The Christmas Cradle. Linda Warren

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СКАЧАТЬ Cari’s eyes filled with compassion. “I never said anything because I didn’t want to upset you—and what good could it possibly have done? You’ve come too far to let this get the better of you.”

      Marisa licked her dry lips. “Where’s his ranch?”

      Cari shook her head. “I’ve just read about it, that’s all.”

      “Please, Cari, I need his address.” Marisa stared into her friend’s eyes with a silent plea.

      Cari sighed. “Marisa, I have this feeling you’re going to get hurt.”

      “More than I’m hurting right now? I don’t think that’s possible.”

      Cari flung up her hands. “Okay, let’s try the Dallas and Mesquite phone books.”

      Marisa opened a drawer and pulled out the directories. Colter wasn’t listed, but his company had a Dallas address.

      “That doesn’t help,” Marisa said. “And I’m sure his company won’t divulge his home address.”

      “Your father has a lot of contacts,” Cari suggested. “I’m sure he could find the address in no time.”

      “I don’t want my father involved in this,” Marisa replied, her tone abrupt.

      Cari shrugged. “Just an idea. Now, let’s think. There must be a lot of people who know him.” Cari grew thoughtful. “Wait a minute. Why didn’t I think of this before? My sister’s husband works for one of those large feed-supply places. Colter has horses, so maybe he buys feed from them.”

      “Call him, Cari, please.”

      As Cari punched out a number, Marisa’s nerves were taut. She knew she should just forget about Colter and get on with her life. He had, so why couldn’t she? She didn’t have an answer. All she knew was that she had to find him.

      Cari haggled with her brother-in-law, it was clear he didn’t want to give out the information. Finally Cari scribbled something on a pad and Marisa’s heartbeat accelerated.

      Cari hung up, then handed her the paper. “I had to use a little family blackmail, but there it is.”

      Marisa hugged her. “Thanks, Cari. Thank you so much.”

      “Just don’t tell anyone where you got the address, or Charlie could lose his job.”

      “I won’t breathe a word. I promise.” She grabbed her purse and coat.

      “You’re going now?” Cari asked, sounding dismayed.

      “Yes. I need to do this and I need to do it now.”

      “But sleet’s in the forecast. Why don’t you wait until tomorrow?”

      “No, I can’t,” Marisa said. “I’ll be back before the weather turns bad. Mesquite is only about fifteen minutes from Dallas, and the ranch can’t be much farther.”

      “Marisa—”

      A tap on the door interrupted Cari. Reed Preston, Marisa’s brother, walked in and shook his head at Cari. “You know you’re not supposed to be on this floor,” he said.

      Cari didn’t bat an eye at Reed’s censure. “Don’t worry, junior, I was just leaving.”

      “Don’t call me that.”

      Cari lifted an eyebrow, then glanced at Marisa. “Call me later.” She sauntered out the door.

      “I don’t appreciate it when you talk to my friends like that,” Marisa said once the other woman had left.

      “Cari? She’s tough as nails, and if I didn’t reprimand her, she’d think I was ill.”

      “Still, she’s my friend and I invited her here.”

      “Point taken.” Reed grinned at her.

      He was five years older than Marisa and a younger version of their father, very tall and handsome with a disarming smile. She was four years old when she and her mother moved to New York, and nine-year-old Reed had stayed with their father in Dallas. It was well known that Harold Dalton had arranged the marriage of his only daughter, Vanessa, to Richard Preston. His daughter didn’t have much interest in the stores, and her grandfather wanted a man who could control her and control the empire he’d built.

      The marriage had been a disaster from the start, but they’d stuck it out until Harold Dalton passed away. Then they’d received a shock. Harold had left half his estate to Vanessa and the other half to Richard. If they divorced, they’d lose everything. Her grandfather had sentenced them to a life together. But her parents figured out a way around it—living separate lives without a divorce, and in the process making their children’s lives a nightmare.

      “I stopped by to see if you wanted to go with me to the airport to pick up Mother.”

      “Oh, no, sorry. I have other plans.” She couldn’t believe her mother’s visit had completely slipped her mind. She’d been dreading it for days. Now other, more important, matters took precedence.

      Reed watched her for a moment. “Are you okay?”

      “Sure, why?”

      “You seem a little nervous.”

      “It’s nothing.”

      “I know you and Mother have had problems, but that’s all in the past, isn’t it?”

      “Yes.”

      In her youth, her mother’s complete domination of her life had turned her into a shy, insecure teenager. Vanessa had dreams and plans for Marisa—dreams Marisa didn’t share. She’d rebelled only once, when she’d run away to Vegas, and that had been the happiest and yet most debilitating part of her life. She had thought she’d never recover, but after the death of her son, her father had brought her back to Texas. With his love and support, she’d stood up to her mother and refused to return to New York. For the first time in her life, she made her own plans. She went to university and earned a degree in business and then began working for Dalton Department Stores, much to her father’s delight.

      She’d grown confident and stronger and was now able to cope with her mother on an adult level. She still had difficulty sorting out her feelings about Vanessa, but she did love her, although at times she found it impossible to like her.

      “I really have to go,” she said, brushing past Reed.

      “Where are you going?”

      “I’ll be home in time for dinner.” She threw the words over her shoulder.

      As she drove out of Dallas, her nerve began to falter, especially when she thought about Colter’s wife. Shannon had been crazy about him back then and she hadn’t liked it when Colter took an interest in Marisa. Colter had said they were just friends, but Marisa knew it was far more for Shannon. In the end, Shannon had won. Colter had married her. That hurt, even now, but she didn’t want to cause any problems in СКАЧАТЬ