Texas Rose Forever (Texas Rose Ranch #1) (23 page)

“The motion-sensor music was genius. It will take Lefty a while to figure it out, but he will.” He picked a few leaves of basil and chopped them.

“I knew he’d figure it out eventually, but I hope he puts the tires back on my golf cart first. I know he won’t, but a girl can dream.” She pulled the toast out of the toaster and laid two pieces on each dinner plate. She scooped in several spoonfuls of meatloaf gravy into a bowl to warm up in the microwave.

Heavy knocking came from the front door.

Cinco glanced at her. “I’m not expecting anyone . . . You?”

He wiped his hands on a dish towel and made his way to the front door.

Through the frosted glass, he could make out Lefty’s figure. “It’s for you. Your playmate is here.” He called over his shoulder as he pulled open the front door.

“I’m right behind you.” CanDee said from the kitchen doorway.

“I brung CanDee a peace offering.” Lefty winked and nodded at Cinco as he held the pink package of Double Stuf Oreos.

“She’ll love them.” He was going to advise CanDee not to open them. Something was fishy. Lefty wasn’t a quitter.

“She’ll love what?” CanDee slipped an arm around Cinco’s waist and eyed the Oreos. She leaned over and sniffed them. Slowly, her head shook from side to side. “You replaced the double stuff with toothpaste.” She sighed dramatically. “Really? You’re better than this. I’m so disappointed.”

“Now, you wait. This was a perfectly good prank . . .” Lefty’s cell phone rang so he fished it out of his back pocket and checked the number. “Give me a minute. I don’t recognize this number.”

He answered the call and someone Chewbacca-roared loudly and then hung up. “What the hell?” He stared at the phone.

CanDee bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing. “You’re going to have to step up your game to keep up with me, or you can admit defeat right now and replace my tires.” She stepped back and slammed the door in his face.

“Damn you, woman.” Lefty stomped down the front porch steps. “I’ll get you. Just you wait.”

His phone rang again. He answered it to hear someone else roar and hang up.

CHAPTER 23

At noon the next day, CanDee crammed the last of four giant rolls of bubble wrap into her trunk. She had more than enough foil and bubble wrap to make Lefty’s world metallic and crunchy. She’d picked up everything needed to make chicken Marsala plus some other goodies, which were all stored in the cooler in her backseat. She was headed back to the ranch. Her stomach growled and she remembered the red cinderblock building she’d just passed had some of the best barbeque she’d ever tasted. She flipped a U on Highway 87 and turned in to the parking lot.

The line out the door wasn’t nearly as long as the one for Franklin in Austin, and Franklin wasn’t half as good as Cranky Frank’s. She parked and got out of the car.

She pulled out her smartphone and texted Cinco to ask if he wanted anything from Cranky’s. Her phone buzzed. He wanted a pound of sliced lean brisket. She could do that.

“Funny meeting you here.”

The hairs on the back of her neck stood to attention. She turned around.

Phillip was standing right behind her, invading her personal space.

“Following me?” That was beneath even him. Fear prickled her spine. She’d never been particularly scared of Phillip, but his eyes were hard. Her instincts were leading her to fight instead of taking flight like before.

“Just here to try the barbeque. Cranky Frank’s is one of the top twenty-five barbeque places on the planet, according to
Texas Monthly
.” He was all smiles, but there was something under it. Desperation? A desperate Phillip could be uncontrollable. She’d seen hints of it more than once.

“So you drove all the way out here for barbeque?” In her experience, there were no coincidences. “How did you find me?”

Was he following her?

“I was in town and noticed your car.” He was all controlled charm. “You know how much I love barbeque. I drove out here to try Cranky Frank’s. Well, that, and to see you.” He leaned into her and she glared at him. She stood her ground and didn’t back away. No more backing away . . . that was her motto. He’d never been violent, but he did like to bully her. “I saw you turn in to here and thought that I’d kill two birds with no stone. Maybe we could talk over lunch?”

Over her dead body. He was trying to intimidate her and she wasn’t about to let that happen. She’d learned a lot since she’d seen him last and it was high time she showed him the new woman he’d made her.

“I’m getting mine to go.” But by God, she wasn’t running away. She was hungry and she wanted barbeque. It was Phillip’s turn to run . . . oh wait, he’d already done that while she was out of town. She turned back around. “I know you don’t care, but when you moved out without paying my rent with my money, they sold my things . . . including the things that belonged to my parents.”

“Let me write you a check.” He reached into his left breast pocket and pulled out a checkbook.

Who actually had a checkbook on them these days? He’d probably picked it up thinking that he’d offer her money. What an ass.

“Why do I even bother? Why didn’t I realize before that you’re a textbook narcissist? You won’t hear anything I say except what you want to hear. No doubt you think what you did to me was okay, because in your screwed-up world, everything revolves around you.” She tried to turn back around, but he grabbed her arm. “Let go of me.”

Like hell was he going to push her around. Now that she was with Cinco and saw what a sane, normal relationship looked and felt like, she truly saw how messed up her life had been.

“We need to talk.” His tone was a harsh whisper but his face held nothing but charm. His fingers bit into her upper arm.

Why hadn’t she noticed that before—charm on the outside, but evil on the inside.

“CanDee, is this man bothering you?” It was Lefty. He was ten people ahead of her in line.
“
’Cause it looks like he’s bothering you.”

“I just need a moment of her time. That’s all.” Phillip appeared to be just another man charmed by a pretty woman, but his eyes flashed mean.

Lefty stepped out of line and went to CanDee’s side. He was almost a foot shorter than her, but with his legs spread wide and his arms folded over his chest, he seemed to take up take up twice the amount of space. “Son, take your hand off the lady.”

Phillip’s grip tightened as he leaned into Lefty and bit out, “Mind your own business, old man.”

Now the real Phillip reared his ugly head. He was capable of anything. How had she missed that before? Or maybe she hadn’t missed
it, just ignored it.

“Son, you need to step off. If you don’t drop CanDee’s arm, I’m going
to punch you in the throat.” Lefty was as calm as she’d ever seen him.

“Are you threaten—”

Lefty’s fist moved so quickly she couldn’t track it. He hit Phillip squarely in the throat.

Phillip dropped her hand and grabbed his throat while he wheezed in air. “I’m . . . going . . . to . . . sue—”

“Son, I’ve got twenty men who will testify that you laid hands on a woman. I don’t know where you’re from, but here in Gillespie County we don’t manhandle women. So right now, you need to slink back to that fancy red car”—he pointed to a brand-new Porsche—“before I get mad.”

Phillip wagged a finger at Lefty and wheezed out, “I’ll get you.”

“Did he just threaten me?” Lefty glanced back at CanDee. “I think he just threatened me.”

“You know, it’s hard to tell. He might have said, ‘I’ll bet you,’ but that doesn’t make any sense.” CanDee rubbed her arm where Phillip had grabbed her. “Now that I think about it, he did threaten you.”

“Boys, this man just threatened me and you saw him grab Miss CanDee.” Lefty watched Phillip. “I told you I could handle this on my own, but I’d like for you to escort Mr. Fancy Pants to his car and then I’d like for you to drive him to the county line. If he ever sets foot on the Texas Rose, you have my permission to shoot him for trespassing.”

CanDee hadn’t noticed the twenty or so men gathered behind her.

Phillip’s eyes were as huge as moon pies. “I’m . . . going.”

He sounded like Darth Vader on a respirator.

CanDee hadn’t realized her hands were shaking until Phillip pulled out of the parking lot. Lefty’s arm came around her and she slumped against him.

“Who was that a-hole?” Lefty shouldered her weight without breaking his stride. He walked her over to a picnic table outside, across from the front door.

“My ex-boyfriend. His name is Phillip.” She sat down on the bench.

Lefty sat down across from her and covered her hands with his. “Your hands is cold.” He rubbed them together trying to warm her up. “One Eye, can you get us a couple of them Dr Peppers, please?”

“Sure thing.” A man with two perfectly good eyes and a mouthful of mismatched teeth charged into the restaurant to get them some drinks.

“Thank you.” She should have said that right off, only she’d never been this scared.

“I ain’t mixed it up in years. It was kinda fun.” He grinned kindly. Beneath his gruff, the man had a heart of gold. “You need to tell Cinco about your ex when you get home. Promise me.”

“I will. He already knows about Phillip, but I’ll tell him about today.” That wasn’t a conversation she was looking forward to, but she wasn’t one to shy away from things . . . not anymore.

“Good. He’s going to want to make sure you’re safe. He likes you . . . a lot.” Lefty’s unicorn-bedazzled eye patch caught the sun.

“Why did you help me?” It was out before she’d thought about it. It was kind of insulting. “I don’t mean to offend you, but I just wanted to know.”

“You’re family. While you and I may have a disagreement, we’re still family. No one messes with my family . . . ever.” Slowly, his hands slid away.

They weren’t family. She opened her mouth to say so, but nothing came out. The ranch wasn’t her home, but it was beginning to feel that way. And Lefty, for all of his being a pain in her ass, would have been so much fun to grow up around—he’d have been that crazy uncle that parents despise, but kids watch for out the front window hoping he’ll bring a pocket full of candy and teach them how to play poker when mom isn’t looking. “I like being part of the family.”

“I don’t mean to pry, but what are your intentions toward Cinco?” Lefty leaned forward, prying anyway.

“I don’t know. I didn’t expect to . . . you know . . . meet someone.” For someone who made her living using words, she was certainly short on them right now.

“You didn’t mean to fall in love with him. I get it.” Lefty grinned.

“But, I didn’t . . . I’m not . . . we’re not . . . oh.” She just sat there and let it sink in. She was in love with Cinco. When had that happened?

“I can tell by the look on your face that you had no idea.” Lefty’s laughed sounded like a tree branch scraping against a window screen. “Good for you . . . good for him.”

“I told Frank what happened and he made y’all up some sandwiches to go with them Dr Peppers.” One Eye set two red plastic baskets down—one in front of CanDee and one in front of Lefty. “Slide has them Dr Peppers.”

A short man with Post-it-note-yellow hair and a pockmarked face set two Styrofoam cups down.

“Did Frank make mine a Paul?” Lefty glanced at CanDee. “The Paul has double meat. I don’t know who Paul is, but he likes him some meat.”

She looked down at the enormous sandwich in front of her and then at the even bigger one in front of him. “I think you definitely got the Paul.”

Thirty minutes later, Lefty walked her to her car. “Just ’cause I like you don’t mean I ain’t still mad at you.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” She leaned down and gave him a one-armed hug.

“I’m so glad you said that.” He hugged her back and then stepped back and opened her door for her. “You really shouldn’t keep your car unlocked. Someone could steal it.”

“I wish . . . no, really I can’t afford a new car.” She sighed. “The door lock is broken, which is good because the only key broke off in the ignition.”

“Well, that’s not good.” He eyed the lock like he was mentally ordering the parts to fix it.

“I’ll see you back on the ranch.” She closed the door and then rolled down the window. “Thanks again.”

“My pleasure.” His eye patch winked in the sunlight.

She rolled up the window. Gray clouds were gathering on the horizon and it was turning muggy. She turned the black plastic stub of a key sticking out of the ignition and the car hummed to life. She turned on the air conditioner. A cloud of gold shot out of the vents.

Lefty had glitter-bombed her car.

With her eyes closed, she felt around for the window lever and rolled it down again. She blew the glitter out of her mouth and wiped her eyes. “Good one.”

Finally, an opponent worthy of her devious mind.

Lefty danced around as he pointed at her. “I got you. I got you. I got you.”

“I’m so proud of you.” She blew more glitter out of her mouth. “I was a little worried after yesterday, but this time, you stepped up to the plate. This is exactly the high-quality prank I expected from you.”

His phone rang and he pulled it out of his back pocket and answered it. Someone Chewbacca-roared and then hung up.

“Payback’s a bitch.” She blew him a kiss and pulled out of the parking lot.