“Are you worried somehow I’ll kill the kids?” He chuckled. “Miranda, I’m sure I’ll figure it all out.” She looked at him dubiously. “Trust me, Miranda, I’ve got this,” he assured her. “I’ve wrestled steers and roped cattle. How hard can it be to run a household with two kids?”
“I guess I’ll just have to wait and see how you handle everything,” she replied.
He was pleased that she finished her soup and through the rest of the afternoon she napped off and on. The doctor had sent her home with pain pills, and even though he knew she was in pain, she refused to take anything.
At six o’clock Katherine arrived with the children. They ran to Miranda’s side. “Wow, that’s an awesome bruise,” Jenny exclaimed. “Does it hurt?”
“A little,” Miranda replied.
“What happened to your foot?” Henry asked.
“I sprained my ankle and so the doctor wrapped it up. He also gave me crutches so I can walk a little.”
“Are you going to be okay?” Henry asked with obvious concern.
Miranda smiled at her son. “Honey, I’m going to be just fine.”
“Why don’t you two go find something to do in your rooms for a little while so I can have a chat with your mom and Clay,” Katherine said. Once the kids were gone, she said, “Oh, honey, you were so lucky that this wasn’t worse than it was. Dear God, you could have been killed.”
“Don’t remind me,” Miranda replied ruefully.
“What’s Dillon saying about all this?” Katherine asked.
“He’s coming over tomorrow to update us on the situation,” Clay said. “He wanted to give Miranda a chance to get settled back in here before he came by.”
“I hope he has some answers.” Katherine looked at Clay. “And you won’t let anything else happen to her?”
Clay touched the butt of his gun. “Nobody is going to hurt her again as long as I’m around, and I plan on being around until Dillon makes an arrest.”
“I wish I could do more to help,” Katherine replied in obvious misery. “You’ll call me if you get overwhelmed with the kids or anything else?”
“Yeah, but I can assure you we’re going to be just fine,” Clay said. “I’m going to take care of things here and there’s nothing for you to worry about.”
Katherine stayed for another half an hour and then left. “The kids need baths, but before we get started on them, I’d like to take a quick shower.” Miranda sat up and swung her legs over the side of the sofa.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Clay asked worriedly.
“I think it will make me feel better.”
“Do you need me to help with anything?”
“Actually, if you could go upstairs to my bathroom and grab the nightgown and robe that’s hanging on the back of the door I would appreciate it. I think for the next couple of nights I’ll sleep down here on the sofa. The stairs are fairly daunting to me right now.”
“You just tell me what you need from up there and I’ll be glad to bring it down for you,” he replied.
“Just the gown and the robe will do it for tonight.”
She remained seated on the sofa as he ran up the stairs and into her bedroom. The midnight blue nightgown and matching robe were exactly where she’d told him they would be. As he took them off the hook, her scent wafted from them and an unexpected heat of desire filled his belly and flooded through his veins.
He knew it was inappropriate under the circumstances, but he had no control over his longing to have more of her. He couldn’t help that, for just a moment, his brain filled with the hot memory of kissing her.
Stop it, an internal voice commanded. Stop thinking about your own desire for her. That isn’t what she needs from you right now. Right now she needs your tenderness and caring. Right now she needs you as a friend. Hopefully there would be time to explore his desire for her later.
He carried the clothing back down the stairs and handed it to her. “Now, if you could just pass me my crutches,” she replied.
Minutes later she was in the downstairs bathroom. While she showered, Clay went upstairs and into Henry’s room where the two kids were playing a video game. “We’re supposed to catch the fish,” Henry explained.
“Do you like to go fishing?” Clay asked as he sat on the edge of Henry’s bed.
“We’ve never been fishing before, except on this game,” Jenny replied.
“Maybe when your mom gets better we can all go fishing in the Holiday Ranch pond. There’s a lot of big bass in that pond,” Clay said.
“That would be so fun,” Jenny said.
“I’d like to catch a big bass,” Henry replied. “I’d fight him until I landed him.” Henry pretended to reel up a fish.
“Me, too,” Jenny said and mimicked her brother’s actions.
They talked about fishing for several minutes and then the conversation moved on to summer vacation plans. “I forgot to tell you mom signed me up on a baseball team,” Henry said. “I’m going to be on the Bitterroot Buffalos.”
“That’s great,” Clay replied.
“And our first practice game is this Thursday,” Henry added.
Thursday? How was Clay going to get Henry to his practice game and still be on guard for Miranda? Before he could fully process the issue, he heard the water stop running and knew Miranda would be getting out of the shower.
He went back downstairs and was seated on the chair in the living room when she came into the room. Her hair was damp and she smelled like a bouquet of flowers. Clad in the midnight blue nightgown and robe, she stirred a renewed burn of inappropriate desire inside him.
How could she pull forth such a longing inside him when she was bruised and battered? Again he told himself he should be ashamed of himself for the desire that momentarily swept through him.
“Feel better?” he asked as she set the crutches aside and eased down on the sofa.
“Maybe a little bit.” She smiled wanly.
The kids came running down the stairs and into the room. “Henry caught a big fish,” Jenny exclaimed.
“That’s wonderful,” Miranda said. “And what did you catch?” she asked her daughter.
“I caught an old boot,” Jenny replied with a small pout. “Next time I’m gonna catch a big fish.”
“Mr. Clay said he’s gonna take us all fishing for real in a pond when you feel better,” Henry said. “I’m gonna catch a giant bass for real.”
“That sounds like fun, but what I need to know now is who wants to take their bath first?” Miranda asked the children.
“I’ll go,” Jenny said. She got up from the floor where she’d been sitting. “Mr. Clay, are you going home tonight?”
“No, I’m staying here for a while. Is that okay with you?” he asked.
“It’s better than okay,” Jenny replied.
“And you’re going to take care of us while Mommy is hurt?” Henry asked.
“I’m going to take care of you two and your mommy,” he said.
“And that’s why you both have to be especially good, so that Mr. Clay will stay and take care of you,” Miranda said. “And that means it’s time for baths.”
Clay looked at Miranda. “I want you to stay on that sofa. Just tell me what the routine is and I can take care of it.”
“Baths and pajamas,” she replied. “And I’d appreciate it if you’d check the temperature of the water before they get into the tub.”
“Got it. Now stretch out and relax and think about nothing,” he commanded. He then turned to Jenny. “Come on, little lightning bug. Let’s go fill the tub.”
“How come you called me a lightning bug?” Jenny asked.
“My mother used to call me that. She’d say I was a lightning bug who lit up her life and I’m sure you light up your mother’s life, too.”
I
mmediately his heart squeezed tight and a hint of anger rose up inside him. Yes, his mother had said that to him almost every night and yet she’d left him without even a goodbye. She’d just disappeared from his life, never to be seen or heard from again.
His mother remained on his mind as he got the baths ready, first for Jenny and then for Henry. How did a mother just walk away from her kid? Had he been so bad, so ugly that she’d found him impossible to love?
When the baths were finished, he shoved thoughts of his mother deep inside where he tried to keep them all the time...in a place where they couldn’t anger or hurt him.
He played a couple of games of Go Fish with the kids at the coffee table while Miranda looked on from her perch on the sofa. Henry was delighted when he won the first game and Jenny crowed with success when she won the second game.
“Okay, it’s bedtime, kiddos,” Miranda said before they got a chance to start another game.
“But Mom, we need to give Mr. Clay a chance to win a game,” Henry protested.
“There’s always tomorrow night, and tomorrow night I’ll beat you both,” Clay said and gathered up the cards. “Now, give your mother kisses and I’ll tuck you both in.”
“I’m sorry I can’t tuck you in tonight,” Miranda said sadly. “I just can’t get up the stairs right now.”
“It’s okay,” Jenny said.
“We’ll see how Mr. Clay does it tonight,” Henry replied.
He followed Henry into his room first and pulled up the sheet around the little boy. He stroked his hand through Henry’s blond hair. “I want you to have nothing but happy dreams.”
Henry’s eyes drifted closed as Clay continued to stroke his hair. “Good night, sweet boy,” Clay said. Then he left the room and headed for Jenny’s.
She was already in bed and she cast him a sweet smile as he entered. Like he had done with Henry, he tucked the sheet around her neck. “I want you to have happy dreams,” he said.
“Are you going to have happy dreams tonight?” she asked.
“I hope so,” he replied.
“And you’re going to make us breakfast in the morning?”
“I certainly am. Your mommy needs to rest and so I’m going to be here to take care of you two kids for a while. What do you like for breakfast?”
“Pancakes,” she replied. “Henry and I love pancakes.”
Clay groaned inwardly. Why couldn’t she have said she liked a nice bowl of cereal? He’d never made pancakes in his life, but somehow he’d figure it out.
“Then pancakes it is. Now it’s time for you to close your eyes and go to sleep,” he said.
“Aren’t you going to give me a kiss good-night?” she asked. “Mommy always gives us a good-night kiss.”
“Well, I certainly want to do it like Mommy.” He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. As he did, she wrapped her arms around him to give him a big hug. She released him and smiled. “I’m glad you’re here. Good night, Mr. Clay.”
“Good night, sweetheart,” he replied and left the room.
A sweet warmth flooded through him as he headed back down the stairs. It would be so easy to fall in love with Miranda’s kids. They were so loving and seemed to accept him with open arms and open hearts.
He returned to the living room. “I think I’ll call it a night, too,” Miranda said. She winced as she changed positions. “I’m just hoping I get a good night’s sleep.”
“You’d probably get a better night’s sleep if you took one of those pain pills Dr. Johnson sent home with you,” Clay replied. He hated that she hurt. He’d seen her discomfort all evening and wished he could take the pain away from her.
“I hate to take a pill. What if one of the kids calls out in the night and I don’t hear them?”
“I’ll hear them,” he assured her. “You’ve had a long day, Miranda. Now, will you stop being so stubborn and just take a pill?”
“Okay,” she finally relented.
He got the pill and a glass of water from the kitchen and then brought them to her. She swallowed the painkiller and he took the glass from her. “What else can I do for you?”
“Would you mind getting me the blanket that’s on the top shelf in the hall closet?”
He carried the glass back into the kitchen, then retrieved the soft pink blanket from the closet and carried it to her. He unfolded it and covered her.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“No, thanks. I should be good for the night.”
“Before you go to sleep you need to tell me about the morning routine with the kids.”
As she told him about breakfast and bus times, all he could think about was his desire to curl up next to her on the sofa beneath the fuzzy, soft blanket and hold her through the night.
“You won’t bother me if you want to stay up and watch television,” she said drowsily.
“Are you sure?”
“Trust me, nothing short of a bomb going off is going to keep me awake tonight.” She closed her eyes.
He picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned on the television. He lowered the volume so that it was barely discernable and then sat in the chair.
He didn’t really want to watch TV, but he wasn’t ready to call it a night. He needed a little time to process everything that had happened and how this time with her was going to work.
He also needed a little time to just stare at her face and thank God that she hadn’t been hurt even worse. His stomach muscles clenched tight as he thought of what might have happened.
The attacks on her seemed particularly evil. Who in this town was capable of such madness? Most of the folks in Bitterroot were good people...hardworking and God-fearing. Who was hiding this kind of hatred for Miranda? He couldn’t imagine it was somebody he knew.
He remained in the chair for about forty-five minutes and then decided it was time for him to get some shut-eye. Miranda was sleeping peacefully as he stood and turned off the television.
The only thing that made him a little uncomfortable was that she was sleeping down here while he would be in a bedroom upstairs.
He went into the kitchen and grabbed a chair from the table. He then carried it to the front door and wedged it beneath the doorknob. At least with the chair serving as an additional barrier, he’d hear if anyone tried to burst in. In any case, he intended to sleep with one eye open so that he would hear trouble if it decided to make a visit.
He did the same thing with the back door although he didn’t really think the perp would be so bold as to try to break in, especially with his truck in the driveway...a definite indication that she wasn’t in the house alone with her children.
He turned off the lights, then went upstairs and into the bedroom where he’d be staying while he was here.
He took off his holster and placed his gun on the nightstand where it would be in easy reach should he need it. He stripped to his boxers and got into bed.
Staying here was going to be difficult for him. He was here as a helper and a defender, not as a lover. Still, he couldn’t help the way his heart beat a little quicker each time he looked at her.
He had no control over the desire that seemed to jump to life when he got close to her, when he smelled that floral scent that wafted from her. He wanted to kiss her lips, caress her soft skin, and that desire had definitely been an unwelcome guest inside him throughout the afternoon and evening.
But each time it rose up inside of him, he had to tamp it down. She really did need a friend right now and he was determined to be here for her for as long as she needed.
He closed his eyes, seeking sleep, but instead of falling into pleasant dreams, a frightening thought that had tried to intrude all day sprang fully formed into his head.
There had been two failed attempts to severely hurt or kill Miranda. Whoever was behind those attempts had bee
n thwarted so far.
But he knew in his gut that the person wasn’t finished yet. He or she hadn’t achieved the ultimate goal. The person would try again. What kept Clay awake for a long time was wondering how and when another attack would happen.
* * *
Miranda lay on the sofa and listened to Clay cleaning up the breakfast dishes. This was the third morning that he’d fixed breakfast for the children, checked that they were dressed appropriately and then sent them out the door for the bus stop and school.
If Clay Madison had scared her before with his charm and sexy appeal, he scared her even more now. In the past three days she’d seen yet another side to him.
He’d surprised her with his domesticity. He seemed as comfortable in the kitchen as she guessed he was at the Watering Hole. As the three ate breakfast together each day there was plenty of laughter drifting out of the kitchen.
In the evenings he made dinner and she joined them. With the four of them seated at the table and the children laughing at Clay’s bad jokes and silly antics, her heart expanded with remembered dreams.
When the kids had first been born, she’d envisioned this kind of life...her family gathered around a dinner table, sharing the events of their day and laughing together.
But by the time Jenny was born, Hank had already started drinking heavily and more nights than not by dinnertime he was passed out in the bedroom. She’d definitely wanted the fairy tale, but it had been shattered with Hank.
It scared her that she saw whispers of that fairy tale coming back to life with Clay here in her house. Her head told her it was just an illusion and not to be trusted, but her heart wondered if perhaps she had badly misjudged the handsome cowboy. Or was it simple gratitude that had her softening so much toward Clay?
Nobody else in her life would have stepped up to do what he was doing for her now. Nobody else would have put their own life on hold the way he had done for her.
During the past three days the fog in her head from the accident had begun to let up, but her confusion about Clay had only deepened. Was he the party boy Romeo the town had painted him, or was he something else entirely?
She certainly wasn’t interested in a romantic relationship with him, but she was curious about him...about the depths of him and what made him tick. She told herself that getting to know him better would help her pass the time until she got back on her feet.
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