomorrow.”

Gabe laughed as he watched Bart head off toward the cottage. Rosa would be thrilled—her prodigal son had returned.

“We’re bunking with Zeus,” he yelled after him. Bart waved his acknowledgment and pushed his way through the gate that led to Rosa and Miguel’s house.

Gabe was still chuckling as he made his way to the barn; Zeus and the rest of the horses would be looking for their food and water. He tended to his animals, taking time to speak softly to each one and give them a good rubdown before leaving them to the stillness of the evening.

He needed a good strong cup of coffee if he had any hope of getting through the ledgers tonight. The kitchen curtains remained closed, but surely Tess had finished her bath by now! He knocked softly on the door and when there was no answer, he banged louder.

“Tess?”

No answer. He took a deep, shaky breath and pushed the door open slightly.

“Tess?” he called again. No answer. He stepped inside and cast a quick glance through the room. The metal tub sat vacant in the middle of the kitchen—the only reminder Tess had been there moments before. Regret and relief both flooded through Gabe in waves—regret he’d missed seeing her, and relief he’d avoided the inevitable struggle between his passion and his probity.

While he waited for the coffee to boil, he set about emptying the huge tub and returned it to its corner in the pantry. Tess descended the stairs as though walking on a cloud, her nose sniffing the air eagerly.

“Coffee?” She smiled. “Wonderful idea.”

Gabe stared speechless for a moment. Once again she was covered in his old red flannel shirt and Rosa’s pink wrapper, her hair in a tousle of tangles around her shoulders. Any other woman, Gabe was certain, would have been well aware of the effect she had on a man, but Tess didn’t have the first clue what she did to him.

“Tess,” he began, clearing his throat past the sudden hoarseness. “Don’t you think you should put something else on?”

She looked blank for a moment, then looked down at the wrapper.

“What’s wrong with this?” she asked. “I’m fully covered, Gabriel. I have your shirt on underneath.”

“Yes, I know,” he seethed through gritted teeth.

Her eyes widened. “Oh, I’m sorry. Do you want me to take it off? It’s just that I don’t have anything else to wear except my two dresses and—”

“No!” he bellowed straining against his contradictory libido. “I don’t want you to take it off. It’s not proper, is all.”

“Oh, Gabriel.” She smiled warmly. “You are so sweet—always thinking of my virtue.”

“Yeah,” he grunted. “Well, someone has to.”

She laughed lightly. Her roughened hands brushed his as she reached for her cup of coffee.

“Thank you,” she murmured, her eyes widening with their true innocence. The mere whisper of his touch sent fire raging through her—to places she had never even considered before. His gaze bore right through her, piercing her soul with the torment she saw there. Tess’s heart constricted in a painful knot.

She knew, without having any experience to call on, it would be so very easy to seduce him, to have him touch her the way she wanted him to. But she also knew he would grow to resent her for letting that happen. It would be tantamount to trapping him into a marriage and a life he had made clear to her he did not want. Despite her dreams, despite the heartache it would cause her to give it up, she simply could not do that to him, no matter how much she wanted to.

Tess pulled her gaze away and stepped back.

“Perhaps I’ll get a blanket to wrap around myself,” she said softly. “I was going to take my coffee out on the porch while I try to fight my way through these tangles. Would you like to join me?”

“I have work to do,” he muttered.

“Can I help?”

“No, I don’t . . . oh, hell,” he growled, raking his hand through his own tousled hair. “The biggest help you could be to me is to go sit outside and stay out of my way.”

Tess bit her lip, swallowed hard, and nodded. She heard Gabe curse as she retrieved the blue and white crocheted blanket from the sofa and pushed past him out the door. She would not cry. She would not. He would probably expect her to—and God knew she wanted to—but she would not do it. Tears were for the weak and the frail—and she needed to prove she was strong and able-bodied.

She wrapped the thick blanket around her shoulders and sat, shivering, in the warm night air. This was not how she had imagined it would be. One minute Gabe was kissing her senseless and the next he was growling at her like a wild animal. Why couldn’t he love her back the way she believed he wanted to? It certainly seemed Gabe was as moved by their shared kiss as she had been, so what could possibly be wrong?

She pulled the comb through her hair slowly, deliberately, as she stared out at the corral, seeing nothing but Gabriel. She jumped when her eyes suddenly focused on Bart standing directly in front of her.

“Oh! You startled me.”

Bart smiled. “Looked like you were a thousand miles away, Miss Kinley.”

“No,” she answered honestly. “I was right here at El Cielo.”

Bart mounted the stairs and took up the rocker next to hers.

“He’s not an easy man to live with, Tess,” he said after awhile. “You might want to rethink things.”

“I’ve tried,” she said quietly. “I didn’t come here with the intention of falling in love with your brother, you have to know that. You made El Cielo seem just as its name implies—heaven on earth. My dream has always been to marry a man I loved—a man who loved me—to have a whole herd of children and to work together to build our life on a beautiful little ranch surrounded by cows, chickens, and sunsets like the one we had tonight.”

“Cattle.”

Tess frowned. “I beg your pardon?”

“They’re called cattle, not cows. Cows are the females in the herd; bulls are the males. Together they’re called cattle.”

“Cattle,” she repeated slowly.

“Right.” He leaned over, resting his elbows on his knees. “Can I ask you somethin’ kinda personal?”

Tess nodded hesitantly.

“How do you know you really love him?” When she made to argue, he continued, “I mean, how can you be sure it ain’t the dream you’re in love with and Gabe just happened to be here when you arrived?”

Tess swallowed hard. “I’ve thought of that myself,” she confessed. “But the fact is, when I think about it all—I mean honestly think hard—I realize I would happily give up my dreams and go back to Butte, or Boston for that matter, as long as Gabriel was with me.”

Bart watched her as she spoke, seeming to consider what she said.

“I know I’ve only been here for a couple days,” she hurried to explain. “And Gabriel has already tried to convince me there is no such thing as love at first sight, but I don’t know how else to explain the way he makes me feel.”

“Indigestion?” he asked, smirking.

“No.” She smiled back. “Every time I look at him, my heart feels as though it will burst right out of my chest; I can hardly catch a breath and my knees wobble like they were made of soggy bread. I look around this ranch and I feel so many different things for him—admiration, hope, fear. Sorrow.” She paused. “He told me about your parents and the baby.”

“He did?” Bart’s head shook slowly. “Gabe never talks about that.”

“I can understand why,” she said. “It must have been horrible for both of you.”

Bart shrugged. “Was worse for him, I think. I was pretty young.”

Tess was silent for a moment.

“Can I ask you something now?”

Bart nodded. “Shoot.”

Heat rose up her neck and all through her scalp. “This probably isn’t something a lady should ask, especially of a man, but I have no one else to ask, and if anyone would know, you might.”

Bart looked solemn. “It’ll stay between us then.” Tess’s hands fidgeted with the edge of the blanket, her embarrassment blazing across her face.

“Why is it . . . he seems so . . . what I mean is . . .”

“Just say it,” he said gently.

“He kissed me.”

Bart’s expression didn’t flinch. He sat where he was, waiting for her to continue.

“Today, before church . . .”

Now his jaw dropped. “He went to church?” he asked incredulously.

“Y-yes,” Tess answered.

“But Gabe doesn’t go to church,” Bart said. “Never.”

“He did today.”

Bart shook his head again, a slow grin spreading across his face. “Go on.”

“Well,” Tess said, clearing her throat several times. “It was um . . . well, it was enjoyable. . . .”

“Yes, I’m sure it was.” He chuckled.

“This isn’t funny, Bart,” she snapped. “I’m sorry I even said anything.”

She pushed out of her chair and pulled open the kitchen door.

“Wait!” he said. “I’m sorry, you’re right. Don’t go off mad, Tess. Sit down and tell me what’s got you so riled up.”

Almost reluctantly, she returned to her chair, the blanket pulled even tighter around her shoulders.

“Tell me,” he repeated.

She eyed him warily. At least he wasn’t laughing anymore.

“Your brother’s reaction to me has been very strange. At first he was angry—very angry—and over the last few days, he seems to flop back and forth between being . . . friendly . . . and being angry with me. Then when he kissed me today, I was certain he felt the same way I did, that he wanted . . . that is to say . . .”

“I know what you mean, Tess.”

“Y-yes,” she stammered. “Of course. I don’t know what to make of him. He’s angry with me again, and I can’t even begin to imagine what it is I have done to set him off. He was fine when you both left me to my bath, and yet when I spoke to him just now, his eyes are flashing daggers at me. What have I done?”

Bart’s grin widened.

“Bart!”

“I’m not laughin’ at
you,
Tess. I’m laughin’ at
him.
You’ve got him twisted up so bad he don’t know if he’s comin’ or goin’.”

Tess did not smile. “What does that mean? And why do you think it’s so funny?”

“Tess,” he sighed. “Gabe’s a force within himself. He’s used to givin’ orders, havin’ them be followed, and pretty much gettin’ his own way on everything. He’s the boss in everything—the ranch, the house, his heart.” He paused, his brown eyes twinkling mischievously. “Okay, maybe not the house. Rosa’s probably got it over him there, but my point is he’s used to bein’ in control of everything. And then you come along, walk into his life, and wham! He ain’t got a clue.”

“About what?” she asked, her eyes huge.