Cowboy's Pride (Welcome to Covendale Book 1) (4 page)

“Oh, look,” Luka said. “Here comes lover-boy now.”

For one crazy instant, Sydney thought she meant Cam. It was a relief to see Tommy striding easily toward them, wearing stiff blue jeans, a polo shirt, and a broad grin. Everything about him was very much not Cam, from his all-American blond hair and blue eyes to his outgoing personality and penchant for practical jokes.

She wondered if all those opposite qualities were what attracted her in the first place. Tommy was the anti-Cam in every sense.

“Hey, babe. Glad you could make it.” Tommy caught her up and kissed her, and she felt a rush of warmth. Definitely no lack of attraction there. He pulled back and glanced aside. “Luka,” he said. “You hanging with us?”

“Yes, she is,” Sydney said. “That’s not a problem, is it?”

“Nah. She can probably explain stuff better than me.” Tommy flashed a smile and grabbed her hand. “Let’s go find a seat. I want to grab a drink before the flag drops.”

They headed into the crowd, and Sydney renewed her determination to have a good time. All she had to do was not think about Cam.

Being with Tommy would make that a whole lot easier.

* * * *

By the end of the first race, Sydney decided this stuff wasn’t too bad. Live racing wasn’t quite as boring as watching it on TV, mostly because it was hard not to catch the excitement from the crowd. She still couldn’t really keep track of the action too well. But at least it wasn’t putting her to sleep.

Luka had gone to sit with her aunt and uncle for the next race, even though Chad wasn’t in until the third. She’d said she wanted to give the two of them some time alone. Soon after she left, Tommy went for more drinks. Sydney contented herself with crowd-watching and daydreaming about the wedding. They were holding it at the park, and they’d practically invited the whole town. The reception would be at The Klinker—the biggest bar in town, but also the only banquet hall and live entertainment venue outside the VFW. Unfortunately, they’d have to skip the honeymoon. Tommy had to be in New York less than a week after the wedding to start his new job.

But they had reserved a suite at the little bed-and-breakfast just outside Covendale for the wedding night. That would be fun.

She suddenly realized Tommy had been gone longer than the last time he went for drinks. If he wasn’t back soon, he’d miss the start of the race. Half-standing from her seat, she scanned the stands without much hope of finding him in all these people. It was a surprise when she actually spotted him.

He was standing two aisles over and a few rows down, holding a clear plastic cup of beer in each hand. Three girls in shorts and skimpy shirts clustered in front of him, giggling. Two of them she recognized—Kate Beckfield and Patti Smith, of the high school Pretty People. The third was a few years younger and very well endowed. Tommy leaned down and said something in the younger girl’s ear, and she shrieked laughter in response.

Sydney told herself firmly that the flash of suspicion was just pre-wedding jitters. The tightness in her chest eased a little when Tommy turned from the little group and headed back to her.

She was completely settled by the time he took a seat next to her and leaned over for a kiss. “Got you a Bud lime,” he said, handing her a cup. “You like lime, right?”

“Yes. Thank you,” she said as she accepted with a reluctant smile. Actually, she wasn’t into beer—she mostly drank lime Mojitos. But he’d tried. “Hey, speaking of drinks,” she said. “Did we ever decide for sure whether we’re having an open bar?”

“I don’t know. Brian and Jesse might drink Dad into bankruptcy,” Tommy said with a grin. “But he’ll probably do it anyway. He’s about to close a big deal in a few weeks.”

“Well, that’s good. I think people will have more fun with an open bar.” Sydney tried a sip of the beer and managed not to grimace. It wasn’t completely awful, she supposed. “By the way,” she said. “We’re going to have the carriage for the wedding after all.”

Tommy went strangely still. “Yeah?” he said. “How’d you swing that?”

“I just went out to the ranch and asked.”

He turned a slight frown on her. “You talked to Cam Thatcher?”

“Well, yes. He was the first person I saw there. The only person, actually.”

“I can’t believe he—” Tommy cut himself off with effort, and his expression darkened. “You don’t need to talk to him,” he said.

The sudden anger would’ve been a true shock, if she hadn’t seen that picture from the fair earlier. Now it just kind of irritated her. Cam might have been a little gruff—okay, downright nasty—but he was doing them a tremendous favor for nothing. She had to give him credit for that. “He’s the only person in town with a carriage,” she said. “What’s with you two, anyway? I thought you used to be friends.”

Tommy laughed. It was a cold sound, unlike anything she’d ever heard from him. “Cam doesn’t have friends,” he said. “Nobody likes him. Look, Sydney, I don’t want you going out there again.”

“Excuse me?”

“I mean it.” He must’ve missed the warning in her voice. “Don’t talk to Cam Thatcher, ever. Not even if you see him around.”

Sydney fought the urge to pour the stupid beer in his lap. He might be her fiancé, but nobody dictated who she could and could not associate with. She didn’t particularly want to talk to Cam—but that was her choice. Not Tommy’s. “Does that mean I can tell you not to talk to Kate Beckfield or Patti Smith?” she said stiffly.

He looked almost comically surprised. “That’s different.”

“Is it?” She stood, at once deciding she’d had enough of racing for tonight. “I’m not feeling too well,” she said, making no effort to hide the sarcasm. “I’m going home to bed. Maybe I’ll call you tomorrow, if I feel like it.”

“Babe, wait. I didn’t mean—”

“I’m tired, Tommy. I’m going home.” She held the plastic cup out until he took it. “By the way, I don’t like beer. Even if it’s lime.”

Before he could say anything else, she turned and threaded her way across the row. She was probably overreacting—but right now, she wanted to be anywhere but here. She just needed some time to rest and think. Tommy had never been demanding, and it wasn’t something she was prepared to put up with.

Maybe he had an explanation. But she didn’t want to hear it until she’d calmed down and convinced herself this was the right thing to do, all of it. At the moment, nothing in the world felt right.

Chapter 4

Cam drummed his fingers on the steering wheel of the farm truck and stared at the speedway gate. The second race was about to begin—he could hear the engines revving at the starting line. Ellis should’ve been out here by now.

He’d seen a figure dart out of the gate and vanish into the shadows of the parking lot just as he pulled onto the main drive, but it was too short and slender for Ellis. After three years of pestering him about buying the bike, the man better not’ve changed his mind. It was hard enough for Cam to part with the only damned thing in the world that had ever been truly his. But five grand was a third of the money he needed for the property taxes…so it was sell the Harley, or let Lowell win.

Anything was a better choice than that.

Just as he was debating whether to head for the pit and drag Ellis out here, the man himself ambled through the gates with his hands stuffed in his pockets. It wasn’t a shock to see Jack Ellis looking less than thrilled. After the accident last year that took his eye and ended a promising racing career, he didn’t have much to smile about. But tonight he’d lost the layer of fury he usually wore to cover his black depression.

Cam climbed out of the truck and approached him, suddenly sure he’d either changed his mind or didn’t have the money. That’d leave him back at square one. Without a prearranged buyer, there was no way he’d be able to sell the bike for anywhere near what it was worth in the next two weeks.

“Thatcher.” Ellis drew a hand out and offered it, and Cam shook. “How’ve you been?”

“Looks like I’m better than you.” He smiled a little. “Who pissed in your cereal, man?”

Ellis opened his mouth, then closed it abruptly. “It’s nothing,” he said, and promptly shook off the misery to prove it. The man was a damned good liar. “I have to admit, I was surprised to hear from you after all this time. I almost didn’t come out here. Thought it was a joke.”

“No joke,” he said. “You still want it, five grand takes it.”

Ellis stared at him for a long moment, then walked past him to the truck bed. He reached up and ran a hand along the seat of the SG with something like reverence. “She’s gorgeous,” he said. “You know, she’s worth a hell of a lot more than five. Double that, at least.”

“You paying more, then?”

“No. That’s my offer.” Ellis turned a piercing gaze on him. “And you shouldn’t be taking it, Cam. So why are you?”

Panic tried to swell in him, but he beat it down. “My reasons aren’t part of the deal,” he said. “You want a reason, it’s yours for another five grand.”

Ellis frowned. “I don’t like this. I’ll take it,” he said, “but only because I know you must be desperate. Damned if I’m going to be happy about it, though.”

“Well, I guess that’s your loss.”

Another stare, and then Ellis laughed. “You’re about the only person I know who’s more stubborn than me,” he said. “Give me a lift to my car. I’ve got the cash for you in there.”

Cam raised an eyebrow. “You drove?” he said. “How were you planning to get the bike back?”

“Oh, I’m riding it home. That piece of shit Chevy can stay in the lot forever, much as I care. It can’t possibly rust any more than it has.” Ellis gestured at the nearest row. “I’m down there,” he said. “Come on, I’ll—”

The sound of a wheezing engine rose into the night and cut him off. Down the row he’d just indicated, headlights pulsed in time with a vehicle that was turning over and over, but failing to catch. It stopped for a few seconds and started up again, longer this time. Then a female voice yelled, “Shit!”

Ellis grinned. “Sounds like that’s for you,” he said.

“Why’s that?”

“Hey, you’re the mechanical genius.” Ellis held up a hand. “I only know how to drive.”

“Great,” Cam muttered. All he wanted to do was get the money, go home, and do some heavy manual labor until he was too tired to think. Now he’d have to offer to help some woman, who was probably a townie and might even know him. Which meant she’d either refuse, or take his help with a side of sneering and a fresh batch of lies to spread about him. “Well, this’ll be fun.”

He got back in the truck and waited for Ellis to climb in the passenger side. As he drove down the row, the headlights of the damsel in distress went through another round of flickering, running lower with every pulse. “She’s going to kill what’s left of the damned battery if she doesn’t stop that,” he said. “Christ, doesn’t anybody know enough to…”

The words died in his mouth as they got close enough for his own headlights to shine on the troubled vehicle—which happened to be a pickup he’d already seen once too often today.

That truck belonged to Sydney Davis.

* * * *

Sydney wanted to scream.

She twisted the key and held, listening to the engine give out a series of weakening coughs. Why did her truck have to pick tonight to quit? No way was she going back in there to ask Tommy for a ride home, and she wasn’t going to make Luka leave.

Well, she probably just needed a jump. She could try to find somebody out here with jumper cables, or call home and ask Dad to help—though she didn’t like that option much, either. Her parents already did a lot for her.

Just as she decided to give it one more try and hope for a miracle, headlights swept down the row and stopped right in front of her. At once relieved and embarrassed, she cleared her throat and prepared to explain the problem, at least as much as she knew.

Two doors opened, and two figures came around into the glow of the headlights. She recognized both of them with a sinking heart. The big bear Luka had called Ellis…and Cam Thatcher.

This was the last thing she needed.

Cam approached her open window slowly and stayed far back. “Sydney,” he said. “Never pegged you for a racing fan.”

“I’m not. I came here with—” No, she wasn’t going to say that. Besides, the sneer on his face said he knew what the next word would’ve been. “I’m fine,” she said. “I was just about to call my dad and have him give me a jump.”

“From the sounds of it, you need more than a jump.”

She stared at him. “How could you know that from a sound?”

“Pop the hood.”

“No, really, it’s just the battery. I’ll call Dad…”

“Sydney.” Cam folded his arms. “This the first time it wouldn’t start on you?”

“Yes, but—”

“Any of your lights been dimming before now?”

She sighed. “No.”

“Pop the damned hood.”

“All right.” She reached down and pulled the hood latch. The pop sounded loud as a shotgun, making her flinch a little.

“Thank you.”

Cam walked away. As he opened the hood and propped it, the big man wandered over to the window and grinned at her. “I’d listen to him,” he said. “The man knows his engines. He’s practically a mechanical savant.”

Something clanked under the hood. “Shut up, Ellis,” Cam said.

“Sorry. We’ll stick with genius.” He stuck a hand toward the window. “Hi, I’m Jack Ellis,” he said. “Saw you outside earlier.”

“Yes. I’m Sydney.” She shook and offered a tentative smile.

The truck bounced, and Cam swore loudly. “Gotta get my toolbox,” he said. “Be right back.”

Cam straightened and stalked toward his truck, and Ellis shook his head. “I guess you’re lucky he’s lost his mind,” he said. “Otherwise he wouldn’t be out here tonight.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve been offering to buy that bike of his for three years and change. He finally decided to sell.” Ellis shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Just called me out of the blue this afternoon. Said he’d meet me tonight with it.”

“His bike?” Sydney said. “You mean the Harley?”

“That’s the one.”

A sudden chill moved through her. Cam had loved that bike forever. One of her clearest memories of that day back in middle school was him showing her the not-yet-restored version, and the way his face lit up when he talked about it. It’d been years before he finally got it going, and he rode it everywhere. “Why would he do that?” she said.