Page 65 of Her Cadillac Cowboy
“I don’t know, Sarah.” Josh set his wine down and put his hands on her shoulders. He wanted to comfort her but had nothing except himself to offer. Would that be enough for her? “You have to let the police handle things. Once they round up those kids, they’ll have more information to work with.”
She leaned back against him.
He held her lightly, running his hands over her arms. Soaking up the creamy softness, almost as soft as the babies they’d tended together. Babies with Sara. Possibility or pipe dream? He couldn’t stress with her in his arms. Holding her was too right, too comfortable. He let the rhythm of his touch and the pounding of the surf soothe them both.
“It’s a beautiful view.”
“Yes.”
“You’re lucky to have found this place. Beachfront in Luville is prime real estate.”
“Lurlene helped.”
Sara’s shoulders tightened. She gulped a swallow of wine, then turned and walked across the room to stare at a very ordinary seascape. “I’m sure Lurlene would like to help you with a lot of things.”
The heat of resentment in her voice stabbed at him. Josh winced. “Sara, don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
White-hot shards of regret shredded his pride. “Look, I’m sorry.” He wasn’t quite sure what for, but he wanted the soft, sexy Sara back, and he’d do just about anything to get her. “I want us to have a pleasant evening.”
She turned to look at him, arms crossed over her chest, her right brow raised.
“For Will’s sake. We should at least try to be civil.” He ran his free hand through his hair. “Can we call a truce to the McKinley-Carson feud for one night?”
Sara’s shoulders shifted, and the tension left them. “I suppose so. I’m sorry too. I’ve had so much on my mind lately that falling back into old habits is so easy.”
He saluted her with his glass. “To the start of new habits.”
Sara returned the salute and shared the toast.
“Josh, Josh, the food’s on the table, but I gotta tell you first.” Will ran into the room and grabbed him. Wine sloshed in his glass, but he managed to prevent a spill.
“Calm down.” Over Will’s head, Josh shared a smile with Sara while the boy danced around the coffee table. “What do you ‘gotta’ tell me first?”
“Tim Whittaker wants me to sleep over. His mom says it’s okay, so I’m gonna go. She sorta wants to talk to you first.” Will thrust the phone at Josh, defiance clear in his posture. “Tim is way cool. So I’m going.”
“Slow down, son.” Josh set his glass down on the table then placed a hand on one of Will’s shoulders, accepting the phone with the other.
Beneath Josh’s grasp, the boy shook.Excitement?Nerves?Probably both.
“Hello, Mrs. Whittaker,” Josh said. “May I call you back? I’d like to talk to Will first.”
He listened, nodded, clicked off the phone, and returned it to Will. The teen’s face hardened into defiant lines. He turned around and dragged himself toward the kitchen.
Josh tightened his lips on a lecture about jumping to conclusions. Instead he issued a reminder, “I’ll need to use your phone when I return her call.”
Will moved a little faster.
“That’s pretty impressive kid handling.”
The soft words came from near his elbow. He’d been so focused on Will that he hadn’t noticed Sara’s approach. “I’d feel better about it if Will would open up a bit about his family.”
“He hasn’t said anything?”
“Not a word. Clams up the minute I try to talk about it, so I stopped trying.”
“He’ll come to it in his own time, I suppose,” she said.
