A Cowboy, a Bride & a Wedding Vow Read online

  But she could have sworn a moment ago that something akin to awareness had passed through his eyes when he’d caught her to him. He had an exceptional ability to hide his emotions. Something inside her wanted to break through his aloofness.

  No, she reminded herself, that wouldn’t do. She couldn’t afford to let down her guard around Jake. She needed to remain focused. She needed to get her son and leave as soon as possible. She couldn’t let old feelings for Jake blur her main objective.

  Jake opened a screened door and motioned Catherine ahead of him without touching her. She walked inside and drew a deep breath as he followed her and removed his hat. He held it loosely in his hand.

  From the foyer she could see that the house was immaculate, well cared for and beautifully decorated with antiques.

  “Your home is lovely,” she said, and her tone implied that the compliment was genuine.

  “Ashley usually takes care of it. However, now that she’s pregnant again, we’re looking to hire a housekeeper to come in daily.”

  “And I’m still not happy about that,” a young woman said, smiling as she entered the foyer from a long hallway. She was very pretty, with long black hair and big brown eyes. She didn’t look pregnant. Catherine would never have known if Jake hadn’t mentioned it. “Hi. I’m Ashley, Ryder’s wife. I see Jake brought you home safely.”

  Catherine smiled, for it was impossible not to. Jake’s sister-in-law looked the picture of health and contentment.

  “This is Catherine St. John,” Jake said. “Matt’s mother,” he added as if it was an afterthought.

  His tone was impersonal, not at all implying that there’d ever been an intimate relationship between them. Well, that was fine with her. She didn’t want any reminders, either. She couldn’t help wondering, though, how much Jake’s family knew about their past.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Catherine offered. “I hope Matthew hasn’t been a bother.”

  “Are you kidding?” Ashley asked. “He’s been having the time of his life. Ryder took him when he rode out a while ago. They should be back any minute.”

  Concern crossed Catherine’s expression. “Matthew doesn’t know how to ride,” she informed them, then looked at Jake. “I mean, not really. He’s been horseback riding a few times with friends, but not very often.”

  “Take it easy,” Jake said gruffly. “He’s perfectly safe with Ryder. He’ll take good care of him,” he assured Catherine.

  “Of course he will,” Ashley chimed in. “I didn’t mean to alarm you. Ryder gave him one of the gentler horses, and he didn’t let Matthew hold the reins. I wish I’d had a camera,” she continued. “Matthew was really excited.”

  That declaration brought a new concern to Catherine’s mind, as if she didn’t already have enough to worry about. She hadn’t expected Matthew to be at Jake’s long enough to sample any kind of ranch life. And the last thing she needed was for Matthew to actually like it here.

  “Thank you for taking care of him,” Catherine said, remembering her manners.

  Ashley nodded. “It was our pleasure,” she assured Catherine.

  “Maybe you’d like a cup of coffee or something while you wait,” Jake suggested, placing his hand against Catherine’s back and urging her forward.

  “Well—”

  “Yes, of course,” Ashley agreed. “Come on into the kitchen.”

  Catherine followed Ashley, feeling a bit bewildered. Once again Jake’s touch had stirred long-buried emotions within her. She didn’t want to feel any connection to him. Things weren’t exactly going as she had planned.

  “We’ve already had lunch,” Ashley went on. “But I can quickly fix you something to eat if you’d like. Jake?” she inquired, looking his way.

  “Nothing for me.” Jake shook his head, but he flashed Ashley a brief smile.

  Catherine was momentarily stunned. His smile had transformed Jake’s detached expression, and she couldn’t believe how much so. His gorgeous brown eyes sparkled at Ashley with love and admiration. Before Catherine could adjust to the sudden change that came over Jake, the stoic look that had accompanied him from San Luis had returned.

  “Catherine?”

  “Um, no, thank you. Maybe just some coffee.”

  Ashley nodded and poured them each a cup. She offered one to Catherine, then indicated for her to take a seat at the kitchen table. Catherine slid onto a seat, then wrapped her hands around the warm mug just to give them something to do.

  Jake remained standing, and Catherine couldn’t keep from watching him as Ashley passed him a cup. It was obvious that she held a warm place in his heart.

  Ashley slid into a chair and breathed deeply. “How were the roads?” she asked, looking at Jake.

  “Slick.” Jake set his cup on the counter.

  Catherine nodded. “We saw several accidents on the way here,” she commented. “I hope it won’t be too long before we can start back.”

  Jake flashed her a questionable look. “I doubt if that will be possible.”

  Catherine’s gaze darted to his. “What?”

  “I don’t think we’ll be driving back this evening.”

  Was he kidding? she wondered. “But you said you’d take us back right away.”

  Jake shook his head. “What I said was, if you wanted to return right away, I’d take you back. I didn’t plan on the rain preventing us from driving back.”

  “The rain?” she repeated. “Why would it?” Catherine asked, confused.

  “The Styron bridge for one thing,” Jake stated, glancing at Ashley, then back at Catherine. “Didn’t you notice that the river was running high on both sides as we crossed over it on the way?”

  Catherine looked surprised. She’d been so worried about Matthew that she hadn’t paid much attention. “Actually, no, I didn’t.”

  “We’ve had a lot of rain over the past few days. It could be dangerous crossing back over the bridge. We made it here okay, but that doesn’t mean that by the time we drive back it’ll be safe.”

  Before anyone spoke again, they heard a deafening crack of thunder. The screened door banged open, then a door slammed. Anticipation kept Catherine’s next breath captive. Moments later Matthew walked into the kitchen ahead of Jake’s brother. They were both damp from the rain.

  “Hi, Mom,” Matthew said, then tentatively stepped toward his mother. Catherine was already out of her seat and met her son in the middle of the kitchen. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him to her.

  Then she cried.

  Catherine couldn’t help it. Relief swept through her. Matthew hugged her briefly, then, looking embarrassed, stepped back away from her. Catherine ran her hand over his head and across his cheek, letting her palm rest there a moment.

  “I was so worried about you.” She wanted to hold him to her, but was wise enough to realize that Matthew didn’t want to be treated like a child. Sheer will-power kept her from hugging him to her again.

  “I’m okay,” Matthew insisted. “Ryder took me riding.” He said it with a big grin as he glanced at Jake’s brother, whom it was apparent he already idolized.

  Jake introduced them, and Ryder nodded. He didn’t look like Jake at all. He was only a tad taller, but his hair was blond and he had gorgeous blue eyes. His smile, accompanied by his blond mustache, immediately charmed her.

  “Matt’s a natural,” he informed Catherine, as he stood behind Ashley with his hands on her shoulders.

  Catherine nodded and forced a smile. Silence filled the room.

  Ashley started to get up, and Ryder helped her to her feet. “I think I hear the girls.” She looked at Ryder, then back to Catherine. “Excuse us, please.” Taking his cue, Ryder followed his wife out of the room.

  A bolt of lightning flashed outside the kitchen window, followed closely by the roar of thunder. It briefly vibrated the walls around them. Catherine turned worried eyes toward her son. “Matthew, get your things. We need to head back right away.”

  Matthew di
dn’t move. He took a step away from her, closer to Jake. “I don’t want to go back,” he declared.

  Stunned, Catherine’s hand went to her chest as the agony of his words hit her. “Matthew—”

  “You can’t make me!” He looked at the floor instead of at his mother, reminding her of the troubled teens she often dealt with at school.

  Catherine reached toward her son. “Matthew, of course you’re going home with me.” What was he talking about? For heaven’s sake, he was only twelve years old. He wasn’t old enough to know what was best for him.

  “I like it here,” Matthew said.

  “That’s ridiculous,” Catherine blurted out, then wished she’d held back the words. She didn’t want to put Matthew on the defensive. This wasn’t the time or place to discipline him for his behavior. “You’ve only been here twenty-four hours. You don’t know anything about living on a ranch.”

  Matthew stuck out his chin. “I can learn.”

  Catherine tried desperately to remain calm. She glanced at Jake, who stood nearby, taking in their conversation. Something in his expression disturbed her. She turned her attention to her son. “Look, I know we have some things to talk about, but we can work this out at home.”

  “Please, Mom, let me stay,” Matthew said, and his gaze pleaded with her.

  Catherine closed her eyes for a moment and wished for this nightmare to end. She opened her eyes and pinned her gaze on her son. “I’m not going to argue with you about this. Go and get your things.” Even as she said the words, she knew she’d made a mistake.

  Matthew’s carriage stiffened. “If you take me back, I’ll just run away again.”

  “Matt, that’s enough,” Jake broke in as he took in Catherine’s shocked expression. Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. “Why don’t you go watch television or something and let your mother and I talk?” he suggested.

  Without having to be convinced, Matthew left before Catherine could prevent him. She was amazed that Jake had such control over her son after only one night in his home. Suddenly she was very worried.

  “I don’t know what’s come over him,” Catherine whispered. “He’s never been defiant before.”

  “There’s a lot going on in his life right now,” Jake reasoned. “He’s confused. Give him some time.”

  Catherine’s gaze met Jake’s. “You’re not suggesting that I leave him here?” She searched his face. “You knew he was going to give me a hard time,” she accused. Jake didn’t deny it. “You could have warned me.”

  “Like you warned me that I had a son? Be honest, Catherine. You didn’t really think you could just show up here, whisk Matt away and pretend that none of this had happened, did you?” Jake leaned against the edge of the sink, looking at her with an accusing stare.

  Catherine folded her arms about her and looked away. Jake knew that’s exactly what she’d planned. “I expected Matthew to talk to me.” Her gaze went back to Jake. “What have you said to him?” she questioned.

  “Only that we’d discuss the situation and work something reasonable out,” Jake told her.

  “There’s nothing to work out,” she insisted, resolving not to cry. “I’m taking my son home.” Her voice rose a notch.

  “Let’s finish this conversation in the office,” Jake suggested. Jake wanted to be sure Matthew wasn’t within hearing distance of their discussion. He turned and walked out, leaving Catherine behind. She had no choice but to follow.

  They went down the hallway, then into a large room. The office was filled with modern-day devices. One wall was completely taken up with a computer, table, a printer and a fax machine. In the middle of the room was a massive walnut desk. Jake motioned for Catherine to sit down. She chose a seat on the large brown sofa.

  Jake leaned against the edge of the desk, and Catherine couldn’t help thinking he did so to put her at a disadvantage. She had to look up at him.

  “I think we need to get a few things out in the open.” Jake’s tone left no doubt as to what he was talking about.

  Catherine had to agree. She nodded and waited. Jake owed her an explanation. Not that anything he said would excuse the letter his attorney had sent her.

  For a few moments silence reigned between them. Finally Catherine said, “Well?” If he was going to apologize, he wasn’t making any headway in that direction.

  Jake’s face wrinkled a bit. “Well what?” he countered. “I think you’re the one who has something to say.”

  “Me?” Catherine almost laughed. “I’m waiting for your explanation,” she insisted. “You’re the one who never called me back.”

  Jake stared at her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Catherine looked aghast. “I called you, Jake. Several times. I left messages, but you never returned my calls. Why not?” she asked. Despite her resolve to remain aloof, her emotions betrayed her. She remembered how alone and desperate she’d felt when she hadn’t heard from him.

  “I didn’t get any messages,” Jake insisted, standing and approaching her.

  He sounded as if he didn’t believe her. Catherine stood as he came nearer and stopped in front of her. “I can’t help that. I called,” she insisted. Regardless of whether he’d received her messages, there was the letter she’d written. He’d dismissed her as if she never really mattered to him.

  Jake didn’t give an inch. “A couple of phone calls hardly excuses the fact that you kept Matt’s birth a secret all these years.”

  Catherine’s mouth gaped open. Finally she said, “You’ve got a nerve, Jake McCall.” Fuming, she balled her hands beside her, trying very hard to keep her temper intact.

  Jake’s expression hardened. “Me?”

  “Yes, you!” The anger and disappointment of twelve long years filled her. “I sent you a letter.”

  “I never received a letter from you.”

  Dismissing his answer, Catherine said, “I asked you to contact me. I didn’t want to tell you about my being pregnant in a letter, for heaven’s sake! If you’d bothered to call me, you would have known about Matthew, wouldn’t you?” she accused. She wanted, needed to know why he hadn’t contacted her.

  Jake’s jaw tightened. “And the fact that I didn’t call you excuses your actions,” he answered. He leaned forward, causing Catherine to retreat a step. It put her against the sofa.

  “I don’t need an excuse for my actions,” she stated tightly. His breath fanned her face and she could smell his aftershave. Suddenly she very much needed some space between them. Scooting around him, she walked over to the desk and touched it briefly. Then she faced him.

  “I sent you a letter, Jake,” she said again, and her voice became low and filled with years of sadness. She shivered and closed her arms around herself. “You wrote back that I was never to contact you again.”

  Jake raked a hand through his hair, frustration driving the movement. “That’s crazy. I never sent you a letter like that.” When he looked at her, his expression changed. “I would never had done that. Hell, Catie, you knew me better than anyone.”

  Catherine only looked at him with disappointment. “I thought I did.” Suddenly she wanted to cry. But she didn’t.

  Jake put his hands in his back pockets to keep them from reaching toward her. “Do you still have this letter?” he asked, patience lacking in his tone.

  Defiantly Catherine’s gaze locked with his. “You don’t believe me.” Her laugh was forced. “Well, that’s just dandy. You think you’d remember having your lawyer send me a letter.”

  “My lawyer?” Jake stopped speaking to think a moment. Back then, the only lawyer he knew was his parents’ lawyer. “You got a letter from Frank Davis?”

  “As if you didn’t know,” she replied.

  “Catherine, I don’t know anything about a letter. I swear it. Frank Davis was my parents’ lawyer. Shortly after I came home, he had all the mail sent to his office. He handled all the correspondence and bills while I learned everything I needed to know to kee
p the ranch afloat.”

  The ranch hadn’t been in the best of conditions when Jake had taken over. He had always admired his father, but he never really knew how much the man struggled until he died. There’d been a drought that year, and cattle prices had dropped drastically. His father had worked hard for years, only to end up in debt and struggling to hang on to their land.

  Jake’s admiration of his father had taken a nosedive when he’d learned that he’d been the result of his father’s adulterous affair. Jake stiffened as he thought about when he’d first learned the truth. Then he pushed the bad feelings to the back of his mind. He refused to let it haunt him today.

  His gaze fell on Catherine, who had walked across the room to stare out at the rain beating against the window. She jumped when lightning flashed across the sky. He called to her and she turned toward him. “If Frank wrote you, I didn’t know about it,” he said again. Jake looked closer and saw tears fall down her cheeks.

  “The letter said you didn’t know me.”

  Jake expression changed to one of shock and disbelief. “Why would Frank do something like that?” Jake wondered aloud. Jake wasn’t used to having his word questioned. “Does that even sound like something I’d do?” he asked, walking toward her.

  Catherine didn’t think before she answered, “Yes.”

  Her words stopped Jake dead in his tracks. “You believe I would deny knowing you?” he asked, anger in his voice.

  “We’d argued right before you left to go home, so I believed you didn’t want anything to do with me.” And if he hadn’t wanted her, he wouldn’t have wanted their baby. She hadn’t wanted Jake to come back to her out of a sense of responsibility. She’d wanted his love. She glared at him, then said, “Look, this is getting us nowhere. I don’t see why we have to hash out the past. I came here to get my son and I intend to leave with him.”

  “We need to get to the bottom of this. Frank Davis died, but we can probably get access to his files.” Before Catherine could answer, there was a knock at the door. It cracked open, and Ashley’s head appeared.