Courage To Fall (Cowboys of Courage 3) Read online

  Courage to Fall

  Cowboys of Courage Series

  Book Three

  CHARLENE BRIGHT

  Courage to Fall

  Copyright © 2015 by Charlene Bright

  All rights reserved. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, without the express written permission of the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Books by Charlene Bright

  Canton County Cowboys Trilogy

  A Cowboy Worth Loving

  Dare to Love a Cowboy

  Captivated by a Cowboy

  Cowboys of Courage Series

  Courage to Follow

  Courage to Believe

  Cherished Cowboys Series

  Cherished Love

  Courage to Fall

  She didn’t feel courageous…

  Leah Evans might live in Courage, MT but right now she didn’t feel courageous. In one day her whole life was crumbling like a dry cupcake. For 15 years she’d worked at Daisy’s diner and hoped to own it someday…just like Daisy wanted. But the elderly lady’s sudden death leaves a will with a giant gap…the diner would go to the grandson from Manhattan, along with everything else. Now Leah has no job and no way to pay her bills --unless she can convince Mr. New York to let her keep managing the hometown diner.

  He couldn’t wait to leave…

  Easton McClendon hadn’t see his grandmother in years, not since his parents’ death. He doesn’t have time to waste on small town legalities…not when he has a thriving business in New York. But fate has other plans and he’s stuck in Montana for a week at Christmas while the attorney finishes the necessary paperwork. The only bright spot in the whole situation is the beautiful diner manager, Leah. And when she offers to help him sort through his grandmother’s antiques to ready them for auction, he can’t find a reason to say no. As the hours pass, Easton and Leah can’t stop their growing attraction to each other.

  Can love unfold when two people have such different ideas? And will they have the courage to let go and fall in love?

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  “I can’t believe you bet money on our child.”

  Leah looked up from the display she was building at the sound of Shakota’s voice. She smiled as the pregnant woman waddled into the Courage Cafe ahead of Garrett, who held the door for her, wearing an expression far too excited for the glare his wife sent him.

  Leah smiled to herself, waiting for the juicy details of this little spat. Garrett and Shakota rarely, if ever, argued. This should be good.

  “Oh, come on, babe. All we have to do is get you a little worked up, and it’s a sure thing. There’s no way our kid’s waiting till New Year’s to come out of there.” He rubbed her belly, which looked like a beach ball ready to pop connected to her slim figure, and it earned him a deeper scowl.

  As if he wasn’t in enough trouble already, Garrett pointed to a booth, and Shakota scoffed. “You’re kidding, right? Are you hoping that shoving myself into the tight space is going to squeeze the baby out of me? Exactly how much do you have riding on what my body does?”

  “Garrett, stop torturing your poor wife.” Leah interrupted him before the boy could do anything more asinine. He already had both feet in his mouth up to his knees. “Come here and sit at a table. Shakota, I have a couple of pillows in the back. We’ll get you set up right.” She ran to the office to fetch the lumbar pillow she used when she had to sit at the desk and take care of paperwork, as well as the one she used to cushion the seat that was hard on her rump.

  Stepping back into the diner, she found the couple eyeing her display curiously. Shakota’s face was alive as she pointed to the rainbow of cupcakes Leah had nearly finished arranging in a pattern on the table she’d ordered just for this purpose. “Leah, these are beautiful. Did you make them?”

  Leah nodded, full of pride. “I’ve been working on this project for over a year. I’ve always made a pretty good cake, and with those shows about the best bakers and whatnot, I was inspired. I decided to perfect my cupcakes, and now I have the recipes down to a science. I’ve been practicing the icing for a couple months, and I think I finally have a product I can sell.”

  Garrett licked his lips. “I don’t know what you do but they smell amazing. I think I might have to take home at least half a dozen.”

  Shakota smacked his stomach. “You’ve already put on almost as much weight as I have since I found out I was pregnant. You don’t need that many.” She turned back around with a gracious smile and a spark of interest in her eyes. “However, I think we’ll have to try them for dessert. And I don’t think Gillian hired a caterer for the baby shower. She was going to try to do it all herself. I bet she would love to have a little of the work taken off her shoulders. I know I’d be happy with some baby shower cupcakes.”

  Leah was thrilled. Every woman in Courage planned on attending the Woodward baby shower this coming weekend. Since Garrett had taken up the role of sheriff, he’d become a local hero, solving a few cold cases that put the old sheriff behind bars. Of course, he’d brought Shakota in to help. She’d come up as a tracker from the Crow Nation Reservation, and Leah had watched their whirlwind romance with a sense of longing. Everyone loved the beautiful Native American as much as they loved Garrett, if not more, and Leah was dying to hear the announcement of boy or girl.

  But to have her dream come true of selling her cupcakes on a regular basis, she needed exposure. She’d counted on patronage at the diner, but not everyone in Courage could afford to eat out very often, even at the café’s low cost menu. If Shakota really allowed her to showcase her work at the party, everyone would try them and fall in love.

  And if there was nothing truer about the people in this small town than that they had a penchant for talking. Word would spread, and she’d be in business. “You really think I could do that for you?”

  “I’m texting Gillian now.” Shakota dug her phone out of her rather large bag.

  As she did, Garrett grabbed her, squeezing her and planting a kiss on her cheek. “You keep this up, Leah, and one day, you’re going to own this diner. I’m surprised you haven’t made a bid for it already. You’re always here.”

  In Leah’s eyes, that’s what a manager did. They were at their restaurant from open to close, before and after, making sure everything ran smoothly. “I couldn’t do that to Daisy. She loves this place. When she’s ready, she’ll let go of it. I’m happy doing what I do, and I’ll be happier if I can pick up this cupcake business pretty fast on the side.”

  The truth was, Daisy Brooks was a lonely old woman, and she didn’t have much to do with her time. She clung to the diner as the last vestige of a place to go, something to do, and a way to feel connected to her family. Ms. Daisy was widowed, her husband having passed ten years ago from a stroke. They’d built this diner together from nothing but a bag of flour, a little butter, and a few fallen apples. Her only daughter di
ed in a car accident almost six years ago, along with her husband.

  Leah thought Ms. Daisy had grandchildren somewhere, but none of them cared to come to Courage, and the elderly woman lived alone. Leah always made sure she had plenty to do that wouldn’t be hard on her arthritis, and they chatted a lot when the diner was empty.

  Realizing she was still standing there holding the pillows like some hoarder, she settled them into the chair for Shakota. “I used to think about owning a place of my own like this,” she muttered. Standing up and brushing her hands off on her jeans, she shrugged. “I’m too much of a busybody. There’s no way I could let someone else manage my place for me. I’d be all up in their business, telling them how to do things and why this or that wasn’t good enough. It wouldn’t give me any rest, and it would probably end up causing a lot of turnover.” She laughed, but she was serious.

  “Wait another thirty years or so.” Ms. Daisy’s voice carried from behind her. The three of them turned to see the old woman creeping out of the back and into the main dining area, wearing a pinched grin that showed the dozens of laugh lines in her face. “When you’re my age, you’ll stop caring whether or not it’s done your way and just be glad it’s done well. You’ll appreciate that busybody manager and leave the running around to him while you prop your feet up and read the financial report.” She chuckled, making her entire rail-thin body shake with mirth.

  The woman was birdlike, but Leah knew better than to mistake her delicacy for brittleness or weakness. Ms. Daisy was one of the strongest old women she knew. Shakota gave the elderly woman a kiss, leaning far over to accommodate her belly and Ms. Daisy’s short stature. “It’s good to know you aren’t fluttering around in the kitchen with all those klutzes, where you’re bound to get knocked down and trampled.” Shakota laughed.

  Ms. Daisy brushed it off with a chuckle and a wave of her hand. “When I go in the kitchen, Leah just shouts ‘Daisy Dukes!’ And everyone seems to move more carefully or reaches out with a helping hand. I told her a long time ago she’d regret it one day, when I come scooting out here in a pair of those tiny little shorts. My skinny, wrinkly legs and knobby knees would make anyone lose their appetite.”

  They cackled, but Leah rolled her eyes and, as both Shakota and the elderly owner sat down, Leah handed them each a cupcake. At Garrett’s forlorn expression, she rolled her eyes again and handed another to him. “That’s alright, though. These cupcakes will restore any appetite, no matter how disgusting the reason for losing it in the first place.”

  With a round of laughter, Leah took the couple’s order and left them to chat with Ms. Daisy while she sent the order to the kitchen and greeted the next few customers who came in. Garrett and Shakota were always early birds when they came down the mountain for dinner, and the rush usually followed within ten or fifteen minutes, just like tonight. It worked out well, giving Leah a chance to chat with the sheriff and his lovely lady before she was swamped for the next three hours.

  Between six and nine, the café had a line that circled the block, and Leah didn’t get a break. It wasn’t even this busy most days at breakfast, and it was the only time of day she kept a full staff on hand. Otherwise, she was content doing it herself, or maybe bringing in one extra waiter or waitress. Ms. Daisy appreciated that, too. It kept the bottom line soaring, and while Leah had no idea what the older woman was doing with all that money, she guessed there was a purpose. All but a small amount of living money went into a savings account at Courage Bank & Trust. She knew because she made the bank run twice a week.

  After the rush, Leah usually had a few stragglers come in for pie. Tonight, several of them opted to try her cupcakes and seemed impressed, which made her night. She shut down at ten, and when she sat down in the office to throw her feet up on the desk with her shoes off, she checked her phone to find a text from Shakota confirming the catering.

  She squealed to herself, saving the contact information she sent over for Gillian so she could call tomorrow and find out how many of what kind she needed. For the first time in six years, she was going to take a whole day off so she could have fresh cupcakes for the party.

  It was nearly midnight when she finally opened the door to her trailer. It wasn’t much, but it was hers, and that meant not paying for an apartment she would never own. She was all about decorating, and she’d made the space cozy. She didn’t particularly enjoy the loneliness of the place, but, Zipper, her strange white cat with the zigzag gray stripe down his back, always greeted her when she came home, rubbing figure eights around her ankles.

  “Hey, Zipper, let me get the tub ready, and I’ll feed you.” Leah didn’t sleep without going through her nightly routine—a hot bubble bath with Zen candles to help her relax, reading at least one chapter of whatever book she could pick up that she hadn’t read before, and an exfoliating face mask. As the water ran, she fed Zipper, gave him fresh water, and then she slipped into the tub with a sigh. It was her secret weapon against the aches and pains that usually plagued someone in her line of work.

  When she finally went to bed, Zipper curled up at her feet, and she smiled. Things were looking good, and they were only going to get better.

  Chapter 2

  Friday morning, Leah groaned at the sound of her cell phone buzzing on the nightstand. She wasn’t expecting any calls. In fact, she’d planned to sleep in and then start baking. She would have ignored it, but Leah was nothing if not responsible, and she lifted her head to see who was calling.

  She scowled; Lacey was usually good at handling opening the diner by herself on the rare occasion that Leah couldn’t be there early. Fumbling, she pressed to talk and put the device to her ear, rasping, “Hello?”

  “Hi, Leah, I’m sorry to bother you, but the café’s not open. I tried calling Ms. Daisy, but she’s not answering her phone.”

  Lacey sounded concerned, and Leah sat up, also worried. Ms. Daisy was always there at opening, especially on days that Leah came in later. They were the only two people with keys to the place. Even in such a small town, there was concern over safety. Garrett did his job well, but some people around here didn’t have much money, and that led to desperation in the hardest of times.

  “I’ll come open it up and then go check on Ms. Daisy,” Leah promised. “I’ll be there in ten minutes.” That gave her enough time to stretch, dress, and drive over. She usually walked, but checking the time, the diner should have already been open. She didn’t have the extra ten minutes.

  Lacey thanked her profusely, and Leah promised her she’d make sure the owner was alright. She could have fallen in the shower or tripped on a bump in a rug. Leah climbed back in the car and raced to the foothill of the mountain. The old woman didn’t live up the path, but she liked her privacy and stayed outside of town at the very bottom of their small town.

  She knocked several times, called out to the old woman, and peered through windows, but she saw nothing and got no response. Ms. Daisy’s Caddy was parked in the driveway and her elderly boss wouldn’t have gone for a walk around here.

  Going around the back, she found the door unlocked. She knocked one more time and opened it. “Ms. Daisy,” she called out. “It’s Leah. I’m coming in to check on you.” She stepped into the kitchen, which was spotless, save for a dish in the sink with remnants of a late night snack. She continued through to the living room, full of antiques, but there was no sign of movement there, either. The television remote, a book, and two magazines were laid out with obsessive organization, and the throw was folded in the rocker.

  Leah glanced to her left, where a short hall led to three more doors. The first was a guest room with sparse furnishings, smelling of fresh linens. The second was the bathroom, and the sink and tub were both dry. Ms. Daisy hadn’t been in there yet this morning.

  The last door had to be Ms. Daisy’s bedroom. Leah’s heart pounded in her chest. She had a really bad feeling, and she hesitated with her hand on the doorknob before she finally opened it.

  Ms. Daisy lay i
n the bed, peaceful in sleep, but something about the room was too still. “Ms. Daisy?” Leah called again, quieter this time. When the woman didn’t respond, she approached the bed and touched the old woman’s shoulder. Ms. Daisy didn’t move, and her skin was cool. Tears stung Leah’s eyes as she reached to feel her boss’s pulse and found absolutely nothing.

  She choked on a sob and instantly called the sheriff’s office. She dropped to her knees on the floor as she heard, “Treasure County Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff Woodward speaking.”

  “Garrett, you’ve got to get over to Ms. Daisy’s place.” Leah cried, her body shaking with the sobs she held back. She couldn’t let her emotions get in the way of being able to speak clearly.

  “What’s wrong?” Leah knew by his sharp tone he was already on his feet and moving.

  Leah shook her head, not wanting to believe it. “She’s…she’s dead, Garrett.”

  * * *

  Lucas Graham wrapped Leah in his arms. He was the head of Treasure County Search & Rescue and one of the rapid response EMTs in the area. Gillian, his fiancé, was here, too, along with Garrett. According to Gillian, Shakota was on her way, and Leah appreciated the turnout and support. But she was still in shock, having trouble accepting the scene she’d found.

  “I’m sorry you had to be the one to report this,” Lucas said. He was a good man, sensitive and kind. “I want you to go with Gillian and Shakota when she gets here and let them take care of you for a while.”

  “I can take care of myself,” she protested automatically. She hated feeling weak. But in this moment, Leah understood Lucas was right. She shouldn’t stay here. She needed to relax and get through this somewhere else. She must be strong for the rest of the employees and everyone who loved Ms. Daisy so dearly.

  Lucas gave her a sympathetic look. “No one thinks you can’t, Leah. But right now, you need to be with friends who can help you get through this.”