Mistletoe Cowboy (22 page)

“Oh, no. Not a chance. Momma is already carryin' on because you are gone and the whole family won't be at her place over the holidays. Why couldn't you have found something within driving distance?”

Creed chuckled. “I did. I'm only five hours from y'all and I'll try to make arrangements to be home sometime over the holidays another year, but this one, it's impossible. You got a minute?”

“Oh, boy! That tone means you've got a problem. That weird artist givin' you fits?”

“Yes, she is, but she's not weird. She's beautiful. How did you know for absolute sure, I mean without a doubt, that you had fallen for Jasmine before you married her?”

“You have a hell of a big problem if you are askin' that question,” Ace answered.

“Well?”

“Thing is, I didn't. Only a couple of people know the real story of me and Jazzy. Can you keep a secret?”

“Of course.”

“I didn't know I'd fallen for Jazzy before I married her. She offered to marry me because of that damned clause in Grandpa Riley's will. He said I had to be married within a certain time and I had to stay married a year or else the whole ranch went to our cousin, Cole.”

“Holy shit!”

“Don't know if it's holy even during Christmas, but you got it right. Remember when Grandpa's old lawyer died and the new one took over his files? Well, he found that part in the will and I had a week to get married or lose everything. I told Jazzy about it and she offered. We flew to Las Vegas and we intended to keep it a big secret between just the two of us. You know the rest. It was broadcast on television and the secret was out.”

“Damn!”

“That's what we thought, but then we had to live together…”

Creed chuckled then. “And your three younger brothers had moved into the house with y'all. How'd you ever figure out that you'd fallen in love?”

“It just happened. One day I couldn't wait for the year to be up. The next I couldn't live without her. So tell me what's going on,” Ace said.

“I think I'm to that latter place and it's only been two weeks. Things in the real world don't happen that fast, do they?”

“Sometimes in the real world they happen in the blink of an eye. When are we going to meet this woman?”

“Anytime you want to make a five-hour trip to the canyon.”

***

Sage painted when she was nervous. It settled that antsy feeling inside her and took her mind off whatever was chewing on her nerve endings. That evening she picked up her brushes with intentions of beginning a new mistletoe picture. She'd envisioned it that morning in church. She'd already sketched in the Christmas tree standing beside the old upright piano.

The little four-year-old girl had come forward with her decoration when the preacher said it was time. She had big blue eyes, dark curly hair, and a round cherub face. She wore a denim jumper with a Christmas tree appliquéd on the bib and a ruffle of eyelet lace around the hem. Her red glittery shoes looked like they came right out of a
Wizard
of
Oz
Broadway play and her legs were chubby. She held a small ball of mistletoe with a red velvet ribbon on the top and she tiptoed to hang it in just the right spot.

The picture Sage sketched in didn't show that whole end of the church. It was just the corner of the upright piano, a small portion of the tree, and the wonder on the little girl's face as she carefully hung her mistletoe on a tree branch. Above it was a bright white bulb throwing off light rays that looked just like a star.

Noel sat beside the easel leg and watched her paint. Angel left her fighting triplets and watched from the middle of the living room.

“I love you both and I love your babies, but I want a little girl like that one. I want her to have dark curls and green eyes and I want her to be raised in the canyon and put a decoration on the tree at the church at Christmas,” she said.

Noel's tail thumped against the hardwood floor and Angel purred.

“So we are in agreement. Your puppies and kittens will be grown by the time I get a little girl like that, but you wouldn't mind sharing the ranch with a child?”

The purring got louder and the thumping sounded like a bass drum.

“Okay, then, I'm admitting it. I want a family.”

She picked up a brush and squirted several globs of paint onto a palette. As she began to paint her mind went to the wild sex on the credenza the night before. That urgent, demanding need had engulfed her and taken over her body. It was a brand new experience and the first time she'd had sex without a bed involved.

She wondered what it would be like in a hayloft or in the front seat of a pickup truck. Maybe an experience like the night before only came along once in a lifetime.

You
got
that
wrong
, her heart said. It didn't have Grand's voice but she recognized it as the sassy tone that argued with her all the time.

“Oh, yeah,” she said aloud.

It
can
happen
lots
of
times
if
you
just
let
it. He's the one, just like your Grand knew in the beginning. Creed Riley is the one that this ranch needs to bring it back to its splendor and to make you happy at the same time.

The door opened and the force that was Creed was back in the house. Noel jumped up with a yip and ran that way. Angel stood up and stretched, yawned, and then went to rub around his legs.

“Fickle pets. They leave me when you arrive.” Sage was grateful the voice had stopped and that she didn't have to deal with her newly found revelation anymore.

“It's not me, darlin'. It's the milk bucket they are interested in. We've got to go to town tomorrow and get them some proper food. Roads are clear and traffic is flowing. Let's go to Amarillo.”

She cleaned her brush and laid it on the easel tray. “We can get dog food and supplies in Claude.”

He set the milk on the table and met her halfway across the floor. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to his chest, tipped up her chin with his gloved fist, and kissed her hard.

“Miz Sage Presley, would you go to dinner with me tomorrow in Amarillo? I thought we'd have dinner and then take in a matinee in the afternoon or else do some shopping after dinner. Your choice and you can pick the restaurant since I don't know what you like.”

“Are you asking me on a date?” she asked.

“I am.”

“Yes, I would love to go to dinner with you and afterwards I'd like to go to a little art shop and pick up some paints and then do some Christmas shopping at the mall. I haven't bought a single present.”

He kissed her again and she felt the edges of that same raw need she'd felt the night before. So it wasn't a one-time thing. It had nothing to do with the season or the party and everything to do with the cowboy.

Creed reached across the table and covered Sage's hands with his. Big white cloth napkins were folded into a point and set on a red and white checkered tablecloth. To one side a green wine bottle held a bright red candle. The candle's wax melted slowly, traveling at a snail's pace toward the bottom of the bottle. The flicker from the tiny fire reflected in Sage's eyes.

Creed had seen that sweet look in them the night before when they'd gone to bed together. They'd fallen asleep after sex before and spent the night together but last night was different. They'd gone to bed together like a couple and it had been so natural, so right.

He squeezed her hands gently.

“You are beautiful,” he said.

“Thank you, Creed. You look pretty damn fine yourself.”

“Cowboy puts on his best for a date with a gorgeous woman.” He picked up her left hand and kissed her fingertips, lingering over each one.

“Lord, that makes me hot. Reckon we could hide under the tablecloth and…” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“Probably not, but hold that thought.”

The waitress appeared out of the shadows with a huge bowl of salad, two smaller bowls, and a basket of bread sticks. She refilled their wine glasses and told them their food would be out shortly.

Creed pushed his wine to one side. “No more for me today. I'm the driver but you can have all you want.”

“I'd best not drink all I want. I love good wine so I'll finish this glass, but two is my limit,” she said.

“It's the Indian blood.”

Using the hinged tongs she filled her bowl with salad and buttered one of the bread sticks. “What's that got to do with anything?”

“They don't hold their liquor so well.”

She pointed her bread stick at his nose. “Darlin', I'm only an eighth Indian. The rest of me is red-hot Irish and I can hold my liquor. I'm not having but two glasses because the third one takes all my inhibitions away and that Irish gets crazy.”

Creed chuckled. “Remind me to stop by the liquor store on the way home. I'd like to see that Irish crazy come to the surface.”

***

Sage ate slowly, not because it was her nature, but because she wanted the moment to last forever. Sitting in the dark shadows of an Italian restaurant across the table from the sexiest cowboy in Texas made her feel special, protected, and complete.

“Do you think the animals miss us?” she asked.

She could have bitten her tongue off for such a stupid question. Dogs and cats shouldn't even cross her mind.

“Don't worry, Momma. The babies will be fine until we get home,” he chuckled.

Hearing him call her that startled her. Was she really ready for a little dark-haired girl to call her Momma? Or a son?

Mercy! What would she do with a son? She'd never been around little boys that much, only at church and in very small doses. She understood girls better after being around April.

Creed came from a family of seven sons. From that standpoint the odds were that she'd have boys and lots of them.

“What in the world are you thinking about? Noel and Angel will be fine, honest.” Creed gently squeezed her hands.

“Tell me more about their new little houses,” she said quickly.

Creed went on. “I'm buying insulation this afternoon so I can finish their houses. They'll be done tomorrow and we'll see how they do on the front porch. I think Angel is getting stir-crazy in the house. She sits on the windowsill behind the Christmas tree and I can see it in her eyes. She wants to be outside.”

“And Noel?”

“She'll be happier on the porch. And pretty soon those puppies are going to open their eyes and scoot right off that blanket. Then there'll be a puddle or worse everywhere you walk.”

“Yuk! I see your point.”

He picked up the silver salad tongs and filled her bowl first and then his. “They'll still run in and out and you can go outside to visit them.”

She took a bread stick and handed the basket to him. “What about your dogs? Will they kill the cats?”

He shook his head. “No, they might have a few issues with Noel, but they've been raised around cats. They'll bark at them, but they won't kill them.”

She swallowed hard. “What kind of issues?”

He laid his fork down and cupped her chin in his palm. “They won't know if she's a dog, a bear, or a miniature alpaca.”

“Never thought of crossbreeding a dog with an alpaca.”

“Well, Noel is living proof that it can be done,” he said.

***

Snowflakes the size of silver dollars drifted lazily down from the gray skies to rest on them as they left the restaurant. Creed threw his arm around her shoulder and together they hurried toward the pickup.

“More snow! We should have that white Christmas for sure.” She dusted the flakes from her denim duster when she was inside the truck. She switched on the radio as Creed stomped the extra snow from his boots and settled into the driver's seat.

“Don't put up your boots or sleds just yet,” the DJ said when Creed turned on the engine. “We've got another winter storm watch in effect. We won't get as much snow as last time, but the weatherman says there'll be another inch of accumulation. It will move on toward the east by morning. What's one more inch when we're already dealing with eight inches, folks? Just puts us in the mood for the season. And now for five uninterrupted Christmas songs to keep that mood going…”

Creed sang, “Sleigh bells ring, are you listenin',” along the singer as he backed out of the parking lot.

“Paint store?” he asked before he turned one way or the other onto the highway.

“It's next door to the mall. We can go there afterwards.”

“And after the mall shopping, we'll hit Home Depot for insulation and Walmart for supplies and pet food, right?”

She nodded.

“Navigate for me.”

She looked across the seat. “Do what?”

“Tell me when to turn and how to get to this mall. I've been in Amarillo a couple of times but it was for rodeos. We hit town, did the rodeo, went to a couple of clubs, and back to our hotel or to our travel trailers.”

“Turn right at the next light, then left at the one after that, and you'll be able to see the mall on the next block. Park anywhere you can find a spot.”

The light was green so he made a right. The next one was red and Sage pointed toward the mall parking lot. It looked like an enormous car dealership. He made the turns and crept up and down the lanes until a red car finally backed out not far from the mall's main entrance. He snagged the spot and unbuckled his belt. Before he could get around the truck, she was already outside with the door slammed. She grabbed his hand and set a long-legged pace straight ahead.

She had a list of presents she needed to purchase and he could tag along or he could go his own way and they'd meet up later. It was most likely the last time she'd get to Amarillo before Christmas day and every minute counted.

“Now what?” he said when they were inside out of the cold.

Christmas carols came through the central stereo system. A huge tree full of shiny decorations, gold tinsel, and blinking lights graced the center of the mall. Santa's photo station had been set up in front of the tree and a line of kids snaked down the corridors for at least two city blocks.

She rose up slightly on her toes and kissed him. “I'm going shopping.”

“Me too. I haven't sent a thing home and I see a place over there that will ship for me. I'll meet you back here in one hour?” He looked at his watch.

Sage pushed up the sleeve of her fancy Western-cut shirt and nodded. She could buy for everyone on her list in that time because she already knew what she was looking for. The lines to check out would take longer than the picking out process.

The first store she headed for carried Western wear and the best flannel shirts in the whole state. She chose a red and black plaid one for Creed because she'd stolen his and had no intentions of giving it back. Then she picked out a blue plaid for Lawton and headed to the ladies' side of the store for something with lots of bling for Hilda and April. Hilda got a floral: black with red roses, with red pearl snaps. April got a pink one with jewels forming a longhorn bull on the back yoke.

She paid for them and was on her way to the next store for something for Grand when she passed one of the holiday kiosks on the way. It offered leather goods and there was a gorgeous hand-tooled man's wallet complete with initials. She pondered a long time but finally picked up the one with a
C
on it and paid for it, shoved the box it came in down into her shirt bag, and went on.

Grand was getting a decent handbag that year. She wouldn't ever part with the money for a good leather bag but Sage had seen her admiring them several times that fall. The kiosk had offered a few styles but the one Grand had kept going back to was in a leather shop down one of the mall wings. Sage remembered the name of the store but not the exact location so she stopped at a mall map to find it.

It was down the wing housing Dilliard's so she set a course for that part of the mall. Once in the store she went straight to the back shelves where the handbags were kept. She didn't know she was holding her breath until she finally located the exact bag shoved behind some newer stock.

It was a hobo-type bag with a wide shoulder strap and made of the softest black leather she'd ever touched. No wonder Grand liked it. She could carry half her belongings in the thing and it would rest easy on her shoulder. She was halfway to the checkout counter when she remembered Aunt Essie.

“Shit! I almost forgot her. Well, if Grand would like this bag, then so would Aunt Essie.” Sage went back to the shelf and started to hunt for another bag like the one she'd just picked out.

“May I help you?” a sales clerk asked.

“I'd like another one just like this,” Sage said.

“That's our last black one. It's been a great seller this season. I do have a brown one but it's just a little smaller. We also have the matching wallets and they are on sale.” She pulled the brown bag from a lower shelf and handed it to Sage.

She held them up, side by side. There they were, Aunt Essie with her lighter hair and smaller size. Grand with her dark hair and bigger-than-life attitude.

“I'll take them and the wallets. Do you have those fur-lined house shoes?”

“Yes, ma'am!” The clerk was all smiles as she led the way to the shoe shelves at the back of the store.

“I need a size eight in brown and a size nine in black in ladies,” Sage said.

“They're not on sale today but they will be the weekend before Christmas,” the sales clerk whispered from behind her hand.

“I won't be back again, so I'll just have to pay full price.”

“Too bad. Our men's slippers are on sale this week.”

Sage followed her. “Well, now that's interesting. I'll take a pair in a thirteen if you have them.”

“That's a big foot. We ordered one special last week and the lady broke up with her boyfriend so we've got it. Normally we only stock up to a twelve. You are a lucky woman today.”

“Yes, I am,” Sage said.

***

Creed was buying for his younger two brothers and his mom and dad when he looked at his watch and realized he was out of time. He phoned Sage and she picked up on the first ring.

“I'm almost done. They're ringing up Grand's and Aunt Essie's presents,” she said.

“Well, I'm not. I bought for each family member and then took it to the shipping place and I've still got at least half an hour before I'm done.”

“Great!” she said. “I'll have time to look around and go to the paper store to buy wrapping supplies. Meet you at the Christmas tree in forty-five minutes?”

The phone went silent so he shoved it back in his pocket and went into the next shop and bought presents for his two younger brothers and his parents. He had them wrapped and took them to the shipping place and then it hit him. He had less than thirty minutes to buy something for Sage.

“God, I can't pick out something that important in that length of time,” he groaned.

As if a higher being answered his prayers on the spot, he looked across the way from where he stood and there was a jewelry store. He'd never seen her wear jewelry except the night they'd gone to the Christmas party. She'd worn long dangling topaz-looking earrings and a matching necklace.

There were no customers in the jewelry store so he didn't have to wait for a sales clerk to help him. He was on his way to the bracelets or earrings when the wedding rings caught his eye. It was as if he had stepped in superglue and his feet would not budge. His boots were filled with lead and his eyes couldn't see a blessed thing but sparkling diamonds and matching wedding bands.

“Could I help you?” a petite blonde asked.

And he looked right into the eyes of Macy, his ex-fiancée.

“Creed?” she asked with a catch in her voice.

“Hello, Macy. What are you doing here?”

“Just a little job while school is out for the holiday. I teach down in Hereford, Texas, these days. What are you doing here?”

“I'm not sure.”

“Well, you are looking at wedding rings, Creed. I suppose that means you are doing something in the store.”

“I guess I am at that. How are you?”

He didn't want to talk to Macy and he damn sure didn't want to buy a wedding ring from her, but there it was: a set of matching bands. And right beside them was a little red velvet box with an engagement ring. One diamond set on a thin band. Sage could wear them both or just the wedding band when she was painting or feeding the chickens.

“I'm fine. My husband got transferred to this area last summer. It's not home and it's taking me a while to get used to the place, but it's only for two years and then we'll probably be going to the East Coast for a while.”