by Lori Foster
“Hard men are usually sensitive men.”
Misty snorted over that bit of nonsense. “Morgan is about as blunt as they come. He always tells me what he’s thinking or feeling, even if it embarrasses me to death.”
Honey looked at the sky and pondered that. “Well, then, don’t you think you owe him the same courtesy?”
She shuddered at just the thought. “I’m a horrible coward. Morgan’s made it clear from the first that he’s attracted to me. But that’s all.”
“How can you say that?” Honey frowned at her. “Morgan’s done everything he could to keep you close by. He even made up that ridiculous story about the two of you having an agreement.”
“You knew that wasn’t real?”
Honey smiled. “It was plain on your face.”
Bemused for a moment, Misty wondered if all his brothers had known he was just making up their involvement. Then she shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. He kept me here because he was trying to take care of me—whether I wanted him to or not. He does that for everyone, Honey.” She turned to face her sister, wanting her to understand. “Morgan is about the most giving, caring man I’ve ever met. That’s why being a sheriff is so perfect for him. He loves taking care of other people’s problems. He’s a natural caregiver—though he’d choke if he heard me say that, and probably frown something fierce. He tries to hide his gentleness behind a big tough exterior.”
Honey waved that away. “I know. But still—”
“No. If he loved me, surely he would have said so.”
“Will you at least think about it? Maybe he’s not quite as tough or as confident as you think he is.”
The idea of Morgan being insecure would take some getting used to, but to appease her sister, she agreed to think it over. What would Morgan say if she blurted out that she loved him? Would he be embarrassed? Would he lie and say he loved her, too, just to keep her from embarrassment? She closed her eyes, not sure at all what his reaction would be.
“I was looking for you for another reason, too.”
Honey’s serious tone pulled Misty out of her contemplation. “What’s wrong?”
After a deep breath, Honey said, “Father wants to visit us. He called a few minutes ago.”
That was the very last thing Misty had expected to hear. Incredulous, she stared at her sister. “You must be kidding.”
“Unfortunately…no.”
Misty narrowed her eyes. “He wants to come here? To Kentucky?”
“Yes. That’s what he said. I’m supposed to call him back and tell him when it’d be convenient.”
A summons from her father wouldn’t have thrown her so badly. But a visit? It didn’t make any sense. Unless… “What are we being accused of now? Is he mad about something?” Then a horrid thought intruded. “Oh, God. He found out I’d been arrested, didn’t he?”
“I don’t think so. Actually, he told me he wants to meet my husband. Sawyer is afraid he’s going to bring up his will again, and you can just imagine how that’d go over.”
Misty nodded. All her life, her father had claimed to want a son to carry on the family name. Since their mother had died without giving him one, he’d decided that Honey, as the oldest child, would have to supply a husband to fill the role of masculine heir.
Sawyer had flatly refused to accept anything from him. And their father had been peeved ever since. He hadn’t even attended the wedding.
“Father said he was intrigued by the notion of men who would blindly turn down money and power. When I mentioned to him that he should have come to the wedding, he actually said he regretted missing it. Can you believe that?”
“Uh…no.”
Honey softened her tone. “He also said he was worried about you.”
“Since when?” Misty couldn’t help but feel bitter over her last conversation with her father. He’d been very disappointed that she’d gotten pregnant, and he hadn’t bothered to try to hide that disappointment.
“Here’s what I think.” Honey pulled her feet from the water and stood, then looked at Misty. “I think I’m so happy that I don’t mind hearing him out, seeing what he has to say. Sawyer told me that not everyone is as capable of expressing love as we are. He asked me about Father’s upbringing, our grandparents, and you know, I think he might be on to something there. Father was always a cold, detached man, just as his parents were and as they expected him to be. After Mom died, he was all alone. That couldn’t have been easy for him, Misty. I’m not saying we have to be all loving and hugging.” She shuddered, then laughed. “That would be too weird after all this time. But I’d at least like to make my peace with him. And you’re going to be giving him a grandchild. Maybe he’ll look at things differently, but either way, I want to know that I gave our relationship every chance.”
Honey walked away, leaving Misty to think things over. True, her father had never been the type to hug or even give a quick compliment. But he’d made certain they were always well dressed and well fed, and they’d never wanted for anything material. Just the fact that he wanted to meet Sawyer and the brothers showed a bending on his part, a sort of olive branch. She supposed it wouldn’t hurt to listen to him.
As she walked up to the house, dodging stones on the ground and the occasional bee feasting on clover, she smiled. She couldn’t begin to imagine her father’s reaction to the brothers. They were overwhelming and dominating and they spoke their minds without hesitation.
Her father would be in for a surprise.
EARLY the next morning, Morgan stared at his bedroom ceiling, a habit that had replaced sleeping in the past few days. No matter how hard he worked, no matter how he exhausted himself, he couldn’t sleep. He was so damn tired he could barely see straight, but when he closed his eyes, all he could think of was Misty.
Hell, even with his eyes open, she was all he could think of. He alternated between fantasies of making love to her until she begged him to marry her and throttling her for turning down his proposal in the first place. Not that he would ever really hurt her, he thought with disgust. Hell, no.
There was one bright side to all his recent labors; his house was done. He could now move in and live in comfort—and solitude. But he didn’t want to. He’d come to think of the house with Misty in it. Without her, it didn’t seem complete no matter what he did to it.
Sawyer was right, he was a miserable bastard. He never should have given in to his needs. He should have avoided her instead of finding out for a fact how sweet she was, how right it felt to be inside her, holding her, talking with her, loving her. Now she was still here, a damn relative, and he had to look at her and know she was close, but she didn’t want him.
He closed his eyes and groaned.
Two seconds later his bedroom door flew open and bounced off the wall. Morgan leaped out of bed, automatically reaching for his gun. The overhead light came on, nearly blinding him in the gray morning shadows, but showing his brother’s angry face clear as day. Sawyer stalked in, grabbed Morgan’s discarded jeans and flung them at him.
“Get dressed.”
Morgan began pulling on his pants without hesitation. It wasn’t often Sawyer issued commands that way. “What’s wrong?”
“You blew it, that’s what.”
He stumbled, his jeans only to his knees. “What the hell does that mean?”
“It means Misty is gone.”
Forget the elephant, it felt like his heart was smashed flat. Wheezing, a little light-headed, he asked, “Gone where?”
Sawyer jutted his chin toward Morgan and growled, “She left, Morgan. What did you expect her to do with you moping around, ignoring her, acting like she didn’t exist? I thought you loved her!”
Morgan dropped onto the edge of the bed. “I asked her to marry me,” he said, feeling numb. “She turned me down.”
“You must have misunderstood.”
Sawyer and Morgan both turned to see Jordan standing in the doorway. Morgan shook his head. “No, I asked and she flat
ly refused.”
Jordan crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. “I can tell she cares about you.”
Gabe walked in. “She’s crazy about him, if you ask me.”
“Oh, for the love of—” Morgan stood and finished pulling on his pants. “If that’s true, why wouldn’t she marry me?”
Honey pushed Gabe out of her way and glared at all of them. “Because she said you didn’t love her.”
“What?”
“She said you were just trying to take care of her, but without love, it wasn’t worth it.”
Morgan cursed so viciously that Gabe backed up and Jordan rolled his eyes. Sawyer pulled Honey protectively to his side. “Get a grip, Morgan. Are you going to go after her or not?”
His head shot up. “Go after her? When did she leave?”
Honey tapped her foot. “About two minutes ago.”
Before she had finished, Morgan had snapped his jeans, shoved his gun in his pocket and started out of the room. But his brothers had all congregated inside, blocking his path at the end of the bed, so he bounded over it instead, bouncing on the mattress as he dodged past them. He ran out the doorway, not bothering with a shirt or shoes. Gabe trotted after him, waving a shirt. “Wait! Don’t you want to finish dressing?”
Morgan ignored him, but he couldn’t ignore the loud guffaws from his other brothers. He snatched his keys from the peg by the back door and ran into the yard.
“Damn irritants,” he muttered, then winced as his bare feet came into contact with every sharp stone on the dew-wet grass. He slipped twice, but within thirty seconds he had the Bronco out, lights flashing and sirens blasting. When he caught up to her…
Morgan filled the time it took to get to town by plotting all the ways he’d set her straight.
She was in front of the sheriff’s office when he spotted her. She slowed when she noticed his flashing lights, and after a few seconds she pulled over.
Unfortunately, Ceily was just coming to the diner to start preparing the food, and she paused on the front stoop to watch as Morgan climbed out of the Bronco and slammed the door. Nate was at the station already, and he and Howard and Jesse also walked out to see what was happening. It wasn’t often that Morgan pulled anyone over with so much fanfare.
By the time he’d circled the front of the Bronco, Misty had already left her car. She gaped at him, then demanded, “What in the world is wrong with you? Has something happened?” She gazed at him from his shaggy hair, his bare chest, to his naked feet.
Morgan stomped up to her, ignoring the sting to his feet and the way the sidewalk was quickly beginning to crowd with curious onlookers. He hooked his hand around the back of her neck and drew her up to her tiptoes. “Where in hell do you think you’re going?”
She blinked at him. “I have to meet with my lawyer today.”
Morgan prepared to blast her with his wrath—and then her words sank in. “You’re not leaving?”
“Leaving, as in for good?”
He nodded.
“Why would you think that?”
He seriously considered going home and choking Sawyer. But first, he had a few things to straighten out. “You should have told me you were leaving.”
“You,” she said, beginning to show her own pique, “haven’t shown the slightest interest in talking to me lately!”
“Because I asked you to marry me and you had the nerve to say no.”
A loud gasp rose from their audience.
Morgan pretended he hadn’t heard them. “Do you know how many other women I’ve asked to be wife? Do you? None!”
“Well, I’m honored,” Misty sneered, then poked him in the chest and her own voice rose to a shout. “But I’m not marrying a man who doesn’t love me.”
He sputtered in renewed outrage. “Who the hell says I don’t love you?”
Misty caught her breath, panting, then said with deep feeling, her gaze intent, “Who says you do?”
Morgan growled, ran a hand roughly through his hair, then he picked her up. He held her at eye level and said, “Damn woman, I asked you to marry me! Why would I do that if I didn’t love you?”
Someone on the sidewalk—it sounded like Ceily—called out in a laughing voice, “Yeah, why would Morgan do that?”
Morgan jerked his head around to face them all. “Can’t you people find something to do?”
“No!” was the unanimous retort.
Morgan growled again. “Nate, arrest anyone who doesn’t scatter.”
Nate promptly looked dumbfounded. “Uh…”
Misty regained his attention by saying softly, “You just want to help me, like you helped that woman with the flat tire, and the dog, and the school kids and the elderly.”
Morgan walked to her car and plunked her down gently on the hood. He braced his hands on either side of her hips, then leaned in so close his nose touched hers. “Listen up, Malone. I didn’t ask the damn dog to marry me. I didn’t ask Howard or Jesse to marry me.”
Jesse shouted, “He’s speakin’ the truth there.”
Misty opened her mouth twice before she got words to come out. She spoke so softly, Morgan could barely hear her. “You said…you said you were looking for a wife.”
He gave a sharp nod. “You.”
“But…” Her voice faded to a shy whisper. “You said you wanted three children.”
“Three total.” His hand covered her belly, and he smiled. Breathing the words so no one else would hear, he explained, “This one and two more. I was trying to hint to you that I’d be a good father.”
“Oh, Morgan.” She cupped his face, and tears filled her eyes. “I already know you’d be an excellent father.”
He straightened and put his hands on his hips. “I swear, if you start crying again, Malone, I won’t like it.” He drew a breath and added, “Hell, it just about kills me to see you unhappy.”
She sniffed loudly. “I’m very happy.”
“So you won’t cry?”
“I won’t cry.”
A fat tear rolled down her cheek, making him sigh in exasperation. The woman was forever turning him in circles. But since she seemed in an agreeable mood for a change… “Tell me you’ll marry me.”
She nodded. “I’ll marry you.”
She started to put her arms around his neck, but he held her off. “Not so quick, Malone. I told you I love you. Don’t you have something to say to me?”
With everyone on the sidewalk cheering her on, she grinned around her tears and said, “Morgan Hudson, I love you so much it hurts.”
He scooped her into his arms for a fierce hug, then turned to the crowd, laughing out loud. “You heard her. Consider me an engaged man.” Then to Misty, “Damn. Do you think we have time for me to go home and get dressed before we go see your lawyer? I’d probably make a better impression that way.”
EPILOGUE
MORGAN HAULED MISTY into his lap after her father had left. She protested, saying, “No, Morgan, I’m too fat now!”
Three months had passed. She was rounded with the child growing inside her, but still so sexy he could barely keep his hands off her. Every day he loved her more.
He kissed her cheek and smiled. “I promise to bear up under the weight.”
Honey, a little subdued and cuddled up against Sawyer’s side, said, “Misty, you look wonderful. Not at all fat.”
Gabe laughed. “When I start looking like you two did, you’ll have to give me some pointers so I can find my own beauty.”
Sawyer blinked. “I wasn’t looking. That’s why Honey sort of…blindsided me.” Honey playfully punched him for that remark, making Sawyer laugh.
Shrugging, Morgan added, “I wasn’t looking, either.”
The feminine weight in his lap gasped over his statement. “What an outrageous clanker! You even told me you wanted a wife.”
Morgan shook his head. “That was just lip service. Sawyer seemed so tamed, I thought I should give it a try, too. But I wasn’t putting much effort into it,
not until I saw you.”
Gabe nodded. “As I said, they’re both gorgeous.”
“Looks don’t matter, Gabe.” He tilted Misty’s chin up and kissed her lips. “It was Misty’s mouthy bluster that reeled me in.”
Gabe made a face. “You can say that now.”
Jordan shook his head. “Your day will come, Gabe.”
“Ha! But not before yours, old man. If we’re going in order, you’re doomed.”
Jordan made a face at him. “If you keep using words like doomed, Misty or Honey are going to flatten you.”
Casey flopped down on the sofa. “So, Dad, what do you think about me visiting Mr. Malone?”
Morgan hid a smile. Mr. Malone had surprised them all. True, the man was so rigid he bordered on brittle. But he had made the effort to unbend a little more on each visit. His first had been horribly strained, but with all the ribald teasing going on, he could hardly stay puckered up indefinitely. This time, he’d actually kissed each daughter’s cheek.
And rather than trying to offer his money to Sawyer again, he’d asked—actually asked—if he could put a good portion of it in a trust for the baby. Morgan and Misty had discussed it, then agreed, as long as equal money was put in for each child either of the sisters had.
That had settled one problem, but then the man had fixated on Casey. All along, he’d seemed very impressed by Casey’s manners, his maturity, and within a few hours of this visit, he’d damn near adopted him as a pseudo heir. None of them were overly pleased by it, especially not Honey, but when the man had invited Casey to visit, to look over his enterprises, Casey had shown some interest.
Sawyer pursed his mouth, then hugged Honey closer so she wouldn’t protest. Morgan knew Honey hated to let Casey out of her sight. She had a hard time thinking of him as a young man, despite the fact he was exactly that. “I suppose we could all make a trip up there. If after that you want to hang around for a short visit, it’d probably be all right.”
“Great.” Casey didn’t seem overly enthusiastic either way, and when he said he had a date, Morgan understood why. The male brain had a hard time focusing when females were being considered.
