Harlequin American Romance October 2013 Bundle: Twins Under the Christmas TreeBig Sky ChristmasHer Wyoming HeroA Rancher's Christmas

by Marin Thomas

“Yeah. That’s why I didn’t like my boarding school. There weren’t any.”

  Kit smiled in spite of the dejection she’d heard in Andy’s voice seconds ago.

  “I like school,” Jenny piped up.

  Kit put an arm around her. “I liked it, too. That’s because you’re a reader like me.”

  “Okay, everybody. Hand me your rods and we’ll get going.”

  They followed Ross down the mountain. Since the conversation with him in the tent last night when he’d left Kit speechless with his admissions, they hadn’t discussed anything. He’d been up before she’d awakened. After breakfast the parents had helped them pack everything before they’d left and Ross had led her and the children up to the lake.

  The kids did all the conversing, for which she was grateful. She’d lain awake most of the night with a heavy heart. Kit realized she’d sprung the idea of moving to Texas on Andy without any preparation. It was a lot to ask of him, but these were desperate circumstances.

  Naturally he’d rather stay in Jackson near people who’d shown him the time of his life. For Andy to want her to buy a business here and live probably shouldn’t have surprised her. But after her talks with Nila, she’d been so focused on Texas, it never occurred to her that Andy would even think about her earning her living somewhere else.

  Kit was grateful to Ross for being on her side and not trying to influence Andy. He continued to handle her son in a way that left her awed by his depth of understanding.

  Her thoughts drifted back to the day she’d received the letter from Carson. She’d thought it had been a mistake, and she’d called Colonel Hodges. But he’d convinced her it was no mistake. Whether she had money or not wasn’t the point. These men needed healing, too.

  After listening to Ross last night, she understood what the Colonel had meant. Caring for these children who’d lost their fathers had brought fulfillment to the lives of these retired marines. She saw what it had done for three men who’d been discharged for health reasons and had come home low in body and spirit. What they’d done and were doing was a marvel.

  As she watched Ross helping the children down the mountain, a feeling of intense love for him swept through her. Though it was too soon, there was no doubt in her mind she’d fallen terribly in love with him.

  Terribly, because as much as she wanted to acknowledge her love to him, it meant handing over a part of herself. It meant being at the mercy of a man again. She didn’t know if she could ever do that.

  When they reached the truck, Kit got in back with the kids, but this time Andy quietly climbed in front with Ross. She understood. The sand was emptying from the top of the hourglass. The few days left to be with him were precious.

  Later, after they’d dropped Johnny off at his house, they pulled into the parking area outside the ranch house. Andy came around as Kit and Jenny got down from the tailgate. She waved goodbye and ran around the corner to find her nana.

  “Mom? After dinner Ross is going to take us for a horseback ride down by the river while the kids go over to school with their parents.”

  Her body quivered at the mere thought. “That’s really nice of him, but aren’t you tired after all the hiking we’ve done?”

  “Heck, no. He says the horses need the exercise.”

  “Let’s hurry to the cabin then and take a shower first.”

  “Why? We’ll just get grubby again.”

  Kit couldn’t fault his logic. “Maybe the horses would like it if we smelled better.”

  “Mom!” He ran over to tell Ross what she’d said.

  Deep rich laughter poured out of him. Their eyes met for a moment in pure amusement before a look crept into his that made her legs tremble. “Let’s freshen up inside and eat.”

  She nodded and hurried around to the entrance with Andy. It hadn’t taken but one hour of arriving at the ranch on Saturday with Ross to get into the habit of eating, sleeping and having the time of their lives in between. But the fun was going to stop. The more she thought about it, the more she couldn’t bear it.

  Darkness had settled over the ranch by the time Ross drove them back to their cabin from the stable. After he pulled to a stop, he turned to them. “I’m going to give you an hour, then I’m coming by to drive you to my home where you’ll stay with me until you leave the ranch.”

  Andy’s eyes rounded. “But Buck hasn’t built it yet!”

  “That’s true. I’m talking about the home I live in right now. The whole upstairs of the ranch house is mine. I have my own apartment. The other one across the hall used to be the one for Buck. Since I’ve lived in Wyoming, I’ve never invited anyone upstairs before. You’ll be the first ones.”

  “Can we, Mom?”

  He captured her gaze. “After sleeping with you in the tent last night, the thought of sleeping alone doesn’t sound like much fun.”

  She knew what he was really telling her. He’d had his share of women, but no woman had passed over his threshold while he’d been living here. But he also had another more compelling agenda. For some reason he wanted her and Andy under the ranch house roof from here on out.

  This had to do with Charles, otherwise Ross wouldn’t be making such an unprecedented decision. As usual, he was handling it in a way that wouldn’t alarm Andy.

  Kit knew what she ought to reply to protect her heart, but her son’s shining eyes defeated her. “Well, since we’ll be your first guests, we can hardly turn down your gracious invitation. Maybe we should find a tree outside in the morning and carve your initials. ‘AW slept here.’”

  “Make it AW and K and we’ll do it,” Ross murmured.

  “Cool!”

  “Why don’t you hurry and shower first, honey.”

  “You can wear your pajamas over, sport.”

  “Okay.” After he’d gone inside the cabin she turned to Ross. “What’s happened?”

  “Your father-in-law left a message at the front desk. You’re to expect a visitor sometime between now and tomorrow morning. I know you can handle him, but I’d rather you had some warning than simply answering your cabin door to him.”

  “So would I. Thank you, Ross.”

  He nodded. “I’ll be back.”

  Kit hurried inside. Andy had already gotten in the shower. She started packing as fast as she could. They hadn’t brought much with them, so it was no huge chore. Andy came out again in his camouflage pajamas so she could shower.

  As she hurried in the bathroom, he said, “I just love him, Mom.”

  I know you do. So do I.

  When they were ready, Kit did a once-over of the cabin to make sure they hadn’t left anything before she went outside to the truck. Ross helped her inside next to Andy, and they took off.

  He parked at the rear of the ranch house. Together they carried their things down a hallway that led to the staircase.

  “This is fun. I’ve never seen this part of the ranch house before.”

  “It’s about time you did,” he said on a cough.

  Buck was just coming out of the office and saw them. His eyes widened. “Hey—what’s going on?”

  “Ross is moving us into your old apartment!”

  A half smile broke out on his face. “Is that right?”

  “Yeah. He says he’s been lonely.”

  “That’s a fact. Jenny and Alex are going to be thrilled to have friends around this place.”

  Kit smiled. “We’re happy about it, too, believe me.”

  Buck’s gaze drifted to Ross. “What can I do to help?”

  “Thanks, but Andy and I have it covered. How did Back To School Night go?”

  “Pretty well, but they’ve put the kids in two separate classes. That kind of upset them. Alex is going to go over there in the morning and see what she can do to keep them together. We’re hoping th
at when the administration understands the uniqueness of their situation, they’ll cooperate.”

  “I’m sure they will,” Kit said to assure him.

  “See you guys in the morning.”

  As Buck waved them off, the three of them went up the stairs. Ross opened the door to the empty apartment and set down the suitcases. “This has a living/dining area and kitchenette, a bedroom with a queen and a twin bed, a bathroom and a small study. Housekeeping made this place ready for occupancy after Buck moved downstairs, so you should be perfectly comfortable.”

  “Hey, Mom.” Andy put down the case he was holding and ran through the apartment to the study. “This is great!” He came hurrying back. “Where’s your apartment?”

  “Right across the hall. It looks exactly like yours. While we were building the cabins, Buck did some remodeling up here in the spring to update everything.”

  “It’s lovely,” Kit murmured, looking around. She lowered her case to the carpeted floor. “How lucky can Andy and I be?”

  He flashed them a smile. “I’m glad you like it.”

  “Thanks for letting us stay up here.”

  “You’re welcome.” Ross couldn’t resist giving Andy a hug. “Now it’s cozy.”

  “I always felt lonely at my grandfather’s. My bedroom was on another floor from my mom’s, and he wouldn’t let me keep a light on.”

  “Oh, honey.” Kit threw her arms around her son. “I felt lonely, too, more than you’ll ever know.”

  “But those days are over, right?” Ross high-fived him.

  “Right.”

  He glanced at Kit. “Let’s program each other’s phone numbers right now.”

  “Good idea.”

  Once that was done, he said, “I know you’re tired, so I’ll say good-night. Sleep well.”

  “Thanks to you, we will.”

  After he left, Kit put on her pajamas and opened the case with their toiletries so Andy could brush his teeth. “Could I sleep with you tonight?”

  “You mean in the big bed?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’d love it.” Unlike other children, he had never been allowed to creep in their bedroom. For the first year after her parents had died, many was the night Kit had slept with her grandmother. “Come on. We’ll read the second chapter of Call of the Wild.”

  After he said his prayers and dived under the covers, she opened another suitcase to retrieve the book. The lamp at the bedside table shed enough light for her to read. A few pages into it, he said in a sleepy voice, “Judge Miller was kind to Buck...just like Ross is to me.” A lone tear trickled out of his eye before he fell sound asleep.

  Moved beyond words, she got out of bed. After putting on her terry cloth robe, she tiptoed out of the bedroom and shut the door. Without conscious thought she opened the door to the apartment and slipped across the hall. She could see light under his door and heard coughing before she knocked. In a second it opened to reveal the dark-haired cowboy who’d walked into her life last week and refused to go away.

  In the semidark he stood there wearing only the bottom half of a pair of navy sweats. The dusting of black hair on his well-defined chest added to his male potency. She tried to smother the quiet gasp that escaped at the sight of him.

  Lost for words she studied the cleft in his chin. Gazing at the lines of his hard mouth and handsome features, she couldn’t quite catch her breath.

  “Forgive me. I shouldn’t have bothered you this late, but when I was reading to Andy just now, he said something before he fell asleep I felt you should hear.”

  “Come in,” he urged.

  “I can’t. He might wake up and wonder where I am. I was reading to him from Jack London’s book. As his eyes fluttered closed, he said something so sweet and dear, I wanted you to know. You’ll appreciate it because you read that book, too.”

  When she told him, Ross lifted his right hand and traced her features with his fingers. At his touch, little trickles of delight flowed through her body. “He’s an easy boy to love.”

  “He’s never known real kindness like yours, the kind that transforms lives. If it weren’t for you, he wouldn’t understand how great it is to be a good man, to want to be a good man like you. He’s in awe of you, Ross. So am I. That’s what I came to say.”

  “Kit...”

  Suddenly she was in his arms. His head descended until his mouth covered hers.

  She moaned for the sheer ecstasy his hands and lips created. Never in her life had she known hunger like this. At nineteen she’d been in love with love and flattered by Winn’s attention, but it hadn’t felt anything like this. Not even close.

  Ross crushed her against him until there was no space between them. The fire he was whipping up inside her was so hot and intense, she was losing control.

  Kit had started this by knocking on his apartment door. Now she had to be the one to end it before she couldn’t. She slid her hands up his chest to ease herself away, but his reaction was to deepen their kiss. Much as she wanted to go on enjoying this mindless ecstasy, she didn’t dare. Somehow she found the strength to tear her mouth from his and pull away.

  “Don’t leave me,” he begged. “I’m in love for the first time in my life. There’s no mistaking it for anything else. I want you, Kit. You have no idea how much.” His dark brown eyes were glazed over.

  “Forgive me for starting this tonight.”

  He ran his hands up and down her arms. “It’s because you want me just as badly.”

  “You’re right.” Her voice shook. “But this isn’t the time or the place, not when there’s so much at stake. I’m afraid to get involved again.”

  “I understand that, so we’ll take this slowly.”

  “No. That’s unfair to you because I can’t make any promises. I just can’t!” she cried from her soul before wrenching herself from his grasp.

  Kit heard him call her name, but she’d already shut and locked her apartment door. Unfortunately it wouldn’t keep her in. She would have to exercise the greatest self-control of her life to go to bed and stay there.

  While she stood there clutching the back of one of the chairs, her cell phone rang. She reached for it. “Ross?”

  “Willy just phoned me. Charles is downstairs in the foyer demanding to talk to you. What would you like to do?”

  She took a deep breath. “I’m going to have to talk to him, but we need to be private.”

  “I’ll go down and bring him to your room. Is Andy still asleep?”

  “Yes. The door’s shut to the bedroom.”

  “Then there shouldn’t be a problem if Charles doesn’t raise his voice. Are you ready?”

  A calm had settled over her. This confrontation had been coming on for years. “More than ready.”

  “Good girl.”

  After she hung up, she walked across the apartment and turned on the overhead light. Then she opened the front door and waited in the hall for him. She heard a cough.

  Pretty soon she saw two figures coming toward her. Charles was almost as tall as Ross. But where the black-haired retired marine was hard and lean dressed in a sport shirt and jeans, her father-in-law with his thinning ash-colored hair looked soft and overfed in his suit, despite Florence’s regimen.

  The only surprise was the suffering she saw on his face when the light fell across him. His gray eyes stared at her for the longest time. “Where’s Andrew?”

  “Asleep in the bedroom.”

  Ross eyed her over the older man’s shoulder. “I’ll be across the hall.”

  “Call off your bodyguard, Kit. You don’t need him.”

  “If you haven’t understood by now, Charles, let me explain I have no use for another man in my life. After living with you and Winn, I don’t need any man. Come in and say what you have to sa
y. I’m exhausted and want to go to bed.”

  Chapter Ten

  Ross stared at the closed door.

  I don’t need any man. I have no use for another man.

  Was that said for her father-in-law’s sake? Or had she just sent Ross a message? If so, it had chilled his blood because it had sounded so final. Irrevocable.

  His mind replayed what had gone on in here before Charles had arrived. When he’d told Kit he was in love for the first time in his life, she’d said nothing back. Though she’d admitted she wanted him, she couldn’t make any promises.

  Fragmented, he went back inside his apartment, but he left the door ajar so he’d be aware when the other man left. In an agony of thought, he went into his kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee. After draining it, he heard a sound coming from the corridor. When he reached his door, Ross saw the back of Charles as he stormed down the hall toward the stairs.

  His first impulse was to rush over there, but her words had left their sting. While he waited for her to come to him, he phoned the front desk. Willy told him Mr. Wentworth just left in a car with another man. Willy had locked the front door behind him.

  Ross thanked him and hung up. In another hour of waiting she still hadn’t come. There was no phone call.

  She’s afraid of involvement, Livingston.

  He couldn’t blame her for that. Not after ten years of being trapped by two men.

  Ross got it.

  The papers he’d printed off to give her stared up at him from the coffee table. No way would he be giving them to her now. She’d see them as another man attempting to run her life, telling her what she ought to do, as if she didn’t have the brains to figure out life for herself.

  Before he did anything else, he left a message for Sam Donovan. “Mrs. Wentworth won’t be filing a suit. Stop all work on her case and send me the bill.” She’d told Ross she didn’t want to sue for the money, but he hadn’t listened to her. He’d gone ahead and phoned Sam.

  Two more days to get through before she left for Texas. What a hell of a time for the kids to be back in school!

  If it was all right with Kit tomorrow, he’d take Andy with him to repair some fencing and do a few chores. Let him see what it was like doing regular work on the ranch. They’d pack a lunch. Kit could take a well-earned rest and enjoy the day by herself or with Alex or Tracy.