“Date A doesn’t care. Date A is thrilled that Date C—is that how I’d refer to him in this scenario?—is finally getting his act together. He’s slow. I’m warning you.” Georgia’s eyes danced.
Ty’s look was dark and serious. “That wasn’t a yes, Louise.”
“How about let’s meet to work on Harvest Fest?”
“Monday.”
“We’re canning corn in the morning.”
“And you’re resting after that.”
She almost rolled her eyes. “Maybe if I’m sick.”
“So we can talk about Harvest Fest while we work, and then you’ll take a rest after we’re done, before you come into the diner.” Ty’s ice cream dripped down the cone.
Louise pointed to it. “Your ice cream is melting.”
“And you work too hard.”
“It is necessary. I enjoy it.”
Georgia kicked his cowboy boot. He slanted his gaze over at her while she made a cutting motion with her throat.
“I can see you guys.” Louise licked her ice cream.
“Sometimes men are such idiots. He doesn’t have the right to tell you what to do.” Georgia rolled her eyes.
“I’m just trying to take care of her.”
“She’s been doing just fine by herself for the past nine years.” Georgia gave him a telling look.
He shut his mouth.
“Thanks, Georgia. I appreciate the encouragement.”
“You two make me want to pull my hair out,” Ty growled before finishing off the rest of his ice-cream cone in one bite.
“You could date Paul. He doesn’t backtalk,” Louise suggested wryly, biting into her cone.
Ty swallowed. “Paul’s a loser. He didn’t deserve one second with you, let alone a whole movie.”
At least Ty was good for her battered ego.
“Sometimes it’s harder for a woman to survive than you think it is.” Georgia held her cone out. “I can’t finish this.”
Ty took it from her. “Just what I wanted to hear.” He licked around it then held it out to Louise. “Want some?”
For some reason, that question made tingles run down her fingers and up her spine, curling the hair on her neck. She stared at the ice cream where his tongue had just been. “No thanks,” she squeaked out.
He took another lick. “Are you sure? It’s the cookie explosion, and you might like it.” He held it out to her, and after a slow second, her hand came up and took it.
Their fingers brushed. His were warm and hard, and the tingles from earlier came back with their friends, traveling up her arm, fogging her brain. Bringing the cone to her lips, she took a tentative lick. It was as good as he said. He took it back, and his eyes held hers as he turned the cone and licked over where she had.
“Whoo, it’s getting hot out here.” Georgia pretended to fan herself. “I think I’ll just take a walk.”
“No!” Louise ripped her eyes from Ty’s, sticking the last of her own cone in her mouth. “Please don’t. I need to get home.” She stood up, taking a step to put some distance between them before she turned to Ty. “Thanks so much for the ice cream.”
“Anytime,” he said, low and sincere, like he was making a lifetime vow rather than a casual offer of ice cream.
“It was so nice to see you, Georgia.” She took a breath and offered a smile. “Thanks for everything.”
Ty straightened. “We’ll follow you home.”
“It’s out of your way. Especially if you’re taking Georgia home.”
“I don’t mind,” Georgia piped up instantly.
“Humor me, please.” Ty said softly.
She shrugged. It wasn’t like they couldn’t drive wherever they wanted. She could tell him no, and he’d probably listen. But he just wanted to make sure she was okay. After years of taking care of herself, she supposed she should love the fact that someone cared about her.
“Okay.”
Chapter 16
Ty made it to Louise’s house at 7:30 Monday morning. Palmer was just stepping off the porch with a bucket in each hand and a smile on his face. Ty didn’t know too many men who smiled that early in the morning, but apparently Palmer was one of them. Most of the guys he knew grumbled about having to get out of bed before ten.
“’Morning, Ty. Louise said you were helping this morning.” He handed Ty a bucket filled with sacks without a smile. “She also said that I wasn’t allowed to touch you. She said things were a little more complicated than what they seemed. I trust Louise, but I’ve hated the guy who did this to her for a long time.” He shook his head. “You were about the last person I would have guessed.”
Well, there was no awkward, “you’re a big hockey star, and I’m in awe of you” trash. That was actually refreshing.
Ty gave him a level look. “I would expect you to take care of your sister.”
Palmer jerked his head. “If you need coffee, Louise has it going on the counter.”
Tempted to grab a cup, just because he wanted to see Louise, he said, “Thanks, but I’m good. I drank some on the way here. It’s a farmer’s gasoline.”
It was the right thing to say because Palmer laughed. “Pap always says that.”
“My dad always said that.”
Palmer’s laugh died. “It’s good you remember.”
Ty lifted his chin in acknowledgment. How much different things would be if his dad had lived.
It took about an hour, but they had all the sacks that were in the buckets filled. Palmer carried three sacks in each hand. Ty imitated him, and soon they were all carried to the picnic table in the backyard by the garden.
As soon as Louise and Ames saw them outside, they came out with dishpans and started husking. Ty allowed his eyes to linger on Louise. She looked like she’d slept well. Her face was freshly scrubbed with pink cheeks under bright blue eyes. Her hair was back in a ponytail, and she wore sneakers with her jeans and t-shirt.
Palmer dropped his sacks and caught Ames up in a two-armed hug, planting a large kiss on her open lips.
She laughed and put her arms around him, kissing him back.
Ty wouldn’t have said canning corn could be romantic or fun, but they seemed to make it both. His gaze skipped back to Louise. She was watching Palmer and Ames but seemed to feel his gaze, because her eyes turned to him.
If only he had the right to go over and kiss her. “Morning, beautiful,” he said instead.
“Don’t you have that backwards?” she asked with a little grin.
“Nope. Said exactly what I meant.”
“’Morning, yourself.”
He opened his mouth to say more, but Palmer slapped him on the shoulder. “One more trip and we should have everything here.”
He gave Louise a last look before following her brother back out to the field. Then he helped husk corn until the first two dishpans were full.
Once the second pan was full, Louise stood up along with Ames. “Okay, we’re going to go start.”
“I’ll help here until we’re well ahead, then I have to go finish with the stock.” Palmer indicated the picnic table and the full sacks of corn.
Ty wasn’t really paying attention, though, because he was watching Louise as she walked in. He’d been hoping to spend time with her today, but it looked like he’d be outside and she’d be in.
Thirty minutes later, Palmer left to feed the stock. A half an hour after that, he walked out the back door with Ames following. “So, Ty, how would you feel about going in the kitchen to help out, so Ames can work out here with me?”
“I feel good about that,” Ty said, standing up. He wouldn’t need to be asked twice to go anywhere Louise was. “I’ll carry this full pan of corn in.”
Palmer gave him a steady look as they passed. Ty understood the warning in it but felt it was unnecessary. He had every honorable intention imaginable toward Louise.
Did that include marriage?
Ty stumbled on the step, catching himself before he dumped the entire pan of
corn. He held it against his hip with one hand while he opened the door.
Did it?
Would he marry Louise?
What, exactly, were his intentions?
He wanted to be with her. He wanted to get to know his daughter. He wanted to hold Louise and protect her. Provide for her.
Did he want to spend the rest of his life with her? How would that look with hockey? How would they work that out with Tella?
He told himself to slow down, that he’d only been back a few weeks. There needed to be time. So, he’d enjoy her company and get to know her again, and she could get to know him.
But, yes, he knew for a certainty he had every intention of marrying Louise, no matter how they worked it out, if she would have him. As soon as she would have him.
He knew his mind. He knew the other girls that were out there, and none of them ever came close to not only making him feel like Louise made him feel but having her work ethic, her lack of guile, her dedication to her family, her self-sacrificial nature that would take the fall for something he’d done, so he could be successful. He’d be nuts to not want to make her his.
“THIS IS GOOD!” TY POPPED another hunk of corn kernels in his mouth.
“You’re not supposed to be eating the fruit of our labor,” Gram chided with a smile.
“I thought that’s why we were doing this,” Ty said incorrigibly.
Louise laughed, and Gram joined in. Louise couldn’t remember having more fun canning corn, ever. She always looked forward to it. Sure, it was a lot of work, but it was work that provided for her family. With Ty, it was more than fun, and she was disappointed that it was almost over.
She plopped a bag on top of an already full dishpan of bagged corn. “Do you mind running this down to the freezer?” she asked Ty, who was chewing while cutting corn off the ears.
“Sure.” He set his knife down and threw the cob in the bucket. “I think I should get paid for acting as your packhorse, though.” His eyes glinted, and she didn’t have much problem figuring out what, exactly, he thought he should get.
“We’ll feed you lunch,” she said primly. Kissing Ty would be more fun than doing corn, that was for sure. But she’d made that mistake once before. She arched her back to take the cramp out of it before putting her empty pan in the dishwater.
He shared a look with Gram, who was firmly on his side, after working under his flashing dimple and easy smile all morning.
“You keep working on her, and eventually you’ll wear her down.” Gram chortled. Louise did a double take. Seriously? This was Gram? Normally Gram was more likely to be full of warnings and exhortations to be chaste.
Ty winked at Louise, like he knew exactly what she was thinking, before he opened the cellar door and went down.
Palmer and Ames took the husks out for the cattle, while Ty and she cleaned up the kitchen. They all ate a simple lunch of corn and turkey sandwiches with garden-ripe tomatoes and onions. Palmer and Ames sat at the ends of the table, while Gram and Pap sat on one side and Ty and Louise on the other.
Ty’s large body threw heat, and his strong arms flexed as he ate. It was impossible not to be aware of him.
They took care of the few dishes, then Palmer and Ames went out to do more work at the barn and fields, and Gram and Pap went in to take a rest.
Louise finished wiping the table while Ty stood with a shoulder leaning against the fridge, watching her with one hand in his pocket, like he had nothing else better in the world to do.
“You want to work on Harvest Fest stuff in here or out on the porch?”
“I want to go to the porch, and we’re not working until I rub your back some.”
It ached. It always did after cutting corn all morning, and no one had ever offered to rub it. She should decline. She knew she should.
“Okay. I’ll work, you rub.”
“No.” He pushed off the fridge. “I rub, you enjoy.” His eyes flashed, and a curl of excitement went through her. Maybe a little uncertainty with it. This confident man in front of her was a lot different than the cocky but unsure boy he’d been.
“I don’t know. I can get started—”
He took a step, and he was standing in front of her. One hand gripped the counter on either side of her. “You’re going to take a ten-minute break. You’re going to sit on that porch step, and you’re going to close your eyes and relax while I take care of you. Ten minutes.”
She blinked.
Maybe the uncertainty showed in her eyes because he added, “I’m touching only your back. And when you try to rip my shirt off, I’ll fight you off.” He grinned.
She returned it. “Okay. As long as you’re fighting me off, let’s do it.” She pushed through, and just like she thought, he let her go, dropping his hand, so it only brushed her as she passed.
Pushing the screen door open, she walked out and sat on the second porch step. His body dropped down behind her, his legs strong and hard on either side. She leaned forward a little, wondering what he was going to do.
But he kept his word. It wasn’t a sensual message. In fact, his fingers were almost impersonal.
“Tell me about Tella,” he said.
Her favorite subject. And finally, she got to talk about her with her father. “She was seven pounds five ounces, and she was born on my graduation night.” Louise closed her eyes as his fingers worked magic on her tired back.
He sucked in a breath. “You were valedictorian.”
“Yes. I had a speech written that I never gave.”
“Frig.”
She chuckled. The years had softened that blow. “Tella was worth it. She’s serious. Very much like a little adult, but she’s the only child here on the ranch, so she imitates the people she’s with, like every child does.”
“Yeah.”
“She loves hockey, and you’re her favorite player. I have nothing to do with that, by the way. Palmer loves you too. Maybe that’s what she picked up on, but your jersey was a Christmas gift, and she hasn’t taken it off except to wash it since she got it.”
His fingers stilled for a second before they started back up. “I noticed it looked worn.” He blew a breath out. “That gives me the worst feeling inside. I know how expensive those jerseys are in the store, and I know that was something your family probably saved to get. I can get as many as I want. I give those things away. Yet, my own daughter...” He made a noise that sounded like a growl.
“We can’t change the past. It’s over. We can only learn from it and move forward.”
“I know. But if I could change anything, what happened with you would be on the top of my list.”
Did he mean what they’d done that last night? Or him leaving?
He continued, answering her unspoken question. “How I treated you and how I allowed my guilt to keep me from doing right by you. None of it was your fault, and yet, you’re the one that suffered. I want to make that up to you.”
“I don’t want you with me just because you feel guilty or that you owe me.”
“I’m with you because I enjoy being with you. I could assuage my guilt with money.”
She let it go, feeling relaxed and loose as his fingers continued to knead her muscles with just the right amount of pressure.
“Tella does well in school, but she loves being on the ranch. She loves going to Sawyer’s because he has a ton of things to do and she really feels like she’s a help there. He doesn’t have a house, though, so he can’t really have her over when it gets cold.”
“He doesn’t have a house?”
“He just bought the place last fall. You’ll have to see it. It needs a lot of work, but it was the right price, and things are crowded here.”
She thought she did a good job of keeping any inflection out of her voice, but he caught on. “Palmer and Ames? You feel like you’re in the way?”
“Not because of anything they do.”
“Just because they need their own place.”
“Yes.”
&n
bsp; “Hmm.” There were a few beats of silence. “When does Tella get home from school?”
“Usually around four.”
“Can I have her tomorrow after school?”
Fear swirled in her stomach, but she ignored it. Ty deserved to know his daughter. “Yes. I’ll tell her about you tonight.” She’d put it off too long. “I’m almost certain it will make her very happy.”
“Can I have you tomorrow, too?”
She never took off work, and never with such short notice, but Patty would understand, and after all these years, the desire to do something as a family won out. “Yes.”
Chapter 17
Sawyer had been in town and picked up Tella from school. When he dropped her off at the diner, he pulled Louise aside. Normally he just waved and maybe said a quick “hi,” so she knew something was up.
Tella ran into the kitchen, where Louise had a sandwich and some veggies on a plate for her.
Sawyer waited until she disappeared. “Just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?”
“I left last week because you told me to, not because I wanted to, and I’m still more than willing to give that guy a pounding. Just say the word, sister.” Sawyer’s jaw was set, and he looked like he’d go storming out if she but said to.
“No. Please.” She put a hand on his arm. It was hard under her hand. He’d been doing a lot of work to try to get his ranch fixed up and still make enough on the few cattle he had to pay the mortgage. She wasn’t sure how he was doing it. “There’s more to it than what you know. I didn’t even know everything. But trust me, it wasn’t all him.”
“I trust you. It’s just that I’ve hated that guy, I didn’t know who it was, but I hated him for a long time.” Sawyer’s eyes were still narrowed, and his jaw squarely locked.
“Palmer said basically the same thing. I didn’t know you guys felt that way at all.”
“How else could we feel? We know what kind of person you are. It’s who you’ve always been. It wasn’t hard to figure out that it was some sweet-talking pansy who left rather than do the right thing.”
Cowboys Don't Have a Secret Baby Page 13
