A Cowboy's Redemption. Marin Thomas
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Название: A Cowboy's Redemption
Автор: Marin Thomas
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Современные любовные романы
isbn: 9781474032223
isbn:
“You and Dani could move here,” José said.
They’d had this discussion before. “I’ve got a good job in Albuquerque and Dani loves her school.” Her daughter had been three and a half when her father died, and although she professed to love him, she didn’t really remember him. Tony had spent the majority of his spare time volunteering at the free medical clinic in the barrio. When he’d died, Dani hadn’t felt his loss as sharply as Sara had.
“If I leave, who will run the restaurant?” José asked.
She swallowed her frustration. One, maybe two people a week stopped in to eat at the cantina.
“And I can’t leave the animals behind,” he said.
Animals that other people had asked him to watch while they took vacations but then never returned to claim. “We’ll find good homes for the mules and the horse.” When he remained silent, she said, “What can it hurt to give the place a face-lift whether you move or not?”
“It’s a waste of good money.”
“It’s my money. I’ll decide if it’s wasted or not.”
“How come Antonio never mentioned how stubborn you are?” The corner of José’s mouth lifted in a shaky smile.
Sara’s heart ached for the old man and she hugged him. He’d been more of a father to her than her own. Her parents had divorced when she’d been a teenager and she’d had no contact with her father since. When Sara had graduated from high school and entered college, her mother met and married a Frenchman, then moved overseas with him. She only saw her mother and stepfather every few years.
“Things will work out, José. You’ll see.”
José and Dani were all that was left of Sara’s real family and she was determined to keep them together.
As far as rusted-out single-wide trailers went, this one was a five-star accommodation compared to where Cruz had laid his head last night. The windowless tin box allowed for plenty of airflow and made the mobile home feel less confining. There were no appliances in the kitchen and only a trickle of rusty water ran out of the faucet when he flipped it on.
Still better than a prison cell.
“My mom says you’re gonna help Papa.”
The high-pitched little voice startled Cruz. He spun so fast he lost his balance and crashed his hip against the Formica countertop. Unbelievable. He’d faced down gangbangers and thugs, yet this pip-squeak had managed to sneak up on him.
He took the stack of clean sheets that were weighing down her arms. “Thank you.”
Without waiting for an invitation, Dani walked over to the built-in dinette table and slid onto the bench seat. “My papa doesn’t want you to help him.”
“Is that right?”
She nodded.
“Why doesn’t he want my help?”
Her narrow shoulders moved up and down. Cruz doubted Sara would approve of him being alone with Dani. “Isn’t your mother looking for you?”
Dani’s gaze darted to the living room, where a coffee table covered in an inch of dust sat in front of an olive-green sofa. Then her gaze swung back to Cruz and she blurted, “Are you a daddy?”
“No.” Several homies in the barrio had gotten their girlfriends pregnant in high school but after seeing how their lives had changed, he’d promised himself that he’d never let a girl trap him with a pregnancy. He’d always carried condoms in his wallet—that is, before he’d landed in jail. He supposed one of the first things he should do when Sara paid him was buy a box of rubbers—in case he ended up in a buckle bunny’s bed when he returned to the circuit.
An image of Sara flashed before his eyes. She was the furthest thing from a rodeo groupie and way out of his league. A guy like him wasn’t good enough for a widow trying to raise a child on her own.
“A bad man shot my daddy.”
“Dani?” José poked his head inside the trailer and glanced between Cruz and his granddaughter. “Did you give Mr. Rivera the sheets?”
Dani nodded.
“Go on, now. Your mama’s looking for you,” José said.
Dani rolled her eyes and Cruz kept a straight face as she scooted out from behind the table. She stopped in front of him, her big brown gaze beseeching. “If you feed the donkeys, can I help?”
Cruz glanced at José. The suspicious glint in the older man’s eyes warned that he wasn’t making a social call.
“We’ll talk about the donkeys later.” José took Dani’s hand and helped her down the steps.
Cruz watched the kid scamper across the dirt and duck inside the back of the house. When she was safely out of hearing range, he gave his full attention to Sara’s father-in-law.
“I don’t want your help,” José said.
“Say the word and I’ll leave.”
Cruz watched the old man struggle—his lips moved but only a harsh breath escaped his mouth, then the fire in his eyes sputtered out. “My daughter-in-law is too trusting.” He waved a hand before his face. “Did she ask where you’re from?”
“No, sir.” Cruz would answer José honestly if he wanted to know, but he wasn’t volunteering any information.
“Did she ask where you were going?”
“No, sir.”
“Did she ask why you wanted a job?”
“No, sir.”
He shook his head. “For all I know, you just got out of prison.”
The blood drained from his face, but Cruz held José’s gaze.
“I’m keeping an eye on you.”
“Yes, sir.”
José left, following the path Dani took to the house.
José didn’t trust Cruz and he was smart not to. For all intents and purposes, Cruz had lied when he hadn’t confirmed José’s suspicions about being released from prison. If that wasn’t enough incentive to head down the road, then learning that Sara was too trusting of strangers and her husband had been shot should have been. He didn’t need trouble and these folks didn’t need him.
He grabbed the sheets off the counter, intent on returning them before hitting the road, but a whiff of their clean scent paralyzed him. He buried his face in the cotton and closed his eyes. The sheets smelled like spring, not chlorine СКАЧАТЬ