Twins for the Bull Rider (5 page)

Sidestepping the men, Cissy took up a piece of the fence, too. She lifted a foot and braced it on the lower rung. The rail's warmth seeped into her palms.

“Can we pet the horses?” Kayden asked.

He seemed fascinated by Logan's movements. His eyes clung to Logan's hand as it pulled a brush through the horse's hair with whispering sweeps.

“Sure.” Pop retrieved an apple from a bucket. He handed it to Kayden and motioned toward a horse lingering nearby. “That one's named Oreo. Call him.”

“Come on, Oreo,” Kayden urged, holding out the red apple.

“Gentle,” Dominic said. He lifted Kayden higher on the fence. “Stretch your arm out a bit farther. And hold your hand as flat as you can.”

“What if he's not hungry?”

“Don't worry. Oreo never turns down a treat. He'll come when he's ready. You just have to be patient.”

The large horse moved with ease toward Kayden's arm. Spots of midnight black and creamy white covered the horse's sleek muscles. Oreo dipped his broad head and nuzzled Kayden's hand with his nose, tugging on the apple with his teeth and chomping off a generous bite. Kayden dissolved into a fit of giggles.

“Oreo likes it,” Jayden announced, promptly scooting closer to Dominic to lean over the fence, as well.

The boys' eyes sparkled and their faces flushed. Cissy smiled. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen them this excited over anything. Of course, Crystal's illness had cast thick shadows over them for so long.

But watching them now, they seemed like their old selves for the first time in forever. Their laughter was genuine. Their comfort obvious.

Cissy closed her eyes and dropped her head back, enjoying the peaceful moment. The sun's heat poured into her muscles and her body relaxed on a deep exhale.

This was her promise to Crystal. Providing the boys with full bellies and the comfort of a permanent home. A life free of poverty and displacement. Something she and Crystal had never known growing up.

A buzzing in her pocket shot vibrations down her thigh. Cissy snatched the cell phone out, her fingers fumbling to keep it from falling to the ground.
Here we go
.

“Aunt Cissy, come look at this,” Kayden called.

Pop had taken over with the boys and laughed with them as Oreo nuzzled their palms.

“In a minute,” she hastened, shrugging as Dominic twisted to survey her. “I have to take this.”

Spinning, she moved a few steps away and pressed the phone to her ear.

“Jason.” It was impossible to drudge up a more polite greeting than that.

“Damn it, Cissy,” he hissed. “Where the hell are you?”

She clenched her teeth and forced her voice to remain even. “Things weren't working out in Atlanta so I decided to move.”

“The hell you say,” Jason returned. “I stopped by the apartment yesterday. I know you got kicked out.”

Cissy's temper rose, burning her face and neck.
Sleazy landlord
. No doubt, he'd been all too happy to fill Jason in with his version of the truth.

“Is that what that nasty piece of trash landlord told you?”

She grimaced as the words blurted out and glanced over her shoulder. The boys were focused on feeding the horse with Logan and Pop's assistance. Dominic, however, fully faced her. His arms crossed over his broad chest as he studied her.

Cissy tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and stepped farther away. “Look, I was behind on rent. I had it all worked out, but the landlord and I had a...disagreement.”

Silence descended on the line. The soft push of a breeze was the only whisper on the phone for a few moments.

“Jason? Are you still there?”

“Yeah, I'm here.” His voice softened. “A disagreement?”

“I handled it.” She stomped on an anthill, watching a puff of dirt rise and the insects scramble.

“Yeah, you did,” Jason stated matter-of-factly. “And then he evicted you.”

“Look, I didn't have much of a say in the matter. I made the only choice I could. And it was the best thing anyway.”

“Are you okay? Are the boys okay?”

“They're fine.” Her throat constricted, choking her next words. “What do you want, Jason?”

He sighed. “You knew this was coming. You can't keep running from it.”

“I'm not running from anything. You and Crystal were the ones always skipping out. You'd show up out of nowhere, take her away for months at a time. Drop her back off then leave again.” Her chin trembled. “You drove Crystal crazy, you know? Broke her heart a thousand times.”

“Crystal understood. I never lied to her. She knew how important my career was to me. She knew I wasn't ready for anything permanent.”

“Yeah? And what about the boys?” She lowered her voice. “Do you have any idea how confused they are about you? They don't even ask about you anymore. Jayden's too hurt and Kayden's too afraid of what the answer might be.”

“Stop it.” His voice cracked. “Crystal and I had this talk a long time ago. She knew I didn't want kids and it was her decision to go through with it anyway. I helped out when I could.”

“How chivalrous of you,” Cissy snapped.

“I loved her. You know I did.”

She gripped the phone tighter. “Yeah. But not enough.”

There was a scuffling against the phone. She could almost see him clenching his fists at his sides in angry frustration. Lord knew that was his usual posture when he was around her.

“I'm not going to fight with you, Cissy.” Jason's tone tightened. “I'm calling because it's time. I got the adoption paperwork last week.”

She froze. “No.”

“It's the right thing to do.”

“No. You're not doing this. Crystal left them to me. I promised her I'd keep them.”

“I know this is hard for you. I know you love them.” His voice shook. “In my own way, I love them, too. And this is the best thing we can do for them.”

“It's the best thing for you, maybe.” She shook her free hand violently in an attempt to fling off some of her anxiety. “It's not the best thing for them. I don't know how you can even suggest it.”

“How can you suggest keeping them?” Jason shot back. “It won't be as easy to hold on to that pride of yours with two kids hanging on you. And you barely made ends meet before you had them, much less now.”

“I'm working on that. I just need to get my feet under me and then we'll be fine. You won't have to lift a finger. Or a dime,” she bit out.

“It's not just about the money. You oughta know that by now. Shit, Cissy. You and I would've made a lot more sense. Both of us loners. No ties, no obligations. Knowing our place and keeping it. You've always been realistic.”

She froze, her heart slamming against her rib cage.

“We're not the type of people that get lucky in life,” he continued. “And I'm not gonna gamble with my boys. You got nothing and nobody. That's just how it is. How it'll always be. There's no way this will end well,” he scoffed. “Do you really expect it to?”

Cissy swallowed hard. The view before her began to blur. The blue sky melted into the green fields. She snapped the phone shut.

There was nothing she could say.

* * *

D
OMINIC
STEPPED
CLOSER
and studied the tense line of Cissy's back. She remained motionless, the cell phone clamped by her side.

“Everything okay?”

Her head tilted. The silky strands of her hair slid back, revealing the jut of her chin.

“Yeah,” she gritted.

“Doesn't seem like it.”

He waited. The boys' laughter in the background rose. Snatches of chatter from guests strolling down nearby paths punctuated the stillness. But she didn't move or speak.

Damn sure wasn't anything worse than a stubborn woman.

Dominic shrugged. “Can't help if you don't let me.”

Cissy jerked around, hands balled into fists. “Did I ask for your help? Did I ever once ask you for any help yesterday? Or today for that matter?”

His chest flooded with anger. Stubborn wasn't the word. Hardheaded woman wouldn't give an inch if her life depended on it.

“No. Can't say you did.” He shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “But all things considered, you should have. For those boys if nothing else.”

The anger melted from her face and an embarrassed flush stamped her cheeks. She swung away and smoothed a hand over her hair before facing him again.

“Look, I...I'm sorry.” Her throat moved on a hard swallow. “Can I talk to you and Logan? In private?” She bit her lip, peering over his left shoulder. “Away from the boys?”

Dominic nodded, caving at the unexpected display of vulnerability. “I'll get 'em settled with Pop. He loves kids. He'll keep them busy.”

Cissy dipped her head in response but maintained her silence. He pressed his lips together to keep from saying anything more. She wasn't skittish. But damned if she didn't keep throwing bricks on that mile-high wall she stacked around herself.

A small bundle hurled into Dominic's hip, jostling him. He looked down to find Kayden leaning against him. Jayden jumped down from the fence and rushed to Dominic's other side, weaving his fingers through his.

“Aunt Cissy missed the paddleboats this morning.” Kayden grabbed Dominic's other hand and strained, trying to pull him forward. “So can we go again to show her?”

“Kayden, stop it.” Cissy threw Dominic an apologetic glance.

Dominic stood firm and let him yank. The kid had a strong grip for such a small thing. He laughed when Kayden stopped tugging to let out an exhausted breath.

“Not right now, Kayden. There's plenty time for that. Your aunt and I need to talk.”

“Can't me and Jayden just go by ourselves?” Kayden begged.

“No,” Jayden said, his brow furrowed in concentration. “Mr. Dominic said we weren't to never, ever go in the water without an adult. Or a life per-suh-va.”

“Preserver,” Cissy corrected, waiting for him to repeat it. “That's good advice.” She tossed Dominic a surprised glance. Her eyes warmed. “Thank you for watching out for them.”

Dominic stilled. Such a different look from last night. Something pleasant streamed through his veins.

Pride
.

It wasn't that he'd never felt proud before. It just usually only hit when he was standing apart from everyone. In the middle of an arena. Muscles tight, breathing hard and basking in his dominance over a thousand-pound bull.

It had always been a violent and overwhelming experience. But this was different.

Dominic focused on the snug grip of the boys' hands and the gratitude shining in Cissy's wide eyes. He wasn't alone. He was surrounded with warmth. With calm.

His chest rose. Supporting and protecting offered a new kind of pride. It was shared. It was quiet. But it was just as powerful.

“Well...” He cleared his throat. “Let me get them settled with Pop and we'll talk.”

Dominic led the boys inside the paddock to drop them off with Pop and they were soon chattering a mile a minute as they were led from one horse to the next. Everything was new and exciting to them and Dominic caught himself missing the days he and Logan used to roam the ranch together as boys. He turned and walked back, reluctant to leave them but equally drawn to their stubborn, beautiful aunt.

“Mr. Dominic?”

He paused. Jayden had followed him a few steps and stood looking up at him with a grave expression.

“Are we gonna stay here for a while?”

Dominic hesitated. Damned if he knew why, but the boys' questions were intimidating. And he sure didn't know the answer to that one.

Jayden continued to study him and Dominic stifled the urge to toss out a flippant response. It was best to be honest.

“I don't know.” Dominic tried for a comforting tone. “Don't worry about all that. Your aunt Cissy will handle things.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Jayden said. “But it's nice here.”

Dominic took a moment to survey his surroundings through the boy's perspective. The green fields were wide enough to roll in for days. The soft sounds of the horses mingled with the distant laughter of guests enjoying the grounds. A warm breeze swept over his skin and ruffled his hair.

“Yeah,” he returned. “It is.”

Jayden smiled then darted back to join Kayden and the horses.

Dominic made his way back to Cissy, finding her deep in conversation with Logan by the fence. A spark of jealousy lit in his gut. It was unwelcome and unjustified. But it was there, all the same.

Whatever admiration Cissy held for him would pale in comparison to Logan's wealth of redeeming qualities. Logan was always the dependable, honorable son. Dominic had always been the reckless, carefree one. And Logan seemed determined to never let him forget it.

Dominic tightened his fists and his steps became purposeful. He'd forgotten why it wasn't always so nice here after all. Matter of fact, it was about time to hit the road again.

Cissy turned away from Logan and stilled when she noticed Dominic. He slowed at her fierce expression. Her blue eyes were large and determined.

Tipping up her chin, she jerked her gaze away to focus over Dominic's left shoulder, studying the boys' antics in the field behind him. Not wanting to give her extra time to build a greater distance between them, he chose not to exit the paddock but walked up and faced her over the fence instead.

“So what's all this about?” Dominic asked.

She didn't respond at first. The skin of her hands paling even more and gleaming in the sunlight as she gripped the fence rail. Her knuckles began to whiten from the tight grip she had on the wood.

“My sister, Crystal, passed away a few months ago.” Her throat moved on a hard swallow. “She had cancer. It was a really rough time for the boys.”