So Right With You (5 page)

She realized then why the name had sounded so familiar. “I’ve seen some articles. I just didn’t realize your connection to it.”

“It didn’t feel right to connect it to Nolan Enterprises. It would feel like I was trying to gain recognition for something I felt strongly about. You’ve met Cam and Kate.”

“Your adopted brother and your sister? I still can’t believe Cam stole your dad’s wallet. Weren’t they in Vietnam to adopt a baby?” she asked.

“Yeah, but they ended up with a twelve-year-old scam artist.”

“What did your father tell him?”

“You know my dad, totally Mr. Sensitive.” Using a gruff voice, Garrett imitated his father, “‘Kid, we’ll see about getting you a good home, but you have to stop stealing and lying.’”

“I’m surprised Cam understood him.”

“Cam had been picking up English from the other Americans he had been trying to hustle since he was old enough to walk. Besides, he knew a good thing when he saw it.”

“After all that, your parents found out they were pregnant with Kate. Your mom thought it was food poisoning, but it was really morning sickness.” She smiled.

“Yeah, they had their hands full with those two. Of course, I never gave them bit of trouble.”

She rolled her eyes at that. “How’s Cam doing in med school?” she asked.

“He’s doing fine. Complains there’s no time for girls.”

“I’m sure, knowing Cam, he makes the time.”

“I suppose so.” He smiled, but then his expression darkened. “What I haven’t shared with you is that I also had another sister, Lauren. Eighteen years ago, she died from cystic fibrosis. She was only seventeen.”

Chloe reached over and took his hand. “I’m so sorry.”

“They’ve come a long way. People are living longer, but they still haven’t found a cure. I wanted to do my part to make things better. The organization helped my family. I wanted to do the same for someone else. I dedicated the ranch to helping kids like my sister. I think she would have liked that.”

“I’m sure she would have.” Tears clouded Chloe’s eyes.

“You’d better hand me a plate. I like my meat well-done. But if I don’t get it off soon, it’s going to turn into charcoal.” He flipped the steak over. “Ah, just right. You’re sure you don’t want me to make you one? It would be no trouble.” He dished the garden salad onto each plate.

“No, salad will be fine.”

They took their plates over to the table. She began eating her salad. Having chosen vinaigrette because it was lighter in calories, she glanced over and noticed Garrett went full-out with bleu cheese dressing and condiments for his steak. She wasn’t one who liked to exercise. She watched what she ate carefully. Her figure tended to run a bit curvy as it was.

Garrett didn’t seem to suffer from this dilemma. As she ate her salad, she looked wantonly at his steak.

He glanced up and caught her staring. “I can easily make you one,” he said.

“No, thanks.”

“It’s really good.”

“I’m sure it is.”

“Hmm. You don’t know what you’re missing.”

“I know,” she said wearily. She tried to focus on eating her salad, but his steak had become the forbidden fruit.

She couldn’t help taking another peek. Garrett sat there with a knowing smile.

“Here. I’ll give you some of mine.” He sliced off a piece and placed it on her plate.

She gave in to the temptation and took a bite. Just as she was about to swallow it, he said, “Did I mention my family’s coming this weekend?”

She nearly choked. “You didn’t think to mention this before I agreed to stay with you? What’s your mother going to think about me staying here?” She scowled at him.

“You? She loves you. It’s me she has a problem with. She keeps pressuring me to settle down and give her some grandkids before she dies. You and I both know that woman is ornery enough that she’s going to live forever. She keeps telling me that I’m incorrigible, whatever that means.”

“You are!”

“Now, Red, you’ve just gone and hurt my feelings.”

She shook her head. One of the things Garrett was good at was blustering enough that you forgot what you were originally arguing about.

While they were eating, Chloe thought about the Foundation Garrett worked with. She felt a little ashamed that she was feeling sorry for herself for her recent breakup when there were families with much bigger concerns. Perhaps she could help.

“Could you use any more volunteers?” she asked. “I’d like to help if I could.”

“That would be great. One of the kids we’re working with is Kali. She’s sixteen. She’s been diagnosed with acute leukemia. Luckily, it was found in the early stages, and everyone is hopeful she will make a full recovery. But it’s hard. Her body isn’t responding well to the chemo treatments. The side effects can almost seem worse than the cancer. Her family brings her here to keep her spirits up. She likes to draw, paint, and ride horses. She reminds me a lot of Lauren. I think she could use another friend.”

“So you think I could help her?” She took a sip of her wine.

“Sure.” He exhaled. “It won’t be easy. She’s smart. If she thinks you feel the least bit sorry for her, she’ll play you. Knowing Kali, she’ll try to hook you into acquiring a horse for her. She’s not strong enough yet. She’s only allowed to ride if one of the ranch hands rides with her. They have to stay close to the ranch and ride at a slow trot. Naturally, she hates the restriction. She used to be an equestrian competitor, and was expected to compete in the Olympics. The news media had a field day when she was first diagnosed.”

“That’s tough.” Chloe knew from her friend Harper’s experience just how relentless the media could be. “She sounds like quite a character, though.”

“Yeah.” He grinned. “We’ve caught her trying to sneak in several times to steal one for herself. She can be stubborn and hardheaded, but she’s a good kid.” His eyes connected with hers. “If you’d like, I’ll arrange for you to meet her on Saturday.” Switching gears, he asked “Do you ride?”

She was still thinking about the girl. She didn’t know how she could possibly help her, but she could try. The change in subject threw her. It took a moment before she actually answered the question. “Ah, yes, but it’s been a while.”

“We’ll have to remedy that. That is, if you want to. It will give you a chance to see more of the place,” he offered.

“That would be great.” She looked forward to it.

*~*

After dinner, they cleared the table and stuck what dishes they could in the dishwasher. They did the rest by hand. Garrett washed while Chloe dried and put them away.

As he was scrubbing the grill, he prodded Chloe by saying, “Admit it, that was the best steak you’ve ever tried,”

“Is someone fishing? Okay. I give. I admit it was one of the best steaks I’ve ever had,” Chloe said teasingly.

“Liar. You know it’s the best,” Garrett responded, grinning.

“I can see why you’re so good in business. You never give up,” she retorted, smiling. When he wasn’t looking, she tossed the towel at the back of his head. It struck dead-on.

“Hey.” His face turned red. He advanced on her quickly. When he towered over her, she thought maybe she had pushed him too far. “You, Miss Lambert, are prickly.”

“Prickly?” Chloe tilted her head to consider him. As she watched him fume, she became amused. The corners of her mouth began to curve.

“Yes, prickly,” he said.

Her smile widened. She swore she could see steam rising from his ears. It struck her as funny, his stern expression, and that the only word he could come up with was prickly. Not being able to help herself, she laughed.

He glared at her, which only caused her to laugh more.

Finally seeing the humor in the situation, he laughed, too.

When they stopped laughing, he looked at her thoughtfully. She wondered what he was going to say.

“When do you plan on telling your friends and family your wedding is off?”

Sighing, she said, “You had to ask me that. I wasn’t done procrastinating yet. I thought I might do it tonight, but it’s getting kind of late. The thought of having to explain everything seems overwhelming.”

“Can I make a suggestion? Do it through e-mail first. Keep it simple, just stating the wedding is off. Then, turn your phone off until you’re ready. People might be a little hurt at first, but those who care about you will understand. Give yourself time to deal with it.”

“I don’t know. It seems kind of cold and impersonal, but it does have its appeal. I have been dreading having to explain everything.” Chloe’s eyes became a little misty with unshed tears.

Garrett noticed and said, “Come here.”

She hesitated and then walked over to him.

He pulled her in close and rested his head on top of hers. His arms closed around her in a comforting hug. “I promise it will get better. You can use my study when you’re ready.” Garrett picked up one of her corkscrew curls. “I think I’m becoming fond of your hair this way.” She frowned. Looking down, he saw her expression. “But judging by your expression, I guess I’d better dig out that blow-dryer.”

After restyling her hair so it lay in looser, softer curls, Chloe decided to take Garrett’s advice to send out a general statement, letting everyone on her e-mail address list know she’d canceled the wedding. She sat at Garrett’s desk with her laptop in front of her.

The problem was she wasn’t sure what to write. She looked around the room for inspiration. Garrett’s study unquestionably represented the typical man cave with chocolate brown walls, overstuffed tan sofas, birchwood cabinetry, and a large plasma-screen TV hanging over a river-stone fireplace. A few well-placed accessories added softness to the otherwise masculine room. Getting to her feet, Chloe approached the bookcase on the other side of the room. He definitely liked to read. It was chock-full of books from how-tos to murder mysteries. She spotted one that looked promising.

“Red, are you okay in there?” Garrett called out from the connected family room. “Just write ‘I regret to inform you of the cancellation of my wedding to—’” There was a pause. She could have sworn she heard him say jackass. “‘—to Trevor Wycoff. Sorry for any inconvenience this has caused you,’ and sign your name. Hurry up. I’m making popcorn, and I picked a movie that should appeal to your girly nature.”

Chloe took his advice and sent out the brief message to everyone who was an e-mail friend and had been invited to the wedding. The few who weren’t could wait until later. Besides, most of those were on Trevor’s side. He could deal with them. She had a movie to watch.

*~*

Garrett had chosen
Sleepless in Seattle
with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Unfortunately, the movie had the opposite effect on Chloe. Within minutes of the start of the film, she had fallen asleep. She was currently out like a light. He could tell by her heavy breathing.

When she had initially drifted off, he had removed her glasses and placed a pillow under her head. It was far better than the twisted-pretzel position she had originally fallen asleep in. That one would only lead to a stiff neck and a visit to a chiropractor.

In sleep, Chloe had naturally adjusted herself so she now had possession of the majority of the couch. The pillow was now pressed up against his thigh with her hair splayed across his lap.

He hadn’t had the heart to wake her so he had sat quietly, watching the film while she slept. Now the movie was over. He had already used the remote to turn off the TV. It was time to wake Sleeping Beauty.

“Come on, Chloe. Time for bed.” He pushed a strand of hair off her face. She shifted her position but didn’t budge. He tried again. “Red, the movie’s over. Get up, honey.” If anything, her heavy breathing became more of a light snore.

Figuring she probably didn’t weigh too much as compact as she was, he decided to carry her. He stood. Turning, he bent down, reached under her back and legs, and lifted her. It was amazing how heavy dead weight could be.

Pulling her in closer to his chest, he started for her room. He almost knocked her into the door as he left the family room but turned at the last minute and narrowly missed giving her a concussion. He was glad the hallway was as wide as it was. Any narrower and they would have been bottlenecked.

Garrett reached the stairs and began to rethink his plan. The top of the stairs looked a long way away. He had been both a football player and a Boy Scout. He could do this. Halfway up, he was thinking it was the stupidest idea ever. Taking a deep breath, he continued.

Once at the top, he headed straight to her room.

Wouldn’t you know it? She had the door shut. Balancing her on one arm and a leg, he struggled to open the door. He tripped over her discarded shoes and stumbled the rest of the way. Reaching the bed, he managed to pull back the covers and slip her in. At last, Sleeping Beauty decided to open her eyes.

“Movie over?” Chloe yawned. She gazed at him through partially shuttered eyelids.

“Uh-huh,” Garrett wheezed, trying to breathe.

“Must have fallen asleep,” she said.

“Uh-huh,” he wheezed again, still trying to get his breath.

“Sorry, not very good company.” She yawned again. “Tired. Didn’t sleep well last night. Thanks, Garrett.” With that, she turned over and went back to sleep.

“No problem.” He pulled the blanket over her and left the room. He’d never been this damn tired in his life.

*~*

Later in the night, Garrett awoke. He looked at the alarm clock. It showed three-thirty in the morning.

Patches’s barking had woken him. The dog now restlessly paced the room. Something wasn’t right. Patches shot him a look and went to stand guard by the door, waiting for him.

“What is it, boy?” he asked, sitting up in the bed. He picked his jeans up off the floor. Getting to his feet, he pulled them on over his gray boxer briefs. He grabbed the same gray T-shirt he’d had on earlier and shrugged into it.

So he wouldn’t have to turn on the lights, he took a flashlight from his nightstand and switched it on. He considered grabbing his revolver in case it was an intruder, but the likelihood was small so he left it behind. It was more likely Patches had picked up the sound of a critter and wanted to go exploring.

He hoped it wasn’t a skunk. Last time Patches had gotten too close to one, he’d been sprayed. It had taken a truckload of tomato juice and forever to get rid of the horrible stench.

Garrett left the room and stepped lightly down the hallway. Some of the boards were so old they creaked when he stepped on them. If it was an intruder, he didn’t want to alert them. When he reached the stairs, he crept down slowly, keeping to the inside wall with Patches in the lead.

Straining his ears, he listened for any sounds. A board creaked from the direction of the kitchen. This was followed by the sound of a loud crash. Something breakable had hit the floor. There was a muttered oath as the intruder realized the error of their ways.

At the sound, Patches charged for the kitchen.

“Damn.”

Now he wished he’d grabbed his revolver. Most everyone was armed in Texas. He didn’t think a flashlight would do him a bit of good. Garrett only hoped they weren’t armed. Then he could use the power of surprise. He didn’t have much choice since Patches had taken off. Garrett bolted after the dog.

As the flashlight beamed light into the kitchen, he caught sight of a figure bent down on the floor. Patches was barking excitedly at the prowler.

“Hold it right there. Quiet, Patches. Heel,” Garrett ordered. The dog quieted and sat to watch the interaction between the two humans.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake! Don’t shoot, Garrett. It’s just me,” Chloe cried out.

He hit the light switch, sending a flood of light into the room.

“Chloe! Are you crazy? I could have shot you.” He pointed the flashlight down. He propped his hands on his hips and scowled at her.

Chloe straightened and squinted at him. She didn’t have her glasses on, so she couldn’t see him clearly. From what she could tell, the only thing Garrett held in his hand, judging from the beam of light emanating from it, was a shiny silver flashlight. She glanced at his clothes, but it didn’t look like he was carrying anything there, either.

“With that?” She cocked her head to one side and stared doubtfully at the object in his right hand.

Caught in the moment, he forgot he didn’t have his gun. He looked at her, accidentally aiming the flashlight straight into her eyes.

“On second thought, maybe you have something there. Give me that before you blind me with it.” Chloe snatched the flashlight out of his grasp, flicked the switch to “off,” and set it on the counter behind her.

“You scared the crap out of me,” he said. “What the hell are you doing up at this hour?”

“Sorry,” she apologized.

Garrett noticed that Chloe had knocked over a crystal vase. Shards of glass were scattered all around her. During the night, she’d changed into her Betty Boop nightie. She stood there now in the midst of the broken glass in her gown and bare feet.

Without thinking, he stepped forward and scooped her up, setting her in a glass-free zone. He realized his mistake as soon as he set her down. He was also barefoot and had landed on one of the shards of glass himself. Lifting his foot, he stared at the cut, which had a piece of glass sticking out of it. Blood was already oozing from the wound.

“Oh, Garrett.” Chloe looked at the wound. “Where do you keep your first aid kit?”

“It’s in the downstairs bathroom under the sink.”

Before Chloe left, she shoved a chair behind him to sit on. She also grabbed some paper towels and thrust them at him so he wouldn’t drip blood on the floor.

With a groan, he dropped into the seat and raised his foot to his knee. He couldn’t believe he had acted so stupidly. But when he had seen her standing in the midst of all that broken glass, his protective instincts had kicked in. Unfortunately, his self-preservation ones hadn’t had time to catch up.

With the excitement over, Patches stretched out in a corner of the kitchen out of harm’s way, gnawing on one of his rawhide bones.

Garrett looked at the dog. “You do realize this is all your fault, don’t you?”

The dog gazed up at him. He seemed to say,
I’m a dog. What do you expect?
Patches resumed chewing his bone.

Returning to the kitchen with the kit, Chloe said, “I’m going to have to remove the glass. If I don’t, your foot might get infected.” She pulled out a pair of tweezers that had a magnifying glass attached. Getting down on her knees, she stared fixedly at the bottom of his foot through the magnifying glass. She rested her arm on his thigh as she did this.

The discomfort was evident immediately, not from pain but from awareness. Heat radiated where their bodies met. He had never known getting a piece of glass taken out of his foot could be such a turn-on. He just hoped Chloe didn’t realize he was getting semi-hard.

“I think I see it.” She leaned closer. Her breast touched his knee.

He groaned.

“Am I hurting you?” Chloe asked, concerned.

“Not exactly.” Garrett gazed at the ceiling, wishing the ordeal was over.

Leaning farther, Chloe said, “Actually, there looks to be three smaller pieces and one large one. It should only take a few minutes.” She removed gauze from the packaging and set it aside to put the pieces of glass on as she removed them.

“Hmm. Yeah,” he said, barely coherent.

Her hair fell across his foot, adding to the sensation. He inhaled the fruity scent of her organic shampoo.

Gripping his foot with one hand to anchor it, she used her other hand to position the tweezers over the area. “Here we go. Let me know if it hurts.”

Garrett closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take.

She carefully removed each piece and placed it on the gauze. “That’s it. I think I got them all.”

He opened his eyes. Chloe still knelt over his foot and was running her tongue across her upper lip in deep concentration as she peered at the wound. He never thought cotton could be so sexy, but on Chloe it was. Looking at her chest under the Betty Boop pajama shirt, he could see her nipples had pebbled and were poking against the fabric. Either she was cold or she was equally turned on. It didn’t matter which it was. He went from semi-hard to completely hard and thought he was going to explode.

Ah, hell!
He closed his eyes again.

“Yep, that’s it.” Her thumb stroked the arch of his foot.

Garrett nearly bolted from the chair. He was done for. “Okay, that’s it.” He sat upright in the chair and snatched his foot from her lethal touch. He hoped she wouldn’t notice the tent he was now sporting.

“Not quite. I still need to put some antibiotic cream on it and a bandage.” Chloe put the tweezers back in the kit and removed the sealed package of ointment.

Garrett slumped back in his seat and raised his foot back up. He was totally screwed. He closed his eyes again.

Gripping the package, Chloe tore it open. She applied some to the pads of her fingers and rubbed the ointment into the wound. “There. That should do it.” She grabbed a bandage, ripped it open, and placed it over the wound. She examined her handiwork. “Now we’re done. How does it feel?”

He opened his eyes slowly and blinked. He had made it. “A little sore, but okay,” he reported.

“Good.” Peering at the broken glass on the floor, she said, “I guess I’d better clean this up.”

“Chloe?”

“Yes.”

“Put shoes on first.”

“Yeah.”

She left the room. Garrett exhaled as he adjusted himself. Living with Chloe was going to be challenging. He wanted her, but he knew he couldn’t have her. This was absolute hell.

She returned wearing her tennis shoes. She swept up the glass, using a damp towel afterward to make sure she didn’t miss any pieces. “I think that’s all of it.” She frowned. “Sorry about the vase.”

“Not a problem. It’s replaceable. You never had a chance to answer. Why were you up?”

“I couldn’t sleep. I thought I’d get some water.”

“Why didn’t you turn on the light?” he asked.

“I didn’t want to wake you.” She shrugged.

He smiled, as he shook his head. “I didn’t mean to frighten you, but you scared the hell out of me,” he said.

“I know. You scared me, too.”

Garrett saw that her eyes were shiny with tears, as if she’d recently been crying. He realized she was upset and it had nothing to do with being frightened. She was hurting, and his heart went out to her. The days following a breakup could be the hardest, especially at night when no one was around. “So you can’t sleep?”

“No,” she answered. Her eyes begged him not to press further.

“I think I know something that might work.” He stood and hobbled to the fridge, trying to stay off his injured foot. Opening the fridge, he took out the milk. “This should help.” Garrett grabbed a pan from a drawer beneath the stove top. He set it on the stove, poured some milk in it, and put away the carton. On his way back, he opened another cupboard, took out a bottle of rum, unscrewed it, and poured a dash into the pan before returning the bottle to the cabinet.

Turning on the stove, he slowly stirred the mixture until it came to a boil. “That should do it.” He grabbed a mug from the cupboard and poured it in. “Here.”