Chance For Love (Colorado Blues) (2 page)

Callie pushed open the door and stepped out to take a
sniff of the night air. The sounds rolled over her body, the noise of it all
making her wince. For a short time as they’d dropped down over the red hills of
Nevada, she’d had the feeling she could be home in Alice Springs but that
thought was quickly pushed to one side as soon as she stepped off the plane.
Standing outside on the balcony only brought it all back. She was as far from
home as she could imagine and the people she had met so far were nothing like
she was used to. Flamboyant and loud, the surroundings gave her a headache. She
stepped back inside and shut the door on the outside world.

Callie explored the rest of her suite and discovered a
bathroom to end all bathrooms. A deep tub was set in a marble surround, sunken
into the floor. A tray on the edge of the bath held an array of pretty bottles
and she sat down on the edge of the tub and picked one up. When she unscrewed
the top, a soft and fruity perfume reached her nostrils and she breathed it in
deeply.

Before she could change her mind, she popped in the
plug and turned on the taps. Callie poured the contents of the small bottle
under the flow of water and watched the suds build up, covering the surface
like fluffy clouds. She checked the door was shut in the lounge before shucking
off her dusty worn leather work boots and threw them on the floor beside the
bed. As she walked back into the bathroom, Callie undid the bottoms on her
shirt, peeled it off her shoulders, and let it fall to the tiled floor. Her
faded denim jeans quickly followed along with her panties and bra.

She turned the light down to a soft glow before dipping
her toes into the fragrant water filling the huge tub. With a sigh of pleasure,
Callie folded her travel weary body into the suds and leaned back, resting her
toes on the tap to give it a gentle push when the water reached just over the
tips of her nipples.

Buttons on the side of the tub were explored and when
a soft rhythm of water pulsed around her body, she closed her eyes. The only
sound was the flow of the water running through the jets in the tub which shut
out all of the rush and bustle of the outside world.

The soft tap on the door and a discreet cough woke her
up. She squealed and covered her breasts.

“Sorry, ma’am but dinner is almost ready to be served.
Can I say around five minutes?”

“Um, ah, sure. Just let me get dressed please and I’ll
come out.”

“I do believe there is a fluffy gown behind the
bathroom door, ma’am. Perhaps you would be happier dressed in that tonight
since you won’t be leaving the suite.”

“Um, sure. If you think that’s alright.” She pulled
the plug and sat in the cool water, watching it flow down the drain.

“Entirely up to you, ma’am.” He cleared his throat and
she heard the soft footsteps move away from the door.

Callie stood up and reached for a warm towel from the
heated towel rack beside the bath. She draped it around herself enjoying the
warmth after the cool water. How long had she been in there? The time
difference was messing with her head and she had no idea what time was anymore.
It would probably take her a few days to get used to the new time zone and the
best way to do that was to sleep through it.

There was indeed a fluffy white dressing gown behind
the door. Thick and soft, it was the thing dreams were made of. Never before
had she ever dressed in something this nice and luxurious. She wrapped it
around her body, groaning in pleasure as the fabric brushed against her skin.
The marble flooring was cool on her bare feet and she slid on a pair of
matching slippers, digging her toes into the soft clouds of comfort. The
muffled sounds of someone working came from the lounge and she took a quick
look in the mirror before venturing out. Callie looked tired and there was no
getting away from that. Her body sagged from exhaustion and it was tempting to
climb into the huge comfy bed in the other room. She’d even forgo dinner for
the extra half an hour’s sleep she would probably get.

“How lovely to meet you, Miss. Lister. My name is
Bronson.” The elderly gentleman was dressed in a black suit and looked very
classy as he set her place at the table. “I usually butler for Mr. Chance
whenever he’s in town and it’s my pleasure to serve you while you’re here. I
took the liberty of ordering you a meal tonight as I knew you would probably be
tired and slightly thrown out by the time zone. Mr. Chance usually likes his
steak so I ordered you his favorite dish.”

Callie smiled and walked toward the table. It was set
for one with a heated serving tray waiting beside it. She took the chair
Bronson held out and sat down. The smell reached her making her stomach sit up
and take notice before he even pushed her chair in. She held her hand over her
belly as it rumbled.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was so hungry.”

“At least we know the meal will be appreciate, ma’am.”

Bronson placed a napkin on her lap before he took the
lid from the hot plate. He served her a medium rare steak with asparagus and
baby potatoes dripping in a butter sauce. When Callie picked up her knife,
Bronson held up a bottle of champagne toward her glass.

“Uh, no thanks. I don’t usually drink.”

He smiled at her. “Might I suggest a small glass just
to help you sleep tonight? You have had an eventful day and I’m sure you want
to be looking your best tomorrow when you meet Mr. Chance.”

Callie blushed wondering how much the butler knew.
“Thanks.” She watched him pour the golden liquid, mesmerized by the bubbles
rising in the crystal glass. Once the glass was full, the butler left her alone
to eat her meal in peace. She heard him wandering around in the bedroom and
bathroom and dreaded what he might be doing. Cleaning up her mess was her job,
always had been. She’d left her clothes strewn all over the floor and now felt
ashamed of her laziness. Oh well, next time she would be a little bit more
careful.

The steak was tender and moist just how she liked it,
but this was steak like she’d never had before. It was juicy and succulent,
with a smoky tang that left her hungry for more. The flavors woke her up and
she surprised herself by polishing off the whole meal. She made sure to sip at
her wine too, lest Branson chided her. The bubbles raced over her tongue, and
sparked an interest. She glanced at the bottle in the bucket of ice and
couldn’t read a word the label said. Something foreign and strange.

“Did you enjoy your meal, ma’am?”

Callie jumped. She hadn’t heard him return to the
lounge. “Yes, it was perfect. Thank you very much.”

He cleared her plate and cutlery before setting
another small plate in front of her. A single serve cheesecake with fresh
raspberries bound in a nest of chocolate sat tempting her taste buds. “I really
don’t think—”

“Enjoy, ma’am. Mr. Chance insisted I feed you
adequately. He dislikes women who try to survive on lettuce leaves or less.”

She picked up the spoon and dipped into the
cheesecake, taking a moment to savor the carefully created artwork. Once the
dessert hit her tongue, she groaned in pleasure. The taste of white chocolate
underlined with a touch of fruit melted in her mouth.

Brandon smiled and nodded his head in approval.
“Another of Mr. Chance’s favorites.”

“I’m understanding why too.”

“For breakfast tomorrow, I thought an omelet with
cheese, and herbs, and whole grain toast with honey. Perhaps a pot of tea. Is
that acceptable for you?”

“You really don’t have to go to any fuss. I’m happy
with just toast.”

“Ah, but you have a lot happening tomorrow. After your
appointment with Mr. Chance, you have a long drive ahead of you back to the
ranch. I wouldn’t want you to attempt either thing without a decent breakfast.”

She put down her spoon and looked at the butler, heat
creeping up her cheeks. “You know what’s happening tomorrow, don’t you?”

“I must admit I’m privy to Mr. Chance’s movements,
yes. I had the pleasure of arranging the car and the venue for your nuptials.”

“Must seem strange to you, me coming all this way to
marry a man I don’t even know.”

“Well now, far be it from me to make assumptions,
ma’am. Mr. Chance does what he pleases and nobody would dare to question him
why, least of all me, but I do suspect he knows what he is doing. I’m sure you
are just what he needs too, at this time in his life.” He cleared away her
plate and tidied the table while Callie sat there watching. She toyed with the
stem of her glass and finally finished the champagne before handing it to the
butler.

“Well, guess I’d better get my beauty sleep then.
Can’t show up for my wedding looking like I just dragged myself in from the
back paddocks.”

“I unpacked your bag and didn’t notice a dress for the
occasion. Mr. Chance gave me permission to rectify that if I thought I needed
to. I’ll have something sent up first thing in the morning. Sleep well, Miss.
Callie.” He smiled and took the trolley, pushing it from the room.

Holy heck, she’d forgotten to buy a dress. How could
she even think of rocking up to her wedding with nothing other than jeans and
work shirts?

Chance stood inside the office at the wedding chapel
door, trying his best to avoid any hovering paparazzi who normally staked out
these venues in the hope of scooping a story. The Elvis Presley Chapel was
always busy and there was the chance that someone famous could sneak into Vegas
for that quick behind the scenes wedding they seemed to love. There was a good
chance they would be able to snap a picture of him and sell it for reasonable money.
Chance was still a celebrity who drew crowds, and he hadn’t announced yet that
his rodeo days were over.

It might have been a tacky place to get married, but
he thought the humor of it might help break the ice for Callie.

He looked at his watch. 10:05. She was late and that
would have been acceptable for the normal bride, but this was nothing like a
normal wedding. And the last thing he needed was for anyone to catch on to what
he was doing until he was already safe and sound at home with his new wife away
from prying eyes.

An involuntary sigh of relief escaped his chest as he
watched the black limo pull into the driveway. The driver jumped out and
hurried to open the door. Chance stood back from the window and waited for her
to come in. When she was standing ready in the chapel he was going to make his
appearance. Not being dramatic, just careful. The world wasn’t going to find
out what he was doing until it was well over and done with.

There was a tap at the door and Elvis popped his head
through the door. “Ready when you are.”

Chance wiped his suddenly sweaty palms on his black
trousers and swallowed
. Here goes nothing.

Callie was standing at the altar in front of the Elvis
impersonator, her hands gripping the small bouquet of rose buds he’d ordered
for her. The pale pink of the flowers only highlighted the paleness of her
skin. The simple cream lace sheath dress Bronson had picked out for her gave
away nothing of the figure underneath it.

She turned her head when he walked into the room and
her eyes widened when she saw her future husband. Chance knew he wasn’t
unattractive and he hoped it was his looks that made her eyes widen, not the
cane he leaned on. The lineup of woman wanting to have a share of his time
after a rodeo ride was testament to the fact that he was popular. She’d known
about his injury. The advert stipulated as a cripple, he needed help to run the
ranch. Perhaps she was expecting someone with more significant injuries, or
perhaps it was the scar on his cheek that snaked up through his eyebrow that
frightened her. Either way, it was too late for her to back out now. Not after
he’d paid to get her this far.

He leaned on the cane and made his way down the aisle
toward his new bride. He noticed things now he hadn’t seen in her profile
picture. The length of her neck and the way her brown eyes tilted at the
corners giving her an exotic look that spoke of sleepless nights and warm
bodies. He’d promised her sex was on the cards as this was going to be a
marriage in more than name alone. Eventually he wanted children and yearned for
the day he could teach a youngster of his own to ride and manage the ranch.
Besides, a man had needs and with a wife who looked like she did, it would be
hard to keep his hands to himself.

“Callie.” Her eyes widened when he spoke her name.
Chance held out a hand and waited for her to take it. She glanced down at it
and licked her lips before she placed her tiny hand in his. He gave it a slight
squeeze of reassurance. “Ready?”

She nodded her head and wavered on her feet. Chance
dropped her hand and put his arm around her shoulders, giving her the support
he thought she needed. Elvis cleared his throat and began. “Dearly beloved, we
are gathered here today…”

***

She rested her head against the cool glass of the
window in the big black truck. They had shared a glass of champagne with Elvis
and the two witnesses he’d supplied before signing all the legal paperwork. It
was only then that they managed to speak to each other.

“Let’s get going. It’s a long drive back home to the
ranch.” Chance had taken her hand and the old bag she’d left in the limousine
when she’d arrived and hurried her out to the car park and into his truck. It
wasn’t until they were on the road and away from the hustle and bustle of the
town that he had spoken to her again.

“You okay? Anything I can get you?”

Callie watched his strong hands gripping the steering
wheel and glanced at his face. The scar was more prominent than she thought it
had been in his photograph. Mind you, she hadn’t been very interested in scars
when the picture had come through. Why a man as handsome as Chance was would
have to advertise for a bride had triggered her interest. She’d fired up the
old computer at home and
Googled
him. Nothing came up
and she’d wondered why. Now Callie knew it was because he didn’t go by his real
name, at least not the name he’d given her when they were sorting out
paperwork. Mitchell Roger Chance Watson. And she’d thought it was because she
didn’t really know what she was doing. Being computer savvy was her sister’s
thing, not hers. Callie preferred to be oblivious to the outside world.

“No, I’m fine. Thank you.”

“Now might be the time to ask me some more questions
since you didn’t seem too interested when we were online. Don’t you want to
know more about me?”

She sighed and looked across the short distance
between them. “Fine. You said you were a cripple but you only use a cane. Seems
you’re still quite mobile to me. What happened that you needed to go and find a
wife with an advertisement?”

His mouth twisted and he kept his gaze on the road
ahead. “Well now.” His American drawl prickled her skin sending a shiver up her
spine. “I had an accident. Bull by the name of Terror tried his best to kill
me. Didn’t work but busted my hip up pretty good and left me with a cane and
this deadly scar down my face.”

Callie smiled to herself. The scar gave him a sinister
look she quite liked. Mysterious and intriguing. “I’m sure someone with your
attributes would have plenty of women after you, and that scar isn’t enough in
my mind to deter anyone.”

“The cane is. I don’t want a sympathy bride.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “So why did you mention it in
the ad then?” She picked at the broken nail on her hand, rubbing it against her
lip before chewing it loose. It all seemed just a little bit dramatic to her.
There had to be more to this story than he was telling her.

“I wanted to see if it would put you off. You see, I’m
used to people pandering to me because of who I am. I figured if I said I was a
crippled rancher who needed hard working help, it might get me someone who
really was interested in me and not my money or my fame.”

A mix of emotions rolled around in her stomach. Money
and fame. Two things she knew nothing about. “Gee, thanks for telling me that
now.”

“Why, would you have come if I’d said I was rich?” He
smirked in her direction before looking back at the road.

“Who knows? I have experience with neither so it’s all
new territory to me. But I don’t understand it, why you would want a bride from
Australia who now sounds like she won’t fit in with your lifestyle? Seems like
you could have anyone you wanted if you could get past that chip on our
shoulder.” She looked at him trying to figure out what he was hiding from her.
“You know why I took the job—I have no money which I desperately needed and no
prospects, but I’m a hard worker.”

“I don’t have a chip on my shoulder.”

“Just telling it how I see it.” She looked out the
window at the desert. No point pulling punches with this guy. She wasn’t used to
saying things just to make people feel better. Callie couldn’t see the point of
sugar coating anything when the truth did just fine.

“Now see, that’s exactly why I chose you; your
attitude to life. And it’s not like you’re not easy on the eye. You obviously
don’t have expensive tastes and high expectations like most of the women I
know. You were keen to marry to get security, but don’t mind working for it
too.” He tapped his long fingers on the steering wheel. “I checked you out,
Callie. You seem like a nice person and I want a normal life. I’m sick of the
circus being in the public eye is and now my career is over thanks to Terror,
who you will meet tomorrow. I want someone who is prepared to work on a
marriage and a life. I don’t know any women who would be prepared to take that
on with me unable to do as much as I’m expecting from you.”

She glanced at him. “What did you do?”

“I was a bull rider on the rodeo circuit. Did really
well for myself too, but the last accident was the one that ended that career
for good.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. Surely you must have friends
who could help you out though, or family. Seems kind of extreme to me to marry
someone just for that.”

“My brothers have their own lives. I don’t expect them
to drop everything to help me while letting their own places slide backwards.
Besides, I have breeding program worked out and I need to be there to oversee
it. I need you to be my legs until I can cope on my own if that will ever
happen.” He took a deep breath. “And in return, you get a handsome payout for
every year we’re together.”

Callie swallowed. It was too late for pride to rear
its ugly head. She’d already banked the first check and paid out most of the
family’s urgent debts. The bank would come after her for more sooner or later,
but for now they were happy with what she’d given them. “Thanks. I appreciate
it.”

The sun started to disappear behind a cloud and she
rubbed her arms. The dress wasn’t warm enough for the cool of the day as it got
closer to late afternoon.

“Here,” Chance hooked his jacket from over the back of
his seat and pushed it toward her. “Put this on, it gets pretty cool out here
from
midafternoon
on. Do you have anything warm in
your bag? You didn’t bring many clothes with you.”

“I don’t have much. Never saw the point of it really.
Just a couple pairs of jeans, and shirts, and my work boots. Never had reason
for a pretty dress like this one.”

“We’ll drive until its dark and then find a motel on
the highway. Once we get closer to the ranch I’ll stop and you can get some
more clothes. No point freezing your butt off out here. Snow’s already on the
hills.”

She smiled whipping her head around to look at him.
“Snow. Really? I’ve never seen it, apart from on the television.”

“It can be beautiful, but then again it can be deadly
out here. Not much fun getting caught out in a blizzard so you need to be
careful. Then again, damndest things always happen around then too. A cow will
go and calf right when the worst hits so we
gotta
go
bring them in or risk losing the calf.”

“Don’t you bring them closer to the home paddock when
they’re about to calf? It’s what we do.” She looked out over the hills and the
wide open spaces and sighed at the amount of rich green grass she saw. What
they wouldn’t give to have this in Australia instead of being permanently stuck
in a drought.

“Yes we do, but it doesn’t always work out. Seems at
least once a season there will be some old girl who just slips away to do her
own thing when she thinks nobody is looking. Truth be told, she’s usually
right. I’ve had different people looking after the place while I’ve been out on
the circuit with good and bad results. Now I’m not able to anymore”—he gestured
to his bad leg—“it’s up to you and me to do the best we can with the place.”

“Right. So is that leg going to get any better or is
that what you’re left with?” She looked at the cane wondering if it was going
to be a permanent fixture in their lives.

“Would it worry you if it was?” His dark eyes bored
into hers.

“No. Just asking. I mean if you need to have me do
physio
or anything like that, I think you’re out of luck.
Never was that good at massaging or anything like that.” She thought over her
words and blushed.
Idiot!
Callie turned back to the window, hiding her
flaming cheeks from Chance. She could hear his soft laugh and wanted to crawl
under the seat.

“I have to go back into hospital in a few weeks to get
the pins out of my hip, but Doc doesn’t see me getting much more mobile than I
am right now.” He paused for a moment. “I’m sure when the cold sets in a
massage would probably be just what I need to keep the movement up. It tends to
get sore when it’s cold.”

“That’s a shame, for you I mean. Must be hard to take
after the life you’ve led.” She ignored the massage reference, preferring not
to think of him half naked and under her hands. Not a blushing virgin, Callie
still hadn’t had many lovers and the thought of seeing this hunky cowboy in the
nude was tempting and enough to make her girly bits stand up and take notice.

“It wasn’t pleasant to wake up to.” He kept his eyes
on the road and Callie settled down to a quiet ride. She had just nodded off
when the truck pulled into a motel and she jolted awake. The neon red lights on
the roof flashed off and on. She tried to wake herself up but when Chance put
his hand on her shoulder and told her to stay where she was, she closed her
eyes again and let herself drift off to another place.