WHOSE CHILD?

by Susan Gable

  And he was running out of time.

  A week since his revelation, Lexie still wasn't buying his attempts so far. The pop-up declarations of his love on her computer had been ignored. The never-ending loop of "I Love You, Lexie Jacobs" on her monitor had only made her demand he fix her computer immediately so she could use it, and admonitions to keep his hands off it in the future.

  David pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. Sure enough, the green light indicated he had a signal. He'd have to remember that. Certain spots in town worked, others didn't. He chose a number from the directory. The voice that answered sounded groggy. "Kenny, you sound like hell, man."

  "No kidding. How I'm supposed to get any work done is beyond me. The baby doesn't sleep for more than two hours at a time. Both Jess and I are slowly losing our minds. Thank God for Mom. She comes over in the afternoon so Jess can have a nap."

  "Enjoy it. The years go by very fast." Hard to believe in just over a week Sarah would turn four.

  Kenny grunted. "You didn't call to find out about my baby. How's my sister doing? Marc is still way pissed at you."

  "Big surprise there. Kenny, I've, uh, run into a complication."

  "Don't like the sounds of that. David, I swear, if you hurt her, Marc and I will both be on the next plane out there, and this time we'll take turns punching you out."

  "I'm not going to hurt her, Kenny. I love her."

  "What? Marc said he hammered you because you didn't love her. What gives?"

  David sighed. "Suffice it to say I've seen the light. The only problem is, she doesn't believe me."

  Kenny laughed. "Sounds like our Lexie all right. But why are you calling me?"

  "I'm out of ideas for how to convince her. I'll take any suggestions you've got."

  "And you're asking me?" A loud snort echoed through the line. "Oh, Jess will love that. Besides, Marc says Lex's changed a lot in the time she's been gone. Said he barely recognized her. I don't think I can help you except to say remember she loved all those books with knights and stuff. Halloween's just two days away. Why don't you dress up as a knight and sweep her off her feet?"

  "No way. Talk about cheesy and cheap. And cliché. She'd definitely find that condescending. Besides, I already have a pirate costume. Got something else?"

  A woman flipped over the sign in the jewelry store and waved her hand at David. He smiled and held up one finger.

  "Nope, sorry. But whatever you do, make it good. I'd like to see you, her and Sarah together as a family. It just feels right."

  "I know what you mean. Thanks, Ken."

  "Give my sister a hug for me."

  "I will." David turned the cell phone off and stashed it in his pocket, heading into the store. Hopefully at some point soon, Lexie would give him reason to need a ring.

  "Park there, right next to Pappy." Lexie directed David to a space in the firehall parking lot, which was brightly lit up by floodlights.

  "Okay." Shutting off the SUV, he flipped down his eye patch. "Arrgg. Are ya ready to do some looting and get some treasure, mateys?"

  "Daddy, you look so cute." Sarah giggled in the back seat of the Blazer.

  "Thanks, sport." He lowered his voice. "I feel like an idiot. Think I can get away with not taking off my coat?"

  "Nope." Lexie sighed. "And neither can I."

  David shut off the SUV and pocketed the keys, then glanced over at her. "I can't wait to see you in that dress, you know."

  "She looks bee-u-tiful, just like I knowed she would," Sarah piped up.

  "I don't think it's fair that you got to see her and I didn't." David leaned over the seat and grabbed Sarah's knee, sending the child into a fit of giggles. "Come on, let's go trunk-or-treat."

  Lexie waited while David got out and went to the back seat, unbuckling Sarah. He'd become a natural at operating the booster safety seat. Just like he'd become a natural with Sarah. Even with the Barbies.

  A great dad. Just as she'd known he would be.

  "You coming? Or are you just going to sit there all night with that dreamy expression on your face?" David asked her as he helped Sarah from the high vehicle.

  She scowled at him. "I do not have a dreamy expression on my face."

  "Oh, that's right. I forgot, you're practical now. A woman with her feet on the ground and no crazy dreams in her head. No romance in your soul."

  Lexie heard the tightly controlled pain in his voice as he tossed her own words back at her. The ones she'd spoken when he'd offered flowers and chocolates, her favorite chocolates, as a matter of fact, and she'd called the move too predictable and not what the new Lexie would want. And when he'd asked what she did want, she'd shrugged. "Sarah," she'd said.

  "You'll get her," he'd replied. "As soon as I convince you I mean it when I say I love you."

  "I believe you already. Let's get married."

  But he'd known the truth—she didn't believe him.

  "Momma, come on! All the other people are ready."

  "All right, baby." Lexie slid from the Blazer, smoothing her long gray coat over her legs. The filmy dress, more appropriate for a fairy than Glinda, certainly wasn't cut out for Halloween weather in Montana. Most costumes weren't, unless you went dressed up as a skier or a snowmobiler. But that was one of the reasons the party at the firehall was such an important bash. They could show off costumes without freezing.

  Pappy unfolded a webbed lawn chair, setting it alongside the lowered tailgate of his ancient truck. He eased himself into it, a large plastic bowl of chocolate bars at his feet. "You run along and take the young'un round to get her treats. I'll stay here and hand out ours."

  "Hey! The truck looks great. You've outdone yourself this year, Lexie." Ray Henderson, owner and one-man operator of the Gazette, the town's weekly newspaper, lifted his camera. "Can I get a shot for the paper? That scarecrow is fantastic."

  "Sure." Lexie climbed into the truck. David hoisted Sarah up, then clambered up himself. Once they all stood on the tailgate, they removed their coats, tossing them to Pappy. In the middle of the truck, fastened to a pole, hung the scarecrow they'd created. He wore one of Pappy's old flannel shirts and a torn pair of jeans. Straw stuck out of the sleeves and pant legs, and a pair of old battered work boots made the scarecrow's feet. His head was crafted from a burlap sack.

  Lexie straightened the crown on her head, adjusting the bobby-pin anchors. David put the parrot on his shoulder.

  "Okay, pirate, you go over there," Ray directed. "Straighten your bird. Fairy, let's have you on the other side."

  "She's Glinda, the Good Witch, not a fairy," Sarah informed him.

  "Sorry. I'll make sure I get it right in the article, okay?" He smiled at Sarah. "Dorothy, I want you right in the middle. That's it. Hold up your wicker basket. Turn a little bit that way. Good.

  Lexie gave Ray a grateful glance. Trust the compassionate man to make sure he shot Sarah's left side.

  A breath-stealing breeze flapped the gauzy end of her dress around her ankles, and Lexie shuddered. Goose bumps sprouted along her arms and the hair on them stood straight up. That should look attractive. "Hurry up, Ray."

  "Yeah," Sarah shouted. "I need treats!"

  "Everybody smile." His camera flashed. "One more."

  With the pictures done, Sarah leaped from the end of the truck into Pappy's waiting arms. David jumped down next. Lexie carefully navigated across the strewn hay. The pumps she'd borrowed from Nola were already killing her, and she wasn't about to have Ray capture a picture of the Good-Witch-turned-klutz falling out of the back of the pickup.

  David stretched out his arms to her. She laid her hands on his shoulders and moved forward. He grabbed her by the waist, slowly sliding her down his chest. Suddenly the chill in the air vanished, replaced with heat from his body—and hers. She glanced up at him. "David, I—"

  "That dress is a knockout on you, Lex. Just like I predicted. My daughter has great taste."

  She arched an eyebrow at him. "Your daughter?"

&nb
sp; "Okay, our daughter." He leaned forward and kissed her, sending her heart into that skip-extra-beat pattern.

  Obviously I'm still not getting enough sleep.

  "Oooooo, look at Miss Lexie," came a sharp little voice. "K-i-s-s-i-n-g."

  Lexie put her hands on David's chest and pushed, but he struggled to hold her close. "Don't, Lex," he whispered. "Don't get too far away. Not yet."

  The mixed panic and fading lust in his voice made her suddenly aware of just how tight his black biker pants were. She eased back in his embrace and turned her head. "Hello, Fallyn. Have you gotten a lot of treats?"

  A silver-garland halo bobbed as the child nodded her head, holding up a pillowcase for Lexie's inspection. "Mom says I can go around twice if I want."

  Pappy leaned forward in his chair and dropped a chocolate bar into the fabric sack. "There ya go."

  "That's not fair," Sarah said, zipping her coat. "You should only take one." She looked up at Lexie. "Right, Momma?"

  "I think one is enough, yes. But I'm not Fallyn's momma and I don't make the rules for her."

  And she wouldn't make the rules for Sarah, either, if she couldn't get David to marry her. Why didn't men have a built-in love barometer that was as clear as their lust barometer?

  "That's the only halo that child will ever wear," David murmured into her ear. "A monster of some sort really would have been a more appropriate costume."

  Lexie coughed to cover up her laughter.

  He cleared his throat and let go of her. "My black beard makeup smudged onto you. Sorry." Using his fingertips, David brushed at her face. "There. I think it's time we took Sarah around, how about you?" He picked up his jacket from the tailgate and slung it on, then held out Lexie's, helping her into it.

  "Yeaaah! Let's go!" Sarah grabbed for David's hand and started dragging him off while Lexie still fumbled with the buttons on her long woolen coat.

  "Catch up with us," he called back over his shoulder as they merged into the crowd of people milling around the parking lot.

  "There goes my baby, Pap," Lexie said. "And here I am, left behind. Alone."

  "Aw, Missy. You ain't ever gonna be alone. I'm here."

  Lexie shot him a quivering smile. "I'm very grateful for that, Pappy."

  "I'm the one who ought to worry about you going off with that young man, leaving me alone."

  Lexie knelt down in front of him. "I won't leave you, Pappy. I promise. I already told David if he marries me, we have to live here. In Montana. In the Bed-and-breakfast."

  "You'd do that for me?"

  "Of course." She caressed his whiskery cheek. "I love you, Pappy. You've been there for me, and I'll do the same for you. We're family. Family's not about blood, it's about love, right?"

  "You know it, gal." He lifted her hand and placed a quick kiss in her palm. "Now run along. I'll see you inside later."

  She smiled at him with a tenderness that warmed his aching bones and headed off in the direction the young'un had gone with her father.

  John chatted with his neighbors, accepting their praise of the truck's decorations on Missy's behalf. The pile of chocolate bars got smaller and smaller as he doled them out to the kids. But all the while, he kept thinking about Missy. And Sarah. And David.

  It seemed it was long past time for him and junior to have a chat.

  In the front of the hall, the band began playing "Monster Mash." On one side, near what David assumed to be the kitchen, a long table offered all kinds of treats and several punch bowls. Women carried steaming casserole dishes to the tables against the far wall.

  "I have to go make sure they put out my graveyard," Lexie said to him. "I worked for hours on that and want to make sure they didn't leave it in the fridge." The special dessert consisted of chocolate pudding, whipped topping and Oreo cookies he and Sarah had crushed into crumbs. Then she'd used oval cookies to create tombstones in the "dirt."

  Connor, wrapped in white bandages up to his neck, ran over and grabbed Sarah's hand. "Can Sarah come with me and play pin the nose on the pumpkin?"

  Lexie looked to David. "It's okay with me."

  "Please, Daddy?"

  "Well—" he glanced around the room "—I guess. Meet me by the dinner table when you're done, okay?"

  Sarah nodded, and hand in hand with Connor, skipped away, her dress bouncing merrily.

  "How come she's not standing here with her face pressed into one of our legs?" David asked Lexie.

  "Do you see anyone staring at her? These aren't strangers, David. Many of these people have known her since the day she was born. No one's going to gawk at her. Well, except maybe Fallyn, and Sarah's learning how to cope with her." She waved toward the kitchen. "I'm going to check the situation out. I'll meet you over there, okay?"

  "Sure." He watched her move away, the light pink dress swishing. The nipped waist accentuated her form. She'd curled her dark hair into tight ringlets, and he was tempted to pull on them and watch them spring back.

  To gather them all in his hands and press his face in them, enjoy the softness, her softness. Inhale the sweet floral scent of her…

  Damn it, thinking like that was going to get him into a lot of trouble in his already-too-tight pants.

  Female laughter made him turn around. Nola, dressed as a living replica of Sarah's rag doll, broke into a big smile. "Don't you look yummy. Care to plunder me?"

  David shuffled his feet. "A lovely offer, but I'm a one-woman pirate."

  "Good thing. I'd have to poke out your other eye if you took me up on the offer. Where's Lexie?"

  David pointed toward the kitchen. "She went that way."

  "Thanks." Nola headed off, glancing over her shoulder at him once and giggling again.

  A hand grabbed his elbow. Pappy stood at his side. "Been lookin' for you."

  "Why? Is something wrong?"

  The old man let go of his arm. "You tell me. What are your intentions toward my girl?"

  David arched an eyebrow—a mistake because the hairs got caught in the elastic of his patch—but he didn't comment on the "my girl" bit. "Look, you don't have to worry about losing Lexie. I've already promised her we can live here."

  "So, why ain't we planning a wedding already? We can announce it tonight."

  Damn. Well, if anyone knew how to reach her, it would be Pappy. He knew her better than anyone else did. "I can't convince her that I really love her. I want her to know that I'm marrying her because I do, not just because of Sarah."

  "Ah." He fingered the whiskers on his chin. "What have you tried?"

  "The usual stuff. Love notes on her computer. Flowers. Her favorite candy."

  Pappy shook his head. "Boy, that's courtship stuff. That's to woo a woman, not convince her you love her."

  "I'm open to all suggestions at this point."

  The old man's expression softened. "Years ago, I had these autographed baseballs my cousin from New Jersey got me. A Babe Ruth and a Lou Gehrig. Well, it was Doris and my anniversary, and I wanted to git her somethin' special, you know? But the ranch—this was back when we lived out on the ranch—weren't doin' too well that year. So, I sold them balls to buy her a pair of pearl earrings to match a necklace that had belonged to her momma. And you know what?"

  David shook his head.

  "She'd sold the necklace to buy me a special custom-made display case for my baseballs. It was made from mahogany and had a velvet lining." The old man's smile trembled. "We had us a laugh over that. Doris said it was just like that story 'Gift of the Magi.' She wore them earrings every Sunday till the day she died. Called them her love earrings 'cause they proved how much I loved her." A whisper of a sigh escaped him. "I buried her wearin' them, too. I still got the display case."

  David tried to unravel the threads of the story. "So, exactly how does that apply to me and Lexie?"

  Pappy shrugged. "Figger it out."

  * * *

  Chapter 16

  « ^ »

  "Momma." Sarah tugged on Lexie's dress. Dinner had lo
ng since been completed, and the second rounds of games for the children begun. Soon the band—Rico and the Mudsharks, a group of local guys, a few of whom taught at the high school—would start the dance music.

  "What, baby?" Lexie leaned down.

  "Give these to Daddy." In the center of Sarah's palm she held a little packet of M&M's. "I winned them."

  "Those are you favorites."

  "I know. He likes them, too. I want to share."

  "That's very sweet, baby. I think that will make your daddy very happy. But I think he'll be happier if you give them to him." Sarah caught David's eye as he looked up from what appeared to be an intent discussion with Nola, Pappy and Kegan. David grinned at her, the potent effects magnified by the eye patch and stubble beard. He certainly made a great rogue. She'd walk the plank for him anytime.

  "Will you come, too?" Sarah slipped her hand into Lexie's.

  "Of course I will. Are you having fun?" Lexie led the child around small clusters of people, nodding to them. Didi Ericson, the owner of the local jewelry store, waved to her, and Lexie returned the greeting.

  "Yep. But it would be funner if Toto came."

  Lexie laughed. "Sorry, no dogs allowed."

  David watched as they came across the hall. He said, "Here are my two best girls."

  Sarah let go of Lexie's fingers and went to stand in front of David. Waving her hand, she motioned for him to scoot down.

  He bent over. "What can I do for you, sport?"

  She extended the offering. "I winned these and I want you to have them."

  "That's nice, honey. But I thought you told me those are your favorite chocolates?"

  "But you like them, too. I want you to have them."

  "Why?"

  "Because…" In a sudden fit of shyness, Sarah bent her head to study her feet. "'Cause you're my daddy and I love you."

  David's mouth opened, then shut again. He quickly looked from Sarah to Lexie, and she cursed the patch that made his face harder to read. But the shimmer of tears in his exposed eye was clear.

  "Oh, sweetheart." He scooped Sarah up into a bear hug. "I love you, too," he whispered, locking gazes with Lexie. "More than anything. Thank you."