That Wild Texas Swing Read online

  “They won’t.” But she didn’t know for sure. Lord, she didn’t want to call Killian, though. She’d call the sheriff’s department instead.

  The new deputy, Wyatt Jordan, didn’t know if Rafael could have visitors, and he promised to call the sheriff, but when Liz didn’t hear from him, she gave in to her sister and dialed Killian.

  He answered on the second ring. “Liz. Everything okay?”

  “My sister wants to see my father. Is that possible?”

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  Within half an hour, he was at the house. Liz didn’t want to go, didn’t particularly care to see her father, but she wanted to be there for her sister. So she got in the back seat while Brianna sat beside Killian, and wouldn’t meet his eyes in the rear view mirror.

  “Thank you for coming to my party last night,” Brianna said politely. “I know it wasn’t as fun for y’all, so thank you.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Brianna twisted to include her sister in the conversation. “And thank you for doing this for us. I know you two aren’t together anymore, which I think is stupid, by the way.”

  Liz rolled her eyes. Just what she needed, her sister playing matchmaker.

  “I mean, the two of you have fun together, and the way you look at each other…just, wow. I don’t know what happened, I mean, if like, you cheated on him or something,” she said to her sister.

  “Hey!” Wounded, Liz sat up. “I’m your sister. You’re supposed to be on my side.”

  “Not when you’re being stupid.” Brianna turned back to Killian. “I thought when I saw you there last night that y’all might be getting back together.”

  He looked in the rear view mirror at Liz. “That was my intention before Ryan came in.”

  “Ryan.” Brianna frowned. “You have a new boyfriend?”

  “The Ranger who arrested Papa.”

  “Oh.” Brianna snapped her teeth together and shifted forward. “Sorry.”

  “I’m pretty sure Killian didn’t offer to take us to see Papa to hear your opinions.”

  “No, he offered because he loves you. And if you don’t see that, you’re an idiot.”

  This time she couldn’t help herself. She met Killian’s gaze in the mirror. No glint this time, only a solemnity that hit her right in the heart.

  When they walked into the sheriff’s department, Ryan was sitting on the edge of the sheriff’s desk, a clipboard resting on his thigh as he scribbled something. He looked up, and his expression tightened when he saw the girls.

  “We’re transporting him within the hour.”

  “We need to see him,” Brianna said, chin up.

  Hm. That quinceañera had done more than marked her passage into womanhood. It had given her some courage. Ryan looked past her to Killian.

  “I told them they could see him. They need to hear his side.”

  Ryan put the clipboard on the desk and stood. He sighed and motioned for them to follow him back.

  Rafael was not in a cell, or in an orange jumpsuit, as Liz feared. No, he was in an interrogation room, still in his suit from the party, though his tie was gone and the jacket was folded up on the bench behind him. He lifted his head as Ryan opened the door, and he was on his feet when the girls walked in.

  “Brianna. Liz.” He took a step toward them, then stopped. “I didn’t want you to see me like this.”

  “Then why did you do it?” Brianna asked. “Why didn’t you just come back to us? We didn’t need the money, didn’t need anything but you. Why did you risk everything?”

  “Ah, mija, it was more than that. I owed some bad people favors. I was just paying it back.”

  “And that’s another thing. Why didn’t you tell us where you’d been, instead of lying to us?”

  Rafael looked from his youngest to his oldest. “Did you put these questions in her head?”

  Liz raised her hands in surrender. “She’s the one who wanted to see you. But they’re good questions.”

  “I didn’t want you to know the mistakes I’d made.”

  “You didn’t think it was better for us to know what you’d done than to think you’d abandoned us?”

  “I did abandon you,” he admitted. “I left you. I didn’t want to come back, didn’t want to be responsible for three girls, to be stuck in a little town.”

  “So you’d rather be in jail?” Liz demanded.

  “I didn’t intend that, either. I just didn’t have a lot of options.”

  Brianna looked at him a long moment. “You had one. You had us. And you let us down. I wish I hadn’t let you pay for my party with your money. I wish…I wish you hadn’t come back.”

  She turned and ran out. Liz took a long look at her father, a beaten man. She’d wanted her sister to understand who he was, but not like this.

  “I’m sorry,” he said to her.

  “I know you are.”

  “I love you girls. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  “I can honestly say I believe you.” Because he didn’t think of anyone but himself. She wondered if he ever would. She didn’t expect turning away from him, leaving him alone, to be so painful.

  When she walked out of the room, she saw Brianna in Killian’s arms, her head bent against his chest, as she sobbed. Killian looked at Liz over Brianna’s head, and she felt that tug again. Would she ever stop feeling it?

  “Let’s go get some ice cream.”

  She wanted to say no, because, well, ice cream, but Brianna drew back enough to smile up at Killian. “Okay.”

  Maybe she wasn’t as grown up as she’d seemed.

  Killian drove them to the drive-in on the highway, and before Liz could say she didn’t want anything, he ordered her usual. But to her surprise, once the order was delivered, he didn’t drive away, just shifted in his seat.

  “So what was the best part about last night?” he asked Brianna.

  She rolled her eyes and took a bite of her sundae. “I don’t want to think about it.”

  “After all the work you did to get ready for it? You don’t want to erase it from your head.”

  “Papa paid for it.”

  “Because he loved you and wanted you to have the best. He made a lot of mistakes, but nothing is unforgivable.”

  “I don’t know what your problem is,” Brianna said when Killian dropped them off a short time later. “He’s perfect, and you’re an idiot if you don’t see it.”

  “You know how Papa messed up and didn’t want to get back with Mama because he didn’t want to bring her down?”

  “Sure.”

  “Same thing.”

  Brianna stopped, her hand on the door. “Yeah, but what Papa didn’t know is that Mama didn’t care. She loved him that much.”

  “And where would she be now? Alone again.” Liz pushed ahead of her sister into the house.

  *****

  Days bled into weeks as they dealt with Rafael’s absence, and they prepared for Gracie to move up to college. Liz had double- and triple-checked that Gracie’s college money was safe, that it wouldn’t be forfeited because of Rafael’s actions. That it was safe was more of a relief than she’d like to admit.

  She started opening the salon on Mondays, because really, she didn’t have a life, and they had enough business to justify it. Bev kept trying to get her to go out, but she just didn’t feel it. She didn’t want to go back to that life. She’d never admit it to Killian, especially, but she wanted more.

  The night Gracie left for college was a merchant association meeting. Emotions already raw at sending her sister off alone, Liz considered asking Bev to go for her. She’d seen Killian from a distance the past few weeks, but he hadn’t approached, and neither had she. Well, Gracie had been a grown-up today. Liz needed to do the same.

  After all her mental prep, she was stunned to walk into the conference room to see Killian’s chair empty. She was intentionally late, too, but she’d be damned if she asked where he was. She took her regular seat. Sage smiled down t
he table at her.

  “Hey, Liz.”

  Uh, she’d never gotten a greeting like that from Sage before. What had changed? Had Sage gotten laid recently? No, she knew what it was. Liz was no longer dating Killian, and was no longer a threat to whatever Sage wanted for him.

  “I’ve got good news,” Sage said. “I’m getting started on those apartments like you wanted. I’m starting with Nia’s, though, and then I’ll move to yours. I think yours will be more challenging since it’s a smaller space. Isn’t that great?”

  “Are you putting the B&B on hold?”

  “For a bit. You know how I like to be hands-on. But we’re hoping it won’t take too long. But great news, right?”

  “Um. Sure. I know that will bring more business to town.” And wasn’t that what this was all about?

  Sage beamed at her, then turned to address the rest of the group. “Since Killian’s out of town, I’m running the meeting tonight, so let’s call it to order.”

  “Where did Killian go?” Liz asked Nia as they walked out together after the meeting, unable to hide her curiosity any longer.

  “I heard he went to Kingsville on a date with the girl from the grocery store. You know, the one who came out here for the ground-breaking ceremony?” Nia watched her closely as she relayed the information, and her eyes flashed in triumph. “I knew it. You’re still in love with him. Girl, you were happy. Why did you throw that away?”

  Because she was scared. Scared of losing him. Scared of losing herself. Scared he’d realize everyone was right when they said she wasn’t suitable, and would turn away from her.

  And now she was scared she was going to have to watch him be happy with someone else. She turned and faced Sage and Allison, who were walking down the stairs behind them.

  “Hey, Sage,” she said in the same tone Sage had greeted her with. “Is there still room for me on the Festival committee?”

  *****

  “Liz.” Brianna looked up from the appointment book. “Evelyn Dawson has an appointment scheduled today.”

  Liz whipped around from the sink where she was setting up for a color. “What? When did she make that appointment?”

  “I don’t know. She didn’t talk to me, or I would have let you know before.”

  “And the appointment is with me? Not Jessica or Mrs. W?”

  “A specific request for you. A complete treatment.”

  An hour and a half, at least. Nothing like an extended period of time with your ex’s disapproving mother. It could be worse, she supposed. She could still be dating Killian. “What time?”

  “One.”

  Long enough to get her worked up. “Maybe I can go home sick,” she only half-teased.

  “You want me to call her and tell her that?” Brianna offered, a hundred percent serious.

  “No. But she’s never been in before. She always goes to Kingsville or someplace, Maggie told me. There’s some other reason she’s coming in now.” Maybe she could call Maggie and see what she knew.

  But just then her first appointment of the day, the color, came in, and she was too busy to pick up the phone until about ten minutes before Evelyn was due for her appointment. Ah, well. She’d just suck it up.

  Evelyn was early, too, and it felt like everyone held their breath when she walked in. Liz wiped her hands on her apron and crossed to meet the woman she’d known since she was a girl.

  “Mrs. Dawson, welcome. Want to come on back? What can I do for you today?”

  “Actually.” Evelyn held her purse in front of her. “I made the appointment, but I just want to talk to you. Can we go somewhere? The Coyote, or maybe my house?”

  Liz looked around her. “I don’t really leave.”

  “This isn’t a conversation I want to have around everyone. I’ll pay you for your time, but I want to talk to you alone.”

  Liz didn’t want to point out that they wouldn’t exactly be alone at the Coyote, and it was possible that Killian could still be there. But even though Evelyn’s house was a couple of blocks away, Liz didn’t feel comfortable going that far from the shop. She looked past Killian’s mother to her sister, then removed her apron and dropped it over the back of her chair, then motioned for Evelyn to lead the way.

  Evelyn didn’t say anything until they reached the Coyote. Thankfully, Killian and David had left. Evelyn motioned to the bar and Liz followed. Yeah, a drink would sound really good right now if she didn’t have to go back to work.

  “Killian is miserable,” Evelyn said, setting her purse on the chair beside her. “I lay that at your door.”

  “I’m sorry he is, but he’ll get over it.”

  “That was my initial assessment as well, but Maggie and I have been talking, and she says you’re pretty miserable yourself.”

  Liz laughed and waved a hand. “I’ve kind of had a lot to be miserable about.”

  “I’m not talking about your father. I’m talking about how your whole lifestyle has changed since you and Killian got together.”

  Liz shook her head. “I don’t want the same things anymore, but that doesn’t mean I’m miserable.”

  “Why don’t you want people to know you’re as hurt as he is? You want them to think you’re that tough?”

  “Because I don’t like letting people into my life.”

  Evelyn gave a sharp laugh. “In the past I would have thought that was a ridiculous statement, but seeing my son now, I know that to be true.”

  “Did you bring me over here to make me feel bad about hurting Killian?”

  “I brought you over here to try to get a real read on your feelings. Because if my suspicions are correct, I want to help you.”

  “Help me?”

  Cassidy approached then, her blue eyes wide with curiosity, though Liz knew she’d never pry into the reason the two were eating lunch together. Evelyn ordered an iced tea and a strawberry salad, and Liz, who hadn’t bothered to look at the menu, ordered a brisket sandwich. That was what Killian had brought on their picnic the day they went tubing, so she knew it was good. Whether or not she would be able to eat it remained to be seen.

  “I’m sure you know the story of Killian’s father and me,” Evelyn said when Cassidy left.

  “Only the gist of it, that he was married, and left his wife for you.” She winced inwardly at the bluntness of her statement.

  Evelyn’s smile was resolute. “That is the gist of it. There was more to it, you know. People will tell you I was the Bluebonnet Queen and that I flirted openly with a man in power, that I seduced him in his office, and some of that is true, but the point I want to make with you is that no one wanted me to be the mayor’s wife. Make no bones about it, our relationship was much more scandalous than yours—I was pregnant with Killian when Terrence left his wife and three children.”

  “I’d heard that, too.”

  “It was not a pleasant time. I was shunned at a lot of places, and Terrence, too. I never wanted that for Killian. He didn’t remember it from when he was little, because I worked hard to earn my place in this town.” She stopped for a breath. “I can help you earn your place, too, if you want it.”

  “What are you talking about?” She had a place in town, her own business, her own clients.

  “I’m talking about, if you love Killian, if you want to be a mayor’s wife, I can show you what to do to win people over.”

  She was already shaking her head. “My father is a convicted felon. If ever I thought I could be the mayor’s wife—and seriously, I don’t know if I could be—that surely puts an end to the possibility. Never mind the fact that a lot of women in this town hate me because of my reputation.”

  “Perhaps you should go to the newspaper and have them publish a list,” Evenly said, deadpan. “That would remove all doubt.”

  Liz’s cheeks heated. She’d never seen all the names written down. “That wouldn’t be humiliating at all.”

  “I’m just joking. Sort of. That is going to be an obstacle, I admit. But the bigger question rem
ains. Are you in love with my son?”

  Liz looked into Evelyn’s blue eyes, so like her son’s. If she could earn the approval of this woman, who had Killian’s best interests at heart, couldn’t she win over the rest of the town?

  The first Evansville Festival Committee meeting was at Evelyn’s house. Liz smoothed her hands down the pencil skirt of the Allison-clone suit she’d bought, and gave a shaky smile at Evelyn as she helped the older woman set snacks on the giant dining room table. She’d twisted her hair into an elegant chignon, and instead of the pink tips she’d given herself to match the ones she’d given Gracie, her hair was all an almost-respectable mahogany color.

  She’d barely recognized herself in the mirror.

  Evelyn gave an approving nod, and Liz opened the door to the first guests, Victoria and Trinity, who did a double-take when they recognized her, then smiled past her at Evelyn, who welcomed them. Huh. Well, this was going to take more work than she expected.

  High heels clicking on the polished wood floors, she followed the pair into the house where Killian had grown up, with the antique furniture, expensive rugs, china cabinets. Maybe she was still fooling herself, thinking she could be a part of his world.

  Sage was the next to arrive, with Allison, and both women narrowed their eyes at her.

  “Are you making fun of me?” Allison demanded, low, so Evelyn couldn’t hear. “What is your game, here?”

  Liz wanted to retort, but she reasoned Allison didn’t deserve to know, and Evelyn wouldn’t approve if Liz bit her head off, so she just smiled. “No game. I’m just here to help.”

  Sage’s expression was doubtful as she entered the house, and Allison just looked confused.

  Maggie was the next to arrive, and her reaction was not as muted.

  “Who are you and what have you done with Liz?”

  “Stop it, Maggie,” Evelyn said, greeting her daughter with a kiss. “Doesn’t she look nice?”

  “She always looks nice. She’s gorgeous. But she doesn’t look like Liz. She looks like Al-”

  Liz shushed her before Allison heard.

  “Seriously, is this the plan? You’re going to show Killian you’re willing to change for him? What do you think he’s going to say to that?”