The Cowboy is a Daddy

by Mindy Neff

Maddie shivered, nerves screaming. She was damned rusty at this flying business—at least this kind, where she was so close to the ground and performing tight turns. Beneath her was a carpet of white so blinding it made her eyes water. She hadn’t thought to grab sunglasses.

  She could see the road in the distance, saw Dan and Mike’s truck, pacing her. Thick clouds were moving in lower. She wouldn’t be able to scud-run this close to the ground much longer. More snow would fall soon. Very soon. Oh, God, please!

  To the right of the plane, she saw a set of tracks. Squinting, she could just make out a riderless horse as it appeared from a valley and crested the hill.

  She stabbed the mike button. “Dan! I think I see Samson!” She looked at the compass, then at the road, trying to get her bearings. “I’m flying due south. The highway’s to my left—east. I’m just passing over a mining shack.”

  “I see you. I know the shack.”

  “Okay, I’m going in for a tighter circle.” Darn it, she’d thought those tracks were from the deer. Had they been from Brice’s horse? She followed the trail, heart pounding, palms sweating. Her grip on the yoke was so tight it was a wonder the plane was even flying straight.

  She keyed the mike on the radio. “Brice? Can you hear me? It’s Maddie. Come in.” No answer. She felt tears sting her eyes, but battled them back. This was no time to fall apart. Either he couldn’t answer—a scenario she didn’t want to dwell on—or he’d lost his radio.

  In her mind she pictured him as she’d last seen him, wearing his standard jeans with buckskin chaps buckled around his thighs, a blue-and-black-plaid flannel shirt, a red paisley bandanna tied around his neck, a heavy jacket and his black hat.

  Eyes straining, she searched for a speck of color among all the white.

  She almost missed it, just a dot of red, like a tiny marker flag in the snowdrift.

  Her hands cramped from the death grip she kept on the yoke, and she prayed like mad that she wouldn’t stall out and end up diving nose first into the ground. The blinding white messed with her depth perception, gave her a dizzying sense of vertigo.

  Not now, she screamed silently. She blinked, concentrating, hating to take her eyes off the ground, yet knowing she needed to monitor the gauges.

  In her peripheral vision, she saw Randy coming from the north, trailing Brice’s horse behind him. Below her were tree roots sticking out of the earth. It almost looked as though the Cessna’s wingtip was going to clip the ground.

  Fighting the nerves, trusting her instincts as a pilot, she held the tight turn, ignoring the stall light and screaming alarm.

  What had appeared to be flat ground was actually a snowdrift that formed an inverted vee in the landscape. A ravine hidden by the snow bank.

  And Brice.

  Oh, hold on!

  She keyed the mike. “I found him! He’s in what looks like a dried-up creek bed. Do you guys see me? Can you make it out here?”

  “Can do,” Dan replied.

  “I’m headed your way,” Randy said.

  She was so caught up in looking at Brice, she hadn’t realized she’d lost altitude and the Cessna was in imminent danger of shearing off a treetop. She slammed the throttle to full power and jerked back on the yoke, pulling up and out of the turn, her heart pounding so hard she thought she might throw up. Taking a breath, calmer now that she’d found him, she went in for another tight circle.

  She could see his expression—horrified and irritated. She laughed, sure he was wondering what kind of maniac was flying his plane and darn near crashing it.

  Then she sobered when she noticed his struggle. She pressed the mike button. “It looks like a tree is trapping his leg. Dan, can you call Doc Adams on the cellular?”

  “This here’s Moe at base. I’ll make that call.” A pause. “You done real good, missy.” The old cowboy’s voice was soft and gruff and full of emotion.

  Three minutes later the ground rescue arrived at the site. Dan and Mike hopped out of the truck armed with ropes.

  “Careful of the edge!” Maddie warned. “It looks like it could give any minute now.”

  Dan waved his hat in acknowledgment. Maddie banked for another tight circle, the g-forces making her light-headed, making the blood rush to her head and her stomach churn like an unsteady whirlpool.

  She hardly noticed the discomfort because her excitement and relief was so enormous.

  Good heavens, what had happened to her nice, staid, sensible life? The one she’d planned right down to the minute?

  Love. That’s what had happened.

  When this was over and done with, when Brice was safely back home, they were going to quit pussyfooting around. She intended to stay, and he would darn well have to get used to it!

  Brice watched the Cessna angle into another turn. By God he’d lost a good ten years off his life when the wing had nearly clipped those trees.

  Especially now that he realized it was Madison flying his plane. When the heck had she learned to fly? She was so low he could see her blond hair, her round spectacles.

  She’d found him. Come looking for him. Rescued him before he’d been buried in a frozen grave.

  Emotion formed an aching lump in his throat. She was an amazing woman. These weren’t the actions of a city girl. Dear God, she fit into his world so perfectly. He couldn’t imagine having to live without her. Knew that he’d do anything to get her to stay.

  He heard the slam of a truck door, the pounding of horses hooves.

  “Boss? You okay?”

  The sound of the ex-rodeo rider’s voice was like sweet music. “Yeah, Dan. Just pissed. Damned tree’s wrapped around my boot tighter than a bear trap.”

  “We’ll have you out in a jiff. Just sit tight. Gotta go slow so we don’t knock this snow down on you.” Brice didn’t have much choice other than to sit tight. But he hated being in this position, unable to control his own destiny. The drone of the Cessna overhead snagged his attention again. The sky was getting darker.

  “I’ve lost my two-way, Dan. I assume you’re in contact with that Cessna up there?”

  Dan’s smiling face appeared over the snowdrift. On his belly, he slowly lowered a rope. “That’s Madison flying your plane. Hell of a pilot. Hell of a woman.” There was awe in Dan’s voice.

  Brice felt that awe, and more. He had to clear his throat before he could speak. “Yeah, she is that. You tell her to hightail it back and get that plane on the ground while she can still see. These clouds could close in, any minute now.”

  “Sure thing, boss. Maddie?”

  “I’m here, Dan. Is he all right?”

  “Boss says everything’s A-okay. Says you better land before you get caught in bad weather.”

  “Roger, Dan.”

  Brice stared at his portable radio that was just out of reach, the sound of Madison’s voice making his heart beat faster.

  “Uh, Dan? Tell Brice...”

  Her voice trailed off. What? Tell me what?

  “Never mind,” she said. Brice swore, wishing like hell he could reach the radio, demand that she finish what she was about to say.

  The bump on his head must have done more damage than he’d thought—scrambling his brains, making him read more into her tone than was likely there, making him hope.

  Because for just a moment he’d imagined that she was about to declare her undying, everlasting love.

  Yeah, his brain was scrambled all right. Women didn’t offer him everlasting anything.

  Then again, most women weren’t like Madison.

  My God, she’d flown his plane!

  He listened to the Cessna’s engine as it got farther and farther away, then closed his eyes and waited for his men to get down the embankment and free his trapped boot.

  Maddie was in the kitchen with Letty, Doc, Nancy Adams and Moe, who still had Abbe cradled against his chest, fighting off the women, refusing to hand the baby over.

  When she heard the truck pull into the yard, her heart lurched, and she had an unrea
sonable urge to brush her hair, to take off these glasses and put in her contact lenses, to put on a little makeup, spritz on more perfume.

  The back door swung open before she could make up her mind one way or the other.

  His expression looked darker than a thundercloud, and his disposition was about as surly as a bear with a splinter in his paw.

  Masculine intent radiated from him as he stalked across the room, never acknowledging the neighbors who were there, never even glancing at the men who trailed him through the door. He stopped right in front of her, his chest nearly brushing her breasts.

  “What the hell were you thinking?”

  “Excuse me?” She tilted her head back to get a good look at him. He was six feet five inches of righteous indignation. What in the world was his problem? This certainly wasn’t the grateful homecoming she’d expected.

  “You could have been caught in a storm, crashed the plane.”

  Her eyes widened, and she imagined she looked like a startled owl behind the magnified lenses of her glasses. The urge to punch him was powerful. She managed to subdue it. Barely.

  “I freeze my butt off out looking for you, and all you’re worried about is your plane?”

  “No, damn it! I was worried about you!” He was shouting, and before she could point out that fact to him and shout right back, he grabbed her by the shoulders, jerked her against him and covered her open, astonished mouth with his.

  She’d never been kissed like this before, and was certain she wasn’t the sort of woman who normally inspired such aggression, such spontaneity. The power of the kiss whipped through her, the danger of it thrilling her. It was a kiss filled with frustration, and fear...and something else. Something that felt gentle, caring, something that felt a lot like love.

  They were both breathing heavily by the time he released her mouth. His gaze, however, remained locked with hers.

  Stunned, she couldn’t look away.

  Someone discreetly cleared their throat. A pot clanged against the stove. Abbe squealed, happily testing her lungs.

  Their kitchen was full of people, and they were acting like two fierce, hungry animals—right in front of God and everybody.

  Maddie smoothed her hair, flipped it behind her ear and shoved her glasses back in place. She cleared her throat.

  “Well. We should probably have Doc take a look at your foot.’’

  “My foot’s fine.’’ He still sounded as though he were a breath away from losing his cool.

  Had she done that to him? Did he actually care that much? “Why don’t we let Doc be the judge of that? I saw you limping when you came in.”

  He didn’t move, just watched her with an intensity that made her squirm. “Where’d you learn to fly like that?”

  A soft laugh burst out. “I didn’t know I knew how to fly like that. I usually try to keep the altitude a bit higher, and I definitely make it a point to go in a fairly straight line. And I don’t even want to think about all the FAA rules I broke skimming along the treetops like that.”

  The corner of his lips twitched, and the turmoil in his eyes eased into amused admiration. “Emergencies are an exception.”

  “Oh, I’m glad to know that.” They really shouldn’t be looking at each other like this, with a roomful of people watching.

  Doc broke the tension. “Best get over here and let me have a gander at that foot.”

  With all the commotion of the neighbors in the house, it was evening before they had a chance to talk again. Oddly enough, it seemed to Maddie as though Brice had been deliberately avoiding her after that heated kiss.

  The house was silent as a tomb now that everyone had gone, but he still hadn’t come to her.

  She went to check on Abbe and stopped short in the doorway.

  The room was lit only by the soft glow of a lamp shaped like a lamb. Brice stood by the crib, cradling the sleeping baby in his arms. The sight brought tears to her eyes. She wanted permanence, a family to call her own. She wanted this man.

  She’d come here under false pretenses, on the run, and turned his life upside down, saddled him with an unwanted wife and baby—not to mention the damage he’d done to his credit cards with all the baby stuff he’d ordered.

  And her microwave.

  And the jeans he’d discreetly replaced when she’d ruined his others.

  All her life she’d been surrounded by people, yet she’d been a loner really. And now that she’d allowed herself to open up to others, to trust, she was all the more determined not to lose what she’d come to love: this small community in Wyoming; all the great people; Moe Bertelli...

  Brice DeWitt.

  He was one of a kind. The type of man she’d always dreamed of but had never thought she would find. The type of man who had staying power, who would stick around for the long haul—unlike her father, who she now realized she’d been using as a yardstick with which to measure every other relationship.

  She’d made a decision up in the plane, that when this was all over, they were going to quit pussyfooting around. To hell with pride. Maybe he didn’t love her now, but there was no reason why those feelings couldn’t grow. And if not, she had enough for both of them. There would be no more talk of an annulment, no more of this three-month-trial business.

  If she had to, she would beg. She wanted this man—on any terms. Wanted whatever he would give her.

  Then she heard him speak softly to the baby, and her heart lodged in her throat.

  “I don’t know what to do, princess. I’m not good with fancy words, and I don’t trust a lot of folks to stick around. It can get kind of lonely out here, but it’s my life. And I thought that life was pretty well mapped out until you and your mama landed on my doorstep. From the first moment I held you in my hands, I fell in love. I didn’t want to, but there it is. And I surely didn’t want to fall in love with your mother.. .but, well, there that is, too. I swear I was a gonner from the minute I opened the front door and found her standing there, shivering, wearing that fussy coat with the fur on the hood.”

  Maddie covered her trembling lips with her fingers, trying to hold in the emotion. She couldn’t do it, and words burst from her lips.

  “Why the heck didn’t you say that in the first place!”

  He whirled around. “You scared me half to death, and I almost dropped the baby.”

  “You’d never drop her.”

  For a long moment he just stared at her, his gaze traveling from her head to her toes, as though she were his heart’s desire, as though he couldn’t get enough of the sight of her.

  Then he turned and gently laid Abbe back in the crib, covering her with a blanket, his fingers lingering on her soft cheek.

  He moved toward Maddie, reached out and gently touched her cheek, much the same way he’d just done with the baby, the gesture so reverent, so achingly soft.

  Shadows played over his high cheekbones, accenting the hollows in his cheeks and the hint of dark stubble around his jaw. His shoulders were so broad, his hands so strong and capable, hands that could subdue a terrorized cow or gently cradle a baby. Hands that could map a woman’s body, make her feel cherished and wild at the same time.

  “Let’s get out of here so we don’t wake the baby.”

  She nodded and walked by his side to the living room.

  Brice tossed another log onto the fire, watching as sparks showered and sucked up the flue. His heart was pounding and his throat felt as though it was closing up. Out of habit he started to open the window, then realized he didn’t need that anymore. The closed-in feelings were gone; the panic that he’d always been holding at bay had disappeared.

  In its place was a different sort of panic. What if Madison didn’t return his feelings? Or what if she did, but she couldn’t stay, couldn’t handle the life-style?

  Firelight reflected off her round glasses. Her hair shone like a yellow ray of sunshine.

  Sunshine.

  That’s what she’d brought into his life.

 
; “Did I thank you for saving my life?”

  A small dimple creased her cheek when she smiled. God, why hadn’t he noticed that before? He wanted a lifetime to learn about her, to not miss a single detail.

  “Well, you were pretty busy hollering at me for taking your plane.”

  “I ought to be ashamed.”

  Her blond brows were raised above her glasses in that spunky way that made him want to grab her and kiss her and never let go.

  “Thank you, sunshine.”

  “Actually, you rescued me by delivering my baby, and I’m happy that I could return the favor.”

  He saw her twisting the wedding band on her finger. Just that simple gesture had adrenaline pumping his heart into a frenzy, and he was across the room in three strides, his hands gripping her shoulders.

  “Damn it, I don’t want gratitude, and I don’t want a score card of favors to return.”

  In contrast to his outburst, her words were nearly a whisper. “What do you want, Brice?”

  He dropped his hands, took a step back. “I want you to stay.” They were the hardest words he’d ever said. His voice was sandpaper rough, filled with stark emotion he didn’t even try to hide.

  “For how long?”

  “For as long as you want.”

  “Why?” she asked softly.

  He frowned. Here he stood with his heart in his hands and his pride on the floor and she asked him why? “What do you mean?”

  She eased closer, her blue eyes earnest as she stared up at him. “Exactly what I said. It’s a very simple question, Brice. Why do you want me to stay?”

  “Because you’re important to me.”

  “And?”

  “And what?”

  “Is that all?”

  He made a frustrated sound deep in his throat. “No. I want you to stay because I love you, damn it!”

  She blinked. And then she laughed. “Well. I don’t think I ever pictured a man shouting his feelings quite like this.”

  He stared at her as though appalled that she could laugh at such a time. Then his expression cleared and the corners of his mouth twitched. “Woman, you’re driving me crazy.”

  She smiled, liking the fact that she made him nuts. That was a good thing. “So, why haven’t you said so before? That you love me, I mean.”