From Texas, With Love. Cathy Thacker Gillen

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СКАЧАТЬ that most people hadn’t a clue what she was thinking or feeling. Will McCabe not only spotted her vulnerabilities, he seemed determined to get around them. She unclasped her seat belt and stood. “About succumbing to your persuasive ways?”

      He opened the hatch that also served as the staircase, then watched as she squared her shoulders and slung her purse over her shoulder.

      “It’s not going to be that bad,” he told her with a wry smile.

      Unsure whether it was resentment or nerves twisting her stomach into knots, Samantha countered, “You don’t know that.”

      “Sure I do.” He carried her small suitcase down the steps, then waited for her at the bottom.

      Together, they walked across the tarmac toward the hangar.

      He reached over and gave her elbow a companionable squeeze. “’Cause I know Howard.”

      Another reason why not to develop any kind of friendship or camaraderie with this man, she thought, since his primary allegiance was clearly to her estranged older brother. Not to her, no matter how chivalrous he was acting. Trying not to think about the way her skin was tingling from just that brief, casual contact, Samantha drew a stabilizing breath. “Let’s get this over with,” she muttered, spotting the silhouette of a man coming out of the brightly lit building in front of them.

      Samantha hadn’t seen Howard in close to ten years, but she would have known her brother anywhere. He had the same tall, lithe build, dark hair and eyes that she did.

      Howard closed the distance between them quickly. He started to hug her, but read her reserve and changed his mind. He moved back awkwardly, then looked her in the eye with a sincerity and warmth she found disquieting. “I’m glad you could come,” he told her, as Will looked on, clearly uncomfortable being put in the middle of this family drama.

      Feeling unaccountably glad that Will was with her, so she didn’t have to face this alone, Samantha turned her attention back to Howard. She studied the gray at his temples. That and the crow’s-feet around his eyes were the only signs that her brother had just turned forty. She forced herself not to see the similarities to both their parents. Or the regret on his face. He’d hurt her badly. She wasn’t going to let him do it again. “What’s this about?” she asked wearily.

      Howard’s mouth took on a determined slant. “I think it’s time we ended this cold war between us.”

      That, they could have said on the phone. Had she picked up, which she wouldn’t have.

      Ignoring the wordless entreaty from Will to cooperate, Samantha shrugged. “Well, I don’t.”

      Will set her suitcase down beside her. “If you need me, I’ll be in the office,” he said.

      Samantha latched on to his arm before he could depart, and reeled him back to her side. “I need you now.”

      Will lifted a brow at her and gave Howard a glance. Her brother shrugged. “I don’t mind if you hear everything we say, as long as I get to say it.”

      She added, “And I don’t want to be alone with him.”

      Will gave Howard a look that let his friend know he was doing this against his better judgment, and Samantha one that told her she was being childish. She didn’t care. Hardening her heart against further devastation was the only way she had survived the years of abandonment and crushing disappointment.

      Annoyed that Will wasn’t giving her the emotional backup she needed, Samantha removed her fingers from his taut biceps. She turned back to Howard, enunciating firmly, “The only reason I came was to give you the closure you seem to need, so you’ll leave me alone.” Forever.

      Howard held his arms wide. “I don’t want closure. I want a new beginning.”

      Samantha shook her head, her customary stubbornness rising up to give her strength. She pushed the words between clenched teeth. “Not going to happen, bro.”

      “At least meet my fiancée,” Howard insisted, with a combination of firmness and hope.

      Fiancée? The news that her brother was engaged hit Samantha like a sucker punch to the gut. Though why it should… She stared at him in shock, even as unexpected moisture gathered behind her eyes. “You—the guy who has run from every familial obligation for years—is getting married?” She couldn’t believe he was up for such a heavy-duty, lifelong commitment. Didn’t want to believe it.

      Howard nodded, suddenly looking as emotional as she felt. “To Molly Weatherby,” he admitted in a low, choked voice. Blinking rapidly, he cleared his throat. “She’s a wonderful woman. I think you’ll like her, and she’s very anxious to meet you.”

      Aware that Will was gauging her reaction every bit as carefully as her brother was, Samantha regained her composure with effort. “Clearly, Molly doesn’t understand our dynamic,” she said sweetly.

      Will lifted his brow again. Samantha ignored the powerful censure radiating from him.

      As did Howard. “Have dinner with us tomorrow,” he pressed.

      And open the door to further demands she had no desire to meet? Samantha thought bitterly. She wasn’t that much of a fool. It had been a mistake coming here in the first place. She shook her head and stepped back, away from both men. “I’m leaving in the morning, come hell or high water.”

      “Then we’ll make it breakfast,” Howard insisted, with the same polite do-or-die attitude that had made him such a success as an investment banker. “Please, Samantha,” he continued in a quiet tone that tugged on her heartstrings. “Do this for me.”

      Samantha supposed this could provide much needed closure for both of them. “Fine. Whatever.” Her voice was as cool as she could make it. “Just so you know this is the last time you and I are going to be seeing each other.” She regarded her brother steadily. “There’ll be no more messages on my machine, no more letters, no more hunky pilots kicking down my front door to save me.”

      Now Howard looked at Will with silent reproach.

      He held up a hand like a traffic cop. “Long story,” he muttered.

      To her surprise, Howard simply nodded.

      Pulse pounding, Samantha looked around, desperate for escape. “Is there a ladies’ room handy?”

      Will pointed toward a corner of the brightly lit hangar. “To the left there’s a unisex.”

      “Thanks.” Head down against the warm Texas wind, Samantha hurried off.

      She barely made it through the door of the concrete-floored building before bursting into tears she didn’t want and couldn’t explain.

      “I’M STILL AMAZED YOU GOT her here,” Howard told Will as the two of them walked across the tarmac, following the path Samantha had taken.

      So was he, if truth be told. Will thought about the sentimental tears Samantha had blinked back. He had learned a long time ago to pay more attention to what people did than what they said. It was actions, not speeches, that told the tale. He looked at the bathroom door, which was still closed, and led the way to his glass-walled office. “I don’t think there СКАЧАТЬ