Chapter One
“But why don’tyou want to go out with Sue Mueller? She has big boobs. I thought all men loved big boobs.”
Cal Daily stopped working on the driveshaft of the Ford Fusion and glanced over at his fifteen-year-old daughter. From his position under the car, all he could see of Cheyenne were her jean-covered legs and bright-blue cowboy boots swinging back and forth. After Clarissa left, he had thought it was tough single parenting a talkative eleven-year-old who never stopped asking questions. But nothing compared to dealing with a stubborn teenager hell bent on finding him a wife.
“I’m not interested in Sue,” he said. “It has nothing to do with her . . . body and everything to do with me not being ready to get into another relationship.”
“When are you going to be ready? It’s been four years since Mom left us. She’s moved on and remarried. Why can’t you, Daddy? Four years is a long time to be lonely.”
“Like I’ve said at least a hundred times before,I’m not lonely.” It was the truth. He was too busy to be lonely. He worked ten-hour days, six days a week, at his auto repair shop. And he wasn’t complaining.
After buying the old broken-down gas station, he’d worried that he’d made a huge mistake and there wouldn’t be enough business in the small town of Simple, Texas, for him to pay off the loan he’d gotten from the bank. But as soon as he put up theWe’re Opensign, he’d had more business than he could keep up with.
Now he was seriously thinking about hiring a part-time employee to help with oil changes and the frequent calls he got for roadside assistance. He’d thought about hiring Cheyenne. Having helped him all these years, she knew her way around a car engine. But she already had a part-time job she loved working for Boone Murphy at the hardware store. Not to mention that Cal certainly didn’t want to have to deal with her matchmaking any more than he had to.
“You might not be lonely,” Cheyenne continued, “but you aren’t completely happy either. You used to smile a lot more before Mama left.”
He couldn’t argue the point. Back then, he’d thought he had the world by the tail. He’d had a good job in Abilene, a precious daughter, and a gorgeous wife who loved him as much as he loved her. Or so he’d thought. But then one day, out of a clear blue sky, Clarissa was gone. And with her, all the money they had saved up to put a down payment on a house. After that, it was hard to find his smile. Or trust women in general.
“I’m not ready to date yet,” he said. “End of discussion.”
“Fine.” Cheyenne huffed.
Cal grinned. Even though he couldn’t see anything but her boots, he could just imagine her sitting on the workbench with her arms crossed and her hazel eyes snapping with fire. She wouldn’t give up on him dating. She was much too stubborn. Even now, he knew she was hatching a plan to get him to go out with some other Simple single lady. But he was stubborn too. And he would never set himself up for heartbreak again. Or his daughter. Cheyenne had cried every night for months after Clarissa left. It had killed him to watch his baby girl go through so much pain. He wasn’t going to let her get hurt again.
He changed the subject. “How’s school going?”
He thought Cheyenne might be too angry to answer him. But that was one of the many things he loved about his daughter. She didn’t hold a grudge for long.
“Okay,” she said. “I got an A on my algebra test. And Teresa Ayers gave mono to Matt Lipinski—and Gavin Williams. Everyone knew she was dating Matt, but no one, including Matt, knew she was also seeing Gavin. Now everyone’s calling her a two-timer.”
Cal wasn’t sure what to say. Discussing things like this with his daughter always made him feel like he was treading in deep water. He didn’t want Cheyenne even talking about kissing. He wanted her to stay his sweet little angel forever. He knew it was ridiculous, but he couldn’t help himself.
He rolled the cart he was lying on to the other side of the driveshaft. “Kissing is a major spread of germs. Which is why you should put it off for as long as possible.”
Cheyenne laughed. “High school kids don’t worry about germs, Daddy. All the popular kids kiss.”
His hand tightened on the socket wrench he was using to remove the bolts. “Have you?”
She sighed dramatically. “No. But I’m not popular.”
He closed his eyes and said a prayer of thanks before he spoke. “Well, if that’s what it takes to make you popular then I’m glad you’re not.” He could tell he’d said the wrong thing by the high pitch of her voice.
“So you want me to be a pathetic loser who no one wants to kiss and end up living with my daddy for the rest of my life like poor Miss Applegate?”
“I didn’t say that. I just think that popularity shouldn’t be based on how many boys you kiss. It should be based on being a good person. And you’re a good person, Cheyenne.”
“Well, I don’t want to be a good person if it means I’m going to spend my entire high school years never being kissed. Just because you don’t want a relationship doesn’t mean that I don’t.”
“You’re too young for a relationship. Now, how about when I’m finished here, we head on over to the Simple Market and pick us out a turkey for Thanksgiving?”
“We don’t need to buy a turkey. EmmaMurphy invited us to Thanksgiving dinner with her and Boone. It will be their first party in Boone’s grandparents’ house since they renovated it and their first Thanksgiving together since their feud ended.”
Boone and Emma’s ongoing feud had once been the talk of the town. Now that it was over and the two enemies had settled their differences and become man and wife, things were much quieter in Simple.
“Which is why we’re going to decline the invitation,” Cal said. “Boone and Emma don’t need us butting in on their first Thanksgiving as a married couple.”
“But they want us to butt in. Emma said we’re family.”
