Page 74 of Her Cadillac Cowboy
His hands clenched on the chair’s armrests. For a moment, lightning flashed in his gaze. Then he relaxed. “I don’t believe you,” he said calmly. “I think you were running scared.”
Sara rolled her eyes and shrugged. Even if Josh was right, she had to convince him that he wasn’t.
“Scared of me,” he continued. “Scared of what your father would say, but most of all scared that you might actually have fallen in love with me.”
“Get real, Josh. I’ve never run from a fight in my life.” Bravado seemed her only recourse.
“Being in love with me wouldn’t mean you have a fight on your hands. It would mean your whole life is about to change. And the last time your whole life changed was when your mama left you.”
His perception stunned her.
“I promise you, Sara, I’ll never hurt you like that, ever. Just give us a chance.”
Gene’s noisy entrance into the room saved her from responding. She picked up a pen and flipped through the pages of the contract to place her signature in the appropriate spots.
Carol set a cup of coffee next to Sara’s elbow as she slid the contracts across her desk to Josh. She sipped and watched his strong hand move over the paper. Maybe she should give him a chance? How much happiness could she have tending her father for the rest of her life? How likely was it that Dad would ever recognize her capabilities, her worth?
Gene and Carol signed as witnesses, and Carol gathered the papers to make copies. “Oh, Ms. Carson, I almost forgot. The tankers are here to offload the gasoline.”
“Did you tell the service manager? He’s responsible for deliveries.”
“Yes, but the order is triple our usual, so the driver insists on talking to you before he offloads into the temporary storage tanks. He says they’re too close to the buildings.”
Sara gave a narrow smile. The tanks were too close, but no other space had been available, and the city had approved on the basis that the storage was a temporary one-time occurrence to allow the Mega Motors deal to move forward while construction continued on the new site. “All right. I’ll be there in a few minutes. Gentlemen, you’ll have to excuse me. I believe our business is finished.” She picked up her purse, preparing to leave.
Josh fell in beside Sara. “You’ll consider my proposal?”
Bonus points to him for making it sound like their private conversation had been about another business deal as he held the door to the stairwell open for her.
Still, she wasn’t about to allow him any leverage. “I’ll give it all the consideration it deserves.”
He showed his teeth and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I guess I’ll just have to be happy with that. When will you get back to me on it?”
“I don’t know. Let me get through the start-up of the RV department. Then we’ll see where we stand.”
“I don’t want to wait a whole month, Sara.”
“It’s the best I can do right now, Josh.”
“All right.”
???
Sara reassured the driver that the temporary storage units were as safe as they could make them and explained why they were so close to the building. She even oversaw the start of the delivery. She could afford the time now.
During the past weeks, she’d been able to get caught up on most of the backlog. She took work home a lot, because her father slept more now. His days at the Springboard center tired him out. She was safe at home, because she turned her phone to vibrate and never took calls from Josh’s number. Nor did she respond to any of his texts.
Her father arrived at home late from the center that afternoon. He came in swearing a blue streak and smiling at the same time.
“God bless Jehoshaphat, I never saw such a damn kid. He makes asses outta al’a them. Even my friends.” Carl waved a paper over his head.
Mrs. Masterson’s calm tones followed her father’s bluster. “I agree, Carl, Will is a talented young man and knows how to use his pen to good effect.”
Oh no. Sara hurried into the living room.Dad’s met Will.What if it causes a relapse? She halted in the doorway, startled by the sight of her father laughing with Mrs. Masterson, and … holding her hand? A scene from her early childhood flashed before her eyes: her handsome, dark-haired father sat in that same chair, with her mother on his lap. They were laughing and chasing each other’s fingers.
“Sara! Come in here, girl.” His words snapped her out of the melancholy déjà vu. "I don’t think you’ve met Millie.”
Sara smiled and extended her hand as she approached the older woman. “I’m delighted to finally meet you. Thank you for taking such good care of Dad.”
