Page 5 of Chasing Liberty
Yet, truth was, he didn’t want to lose her. He had one chance and he aimed to tell her exactly how he was feeling. He would lay it all on the line and let her decide. He didn’t want a divorce, and if that meant giving up his dreams of ever running his own ranch then so be it. What he wanted right now, more than his next breath, was his wife. He wanted to make their union real. To wake up with her each day.
He patted his shirt pocket to make sure the ring tucked in the velvet pouch hadn’t disappeared. The keepsake had belonged to his mother, the only thing of hers that he had left. It wasn’t much, not a big diamond, but it meant a lot to him.
Sweat beaded his brow.
Would she even like the ring? It wasn’t what some rich fellow could give her, but Wyler knew all the money in the world couldn’t make a person happy. He would gladly spend every day treating her with love, kindness, and respect, until he took his final breath. Unlike how his father had treated his mother. Even as a kid he’d tried to protect her—swearing he’d never be like his father. When he passed away, Wyler had gone to the graveyard, the only one in attendance, and said goodbye to the man who had never fit the bill as a dad. The only thing he’d done for Wyler was leave him a plot of land that was worth a million which Wyler refused to do anything with because it meant nothing to him. It was the moral of the situation. Even today, he couldn’tbelieve the old man hadn’t sold everything he had for a bottle of whiskey and a temporary high.
Wyler wasn’t his father. He wanted a family. And if God willing, he’d be blessed enough to have a house full of kids. He wanted this with Liberty. The perfect unification of her stubborn character and his patience. Her beauty and strength and his determination. He’d consider his life a success.
His cheeks burned as a smile took up residence on his lips. Imagining Liberty carrying their baby made his heart heavy and his chest puff out some. He knew she’d be a good mother. She came across as hard knocks, but he knew it was a defense mechanism. He’d seen the softer side of her. Saw how she cared for her family and went to bat for them
He wanted to plant his seed inside her and create the family that he’d always wanted.
“Have a wonderful dinner, Mr. Ranks.” The hostess offered him a lingering smile and he guessed most men would be flattered at the uninvited attention from the young woman. Yet, as beautiful as she was, Wyler didn’t have any desire for any woman buthisLiberty. The woman who’d shown him what he wanted—needed.
“There he is,” Sam’s booming voice rattled the chandeliers as he marched toward Wyler, extending his gnarled, leathered hand. Wyler gripped his father-in-law’s roughened hand for a firm handshake. “Liberty isn’t with you?” Sam looked beyond Wyler’s shoulder.
“She must be running behind.”
“Every time I complain about my daughters’ punctuality difficulties I always get, ‘Daddy, we’re being fashionably late’.” He snorted. “Whatever that means. What’ll you have to drink, son? You tried their bourbon yet? Made and aged right here in the U.S. of A.” Sam waved over the bartender and flashed two fingers.
“Is Trinity here with you?” Wyler searched for the young woman that Sam had been spending a lot of his time with.
“Nah. She’s studying for her bar exam. Wouldn’t invite her anyway.” He paused while the bartender set two tumblers onto the slick, black bar top and poured a liberal amount of whiskey into each. “You’d think it’d kill my daughters to treat Trinity with some respect and kindness.” He scratched his temple. “They aren’t the ones dating her.”
“Have you factored in that Trinity is younger than Liberty and Honor?” Wyler appreciated that he could have a raw conversation with the other man. “They’re just looking out for their father’s interest.”
“Ain’t a man allowed to have some fun?” Then his hard frown softened some. “No one will ever replace their mother. She was my everything—my world— but until the day comes when the good Lord takes me home to see her, I have to live on this earth each day with only a memory.” He swallowed some of the whiskey as if to ease the sorrow. “Trinity makes me happy. She doesn’t expect too much.”
Wyler slapped Sam on the back, feeling a bit sorry for him. Wyler understood loss and pain. “Then there’s nothing else to explain. If you’re happy, your daughters should be happy. I know myself that’s what they want.”
Sam downed the rest of his whiskey in one gulp and smeared the back of his hand over his mouth. “How are things going with you and my daughter? She seems a bit frazzled lately. Has she been feeling okay?”
With an exaggerated pause, Wyler finally said, “She’s been busy.”
“With the business. Yeah, I get it, but is she pregnant?”
Wyler nearly choked on his whiskey. Once he managed to get his hacking under control, he shook his head. “No, sir, she’s not pregnant.”
“Better get to working fast there, young man.” Sam slapped Wyler on the shoulder. “You should know by now that Honor and Liberty are always in competition and can never do anything alone. I’m relying on babies being one of those.”
“Can I get you another?” the bartender asked.
“I’ll take a beer.” Wyler thought it best to go lighter and keep his wits about him.
Sam’s cell phone rang. He checked the screen and sighed. “Ah, shit. I better take this call. Can’t get one evening of peace,” he muttered as he left the bar for the balcony.
Wyler sipped on his expensive bottled beer. He was more of a simple man and preferred domestic.
He felt a bit out of sorts. Confidence had never been foreign to him, but in his defense, he’d never asked a woman to marry him.
Through the mirror behind the top shelf of bottles he saw Liberty making her way into the dining room.
He turned to get a better look as she sashayed his direction in a crème-colored dress that scooped low on her chest and stretched across her curves perfectly. She garnered multiple appreciative glances from men, and women. Pride grew in Wyler. Not because she was the most beautiful woman in the room, but because he remembered what they’d shared last night.
She swept up to him in a breeze of spiced vanilla and morning dew. He loved her scent. He inhaled it deeply into his lungs. She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “I almost didn’t make it. One of the horses was limping and I had to call in Keller,” she said as she pulled away.
“I just got here. Sam is on the balcony taking a call.”