Getting Lucky (A Nugget Romance Book 5) Read online

  “Couldn’t you look at the genetic markers from the first test?” Tawny asked.

  “We did,” he said. “But we want to do it again. Here.”

  “It seems like there is something you’re not telling us.” Tawny looked at the doctor sternly.

  “The results we got back from Labport in Quincy were inconclusive. I know how anxious you are, but we want to do this right—dot all our i’s and cross all our t’s.” He squeezed Tawny’s shoulder. “We want to do everything we can to make Katie healthy.”

  They thanked him and headed for the lab, Tawny brimming with frustration. Inconclusive. What the hell did that mean?

  “You seem to know a lot about this stuff,” Lucky said to Tawny. “I like the way you grilled him.”

  “I’ve had to live it for four years. Do you think he was saying that Labport screwed up the test?”

  “No. I think sometimes these tests have to be run multiple times for an accurate reading. He probably figures that since Stanford’s doing the transplant, Stanford should do the tests. Makes sense.” He put his arm around her again. “It’ll be okay, Tawny. We’ll get the test done today, grab some lunch, and be home in time to put Katie to bed. Sound good?”

  “Yes,” she said, resting her head against his shoulder. On one level she knew the gesture was too intimate, but she needed the contact and connection, so she left her head there, sighing deeply. “Thank you.”

  “We’re in this together.”

  Lucky was in and out of the lab in less than thirty minutes, and they went to the mall across the way to eat a quick lunch in a small café he found. Tawny didn’t have much of an appetite. The anticipation of meeting with Dr. Laurence had left her stomach roiling most of the night. And today it wasn’t much better. She got a salad and pushed the lettuce around with her fork.

  “Honey, eat!” Lucky tilted his head to look at her. “We just have to wait a little bit longer. That’s all.”

  “I feel like I’ve been waiting forever. From the time she got sick I waited for the chemo results, the radiation results . . . I’m so sick of waiting.” She tried to blink back the tears, but they came anyway.

  Lucky leaned over the table to hand her a napkin. “Let’s get out of here.”

  He paid their bill, found his truck, and helped her into the cab. Next thing she knew, he’d flipped back the passenger seat.

  “Get some shut-eye. You’re exhausted, Tawny. Everything will look better when you’ve gotten some sleep.”

  He was right. She’d tossed and turned all night, playing scenario after scenario in her head. Stretching out on the bucket seat, Tawny closed her eyes. The last thing she remembered seeing were city streets and the entrance to Highway 101.

  She came awake somewhere outside of Sacramento. Randy Travis played softly on the stereo and it had begun to drizzle.

  “You should try to get another hour in,” Lucky said.

  She put her seat upright. “I’m good. How long have we been driving?”

  “About two-and-a-half hours. You snore.”

  “I do not.”

  “The hell you don’t.” He started imitating what sounded to Tawny like a pig.

  “You’re making it up.”

  “I’ll record you next time.” He gently slapped her leg. “You feel better?”

  “I feel rested.” Not necessarily better.

  “I talked to my mom. Katie is helping her make cookies.”

  Tawny rubbed her eyes. “That’s nice. Hey, how was her trip with Jake?”

  “Good, I guess.”

  “What? You have a problem with them dating?”

  “Not a problem. It’s just strange. And Jake . . . I’m not sure about him.”

  “Why not? He’s incredibly kind, has a good job, and for a fifty-something, he’s gorgeous.”

  Lucky tilted down his Ray-Bans and gave her a sideways glance. “He’s been married three times.”

  “Maybe your mom’s the charm. You ever think of that?”

  “I try to think of my mom and Jake Stryker, together, as little as possible. I like the guy just fine, but I don’t want to see my mother get hurt. She’s a good person and doesn’t need some smooth-talking dude breaking her heart.”

  “I won’t say that she can’t get her heart broken, because it happens to the best of us. But I don’t see anyone putting anything over on Cecilia Rodriguez.”

  “Amen to that.” Lucky turned down the music. “You ever have your heart broken?”

  Tawny sat there a beat, contemplating how to answer that. “Yes,” she finally said.

  “That park ranger guy?”

  “I suppose he did, in a way. It wasn’t so much that he broke my heart, it was more that he could’ve been the one. But due to circumstances, we never got to find out.”

  “Nah, he was an asshole.”

  Tawny jerked her head back. “Why would you say that? You don’t even know him.”

  “Because he should’ve stuck by you. Your daughter gets leukemia and he gets himself transferred to Southern California. That ain’t right.”

  Okay. Tawny guessed that was one way of looking at it. “How about you? Who broke your heart?” Stupid question, since she already knew the answer. But she wanted to hear him say it so she could continue to remind herself of all the reasons Lucky Rodriguez was a great big toad.

  “Raylene,” he said. “Not just that night at the Rock and River, but when she married Butch. They had the wedding at the ranch, and my mama spent three weeks sewing pearls on Raylene’s veil. I was at a rodeo in Winnsboro, Louisiana. Nearly drank myself to death.”

  “I’m sorry, Lucky. But you’re together now.”

  “Yep,” was all he said.

  “So besides the park ranger, anyone else break your heart?”

  She considered telling the truth, but what was the point, other than to make him feel guilty? Or feed his already gargantuan ego. “Nope. The upside of having Katie at eighteen is that I haven’t had time for men.”

  “How’s Brady doing with Katie’s cancer?”

  “Lucky, I know Raylene made it out that Brady and I are some big item, but that time you saw him at the house was only the second time we’ve ever talked.”

  “Raylene said when she saw you the other day the two of you were all over each other.”

  “Give me a break. We were in the Lumber Baron kitchen. How all over each other do you think we could’ve been?”

  “Depends on how kinky you are,” Lucky said, and his lips curved up. “I think the four of us should go to dinner together. I’ll call him when we get back.”

  “I would rather you didn’t do that.”

  “Don’t you think it would be good for the four of us to get to know each other?”

  “Do you not hear me? Brady and I just met. He doesn’t even know Katie.”

  “All right.” He held his hands up. “Calm down. I won’t call him.”

  “Steer, wouldya?”

  “There you go, getting all bossy again.” He grinned, showing his pearly white teeth.

  The man was way too sure of himself. And too sexy for his own good. She’d always known these things about him. And certainly becoming a big-time bull riding star had contributed to that large ego of his. But she also knew he was solid as cement, like with Katie and her illness. Or like fourteen years ago when Franklin couldn’t breathe and collapsed while he and Tawny shopped at the Nugget Market. She’d yelled for help and suddenly Lucky appeared. Ethel and Stu had hired him to sweep up the store on weekends. He’d been a few aisles over, dusting shelves.

  He ran and got Stu, but insisted on waiting with Tawny until the paramedics came. As she stood there, fearing that her father would never get up again, Lucky had slipped his hand into hers. Tawny had never realized how much warmth and strength one hand could hold until she held Lucky’s. Eventually they were surrounded by medics and Lucky was hustled out of the way. He may have become her hero in middle school, but that day she fell in love with him.


  When they got home, Lucky dropped Tawny at his mother’s and stayed long enough to kiss Katie goodbye. He had one stop to make before he headed to the ranch and wanted to get it over with.

  He parked his truck on the square, next to the Lumber Baron, and walked across the green. A couple of the guys from the Nugget Mafia were sitting outside the barbershop and waved. He supposed they were taking advantage of what was left of the weather and the daylight. Soon it would be too cold and dark to enjoy the Nugget twilight outdoors. Donna Thurston was cleaning up the condiment bar at the Bun Boy. He waved to her too, but hoped she wouldn’t yak his ear off.

  He had his hand on the knob of the police department door and was just about to walk inside when a surly voice told him to keep moving.

  “The Ponderosa. Get a drink at the bar.”

  Lucky did as he was told and grabbed a stool near the door, asking Mariah for a Jack, neat.

  “Coming right up, bull-riding man.” She poured the whiskey into a lowball glass and placed it on a coaster in front of him. When he’d left Nugget ten years ago. the bowling alley/saloon had been a dump. Mariah and her partner, Sophie, had really classed up the joint. “How are you doing, Lucky? How’s the cowboy camp coming along?”

  “Slow, but otherwise good. Thanks for asking.”

  “How’s Katie? Heard anything yet?”

  “Tawny and I went to Stanford today for more tests. Keep your fingers crossed.”

  “The whole town is, Lucky.”

  “I appreciate that, Mariah.” He held the glass up in a salute, but didn’t want the damn whiskey.

  “Don’t do that again,” Jake said in a low voice as he came up behind Lucky. “The last thing we need is someone seeing you going into the police station. We don’t want to give anyone the idea that it isn’t business as usual.”

  “Have you started yet?” Lucky asked. “I haven’t seen anyone out there.”

  “If you had, it would defeat the purpose, now wouldn’t it?”

  “Then you’ve started?”

  Jake let out frustrated breath. “Not here. Not now.”

  “Then when? I want some answers.”

  “We’re doing our thing. You do yours.” He waved to Mariah. “How’s Lilly?”

  Mariah burst into a grin. Lilly was Mariah and Sophie’s baby. Beautiful little girl.

  “Growing every day.”

  “Last time I saw her was at Nate and Sam’s wedding,” Jake said.

  “We just got the pictures back. When you have time, I’ll show them to you. In the meantime, can I get you something, Detective?”

  “I’m picking up a dinner order for Rhys and me.”

  “I’ll see if Tater has it ready.” Mariah walked into the back.

  “Pulling a late night?” Lucky asked, cocking his brows.

  “Yep.” Jake proceeded to ignore him until Mariah came back with his to-go order. He reached over the bar to grab it from her. “Thanks.”

  “Take care, Detective,” Mariah called to him. “You hungry, Lucky?”

  “Nah, I’ve got to get back to the ranch, see if we’ve made any progress.” He threw back the drink, pushed his stool away from the bar, and wandered outside. Yup, the days were certainly getting shorter.

  At the ranch he found Raylene sitting on the hood of her truck. She looked so beautiful perched there with her blond hair blowing in the breeze.

  “What are you doing?” he called to her.

  “Waiting for you.”

  He liked having the woman of his dreams waiting for him when he got home. Lately, though, his dreams of Raylene didn’t seem as sharp as they once had. Just elusive memories of a young girl who’d held his heart for so long he couldn’t imagine not loving her.

  “Why didn’t you go inside?” He tilted his head at the trailer. “It’s getting cold.” And he didn’t like the idea of her being out here alone. Not now that he knew what he was dealing with on the ranch.

  “I don’t mind it. How did it go at the doctor’s?”

  He made the so-so gesture with his hand. “More tests.”

  “I thought you were a match,” she said.

  “Apparently it’s not that simple. We should know in a few days.”

  Raylene jumped off the hood and flew into his arms.

  “Everything okay?” He tilted her chin up.

  “I just missed you. Let’s go inside.”

  He did a quick survey before unlocking the door to the single-wide. Everything looked quiet, but he wanted to check the livestock. “You wait in here. I want to take a quick pass through the corrals.” Lucky left his phone on the kitchen counter and started to head out.

  “Lucky, they’re just cows,” Raylene called, sounding pouty.

  Those “cows,” and the other rough stock he’d acquired, were worth a small fortune. “Five minutes, baby. Turn the heat on.” He was surprised when she didn’t put up more of a fuss.

  Lucky took his truck because it was quicker. At least the crew seemed to have made some headway on the new barn where Lucky planned to keep his cutting horses. He wanted to kick himself for cheaping out and not hiring Pat Donnelly’s people. Pat had contracted the job on his big barn, the one the Lumber Baron planned to use for weddings and other party events. Of course, Nate had shelled out the money on that project as part of their joint deal. And Pat’s folks had done a beautiful job and had come in on schedule.

  And the biggest bonus: They weren’t drug dealers.

  Son of a bitch! The whole thing pissed Lucky off. And Jake had sealed up tighter than a drum. Lucky had no idea the status of the investigation. At this very minute the place could be swarming with deputies, which would be fine with him. But what if it wasn’t and Raylene, here alone, had seen something she shouldn’t have? A man’s ranch was his sanctuary. He shouldn’t have to worry about his loved ones being safe.

  He walked through the rows of corrals, stopping a few times to scratch heads. In a few years the offspring from these animals would be used in rodeos and PBR events across the country. The sperm alone from some of his breeding bulls would fetch top dollar. Lucky planned the tamer stock to use for the cowboy camp so the amateurs wouldn’t hurt themselves.

  Bernice had gotten out of her pen again to cuddle next to Crème Bullee. Apparently the ewe hadn’t gotten the memo that she was a sheep. Lucky let her stay there. The two seemed to like each other.

  He climbed up the fence and sat with his legs dangling, assessing all that he could see. Even back when it was the old Roland camp, he’d loved this place. As a kid he used to work summers in the barn, helping the stable guys ready the horses for the guests’ trail rides. Never in those days had he imagined he’d be able to afford a ranch like this. The property even butted up to the Feather River, with some of the best fishing this side of the county.

  Now, with Katie in the picture, he wanted more than a bachelor’s apartment. There was a knoll not far from here with killer views of the river and mountains, and lately Lucky had been toying with the idea of building a home—a real home. For that he’d want Colin Burke doing the work. He’d seen what the man did on his own house. On Mariah and Sophie’s home, too. Both were beauts.

  Lucky looked up. Plenty of stars in the sky, and he could smell a cold front moving in. Not snow necessarily, but a definite drop in temperature. Bring it on. He’d always loved fall and winter in Nugget, especially the holidays. For Thanksgiving his mother did it up, and for Christmas she made her famous tamales. And even though they’d been poor as peasants, Cecilia had always managed to put lots of gifts under the tree.

  This year they’d have Katie, which gave him a wave of pleasure. Lucky had never thought about having kids. Not that he was against it, but besides Raylene, he’d never met anyone who made him want to settle down. And truth be told, Raylene didn’t seem much like the settling down type—at least not these days. Twice he’d asked her to move into the trailer with him and each time she’d come up with an excuse. It’s too small for the both of us, or I just got out
of a bad marriage. And on and on.

  He couldn’t say he blamed her, and a part of him was starting to think it would be a bad idea anyway. Certainly not the honeymoon he used to envision. The two of them didn’t have a whole lot to say to each other, unless Raylene was complaining about Butch. Lucky expected that when she became less bitter, he and Raylene would get back into a groove again.

  Then he’d spend less time confiding in Tawny.

  He was thinking that he ought to call Tawny to see how Katie was feeling but couldn’t find his phone. That’s when he heard it. Two loud gunshots that echoed through the trees like firecrackers. He hit the dirt running.

  Chapter 12

  “Gus is dead?”

  “Gus is dead,” Jake told Lucky, feeling terrible that the kid was so shaken up. There was nothing he could’ve done. “Lucky, this is no longer a drug investigation.”

  “Jesus.” Lucky mopped the sweat from his forehead and looked out over his property, now crawling with cops. “He was breathing when I found him. Just barely, but breathing.”

  Well, he wasn’t anymore. “He took two in the gut.” Jake watched a coroner’s van come up the road. “Raylene get home okay?”

  “Yeah. I talked to her a few minutes ago. She’s freaked but home safe and sound.”

  “Good.” He looked Lucky in the eye. “Does she know what’s going on?”

  “About the drugs . . . the sting?” Lucky asked, and Jake nodded. “No. All she knows is that my fence guy got shot.”

  “You can’t stay on the property, Lucky. It’s a crime scene now. Your mother is expecting you.”

  “You called my mother?” Lucky threw his hands up, like WTF?

  Now that Jake thought about it, it was something you’d say to an errant teenager. Your mother is expecting you. “Just to tell her you’re okay . . . I didn’t want her worrying.”

  “Does she know about—”

  “Absolutely not. And I hope you’re still good on your word about not telling anyone. Especially now.”

  “You guys were supposed to be on this.” Lucky laced his hands behind his head and shut his eyes. “I can’t believe this is happening.”