The Cowboy's Little Girl

by Kat Brookes

  Autumn’s heart was in her throat. This was the closest Blue had gotten to a horse since Summer’s accident.

  Tucker knelt beside her, placing an apple sliver in her hand. “Now hold your hand out slowly so Little Joe can scent what you are giving him. Keep your hand upturned and fingers laid flat so he can nibble the apple right off your hand.”

  She sidled up against Tucker as if he would protect her from all the bad in the world. And maybe that was how things would be if he kept proving himself worthy of his daughter. Autumn felt the sting of unshed tears at the backs of her eyes. She wasn’t ready to give up her niece to Tucker or anyone. Why couldn’t he have been different? Arrogant. Closed off. Caring only for his own happiness. Unwilling to be saddled down with a child. But Tucker was none of those things. He was, from what she had researched and now had had time to see for herself, a really good man.

  “That’s it,” she heard Tucker say. “Just like that.”

  Pushing her troubled thoughts aside, Autumn watched as her niece fed Little Joe from her upturned palm. Thank You, Lord.

  Blue giggled and began to squirm. “That tickles.”

  Tucker’s husky chuckle resonated in the early morning air. “He’s making sure he gets every single morsel of apple from your hand.”

  Satisfied he had, Little Joe pulled back, chewing on his special treat.

  “I think you’ve definitely made a friend in Little Joe,” she told Blue.

  Her niece looked to her daddy, who was still kneeling beside her. “Can I be Hoss’s friend, too?”

  “You want to give him an apple slice?”

  She nodded.

  Smiling, he handed her another piece. “Have at it, sweetheart.”

  “Look at me, Aunt Autumn,” Blue exclaimed with another burst of giggles as Hoss nibbled at the apple chunk in her upturned hand.

  “Look at you,” Autumn said, her voice catching.

  Tucker’s gaze shifted to Autumn and his smile widened as he held an apple slice out to her. “Join us?”

  It meant a lot that Tucker was trying to include her. Especially because it was such a special moment for Blue who was finally pushing past her fear when it came to horses. Coming forward, Autumn accepted the offered fruit.

  “All done,” Blue announced with a joyous grin as she stepped back from the fence. She hurried to wipe her damp, horse-kissed hand off on her jeans.

  Autumn opened her mouth to tell her not to wipe her messy hands on her clean clothes, but then closed it. She wasn’t about to do or say anything that would take away the joy Blue was feeling at that moment.

  Tucker stood, scooping Blue up in one strong arm. “It’s your aunt Autumn’s turn now,” he said, turning to face her.

  Something told Autumn that he was testing her. Not quite believing that she was as comfortable as she claimed to be around horses.

  Little Joe whinnied, urging her on.

  “Patience is a virtue,” she told the horse who had stretched his neck through the open slats of the fence to reach the treat in her hand. Autumn extended her arm, unfurling her fingers, allowing Little Joe access to what he wanted. “Like that, do you?” she cooed as she reached out with her other hand to stroke the horse’s neck.

  The gelding nickered softly.

  “I think he likes you,” Tucker said as he stood beside her, grinning.

  She snorted. “Only because I’m feeding him.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” he countered. “I think he’d find you likable with or without food.”

  Autumn glanced up at Tucker. When her gaze met his, her heart gave an odd little start. “I—” Her response was cut short by Blue’s sudden shriek.

  Arms flailing, her niece tried to grab for her doll as it was pulled into the pen. “Molly!” she cried out.

  Tucker set Blue on her feet and then straightened. “Hoss!” he scolded as he climbed into the pen to retrieve the pilfered rag doll.

  “He’s eating her!” Blue said with a sob.

  It certainly did appear that way, Autumn thought with a frown.

  “I won’t let him eat Molly,” Tucker called back as he attempted to coax the horse to release its newly found treasure.

  When it didn’t appear that Hoss was in a mood to cooperate, Autumn thought it best to get Blue away from the situation. Reaching for Blue’s hand, she said, “Let’s go back to the house and see about fixing you some pancakes.”

  “What about Molly?” Blue whimpered, craning her neck to look behind her as Autumn led her away.

  “Your daddy will get her back after Hoss is through playing with her,” she replied, trying to sound as if she believed that to be true. “Then he has to get to work. Your uncles are expecting him. Molly will just have to go help with the chores and then your daddy will bring her home when they are all done.”

  “Okay,” Blue said with a disappointed sigh. “Do you think Daddy will give Miss Molly a ride on his horse if he rides it to work today?”

  Autumn managed a smile. “You can count on it.” After what had just occurred, she had a feeling Tucker would take Miss Molly out for a fancy dinner if the doll requested it. She just prayed her niece’s favorite toy hadn’t become dinner herself.

  Chapter Six

  Tucker took a break from the loose fence post he’d been reinforcing to grab a bottle of water from the insulated cooler bag he kept in his truck. Bringing the bottle to his lips, he took several long swallows as he looked out over his handiwork. The repair was taking longer than usual, but then his focus wasn’t fully on the task at hand. It was on Blue.

  His gaze shifted to the dirty, mangled doll lying atop the passenger seat of his truck. Miss Molly. Tucker’s stomach knotted. Twisting the lid back onto the bottle, he shoved it back into the cooler and then reached for the doll. Its yarn hair, or what remained of it after Hoss had chewed on it, was now matted and damp.

  He stepped back and held it up, frowning as the sun spotlighted the extent of the damage that had been done to Miss Molly. Not only was this bound to make Blue dislike horses even more, he couldn’t help but wonder if she’d blame him for it, as well. After all, Hoss was his horse. And he’d been the one holding Blue, making it easier for the hungry gelding to make a grab for her doll. Hand dropping to his side, he leaned back against his pickup, his gaze drifting toward the herd of broncs that were grazing and frolicking in the distance. At least, they were having fun. They’d earned it. After months of rodeo competition, these finely honed, well-bred horses had done the Triple W proud, serving up countless award-winning and championship rides. They were not only his and his brothers’ livelihood, they were, without a doubt, their pride and joy. The horses were as close to having children as any of the Wade brothers had ever gotten. Until Blue.

  Now Tucker was a daddy, one whose baby girl feared these proud and majestic creatures before him. A fear she had bravely tried to get past that morning when she’d volunteered to hand-feed an apple to Little Joe. Then Hoss had to go and snatch Miss Molly right out of his daughter’s hand.

  Tucker bit back a groan of frustration. How was he supposed to convince Blue to come to live with him at the ranch, a horse ranch, when even her doll didn’t appear to be safe from harm’s way when it came to his horses?

  Tires rumbled across the ground just beyond his truck. Tucker craned his neck to see who it was.

  His brother Jackson pulled up next to Tucker’s pickup and cut the engine. Then he stepped out and rounded the front of his truck, peeling off his thick leather work gloves as he went. “You planning on doing any work today, or are you just admiring the view?”

  Tucker pushed away from his truck, muttering, “I’ve been working. Trying to, at least.”

  “Everything okay?” Jackson asked, his tone far less jesting. “I know it’s been quite a shock, finding out about...” His words trailed off as his gaze dropped down to Tucke
r’s clenched hand. “Is that a rag doll?”

  “Used to be,” he muttered, holding the remnants of Miss Molly up for his brother to see.

  Jackson arched a brow. “What happened to it?”

  He looked down at the limp, nearly headless doll and his gut twisted. “Hoss decided to floss his teeth with Miss Molly’s hair.”

  “Miss Molly?”

  “Blue’s doll,” he grumbled, as if he really needed to clarify that.

  Jackson let out a low whistle. “Looks to me like he tried to floss with her entire head.”

  Tucker shot him a glare. “You’re not helping matters.” He already knew the doll was ruined. Blue’s treasured little doll was now a stump in a dirty, horse-slobbered dress.

  “Does Blue know?” his brother asked, concern knitting his brows.

  “Not the extent of the damage my horse did,” he said. “But she was there when Hoss made off with her doll. Autumn took Blue back to the house, pretty much in tears.” He looked to Jackson. “How am I supposed to tell my little girl that her precious rag doll is done for? She’s already lost her mother.”

  Jackson nodded. “That won’t do.” He stroked his chin in thought, his gaze fixed on the doll. Then his expression eased. “I’ve got a plan.”

  “I’m all ears.”

  “We’ll take Miss Molly to Garrett.”

  Tucker stared at his brother in confusion. “Taking this doll to Garrett is supposed to fix everything?”

  “He’s a doctor, isn’t he?”

  “He’s a vet,” Tucker said in frustration. “Molly isn’t a cow ready to calve, or a horse with digestive issues. She’s a rag doll.” Glancing down, he added disheartened, “Half a rag doll.”

  Jackson grabbed Miss Molly from Tucker and started back around his truck.

  “Where are you going?” Tucker called after him.

  “Get in,” his brother said. “We’re going into town to buy a mop before we go hunt Garrett down.”

  “A mop?” Had his brother been out in the sun too long?

  “Miss Molly is going to need some new hair,” Jackson told him as he whipped open the driver’s-side door. “And Garrett is just the man to sew Miss Molly’s new locks back onto her head. That would be after he stitches her head back fully onto her body.”

  For the first time since Autumn had rushed Blue off toward the house that morning, Tucker felt his heart lighten. Jackson’s plan just might work. It had to. His little girl was counting on him to set things right.

  An hour and a half later, all three Wade brothers were gathered around the examination table in Garrett’s clinic, a small outbuilding that served as home base for his veterinary practice. Garrett, thank the good Lord, had been able to put Miss Molly back together again in an impressively neat and tidy manner. Most of the dirt had been scrubbed clean from her flimsy body and frilly dress. Her head had been firmly reattached. And while her neck was admittedly a little squattier as a result of the tussle she had been in with his horse, the slight imperfection was covered up by the brand-new much fuller head of hair their brother had so skillfully replaced.

  “I can’t believe I’m performing surgery on a doll,” Garrett muttered with a shake of his head as he tied up the last stitch.

  “Blue’s doll,” Jackson reminded him.

  Tucker nodded.

  His brother lifted his gaze to look at them. “You do realize that she’s the only reason I’m doing this. Therefore, if word gets out and I start having little girls and their dolls lining up on my doorstep for repairs, the two of you are going to tend to them. Not me.”

  “Point made,” Jackson said. “No one’s going to find out about your baby doll doctoring skills from me. My lips are sealed.”

  “Same here.” Tucker nodded in agreement.

  “Good to know,” Garrett said as he snipped off the piece of thread left dangling from the knot he’d just made. Then he took a step back to admire his handiwork. “There you go,” he announced. “As good as new.”

  Tucker’s throat clogged with emotion as he stood staring at the tiny rag doll. “Thank you,” he muttered hoarsely. “Both of you.” Things had seemed so hopeless when he’d finally gotten the doll back from Hoss. The frantic tug-of-war that had nearly separated Miss Molly’s head from her body had left him fairly convinced that no amount of fervent prayer was going to be able to fix things. But his brothers hadn’t given up hope and their faith had persevered.

  “Well?” Garrett said.

  Tucker looked up at his oldest brother.

  “Are you just going to stand here admiring my handiwork, or are you going to take Miss Molly home where she belongs?”

  He shifted uneasily. “We’ve still got work to do on the fence.”

  Jackson snorted. “A lot of help you’ll be to us with your thoughts drawn back to those two pretty girls at the ranch.”

  “Jackson’s right,” Garrett told him, adding softly, “Go home.”

  Garrett cleaned up the snips of thread and strands of mop fibers from the examination table. “You need to be spending more time with Autumn, proving yourself worthy of her trust where her niece’s happiness is concerned.”

  Tucker frowned. “Yeah, this morning was a good example of that. My horse ate her doll.”

  “Those things happen,” his oldest brother replied. “I’m sure Autumn understands.”

  “What about Blue?” he demanded. “It might not be Autumn who throws up a roadblock when it comes to my getting custody of Blue. It might very well be my daughter. Especially after what happened this morning.”

  “She’ll forget all about Hoss trying to eat Miss Molly after you return her baby doll to her,” Jackson told him. “Besides, we’re her family,” he said as the three of them made their way out of the clinic. “Blue should be with us.”

  “Autumn is her family, too,” Tucker reminded his brother with a sigh. “And Blue loves her aunt. How am I supposed to take my daughter away from the woman who helped raise her?”

  Jackson pulled his car keys from his jeans pocket. “No way around it, Tucker. This is a rough situation. Someone’s going to come out on the hurting end.”

  “That’s what Autumn said,” Tucker observed, his shoulders sagging under the weight of the situation.

  “It’s the truth,” his brother continued. “But you’re Blue’s father. You should’ve been the one helping to raise her all these years.”

  Garrett nodded in agreement as he walked them out to Jackson’s truck. “Are you going to church Sunday?” Jackson asked.

  “Can’t say for sure,” Tucker replied. “It depends on what Autumn and Blue are going to do. She didn’t seem comfortable with it last week when I asked her and Blue to join me for Sunday services, which is why I went alone.”

  “Maybe now that they’ve been here for well over a week, Autumn will feel settled in enough to accept your invitation for her to join you for church.”

  “If they decline my offer to go to church this weekend, I’ll probably stay home. I’d like to spend every moment I can with my daughter while she’s here.”

  “It would be nice to have you all there.”

  He nodded. “I know, but I won’t pressure Autumn into doing anything she’s not completely comfortable with.”

  “You might find yourself rethinking that when the time comes for her to leave with your daughter,” Jackson stated as he slid behind the steering wheel. “I suggest you take that gift you have with horses and use it to coax Autumn over to your way of thinking.” That said, he closed the driver’s-side door and started the truck.

  Garrett accompanied his youngest brother the remainder of the way around to the passenger side. “Look, Tucker, I know this is a tough situation. Just know that whatever you need Jackson and I to do to help move matters along, all you have to do is ask.”

  Tucker opened the passen
ger door and then turned back to his brother. “I appreciate the support you and Jackson have given me, despite my having disappointed the both of you by keeping my marriage to Summer from the family.”

  Garrett shrugged. “Can’t change the past.”

  If only he could. “And I might take you up on your offer to help out. That is if I can convince Autumn to consent to spending some alone time with me after church on Sunday.”

  Garrett nodded. “Consider it done.”

  “Hopefully, it’ll give her and me the time we need to iron some things out regarding custody of my daughter.”

  “There shouldn’t even be any ironing required as far as I’m concerned,” Jackson grumbled as he fastened his seat belt.

  He glanced back over his shoulder at his brother. “I don’t want this situation to become ugly. Autumn’s got a lot to lose as well when all is said and done. So I’m hoping, with the good Lord’s guidance, we’ll be able to figure out a solution that works best for all involved in this tangle my wife created for us with her lies.”

  “Autumn should be thankful you’re the kind of man you are,” Jackson muttered. “Another man might not be so considerate of her feelings where Blue is concerned.”

  “She’s not Summer,” he said in Autumn’s defense. “She’s giving and selfless, and determined to do what’s right when it comes to Blue. I won’t hold her to blame for her sister’s bad decisions.”

  “It’s true. Autumn isn’t Summer. You might want to keep that up front in your mind, little brother,” Garrett warned with a studying glance.

  “What exactly are you getting at?” Tucker asked as he hopped up into the truck.

  “Autumn might not be Summer,” his brother replied. “But she is her identical twin. Don’t let your heart confuse the two of them and risk losing what matters most when the time comes—Blue.”

  “Not a chance,” Tucker replied, closing the door. His denial, however, didn’t keep Autumn’s sweet smile from drifting through his mind as they drove away.

  * * *

  “In here!” Autumn called out when she heard the front door open and close. She’d seen Tucker’s truck coming up the drive from the living room window and had felt an unexpected stirring of excitement. It wasn’t as if she’d been alone with nothing to do all day. She had been doing her best to keep Blue busy and her niece’s thoughts away from the loss of her favorite doll. They’d watched a movie on Autumn’s iPad, had colored for hours and were now entertaining Itty Bitty. So why then had she reacted to Tucker’s coming home the way she had?