Riding Tall: Fencing You In Part 2

A keen look of understanding touched his expression. "I'm sorry, Tess. How long ago? Or would you rather not talk about it?"

"It's okay." She tucked errant curls behind her ear and watched Jenny and Katie Sue as they played one of the arcade games. "It's been three years." She met Gage's eyes. "Steve died in a car accident."

"That must have been rough on you and Jenny," Gage said quietly. "I imagine that's an understatement."

She nodded, feeling oddly at ease talking with Gage about it. "Jenny was only three so she doesn't remember much about her father."

Gage's name was called over the loudspeaker, telling them their pizza was ready. He reached over, squeezed her hand and gave an understanding smile before he started to slide out of the booth.

As he got up, she said, "I'll get the girls."

It wasn't long before the girls, Tess, and Gage were sitting together at the table. Katie Sue and Jenny happily devoured their slices of pizza as they laughed and talked almost nonstop.

Every now and then, Tess glanced at Gage and he'd either meet her gaze and smile or he would be engaged in talking with the girls. He was clearly comfortable and good with kids.

When they were finished eating, Jenny and Katie Sue wanted to play some more but Tess shook her head.

"We need to get home," Tess said. "Tomorrow is a school day."

"Awww, Mommmm." Jenny and Katie Sue both looked disappointed.

"You'll see each other tomorrow at school." Gage got out of the booth and Katie Sue slid out behind him.

"Okay." Jenny followed Tess as they joined Gage and Katie Sue.

The girls walked in front of Gage and Tess. It was comfortable being with him-too comfortable. She needed to sh.o.r.e up her resolve to not give in and date the man.

Steady and dependable, that was what she needed. Not a guy who was slapped by women in public for whatever reason they might have. Not a guy known for being a heartbreaker and a ladies' man. But as they headed out to their vehicles, Tess didn't feel that he was anything like his playboy reputation. She was usually a really good judge of character.

Apparently her senses were faulty when it came to this man.

When they reached his truck and her car, the girls hugged each other. Tess kept the girls between her and Gage as another sort of barrier.

"Why don't I get your number?" he asked as the girls were saying their goodbyes.

She shook her head. "Good try."

He winked. "See you, Tess."

She wanted to say, "If you're lucky," but decided that might not be the best response in front of the girls. Instead she gave a little wave then climbed into the car with Jenny.

In moments, they were driving away. Tess had to force herself, but she didn't look back.

"Have a drink with me tonight." The blond-haired, blue-eyed man with the great smile spoke to Tess as she filled his cup with coffee in the Hummingbird restaurant the next morning. The man was of average height, lean and muscular.

"I've told you, Harvey." She shook her head and returned his smile. "I'm not going to date anyone right now."

"We won't consider it a date." He shrugged. "We'll be a couple of friends out for a drink."

"Besides." She slid his breakfast tab onto the table. "I'm working the bar tonight."

"How about tomorrow night?" he asked. "I haven't been in town long and I could use a friend to talk with."

Tess shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "I'll tell you what. Just so that it's clear it's only friends out for a drink and not a date, I'll meet you someplace."

He broke into a grin. "That's good enough for me."

"How about Jo-Jo's?" Tess pushed a blonde curl out of her face. "Jo is a good friend of mine."

Harvey nodded. "Sounds great."

"Just friends." Tess pointed her finger. "Understood?"

He grinned and saluted her. "Just friends."

"Now I need to hurry up and finish my shift." Tess sighed. "I'll be right back here tonight to fill in for the bartender."

"If I didn't work late, I'd stop by and see you," Harvey said.

"Isn't every morning for breakfast enough?" she said with a laugh.

He shook his head. "Not even close."

"Better watch it, Harvey." She put one hand on her hip and held the coffee pot in her other. "Or I'm going to begin to think you didn't mean it when you said just friends."

He held up his hands. "Just teasing, sweetheart."

"And don't sweetheart me." She shook her head but still smiled. Something about him was so engaging that even though she had no interest in him beyond friendship, she couldn't help smiling around him.

"Tomorrow night at eight," she said. "I'll meet you at Jo-Jo's."

"I'll be there," he said.

Tess finished up her four-hour morning shift at the Hummingbird, spent the day at home until Jenny came home from school, and then returned to tend the bar in Nectars that evening for the three to seven shift. Owning an interest in the business meant crazy hours. Too bad it didn't mean crazy-good pay.

That evening Tess didn't see Gage at Nectars but wasn't surprised since she was working an earlier shift than normal. She found herself feeling disappointed that she hadn't seen him.

When she got off her shift and left by seven-fifteen, she drove back home, dead tired and in need of a good night's sleep. She sighed as she climbed out of her car and closed the garage door. She was thinking of Gage. It was like she was obsessed with the man. She walked through the door leading into her home and then smiled as she came through the laundry room and into the kitchen. She saw Mrs. Webb washing her hands at the sink and Jenny sitting at the dining table.

"Hi, Mommy." Jenny slid out of her chair and ran up to Tess who caught her in her arms and hugged her tight. "You're home early."

"Grandma hired a new bartender to work on Fridays and Sat.u.r.days." Tess ruffled her daughter's curls. "So Mommy will have a little more time off and won't have to work so late."

"Yay!" Jenny clapped and bounced on her toes.

"How are you doing today, Mrs. Webb?" Tess asked as the woman dried her hands on a dishcloth.

"Very well." The older woman smiled. "Jenny finished her homework. Didn't you, girl?"

"I had to trace the alphabet." Jenny nodded. "Mrs. Webb helped me."

"And she did a fine job of it." Mrs. Webb grabbed her purse off the breakfast bar. "I need to get home. My Travis is coming over tonight."

"That's great." Tess walked Mrs. Webb to the door. "Tell your grandson I said h.e.l.lo."

"I'll do that." Mrs. Webb hugged Tess then headed out the door.

When Mrs. Webb had driven away, Tess closed the door and locked it, then turned back to her daughter.

Jenny twirled around. "Katie Sue is going to start ballet school. Can I do it, too?"

Tess bit the inside of her lip. She wasn't sure she could afford it. But now that the restaurant was starting to turn a profit, her income should be increasing-at least she hoped so. She might just need a little more time.

She smiled at Jenny. "No promises, but I'll look into it."

Jenny grinned and twirled around again. "See? I can dance."

"You certainly can." Tess laughed as her daughter looked like she was going to make herself dizzy from twirling so much. "Be careful that you don't fall and hit your head on the furniture."

Jenny stopped whirling around and looked a little woozy but was still smiling. "That's fun. I like dancing."

"It's time for bed." Tess shooed her daughter toward her bedroom.

"Awwww, Mom." Jenny stuck out her lower lip. "It's Friday."

"Which is why you got to stay up until seven-thirty." Tess had to struggle not to smile at her daughter's pout. "That's late enough for a kindergartener. Now go put on your nightgown and then I'll be in to read you a story."

"Okay." Jenny ran into her room.

Tess took a moment to sag against the kitchen counter. d.a.m.n, she was tired. What she would give for a normal job where she could make decent money, have more time with Jenny, and maybe even have medical benefits. At one time she had run an office in Albuquerque, before she moved with her parents to Prescott to help them start up their new restaurant. After her father died, Tess's mother needed her more and more until Tess was working way too many crazy hours.

Feelings of guilt stayed with her daily at her inability to be there more for Jenny and at missing some of her daughter's fleeting childhood.

She braced her elbow on the breakfast bar, her chin in her hand. This had not been her dream, growing up. Instead of following a path using her creative writing talents, she'd ended up in an administrative position with a loan company and now running her family's restaurant.

With a mental shrug she pushed away from the breakfast bar. She had a good life and for the most part, she was happy. Eventually the restaurant would really pick up and she could work fewer hours and see Jenny more.

Right now that time seemed like a long way off and she wasn't sure what to do about it. What could she do about it? If she looked for another job, her mother would go nuts. Plus, finding something that met all of her needs was bound to be an impossibility.

For the time being she just needed to hang tight and hope that everything would work out.

For some reason her thoughts turned to Gage and she sighed. Truth be told, she wanted to go out with him, but she was afraid. Afraid she might fall for him and that he would up and leave and move on to the next woman who interested him.

She frowned as she thought about Harvey. This morning she'd agreed to go out with him for a drink tomorrow night because he seemed so non-threatening and she needed a no-pressure night out. Maybe she shouldn't have agreed to it. She didn't want to encourage his advances. Yeah, she'd probably been too rash.

But then again, maybe she was over-a.n.a.lyzing it all. Just show up and enjoy the company, she thought.

As she slipped her hands into her back pockets, she wandered toward Jenny's room to read her a bedtime story, too tired to worry about men anymore.

Chapter 4.

It was early Sat.u.r.day evening by the time Gage finished working on the current well he was drilling and headed home. He'd been up before the sun rose and the well had been a real b.i.t.c.h.

He was tired as h.e.l.l, but the thought of going into town and possibly seeing Tess at the bar gave him a sense of renewed energy. Sometimes she worked Sat.u.r.day nights, but there was no telling for sure.

That she refused to go out with him was puzzling. It was clear by the way she responded to him and the way she would blush that she was attracted to him. But she still said no. The fact that her husband had died only a few years ago might have been the reason. She had made it clear how much she loved him and maybe she was having a hard time dating someone again.

Tess was special. There was something about her that drew him to her. She wasn't like other women. She was smart, funny, and she was easy to talk with, even if she did keep putting him off. He found himself wanting to talk to her about real things and not superficial date chatter.

Being consistently rejected by someone who was clearly interested in him was something he wasn't used to. Guess he'd just have to work a little harder to win her over.

His thoughts turned to earlier today. He'd been in town this morning to get a part for his old work truck at the auto parts store when he thought he'd caught a glimpse of someone he hadn't expected to see for a very long time.

Harvey Norton... The man Gage had thought he'd recognized had gone to prison three years ago for embezzling from Gage's business along with being found guilty of other counts of defrauding various individuals.

Was Harvey already out?

Gage was usually a good judge of character, but Harvey had pulled one over on him and just about every other person they knew.

Harvey had been something of a ladies' man before being locked away. He'd always had a friendly good ol' boy way about him and people had found him easy to talk to. Gage guessed that was what had made him such a good thief.

By the time he reached his home, Gage had blocked Harvey Norton out of his thoughts. The b.a.s.t.a.r.d wasn't worth thinking about.

Instead, he fixed his thoughts on Tess and figuring her out. There had to be a way to get her to say yes to going out with him.

In his bedroom, he stripped out of his dirty clothing then walked into the master bath and stepped into the shower, washing away the dirt and grime of the day as he thought about the things Tess had said to him-that he was a cowboy with a girl in every town.

That was the last thing he happened to be. He wasn't a love 'em and leave 'em kind of guy despite the reputation he appeared to have. He didn't jump into bed with just anyone, although he'd enjoyed his share of s.e.xual relationships. But since his breakup with Valerie all those years ago he kept his distance from anything permanent. He hadn't wanted to go down that path again...or at least he hadn't...until Tess.

He tilted his face to the spray. He wasn't sure why, but women he dated tended to get attached to him in spite of his efforts to avoid serious relationships. He hadn't wanted to get tied down, but a part of him wanted to find that special woman.

And he had a feeling Tess was that woman.

Something about her caused him to forget about every other woman he'd ever met. When he was around her, all he knew was that he wanted her in ways he'd never wanted a woman before.

In the past, Tess had hardly given him the time of day and he'd only seen her on rare occasions when she was tending bar. Lately he'd seen her more often and he'd enjoyed their flirting and he was sure she had, too. He hadn't dated anyone in some time thanks to seeing more of Tess at the bar-and he'd had no desire to be with another woman.

He finished soaping his body and rinsing the suds away before climbing out and toweling off. He grinned to himself as he thought about how he'd managed to get her out for pizza Thursday night with the girls. Not only had he had a d.a.m.ned good time, he was sure Tess had, too.