Belle gripped the dashboard. “Elijah, I think she would be perfectly fine with any of our stable horses. They have the best disposition and can be trusted with any level of rider.”
It had been a week since his first meeting with his daughter, and each day he got to know her a little better. At first it had been hard to get her to talk. Now he knew all he had to do was mention horses or fishing and the conversation would take off.
Jazz was still dragging her feet about coming out to the ranch, but he wanted to have everything ready when she said yes.
He hit another rut in the old dirt road, and they bounced to the right. He and Miguel had just finished their business meeting with his sister. She had been buzzing with ideas. They’d sell the full Texas coastal ranch experience. Renting a cabin on a working ranch, cattle drives, riding on the beach at sunset and deep-sea fishing. A Big Texas Experience.
He still thought selling the land would be for the best, but his sister was being stubborn. A family trait.
Their uncle’s laziness combined with that stubbornness had put the ranch in financial trouble, but Belle had worked hard to keep it going. After her girls, it was her whole life. Elijah, on the other hand, could’ve walked away without a single regret. He had nothing but bad memories.
When she had approached him about the partnership, he had one condition—that he could take a sledgehammer to the shed.
She hadn’t asked which shed. She had known.
The old wood shed had turned their childhood into a series of waking nightmares. On the nights his uncle was at his worst, he would put them in the shed. Needless to say, they learned to play in silence and stay out of his sight.
Elijah’s daughter would never know that the monsters in fairy tales were real. He glanced at his sister. Back then he hadn’t been strong enough to protect her, but things were different now. And he needed to keep his head in the present.
After the meeting, he’d told her about Rosemarie’s dream of having a palomino of her own. They didn’t have one in their line, but Belle thought Damian might be rehabbing one. Their cousin was the true owner of the ranch since Frank had died, but they had grown up more like siblings. Old Frank had been just as mean to his own kids.
Damian was more like a brother, not that it mattered now. Since returning injured from overseas, he didn’t seem to care about anyone or anything other than his wounded horses.
Miguel grumbled from the backseat. “Last time I came out here, your cousin shot at me. This is a bad idea. Are you sure he doesn’t have a phone?”
Belle laughed. “If he did, he wouldn’t answer it. And he didn’t actually shoot at you. He would’ve hit you if he’d been aiming at you. He never misses.”
“Oh, that makes me feel better. I know you want to impress your daughter, but she’s five. I think she would love that big gray or that little paint pony.”
As they pulled into the dirt road leading to the isolated cabin, a tall figure came out and sat in an old farm chair. Tilting it, Damian balanced it on the back two legs, a rifle casually resting across his knees, his beat-up cowboy hat pulled low over his eyes.
Miguel whistled. “How is it a man missing half an arm and leg looks so threatening? Even without the gun, I wouldn’t want to tangle with him.”
Elijah sighed. “Yeah, he was always the most like his father, but Afghanistan pushed him over the edge.”
“No!” Belle turned on him. “He’s nothing like Uncle Frank. Just like the rest of the De La Rosas, he’s struggling through shadows. He’ll find his way if we give him time and support. Just like you needed.”
“Point taken.” Cautiously, he opened the door and walked to the front of the truck. Miguel and Belle joined him.
“Hey, Damian. Wanted to talk to you about a horse.” Small talk would irritate his cousin.
They all stood in silence. The former soldier didn’t move, not even to blink.
Belle stepped closer. “Elijah has a daughter who wants a palomino. He wants to surprise her. The other day you had that beautiful mare out in the pasture. She looked perfect. Her previous owner was a young girl, right?”
Damian gave a short nod, then turned his gaze to Elijah. “Since when do you have a daughter old enough to ride?”
“I just found out about her. She’s almost six.”
With a thwack, the chair legs hit the boards of the old porch. “Six? You got another woman pregnant while you were still married to Jazmine?” Anger filled every syllable, and his one hand tightened around his rifle.
“No!” All three responded vehemently. Elijah glanced at his sister and friend. It was nice that they had his back.
“Jazmine is her mother. She left without telling me about our daughter, Rosemarie.”
Damian frowned and shook his head. He’d been the first one to congratulate them on their wedding. He left for Afghanistan right after Elijah and Jazmine had married, and by the time he’d gotten back, Elijah had been sober again. He’d missed the ugly years.
“While you were gone, I, um, developed a drinking problem. Jazmine decided it wasn’t a safe environment for a baby. That’s when she left.”
Relaxing and leaning back again, he nodded. “Smart woman.” He lifted the brim of his hat and looked straight at Elijah. “You sober now?”
“For five years.” Elijah wanted to point out that if his cousin bothered to come out of hiding every now and then, he might know what was going on.
One quick nod was all the response he got before Damian hid his face back in the shadow of his hat. “Why me? Why not one of her horses?” He thrust his scarred chin in Belle’s direction.
“My daughter wants a palomino. Belle said you have one. If you’ve trained her and say she’s good with kids, I’ll pay top dollar for her. I’m not expecting a freebie.”
Before Damian had enlisted, Elijah had counted him as more than a cousin. They’d been friends, brothers. They had formed a tight-knit family to protect each other from Uncle Frank, Damian’s father.
Now they were strangers. Damian had made it clear he didn’t want to reconnect. Didn’t want anything to do with people, period.
Like his sister said, the De La Rosas had issues. Some might even call it a family legacy. And this was the family he had to offer his daughter.
“I’m working really hard here to earn father points.” He didn’t need to mention he was still working on Jazz, but he would have everything in place when she finally agreed. He just didn’t know what else he had to offer his daughter. “Is the horse available and good with kids?”
Damian stood, slipping the sling of his rifle over his shoulder like it was part of his arm. Seeing his cousin without the lower part of his left arm still startled Elijah. And by the way the former solider moved, he would never have known the bottom half of his left leg was gone also.
Without a word, Damian stomped across the yard toward the barn. Elijah shot Belle a questioning look, but she just shrugged and followed.
Miguel began walking in the opposite direction, back to the Ranger. Elijah called out to him, but his friend shook his head. “I’ll wait by the car. I don’t think your cousin likes having people around. I have emails to check.” He waved his phone and turned away.
Elijah caught up with them at the tack room. With a bucket of feed tucked into the crook of his arm, Damian gestured at the end stalls. “Don’t go near those guys.”
Out in the pasture he rattled the bucket, and three horses trotted over. He talked in a low voice to each one as he gave them their treats, then, putting the bucket down, slipped a halter onto a pretty palomino mare.
“She’s a little shy and might not ever be trailer ready. Perfect for light pleasure riding, though.”
Elijah gently scanned the mare with the palm of his hand. Several areas of her coat were marked by scars. Her front legs were the worst. “What happened to her?”
Belle shook her head. “She was a top prospect with outstanding bloodlines. Poor thing was in a four-car accident. A large truck T-boned the stock trailer she was in. The other two horses had to be put down on the spot. Williams, the owner, was going to put her down, too, but she’s his daughter’s horse. The little girl was there. She’d been hurt, too. She made her father promise to take her to the vet. They did surgery, but when they informed him she wouldn’t be able to perform or carry a foal he said she was useless. Dr. Ryan called Damian. They had to sedate her for the trip to the ranch.”
Worried, Elijah studied the sturdy little mare. She rubbed her head against Damian as he talked to her in a low voice. “Is she stable? I don’t think Rosemarie has any experience.”
Tossing the lead rope over the fence, Damian shook his head. “She’s good. If you don’t put her in a trailer, she’ll be fine. She likes kids.”
“Williams just dumped her?”
Damian’s hard nod radiated anger, and he petted the mare’s forelock.
“She’s perfect, just like the horse my daughter showed me. What’s her name?”
“Bueno Bueno Sonadora. They called her Dreamer.”
“Just like my boats.” He stepped back and took a couple of pictures of her. “Nice. Can we move her to the main barn at the ranch house?”
Damian nodded. “I’ll ride her over tomorrow and see how she reacts. You got the proper gear?”
“I’ll get it.”
He moved her to a stall and headed out to the opposite end of the barn, leaving Elijah and Belle standing alone. “I guess that means he’s done with us.”
“Yep.” She squinted at him. “How are you doing? You seem to be taking fatherhood in stride. You are getting legal papers drawn up, right? You have rights as her father. Rights that were stolen.”
He sighed and started moving to the door. “Jazmine and I are working this out between us. She’ll be in town for seven more weeks. That will give us time to work something out without upsetting Rosemarie.”
His sister snorted. “You can’t trust her or her parents. They think they’re better than everyone else. Or at least better than us.”
“She’s stronger than she used to be. I had lunch with them every day this past week. We’re going to the beach tomorrow.”
She stopped and looked up at him, then threw her arms around his middle. “I’m so proud of you. You’re a good man and will make a great father. I know you’re already an awesome uncle. When will I get to meet my niece?”
“We’re working—”
“—it out. I know. Brother, you need to get something in writing. She can sue you for back child support.”
He really didn’t want to talk about this right now. Moving to the truck, he adjusted his hat. “I’ve already talked to a lawyer about child support. I’m going to support my daughter.” It made him angry that Belle would even thing he’d try to wriggle out of his responsibilities. She should know him better than that.
Letting go, she punched him on the shoulder. “Stop being a grumpy grump. I know you’re going to do what’s right. I’m just so mad they think they can keep her from you and then make you pay.”
“No one is making me pay. Jazz has already told me not to buy her any more gifts.”
She laughed. “And the first thing you do is get her a horse? This is going to be fun.” She sighed as they stopped at the front of the truck. “Why wasn’t I smart enough to fall in love with a good guy who wants to be a part of his children’s life?”
“Don’t go there. You’re a great mother.” His gaze went to the scar on her face. She hated the guilt he carried for her injury. He hadn’t protected her when she needed it. “He doesn’t deserve the three greatest females on the planet.”
His words didn’t budge the deep sadness in her eyes.
“These females want to meet your special little girl. She’s part of the tribe now.”
He let out a long breath. “Maybe they were better off without me. She had good reason to run. Why burden them with the De La Rosa legacy?”
She took a step closer and placed her hand on his forearm. “Now it’s my turn to stop you there. We can change the legacy. It starts with us. My girls aren’t going to grow up scared and fighting for survival. All they know is love, ours and God’s. You have so much to give your daughter.” She cupped his face. “You lost Jazmine. But she’s giving you this opportunity to be a father, and you’re going to be a great one. Our daughters are blessed.”
He nodded, but the heaviness in his gut didn’t let up. Could he really out run his uncle’s legacy? Was it buried in his DNA along with the alcoholism?