BILLY AND THE KID

by Kristine Rolofson

  "I could call the hospital."

  She shook her head and popped the nipple out of Spring's mouth. The baby grimaced, but within seconds of being held upright and patted, she burped. "We'll let Joe tell us in the morning. I hope it's a girl," she said, giving Spring the rest of her midnight supper.

  "A quiet girl," Will joked while watching the tender expression on Daisy's face as she fed the baby. She was getting fond of Spring, that was clear, but what would happen after Sarah returned? He would be free to nail a For Sale sign on the fence. And Daisy would be free of them both.

  He hated that idea.

  "Give her to me," he said when Spring finished her bottle. "I'll put her down."

  "She fell asleep without burping."

  "That's okay. She does that sometimes." He padded across the room and laid the baby down without waking her. He had other things on his mind besides babies and bottles and burping. He shut off the lights in the kitchen and living room before hurrying back to Daisy's bedroom. She propped herself upon one elbow and watched him remove his jeans.

  He hesitated before standing naked and partially aroused in front of her. "What are you looking at?" Which was an unnecessary question, considering the direction of her gaze.

  "You," she said. "You're so comfortable with all of this."

  "This?" He slid under the covers and Daisy rearranged the pillows so he had a couple under his head. He shifted so his erection didn't touch her thigh.

  "Sex," she explained, leaning over so she could look into his face. The sheet was securely fastened around her bosom, tempting Will to give the fabric a little tug. "You're just so comfortable with this one-night stand business."

  One night? He tugged a little harder on the sheet and watched the material slip lower, stopping just short of revealing a pair of enticing nipples. "Meaning that the thousands of women I've slept with have made me easy with this lovemaking business?"

  "Thousands?" She leaned closer, her lips curved into a mischievous smile, and the tip of one breast grazed his upper arm. "That's all?"

  He tugged the sheet free and pulled her on top of him. "Dunno," he said, his voice thickening as she settled between his thighs. "Millions, maybe."

  "Ah," she said, kissing the side of his mouth. "I thought so."

  "But you're the first—honey, don't move like that or this will all be over in a matter of seconds."

  She wriggled against him anyway. "You mean a man of your experience can't control himself?"

  He lifted her off him and reached for another condom while she unwound the tangle of sheets from her legs. "Sweetheart, come here and do that again."

  "I get to be on top?"

  "For a while," he said, positioning that beautiful body over his. "Until I get bored."

  Daisy laughed, and lowered herself onto him in a tantalizingly slow motion that made him grit his teeth and try not to groan aloud. If Spring woke now, Will figured he'd probably expire of frustration. Daisy teased him, riding him slowly with deep thrusts. She clearly enjoyed taking her time.

  "Bored yet?"

  "Nope." He captured one breast and laved the nipple, then paid equal attention to the other. "Are you?"

  "Mmm, oh, no, don't stop," she moaned, riding him harder. He gripped her hips and urged her on, until she tightened and climaxed around him. He felt the tiny contractions as she collapsed on top of him.

  "Sweetheart," he whispered into her ear.

  "Mmm?"

  "My turn to be on top." He rolled her over, staying deep within her, and slowly rode her until she climaxed again, and so did he, sensation after mind-blowing sensation beating in rhythm with his heart

  * * *

  He left while she was in the shower. Daisy, hair dripping into the collar of her robe, entered her bedroom and saw that his clothes were gone. And so was Spring, and her new quilt. The house was silent and empty and horrible.

  She should have known. There would be no embarrassing morning scenes, no stilted conversations, no empty promises like "I'll call you later" to remind her that she had spent the night with a man she barely knew.

  But she liked him. A lot. And maybe—just maybe—she was a little bit in love with him. No one could blame her. Will Wilson had enough charm for three men. And when he walked into the café with that sweet infant in his arms, well, Daisy had seen more than one woman's head swivel in his direction. Surely she couldn't be criticized for inviting him into her bed.

  She dressed quickly, conscious of the tender areas of her body that reminded her of last night. She'd slept like a dead woman in between lovemaking. She'd heard Will out in the kitchen this morning when she woke, but she'd hurried into the bathroom for a shower before greeting him. One glance in the bathroom mirror told her she'd made the right move.

  Daisy went into the kitchen and noticed that Will had made a pot of coffee. He must do that for all his lovers, she thought. A nice gesture for a worn-out woman the morning after.

  She sipped her coffee and eyed the cold gray light of dawn out the kitchen window. Last night had been an experience. One she wouldn't soon forget. It was time to get to work. And back to celibacy.

  * * *

  Chapter 11

  «^»

  "What are you doing in town so early?" Joe shut the door of his truck and motioned for Will to follow him into the house. Will unhooked Spring from her car seat and bundled her into a blanket before crossing the yard. Joe held the door open for him.

  "Thanks." He didn't answer the question. He and Joe had been the only two people driving through Main Street this morning and Will couldn't leave Cowman's Corner without knowing about the Pierces' new child.

  "So, did you have a boy or a girl?"

  Joe broke into a wide grin. "A girl. Hannah Jane. Eight pounds, ten ounces. Healthy as a horse, too."

  Will shook his friend's hand. "Congratulations. That's great. How's Jane?"

  "Tired, but ready to go out and buy all sorts of pink outfits." He took off his coat and tossed it over the back of the sofa. "Bring the baby and come on in the kitchen. I'll make us a pot of coffee."

  "Sounds good," Will said, thinking as he followed Joe that a cup of coffee would probably save his life. He wanted to lie down on the kitchen floor and die.

  "Late night?"

  Will fingered his day-old beard and grimaced. "I guess neither one of us would win any beauty contests this morning. What are you doing home?"

  "Jane wanted me to be here when the boys woke up. I'm going to tell them they have a baby sister and get them off to school before I head to the office for a while. I'll go back to the hospital this afternoon and then tomorrow Jane and the baby come home."

  "That's fast."

  "That's the way they do it now." Joe filled the coffeepot and turned on the switch. "So, do I ask why you were driving through town at five-thirty this morning? You were the last person I expected to see when I came home."

  "You'd better not ask."

  "Meaning you spent the night with a lady." Joe leaned against the counter and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

  Will sat down on a kitchen chair and unwrapped the baby, who looked at him with curious blue eyes. "Meaning I'd better not say."

  "Jane was wrong, then."

  "About what?"

  Joe laughed and turned to get mugs from the cupboard. He poured two cups of coffee and set one on the table by Will. "She thought baby-sitting for the boys would keep you determined to stay single."

  "I like the boys," Will said, remembering how funny those two little kids were with the stringy pizza cheese. "And I like being single, too."

  "Yeah. That's what I told her."

  Will looked down at Spring, who lay comfortably against his shoulder. "I'm gonna miss her, though." Joe sat down and took a sip of coffee. "Why? Are you going somewhere?"

  "Not yet. But I'm going to call that private detective again and see if he can scare up anything else about Sarah. And you have the truck. We're getting close." He picked up his coffee and
drank "Don't give me that look like you're feeling sorry for me."

  "Why would I feel sorry for you? You've inherited a ranch. You own three of the best quarter horses in the country, you've got a pile of money invested in God knows what—"

  "Something about the Internet," Will said, not knowing much more than that

  "And you spent the night with—well, anyway, you know what I mean. Your life isn't exactly going to hell in a hay cart."

  Will was silent for a minute while he thought that over. "How'd you know that Jane was the woman you wanted to marry?"

  Joe grinned. "I saw her and I knew."

  "Just like that?"

  He nodded. "Yeah. Just like that. Just like a bolt of lightning on a hot summer night."

  "That was easy enough." Almost as easy as failing into bed with Daisy.

  "Yeah," Joe said. "The hard part was convincing her to marry me. She wasn't exactly hit by lightning when she saw me."

  "No kidding?"

  "Why the questions? Are you thinking about settling down?"

  Will stalled and took another gulp of hot coffee, letting the liquid bum his throat on the way down to his gut. Thinking about marriage? No, he was thinking about making love to Daisy for a few years or so, wondering what it would be like to know she was his, hoping that he would see her later on today and fighting the urge to return to her house and beg to be admitted so he could crawl back in that soft, warm bed and make love to her a few more times before lunch. Will glanced down at the baby as she made a noise in his arms. "Me? Settle down? Hell, no."

  Little Spring stared up at him as if she knew he was the biggest liar in all of Montana.

  He sure hoped she didn't inherit the Wilson sex drive.

  * * *

  "Well, how was it?"

  "How was what?" Daisy tried to move out of Heather's way, but the young woman had her cornered by the coffeemaker. She really hoped Heather wasn't asking what she thought she was asking.

  "A certain rodeo champ was seen driving away from your house this morning," Heather reported, thankfully keeping her voice low. "Way to go, Daize!"

  "Maybe I should fire you."

  Heather shrugged, completely unperturbed by the threat. "Then you'd be stuck here all the time," she pointed out. "With no time for cowboys."

  "I'm not admitting anything."

  "You don't have to, Daisy. Sexual satisfaction is written all over your face." Heather giggled and let Daisy pass with the coffee carafe.

  What was written all over her face was exhaustion, Daisy decided, ignoring Leroy Doyle, who was waving his empty coffee mug. It was only nine o'clock in the morning, but already it felt like twelve hours later. She just wasn't used to that much nighttime exercise, she figured. From now on she'd get a good night's sleep—alone, of course—but she'd never forget last night.

  "What are you smiling at?"

  Daisy almost bumped into Barlow, who popped out of the storeroom with an armload of paper towels. "Nothing."

  He gave her a knowing look as he passed, but fortunately didn't say anything. Daisy wondered if Heather had told him anything. Well, she could deny it. And she was the boss, so she could forbid anyone to talk about it.

  She hoped.

  Before she took a tea break, she stopped at the lunch counter and refilled coffee cups. "Has anyone heard if the Pierces had their baby last night?"

  No one had.

  "Call the sheriff's office," one of the men suggested. "The dispatcher should know where he is."

  "You don't hafta," Leroy said. "His truck just pulled up out front."

  One of the others craned his neck to peer out the front window. "And Billy Wilson's right behind him."

  "Goody," Heather said, slipping past Daisy to place an order with Barlow. "Three over easy with the works!"

  She'd hoped he'd have the sense to stay away, but she should have known better. She didn't want to see him.

  She did want to see him. It was just that the last lime she'd gazed into those sexy eyes of his, he'd been rolling off her naked body. He'd kissed her before she fell asleep, one satisfied and weary woman. She would pretend nothing happened, she decided, filling the empty carafe with water for a new pot of coffee.

  "It's a girl," Joe announced over the jingle of the bell above the door.

  There was a flood of congratulations, backpounding, handshaking and some general teasing about the difficulty of raising a daughter.

  "Wouldn't trade my Darla for anything." Charlie declared, motioning Joe and Will to stools just vacated. "Girls take care of you in your old age."

  "No kidding?" Will sat down and pushed dirty dishes out of his way, which prompted Daisy to pick up a damp rag and clean off the counter in front of him.

  "Good morning," she said, hoping she sounded professional. She cleared six feet of dishes, then wiped off the counter. She made sure she didn't touch him. "Coffee?"

  "Yes," he said, smiling at her. "Please."

  "Joe?"

  "Definitely, thanks." The sheriff smiled at her, too. "I heard you brought over pizza last night. The boys got a real kick out of that."

  "They're cute kids," she said, glad of the excuse to avoid Will's gaze as she set coffee mugs in front of them and turned around for the carafe. "Congratulations on the baby girl. How's Jane doing?"

  "She's tired, but happy."

  Daisy carefully filled the cups and returned the carafe. "When was the baby born?"

  "Shortly after midnight. It sure didn't take long." He shook his head. "Jane was a real trouper."

  Daisy thought briefly of what she and Will were doing "shortly after midnight." and she blushed. She hoped the men would assume it was the heat from the kitchen, but Will looked at her and winked. She ignored him and pulled out an order pad. "What'll you have?"

  "Hotcakes and eggs," Joe said.

  "Make that two," Will added. "I've got a ferocious appetite this morning."

  Daisy ignored him and took her sweet time writing up the order. "Fine," she said, and instead of posting the order at the window, hurried into the kitchen to hide.

  Barlow shot her an odd look "What's the matter with you?"

  "Nothing. I'm going to fix a cup of tea. Do you want one?"

  "Sure. Herbal."

  "Once a hippie, always a hippie," she said, quoting one of Barlow's favorite lines. "How are the dogs?"

  "Well, there are still too many of them," he said. "I spend a fortune on—hey, where are you going?" Daisy didn't take time to reply. She rounded the corner and stopped in front of Will. She'd been too tired to realize something—someone—was missing. "Where's Spring?"

  He set down his coffee cup. "Do you think I lost her?"

  "Don't tease. Is she—" She couldn't say "with her mother." The words wouldn't form.

  Joe intervened. "She's with my sister-in-law. Judy said she'd stay with her while she took her morning nap in Hannah's crib."

  "Oh. Well..."

  "Did you think I left her in the truck?" Will didn't sound too happy. "I drove out to the farm to check on the animals and, uh, clean up. Work goes faster without Spring around."

  "Yes," Daisy said.

  "And Joe's going to be making phone calls about Sarah's truck," he added. "I thought I'd stick around town for a while and see what turns up."

  For a cowboy, he didn't spend a lot of time one his ranch. "Oh."

  "Are you making pizza again tonight?" Daisy wondered if that's what he was really asking. "I'm not sure," she stammered, and looked at her watch. "Excuse me," she said. "I have to, uh, make a phone call."

  She hurried back to the kitchen and leaned against the wall, out of sight of the customers at the counter.

  "What's the matter with you?" Barlow flipped another hotcake in the air and it fell neatly to the grill. "Your order's almost up."

  "I need willpower," she said. "Buckets of it."

  "Why? Just because you slept with Billy?"

  Her heart fell to the thick soles of her extra-support shoes. "Heather tol
d you?"

  "No, Bonnie was out walking the dogs this morning and saw his truck parked near your house. She put two and two together."

  "Do you think the whole town knows?"

  "Not yet." He flipped the hotcakes onto a plate and turned to grin at her. "But they will. Maude Anderson gets up early and her second-floor bedroom looks out on the school."

  "How would you know that?"

  "I painted it for her a few years ago." He fixed another plate of eggs and hotcakes and set them on the counter. "There is nothing you can do in this town without everyone knowing about it, Daisy."

  She groaned. "Maude thinks he's married. She'll tell everyone that I'm a, uh, wanton woman and no one will let their husbands eat here again."

  Barlow grinned. "No way, Daize. They'll figure Billy Wilson will spoil you for anyone else."

  She crossed the room and grabbed the plates. "I'll act like nothing happened," she muttered. "And they canal think what they want."

  Daisy left the kitchen with her chin in the air.

  * * *

  He couldn't figure out what the hell was wrong with her. Last Friday she'd been loving and warm, a willing woman in his arms for one long, incredibly passionate night. Then all weekend she'd ignored him. Now it was Monday and he still felt like he was a stranger to Daisy again. Damn women. They shouldn't be this hard to understand. Will put his feet up on the sheriff's desk and tilted back in his chair. Surely Joe had to come back eventually.

  He watched Spring, asleep in her car seat in a draft-free corner of the office. With any luck they'd find her mother this week Maybe even today, if the police computer systems were all they were cracked up to be.

  Daisy didn't serve him breakfast this morning. Instead he'd had to tease Heather and make conversation about the weather with the guys lined up on stools at the counter. Daisy hadn't even come over to refill his coffee or to heat up Spring's bottle.

  He hated that.

  When Joe came in, Will removed his boots from the top of the desk and put all four of the chair legs on the floor. "Anything?"

  "The truck was registered to a Steve Whelan, in Las Vegas. We're trying to reach him now." Joe hung up his hat and coat on the rack behind the door.