“I learned that nothing in this world is more important than showing you every day how much you mean to me. You’re my mate, Gracie Lee Emery. You’re mine. Don’t you ever forget it.”
Chapter 26
Deuce held Gracie’s hand as they walked down the front porch steps of the ranch house. He was more than pleased with the results of their little talk. He knew she still feared the effect her abilities would have on their baby, but he also saw that she was guardedly hopeful that they would be able to figure out a way to help their child and any future children that they might have.
As they stepped down off the last step, he pulled at her hand gently so that she faced him. She looked up at him in question, smiling when she saw him winking at her.
“What’s that wink for, Deuce McKade?” she teased him. “Are you thinking about trying to ravish me again?”
“I am always thinking about ravishing you, Gracie,” he admitted without shame.
“I’ll tell you a secret,” she whispered, moving closer to him and framing his face between her hands gently. “I’m always thinking about ravishing you, too.”
“Yeah?”
Gracie nodded, smiling. “We’re certainly a pair, aren’t we?”
Deuce’s expression turned serious at once. “We certainly are.” He leaned down and kissed her lips lightly. “Stay with me always, Mate,” he whispered against her lips.
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” she admitted, wrapping her arms around his waist and squeezing him tightly.
The sound of a truck approaching brought their attention to the dirt road that led from John and Jamie’s home. John drove toward them, pulled up beside the corral, parked his truck, and turned off the engine. Three doors of the truck opened, and John, Jamie, and a man Gracie had never seen before stepped out of it.
“Who’s that with John and Jamie?” Gracie asked as she watched John walk around to the passenger side of the truck and take Jamie’s hand in his.
Gracie couldn’t help but smile as she saw John reach up and tenderly stroke Jamie’s pregnant belly before leaning down and kissing her temple. Jamie covered his hand with hers and leaned against his chest, smiling. Gracie realized that she wanted that same thing to happen between her and Deuce. She wanted to feel their baby moving and growing within her, and she wanted to share it with the man who stood beside her—the man who had helped her to create the life that was so new inside of her.
She looked up at him and smiled at the way he was looking at her. It was as if he was aware of her thoughts. He reached out and touched her belly, covering it possessively and caressing it lightly.
“That’s John’s cousin Marc,” he told her, indicating his head toward the man who walked beside John. “He’s visited John a few times over the years, but he doesn’t stay for very long.”
Gracie turned to look at the stranger and saw the family resemblance to John immediately. His body was packed with muscle, matching his cousin. He was as tall as John. That made him an even six foot four inches tall. His black hair was long, parted in the middle to fall loosely down his back, and ended at his waist.
As he strode closer to them, Gracie could see the subtle differences between the cousins. Like John, his Cheyenne heritage was evident in his features, but where John’s eyes were a steel gray, Marc’s eyes were a soft brown with unique, golden specks in them. He was a handsome man who screamed power.
“Hi, Marc,” Deuce greeted him, reaching out to shake his hand.
“It’s nice to see you again, Deuce,” Marc answered, taking Deuce’s hand and shaking it strongly.
“This is my mate Gracie,” he introduced them.
Marc extended his hand, and Gracie accepted it quickly without thought. “It’s very nice to meet you, Marc,” she told him warmly.
“You, too,” Marc told her, smiling softly. “Congratulations, Deuce. May the Great Spirit bless your mating.”
“He already has,” Deuce answered, reaching out to wrap his arm around Gracie’s shoulder and tugging her gently against him. “How long will you be visiting?”
“That’s what I came to talk to you about, Deuce,” John spoke up. “I’m going to bring Marc to McKade Construction to see if Jake, Rafe, and Luke need any help. Marc is a licensed electrician.”
Deuce looked at Marc and sized up the big man before him. He had known him for about twenty years and knew him to be a good man. But there was something about him that concerned him.
“Are you interested in staying around here, Marc?” he asked him seriously.
“I’ve been drawn here,” Marc answered briefly.
“What do you mean?” Gracie asked, reaching out to place her hand on his forearm. There was something about this man that called to her protective instincts.
Marc looked down at her hand as it rested on his arm and closed his eyes briefly before looking up at the woman who was Deuce McKade’s mate. He felt calm from her touch and wondered if his destiny was finally being set in place.
“I have been shown that there is a woman here who was meant to be my mate,” Marc told them gruffly. He had also seen that he would be guided to his future mate by a woman whose touch would grant him peace.
“That’s wonderful,” Gracie told him happily, smiling up at him. She grew serious as she saw the way Marc stood stiffly before her. “Is there a problem?”
Marc nodded briefly just once. “I don’t want a mate.”
“You don’t?” Gracie asked, stepping away from him and finding herself being pulled back into Deuce’s arms so that her back rested against his chest and his arms were wrapped around her. His hand covered her belly protectively, and she gave herself up to his strength willingly.
“No.” Marc looked away from them momentarily, his eyes searching the area briefly. “But I have no choice in this.”
“We all have choices, Marc,” Deuce told him.
“There is a child that is involved,” Marc answered, looking Deuce straight in the eye. “I must be there to help take care of her.”
“Is she your child?” Gracie asked him softly.
“She will be,” Marc told them firmly.
“Well, you’ll have to be open to accepting her mother, Marc,” Deuce advised. “It wouldn’t be fair to your mate if you didn’t go into the mating with an open heart. It would hurt your woman.”
Marc’s rigid stance relaxed just a bit. “I know.”
“We’re heading over to the construction company right now,” John told his best friend. “Do you want to come with us, Deuce?”
“I think that would be a good idea,” Deuce agreed. “Gracie, we can continue our experiment there.”
“Continue it?” Gracie asked, confused.
“We’ll meet you there,” Deuce told them, taking Gracie’s hand and leading her toward his truck.
Jamie reached out and took Marc’s hand in hers. “When you find this woman, you need to give the relationship a chance, Marc,” she told him softly.
Marc nodded once, squeezing her hand lightly. “I will,” he promised. “The child will help me.”
“What did you see about this child, Marc?” John asked him gently.
“I saw that she is in need of protection. I saw that she is being pulled away from her mother.”
“Did you see your mate?” John asked, thinking about the vision that he had experienced that had shown him his Jamie. He had seen Jamie pregnant with the child she was now carrying.
“I saw only her eyes,” Marc told them, softly. “They were smiling at me.”
“What color were they?” Jamie asked.
“Light blue.”
“Smiling, blue eyes, huh?” John asked, thinking as he looked at his cousin. “Well, then we already know she’s a good person because she found something worthwhile in you. Lord knows I never could.”
Jamie’s head snapped toward her husband in surprise. “John!”
The deep rumble of laughter coming from Marc drew her attention back to the quiet man. He stood there with h
is arms crossed across his chest.
“If you weren’t about to become a father with this beautiful lady, I would beat you for that, John.”
John laughed out loud, turning as he took Jamie’s hand and pulled her toward the truck. “You go on and try that old man,” John called over his shoulder. “Come on. Let’s go get you a job you worthless sack of—”
“John Blackstone! That is not funny at all!” Jamie told him angrily. “Stop that!”
“Oh, cara, don’t worry about it. Marc knows I’m only a little serious.”
Jamie pulled her hand from his and turned to face him angrily. “I don’t care if you are kidding,” she admonished him. “If Marc is going to be around a small child that needs him, there is no way you can belittle him like that. Would you want our son to hear someone talk about you that way? Don’t you think that would upset him to hear someone disrespect his father even if it was done in jest?”
John looked at Marc in surprise before he faced his mate and stepped closer to her. Reaching out, he placed his large hands on the swell of her belly, feeling his son moving beneath his palms. He thought about his son and how he would feel if someone diminished his worth in his son’s eyes.
“I’m sorry, Marc,” he apologized, never taking his eyes off his mate. “We both are going to have to be more mindful of the way we talk to each other now that we’re both going to become fathers.”
He looked at his cousin and saw the resignation on his face. Marc nodded briefly, accepting John’s advice.
“I’m going to have to adjust to that fact, John,” he told him slowly. “How can one small child cause such terror?”
Jamie smiled as she reached out to touch Marc’s arm. “You’ll find that the child will bring you more happiness and love than you’ve ever imagined.”
Marc wasn’t so sure about that. He would reserve judgment on Jamie’s comment.
* * * *
Deuce drove toward McKade Construction Company, holding Gracie’s hand as she sat silently beside him.
“Did you realize that you touched Marc without a problem, Gracie?” he asked her, stealing a glance at her and seeing the surprise on her face before he turned his attention back to the road.
“You’re right. I did,” she muttered softly to herself. “I wonder why I didn’t feel any pain.”
“I’ll tell you why. You were introduced to Marc as my mate. He knew you immediately as a woman who was taken. He had no thoughts about dating you or having a relationship with you.”
Deuce turned to face her once again, smiling as she leaned closer to him. He brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles lightly.
“He also knows that he has a mate coming to him, and he is an honest, faithful man. There is no way he would jeopardize that mating even if he insists he doesn’t want it.”
“Why doesn’t he want it?”
“I really don’t think that’s true, honey. I think he wants a mate just like the rest of us.”
“I hope the woman who is meant for him will be able to figure him out,” Gracie whispered.
“I’m sure she’ll be a perfect match for him,” Deuce told her without hesitation. “The Great Spirit hasn’t been wrong yet.”
They drove in silence for a few minutes. Deuce could tell Gracie was thinking about his words very seriously. He really believed he was correct in his understanding of Gracie’s gift. He already had the proof of her meeting Marc without a problem when she shook his hand.
“Deuce, do you think once everyone knows that I’m mated, I won’t feel pain if I touch any man?” she asked him after a few moments of silence.
“That’s my theory,” Deuce answered. “But you have to know that some men will see you and want you regardless of the fact that you’re mated. Some men don’t have a moral compass. So whatever pain they feel—the bastards deserve it.”
“Do I deserve it, too, Deuce?” Gracie asked him softly. “Because if they’re going to feel pain, then so will I.”
Deuce was silent for the rest of the ride. Gracie was right. He had to question the fairness of the whole situation. Was it really right that Gracie would feel pain if another man touched her, knowing she was a mated woman?
He pulled into the parking lot of McKade Construction, parking quickly and turning off the engine. Before Gracie was able to unbuckle her seat belt, he leaned over and kissed her gently.
“I love you, Mate,” he whispered, kissing her lightly one last time before leaning back and opening his door. “Stay put, honey.”
Gracie stayed where she was, watching him as he exited the truck, closed the door, and walked around the front of the vehicle to come to her side and open the door. She released her seat belt and turned, ready to step down from the truck.
“Wait, honey,” he told her, placing his hand on her leg to keep her in place.
“What?”
“Show me your belly.”
“Why?” Her voice was wary as she spoke to him.
“Do as I say. Lift your shirt and show me your belly.”
Gracie’s forehead furrowed in confusion. Very slowly, she reached down to take hold of the hem of her pastel blue, silk top and pulled it up to expose her stomach.
“You’re going to have to unbutton and unzip your skirt, baby.”
Gracie’s eyebrow rose in question, but Deuce’s serious expression made her know that he wouldn’t appreciate another question. Reaching to her side, she unbuttoned her skirt and lowered the zipper.
“Lean back,” he told her softly.
Gracie leaned back and rested her weight on her hands as she steadied herself on the truck seat. She waited and watched, wondering what Deuce had planned. She didn’t have long to wait.
He leaned into the cab of the truck, wrapping his arms around her waist as he pulled her so that her body arched toward him, her belly exposed. He kissed her belly gently then rubbed his cheek against it, whispering soft words of blessing against her.
Gracie froze in place. The words he spoke asked for a blessing of their baby and the life they would share with her. It was the most touching and caring thing she had ever experienced.
“Deuce,” she whispered, melting beneath him. “That’s beautiful.”
He looked up at her and smiled. Kissing her belly one last time, he pulled her into his arms and wrapped his hand in the length of her silky, brown hair. He pulled on it slightly, tipping her head back so that she exposed the column of her throat to him. Leaning forward, he kissed her throat openmouthed, sucking up on the skin lightly until he felt the vibrations of her moan beneath his lips.
“I haven’t been able to say the blessing over our baby since she was conceived,” he told her softly. “Now that I’ve done it, she’ll have more protection.”
“She will?” Gracie whispered.
“Yes, honey,” Deuce told her, kissing her lips lightly. “The Great Spirit will keep her safe.”
He pulled her carefully from the cab of the truck until she was standing before him. He smiled down at her as he slowly buttoned and zipped her skirt before pulling her blouse down and stroked his hand over it to settle it in place.
He led her away from the truck, slamming the door shut behind them. Walking toward the front door of the small office building, he reached out and opened it, placing his hand on her lower back as she walked inside. He followed her in and stayed by her side as they walked toward the counter that separated the office space from the small area for customers.
“Madison,” Gracie greeted her friend happily as she spotted her sitting in one of the chairs that bordered the far wall of the customer area.
“Hi, Gracie,” Madison called to her softly. She looked at Deuce and nodded to him. “Hi, Deuce.”
“Hello, Madison. Do my brothers know you’re here yet?”
“Yes. Jake went to get Rafe. He said he would be right back.”
“Good.” Deuce looked down at the little girl who sat on Madison’s lap, reading a book, and smiled. “Who’s th
is?”
“This is my daughter Cooper,” Madison told him, proudly. “Cooper, this is Deuce.”
The little girl looked up from her book and smiled shyly at him. She had the most beautiful, expressive, blue eyes, and her face was adorable. She had black hair pulled up in a ponytail at the crown of her head and thick bangs that reached the top of her eyebrows.
“Hi,” she said softly.
She turned into Madison’s chest and burrowed deeply. This small child was the definition of shy. She was absolutely precious.
The front door opened, and Jamie, John, and Marc walked into the company office. Marc’s attention was immediately drawn to the little girl. A soft expression came over his face as he looked at her before one of total shock and panic replaced it. He looked at the woman holding her and took a step back, bumping into John.
“Whoa, Marc,” John told him, laughing. “Watch out.”
“Sorry,” Marc mumbled.
Rafe came into the building through the back entrance and walked over to the little girl’s mother. Marc watched warily as he reached out and offered his hand in greeting. When she reached up and accepted his hand, standing and pulling the little girl against her chest as she returned his handshake, Marc felt the rumble of discontent that was being pulled from his chest.
“Hi, Madison,” Rafe told her quickly. “I’m Rafe McKade. I’m sorry we’ve kept you waiting.”
“I remember you from school, Rafe,” she told him as she shook his hand. “I was one year behind you. You probably don’t remember me.”
Rafe looked at her and searched his memory for the cute woman who stood before him. “I’m sorry, but I don’t.”
“That’s okay,” Madison stopped his apology. “I wasn’t very memorable. I was pretty quiet back then. I only hung out with Gracie and Melanie, and I worked two jobs.”
“Sounds like you can handle a lot of responsibility. If you’re organized you just might be what we’re looking for,” he told her, smiling warmly. “Jake and I are spread a little thin lately. As you can see, we could really use an office manager to help us out. Why don’t you come on back to Jake’s office, and we can go over your qualifications. We’ll tell you exactly what we need help with in the office, and we can figure out if you’ll be a good match for us.”
Touching Deuce [Cowboy Mates, Psychic Connections 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 32