Cowboys Don't Marry Their Enemy (Sweet Water Ranch Western Cowboy Romance Book 9)

by Jessie Gussman

  The tall man in jeans and a ball cap, a flannel whose sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, helped Kohlton arrange a bunch of sticks in the fire pit that hadn’t been in her yard when she woke up this morning. Luna squatted beside him, adorable in her purple coat and big pink hat. The leaves that had been spread all over her yard were in a pile beside the street, and the lawn was clean and neat. Even the weeds in the flower beds had been removed.

  And sure enough, there was a package of marshmallows, sitting right beside two packages of hot dogs and rolls. Was that a package of chocolate bars under everything? She couldn’t tell for sure, but it sure looked like it.

  Her heart trembled in her chest, like the throat of an opera singer. How could she just be friends with that man? She wasn’t even sure she could live in stony silence with him for the next two weeks and not fall completely in love with him.

  If he’d asked her to be his girl, she’d have said yes in a heartbeat, unless she remembered in time that she needed to stand on her own. But every time he said “friends,” it felt like her heart had hit a pincushion.

  The light was fading, and soon they would need the glow from the fire Abner was now starting.

  It wasn’t hard to tell, though, that her kids were having a blast. Working. They’d cleaned the yard, weeded the flower beds, raked the leaves, and picked up sticks; even the little ones worked. But they were all smiles.

  She couldn’t begrudge her children this happiness.

  There were no chairs, and she didn’t have the folding camp chairs. The ground was damp and cold, and she hated to have them all sitting on it.

  Putting a finger to her chin, she turned around. They could use towels.

  Claire wiggled in her arms, and Cora adjusted her hold on the baby. She was getting hungry.

  Her eyes landed on the kitchen table. Not even the table, but the chairs that surrounded it. Hey, why not?

  Grabbing the back of one with the hand that wasn’t holding Claire, she carried it down the hall and maneuvered it out the front door and down the porch steps.

  “Hey, it’s Mom!” Derrick yelled before he came running toward her when she appeared around the side of the house. He danced around the chair. “Can we bring more out?”

  “You sure can,” she said, smiling at his exuberance.

  He took off running, Andrew and Summer close behind, laughing and excited that they were allowed to take the kitchen chairs outside.

  “It’s so easy to make children happy.” Abner straightened and grinned down at her. Her heart turned over.

  She ignored it and laughed. “Yeah. Kitchen chairs on the grass. Who would have thought that would be fun?”

  His eyes, deep and blue, stared down at her, but she couldn’t allow herself to get lost in a pair of eyes.

  “They seemed to have fun being with you while you worked today, too.”

  “They were a help. The older boys especially once they got home from school. But even Kohlton’s been carrying piles of sticks.”

  “I know. I saw him.” She ran her nail over the back of her chair. “I know it’s easier to do everything yourself rather than allow the kids, especially the little ones, to help.” She tapped the chair with her finger before she looked up and met his gaze. She knew she couldn’t be just friends with him, but she couldn’t be ignorant, either. “Thank you so much for having the patience and putting up with them.”

  “Brings back good memories. It’s been a fun day.”

  She couldn’t read the expression on his face, but she thought he was sincere.

  “You could have come out.”

  She shook her head. “I just wanted you to have chairs so you weren’t sitting on the damp ground.”

  “Stay.” His expression hadn’t changed, but his tone held a note that sounded like pleading.

  It had to be guilt he felt at knowing he’d judged her wrong. He wanted to be friends now to make it up to her.

  She shook her head, turning to go back to the house.

  Claire fussed, holding her hands out for Abner. Cora blinked and looked at her child. Really? Her daughter wanted Abner?

  No. She couldn’t leave him holding a baby that couldn’t even walk. Without looking at him, she started toward the front porch.

  Derrick, then Andrew, appeared around the side of the house, dragging kitchen chairs.

  “You’re not going back inside, are you?” Derrick asked, his face falling. Andrew, a little older, seemed to have a look on his face that said, “Of course she’s not staying. She never does anything fun.” Maybe it was her guilt that read that into it.

  From around the corner, Summer cried, “Help me!”

  Andrew left his chair and went back around, looking for his sister.

  That sealed it for her. Andrew was such a good kid. And she wanted to be the mom he deserved. If that meant she had to go back to that fire and stand beside it, both literally and figuratively, she would. And she wouldn’t allow herself to get burned. Abner wouldn’t hurt her on purpose, anyway. But he couldn’t help how she felt. That was on her.

  She wasn’t going to allow it to get in the way of making her children happy.

  Picking up Andrew’s chair, she said, “Come on, Derrick. I’ll sit with you for a bit.”

  “Yes!” He did a fist pump and grabbed his chair, waddling with it to the fire. “I’m going back in and getting another.”

  “Me, too,” Andrew said as he came up behind them, setting Summer’s chair down and helping her up on it where she perched like a princess in front of her adoring subjects.

  Cora had to grin at that. “You just need a crown, honey.” She stroked the brown hair.

  “I can help with that.” Abner took some thin, supple sticks and worked for a few minutes twining them together in a circle.

  His fingers were strong, looking more like they could run equipment and move cattle and stack hay bales and fix machinery than make a little girl a princess crown. Cora watched, the movement of his hands and fingers pulling her almost more than the brooding looks and wide shoulders. Not a physical attraction, but like strings of soft velvet were tugging her heart to his. Just from watching his hands.

  She closed her eyes. If she couldn’t resist the temptation, she needed to remove it.

  Rustling came as he must have stood and moved to put the crown on Summer’s head.

  “Tired?” he said, low but loud enough to be heard over the chattering of her children.

  Close her eyes, cut her ears off, and hold her nose. How could she remove temptation when it surrounded her?

  “No.” She opened her eyes and straightened her shoulders. She was a big girl, and she could do this.

  She met his gaze before hers dropped to the crown in his hand. It looked a little big for Summer.

  “Mom’s first,” Abner said, before he took another step closer and placed the crown on her head. If his fingers lingered a little longer than strictly necessary in her hair and if they seemed to stroke down a little on the soft strands, it was surely her imagination.

  Claire reached for it immediately. Abner pulled a flat stone out of his pocket and held it out to her. “Saw this earlier. It was flat and looked a little like a heart. Maybe it would distract Claire from your crown.”

  Claire reached out, taking the rock in her chubby hands, saving Cora from the possibility of brushing his fingers.

  But her eyes were drawn to his.

  “What’s that on your head, Mom?” Derrick said as he dragged another chair into position.

  She looked away, grateful for the distraction. “Mr. Abner made me a crown.”

  He turned away, his movements somehow powerful and graceful at the same time. It wouldn’t matter what he looked like, though. It was the kindness that he was showing to her children that was beating down her walls.

  “Cool.” Derrick was still young enough to love it. He jumped over the branches and wood that had been stacked next to the fire pit. “Will you make me one?”

  “You ca
n make your own. I’ll show you how.” Abner knelt by the pile and rooted through it.

  “What about me?” Summer asked, still looking regal and glowing on her chair.

  “I’m making yours now, sweetie. Do you want some pretty red berries on yours?”

  “Yes!”

  “You can’t eat them.”

  Summer probably didn’t need the warning, but it was Luna and Claire Cora worried about.

  “It has to stay outside, and don’t let your sisters have it, okay?” she said, anxiety making her words less warm and more sharp.

  “Yep.”

  “How about a ‘yes, ma’am,’” Cora said, not as sternly as she should have, because Summer looked adorable with her little chin jerking down in a nod and her toothpick arms crossed over her chest.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Summer said, with another nod.

  “We’ll just really have to watch that the little girls don’t get those berries,” Cora said to Abner, quietly, but he heard.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Abner said, tipping his ball cap, his eyes laughing.

  “Stop your smarting off. There are plenty of sticks for me to choose from, and I’m not afraid to take you behind the woodshed.”

  “We have a woodshed?” Andrew asked, way too young to understand the subtext.

  “If you want me to stop, that wasn’t a good threat.” Abner’s lip pulled up, and she thought, she thought, he might be flirting with her.

  Friends didn’t flirt.

  Which, of course, missed the larger point that men in general didn’t flirt with a single mother of six children.

  “Wasn’t a threat. You’d better keep a civil tongue in your mouth, young man.” She lifted her eyebrows and pursed her lips.

  “I’ll keep my tongue in my mouth. For now.”

  Cora couldn’t help it. Her eyes got as big as they could go, and she glanced around at her children. Summer was still in her chair. Andrew and Derrick had abandoned their crown making and were wrestling on the ground. So much for the chairs to keep them off the dampness. Kohlton ran around the yard with his arms out, apparently pretending to be an airplane, and Luna was still stuck to Abner’s side.

  They wouldn’t get the insinuation. But none of them were paying attention. She’d had men around her children who hadn’t been nearly so discreet. Their lack had been a real turnoff for her.

  But Abner...he’d managed to heat her blood, shock her, and make her wonder if his words were just a threat. Or a promise.

  But she couldn’t quite get her sass level up to ask him.

  Why not?

  She lifted a brow. “Threat or promise?”

  He straightened, scooping Luna up with him. His slow strides toward her somehow seemed threatening as her heart thudded with each step he took. He stopped in front of her and leaned down slightly.

  How could a man with a little girl clinging to his neck with all her might be so entirely sexy and attractive?

  Her heart skittered and flopped, and her lungs couldn’t figure out whether they wanted to go in or out.

  “It’s not something I normally have a problem with. Been struggling now for a couple of days.” His brow twitched. “It’s a promise.”

  “Hey, look at this huge worm!” Andrew called out.

  Both corners of Abner’s lips curved up. “Frig. Let’s hope ‘worm’ isn’t code for ‘snake.’”

  She couldn’t help it. She had to snort then laugh. So much easier to laugh because she just knew Abner would be taking care of it. Snake or worm, she didn’t have to care.

  The thought lifted about ten pounds off her shoulders.

  As he moved away, saying, “Let’s see it, boys,” she caught a glimpse, and it truly was a worm. A granddaddy night crawler that was at least eight inches long. The biggest one she’d ever seen.

  “We should take it fishing.” Even Andrew couldn’t keep from jumping up and down.

  “If you want to catch a whale,” Cora mumbled.

  “Whales don’t eat worms.” Abner gave her a side-glance, his eyes glinting.

  “Neither do fish. Not usually.”

  “The lady wins,” he murmured.

  “We can keep it as a pet,” Derrick suggested.

  “Not in my house,” Cora said firmly. Wherever that was. She tossed that thought aside, unwilling to ruin the day.

  “I dare you to eat it,” Andrew said, with a cunning look only an older brother could achieve.

  “Eww!” Derrick said.

  “Scaredy-cat,” Andrew taunted.

  Abner stood back a little, watching, and didn’t reprimand Andrew for taunting his brother. Cora opened her mouth to do it but closed it again. She didn’t like to see it, but it wasn’t hurting anything. Plus, she had the feeling Abner had everything under control.

  “That’s gross,” Summer said.

  “Go ahead, Derrick. Eat it.”

  “You eat it.”

  Andrew smiled. “What do I get if I eat it?”

  “A fousand kisses from Mommy!” Kohlton yelled, like that was a great prize.

  Andrew tilted his head, still young enough to think kisses from his mom were a good thing but probably trying to figure out if he wanted a thousand.

  “Mom?” he asked. “You give out the prizes?”

  “I’ll give you two. But I don’t think you should eat the worm.”

  “Why not?” Abner finally spoke, Luna still clasping his neck.

  She wanted to ask him whose side he was on, but she probably didn’t want to know the answer. She was the only one supporting the worm. It was a lonely team of two.

  “Worms are actually really good for you. With that thought, Andrew, you probably ought not to eat that worm. Your mom’ll have to buy you new shoes tomorrow, your feet will grow so fast.”

  Derrick had handed the worm to Andrew, and Andrew held it up to his face, moving his head this way and that as the worm wiggled and twisted in the air. “I don’t think I want to eat it. Even for a thousand kisses.”

  “I’ll do it for two,” Abner said, his voice a lot softer than it had been and lacking the bluster that should have accompanied his words. His eyes were on the worm.

  Cora’s stomach felt like she’d just swallowed a bowling ball whole. Her fingers buzzed, and heat crept up her neck.

  The kids erupted. “Yeah! We want to see you eat it!”

  “Really? You’ll eat it? That’s so cool!”

  Summer screamed, and even Kohlton stopped moving to stand and stare.

  Cora knew her mouth was hanging open, but she couldn’t seem to close it. Abner wasn’t going to actually eat the worm, but she couldn’t even believe he was joking about it. How was he going to get out of it? Did he expect her to intervene and stop him? Maybe she should start a save the worm chant. Something told her her kids would not join in. Maybe Claire would babble in baby talk with her.

  Abner took the worm from a smirking Andrew.

  Luna squealed and buried her head in his neck, gripping him tight with her arms and her legs.

  “You want down, baby?” he asked her.

  She squealed again, holding tighter.

  He stood in profile to Cora. Her boys and Summer, who had finally gotten off her chair and tiptoed over, stood in front of him, watching, their eyes glued to the wiggling, shiny worm.

  “It’s dirty,” Cora stated in the silence that had fallen on her little family.

  “Dirt builds your immune system,” Abner said easily.

  “You’re gonna have one hen of a germ killer in your body.”

  He just lifted a brow over sparkling eyes and looked at the boys. “Now, what exactly do I get for doing this?”

  “A fousand kisses,” Kohlton cried out.

  “Two,” Cora corrected automatically. The slow upturn of Abner’s mouth into a full-toothed, wolfish grin was magnetic, and she couldn’t rip her eyes away.

  “I think a worm this big is worth more than two.”

  She wasn’t sure where he’d learned to talk with tha
t seductive undertone. Not the same place he’d learned to work with kids. The way his accent curled his words around her heart and the way the heat flashed in his eyes left her in no doubt that she was in serious trouble. Serious trouble.

  “Yeah, Mom. Probably at least ten.” Derrick put his hands on his hips, like the question merited serious consideration.

  “That’s a lot,” she said, more for self-preservation than anything, because that worm was a monster, and if he truly ate it, he deserved his own TV show or something. Not that she could picture anyone but her bloodthirsty children wanting to watch it.

  “Two kisses and I get to sit beside you while we eat.” He glanced at the fire pit where the flames had died down. One of the kids had brought the hot dogs and rolls over, and they sat beside the stones he’d just laid down that day.

  Cora’s blood roared in her ears like a river at flood stage. Her chest rose and fell, and she couldn’t find her words. Some sassy retort to let him know that she was fine. She wasn’t, of course, but she could fake it in front of her kids.

  Only she really couldn’t.

  “Come on, Mom. That’s not hard. You can do it.”

  “I’ll sit on the other side of you and hold your hand,” Derrick offered gallantly.

  “Yeah,” she finally breathed out. “Because if he eats that worm, I think I’m gonna be afraid of him. I’m not sure I want to kiss him, either.”

  That statement made Abner’s grin get wider. “You can kiss me first.”

  “That’s not fair. You have to eat the worm first.” Andrew seemed concerned that the worm might not get eaten.

  Cora kind of regretted she hadn’t been more of an animal rights person and passed that trait on to her children. “Are worms endangered?” she asked as a last-ditch effort to stall the execution and, hence, the kissing.

  Her boys’ faces scrunched up. “Huh?”

  Abner snorted. “Think not.”

  “I don’t know why you’re smiling,” she snapped. “You’re the one that has to eat it.”

  “Reward’s worth it,” he said in that same voice that curled her toes.