Oklahoma Reunion. Tina Radcliffe

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СКАЧАТЬ of the carnies vying for their attention and the loud barker at the entrance to one of the sideshows. Her short, chubby legs propelled forward on the midway, past the Ferris wheel, carousel and the sweet and greasy trailing aroma of a funnel-cake stand.

      When Faith picked up her pace, Ryan reached for her hand before she got too far ahead. Not even a flamboyant clown on stilts could stop the little girl now that she had a mission.

      “There.” Sugar radar intact, Faith pointed to a concession stand shaded by a bright blue-and-white-striped umbrella.

      “Taste good?” Ryan asked as they settled on a bench, out of the wilting heat and humidity. Early autumn in Tulsa, it was still seventy-five degrees in the shade.

      Faith nodded, not wasting time on words, simply stuffing pink fluff into her mouth. When the last of the treat disappeared, she licked each finger one by one and looked up.

      “I have to go to the little girls’ room.” She hopped off the bench and straightened her shorts and matching top. “Now,” she added.

      “Yes, ma’am.”

      Ryan stood and glanced around, spotting the nearest facility. They quickly headed over.

      He narrowed his gaze, assessing those who came in and out the gray metal door. All he had to do was find a nice elderly lady or a mother with a baby to watch her inside.

      “Now, please, Unca Ryan,” Faith cried, reaching up to tug on his rolled-up shirtsleeve.

      “I heard you, darlin’.”

      “Do you need some help?”

      His head jerked at the sound.

       That voice.

      The air whooshed from his lungs as he connected with familiar dark eyes. He froze, realizing he’d just been poleaxed by the ghost of Kait Field.

      “I … we …” His thoughts were as muddled as his speech.

      One thing was certain. This time it wasn’t his imagination. Kait had been in the livestock barn this morning.

      Faith released a loud wail and crossed her little legs like miniature pretzels. Though Ryan heard her plea, he couldn’t seem to move.

      Kait, however, wasted no time. “Jenna, take the little girl into the restroom, sweetie.”

      “Sure.” The young girl at Kait’s side smiled at him before she pulled open the door and followed Faith inside. Merely a few years older than his niece, her long hair was the same rich black shade as Kait’s. In fact, except for the fringe of bangs, she looked exactly like Kait.

      “That’s your—”

      “Jenna,” Kait quickly added.

      He frowned, trying to piece the picture together. Kait was married and had a daughter? Regret slammed into him with the force of an Oklahoma twister.

      “Your daughter is adorable, Ryan.”

      “Faith is my niece—Maddie’s daughter.”

      Kait shook her head and shifted uncomfortably. When she pushed the long hair off her shoulders in a nervous gesture, he glanced at her hand, noting the light band of skin on her ring finger, evidence she’d recently removed a ring.

      Hope flared and his breath tightened in his chest. The last ring he’d seen on Kait’s hand was his promise ring—eight years ago.

      Ryan tensed, clenching his jaw. Was she married or not?

      He sure intended to find out.

      “Um, well, it certainly is nice to see you,” Kait finally said.

      Numb and speechless, he could only stare. His world had been knocked off-kilter, and she’d just responded like they were old friends who ran into each other once a week at church.

      “Come again?” Ryan bit back the slow, simmering anger deep in his gut.

      “I said, it’s nice to—”

      “Yeah. I heard you.” He jammed his hands into the pockets of his Wrangler jeans and glanced down at the ground. There was no way he could play a game of nonchalance and repartee.

      No, this was too cruel, carrying on a polite conversation while sneaking glances to see how she’d changed.

      Had she changed? Not really. The woman in front of him was still tall and slim, with high cheekbones hinting at her part-Cherokee heritage. Her hair hung like a satin sheet around her shoulders—not unlike the picture he carried in his heart.

      “You look good, Kait. Real good.” The words slipped from his lips before he realized he’d said them.

      Her face turned pink. “Thank you,” she said, while fidgeting with the silver chain tucked inside her blouse. As he recalled, she used to keep her mother’s wedding ring on the end of that necklace.

      Kait glanced around the fairgrounds, looking anywhere to avoid the intense green eyes of Ryan Jones. What were the odds of finding this particular cowboy among all the cowboys at the Tulsa State Fair?

      Yes, she’d come home to deal with the past. But she hadn’t expected it would be today, her first day back in Oklahoma.

      When she’d spotted Ryan, she and Jenna were walking and chatting. Suddenly there he was, giving life to the memories she’d put on a shelf eight years ago.

      The same unruly golden hair peeked out from beneath his hat, and he wore a familiar uniform of a denim shirt rolled up to the elbows, faded but creased Wrangler jeans and dusty boots. Tall and lanky, there was still a sparkle in his eyes and an irreverent grin on his face.

      Flustered, and with her blood beating loudly against her temples, Kait scrambled for a course of action. Her initial instinct had been to hide, but Ryan looked in need, as did the child with him. Her heart kicked in well before her brain.

      Now as they stood awkwardly, waiting for the girls to come out of the restroom, she tried not to stare, but again and again her gaze returned to the tall cowboy.

      “Hey, Doc, how’s it going? Good to see you out having fun for a change.”

      Ryan’s head swiveled around as he nodded a greeting to a man passing by.

      “Doc?” Kait repeated the word.

      “Doctor Jones. Princess says to tell you hello.”

      “Afternoon, Ms. Anderson.” He tipped his hat to an elderly woman

      “Princess?” Kait asked.

      “Red tabby Persian.”

      “Excuse me?” Confused, she cocked her head.

      “I’m a vet, Kait. I told you I was going to go to vet school.”

      “Your mother said you were going to law school.”

      He СКАЧАТЬ