Wyoming Rugged

“You’re very welcome.”

The little girl ran into the dining room, where the adults were finishing dessert.

“Poor thing,” Niki said under her breath. “Even if he thinks it, he shouldn’t have told her.”

“She’s a nice child,” he said, getting to his feet. He looked down at Niki. “You’re a nice child, yourself.”

She made a face at him. “Thanks. I think.”

His dark eyes held an expression she’d never seen before. They fell to her waistline and jerked back up. He turned away. “Any more coffee going? I’m sure mine’s cold.”

“Edna will have made a new pot by now,” she said. His attitude disconcerted her. Why had he looked at her that way? Her eyes followed him as he strode back into the dining room, towering over most of the other men. The little girl smiled up at him, and he ruffled her hair.

He wanted children. She could see it. But apparently his wife didn’t. What a waste, she thought. What a wife he had. She felt sorry for him. He’d said when he was engaged that he was crazy about Elise. Why didn’t she care enough to come when he was ill?

“It’s not my business,” she told herself firmly.

It wasn’t. But she felt very sorry for him just the same. If he’d married her, they’d have a houseful of children. She’d take care of him and love him and nurse him when he was sick... She pulled herself up short. He was a married man. She shouldn’t be thinking such things.

* * *

SHE’D BOUGHT PRESENTS online for her father and Edna and Blair. She was careful to get Blair something impersonal. She didn’t want his wife to think she was chasing him or anything. She picked out a tie tac, a fleur de lis made of solid gold. She couldn’t understand why she’d chosen such a thing. He had Greek ancestry, as far as she knew, not French. It had been an impulse.

Her father had gone to answer the phone, a call from a business associate who wanted to wish him happy holidays, leaving Blair and Niki alone in the living room by the tree. She felt like an idiot for making the purchase.

Now Blair was opening the gift, and she ground her teeth together when he took the lid off the box and stared at it with wide, stunned eyes.

“I’m sorry,” she began self-consciously. “The sales slip is in there,” she added. “You can exchange it if...”

He looked at her. His expression stopped her tirade midsentence. “My mother was French,” he said quietly. “How did you know?”

She faltered. She couldn’t manage words. “I didn’t. It was an impulse.”

His big fingers smoothed over the tie tac. “In fact, I had one just like it that she bought me when I graduated from college.” He swallowed. Hard. “Thanks.”

“You’re very welcome.”

His dark eyes pinned hers. “Open yours now.”

She fumbled with the small box he’d had hidden in his suitcase until this morning. She tore off the ribbons and opened it. Inside was the most beautiful brooch she’d ever seen. It was a golden orchid on an ivory background. The orchid was purple with a yellow center, made of delicate amethyst and topaz and gold.

She looked at him with wide, soft eyes. “It’s so beautiful...”

He smiled with real affection. “It reminded me of you, when I saw it in the jewelry store,” he lied, because he’d had it commissioned by a noted jewelry craftsman, just for her. “Little hothouse orchid,” he teased.

She flushed. She took the delicate brooch out of its box and pinned it to the bodice of her black velvet dress. “I’ve never had anything so lovely,” she faltered. “Thank you.”

He stood up and drew her close to him. “Thank you, Niki.” He bent and started to brush her mouth with his, but forced himself to deflect the kiss to her soft cheek. “Merry Christmas.”

She felt the embrace to the nails of her toes. He smelled of expensive cologne and soap, and the feel of that powerful body so close to hers made her vibrate inside. She was flustered by the contact, and uneasy because he was married.

She laughed, moving away. “I’ll wear it to church every Sunday,” she promised without really looking at him.

He cleared his throat. The contact had affected him, too. “I’ll wear mine to board meetings, for a lucky charm,” he teased gently. “To ward off hostile takeovers.”

“I promise it will do the job,” she replied, and grinned.

Her father came back to the living room, and the sudden, tense silence was broken. Conversation turned to politics and the weather, and Niki joined in with forced cheerfulness.

But she couldn’t stop touching the orchid brooch she’d pinned to her dress.

* * *

TIME PASSED. BLAIR’S VISITS to the ranch had slowed until they were almost nonexistent. Her father said Blair was trying to make his marriage work. Niki thought, privately, that it would take a miracle to turn fun-loving Elise into a housewife. But she forced herself not to dwell on it. Blair was married. Period. She did try to go out more with her friends, but never on a blind date again. The experience with Harvey had affected her more than she’d realized.

Graduation day came all too soon. Niki had enjoyed college. The daily commute was a grind, especially in the harsh winter, but thanks to Tex, who could drive in snow and ice, it was never a problem. Her grade point average was good enough for a magna cum laude award. And she’d already purchased her class ring months before.

“Is Blair coming with Elise, do you think?” Niki asked her father as they parted inside the auditorium just before the graduation ceremony.

He looked uncomfortable. “I don’t think so,” he said. “They’ve had some sort of blowup,” he added. “Blair’s butler, Jameson, called me last night. He said Blair locked himself in his study and won’t come out.”

“Oh, dear,” Niki said, worried. “Can’t he find a key and get in?”

“I’ll suggest that,” he promised. He forced a smile. “Go graduate. You’ve worked hard for this.”

She smiled. “Yes, I have. Now all I have to do is decide if I want to go on to graduate school or get a job.”

“A job?” he scoffed. “As if you’ll ever need to work.”

“You’re rich,” she pointed out. “I’m not.”

“You’re rich, too,” he argued. He bent and kissed her cheek, a little uncomfortably. He wasn’t a demonstrative man. “I’m so proud of you, honey.”

“Thanks, Daddy!”

“Don’t forget to turn the tassel to the other side when the president hands you your diploma.”

“I won’t forget.”

* * *

THE CEREMONY WAS LONG, and the speaker was tedious. By the time he finished, the audience was restless, and Niki just wanted it over with.

She was third in line to get her diploma. She thanked the dean, whipped her tassel to the other side as she walked offstage and grinned to herself, imagining her father’s pleased expression.

It took a long time for all the graduates to get through the line, but at last it was over, and Niki was outside with her father, congratulating classmates and working her way to the parking lot.

She noted, when they were inside the car, that her father was frowning.

“I turned my tassel,” she reminded him.

He sighed. “Sorry, honey. I was thinking about Blair.”

Her heart jumped. “Did you call Jameson?”

“Yes. He finally admitted that Blair hasn’t been sober for three days. Apparently, the divorce is final, and Blair found out some unsavory things about his wife.”

“Oh, dear.” She tried not to feel pleasure that Blair was free. He’d said often enough that he thought of Niki as a child. “What sort of things?”

“I can’t tell you, honey. It’s very private stuff.”

She drew in a long breath. “We should go get him and bring him to the ranch,” she said firmly. “He shouldn’t be on his own in that sort of mood.”

He smiled softly. “You know, I was just thinking the same thing. Call Dave and have them get the Learjet over here. You can come with me if you like.”

“Thanks.”

He shrugged. “I might need the help,” he mused. “Blair gets a little dangerous when he drinks, but he’d never hit a woman,” he added.

She nodded. “Okay.”

* * *

BLAIR DIDN’T RESPOND to her father’s voice asking him to open the door. Muffled curses came through the wood, along with sounds of a big body bumping furniture.

“Let me try,” Niki said softly. She rapped on the door. “Blair?” she called.

There was silence, followed by the sound of footsteps coming closer. “Niki?” came a deep, slurred voice.

“Yes, it’s me.”

He unlocked the door and opened it. He looked terrible. His face was flushed from too much alcohol. His black, wavy hair was ruffled. His blue shirt, unbuttoned and untucked, looked as if he’d slept in it. So did his black pants. He was a little unsteady on his feet. His eyes roved over Niki’s face with warm affection.

She reached out and caught his big hand in both of hers. “You’re coming home with us,” she said gently. “Come on, now.”

“Okay,” he said, without a single protest.

Jameson, standing to one side, out of sight, sighed with relief. He grinned at her father.

Blair drew in a long breath. “I’m pretty drunk.”

“That’s okay,” Niki said, still holding tight to his hand. “We won’t let you drive.”

He burst out laughing. “Damned little brat,” he muttered.

She grinned at him.

“You dressed up to come visit me?” he asked, looking from her to her father.

“It was my graduation today,” Niki said.

Blair grimaced. “Damn! I meant to come. I really did. I even got you a present.” He patted his pockets. “Oh, hell, it’s in my desk. Just a minute.”

He managed to stagger over to the desk without falling. He dredged out a small wrapped gift. “But you can’t open it until I’m sober,” he said, putting it in her hands.

“Oh. Well, okay,” she said. She cocked her head. “Are you planning to have to run me down when I open it, then?”

His eyes twinkled. “Who knows?”

“We’d better go before he changes his mind,” her father said blithely.

“I won’t,” Blair promised. “There’s too damned much available liquor here. You only keep cognac and Scotch whiskey,” he reminded his friend.

“I’ve had Edna hide the bottles, though,” her father assured him.

“I’ve had enough anyway.”

“Yes, you have. Come on,” Niki said, grabbing Blair’s big hand in hers.

He followed her like a lamb, not even complaining at her assertiveness. He didn’t notice that Todd and Jameson were both smiling with pure amusement.

* * *

WHEN THEY GOT back to Catelow, and the Ashton ranch, Niki led Blair up to the guest room and set him down on the big bed.

“Sleep,” she said, “is the best thing for you.”

He drew in a ragged breath. “I haven’t slept for days,” he confessed. “I’m so tired, Niki.”

She smoothed back his thick, cool black hair. “You’ll get past this,” she said with a wisdom far beyond her years. “It only needs time. It’s fresh, like a raw wound. You have to heal until it stops hurting so much.”

He was enjoying her soft hand in his hair. Too much. He let out a long sigh. “Some days I feel my age.”

“You think you’re old?” she chided. “We’ve got a cowhand, Mike, who just turned seventy. Know what he did yesterday? He learned to ride a bicycle.”

His eyebrows arched. “Are you making a point?”

“Yes. Age is only in the mind.”

He smiled sardonically. “My mind is old, too.”

“I’m sorry you couldn’t have had children,” she lied, and felt guilty that she was glad about it. “Sometimes they make a marriage work.”

“Sometimes they end it,” he retorted.

“Fifty-fifty chance.”

“Elise would never have risked her figure to have a child,” he said coldly. “She even said so.” He grimaced. “We had a hell of a fight after the Christmas I spent here. It disgusted me that she’d go to some party with her friends and not even bother to call to see how I was. She actually said to me the money was nice. It was a pity I came with it.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said with genuine sympathy. “I can’t imagine the sort of woman who’d marry a man for what he had. I couldn’t do that, even if I was dirt poor.”

He looked up into soft, pretty gray eyes. “No,” he agreed. “You’re the sort who’d get down in the mud with your husband and do anything you had to do to help him. Rare, Niki. Like that hothouse orchid pin I gave you for Christmas.”

She smiled. “I wear it all the time. It’s so beautiful.”

“Like you.”

She made a face. “I’m not beautiful.”

“What’s inside you is,” he replied, and he wasn’t kidding.

She flushed a little. “Thanks.”

He drew in a breath and shuddered. “Oh, God...” He shot out of the bed, heading toward the bathroom. He barely made it to the toilet in time. He lost his breakfast and about a fifth of bourbon.

When he finished, his stomach hurt. And there was Niki, with a wet washcloth. She bathed his face, helped him to the sink to wash out his mouth then helped him back to bed.

He couldn’t help remembering his mother, his sweet French mother, who’d sacrificed so much for him, who’d cared for him, loved him. It hurt him to remember her. He’d thought Elise resembled her. But it was this young woman, this angel, who was like her.

“Thanks,” he managed to croak out.

“You’ll be all right,” she said. “But just in case, I’m going downstairs right now to hide all the liquor.”

There was a lilt in her voice. He lifted the wet cloth he’d put over his eyes and peered up through a growing massive headache. She was smiling. It was like the sun coming out.

“Better hide it good,” he teased.

She grinned. “Can I get you anything before I leave?”

“No, honey. I’ll be fine.”

Honey. Her whole body rippled as he said the word. She tried to hide her reaction to it, but she didn’t have the experience for such subterfuge. He saw it, and worried. He couldn’t afford to let her get too attached to him. He was too old for her. Nothing would change that.

She got up, moving toward the door.

“Niki,” he called softly.

She turned.

“Thanks,” he said huskily.

She only smiled, before she went out and closed the door behind her.

* * *

“CAN WE HIDE the rest of the liquor?” she asked her father with a grin.

He chuckled. “He’ll leave it alone now. I imagine his head is two sizes too big, and he’s sick as a dog.”

“He certainly is,” she agreed. Her face hardened. “That horrible woman! If she wanted money, why didn’t she just get a job and make her own living?”

Todd looked at her with pride and affection. “That’s you, Niki. Elise is cut from a different sort of cloth. She wanted to have a life in the fast lane. She charmed Blair into thinking she wanted him.” He shook his head. “I think Christmas was the last straw. He was in bad shape, and she didn’t give a damn and made it obvious. She’ll fight him in court for alimony, of course,” he added harshly. “To the death, I imagine.”

“I imagine it’ll only last until she marries again,” she said. “That might not be long.”

He gave her an odd look. “I seriously doubt she’ll ever remarry.”

“Life goes on,” she said.

“Inevitably.” He kissed her on the forehead. “Happy graduation day, sweetheart,” he said softly. “I’m very proud of you. Sorry it ended in such misery.”

“I’m glad we brought Blair here,” she said. “God knows what he might have done, left alone with too much liquor.” She shivered inside. He must have loved Elise greatly. She said the last aloud to her father.

“He was infatuated with her, certainly. He’s not a playboy. He never was.”

“You’ve known him a long time, haven’t you?”

He nodded. “He’s a good man. Best friend I’ve ever had.”

“He’s been my friend, too,” she pointed out, smiling. “I don’t know what I’d have done if he hadn’t been here that night Harvey brought me home after our date.” She drew in a breath. “I’m still afraid to try dating again, you know.”

“Sweetheart, you can’t carry it around like a burden for the rest of your life,” he pointed out. “You’ll never be happy without a husband and children. You know that.”

She wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m not in good health,” she said slowly. “It...puts men off.”

“It won’t matter to any man who loves you.”

“You think so?” She had her doubts, but she smiled. “I’m going to help Edna in the kitchen.”

“Okay, Tidbit. I think I’ll watch the news.”

“Will you check on Blair, on your way to bed? Just in case?” she added.

He smiled. “Of course.”

She wanted to do that herself. But that look Blair had given her hadn’t been one of encouragement. She found him attractive, and she couldn’t manage to hide it. She knew it was going to cause problems.

CHAPTER THREE

BLAIR WAS BARELY able to get out of bed the next day. His head hammered, and he was wobbly on his feet.

“Serves me right, I guess,” he said when Niki brought him hash browns and bacon in bed.

“Don’t say that,” she chided softly. “You were entitled. I’m sorry life is so hard for you right now. But it will get better. Really, it will.”

He looked up at her quietly. “You’re an optimist, Niki. I’m not. I see things from a different perspective. So will you, when you’re older,” he added in a faintly bitter tone.

“For heaven’s sake, I’m going on twenty-two,” she burst out. “I just graduated from college!”

“And there’s a big world out there, just waiting for you,” he said. “New people, new places. New men,” he added deliberately.

She wrapped her arms around her chest. “No.”

He scowled, pausing with hash browns on his fork. “What do you mean, no?” he asked.

She bit her lower lip. “How do I know what men are going to be like when I’m alone with them? I know I haven’t dated much, but that was one heck of a wake-up call, you know. If you hadn’t been there...” Her eyes were tormented, and she shook her head.

“Come here.”

She sat down beside him on the bed.

He took her hand in his and held it. “You have to know, very few men ever resort to force. He’d been drinking pretty heavily.”

“I know. I tried to get him to stop. He said I was backward.” She sighed. “I guess I am. I don’t keep step with people in the modern world. I live in the country, I like wildflowers and little children, I don’t drink or smoke or do drugs...” She made a face. “It’s just a pity I wasn’t born a hundred years ago. I’d have been right at home.”

“There are other people like you in the world,” he said softly. “You’ll find them. You have to take chances, Niki. You have to get out in the world to cope with it. You’re hiding here, honey. You’re running away from life. It’s cowardly. That’s not like you.”

Her face flamed. She got up and moved away from him, like a child burned by contact with fire. How could she tell him that she was in love with him, that she wasn’t hiding from life? She was waiting, hoping, praying that one day...

His heart sank when he saw her face. He’d been too harsh. “Niki, I’m sorry.”

She swallowed, hard. He was like an adult with a small child, and it hurt to be thought of that way. She stood up from the bed. “I have to help Edna clear up in the kitchen.”

She was out the door before he could curse himself for bringing that look into her soft face. He felt guilty for the rest of the day, more so when she didn’t come near his room again.

She kept to herself for the rest of the day. She was polite to Blair at dinner, but he saw right through her.

“You’re very quiet tonight, Niki,” her father said, frowning. “Everything all right?”

She toyed with her food. “Of course. I’m just not very hungry, that’s all.” She added a smile so that her father wouldn’t get suspicious.

Blair sipped black coffee. “I thought I might drive over to Yellowstone tomorrow and see the sights. Want to come, Niki?” he added without looking at her.

She felt her heart trying to climb out of her throat. The invitation was unexpected.

“Go with him,” her father said firmly. “You need to get out of the house for a while. It will do you good. Just be sure to take your inhaler with you,” he added wryly. “Everything’s just starting to bloom. You don’t want another chest infection.”

“Worrywart,” she chided.

“I’ll take care of her,” Blair said quietly.

“I know that.” Her father finished his coffee. “Got a minute?” he asked Blair. “I want to talk to you about that new drilling site I’m going to lease.”

“Sure.” Blair got up and followed him into the study.

Niki helped Edna clear away the dishes.

“You can hide it from your father, but not from me, young lady,” Edna chided when they were putting dishes into the dishwasher. “What’s wrong?”

She moved one shoulder a little. “Blair says I’m hiding from life. From men.” She was, but she couldn’t tell Edna why.

“He’s right,” was the unexpected reply. “You’re letting that one bad date tie you up like a knot. Honey, not all men are going to try to force you. It was an unfortunate thing, what happened.”

“I couldn’t have stopped him,” Niki recalled with disgust. “If Blair hadn’t been here...”

“I know.” Edna stopped and hugged her, smoothing her long, soft hair. “But he was. You can’t go through life looking behind you. The future is bright and sweet, my darling. You have to look ahead.”

Niki sighed and smiled against the older woman’s shoulder. “Dad and I are so lucky to have you,” she said. “I don’t know how either of us would have coped. Especially Dad. He loved my mother so much.”

Edna drew in a long breath. “Yes. He was crazy about her.” She smiled sadly. “I loved my husband that way. When he died, I thought my life was over. Then Mr. Ashton offered me a job, and you were in grammar school...” She swallowed, hard. “You see, I was never able to have a child of my own. It was such a privilege, a blessing, to take care of you.”

Niki drew back, her eyes soft and misty as she met those of the older woman. “You’ve been like a mother to me,” she said. “God knows how I’d have turned out if it had just been me and Dad,” she added with a laugh, lightening the atmosphere. “I guess I’d have learned to play poker and drink whiskey and get in fights with the cowboys.”

Edna chuckled as she let Niki go. “He did a lot of that. Got stinking drunk and stayed that way for a whole month after the funeral. Most of the cowboys learned to hide in the barn until he had enough and passed out. To give them credit, none of them resigned.”

“He’s calmed down a bit,” Niki said.

“Not a lot. He and your friend Blair are cut from the same cloth.” She winced. “Hurts me, to see poor Mr. Coleman like that. His wife was a piece of work.”

“He really loved her,” Niki said. “I remember when they were just engaged. When he talked about her, his face almost glowed, like his eyes.” She glowered as she finished rinsing a plate to go in the dishwasher and handed it to Edna. “Imagine a woman who thought going to some stupid party was more important than taking care of her sick husband.”

“She had her priorities,” Edna said curtly. “Money and other men. What a shame. She’s ruined him for marriage. He’ll never take the chance again.”

“He waited a long time to get married,” Niki said thoughtfully.

“Yes. Your father said he took the loss of his mother particularly hard. He was vulnerable. That’s probably how that she-cat got her claws into him. Playing up to him, pretending to be concerned, vamping him.”

“What’s vamping?” Niki asked curiously.

“Tempting him,” Edna explained. “Most men are weak when a woman uses her body blatantly to tempt them. An experienced woman can make a plaything of a man, if he’s vulnerable.”

“It’s hard to think of Blair Coleman being susceptible like that.”

“He’s a man, honey,” Edna chuckled. “They’re all susceptible.”

“I don’t know much about that.”

“You’ll never learn, staying in this house all the time,” Edna continued. “You have to get out into the world and meet people. Meet men. Honey, you were made for a home and children.”