Jesse (23 page)

“She's a spunky little girl,” he said, tilting his head to one side as if studying her. “A lot like her mother.”

“Flattery will get you—”

“Everywhere?” The impish grin on his face undermined her need to keep him at arm's length until she and Lacy went home. The man had her contradicting herself and doubting her own good sense. If they didn't leave soon, she'd be in a puddle at his feet.

“Come on.” He opened the door and pulled her inside. “I've got a lesson to give before I head on out with my brothers to ride fences and check the herd.”

Danielle was having trouble concentrating since they'd returned from the Circle G. Jesse filled her thoughts and had them wandering back to the stolen moments they shared in one another's arms.

It had been four days since she'd seen him, but the phone calls in between had reassured her that he'd meant what he'd said about her being
his.
She understood that he had a ranch to run and no spare time… well, other than wherever he spent four nights out of the week and earned a couple hundred dollars. But after spending Saturday night making love with Jesse, she couldn't stop thinking about what it was going to be like the next time they would be together.

His lips would be commanding, his hands callused and firm, while he—

The ringing of the phone jarred her back to the present and her responsibilities; she answered it.

“Darlin', I miss the hell out of you.”

Jesse's voice smoothed over her ragged emotions like butter on a stack of hotcakes. The deep rumbling pitch eased the knots between her shoulders. “I was hoping you'd call. How are you?”

“Busy. Would you like to meet my cousins?”

She almost asked if Lacy was invited too, but figured he would have mentioned her if he wanted her there. “Yes. I would. Will you be driving into town?”

He chuckled. “Hell, darlin', we're exhausted from moving the herd.” He paused and asked, “Can you and Lacy come out to the Circle G?”

Warmth filled her. “Absolutely, what time?”

“We should be finished up early. How about four o'clock? We'll be firing up the grill… sort of a competition between cousins. Our New York cousins think they can grill meat. We need you and Lacy to help judge.”

“We'll be there with bells on.” As she hung up the phone she felt giddy. He wanted to see the both of them, and unless she misunderstood him, it sounded as if he wanted to include them in their family gathering… as if she and Lacy really mattered.

She told her uncle about the call and he had everyone hustling so they could close up on time and head back to the house.

A little while later, Lacy called out, “I'm ready!”

Danielle smiled at the picture Lacy made in her denim skirt, T-shirt, and matching pink boots and hat, and couldn't help but wonder what Jesse's cousins would think when they met her. Well, no time to worry about that now. She hugged Lacy and raced upstairs, changing into a sleeveless black shirt, denim skirt, and boots. Laughing at her reflection, she realized all she needed was a hat and she and Lacy would have matching outfits. She thought about changing into jeans, but it was still too warm.

“Mommy?”

“Coming, sweet pea.” When she made it downstairs, she asked, “Are you ready to go meet Jesse's cousins?”

“Yep, but Unca Jimmy gots something to give you first.”

Intrigued, she let Lacy lead her into the kitchen. “Hey, Uncle Jimmy.”

Her uncle smiled. “You know that I believe a man should be given a second chance if he proves he's worth it?”

She had an idea of where this conversation was headed and braced for another lecture.

“Well, Jesse and his brothers proved they're worth it a while ago, but I never had the chance to tell them I was wrong about them… so here.” He handed her two large baskets covered with green and white-checkered dish towels, holding out a third to Lacy.

The scent of berries and apples mixed with a hint of chocolate filled the air around them. “You made them pies?”

He grinned. “Yeah, figured they'd get the gist of what I was saying if I gave them what they took in the first place.”

She blinked back tears. “You're one in a million, Uncle Jimmy. I know they'll appreciate the gesture.”

“See that they share those pies with their cousins.”

Peering beneath one of the towels, she realized her uncle had used his special pie baskets with the footed dividers so each basket actually carried two pies. “Did you seriously make a half a dozen pies for them?”

He nodded. “Two chocolate, one apple, cherry, blackberry, and buttermilk.”

She hugged her uncle and whispered, “I love you.”

He squeezed her tight and rasped, “I love you back, June bug. Now go on and have a good time.”

The drive over to the ranch was filled with laughter as they tried to decide if any of Jesse's cousins would look like
real
cowboys or the city slickers he'd described. When they drove up to the gate, Lacy waited without being told, content to hold one of the baskets on her lap… the ones with the chocolate pies she was hoping to get a piece of.

Once Danielle had driven through and closed the gate behind them, they made their way to the ranch house. A couple of pickups were parked on either side of the one Jesse usually drove. Not knowing where else to park, she pulled up behind Jesse's. Before she could open her door a tall, good-looking stranger with bright blue eyes and blond hair was opening it for her.

“Hey there, sweet thing,” he rumbled. “You must be Danielle.”

She was about to agree when she heard a voice on the other side of the car. She turned in time to see an auburn-haired man with a devilish grin smiling at her from the open passenger's doorway. “I'll just help little Lacy here with her basket.” Lifting it closer, he sniffed and smiled. “Smells like heaven.” Setting it on the roof of the car, he helped Lacy with her seat belt and held out his hand.

Lacy smiled and told him, “It's Unca Jimmy's chocolate pies.”

“Don't mind my cousin, Mike,” the man told her. “He's got nephews her age. He's good with kids.”

She watched Lacy walking hand in hand with the powerfully built man and noticed the way he slowed his pace and bent down in order to hear whatever Lacy was chattering about… probably the pies.

“Thanks. It's just that I don't normally trust my daughter's safety to strangers.”

“A wise woman.” He grinned. “My name's Ben”—he held out his hand to her—“let me help you with those.”

She handed over one basket and hung on to the other. Trying not to be obvious, she hurried after Lacy. His low chuckle had her smiling up at him and missing the bottom step, but as she lost her balance, strong hands pulled her close. Before she could thank him, hard hands pulled her back against a heavily muscled chest. “Find your own woman.”

Ben met Jesse's look with a challenge. “What if I want this one?”

Danielle felt every muscle in Jesse's body tighten—good Lord, would he really fight his cousin over her? “I might decide that I'm not interested in either one of you.” That ought to give them something to think about. She retrieved both baskets and stomped up the stairs and into the kitchen.

“Men,” she grumbled as she lifted her gaze and nearly dropped her baskets. Dylan and Tyler were talking with two more gorgeous men. “Are all of your cousins this good-looking?” The low chuckles that followed were her first clue that she'd asked that question out loud; the second clue was the angry voice behind her that said, “Not after I get through with them.”

“Hell, Jesse,” the light-haired giant standing next to Ronnie was shaking his head. “Can't we eat first?”

“Yeah,” the other auburn-haired man said, “don't worry, we'll still want to fight later.”

Emily and Ronnie were shaking their heads and Danielle would later swear that the testosterone was so thick in the air, it was like peering through fog.

“OK,” Ronnie began, “listen up, because there are a couple of new house rules since you guys were here last.”

The men turned and waited for her to speak. “The house has been declared a fight-free zone.”

“Well, hell, how can I sneak up on Dylan if—”

Ronnie put her hands on her hips, but before she could speak, Dylan cleared his throat. “I thought Jesse told you things had changed.”

“Just because we can't beat on a married man doesn't mean we can't go a couple of rounds with Tyler and Jesse while we're here… does it?”

“If you want to eat, you aren't going to fight.” Emily moved to stand beside Ronnie.

“Geez, Jesse,” one of the auburn-haired men said, “you should have told us that before we agreed to come.”

Jesse muscled his way through the group and looked like he was ready to spit nails. Sensing that the tension in the room was about to escalate, and needing to bring it back to a level that wouldn't scare her little girl, Danielle spoke up. “Well, now that we know there won't be any fighting, why don't you tell me who's who while Lacy and I show you what my Uncle Jimmy baked for you?”

Jesse stopped dead in his tracks. “Your uncle made us pie?”

She smiled up at him and uncovered the first basket. “This one's got an apple and a blackberry pie in it.”

“Whoa! Two pies in each basket?” Tyler's words had the men gathering around the table to watch the unveiling.

“This basket has a cherry and the buttermilk pie,” she continued, trying not to laugh at the sight of so many handsome faces captivated by the prospect of unveiling baked goods.

“Mine gots two chocolate pies,” Lacy announced.

“So,” Danielle said quietly, knowing she had everyone's attention. “I met Ben outside,” she said turning to the other fair-haired man. “You must be his brother.”

“Yes, ma'am,” he said. “Name's Matt.”

“Are you the Colorado cousins or the New York City cousins?”

“No offense, ma'am, but can't you tell by the way we talk?”

She felt her cheeks heating with her embarrassment. “Actually, I wasn't paying attention to your accents.”

“That's because she's distracted by the better-looking Garahans from New York.” The man who walked inside with Lacy held out his hand. “I'm Mike Garahan,” he said. “This is my brother, Tommy.”

Danielle nearly laughed at his words until she saw the look in Jesse's eyes… a look that promised retribution. “So you're the firemen from the East Coast?”

“My brother and I are lawmen up in Colorado,” Ben said quietly, drawing her attention back to him.

“Are you on the local police force there or with the U.S. Marshals?”

“A cop's a cop, Dani darlin',” Jesse said quietly. His voice still had a dark edge to it that had her looking up into his eyes.

“Nothing's ever black and white,” she told him. “People are complex and not always what they seem.”

“We're marshals,” Matt told her.

“Do you ride horses like Marshal Dillon?” Before anyone could answer, Lacy added, “My daddy rides bulls.” Lacy climbed up onto one of the chairs and sat down. “He gots a new RV 'cause he took all the money.”

Danielle wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole; that way, no one would be able to see the hurt and embarrassment she felt at Lacy's innocent declaration.

“Has he missed any child support payments?” Matt asked.

“I could track him down for you,” Ben offered.

“Garahans stick together.” Jesse nodded to the group and then looked down at Danielle. “We'd be happy to arrange a trip up to San Angelo and track him down for you.”

“He might not be riding for a bit after we—” Mike began, only to be interrupted by his brother.

“Uh… visit with him,” Tom finished.

“Are the coals ready yet?” Ronnie asked, changing the subject. “I've got marinated steaks just begging to be grilled.”

“Lacy, honey,” Jesse said, “you want to go for a walk?” Her smile was her answer. “Come on with your momma and me, then.” Jesse took them by the hand and led them through the house to the front door. He opened it quietly and walked along the path that wound down toward another building.

“I didn't know you had so many outbuildings here.” Danielle would do anything not to talk about her ex and the truth she'd been hoping to keep to herself for a little while longer. She didn't want to dredge up the hurt all over again.

“It takes a few to house everything we need to keep the ranch running.” When Lacy started to lag behind, he lifted her up and carried her. “We've got a shop filled with tractor and truck parts, and anything we need to keep our machines going. It takes time to drive all the way into town; time isn't something we have a lot of around here.”

While Jesse explained about the other buildings they walked past, Danielle got caught up and let him distract her.

***

Jesse felt relieved when Danielle finally lost that haunted look. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and promise that no one would ever hurt her again, but they hadn't had a chance to talk about things. It had been a few days and he was still trying to squeeze in the time to be alone with her. He had so much he wanted to say.

Walking in the late-day sun, with Lacy in his arms and Danielle holding his hand, he couldn't figure out how her ex could have been such a piece of shit. The stark realization that he'd do just about anything for Danielle and Lacy washed over him. The tour of the Circle G took on a whole new meaning as he admitted to himself that he wanted them to stick around for more than just a few weeks.

Danielle was more than a distraction from the tough life he led ranching. Yeah, he wanted her in his bed, but not just for a couple of nights—he wanted to be there when she grew round with his baby and be there to hold her hand while they watched Lacy walking up to receive her diploma. He wanted the whole package… and he wanted forever.

Now all he had to do was convince Danielle and Lacy they wanted him too. “Want to see the honey tree?”

Lacy patted the side of his face. “Trees don't make honey,” she laughed. “Bees make honey.”

He laughed and hugged her tighter. “Yes, ma'am, but there's a hive in an old tree just over that rise. Want me to show it to you?”

“Yeah!”

A few minutes later, he stopped and pointed to a huge old oak that had been struck by lightning.