Texas Cowboy's Protection, - [books you need to read .TXT] 📗

“Did she say who the father was?”

“Not to me. But, like I said, she and I were supposed to catch up at lunch.”

“Don’t you think it’s odd she reached out to you after all this time?”

She shrugged. “Honestly, I didn’t think much about it at the time. Getting ready to make a major move with my daughter has occupied most of my thoughts. Coming back home. It’s kind of—”

“Strange, right?”

“Good word. I love Gunner and the people here, don’t get me wrong. It’s a great town and part of me didn’t want to leave years ago…”

“Then Dallas became home to you. This feels like returning to a past life.”

“One where I don’t know where or if I fit in anymore. You know?” One look at him said he understood perfectly.

“I’ve been home for the holidays. I’m in and out in a flash.” He snapped his fingers. “I never stuck around after.”

“It’s pretty much the same for me. When Des was alive he usually had to work holidays. When he died, my mom came to visit as often as she could. And then my dad got sick. You know, with Dad gone it’s been hard for her to get away from the restaurant.” Des never had been able to hire on with Dallas P.D. He’d taken a private security job in a wealthy suburb instead.

“What about after he died? Did you spend time in Gunner?”

“I thought if I came here I’d never go to my own home. Des had spent so much time painting our daughter’s bedroom pink. I wanted her to come home to the room he’d prepared for her. He and I didn’t always agree on everything but he would’ve been an amazing dad. Is it weird that I stayed in a city I wasn’t in love with?”

“Not at all. You had to get your bearings. Life dealt you a crap hand and you did the best you could with it. I’d say you dealt with it a hell of a lot better than most would.”

“I felt like she was closer to him in Dallas. I swear the pregnancy caused me to be all hormones and waterworks. I cried at the drop of a pin. Des died early on in my pregnancy. I was three months along when he went into the neighbor’s burning house to save their pet. The fire seemed to overtake the place in seconds. Everything happened so fast I could barely process it. My brain was in a fog for days afterward.”

“It happened in a fire? I heard he died of a heart attack.”

“A widow maker. Too much smoke inhalation. I wasn’t prepared for just how much my life was about to change.” Here it was changing again. This time, Gina wanted the changes to be permanent. She wanted to put down roots for her daughter in a town where she could feel safe. It had seemed possible until this morning. Now, she wasn’t sure.

“It’s strange to lose someone who is in his or her prime. Des was young and healthy. I’m sure not much changed since high school in his fitness routine. The man was a machine back then. He needed to work out every morning before school just so he could sit in the classroom all day.”

Gina agreed. She hadn’t thought about how Des had been when they were in high school in a long time. That had seemed like a lifetime ago. After a few months of marriage, he’d settled into his own routine. There were times that she wondered if he noticed she was in the room he’d be so into watching a football game. “He kept up with his workout routine.”

“I’m not surprised.”

“The family was out safely when he went back in. Rhonda and Jermaine had two beautiful daughters, ages four and six. The girls used to bring cookies over for us. They were such a sweet family. Jermaine got called in to work early that night. Rhonda fell asleep on the couch and forgot the iron was still plugged in. The whole house went up so fast. Des helped Rhonda get the kids out as I called 911. Their six-year-old got a kitty for her birthday. She loved that cat. So, Des went back in for it. He found it in the laundry basket hiding inside her room.”

“Sounds like something Des would do.”

She smiled at the memory. “Lucy, the cat, survived. Des walked out fine, at first. I mean, he was coughing but firemen arrived and pretty soon after he was being wheeled away on a gurney and tucked in the back of the ambulance. The EMTs had me ride in the front seat. I thought it was all precautionary.”

“Too much smoke inhalation.”

“On the way to the hospital, everything looked fine. The driver seemed calm, relaxed.” Reliving the memory caused her chest to squeeze. She took a minute to breathe and gather her thoughts. “I didn’t notice the activity when it started behind me. I couldn’t see or hear back there anyway. Next thing I know, the driver picked up the pace. That was my first indication something was going wrong. Even then, I never once thought Des was in real danger…”

“I’ve heard of it happening.” His voice was low, reverent and it was balm to an aching heart.

“I had no idea. It took me by complete surprise. One minute, Des was fine. He had a cough, sure, I thought he’d get better when they gave him oxygen. Next thing I know…” A few rogue tears sprang from her eyes.

A year-and-a-half later, talking about what happened still made the air thin.

“I’m sorry, Gina. I really am. That’s unfair. Life can deal crazy blows at times.” She shouldn’t allow those words to comfort her as much as they did. It was probably her and Isaac’s shared history giving her the first sense of not being alone in longer than she could remember. Even when Des had been alive, she’d felt on her own. He’d worked the late shift. Days off were reserved for football in season or hanging out with friends in his man cave. A few months into their marriage, Gina had joked they were already an old married couple. Separate sleeping schedules. Sometimes separate rooms. Once a month date nights. She’d kept hoping the two of them would find a rhythm together. It never came. Des seemed perfectly happy with setting aside one night a month for her.

“Thank you.” Isaac had the power to make her feel connected again. “Life can be strange. I never expected to do all this on my own. Look where I am.”

He pulled the truck in front of the cabin and parked.

“I’m used to it now, don’t get me wrong. And I love that little girl more than I though could love anyone or anything in my life. Being a single mom is all I’ve ever known with Everly. But when I think about the future, about doing all of it alone, it can be a little overwhelming. This was never the plan.”

“Did your blueprint ever involve moving back to Gunner?”

“Des didn’t want to. He thought our life was in Dallas.” She glanced over at Isaac and caught a confused look on his face. “What’s wrong?”

“You always talked about carrying on the tradition in your family and taking over the restaurant someday. It seemed like a big deal to you when we were kids.”

“I guess life has a way of taking us in new directions.”

Isaac didn’t comment. It wasn’t his place to, and the last thing he wanted to do was call out a dead man. Isaac had too much respect for Des’s memory. He didn’t like the fact she would so willingly give up her family tradition—a tradition that had seemed so important to her at one time—so she didn’t make waves in her relationship.

Plus, what kind of spouse would expect the other to walk away from their history?

Figuring it was none of his business, Isaac kept a zip on his lips as he opened the door for Gina. He helped her climb out of the cab and held onto her arm when her ankle gave out.

“Sorry.” She winced.

“For what? Being in pain? It’s okay, Gina.” It was past lunch time and she had to be starving by now.

Isaac focused on the two-bedroom cabin that had been in her family for years. He and Gina had created memories there that he had no business thinking about under the circumstances. Being there again felt a little too right. He shouldn’t let himself get too comfortable. Isaac had no plans to stick around Gunner after he found out why he’d been summoned in the first place. He was still trying to figure out why he’d shown, considering the poor state of his relationship with T.J.

“Ready?” He turned to Gina.

“As much as I’ll ever be.” Isaac helped Gina navigate finding her keys and unlocking the door.

The minute she walked inside, Mrs. Weber rushed over and pulled her into a hug. “Everly just went down for a nap. I’d ask how you are but that’d be a dumb question.”

“I’m okay. Really.” Gina frowned.

“How could you be? With everything you’ve been through today. And on your first full day home.” The retired seventy-year-old had the spunk and wit of a woman half her age. She also had the fiery red hair to match her temperament. The hair color made Mrs. Weber and Gina look like they could be related even though