First Last Chance, page 13
“Sure.”
“My office?”
He got a nod, and Gabe led the way and poured them both a drink. As Jason took a seat with a sigh, Gabe explained the land sale, the pressure Senator Stanton had been under to keep the bill from the senate floor, and the open seat. He gave Jason a long look, then also told him what Clay had said about needing someone in the senate to give the ranchers a voice. “What do you think? Would you help the ranchers out? Run for office?”
Jason stayed silent as he rubbed the back of his neck. “You were the one with the knack for it. It’s never really been my thing.” He sat in one of the two brown leather chairs on the other side of the desk, his hands on his thighs, the way their father used to sit. Their dad had been a busy man, and even when he was seated, he appeared on the verge of getting to his feet. “You think I have a good chance of winning?”
“You have an excellent chance of being elected. The party chair would be glad to see your name on the list. Dad was here for me and that helped. It meant a lot. I’m not Dad, but I’m here to help if you decide it’s something you want to look in to.”
Jason slowly nodded. “That means a lot. How much time do I have to decide?”
Gabe leaned back, his legs stretched under his desk. “Not long. Names will be popping up daily and you’d need to get your name on that list to start being seen. Give it a couple of weeks, then everyone will know you’ve had time to think it over and you’re serious. That’s if you decide to go for it. I suppose you want to talk with Ashley over it.” Damn, he shouldn’t have pushed her out of this.
“Ashley?” Jason frowned. “What’s she got to do with this?”
Gabe fidgeted in his chair. “Look, I know you probably wanted this kept under wraps until the kids are ready, but I know how politics screw with family life. I don’t want you losing her in the backdrop.”
“What the hell are you talking about? Lose who?”
“You and Ashley.”
“Oh Christ, me and…” Jason ran a hand through his hair. “Is that why…?” He let out a laugh. “Gabe, there’s no me and Ashley. For God’s sake, she’s a good friend, but that’s all she is. What on earth made you think there was anything going on with us?”
“You…” Gabe sat forward in his chair. “I heard you two in your office the other morning, talking about getting hitched. You came out of her bedroom the morning after Jake’s.”
Jason tried to sober up. “I’d taken her a coffee to say sorry for not being able to go shopping with you guys, nothing more. And talk over getting hitched together? Seriously?” He threw out his hands. “She’s Susan’s best friend for God’s sake.”
“So you…?” Gabe gave a rough sigh and slumped back, everything hitting full force. He got to his feet and moved to the window. “You’re sure you’re nothing but friends?”
“Hang on a minute.” Jason got up and came over. “This isn’t you just being pissed off about me seeing someone new and it upsetting the kids, is it?” He dipped his head as if to get a look inside Gabe’s head. “You…like Ashley?”
Gabe downed all of his drink. “Doesn’t matter either way,” he said flatly. “I’ve fucked it up.”
Jason shrugged. “How, you’ve only known her properly for a few days. You—” He widened his eyes. “You make a move on her?”
“We kissed, nothing more.” There was more, but he didn’t play kiss and tell, not the full details, not over Ashley. “The night she got here.”
Jason searched his look and seemed to connect some dots. “You heard us talking the next morning, you…” His look softened. “You thought you’d messed about with her when she was mine.”
Gabe put his glass on his desk. “No. I thought she was a cold-hearted bitch away from the heat who didn’t give a damn she’d slipped between two brothers and it could cost me you.”
“Dammit, Gabe. She’s grieving over Susan with the rest of us. She came here to get her head clear, and you….” Jason screwed his face, then stepped back. “Marilyn—at Jake’s. Don’t tell me you—”
Gabe looked away, briefly screwing his eyes shut. “Yeah, like I said. I fucked it up.” He knew what was coming.
“You utter asshole.” Jason jammed a finger into his shoulder. “What the hell is wrong with you? No wonder Ashley fought anger, mostly hurt after you left. She finally let someone in—and you went all butthurt bull on her with another woman. One you’re not even interested in anymore. Christ. Did Marilyn even know?”
Gabe rubbed at his head. “Like I said,” and it was all he had left, “I really fucked this up.”
Jason headed back around his chair, pointing at him all the way. “Fix your shit.” He reached the door. “I don’t care how, but you damn well make it better when it comes to her, to Marilyn too. And don’t make it any more than that, an apology to Ash.” He tugged the door open. “You know her ex-husband cheated on her, right? Did you take time enough to think beyond your dick and ask her about that? Because what you did with Marilyn, in front of her, I’m surprised she didn’t smack you one, or at least talk to me so I could have saved her the effort.”
Gabe swore under his breath. He’d asked, but it had been to dig into her each time. He’d put her on the defensive. She wouldn’t have opened up.
And that last one made him sick to the stomach.
Jason snorted. “Yep, I’m pretty much thinking that’s how sick Ashley’s been feeling over the past few days.” He shook his head. “I’m getting the cars pulled around to pick Megan up and to head to the hospital. You think you can get your head back in the game and call Sheriff Logan and let him know about the pressure Evans put on the senator, give him the name Jean gave you?”
The door shut and Gabe kicked at his chair, then tugged out his mobile. At least he could do that, maybe also look at arranging some help for Megan on her ranch to keep an eye on her foreman.
He hadn’t got a clue how to fix it with Ashley.
After one ring, someone answered. “Matt Logan.”
“Hey, sheriff. It’s Gabe.”
Matt laughed, then gave a long sigh. “Well, damn. When you call me sheriff, I know it isn’t good news.”
Chapter 19
“Any word on how Sam’s doing?” Gabe rubbed tiredly at his eyes as they entered the lounge in Sam’s large, sprawling High Mountain Ranch house. He’d made a call to Ashley, asking if she wanted him to handle getting Megan over to the hospital, and her breath had carried so much relief. She was rightly caught up in memories of hospitals and late-night calls, they all were, but he’d lost sight of her grief along the way. She’d said a quiet thinks, and he’d left it at that. He couldn’t talk to her over the phone. He owed her so much more than that, but he needed sleep before he could handle anything with a clear head as the evening crept in.
Standing near the sofa by the window, Megan looked his way. “No, I called earlier, and he still isn’t awake. He should be by the time we get there.”
They sat in chairs across from her when she took a seat on the sofa. Gabe had to give her credit for putting up a strong front. “Where are the boys?”
Megan curled her legs under her. “Curtis is still at university. I haven’t told him about his grandfather yet. Sean and Brad have been with Molly.” She looked at Jason. “You remember Molly Forrester, don’t you? She’s Molly Green now.”
“Yeah. I remember Moll.” Jason gave her a soft grin. “We had some fun times.”
Megan went to speak, looking to share memories, but fell quiet a moment later as it all seemed to ghost too close to her dad.
“Sam will be all right. Don’t worry.” Jason shifted in his seat as Gabe let his gaze roam the lounge, taking in the furnishings Grace Frasier had selected. Grace had been a beautiful woman with a head for business, but she’d also had expensive tastes. Megan got her mother’s looks but not an ounce of her business smarts.
“Do you know where your foreman, Max Banks, has gone?” Gabe rested his look back on her. Sheriff Logan had asked him to try and get a little more out of her, but he wanted to know too for the call he’d had to make after speaking to him.
Megan wiped her hand over her face. “I don’t know. I’ve been trying to reach him since he didn’t show up yesterday.”
“I figured as much.” Gabe frowned. “I’ve asked a friend to come over and help out, if that’s okay? He should be here in a minute.”
“Help?” Megan looked at him sharply. “Why? Who?”
Loretta, Megan’s housekeeper, came through carrying a tray. She set the tea on the table as Gabe moved to the French doors overlooking the pool. In their teens, he and Jason had almost drowned in there as they’d tried to show off for Megan. The doorbell rang a moment later, dragging him back into the lounge.
Loretta disappeared, then escorted the man in. “Gabe, your guest’s here. Mr. Brooks.”
Stocky, in his early forties, and with dark hair streaked with a touch of gray, T.J. was the kind of man who commanded attention when he walked into a room. He did now as he sized up everyone in the lounge.
“Megan, this is T.J. Brooks.” He didn’t yet mention he was Clay’s contact when it came to security and running checks. “He can run the ranch for you until Sam’s back on his feet if that’s what you want.”
Jason threw him a “that’s better” smile as T.J. stepped forward and offered his hand. “Yes, ma’am. I run a spread in Montana, but when Gabe said you might need some help, well, I’m here to see what I can do.”
With a sigh, Megan came over and shook his hand. “Maybe Gabe’s right. I do need help with the ranch.” She offered a thin smile, not looking happy, and Gabe offered a sigh. She had a lot of her dad’s stubbornness, but unlike her dad, she knew how to shake a hand when it was offered. “Let’s all go to Dad’s office and sort the legalities before we head over to the hospital.”
“Don’t rush with the paperwork.” Gabe rubbed at her arm. “Not when it comes to the legal side, okay?” He looked over at Jason. “We’ll make sure this is sorted first, then head over to the hospital in the morning.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s getting late.”
“Yeah.” Jason came over. “Gabe’s right. Take time to work the paperwork, make sure you’re happy.”
Megan let out an unsteady breath. “Okay. Thank you.”
“We want to know what happened to Sam too, so we’ll check out where he gambled the night he was last seen and talk to anyone we can find who was at the casino,” Gabe said. “Maybe with a lot of liquor, Sam told someone about the money for the land sale and this kidnapping and ransom was an opportunity someone couldn’t pass up.” Now Megan seemed a little more focused, it was a good time to let her know just why T.J. was here. “T.J. has a few men looking for Sam since you didn’t want to notify the sheriff.”
“You’re into security like Clay? Don’t you live in Montana?” Megan asked.
T.J. nodded. “Southeast of Billings. Not that far.” He grinned. “But always glad to give Gabe a hand.”
T.J. not only ran one of the largest conglomerates in the Midwest, which included his ranch, but several other enterprises with top-notch investigators.
“Do you know if Dad’s car’s been found?” she said to T.J., then to Gabe—“Do you think this is over and Dad is safe? What do you think happened to Max?”
Questions rightly tumbled from her, and Gabe stepped back and left this to T.J.
“Those are things we can’t answer right now, but we will. Are you happy for me to look after a few things around here and continue to check things out in the mean time?”
Megan looked at Gabe. “I think so, don’t you?”
“You need to know this is over,” Gabe said. “I’m hoping Sam is able to tell us what’s going on. I have a bad feeling about Max and the land sale, how it ties into the Land Use Bill.”
Chapter 20
Ashley sat next to a large plant in Dr. Joyce Thompson’s bright reception room, flipping through a Health magazine as she waited for Lisa. She wondered if Gabe had said anything to Jason about seeing the pregnancy test, and she took a deep breath and sighed. He’d seemed so different on the phone last night when he said he’d take Jason over to get Megan. Gone was the Aggression from his tone, and he’d just sounded so tired. He’d had a tough day flying and come away having lost a friend, so Ashley had backed off as well, maybe let out more of a sigh relief. Death lingered, dragging so many down with it.
She’d kill for a coffee, something to bleed out the stress.
Lisa pushed through the doctor’s door, and not even looking Ashley’s way, she slipped outside. Giving a frown, Ashley put her magazine down and followed.
“Lisa?” The clinic door closed behind her as she went over.
Lisa was already in the car, and Ashley climbed into the passenger seat without speaking. Lisa started the car and pulled onto the road.
“Honey, you all right?” Ashley touched her shoulder.
Lisa shook her head, and after a few blocks, she drove into a lot and parked in front of Jan’s Salon and unbuckled her seatbelt. “I want to confirm my appointment with Sandra. She’s doing my hair for the dance. Do you need a trim or something?”
What? She reached out and took her hand. “Slow it down, hon. Talk.”
Lisa took a deep breath and gave a shaky exhale. “I’m not pregnant.” She shrugged. “I know it’s for the best, but…” A tear sipped free. “But it feels strange to be told I’m not.”
“Oh, hell, honey.” Ashley pulled Lisa into a hug and rubbed at her back. She felt guilty for the breath of relief she felt, but—“You need to know it’s okay to feel like that. And for what it’s worth, you’re your mother’s daughter, so I know you’d make a wicked mom. You still will.”
Lisa pulled back before offering Ashley a shaky smile. “Do you have a tissue?”
Ashley dug through her purse. “Here,” She handed a small packet over.
“I know it’s silly. I’m lucky that the home test was wrong.” She blew her nose. “Still hurts, though.”
“Did Dr. Thompson talk to you about precautions?” Ashley wasn’t sure this was the time to discuss birth control.
“Yeah. I went through it all with Mom. It was Michael’s and my fault. We were careless. We both knew better.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
Lisa leaned forward and gave Ashley another hug. “I’m just glad you’re here. I never really realized the full weight behind that.”
Ashley nearly strangled her in her hold. “Going nowhere, not for a while, sweetheart.” Out of the corner of her eye, Ashley caught a small stand advertising smoothies to go. She pulled back. “I think it’s smoothie time while you check your appointment, right?”
Lisa grinned. “Okay, strawberry for me.”
They got out of the car and went their separate ways.
Ashley arrived back at the car to find Lisa talking with a pretty woman in black jeans, red sweater, and perfect makeup. “Hi,” Ashley said as she reached them.
“Ashley, this is Jodi Williams. Her family owns a ranch north of town.” Lisa moved closer to Ashley’s side. “Jodi, Ashley went to school with Mom and Dad.”
“Are you here for long?” Jodi asked.
“Only visiting.”
“You staying in town?”
“Oh, no. She’s staying with us.” Lisa opened the car door as Ashley handed her a smoothie.
“Oh, right.” Jodi looked between them. “How is your dad doing? I haven’t seen him in town for a while.”
“We really like being at the ranch. I think Dad’s thinking of staying in Willow River.” She took a long drink of her smoothie.
“Well, tell everyone hi for me.” Jodi smiled at Ashley. “I hope to see you again.”
“I’d like that. It was nice meeting you.”
“You, too. Bye, Lisa.” Jodi stepped back as Ashley and Lisa got into the car.
As Lisa pulled out onto the road, Ashley asked, “Did Jody go to school here with your dad?”
“She and dad dated in high school. And I think she still likes him. She’s always asking about him.”
Ashley kept quiet for a moment. “She seems…nice.”
Lisa finally found a small laugh. “You’re as bad as Uncle Gabe, you know that?”
“What?”
“All that she seems—huge pause, I hate her getting close to Jason—nice. You’ll be running back to Clay for a background check on her like Gabe when we get back.”
Ashley chuckled. “I’m not that bad… am I?”
Lisa nodded, then measured a “just a little” between finger and thumb. “She’s okay, to be honest. I like her a lot, but Dad isn’t interested. He misses Mom something fierce.”
Ashley placed her half empty cup in the cupholder. “It’ll take time.”
Lisa tapped the brakes, slowing the car. “I thought maybe someday you and dad…” she said softly.
Ashley brushed her hand over Lisa’s, “Your dad and I are good friends. But he’s like a brother, nothing else.”
Lisa laughed. “Yeah. I heard Dad call you a bossy sister.”
“See? We’re not meant to be together. Not like that. He’s so madly in love with Susan. Always will be. Rightly so too. Sometimes you need space to live and love with the memories. Life shouldn’t have to move on, not after love like that.”
She’d tasted the bad kind, where she’d been forced to move on without knowing it was bad. But Jason, Susan…they’d had something special.
Ashley gave a sigh and looked over at Lisa. “How about I take you out for lunch later, huh? A little retail therapy shopping? My treat in order to get you those last few things you need for the spring dance.” They both needed the break. “We can fit it in before you meet your mates for your hair appointment for later.”
Lisa grinned over. “Who in their right mind says no to that?”
***
As Lisa headed up to the ranch to get changed, Ashley finished locking up the car as Cody jogged over.
