Texas Daddy. Jolene Navarro
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me, but there should be an old landline in the office behind the stairs. And yes, I might have overdone it on the knee.” With the same swagger he had as a bull rider, Adrian cut across the room. Back in school, even the older girls would sigh when he walked past in his Wranglers.
Palms pressed against her face, she blocked the sight. She had no business noticing his swagger. Eye candy was not her thing. It just got a girl in trouble.
Back in high school, Tommy had been all smiles and charm wrapped up in a good-looking package. She wanted to be loved so bad she believed his lies. Then in Arizona, sweet eye-candy Mike captivated her and convinced her he was ready to take on an adventure as long as she was there. Look where that got her. Both men almost destroyed her.
She had one goal. Get healthy and get back to the Grand Canyon. Well, that was two, but the one thing she knew for sure: Adrian De La Cruz needed to stay out of her head. She didn’t worry about her heart. It was already gone.
Adrian tossed the trashed bike into the back of Mr. Bergmann’s truck. The rain had moved east and now humidity sat heavy on his shoulders as he stood at the driver’s door. “Mr. Bergmann, I’ll get the fence repaired before the weekend is out.”
“Appreciate it, Adrian. And thanks for helping Nicole.” He cut a glance to his daughter. “She shouldn’t have even been out here. It’s too hazardous, and with her bashed-up knee she could have gotten herself killed. This place is dangerous.” With the sigh of a frustrated father, he looked back at Adrian. “I thank God you were out here.”
Arms crossed over her chest, she rolled her eyes. “I can take care of myself. No one had to save me, Daddy.” She sighed and leaned forward. “Adrian, thank you. I’m grateful you were here. I’m just... Let me know if there is anything I need to do for the fawn.”
He understood her frustration. Needing help was never a fun place to be in when you were used to taking care of yourself. “No worries—we’ve got her. You can visit anytime you like. Consider it an open adoption.” He chuckled. “Glad I was here. Hope there’s not too much damage to your knee.”
The diesel engine roared to life. Bergmann tipped his Montana Brand tools baseball cap. “I’ll see you at the store Monday if not before.”
Adrian gave a slap to the door and stepped back. He waited for them to disappear around the curve before heading to the shed. With a hind leg cocked, Zeta looked to be sound asleep. “Hey, wake up, lazy. We’ve got a fence to fix.” After calling Nikki’s dad, he had called George to let him know he’d be late to dinner.
Ears forward, she raised her head. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You were just waiting on me.” After checking the gear, he picked up the fawn and tucked her inside his duster, close to him. “We have a guest, so mind your manners.” He let the horse smell the baby deer then patted her withers before swinging up into the saddle. With a nudge of his knees, they started down the dirt road at a more leisurely pace than a few hours ago.
At the downed fence, he saw a Childress work truck with the cutting-horse logo on the side. His brother, George, pulled fencing from the back. Mia started jumping and waving.
She was trying to jump, anyway. She looked a bit awkward with the new brace. He’d be so happy when he didn’t have to see a brace again. Mia’s gear looked twice as long as Nikki’s. She never did tell him what kind of injury she suffered.
“Mia, careful. We just got your cast off. Where’re your crutches?” Dismounting, he dropped the reins to the ground. “You shouldn’t have brought her out here. She’s going to end up back in the wheelchair.”
“Hey, you were the one who left her at school without calling, so don’t lecture me, little brother. Anyway, I remember someone with a busted ankle refusing to use his crutches.” George and Mia moved to the fence. She carried the fence ties as she limped next to his twin. “Then you cut the thing off so you wouldn’t miss another ride. She’ll be fine, Papa Bear.”
Adrian popped his jaw. He was not in the mood for his brother’s ribbing. He moved to the back seat of the Silverado 2500 and used a blanket to wrap the sleeping fawn. He’d surprise Mia with it on the way back to the ranch. “My injury was different. She’s a ten-year-old girl and could get hurt again.”
“You need to relax. What has you so uptight? What are you doing in the truck?”
“Nothing. And you’re not a father, so you don’t get it.”
George stopped what he was doing and straightened. “I can’t believe you said that to me. Are you looking for a fight? Because I can give you one right here and leave you in the mud, little brother.”
Mia rolled her eyes. “Tío George, it’s okay. He just freaks out easily since I fell off the horse. It all worked out. And, Daddy, if I sit at home any longer I’ll scream. Please don’t get mad at Tío.”
“You didn’t just fall off your horse. You were dragged across an arena.”
George narrowed his eyes and scrutinized his twin. Adrian glared back for a moment, but quickly turned away, studying the blue sky that had been heavy and threatening an hour ago. If anyone could see his discomfort over seeing Nikki again, it would be his twin. “Weather changes fast around here.”
“Sure.” George started unrolling the wire. “Hold this, mija. Changing the subject won’t work. When you called you said the oldest Bergmann sister was hurt. Didn’t know she was back in town. Still as stunning as when she was in school?”
Adrian scowled at his brother then back to his daughter. Was his brother that dense to talk about women in front of Mia? He followed the glare with a shrug. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. She was hurt, and I helped her. She’s in a brace too, and was doing stuff she shouldn’t have been doing.” He took the coiled wire fencing from Mia. “Go put the tailgate down and sit with the dogs. The ground is too wet and uneven for your injured leg.”
“Daddy! Tío said I could help.”
“Go or I’ll have your tío take you home.”
With a heavy sigh, she limped back to the truck. Beast and Belle, George’s blue heelers, got excited and sat next to her. Those were the kind of names you got when a six-year-old girl named your dogs. She hugged the pair and let them lick her. He sighed.
Now she’d probably name any new dogs after some boy-band crush. She was growing up too fast, and there was nothing he could do to stop the changes.
He checked his watch. Sitting still was hard for Mia. Who was he kidding? He’d go crazy not being able to work. He knew she thought he was too stern, so did his brother, but he couldn’t deal with her being hurt again. “How about I take you to the store when we finish? You can get a couple of new coloring books and markers. I need to pick up some groceries anyways.”
Her face lit up. “Thank you, Daddy!”
When she smiled, he automatically felt guilty for being upset with her. Seeing Nikki all grown up, but hurt and refusing help, had put him in a bad mood.
Tuesday, they had the first physical-therapy session with the new brace. The therapist only came to Clear Water twice a week. Nikki would probably be there.
He sighed and pulled the wire tight. The high school girl he obsessed over no longer existed. Life had taken them in different directions. She took on the world, and he was happy living within the borders of Clear Water, raising his daughter.
* * *
“Nikki, don’t be stubborn. I can cancel my appointment and go to The Mercantile for you.” Her father kept looking straight ahead. He hated conflict and would avoid it at all cost.
She pushed the door open. “I just need a few things. I can walk over to the hardware store when I’m finished. I need to work out the kinks.”