“That Will, he’s such a wonderful man.”
“Yes, he’s been great. Anyway, they liked my résumé and I had a phone interview with them a little while ago. Just thought I’d give you a heads-up. I know you were worried about me. I was worried about me, but now it looks like things might straighten out.”
“So if you get the position, you’ll be moving back to Seattle soon?”
“Well, yes. But the job doesn’t start until the first of the year.”
“That’s wonderful. Dad and I were planning on taking a few weeks to visit you. You just tell us when it’s convenient and we’ll be there. We can do one of those duck tours. I hear they’re fun.”
“Yeah, they are. And I’d love seeing you and Dad.”
“Wonderful. So, are you still enjoying Texas?”
Thunder clapped overhead, an insanely loud smack that shook the house. Her thoughts immediately flashed to Dan out there somewhere, in this awful weather.
“My goodness, what was that?”
“Thunder. It’s raining pretty hard here, but don’t worry, I’m inside.”
“Well, I hope so, Erin.” It was her mom’s way of giving a warning, using her name in that particular tone.
After a few minutes of catching up, Erin ended the call and glanced at her watch. Dan, whom she didn’t mention to her mother, still wasn’t back and it had been nearly thirty minutes. Erin’s heart began to race. Every second that ticked by gnawed at her gut. Where was he?
* * *
Inside the stable, Dan grabbed his left arm and applied pressure to the thick slash as blood seeped through his fingers. He looked at the wound and decided he’d live. He’d sustained much worse in his time on the ranch. That last bout of thunder scared Suzette silly and the mare reared back, slamming him into the pronged side of the gate latch. The latch cut through the thick cloth of his coat and ripped his skin.
His arm burning like a son of a bitch, he gave the area one last glance around. He’d done all he could to secure the horses in their paddocks, making sure they had enough feed and water to sustain them through the storm, and then exited the stable. Instantly, rain pelted him in large hard drops. He kept pressure on his arm and made a run for it, heading for the house. The distant sound of sirens reached his ears and he stopped midstride to make sure it wasn’t just the bellowing of the wind causing the ruckus. Nope, he hadn’t been wrong. It was a tornado siren.
Dan continued on, making his way into the house. He found Erin there, at the back door with her jacket and boots on, looking guilty. He’d caught her red-handed, ready to come looking for him. He was too damn glad to see her to get mad at her. There was no time for anger, just action.
“Get your bag, Erin. We have to get into the bunker. The tornado siren is going off.”
“I hear it but, Dan, your arm? You’re hurt.”
“It’s nothing. Do as I say. We need to get going.”
Within a few seconds, they were heading outside to the back end of the house and going down a flight of steps into the darkness illuminated only by his flashlight.
“Hang on a minute,” Dan said, ignoring the pain in his arm. He scurried around and found two battery-powered lanterns. A flip of the switch and they were lighting the space about the size of his parlor.
“Dan,” Erin said, her voice a little wobbly. “This place is fully equipped, right?”
“Yep, you’ll be safe here. We’ve got everything from food to first aid kits.”
“Well, then, sit down,” she said, pointing to one of three cots along the wall. “And show me where the first aid kit is?”
“Over there, in that tall cabinet against the wall.” He plunked down on a cot.
It was frigid down here, something Dan could soon remedy with a battery-operated room heater and thermal blankets.
Erin found what she needed and came to sit beside him, setting the supplies down on the cot. Nimbly and with care, she helped him remove his jacket and gasped aloud as soon as she caught sight of the wound from beneath his ripped shirtsleeve.
“Sweetness, it’s not that bad.”
Her eyes lifted to his, sympathy and worry marring her pretty face. Clearly, she didn’t believe him. “I’m so sorry you got hurt.”
“It’s just a cut.”
“It’s more than a cut.” She sorted through her ammo of bandages, antiseptic and creams and suddenly her breath caught. “I think this is going to sting.”
She soaked the cotton balls in antiseptic. “I have to clean this up. I hope you’re up on your tetanus shots.”
“I am, and have at it. I’m a big boy.”
She didn’t look amused. Her face contorted as she dabbed at his wound. “You okay?” She looked deep into his eyes.
“Fine.”
“You know it doesn’t reflect on your manliness if you admit it hurts.”
“It hurts.” He smiled through the gut-wrenching stinging. Erin always delved deeper. She always wanted to bring out more of him. He didn’t like to show the vulnerable side of himself. But lately...
“Sorry about this,” she said, continuing to cleanse the wound.
“There’s a butterfly bandage in there. When you’re finished, put that on and that should do it.”
She nodded. “I could’ve never gone into nursing.”
Dan disagreed. “You would’ve made a good one. You’re compassionate.”
“I’m a wimp when it comes to someone I care about.”
Dan let that sink in. He was already in too deep with Erin, but that wasn’t stopping him any. No, she was like a pleasant addiction and if he was being honest, it wasn’t just about sex anymore. He was constantly reminding himself that this thing with Erin had to be temporary.
“You’re doin’ just fine,” he told her.
Gently, Erin put the butterfly bandage in place and then began wrapping his arm with a long piece of gauze.
“There,” she said, staring at her handiwork. But every so often, her eyes would dip down to his bare chest and he tried like hell not to smile.
“Feels better already. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I’m goin’ to be fine, Erin.” He got up from the cot and walked over to one of the three cabinets lining the wall. In one, he found a white T-shirt and walked it back to the cot. “Help me put this on?” he asked.
“Of course.”
He put the shirt over his head and she helped ease the sleeve over his sore arm. “You know I’m injured when I’m asking you to help me put my clothes back on.”
She laughed. “I think I do. Why don’t you lie down and get comfortable?”
“Don’t mind if I do.” He grabbed a thermal blanket out of a cabinet and sank down onto the cot. “Join me and I’ll keep you warm.”
“I have no doubt,” she said.
He took up most of the narrow cot, but he opened his good arm and she curled up next to him. He breathed in the scent of her hair, rain fresh with a hint of something flowery and while a violent storm raged outside, all seemed peaceful in their little nook of the world.
* * *
Erin woke to her stomach growling. Embarrassed, she grasped her belly, hoping to quiet down the noise. Dan had dozed beside her, his face tranquil now, as she watched him sleep. It felt eerie in the dimly lit shelter. She wouldn’t want to be in there alone, that was for sure. Having Dan next to her kept her calm. Outside the winds still howled, but the storm pounding the earth earlier seemed to have let up.
Her tummy rumbled again. Dang it. She didn’t want to disturb Dan’s rest. Untangling herself from Dan’s good arm, and easing off her part of the blanket, she sat up on the cot. Cool air struck her skin and goose bumps rose up on her arms. But it wasn’t enough of a deterrent to make her curl back under the blanket a
nd risk waking Dan with her very loud hunger pangs.
She planted her feet on solid ground and then tiptoed toward the cabinets and quietly opened each door until she found the mother lode of survival foods. Scanning over the well-equipped stash, she noted most Mylar food packages required boiling water. Delving farther inside, she came up with a box filled with packets of banana chips. Ugh, not a fan. All she wanted was a snack, something to quiet her noisy stomach pains. And then she remembered she’d brought her purse down there.
She scrambled to the floor and sifted through all the items in her bag, finally coming up with two foil packages of vanilla-flavored teething biscuits. She had kept a supply for Faye tucked in the bowels of her purse, never knowing when the baby would need them. Often, Erin would eat them along with her. They were actually pretty tasty.
She sat on the floor, unpeeled the foil wrapper and dug in, remembering her times with Faye. It was just a month ago that she’d been her nanny, happy to have a job and a little one to watch over. It could very well be that Erin would have a little one of her own to care for. She wouldn’t know until she got up the nerve to take the pregnancy test she’d brought home the other day. She just wanted to give it a little more time. She didn’t want her relationship with Dan to be defined by what she found out in that test.
She had time. There was no sense in panicking or getting ahead of herself.
“You hogging that cookie all for yourself?” Dan’s voice shattered the silence.
“Dan!” She hadn’t heard him get up. He scooted next to her on the floor. “You’re awake. How’s your arm?”
“Better.”
She gazed into his deep blue eyes and couldn’t tell if he was telling the truth. “Really?”
“Yep.”
Okay, she’d have to take him at his word.
“You didn’t answer my question,” he said, a teasing glint in his eyes. “You’re holding out on me. Got any more of those cookies?”
She lifted the cookie to his face. “Yes. One more package.”
“You sharing?”
“These are baby teething cookies, Dan.”
“You’re eating them,” he said. “They must be good.”
“They are, and of course I’ll share them with you. On one condition.”
Dan’s brows rose in question.
“You tell me three things about your childhood that I don’t already know.”
He pulled back. “That’s three conditions.”
“True, but that’s the deal.” She waved the cookie by his nose again and he eyed it as if it was the most delicious melted chocolate-chip cookie in the world.
“I don’t like to talk. Never did. Ever since I was a kid, I found myself relating more to animals than humans.”
“That’s one, although I really did figure that out about you already. Two more to go.”
“My favorite color is aqua, a combination of blue and green that’s rare and brilliant,” he said, staring straight into her eyes.
“Um, that doesn’t count,” she whispered, melting a little bit inside. Dan was paying her a compliment. “Favorites aren’t part of the deal.”
He smiled and the warmth of his palm touched her face. “You making up the rules as you go, sweetness?”
“Maybe I am.”
“Then maybe after all this, you’re gonna owe me.”
“What? A cookie?”
A gleam entered his eyes and suddenly they weren’t talking about food anymore. “That too.” As thrilling as that prospect was, she really did want him to share more with her about his life.
“Tell me,” she whispered.
He put his head down, shaking it, and then lifted his lids to hers, his incredible blue eyes meeting hers, and in that exact moment, she knew he was ready to speak about his past. He cleared his throat and began, “My mother left us a week before Christmas. I was ten. It was hardest on me, because I was the oldest and really understood what that meant to our family. I spent a lot of time in the stables with the horses. But then I would come into the house and see my dad sitting in his chair, staring into space, and I knew we hadn’t just lost our mom, but our father too. He was never the same after my mother left. He didn’t rally. He didn’t hug us and tell us it was all going to be okay. He was shell-shocked and broken. I helped raise Chelsea and Bradley. Dad sort of let me do it, giving me reign over them, because he couldn’t cope with three children. He couldn’t deal with the ranch, the family and the heartache.”
“Do you know why your mother left?” she asked softly. She couldn’t imagine it. And she didn’t know if Dan would give her an answer, but every revelation helped her understand him better. His retreat into himself, the solace he found in animals.
“I didn’t know why for a long time. But years later, before my father passed, he admitted that our mother had never really loved him. She’d never wanted a family. She was too free a spirit to be tied down. Dad said despite knowing that about her, he thought he could make her happy. They married young and he thought he had all the time in the world. That didn’t ever happen. The old memories I had of my mom are tarnished by what I’ve learned about her from my father. She’s off somewhere, traveling the world on her own terms. She never remarried, but has a cluster of friends she moves with.”
Erin saw through the shield he put up to hide his pain. It was real. It was potent and very sad. “Have you spoken to her since she left?”
“No.”
Erin took his hand and squeezed, connecting them, trying to absorb some of his pain. She was extremely close to her parents. They had a great relationship and even though Erin didn’t see them on a regular basis, they were always there for her, whenever she needed them. There was something to be said about knowing deep down in your heart that your folks had your back, always. And Dan never had that. Her heart broke for that little boy, carrying the weight of his family on his shoulders.
“Dan, come with me. I have something better to give you than a cookie.”
She rose, tugged him up and led him over to the cot. Rain drizzled now, and from what she could hear outside, the major part of the storm had passed. But there was something else this shelter could give them, besides safety. And she was bound and determined to show Dan exactly what that was.
Seven
Two days later, Erin glanced out her bedroom window to a deep blue sky. The dark clouds that had hovered overhead for days were gone, and now beautiful white cloud puffs let the sunshine through. Everything outside had dried, the grass christened by rain grew greener, the leaves on the oak trees wavered in the breeze and the dark pounded earth was that rich deep red-brown again.
The storm that raged had left flooded streets especially in the flatlands and that included most of Royal, but there were no deaths and no major structural damage to the buildings and schools and roadways. Yes, there were more potholes on the streets, and some windows got blown out and a small section of town lost power for a short time, but for the most part, Royal weathered the storm pretty well.
We got lucky this time, Dan had said, after the storm had passed.
It touched her deeply that Dan had sought her out and made sure she was safe during the storm. He had a protective streak a mile long. She saw it in the way he’d wanted to find Maverick and make the guy pay for his crimes, and she saw it in the way he gathered up stray animals, bringing them into the safety of his home. What she didn’t know was, how he felt about her. Did he lump her into his “stray” category, consider her someone who needed protection from fake bulls and torrential storms? Or did he care for her more deeply?
He hadn’t shared any of his feelings with her. And it was beginning to really bug her. So much so, she was through trying to hide behind her fears. She had to confront her situation head-on. There were too many unknowns in her life.
Did she have a job? She’d had a phone interview with an administrator of Lincoln Elementary, but hadn’t heard a word yet about the outcome.
Was she leaving Texas after the holidays? One way or another, she pretty much had to, didn’t she?
And most important of all, was she going to have a baby? Dan’s baby.
She hadn’t gotten up the nerve to take a pregnancy test yet.
She trembled at the thought of being pregnant. What would Dan’s reaction be? He made no bones about how he spent his life as a loner, a man who didn’t make relationship commitments. A man who while in the quiet shell of the bunker yesterday, spoke sobering words of honesty, revealing the terrible pain of his childhood. She couldn’t imagine growing up without a mom and dad supporting her, guiding her, loving her. No child should go through that instability and heartache.
“Oh, Dan,” she whispered against the windowpane.
Her phone buzzed and she walked to her nightstand to pick it up. It wasn’t Dan as she’d hoped, but it was someone she’d wanted to speak with, someone she was expecting. “Hello, Mrs. Lawrence. Yes, this is Erin Sinclair.”
“Well, I hope I have good news for you. You are our first choice to be Lincoln Elementary School’s new musical director. We’d love to have you on board.”
Erin slid her eyes closed. This was what she wanted, it really was, but accepting this position meant leaving Texas. It meant leaving Dan. She had always planned on leaving, but now it was official and she needed a job. This job would allow her to do the two things she loved doing most, playing music and teaching children. It was a win-win.
“Thank you. I’m very happy to accept the position.”
“Well, then, welcome to the staff of Lincoln Elementary.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Lawrence.”
“It’s Shelly. We’re not formal here at Lincoln.”
“That’s, well, it’s perfect.”
“We’ll see you after the first of the year for a day of orientation. I’ll be sure to send you all the necessary papers in the meantime. Just send them back in the mail when you’re through.”
The Texan Takes a Wife Page 10
