“I might believe that,” Jack said, “if all Dutch had done was try and liquidate his assets quickly or rent an apartment for himself that he’s never mentioned having, or met with a pretty blonde twenty years my mother’s junior a couple of times. But add all three things together…?”
Dutch had never seemed like a womanizer to Caroline. Diligently, she tried another tact. “For all we know these three things are connected and this young woman is a real estate broker who is working with Dutch on selling all his beachfront properties ASAP.”
Another gust of wind lifted the flap on the tent, and shook the fabric overhead.
Caroline slid off Jack’s lap. She spoke over her shoulder as she headed toward the exit for a look-see. “Listing a property involves a lot of paperwork and can be very time-consuming.”
Jack ambled after her. “Then why not tell us that he’s going off to meet a business contact? Or have that person come to the house to work with him while Maddie is in school?”
Caroline shrugged as fat drops of rain hit the ground in staccato bursts. “Maybe Dutch wanted privacy to conduct his financial transactions.” She swiveled around to face Jack as the sky grew ever darker and another burst of wind shook the tent. “Maybe he’s embarrassed he hasn’t been able to quickly divest himself of his business holdings on his own. Maybe your mother knows about this woman and the meetings and just hasn’t said anything to you because she doesn’t think it’s any of your business.” Caroline tilted her chin. “The bottom line is we already know Dutch is in a hurry to get out of the property rental and management business altogether so he can officially retire, just as your mother has, and not have to worry about it. So it figures—even if he’s not talking about it to us—that Dutch would be putting a lot of energy into making it happen, even from afar.”
Jack considered her point, looking as if he wanted to believe as Caroline did that a happily ever after was still possible for his long-widowed mother. “Then why not rent virtual office space—which is available on a month-to-month basis?” Jack countered, stubborn as ever. He searched Caroline’s eyes. “Why an apartment?”
There were many possible reasons, Caroline thought. She shrugged as a crack of lightning flared in the distance and caught their eyes. She turned to see what looked like a heavy rainstorm moving quickly across the plain. Gosh, those clouds were getting dark!
Knowing a tent was not a good place to weather the approaching electrical storm, Caroline grabbed Jack’s hand. As thunder rumbled in the distance and rain dampened their clothes, they dashed toward the safety of the luxury motor homes. “He’s older. He’s used to living alone. It’s possible he wanted a more comfortable place to work as well as a place where he could escape if life at your house got too hectic. And you have to admit, it can be a little lively there, with Maddie and Bounder, and your mom and you…especially if…” Caroline made a little joke as she opened the door and vaulted up the steps and inside “…Bounder catches sight of a rabbit.”
Pausing to acknowledge the memory of that unexpected calamity and others that were doubtless still to come, Jack followed her into the motor home. “Dutch has never behaved like bedlam bothered him. He’s acted as if he loved the commotion of our household, the same as you do!”
So Jack had noticed how easily she had blended into his family, Caroline thought happily as she went into the bath and came out with two hand towels. She handed one to Jack and used the other to blot the raindrops from her face. She wanted the joy she felt at being with Jack to spread to all aspects of their lives.
As they stood there, staring at each other, Caroline abruptly became aware of two things.
One, it sounded like the rain had completely stopped.
And two, it had gotten incredibly dark all of a sudden.
Almost as black as night.
And then they heard it, a roar like a train.
They swore simultaneously. Jack grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the motor home. A half a mile from them, a funnel cloud was hovering just above the fence line. And it was headed straight for the wedding site!
They swore again and took off for the ditch that ran along either side of the drive. Jack pushed her into it, and dove down on top of her, draping her with his length, holding her tight.
Caroline shut her eyes, praying, and the world slowed.
The noise grew deafening.
The ground trembled.
She and Jack were lifted slightly, set back down.
And then all grew silent once again.
WAS IT OVER? Jack wondered. It sure as heck seemed like it was. But then, right now he wasn’t sure of anything, except that beneath him Caroline was okay, and his heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would leap out of his chest. Taking his cue from the absence of wind and sound, Jack eased his weight off of Caroline slightly and lifted his head.
It was over, all right. And it was pouring down rain.
Jack pushed himself out of the ditch. Caroline followed suit, and with his help, struggled to her feet, too. She wrapped her arms around him. “Jack,” she said fiercely.
He hugged her back, just as hard, relishing the feel of her body, the knowledge she was safe from harm. Over the top of her head, Jack scanned their surroundings, taking note of what had happened, trying to make sense of everything he saw. It was easy to see where the tornado had touched down. It had kicked up sod and fence in a jagged line along the perimeter of the party ranch, but miraculously had changed course at the last minute and done only minor damage to the party tents. One rack of chairs had been upended and scattered across the lawn where the guests would be seated. The wedding arbor had been yanked out of the ground by the force of the wind and torn to bits as well, Jack noted grimly, thinking of the ceremony that was to take place in that exact spot the following day. But the motor homes, the portable restrooms, even the outdoor kitchen that had been set up for the caterers, all looked mostly untouched.
Caroline, however, still looked pretty badly shaken up, and her face and clothing were smudged with rain and dirt.
Jack wrapped his arm around her. He pressed a kiss on the top of her head. “Let’s get you inside.”
Once in the safety of the motor home, Caroline excused herself and slipped into the bathroom. He grinned as he heard her exclamation of dismay. Obviously, she’d caught sight of herself in the mirror.
Then frowned as he tried to turn on the lights, and got no response.
The tap turned on, then ten seconds later abruptly stopped.
Caroline came back out of the bathroom.
“There’s no water and the lights aren’t working.”
“The connections to the ranch power and water supply could have been knocked loose in the storm,” Jack theorized. Or it could be a larger problem…. “Let’s try the guest restrooms.”
They left the motor home and went to the luxury bathrooms trucked in for the occasion. Same result. They stepped back outside. The rain was still coming down, drenching everything in sight. Coming toward them was a familiar pickup truck. It stopped just short of them and the owner of Ted’s Party Ranch stepped out. Unlike them, he was clad in a yellow rain slicker, and looked none the worse for the calamity.
“Y’all okay?” the cowboy asked.
They nodded. “Except for the loss of power,” Jack said.
“Yeah, well.” Ted stroked his handlebar mustache and scraggly goatee. “That’s what I came to talk to you about. The power’s out. The storm took out a couple of towers between here and the station.”
“That sounds bad,” Caroline said.
Ted nodded. “It is. I just talked to the electric company. They’re saying it will be early next week before they can get the towers replaced and the lines back up.”
“Which is why the water’s out, too,” Jack surmised.
Caroline looked at him, perplexed.
“We’re on well water,” Ted explained. “Without electricity, the pumps won’t work. So, there’s no water. Without water, ther
e’s no way to provide for the facilities, not for three hundred people.”
Caroline scowled at Jack, her dreams for the perfectly planned and executed wedding fading fast. “If you say this is another sign…” Caroline warned Jack stonily.
She looked like she didn’t know whether to kick something in frustration or burst into tears, Jack noted sympathetically. And might just do both. There was only one way, Jack knew, to save the day. “Let me call the guys,” he said, ready, willing and able to be her hero once again. “And we’ll see what we can do.”
HALF AN HOUR LATER, help was on its way, and Dutch and Patrice were on the phone with Jack. “Thank heaven we found you!” Patrice said the moment Jack said hello via the speakerphone on his cell. “Dutch and I just saw the news report of the tornado that touched down in your area! Are you and Caroline all right?”
How long, Caroline wondered, since she’d had “family” worrying about her, checking up on her, making sure she was okay? How long since she’d felt part of something larger than just herself?
Jack wrapped his arm around Caroline’s shoulders and brought her in close so she could participate in the conversation, too. “We’re fine, Mom.”
“We’re very glad to hear that,” Dutch said in obvious relief.
“Massive power outages in the area were also reported,” Patrice continued.
Jack hadn’t wanted his mother to know this, for fear she’d worry. “That’s true, Mom, but we’re working to fix it as we speak,” Jack reassured over the sound of the rain still hammering the motor home roof above.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Patrice choked out, distraught. “We’re supposed to get married tomorrow, Dutch!”
“Now, honey,” Dutch soothed in a tender tone that had Caroline envisioning the older gentleman wrapping his arms around Patrice, comforting his bride-to-be in the same way Jack was now comforting her. “I told you, there’s no use fighting Mother Nature. If need be, we’ll just reschedule. Or move the wedding indoors. Or even go to a justice of the peace, whatever you want.” To his credit, Dutch seemed amenable with whatever happened.
“Fortunately,” Caroline interrupted firmly, resuming her role of wedding planner in command, “neither option is going to be necessary.” That was, if Jack and his friends managed to accomplish all the things they had promised in the short amount of time they had left. “Although it’s pouring right now, the rain here is supposed to end by early evening.”
“You see, honey?” Dutch told Patrice gently. “Everything is going to be all right.”
A tremulous sigh. Then a pause. “I know, dear. We just need to have faith.”
Caroline’s certainty that this couple was meant to be together increased. Jack looked touched by the affection of their exchange, too. There was no doubt about it, Dutch was good for his mother.
“It’s going to be fine, sweetheart,” Dutch comforted Patrice gently. “I promise.”
In the background, a door slammed. There were the sounds of running footsteps and a loud woof, then Maddie coming in, shouting, “Gram! Is that Daddy on the phone? ’Cause you’re not going to believe it! Because Bounder saw another rabbit! Can I talk…?”
And that was the end of all serious conversation.
“TELL ME AGAIN. Why are we doing this?” Grady asked several hours later.
“Seems to me,” Travis said, hooking up the strategically placed portable generators Jack had commissioned and brought out to the site by his four best friends, “this is the perfect excuse to slow things down regarding your mom and Dutch. If that is indeed what you want.”
The irony of his actions were not lost on Jack. Five hours ago, he’d been ready to go to his mother, tell her what he knew thus far, and let the chips fall where they may. Then the storm had come along. Once again, the calm of his life had been disrupted by the unexpected.
He thought about the defeated look on Caroline’s face when she realized the wedding might have to be canceled or delayed, and the fact that he had never before seen her look defeated, or even imagined he could.
“Caroline has a lot riding on this,” Jack allowed finally.
The guys exchanged looks.
“So do you,” Nate advised, with the reserve of the only bachelor in the group. “And so does your mom.”
Jack thought about when his mother had heard there had been a tornado in the area and she and her fiancé had called to confirm he and Caroline were okay.
There’d been something in his mother’s and Dutch’s voices when they called that Jack hadn’t heard since his dad was alive. Finally, he saw what Caroline had apparently intuited for a while now, that Dutch and his mom had that something special.
“I’m beginning to think—” or was it just wish, Jack wondered silently, because he cared so much about Caroline and wanted her to succeed in her ventures as much as he wanted to shelter the rest of his family from harm? “—that I might be overreacting to the swiftness of the nuptials.”
Silence fell among the guys. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned,” Dan shared, referencing the huge mistake he’d made with Emily, when he’d tried to save the day in a similar overbearing way, “is that while women like us to offer plenty of emotional support during the process, they want to make their own decisions and solve their own problems.”
But how could his mother do that, Jack wondered, without all the information? Were feminine intuition and pure emotion enough? Or were cold, hard facts required, too?
“I NEVER THOUGHT we’d get this done,” Caroline told Jack shortly after 2:00 a.m., when they met up in the motor home to compare notes, after everyone but the two of them had left the party ranch. She gulped springwater from a bottle. “You really came through for me, figuring out a way to provide enough power and get everything hooked up, then calling in all your friends to make it happen.”
Jack wished he could be happier about that. The truth was, he still felt a little conflicted.
If time was on his side, Jack mused, Laura Tillman would come through with the final details of her investigation tomorrow as promised, and he would soon learn that the blonde visiting Dutch at his apartment had good reason for being there. Then he could finally relax and give Dutch and his mother the wholehearted blessing they sought. But right now he only had one goal in mind. Offering Caroline the emotional support she needed.
He waited until she had drained the bottle and put it aside, then stepped behind her and massaged the stiffness from her shoulders. “What time are the writer and photographer from Fort Worth magazine showing up tomorrow?”
Caroline closed her eyes and let her head fall back in surrender. Her silky copper curls brushed the backs of his hands. “They are supposed to be here at nine.” Her body warmed beneath his kneading fingers, even as she stifled a yawn. “They want to capture all the behind-the-scenes pre-wedding stuff as well as the actual ceremony and reception.”
Jack smiled as she sank deeper into his touch and moved her head from side to side. “What’s the weather?”
Caroline stood upright. She widened her eyes and reported with comic gravity, “Well, for starters, there is zero chance of rain and/or tornadoes tomorrow!” She caught his glance then smiled, content. “The temperature is going to be eighty, with very low humidity and a light breeze.”
Or in other words, Jack thought, the perfect spring day in Texas. “So it should be very comfortable,” he surmised.
Caroline nodded. “I think so.”
“How about everything else?” Jack asked.
“Good. The florist is bringing a new arbor first thing tomorrow. The catering service has arranged to replace the portable stove that was blown over. I’m confident it’s all going to go off without a hitch, despite the storm.” She paused. “Seriously, Jack, I do owe you for all you did for me tonight.”
Gratitude was not what he wanted. But figuring any serious discussions on the subject could and should wait, he teased back, “Remind me to collect on the debt.”
Caroline’s laughter turned into something sweeter, more erotic. She glided into his arms, looked as if she needed an outlet for all the excess adrenaline as much as he did. She wreathed her arms around his neck and tilted her face up to his. “Why put off until tomorrow what you can do today?”
“Why, indeed,” Jack agreed.
He bent his head and took her lips, let himself revel in the taste and feel of her, so soft and womanly.
Caroline sighed in pleasure. “I knew we’d end up like this tonight.”
She rose on tiptoe, pressing the warmth of her body against his. The small sign of surrender was all it took. His gentlemanly restraint fled. He danced her backward, toward the wall, and held her captive there. Their kiss intensified, going on and on. She opened her mouth to the plundering pressure of his. Let her body yield, oh so sweetly.
Jack wanted to tell Caroline that being with her like this was changing his life. Making him want it all again. Giving the courage to take a risk and open up his heart the way it hadn’t been in years. Not sure she would believe him if he did—not sure he believed it quite yet—he tried to show her how he felt instead.
Need radiating through him, he tangled his fingers in her hair and kissed her with absolutely nothing held back. Kissed her until she was moaning low in her throat and responding just as ardently, as thoroughly and completely as if she might be falling in love with him, too.
Determined to take his time and make it last, he unbuttoned her blouse and opened up her bra. She gasped as he covered her breasts with his hands, and felt the nipples bud against his palms, then shuddered again as his mouth followed the path his hands had blazed. Jack dropped to his knees, found the snap and zipper on her mud-splattered jeans.
Inside, the skin was just as hot and silky soft as the rest of her. She groaned as he pushed the cloth past her knees and found her again, tracing the sweet perfection of her. Holding her captive, he moved a hand between their bodies, and touched and rubbed and stroked. Kissed and adored, until her body was arching up instinctively. Finding her ready for love, he rose again, stepped out of his pants, finished divesting her of hers, and slid his hands beneath her hips.
Wanted: One Mommy Page 16
