Winning Over the Rancher

by Mary Brady

  KayLee gave him a lingering look before she said, “False labor.”

  “False labor? Not much help.” If it was not real labor, then why was she here? Was there something she wanted to tell him but couldn’t with Holly in the room?

  He must have appeared as concerned as he felt because Holly gripped his arm and grinned. “She’s okay, Baylor. The uterus contracts during pregnancy and toward the end those contractions can get rambunctious. They are normal and usually cause no harm.”

  He rubbed the back of his neck. “Cows are easier.”

  KayLee and her baby were okay. He wanted to take her in his arms and hold her. Not sure he could trust himself at all, he took a step away.

  “What’s the plan?” Holly asked.

  “I’m to stay until Dr. DeVane checks me again.” She gave him a quick glance.

  “Is there anything I can get you?” Holly asked her.

  KayLee let her gaze pass over him again and then smiled at Holly. “I’d like some decaf coffee if there’s any around.”

  Holly pursed her lips and gave Baylor a long, appraising look. Then she turned her appraisal on KayLee. Then back to him. He could see her collating data and then try very hard not to laugh out loud. When she was dismally unsuccessful, she raced from the room.

  “Coffee, it is,” she called over her shoulder as she ran.

  “Subtlety, that’s the quality I like best about my sister-in-law.”

  “Technically, I’m not supposed to eat or drink anything until Dr. DeVane says I’m okay to go.”

  He folded his arms over his chest so he wouldn’t grab her up off the cart and hold her in his arms. “And Holly knows that.”

  KayLee nodded and reached a hand out to him. “I’m sure she does.”

  He wondered if he should be running for, if not his life, his freedom.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  WHEN BAYLOR CAME CLOSER to her again, KayLee took hold of his hand and studied him. He wore an old jacket, a work shirt, faded jeans and his old scuffed boots. He’s been torn away from his work at the ranch. For her.

  He had every reason to run the other way as fast as he could and here he was.

  “I’m so sorry I made such a lame request of Holly. I wanted to tell you Dr. DeVane says what we did yesterday didn’t cause the baby any harm.”

  He leaned a thigh on the edge of the exam table, where she sat propped up and wrapped in multiple blankets. His concern had changed to a look of bemusement. “What did we do yesterday?”

  “Well, what you did.” She tugged the sheet up under her chin. “I was an innocent bystander.”

  He gave the sheet several gentle tugs. “They must have a different definition of innocent bystander in California than we have here in Montana. By our standards you might be some sort of outlaw.”

  “Maybe—” She tucked her fingers inside the edge of his belt and tugged.

  When he leaned down and kissed her she welcomed his lips with an open mouth. When she wanted more, she tugged his belt through the buckle.

  He broke the kiss and straightened.

  “Hey!” He engulfed her hand in his to keep her from exploring. “Do you want me to have to take my shirt off and tie it around my waist?”

  “You could do that. I wouldn’t mind.”

  He reached for the top button.

  “No! Stop!” It was her turn to grab his hand. “Holly is a sweetheart. She doesn’t deserve to come back in here and find her brother-in-law half-naked.”

  “She is a sweetheart.” He lowered his hand and tucked his thumbs into the pockets of his faded jeans. “She called you one of us.”

  KayLee swallowed at the sudden tightness in her throat.

  “So what do you think?” he asked.

  “About?” She knew he was trying to lighten her mood.

  He picked up her restless free hand and kissed her fingertips as he talked. “Are we some kind of—” He sucked her thumb into his mouth and swirled his tongue around it and then he grinned up at her. She jerked her hand away and stuck it under the sheet. “Space monsters in costume,” he continued, “and you already have your bags packed ’cause your gettin’ outta town as soon as you’re released?”

  She didn’t answer, but held a pose of contemplation. “I admit. You all scared me at first.”

  “If you want to leave I can call you a taxi,” he offered.

  “Can’t afford a taxi,” she said in her best gangsta voice, “until the check from the Shadow Range clears the bank and then I’ll take a limo.”

  Someone knocked and she sat up straight. Baylor took a step away from the bed as the door opened.

  “No luck.” Holly quite purposefully avoided looking at the two of them as she pretended the sheet around KayLee’s feet needed rearranging. “The coffeepot was dry.”

  “Thanks for worrying about me, Holly, Baylor.”

  Holly shrugged. “It’s what we do for each other.”

  “We—baby and I—” KayLee patted her stomach through the blankets “—don’t have many in our corner these days.”

  Holly smiled encouragingly at her. “You have more people rooting for you than you think. Cora and Ethel are in the waiting room. They said to tell you if there is anything they can do for you, just to ask.”

  “They’re so kind.”

  “They are and their place is a steal, even by St. Adelbert standards. And Rachel Taylor stopped by and said to tell you Taylor’s Pharmacy will deliver anything you need, just call.”

  “It’s like a village in a storybook.”

  There was another knock and Dr. DeVane and nurse Abby entered.

  “If you’d wait in the waiting room.” She spoke to Holly and Baylor, but she smiled at KayLee.

  The Doyles departed quickly.

  Dr. DeVane’s smile made it all the way up to her light brown eyes. “How are you feeling?”

  “Still pregnant and relieved.”

  “Good.” She placed reassuring hands on KayLee’s belly and applied light pressure. “Any more discomfort?”

  “No.”

  “I’d like you to come into the clinic tomorrow and then every week from now on.”

  “So everything’s okay? I can go now?”

  “You can get dressed and Abby will have some instructions and some phone numbers for you. Is there anything else I can do for you?”

  A tear slipped from the corner of KayLee’s eye. “Thank you for seeing me and being so nice.”

  “See you tomorrow.” Dr. DeVane smiled again and left the room.

  “Do you need any help?” Abby asked when the two of them were alone.

  “Yes, I do have a problem, but I’m afraid there’s nothing for it.”

  Abby grinned. “If you move in at Cora and Ethel’s, you’ll be my neighbor and we can discuss your problem. He’s a friend of mine.”

  MONDAY MORNING, a week after she had arrived in St. Adelbert, KayLee stood at the front window of the charming apartment on the second floor of Cora and Ethel’s house. The roomy apartment took up the whole second floor of the house and that made it so un-California like, but very like the village in Wisconsin where she had grown up.

  A separate entrance leading to a stairway to the second floor meant she could see the sisters if she chose when she returned home, or not, if she wanted to be alone. It truly was a great arrangement.

  It had taken her very little time to be convinced living with the sisters was the right thing to do. She had needed a safe place to learn to trust her body again and this ruffle-curtained place with the 1950s furniture and flowered carpet was as safe as she’d found in a long time.

  Her new landladies were the fountain of information they claimed to be. Amy and Seth Doyle’s son, Trey, was doing very well, and KayLee had to admit knowing this gave her great peace. She also found out that Mr. McCormack, the rude man from the diner, had left town for rehab in Missoula, and the drugstore was going to have a huge sale next week so she should wait for those kinds of purchases if she could.


  She pulled the ruffled living-room curtain aside and looked out onto the porch roof and street below. Holly would be there in a few minutes to take her shopping “at the best places” in Kalispell, she had said. KayLee would take the opportunity, and she hoped they would have time to introduce herself in person to some of the suppliers she had already contacted.

  When her mobile phone twittered, she answered based on the caller ID. “Hi, Mom. Good to hear from you.”

  “You’re in Montana, your message said. Is that a good idea?” her mother asked. There usually was never a hello.

  “I am and I see you’re back in Wisconsin. And if by ‘good idea’ you mean for the baby, we’re both doing quite well. How long have you been home?”

  “I get tired of the crowds sometimes. So what’s in Montana?”

  “A design and construction job.”

  Her mother laughed. “I just pictured you on a ladder with a hammer.”

  “Very funny. I hire that kind of stuff out these days.” And she always had. And her mother knew it. “So are you alone or is Dad with you?”

  “That’s another reason I left. Your father showed up with the love of his life.”

  “Sorry, Mom. I know you never quite gave up.”

  “I like to punish myself. You must be due in a few weeks.”

  “Five and change if the doctor’s calculations are correct.”

  “You got people there to back you up?”

  “Are you volunteering, Mom?”

  “I would, but I’ve got a thing I just started and I need the money.”

  It was KayLee’s turn to laugh. “I know that one. And, yes, I have people here.” She thought of the sisters downstairs, Holly who had stopped after work to check up on her twice since the visit to Dr. DeVane’s clinic, and Baylor. He’d do whatever was right—for anybody.

  She had final drawings worked out for him to sign off on. She was going to have to see him soon whether that was good for either of them or not.

  “Well, speaking of that thing. I have to get going.”

  “Wait, Mom.”

  “I’m here.”

  “I just wanted to say I love you.”

  “Love ya, too. If you need anything…”

  “Yeah, Mom. I know.” I know you’d like to want to help. Her mother wasn’t a bad soul.

  The phone line went dead. Her mother did love her, the best she knew how, anyway. She closed her phone, tucked it back in her purse and looked out the window again.

  No Holly yet.

  She checked over her lists, one of what she wanted to acquire while in Kalispell, and the other named the people she wanted to meet with regarding building supplies.

  When she glanced up this time and saw the ranch SUV round the corner and head up the street toward the house, she couldn’t help but remember the reassuring headlights in her review mirror. Today, it would be Holly at the wheel.

  The truck stopped, then backed into the driveway, and Baylor got out. The shock of seeing him had her heart beating faster and her mind racing. Kalispell with Baylor.

  He went around to the back of the SUV and opened the tailgate. She couldn’t see what he was doing, but when he came back into sight he was carrying a baby crib and a changing table. He put them on the porch and went back for a high chair, a stroller and a baby swing. By the time he went back for the third load, Cora and Ethel were on the porch collecting things and bringing them upstairs.

  KayLee hurried to let them in. “I can help.”

  The women blocked her way. “Let us do this for you. It’ll make us happy,” Cora said, and Ethel bobbed her head in agreement.

  By the time they were finished carrying things in, she also had a portable crib, a box of baby toys, a diaper pail, a large stack of small diapers and three boxes of tiny clothing and linens.

  “Wow,” she said as she surveyed the stuff. “I can throw one of my lists away.”

  She thanked each of the women, who insisted there was someplace they needed to go and split.

  “Are you ready?” Baylor asked when he came upstairs with one more thing—a multicolored mobile that had been assembled and was ready to hang.

  “I am. Holly’s not coming?” A rush of anticipation told her all her weekend rationalization was about to be trashed.

  “Said she wanted to spend time with her children now that the calving is nearly finished and we don’t have to worry about Trey anymore.”

  “How are things in Helena?” She needed to know the answer to this question, but she had others she wanted to ask, like, “Are you still hot for me?” and “Will you do me now?” And then she told herself fiercely to behave.

  “Trey’s been recovering from his surgery quickly. Doctors are happy, so Seth says they will all be coming home sometime this week.”

  “That is good news.” She grabbed the ranch jacket and her leather bag and hurried outside to let the fresh air help clear her mind about what this trip could mean for her and Baylor. It was a buying trip, that’s what it was.

  At the first store in Kalispell Baylor took the coat she was trying on for fit and hung it back on the rack. “Don’t bother.”

  “Why? Am I going back to California?” Sitting beside him all the way here and not touching him had nearly killed her. If she was leaving, she wasn’t going without a fight.

  “Only if you sneak away in the middle of the night. There are coats, hat and gloves enough for an army at the ranch. If you want something besides four buckle overshoes, get boots.”

  “You’re right. They’re very Goth. I kind of like them.”

  “And now—” he put an arm around her shoulder and put his lips next to her ear “—unless you have some in that leather bag of yours, get underwear and a toothbrush and whatever you need to spend the night here.”

  “Cora and Ethel are expecting me back today. What will I tell them? Given what happened last week, if I don’t show up, they’ll send a posse after me.”

  “Make a couple of appointments for tomorrow and tell them you have to stay.”

  “You have things all planned out.”

  He nodded.

  “I like the way you think.”

  He nodded again. This time he added several eyebrow flicks.

  They didn’t shop or explore lumber and supplies for long. The motel they checked into was much newer than the Easy Breezy Inn, but KayLee honestly wouldn’t have cared.

  When she came out of the bathroom, Baylor was sitting on the edge of the bed looking darkly pensive.

  She stopped beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. “What?”

  “I guess I should have told you this earlier, before I talked you into staying the night with me.” She sat on the bed next to him and he continued. “I don’t plan on staying in the valley. I have a job lined up in Denver.”

  Okay, so it was true. “It’s hard to imagine you off the ranch.”

  “I’ll be managing several ranches outside of Denver, but I’ll most likely live in the city.”

  “Oh. Won’t your horse miss you?” She couldn’t even think of anything sane to say.

  “I’ll take Blue Moon with me.”

  “The cowboy takes his horse—of course.” It occurred to her in that instant if he asked her to come with him, she’d have a terrible choice to make. She had found a safe place to bear her child and a village of people to fall in love with. Not to mention, she had a job and she had promised to be there until the construction was completed.

  “I wanted you to know. I wanted to be fair. I won’t leave until I’m sure everything is going well with the construction project.”

  She scooted closer to him, until the length of her thigh was pressed to his, and reached up to kiss his mouth.

  There had been no mention of “come away with me” or “happily ever after,” but she was a grown-up. She knew he didn’t want her any less than she did him. That was all that mattered for right now.

  She kissed his neck, behind his ears and down his throat until he
groaned and pulled her onto his lap.

  Soon they were naked and she was showing him she wanted to make love with him until he disappeared from her life and she’d find a way to live without him.

  She hoped he got the message.

  A few hours later they were making their way up and down the aisles of the indoor lumberyard checking types and quality of wood. He stayed at her side, not touching her, but driving her mad anyway.

  “I never thought of the lumberyard as sexy before,” she said as she climbed down off a low pile of lumber she had stepped up on to closely inspect the wood behind it.

  Baylor pulled her behind a stack of two-by-fours and pressed her against him as he kissed her over and over.

  She pushed back in his arms. “I’ve got work to do. My customers are counting on me.”

  When a store employee came around the corner, ostensibly to examine the ends of the lumber stack, but more likely to see what they were up to, she smiled at the man. Baylor quickly let her go, then she took his arm and they strolled away, trying to look casual as they struggled to keep their hands off each other.

  They checked out stain colors, examined and compared roofing materials that would work best in Montana’s weather, found an expert woodworker in need of a job and found several types of nonpolluting fireplaces and stoves for keeping the cabins warm for the cross-country skiers and winter snugglers.

  Outside the fireplace and stove store, Baylor put his lips next to KayLee’s ear. “It must be time to get back to the hotel.”

  “Got a TV show you want to watch?”

  “I’ll give you a show.”

  “I’ve got an appointment in just over an hour with the manager of Bullet Lumber, but I need food first.”

  “I could eat.”

  “How about eating at the Umbrella Room?”

  “Sounds fancy. Do you have enough time?”

  She grinned and pointed.

  On the corner of the street, flaunting the melting snow all around him, stood a street vendor—the hot dog guy. With a large red umbrella opened over the cart.

  “Ah, the Umbrella Room.”

  “I’ll see if we can get reservations.”