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“You could stay,” Katie offered.
“I’ll take a rain check. We just wanted to stop by and give you the good news.?
?
“Congratulations.” They hugged and Katie’s heart swelled. When she’d first learned she had two half sisters, she’d been wary, not certain of her feelings, especially since Bliss had been pampered and preened—John Cawthorne’s “princess.” But, being ever pragmatic, Katie had decided to make the best of the situation, and from the minute she’d pushed herself into Bliss’s life, insisting that both she and Tiffany be accepted, she hadn’t regretted it for a minute. Today was proof positive that a loving family—no matter how tattered and shredded and pulled apart—was the greatest gift in life.
* * *
Luke eyed the pile of dry earth that had been scraped away from the building site. Kicking at a dirt clod, he examined the dig and was satisfied with the progress. The excavation would be finished in two days; the setting of forms for the concrete foundation that would link the existing buildings was scheduled thereafter, and by the end of next week the framing crew would be at work. He wanted everything done immediately, of course, but knew better.
As he squared his hat on his head and walked to the stables, he reminded himself that patience was a virtue—one that had eluded him for most of his life. He reached through the slats of the fence and twisted on the faucet for the water trough. Clear water gushed through ancient pipes and spilled into the metal drum, splashing noisily. Several mares lifted their heads at the sound. A light bay with black ears nickered in his direction.
“Hello to you, too, Trudy,” he said and felt a sense of belonging, of finally having a place in the world he could call home.
It was just a damned shame that he’d be doing it alone. For the first time since his divorce from Celia, he experienced a need to be connected, to be a part of something bigger than just himself. It was an odd sensation, really—one he’d hoped he would avoid for the rest of his life and that, he suspected, had more than a little to do with Katie Kinkaid. That mite of a woman had bored herself under his skin, and he found himself thinking about her far too much.
“So stop it,” he ordered. She was just a woman. Angry with himself, he twisted off the faucet and saw that the stock seemed settled down. The foals cavorted, running and bucking and nipping at each other while their more sedate dams, ears flicking at each sound, tails forever switching at flies, grazed and generally ignored the antics of their spindly,legged offspring.
It was a peaceful existence right now, though an influx of guests, ranch hands and house staff would change that sense of tranquility in the months to come. But then money was money, and somehow this place had to support itself.
“Good night, ladies,” he said, but the horses didn’t pay any attention. “See y’all tomorrow.”
Shoving his rawhide gloves into the back pocket of his jeans, he strode to his pickup and climbed into the cab. Though the windows had been left down, the interior was sweltering. A confused horsefly buzzed angrily between the dash and windshield before finally stumbling upon the open window.
“Good riddance.” Luke ground the ignition, jammed the rig into gear and headed for town. Dust and exhaust billowed in his wake, and he thought of Katie. Damn, but he’d love to get her into his bed again. He envisioned her dark red hair, spread around a face that was flushed with desire, imagined kissing the freckles on the bridge of her nose, saw vividly in his mind’s eye her swift intake of breath and seductively parted lips as he thrust deep inside her and began making slow, sensuous love.
“Cut it out,” he growled. At the end of the lane he noticed that his crotch was suddenly uncomfortable, his arousal stiff, and he wondered if he’d spend the rest of his life fantasizing about that sharp-tongued-but-beautiful woman. He looked into the rearview mirror, saw his own eyes and then barked out a humorless laugh. If he didn’t know better, he’d think he was in love.
Yeah, and you sold her and her boy out for money. Some lover you turned out to be!
Maybe it was time to tell her the truth. His fingers tightened over the steering wheel. She might hate him for the rest of her natural life, but, be that as it may, it was a risk he had to take.
Yep, he’d face her, tell her the truth, and the devil take the consequences.
* * *
“I should be back in about an hour,” Katie told Josh, who was grumbling about having to do the dishes. “Maybe sooner. I’m going to the old house to try and rent it.” He didn’t respond, and she touched him lightly on the shoulder. “You can come with me if you want.”
“Naw.” He shook his head.
“Okay. Ellie—Mrs. Ellingsworth—downstairs, is home, and she said she’d look in on you if you’d like.”
“I’ll be okay.”
“’Course you will.” Katie rumpled his hair, which was still wet from the shower he’d taken before they’d sat down to dinner. For the first time in a week he’d actually talked to her, told her about soccer practice and a new kid he’d met at school, then even brought up Dave, asking a few questions about him. Eventually she’d offered Josh the opportunity of meeting his paternal grandparents. Josh was interested but wary. They were strangers to him, but he’d agreed to meet them. Soon. One step at a time, she reminded herself, since Josh had been forced to face a truckload of issues this past couple of weeks.
Placing a rental agreement and application into a side pocket of her purse, she headed outside just as Blue, who had been lying docilely on the porch, jumped up and made a racket, startling the blue jays that had collected on the eaves. The birds squawked and fluttered off.
Luke’s truck rolled into the drive, and Katie’s heartbeat began to notch up a bit. She set her jaw and marched over to the pickup as he, in worn jeans and a frayed shirt that he hadn’t bothered to button, swung out of the cab.
“Ms. Kinkaid,” he drawled, his sexy-as-all-get-out crooked grin growing from one side of his square jaw to the other. “You look like you’re about to spit nails.”
“That would be a good way to describe it,” she agreed, throwing out a hip as Blue, finished with his alarm barking, began sniffing the grill and running boards of Luke’s truck.
“At me?” He feigned innocence.
“You’d be a primary target, yes.”
