The Rancher's Unexpected Family

by Myrna Mackenzie

  Thank goodness she was leaving soon. But until then, he wasn’t going to have her health or the health—no, the life—of her baby on his conscience. And he would not apologize for being a Neanderthal about the whole thing. Kathryn had brought all this to his doorstep. That made him mad as fire.

  And he still wanted to kiss her. All night long.

  * * *

  Holt was almost to the house, but Kathryn couldn’t help noticing that he was gripping the steering wheel as if he wanted to choke it to death. She probably shouldn’t have let him drive her home. She’d promised herself that she’d never let another person order her around. And it hadn’t even been his manipulative, sexy teasing that had changed her mind. Frankly, his touch had made her feel embarrassingly wanton for a pregnant woman, so her instinct had been to run before she did something really dumb. But beneath the sexy cowboy act, she could see that he was really worried and that was why she’d agreed to the ride. Holt had faced serious illness and death recently, and the ghosts of those experiences must still be with him. Besides, much as she wanted to be totally independent and do the breezy “I’m fine, the baby’s fine” routine, sometimes being pregnant and alone was terrifying.

  And Holt, even when he was annoyed and wishing her in Hades, made her feel as if nothing disastrous could happen when she was with him. Not that she would tell him so. After all he’d been through with his father and friend, he probably didn’t need to have her and her baby’s welfare on his conscience. She’d tried to relieve him of any sense of responsibility. It hadn’t worked. Time to try a different tactic to distract him from her situation.

  “Before you leave, I want to talk about the meeting,” she began.

  He stopped crushing the wheel and looked at her. “You’re in pain and you want to discuss a boring meeting?”

  “See? That’s what I mean. If even you think it’s boring and you’re one of the chairmen of the clinic committee, no one’s going to want to come.”

  He blinked and bore down on the accelerator a bit too hard. “I am not one of the chairmen of the committee. This wasn’t my idea.”

  “But you’re on board now.”

  He didn’t answer that. “I told you they’d come.”

  She chose not to answer that. “I need to find some way to make it fun.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Will there be football?”

  “What?”

  “Hon, this is Texas. You may not have lived here long-term, you may not really be a Texas gal, but if you’re talking Texas and fun, you’re talking football or rodeo or sex.”

  Kathryn rolled her eyes. “Now you’re just mocking me. You know Texas isn’t that—that caricature.”

  “Maybe not, but now you’re annoyed and not so worried. Stop trying to make it fun. You’re talking about a clinic. You’re not offering pony rides. Trust me, they’ll come.”

  “But—”

  “Trust me.”

  “I’m not real good with trust issues. I’ve been betrayed before.”

  She felt him glance her way. “You want to explain that in greater detail than you already have?” There was an edge to his voice.

  She shut her mouth. She’d said too much, letting that little fact pop right out without thinking. There was too much shame attached to her marriage, and she was sorry she’d mentioned it. “Not a chance.”

  They drove on in silence. “We still have to discuss your part of the meeting,” she finally said.

  “My part?”

  “Yes. People look up to you as a leader in the community. I have friends, but most people will listen to you more than they will a woman who isn’t staying. I want you to speak at the meeting.”

  “I hate public speaking.”

  “Why am I not surprised?”

  “And if you’re looking for fun, putting me at a podium will pretty much defeat your purpose.”

  “Maybe so, but people idolize you. If I don’t have fun, I at least have you. You’re the star attraction.”

  He swore again.

  “Stop that. When the baby gets here, I don’t want her to pick up bad habits.”

  “Me and the baby aren’t going to be tight. We’re not going to be anything. We may never even meet.”

  “I know. That was a knee-jerk reaction. Because you were being difficult.”

  “Let’s be truthful. I’m being a jackass.”

  “Okay, you are. But I’m not giving up. I need you to speak. Have I mentioned how important this clinic is?”

  “I know. People might die if it doesn’t get built.”

  His voice had gone low and harsh.

  “Let’s not dwell on that part. But please, Holt. Just earlier today, you told me you’d cooperate more and I need you to do this. If you don’t give the clinic your stamp of approval, it won’t happen. People know I’ve been after you. If you come and just glower in the background, people will think you’re not on board. Then no one else will be, either. This is going to be expensive. We need everyone’s cooperation and support. Tell me you’ll say a few words to let them know you want this thing.”

  Holt let out a sigh. “I promised, so I’ll do it. Now, will you stop nagging if I speak?”

  “Yes.”

  “All right, then.”

  “Thank you, Holt,” she said primly. “Just so you know, I may distribute a few new fliers with your name on it. Maybe that will bring people in.”

  “You won’t need that. They’ll come.”

  “Why are you so certain? Would you come voluntarily if I wasn’t nagging you?”

  “I would go to the far side of the earth before I’d show up if I didn’t need to be there. But I’m not the people of Larkville. I know them. They’ll come to your meeting, even without football.”

  “Okay.”

  “Good. Kathryn?”

  “Yes?”

  “This isn’t going to end it, is it? You’re going to ask me to do more, aren’t you?”

  “If you’d really read all my lists, you would know. And you would have already done some things.”

  “I did some things. I put out some calls to people who might help,” he said as he parked the truck in front of her house.

  “You didn’t tell me that!” She turned toward him quickly, despite her bulk.

  “Whoa! Don’t do that. And I didn’t tell you because nothing has panned out yet. I told some friends who know people who know people in the medical field. That’s how it works. Eventually I’ll hear something, good or bad.”

  “Why not go straight to the source?”

  “Because that’s not how it works.”

  “You want to explain that?”

  “No.”

  She could see she wasn’t going to get any more out of him. And he had been right. The sudden move had made her back ache more. She refused to rub it, though, not with Holt here. This conversation may have made him forget why he was driving her home, but that laser vision that probably made him a good rancher would no doubt quickly have him turning all his attention to her pain if she wasn’t careful.

  “Don’t worry, Kathryn,” he said. “We’ll get this done.”

  And over with, she imagined him thinking. She was sure he wanted her out of his hair. Well, she would be glad when they were done, too, because that crush she’d had when she was young didn’t seem to have completely faded away.

  The thought startled her and she quickly reached to open her door. “Don’t move,” Holt said. He got out of the truck and came around to her side. When he opened the door, he didn’t wait for her to get out. Instead, he reached in, slid one arm beneath her knees and lifted her out.

  “Holt?”

  “What?”

  “What are you doing?” His arms were around her. Her heart was pounding hard.

  “I’m making sure you don’t nudge anything loose before I get to make a fool of myself at your meeting.”

  And with that he carried her into her house and laid her on her bed, her body sliding against his. Then he ordered
her to stay in bed and left her staring after his departing broad back.

  Kathryn was left sputtering. She hadn’t even gotten a chance to remind him that she didn’t allow any man to run her life anymore. She would tell him next time.

  But first she had to try to forget how it had felt to have been held against Holt’s chest.

  CHAPTER SIX

  HOLT swore at himself all the way home. Kathryn was playing serious havoc with his senses. She was going to drive him insane before they were through. These past few years he’d had to deal with losses that still haunted him. He’d learned how destructive emotions could be and he’d faced adversity, but there was something about Kathryn that made him think that she had the ability to really mess him up for good.

  He had to stay detached. And when the clinic project was on its way...

  Then we’re done. Thank goodness. Feeling personally responsible for the health and welfare of an entire town...man, he hated that feeling.

  Worrying that Kathryn might start having the right kind of pains in the wrong time and place—that made him totally crazy.

  Probably because he didn’t want her to be his business, or for there to be anything personal between them.

  That didn’t mean he hadn’t noticed how achingly soft she’d been when he’d held her in his arms. And when she’d shifted against him, it had taken all his strength not to lower his head and devour that pretty pink mouth.

  Which was just more proof that he needed to be careful. Kathryn would be bad for him, but he would be much worse for her. He needed to maintain even more control than usual.

  So stick to what you’re good at. Cattle. Horses. Stay away from what you’re bad at. Women. Babies. Lilith had told him that someone so emotionally challenged wasn’t built for fatherhood, and she’d been right.

  There could be no more thinking about Kathryn’s lips, he thought as a vision of Kathryn in his arms slipped into his mind, and heat seared him like a brand.

  Darn the woman! Or, maybe darn himself. Still, one thing was certain. He would fulfill his promise to speak at her meeting, but his father had been the public speaker, not him. He was fine with small talk, with work talk, but he didn’t make heartfelt speeches, so he would do this his way. That would probably plant a solid barrier between himself and Kathryn. Good.

  * * *

  Kathryn arrived at the community center a half hour early, but there were already a number of people there. Jess Jameson, Holt’s sister, and her husband, Johnny, were in the front row. As was Jed Jackson, the county sheriff, and his new wife, Ellie, Holt’s newly discovered half sister from New York—Clay’s daughter from his first marriage. Mrs. Best had snagged an aisle seat and Sarah Anderson, who was in charge of the greatly anticipated Larkville Fall Festival, was just coming in the door. This year the festival was being held in honor of Holt’s father, Clay, and was yet another reminder of how beloved the Calhouns were in the town. Ava was also there. She waved and smiled. Kathryn smiled back and noted that Dr. Cooper had, as usual, flown to California for his weekend trips to locate a house. But Dr. Cooper wasn’t the only one missing.

  Holt was nowhere in sight. As more minutes passed, panic began to blossom inside of her.

  Still, she couldn’t let anyone see that. Holt or no Holt, the show had to go on. And there was still time. She moved to the front where a podium had been set up and opened her folder of notes. Her plan was to do a general intro and then let Holt do the home-boy routine, talking to the neighbors he’d known all his life in a more personal way than she could. She’d tried to get hold of him several times this week and when that had proved impossible, she had left a phone message for him, outlining his part of the meeting. His only response had been a message he’d left on Dr. Cooper’s phone after hours. His exact words were “I got the message.”

  That alone had been disconcerting. Hearing Holt’s deep voice booming out of the speaker when she had expected her usual patients’ messages telling her their reasons for needing an appointment had caught her by surprise. She had immediately remembered him carrying her to her house and dropping her on her bed. Suddenly all she could think of was Holt in her bedroom, and to her consternation, she’d blushed.

  Unfortunately, she hadn’t been alone. Luann Dickens had been in the office and had immediately wanted to know what messages Kathryn and Holt had been sharing. She had looked at Kathryn’s stomach as if he might be the father.

  “This baby is legitimate, Luann,” Kathryn had wanted to say, or “I was in another state and married when this baby was conceived and I have not had nor do I intend to have sex with Holt Calhoun.” But neither of those was appropriate when she was Dr. Cooper’s receptionist and Luann was a patient. “The message was about the town meeting,” she had stammered, then cursed herself for stammering.

  “Hey, any meeting with Holt is a good meeting,” Luann had said. “Just as long as you don’t get too serious. Every woman wants him. No woman ever gets him. Or if she does, she doesn’t get much of him and never for long. He’s not into romance.” It sounded as if Luann had attempted to catch Holt herself.

  “It’s business,” Kathryn had answered primly. But even she had to acknowledge that there was definitely something about Holt that made a woman think beyond business. She hated the fact that she, who knew better, was just as susceptible as Luann, who was always trolling for men. Maybe they weren’t all that different.

  But I have to be different, Kathryn had reminded herself. I can’t go around wondering what Holt looks like when he peels his shirt off at night. I have a baby to think about. It can’t ever just be about me. I won’t be like my parents or my ex-husband.

  Now, remembering Holt’s brief message, Kathryn frowned. It was obvious that there were limits to how far she could push Holt just as there were limits to how much time she could safely spend in his presence. With her overactive hormones, she could easily forget to be smart around him.

  Now she tried her best to look and be smart. But as she glanced through her notes, two things happened. Holt walked in the door, causing all eyes to turn. And right after that, a group of men came in, set up tables in the back of the room and began putting out huge platters of food. Barbecue, coleslaw, potato salad, more. The aroma was enticing, wonderful. Not on tonight’s agenda. But the people filing in didn’t look surprised. In fact, some of the women came bearing cakes and pies.

  What was going on? Kathryn started toward the back where people were entering in twos and threes, but she spotted the mayor and made a beeline toward her. “Johanna, is this courtesy of the town?”

  Johanna smiled and shook her head. “This is courtesy of your partner.”

  Partner? Was that what Holt was? “I didn’t know anything about it.”

  Johanna shrugged. “The only reason I know is because I was in Gracie May’s Diner just as they were loading up the truck.”

  “But...”

  “Kathryn, relax. Holt has his own way of doing things. Always has. Always will. And he isn’t one to talk about his plans.”

  Well, that was for sure. Getting the man to cooperate was like trying to drag a mule. Or at least what she imagined dragging a mule was like. The man always seemed to be in control.

  And she was a woman who had promised herself she wouldn’t be managed by someone like that.

  Kathryn turned toward Holt. She had no idea why Gracie May’s Diner was serving food at this meeting or why she hadn’t been told. What she knew was that if she and Holt were partners, he should be sharing a lot more with her than he had been up to this point.

  But when she started in his direction, she quickly found that she was not alone in her desire to talk with Holt. She was still six feet away from him when a man snagged Holt’s attention. “Holt, you’re just the man I’ve been dying to talk to. I need some good horse advice,” the man said.

  “Ed, you don’t want me. You want Johnny.”

  “Yes, I mean to talk to Johnny, too, of course. He’s the horse whisperer, but your da
ddy always helped me out in the past, and the way I see it, you inherited his genes and his horse sense and I wouldn’t ever buy a horse without the Calhoun stamp of approval.”

  Kathryn watched as Holt took a pen and a scrap of paper from his pocket and scribbled something. “All right, I’ll find a few spare hours to ride out with you and give you my opinion,” he promised the man.

  A few feet farther someone else stopped him. Kathryn could tell by the woman’s intense expression that she was concerned about something and by the way she walked away looking relieved that Holt had helped her. He made another note on the paper. It quickly became apparent to Kathryn that Holt, who as the quarterback of the football team and a Calhoun had always been looked up to, had now been elevated to the level of Santa Claus. He solved problems. He was the go-to guy for the people of the town. He had been gone for a long time helping a dying man. He had agreed—reluctantly—to help her.

  And—she looked toward the tables—he had provided food for the masses. Without talking to her. Not that it was a terrible thing, of course, but...

  There was no more time to think about it. The clock chimed seven and Kathryn looked toward Holt. He glanced toward the standing-room-only crowd and gave her a look that said, what? Kathryn didn’t know, but having those dark eyes turned on her made her feel far too aware that she was a woman.

  Too bad. She’d already played that game when she was sixteen, and it had not turned out well. Luann Dickens was right. Holt wasn’t a man a woman should be too attracted to unless she was prepared for some serious heartbreak.

  Kathryn tucked that thought away. Giving him a slight nod and moving to the podium, she was very conscious of the fact that she had returned to town defeated, divorced and pregnant, and that the few people who knew her by more than sight probably also knew that she was here only for a short time. Nervously, she cleared her throat.

  “Thank you for coming.” Her voice was a whisper. She cleared her throat again. “I’m sure you know that Dr. Cooper is leaving, the clinic needs rebuilding and Larkville will need a new doctor. We’re here to talk about how we can make that happen.”