BILLY AND THE KID

by Kristine Rolofson

  "I can fly there this morning," Will said. If this Steve Whelan had hurt Sarah, he'd pay.

  "You're going to stay out of it until we know what's going on," Joe said, moving a pile of files off the seat of his chair so he could sit down. "The truck could be stolen."

  "Sarah wouldn't steal."

  "You haven't seen her in years, Will. You don't know what she's capable of now."

  He didn't want to believe that. His little sister had been sweet and kind and shy. "She's no criminal."

  "When I need you to go to Vegas or anywhere else, I'll tell you," Joe promised. "Until then, stay put. I don't think our little mother is too far away."

  "Why not?"

  Joe shrugged. "Just a hunch. It's only been eight days."

  "She could have hitchhiked to Alaska by now."

  "Maybe. Maybe not." Joe leaned forward. "For now, your job is to take care of that baby. And get yourself a lawyer."

  "Why?"

  "Sooner or later someone is going to come back for that little girl, Will. You'd better be prepared. I know you don't want to believe it, but if this baby isn't Sarah's you could be facing a paternity suit."

  "She's not mine," Will said, looking over at the sleeping child. But sometimes, just sometimes, he wished like hell that she was.

  Fatherhood wasn't so bad.

  * * *

  Daisy struggled to cross the Pierces' front lawn. Between the north wind and the layer of ice coating the dry grass, she had a heck of a time not falling on her face. Or on the six boxes of pizza she carried in her arms. She made it to the front porch, though, and managed to ring the bell with her left elbow.

  Joe opened it almost immediately. "Daisy? Come on in."

  "I called," she said. "Jane said it was okay to come over and see the baby."

  "She told me. Here, let me help you with those." He lifted the boxes out of her arms and held the door open. The television blasted from one corner and Jane sat in a rocking chair with a tiny bundle of pink blanket in her arms.

  "Thanks. I thought they might come in handy." He gave her a blank look

  "I made pizza and froze them for you. I thought some easy dinners would help Jane."

  "You are an angel," Jane called from across the room. She clicked the remote control and the room became silent. "Joe, would you put those—all but one—in the freezer?"

  "Sure. Thanks again. Daisy. That was real nice of you," he said, but he gave his wife an odd look. Daisy hesitated before taking off her coat. "Are you sure you want company?"

  "I called you, didn't I? I wanted you to meet Hannah." Jane held up the baby. A tiny pink face topped by dark hair peeked out of the blanket. "Want to hold her?"

  "I'd love to." She took the baby in her arms and sat down on the nearby sofa. "She's so little."

  "She's bigger than the boys were when they were born, but—" The doorbell rang, interrupting Jane's words. "Daisy, would you mind getting that? Joe's in the basement."

  "Sure." But the smile on Jane's face as Daisy returned the baby to her made Daisy suspect that Jane knew who she'd see on the other side of the door.

  The cowboy stood on the doorstep, the baby bundled in his arms. He shivered as she stared at him. "Are you going to let us in?"

  Daisy stepped back.

  "I didn't know you were going to be here," she said.

  "You've been avoiding us." He looked past Daisy. "Hi, Jane. Is that the new kid?"

  "A playmate for Spring," she said. "Come see."

  Joe stuck his head out of the kitchen. "Will?"

  "Yeah. I got your message. What's up?"

  The sheriff glanced at his wife. "Maybe you'd better ask Jane."

  "Maybe you'd better open some beer or wine or something," she suggested. "I think we're having a party."

  "We are?"

  "I can't stay," Daisy said, looking at her watch and pretending seven-thirty on a Thursday night was past her bedtime. Will came over and sat beside her on the couch. He handed her Spring.

  "She's missed you," he said.

  "I've been busy." Daisy felt incredibly foolish. What on earth was she afraid of? Stripping off her clothes and making love to him on the Pierces' braided rug? "Hi, sweetie," she said to Spring. "How's life on the ranch?"

  Joe leaned in the doorway. "Beer or wine, Will?"

  "Beer for me."

  Joe looked at Daisy. "Beer, wine, soda pop, coffee?"

  "Go ahead," Jane urged. "Have a glass of wine with me. The doctor swears it's good for nursing mothers, so we splurged on the expensive stuff."

  "Okay," she agreed.

  "Come out and see it," Will said.

  "See what?"

  "The ranch. I've been working on the house."

  "Getting it ready to sell?" And why should she care if he sold the place? It was none of her concern. One night of incredibly wonderful lovemaking did not mean that she needed to be interested in the real-estate part of his life.

  "Yeah." But he didn't smile. "You'd see a big difference."

  Jane excused herself, mumbling something about changing Hannah's diaper, and disappeared from the room.

  "You've been avoiding me," Will said. "Why?"

  "So what happened last week won't happen again."

  "It was that bad?"

  "It was that good."

  "Sweetheart," he said, running his index finger down her cheek to the lip of her chin and turning her to face him. "You're making me crazy."

  And now she was in danger of ripping off her clothes and making love to him on the faded braided rug. Thank goodness she was holding Spring. Daisy took a deep breath. "People are talking."

  His head dipped lower. "The story of my life, honey."

  "And they think you're married."

  His lips brushed hers. "Come home with me tonight. Tomorrow you can tell everyone I got a divorce."

  "And the baby?"

  "Spring has a new crib, remember?"

  "That's not what I—"

  He kissed her then, a long, deep kiss that promised all sorts of glorious hours in the night ahead. And Daisy forgot every resolution she'd ever made.

  * * *

  Joe locked the front door and turned off the porch light before turning to his beaming wife. "Nice work."

  "Thank you."

  "You planned the whole thing, getting them both to come over here at the same time?"

  "Yes, sir, I certainly did." She smiled as he crossed the room and bent down over her rocking chair. Hannah was asleep at her breast. "That isn't against the law, is it?"

  "Men don't have a chance, do they?" She shook her head. "Nope."

  Joe, careful not to wake the sleeping baby, kissed his wife. "You really think Will is going to stick around this town?"

  "He's a fool if he doesn't," Jane declared. "But no one ever said that men were smart."

  "I was," her adoring husband said. And kissed her again.

  * * *

  Will undressed Daisy with gentle precision, revealing each inch of pale peach skin in slow motion. He nibbled his way along her collarbone, lingered at her breasts until he was dizzy with needing her, then moved lower. After long minutes she stood naked, shivering a little in the cool first-floor room that served as a bedroom.

  "Come to bed," Will said, barely able to speak. Could he have forgotten how beautiful this woman was?

  "I thought that one night would be enough," Daisy said, shaking her head as if she was laughing at herself. She slipped inside the sheets and pulled the covers up to her chin. Still fully dressed, Will sat on the edge of the bed and tucked a silky strand of hair behind her ear.

  "You were wrong." He smiled and began to unbutton his shirt.

  "I don't know what we're doing," she confessed. "But I'm glad we're out here at the ranch where no one can see my car parked in the yard."

  "How long can you stay?"

  She smiled, a lazy seductive smile that made him ache and harden against his jeans. "Until I get bored."

  Will was out of his clo
thes in nine seconds. Two seconds later he was beside her in the bed. And about two hours later, sated and sleepy, he withdrew from her warm body and held her against him.

  He should have gone to sleep—he was definitely tired enough—but something was nagging at him. "Daisy," he whispered. "Daisy?"

  "Um?"

  "Nothing," he said, kissing her forehead. "Go back to sleep."

  He'd wanted to ask her why she came home with him tonight. If she cared about him. And about Spring. Or if she only needed a warm body beside hers once in a while to kill the loneliness.

  Tomorrow, he decided. Tomorrow there would be time for answers.

  * * *

  Chapter 12

  «^»

  "Stay," he said, reaching for her hand as she started to scoot off the bed.

  "I can't." But Daisy sank down onto the mattress and turned her back on the window with its view of a rapidly lightening sky. "I'm going to be late for work."

  "Barlow and what's-her-name can handle it."

  "Barlow and Heather will need help."

  "You work too hard," he grumbled, nuzzling her neck and making it hard for her to leave the bed.

  "And you don't work at all."

  "I'm in between jobs," he pointed out, kissing the valley between her breasts. "Maybe I'll stay here and become a rancher."

  And maybe daffodils would bloom in January. "Uh-huh," Daisy said, laughing as she moved away from him.

  He frowned. "You think that's funny? I'm giving it some heavy-duty thought, sweetheart."

  "And I suppose you'll join the chamber of commerce and the Boosters Club, too." She tugged the sheet loose so she could wrap it around her, and tiptoed across the room to the crib. Spring was sleeping deeply, her tiny fist curled near her mouth as if she wanted to suck her thumb.

  "I'm going to keep her," he said, and this time Daisy heard the serious note in his voice.

  She turned away from the baby and faced the man she'd made love with most of the night. "How?"

  "I'll move into town. Hire a housekeeper."

  It was none of her business, and not her job to point out that raising a child wasn't that easy. Or how expensive. Besides, maybe rodeo champions made more money than she thought. "And what about her mother?"

  "She'll have one," he said, not taking his gaze from her face. "I'm thinking about getting married."

  Daisy stared at him. She would have given a week's worth of business income to know what he was thinking behind that inscrutable expression. "Oh?"

  "She bosses me around something awful," he continued. "But I think she—"

  The ringing of the phone interrupted his words. Will reached down and grabbed the portable phone from the floor beside the bed. "Hello?" The color drained from his face. "Don't let her out of your sight. Yeah, right away."

  Daisy waited, forcing herself to stand there and wait for Will to explain. He clicked off the phone and looked over at her as if she were a stranger.

  "That was Joe, calling from the office. She's here," he announced.

  "Who?" But even as she asked the question she knew what the answer would be.

  "Spring's mother. Sarah's come home."

  * * *

  Will didn't recognize her at first. He'd expected a run-down, scared waif, but the person he saw in Joe's office was a sturdy young woman who was a lot taller than he remembered. Her clothes looked worn and faded, though clean, and her light brown hair hung down her back in a long braid. But the forlorn look on her face broke his heart.

  "Sarah?"

  "Willie?"

  He took her in his arms and fought back the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him. "Hey, kid, I've missed you." He heard the gruffness of his voice and hoped he didn't sound as if he was going to cry. He wouldn't want her to think he'd gotten soft in his middle age.

  "Me, too," she sniffed, hugging him close to her. "I'm sorry, I really really am."

  "It's okay," he said, letting her sob against his chest. "Everything's going to be okay now."

  "I knew you'd take good care of her. The sheriff said Rebecca was doing fine," she said, taking deep gulps of air as she pulled away from him.

  "Rebecca, huh? It would have been nice if you'd put her name in the note you left."

  "You must hate me."

  "Hate you?" He relented and tweaked her braid, a long familiar way to tease her. "Not in a million years.

  "Where is she?"

  "With a friend. We'll go get her in a few minutes, but first we have to talk." He led her over to a chair. "You're going to tell me everything."

  Sarah's eyes filled with tears again. "Mom would kill me."

  "Mom would want her granddaughter to be taken care of," he reminded her. "Not dumped on the front porch on the ranch, Sarah."

  "I wanted to come in," she whispered. "I planned to, 'til I stood on the porch. I thought I was going to throw up, because I hated that house so much and I knew I couldn't go inside. And I was so ashamed of everything."

  Will hardened his heart to the new tears streaming down his sister's cheeks and pulled a chair over to face her. "Now," he said. "Start from the beginning, honey. You've sure got some explaining to do."

  * * *

  "Whoa," Heather said, her pencil poised above her order pad as she stared at her boss. "What the heck—"

  "Never mind," Daisy said, carrying the car seat and Spring toward the kitchen. The café, crowded with customers at six-thirty in the morning, quieted to a low murmur of conversation, but Daisy ignored the curious stares directed her way. "Do me a favor, Heather, and bring me a cup of tea and some breakfast."

  "Like what?"

  "Anything Barlow can make fast," she said, heading across the room to the back. She didn't even know why she'd come in through the front door, except that she needed to talk to Heather and see how business was. Now she'd given the folks in town something to talk about.

  They'd have plenty more to talk about by lunchtime. She managed to rest the car seat on her hip while she unlocked the door, then made her way to the living room.

  "You poor thing, shifted around like a sack of potatoes all the time." Daisy lifted car seat and baby over to her sofa, then sat down beside them in the quiet of her apartment. She should be helping Heather with the breakfast rush, but there was no way she was going to leave Spring.

  Her mother would come for her soon enough, and then what would Daisy do? Go back to work, she told herself. There was a stack of paperwork on the coffee table in front of her, things that needed to be recorded for taxes. She had a business; she had a life.

  And she was in love.

  Which didn't mean anyone—especially Will– would have to know. Unless he loved her, too, which Daisy knew was more than a little farfetched. She unfastened Spring's safety straps and lifted the baby into her lap. She balanced her on her knees and tickled the little girl's chin. "Your Uncle Will is a no-good cowboy," she told her. "But he sure took good care of you, didn't he?"

  Spring almost smiled.

  "Your mommy's coming," she whispered. "I'll bet she's missed you."

  "Daisy?"

  Heather opened the hail door and poked her head in. "I have your breakfast."

  "Great." Daisy tucked the baby back into her car seat, which made Spring frown. "I'll fix you in a minute," she promised, and took a plate full of scrambled eggs and toast in one hand and a mug of tea in the other from Heather.

  "Nice place," she said, looking around at the overstuffed chintz furniture. "Real cozy."

  "Thanks. Holler if you need me, but—" She attempted a smile. "Try not to need me."

  "Sure thing." Heather paused. "Are you okay? Did Billy dump you already?"

  Great. She looked like she'd been dumped? "Spring's mother is back."

  "Oh." Heather glanced toward the baby and then to Daisy. "Is he really married like you said?"

  "It's complicated," Daisy said, moving toward the kitchen. "Thanks for breakfast."

  "No problem." Heather reached into her apron
pocket and unwrapped a stick of gum. "I'll bet a woman gets hungry after she's been having sex with Billy Wilson all night."

  * * *

  Three hours later he came to get the baby. He and an attractive, young—very young—woman entered the restaurant and headed toward Daisy, who had been putting a new tape in the cash register. So this was Spring's mother.

  "Daisy, I'd like you to meet my sister, Sarah," Will said, turning to a young woman who had Will's eyes. "This is Daisy, the friend who's helped me with, uh, Rebecca."

  "Rebecca?"

  "That was her name," Sarah said. "But Will said he named her Spring." She looked around the restaurant. "I like that better. Is she here?"

  "The cook just took her," Daisy said, wondering how this pale young woman could think she was old enough to take care of a baby. "She likes walks around the kitchen. I think the shiny pans..." Her voice trailed off as she realized that no one was really listening to a word she babbled.

  "Well, it sure is nice to meet you." Sarah glanced nervously toward the kitchen.

  Daisy looked at Will, hoping for some due as to what was going on. Was he going to return the baby as if nothing had happened? Will didn't meet her gaze, instead he clapped his hand on his sister's shoulder. "Let's go see her, Sarah."

  She took a deep breath and looked at him with wide eyes. "Okay."

  "How about if I get her and you meet me in the apartment?" Daisy pulled the key out of her pocket and gave it to Will. "It's a little more private."

  "Good idea." He ushered his sister toward the back room as Maude Anderson waved furiously from the corner booth.

  "Is that her?" she hissed, scooting over to Daisy. "The crazy wife?"

  "That's his sister," Daisy said, hoping she sounded calm and in control. "There wasn't any wife."

  Maude smiled and patted her arm. "I didn't think there was, honey." She winked. "Not yet, anyway."

  "You'll have to excuse me." Daisy tried to look like she was having a normal day, as if the lunch crowd wasn't listening to every word that was spoken. As if the man she was in love with hadn't said he was thinking about getting married and given her a look that would melt chocolate.

  And who didn't need her anymore.

  * * *

  "Giving her that baby was the hardest thing I've ever done in my whole life," Daisy said. Then she sniffed. Jane passed her a box of tissues across the table. "Even worse than finding Johnny in bed with that rodeo queen. Or when Ed took off with—well, never mind. I should know better by now."