by Lexi Post
“Wait, Whisper!” Trace had been tying up Spirit and ran over as she jumped down and strode toward the horse.
Logan grabbed his brother’s arm. “Relax. She knows what she’s doing. Isn’t that what you told me when she approached Black Jack?”
Trace nodded, but still climbed the fence and shadowed her. His brother was so deeply in love, Logan had to wonder if a wedding would be announced soon. Then again, with those two, they’d probably drive up to Vegas, elope and then tell them all after it was done.
Cyclone caught sight of Whisper and met her halfway. He was a friendly horse and well-tempered like most Clydesdales, which just made the kicking behavior that much more puzzling.
Working on his cousin’s ranch had given him a new appreciation for horses. He’d always valued them, but they had simply been part of his family’s cattle operation. Now, he saw them as individuals with their own past…like him.
He turned around to look at Black Jack, happy in his outside stall. He’d take him out for a ride as soon as his ribs healed. Maybe Jenna could ride Sadie. A new warmth filled his chest at the idea. The past year, whenever he thought about her, saw her, or argued with her, all he’d felt was frustration, anger and regret, but now…now it was different. He wasn’t even sure why.
“You poor thing.” Whisper’s words brought him back to the activity in the corral.
“Because of the burns?” He opened the gate and walked inside. “From what I hear, Dana was burned as well, risking her life to save him.”
Whisper turned her head and scowled at him before returning her focus to Cyclone. She stroked his nose. “You will get all the attention you deserve here.”
He frowned. Whisper spoke to animals easier than to people. “Is something wrong?”
She patted the horse and turned to face him. “Isn’t that why you asked Dr. Jenna to call me?”
Damn, he walked right in to that one. “So, what is it?”
She nodded her head toward the gate and he followed her out as Trace opened it for them. Once far enough away to suit her, she kept her voice low. “That big strong horse was ignored. Half the time he wasn’t brushed, ridden, or even fed.” Whisper’s hands balled into fists. “He smashes things to bring attention to himself.”
Logan pulled back and stared at her. “What?”
She grabbed him by the arm and pulled him halfway across the parking area before he dug in his heels. “Enough. Just tell me what we need to do.”
She faced him. “That animal is used to being considered worthless.”
He raised his brow. “He’s a damn Clydesdale.”
“Whatever. The fact is, whoever owned him didn’t think he was valuable. Maybe the stupid owner was afraid of him. It doesn’t matter why. What you have to do is make him feel special. Lavish him with attention.”
“Excuse me?”
Whisper pointed at him. “You heard me. You need to spoil him. Make him feel like he’s an important part of the ranch.”
He looked to his brother for help, but Trace just shrugged his shoulders.
“And how am I supposed to do that?”
She threw her hands up. “I don’t know. You’re the one with horse experience. Give him a job or something. Show him off to everyone who visits. Make him part of some daily routine.”
He shook his head. “And if I don’t?”
“Then you get to repair stall doors, fence railings and porch steps for a living.”
“Porch steps?” He glanced at the house just to make sure the three steps in front were still intact.
Whisper shrugged. “Let’s just say it’s a possibility.”
Logan cracked the knuckles in his left hand. Just what he needed, a temperamental giant horse. He looked at Trace. “We’re going to need to come up with plan.”
Trace nodded, his smile turning serious for once. “We’ll think of something.”
Logan felt the tension in his gut lessen. As much as his younger brother was a pain in the ass, he was dependable.
“Who the hell is that?” Whisper had turned toward the dirt road heading to the ranch. “And what the freak are they driving. It looks like a coachwhip on steroids.”
Logan smirked at the analogy, even as he stifled a groan. Kylie’s red convertible did look like the snake Whisper referred to as it took the final turn toward the ranch. His hope was that she was equally non-venomous, but if his luck held true, that wouldn’t be the case. How the low-to-the-ground vehicle made it across the steep wash halfway between the house and the highway, was beyond him.
Trace strode toward him and Whisper. “That’s Kylie, Charlotte’s mother.”
“I guess it was too much to hope she’d given up.” Jenna’s admonishment that he thought that a possibility rang in his ears.
“Given up what?” Whisper looked over her shoulder at him.
“Given up trying to see my daughter.” His gut tightened. If Kylie was here, it meant she was willing to meet his terms, or she had a lawyer. He didn’t like either option.
As the car pulled to a stop, Logan was pleased that his brother stepped back to stand shoulder to shoulder with him. The family bond between them had grown stronger since their father had passed and at times like these, Logan appreciated it.
Kylie stepped out in a pair of pink cowboy boots, white short-shorts, a pink halter and her straight blonde hair held back in a white scarf. She looked like a piece of cotton candy.
Whisper turned away from the approaching woman. “Jezebel.”
He widened his eyes at her before she stepped up to his brother and kissed him on the mouth. Trace didn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around her to deepen it.
Logan looked away, meeting Kylie’s gaze. She’d stopped at the sight.
Whisper pulled out of Trace’s arms. “I have to go. Uncle Joey has an appointment with a barber. Ever since old Billy told him about this lady barber, I’m not good enough to cut his hair anymore, the big flirt. If you’re eating dinner here, you better be on guard.”
At Whisper’s command, Trace nodded solemnly.
Did she think Kylie would take her man?
As the woman walked away, she looked at Kylie, before reaching behind her back to touch “Sal,” the warning clear.
Trace chuckled. “Too bad you can’t find you a woman like that.”
He scowled at his brother before turning to face his fate. “Hello, Kylie.”
She continued toward them. “Hi, I’m sorry it took me so long to come back, but I had to work. It’s such a long drive out here. I think I might start looking for employment in Wickenburg so I don’t have such a far drive.”
His heart fell into his stomach at her words. “Does that mean you are ready to meet my terms?”
“Yes.” She opened the tiny purse that was slung over her shoulder. “I brought a hair sample and my written intentions.”
Fuck. That was not what he wanted to hear. “I won’t need the sample. We’ll go to the lab together to have our mouth’s swabbed.” Because he would make sure he was the one who received the results, ASAP.
Her smile faltered. “Us?”
“Yes. It’s important that I prove I’m Charlotte’s dad as well.”
She waved him off. “Oh, I know you are. There was never any doubt. You don’t have to go.”
“Yes, I do.”
She rummaged through her little purse, shrugging as she did so. “Okay. Whatever you want.”
What I want is for you to disappear.
“Ah, here it is.” She pulled out a neatly folded piece of paper and handed it to him. “I brought what you asked for. My intentions.” She presented it to him like a trophy.
He had to force himself to take the paper from her. He palmed the folded square and studied her, her look of anticipation made his gut roll.
“Aren’t you going to open it?”
No! I don’t care what you want, Charlotte is mine!
She gave him a shy smile. “I think you’ll like it.”
His
stomach held still. Could it be she wanted to leave Charlotte to him with occasional visits? He could live with that. Hopeful now, he opened his hand and unfolded the paper.
Chapter Eight
Dear Logan. I think long and hard about my intenson. I feel bad I left Charlotte that nite and missed her every day. I know I do the rite thing, but I feel bad about it.
I want for our daughter is a family. My intenson is to be a mama to Charlotte and a wife to you like we always should be. We have dreams that nite and I want to make them true.
These is my intensons.
Luv Kylie
He stared in shock. Wife? No! He swallowed hard. That was never his dream. He would need a lawyer and a good one. How the hell would he pay for that?
His brother’s hand on his shoulder caused him to look up. Kylie smiled at him. He quickly turned toward Trace and handed him the paper. At his brother’s widening eyes and scowl, he turned back to Kylie.
She frowned. “That was private.”
“On the ranch, nothing is private. I live here with my grandparents, my brother here and my cousin.”
Her gaze flitted to the house and back. “All together?”
“All on this ranch.”
She seemed to think about that for a moment and it didn’t appear she liked it much. “Can I see Charlotte now?”
Fuck. “We still need to get the DNA test.”
“Come on, Logan. I’m her mother. At least let me see her. Then we can go get the test. Please.”
He didn’t like it, but he could hear some court judge calling him hard-hearted and not worthy to be a father. He swallowed down bile. “This way.”
As he turned, Trace grabbed his shoulder and he winced at the twist on his ribs. “Are you sure?”
“No.” He practically growled the word before striding toward the house.
“Wait.” Kylie called after him, but he kept going.
When he reached the door, he paused, his manners forcing him to hold the door open for her.
She scooted past in a cloud of pink and lilac scent.
He hated lilacs. “This way.” He motioned down the hall toward the informal family room. Charlotte should be up from her nap and playing in her playpen. As Kylie came to the door, she halted.
He looked past her to see Charlotte crawling onto the sofa next to Gram.
Kylie looked back at him. “I thought she’d be bigger by now.”
What? Charlotte was perfect. “According to the doctor, she’s long for her age.”
Kylie stepped into the room. “Hey baby, can you come to mommy?”
Fury swept through him and he grabbed Kylie’s arm, spinning her around to face him. “Don’t you dare call yourself her mommy until I decide how to tell her. Understand?” His words were ground out in a low whisper, but from her widening eyes, and nodding head, he was satisfied she understood.
He let go of her arm and fisted his hands, ashamed at the red mark he’d left behind on her arm. He could hear her now claiming to a judge that he abused her.
She walked closer to his daughter. His grandmother stood as Charlotte’s lips moved up into a smile.
He shook his head at Gram, who for once, didn’t interfere, but who also didn’t move an inch.
Charlotte held up her cowboy teddy bear. “Kissie! Kissie!”
“Look at you. What an adorable outfit.” Kylie glanced back at him. “I love the pink dress.” She crouched next to the couch. “You have a very pretty dress, baby.”
Charlotte thrust the teddy bear in Kylie’s face. “Kissie.”
“You want a kiss?” Kylie leaned in and gave Charlotte a kiss on the forehead.
His daughter scowled. “No. No. No. Kissie.” She thrust the teddy again.
Kylie chuckled. “You give kisses.”
Charlotte didn’t like that idea either and quickly rolled over onto her tummy and shimmied off the couch to stand with one hand on the furniture. “Mimi, kissie.” She promptly let go and plopped down on her butt before crawling around Kylie to his grandmother, who scooped her up.
“Logan, I need to feed her. I expect you to come to the kitchen and explain when you’re done here.”
He nodded as she whisked his daughter past him and out of the room, Charlotte smiling at him over his grandmother’s shoulder.
“She’s so adorable.” Kylie’s eyes were misty with unshed tears.
Guilt rifled through him. “She is sometimes. Other times, she’s stubborn and she can yell louder than a screeching bobcat.”
Kylie cocked her head. “I’ve never heard a bobcat. Do you have those out here?”
“Occasionally.”
They stood in awkward silence for few moments. Finally, he cleared his throat. “I have to get back to work.”
“Okay.”
He let her precede him out of the house. Once on the porch, she stopped and faced him. “You didn’t tell me what you thought of my intentions.”
He looked past her. “No. I didn’t. They were not what I expected.”
She stepped closer and placed her hand on his chest. “What do you think?”
He took her hand and pulled it away, grasping at anything to delay the inevitable. “I need to know you are, who you say you are.”
“Fine.” She lifted her chin. “Then you better test that hair or go to the lab with me right now because I’m getting tired of this bullshit.”
Her blue eyes flashed. Part of his brain warned him to be patient, to get a lawyer before pissing her off, but his protective side was ready to have her off the ranch and out of Charlotte’s life. “I’ll drive.”
She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Really?”
Stepping back into the house, he grabbed his keys and let his grandmother know what was happening. She started to ask questions, but he walked out. He may hear about it later, but this was in his daughter’s best interests right now.
When he strode outside, Kylie was waiting by her car. “I’m sorry I snapped at you. This is just hard for me. We can do this another time.”
“No. Now is good.” He opened the passenger door of his truck.
After she climbed in, he closed the door and headed for the driver’s seat. It was the last thing he’d expected to do today, but it was also his last chance to discredit Kylie as Charlotte’s mom, and even if he was grasping at straws, he’d take it.
As he started the truck, he noticed Cyclone watching him. Damn, why did he get the feeling he’d be repairing more fence today as well.
*
Jenna patted Cyclone on his side. “You did great, big guy.”
He looked back and nudged her with his nose.
She laughed. “You really are a big baby, aren’t you?”
Trace, who leaned against the inside of the corral fence grinned. “According to Whisper, he’s even a bigger baby than you think.”
“What did she say?” She dropped her empty vaccination syringe into a small bag and gathered up her stethoscope.
“He smashes things to get attention.”
Jenna snapped her head to face Trace. “Why would a Clydesdale need to attract attention?”
Trace ambled toward the gate and opened it for her. “Whisper says he was ignored, even to the point of his owner forgetting to feed him.”
She slung her bag over her shoulder and strode toward him. “That’s a travesty.”
“More like a pain in the a—um, butt for us. We have to figure out how to keep him busy and spoiled if we want to avoid having to fix whatever he breaks on a daily basis.”
She stepped outside the corral and her gaze went to the parked red convertible for the eighteenth time since she’d arrived. She shouldn’t be jealous just because Logan took Kylie to get her DNA tested, but the fact he was with her in the same vehicle had her stomach in knots.
“Do you have any ideas?” Trace closed the gate, pulling her attention back to her job.
A job she’d just finished, so she had no reason to stay. “He’s technically a heavy dra
ft horse. Is there anything he can pull?”
Trace chuckled. “Sure. He could probably pull down the whole barn if he wanted.”
She rolled her eyes at him and headed for her car. She should find Butterball and leave. So much for seeing Logan. She’d hoped when he said take it one day at a time that it could be a daily effort. Maybe she should lower her expectations.
“Aren’t you coming in for dinner?”
She dropped her bag on her back seat. “Dinner?”
“Yes, the meal people generally eat at this time of day. D-i-n-n-e-r.”
She squinted her eyes at him. “I know what dinner is.”
Trace shrugged. “Just checking. Logan said you were staying for dinner, and Gram planned on it. I have to tell you, if you don’t join us, she’ll be pretty pissed.”
Logan told his grandmother she was staying for dinner? Her mood lightened at that. Was she so pathetic that so little could make her happy when it came to that man? She didn’t like that at all. Still, dinner was dinner.
She hadn’t brought any dog food with her, but there were a few things Butterball could eat that would hold him over until they went home. “Then I guess I better stay. First, I need to find my dog. This whole ranch experience is new for him.”
“Good idea. Last I saw, he was trying to wiggle under the stall door where Macy and Charlotte’s Horse are.”
“What? And you didn’t stop him?” She slammed the car door and started for the barn. She had no idea how mama horse would handle Butterball. The dog had been raised in an apartment in Wisconsin before coming to Arizona. He’d never even seen a horse until yesterday.
“I’m sure he’s fine. Be quick. Gram doesn’t like it when we’re late.”
She ignored Trace and switched on the low lights for the barn. At first glance, her new dog wasn’t in sight. “Great.” Striding for the last stall on her left, she imagined all kinds of scenarios. Butterball stomped to a pulp. Butterball cowering in the corner with Macy hovering over him, teeth bared.
What she didn’t expect to see was the reality. She halted in front of the stall. The yet to be named colt lay on the hay, its eyes closed with Butterball sleeping against his side, softly snoring. She moved her gaze to Macy who looked at her with kind eyes before returning to her dinner.
