“Yeah,” Abby said, smiling with her. “I do remember Rick as a teenager. Pretty studly even then.”
Smiling, she looked at Abby. “He would walk into the diner and every girl there would turn to look at him.”
“Even you,” Abby said.
“Me, too,” she admitted, then laughed a little. “But he hardly knew me. Still, anytime he said hello, I’d start burbling and stammering. I felt myself blushing and couldn’t stop it. Ridiculous, right?”
“Not really. We all acted like that as kids.”
“Yes,” Sadie said, “but I’m still doing it. The old Rick was pretty irresistible. Now, though, since those last tours of duty, he’s…changed. Become more—I don’t know, not closed down, because he’s open and loving with the girls. But there’s something about him that is shut away. Locked down. And that tears at me, Abby. Oh,” she said, pausing to huff out a frustrated breath, “I don’t know why he affects me like he does, but it’s automatic. Rick Pruitt’s around and my brain turns to mush and my body lights up like one of these skyrockets we’re selling.”
“So having him around all week was a little tough?”
“Just a little.”
“I hear that,” Abby said, looking past Sadie to frown. “Nothing’s as easy as it should be.”
Sadie turned to follow her friend’s gaze and sighed when she spotted Brad walking through the crowd. “So, you’re having a few issues with men right now, too, huh?”
“You know I love you, Sadie,” Abby said, scowling at the oblivious man as he stopped to greet a friend. “But your brother sometimes makes me want to scream.”
“He has that effect on women. Even his sister,” Sadie admitted ruefully.
“Well, this woman isn’t going to let him win. He’s trying to ignore me at the TCC. Thinks because I’m an ‘honorary’ member, what I have to say shouldn’t matter.” Abby winked at her. “He’s the most hardheaded man I’ve ever come across and arguing with him is like trying to talk sense to a wall. But, I don’t give up easy and Bradford Price won’t know what’s hit him when I’m through with him.”
Sadie grinned in solidarity. It was nice to know she wasn’t the only female being driven slowly insane by a man. “Good to hear. Can’t wait to see it.”
“There’s something else you should see right now.”
“Hmm? What?”
Abby turned Sadie toward the counter. “Why don’t you take care of this customer?”
Rick Pruitt leaned his forearms on the sun-warmed counter, looked through the screen at Sadie. “So, what kind of fireworks do you have?”
He was in uniform and Sadie felt her breath slide from her lungs in pure, female appreciation. He looked tall and strong and proud. The left side of his chest was covered with rows of colorful ribbons and a few medals glinted dully in the sunlight.
A couple of women walked past behind him and Sadie saw them giving him a slow once-over. Even though a spark of jealousy flared up inside her, she couldn’t blame the women a bit. Rick was the kind of man that men wanted to be and women simply wanted. And when one corner of his mouth tipped up in a half smile, Sadie knew she was in very deep trouble.
Just as she had admitted only moments ago, she could actually feel her brain shutting down while her body kicked into high gear.
“Sadie?” he prompted, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. “Fireworks? What kind are we talking about?”
It wasn’t easy, but she managed to get a grip on her imagination and her hormones. “The usual kind. They’re safe and sane and very pretty.”
Then she sent a frown after Abby who walked away chuckling. A second ago, she’d been thinking how much she had missed Abby when she was living in Houston. Now, her best friend had left her alone with the very man Sadie had been complaining about. The traitor. Looking back at Rick, she forced her brain to wake up and pay attention, then kept her voice brisk and businesslike.
“What can I get you? All of the proceeds go to the women’s shelter.”
“Ah,” he said. “Like the pink flamingos.”
“Exactly.” And, Sadie knew that Summer’s shelter would be getting a nice donation today, judging from how busy the fireworks stand was. “So, what do you need?”
“Now, that’s a tricky question, Sadie,” he said, voice dropping to a low rumble that only she could hear.
She couldn’t stop the wave of heat that washed through her at the teasing, sexy note in his voice. Despite the crowds surrounding them, it was as if they were suddenly all alone. What was it about him that got to her so completely? Sadie felt as though every nerve in her body was standing straight up and trembling.
Sadie had never felt this way about any other man. Ever.
Certainly not the husband she had married for all the wrong reasons. In fact, up until that one night with Rick, Sadie had been half convinced that she was simply not meant to experience the tingling, overpowering pleasures that she read about in romance novels.
But in Rick’s arms, she’d found more than she had ever thought possible. Now staring into those brown eyes of his, she was so very tempted to find it all again. He was temptation personified and she was pretty sure he knew it. As if he was aware of her thoughts, his eyes warmed and seemed to twinkle and that’s when her breath caught in her lungs and a low, burning ache settled deep inside her.
Somehow, against all odds, she found the strength to rein in her hormones.
Her daughters’ faces swam in her mind and that helped. The girls had Rick’s eyes, sparkling with mischief. Her twins. The daughters she and Rick had made together on that passion-filled night.
Sadie wasn’t a lonely single woman anymore. She couldn’t just fall into bed with a man anymore, no matter how tempting. She was a mom. A mom who couldn’t afford to start something with the father of her girls, because the only reason he wanted her now was their girls.
He was charming and attractive and truth be told, a walking orgasm waiting to happen. But if they didn’t share two daughters, would he be trying so hard to seduce her? Sadie didn’t think so.
Steeling herself, she smiled. “Did you want to buy some fireworks, Rick?”
One eyebrow lifted, but he nodded as if he understood that he wouldn’t be drawing her into a flirtatious battle. “Sure.” His gaze slipped past her to the shelves stocked with brightly colored boxes of fiery splendor. “Why don’t you tell me what kind of fireworks the girls like?”
Her heart twisted. How sweet was that, she thought. He wanted to get something for his daughters to enjoy. Helplessly, she admitted that the one sure way to her heart was through her daughters. And no doubt, a cynical voice inside her whispered, he knew that very well. She ignored that little voice. “They’re so little, this will be their first year actually seeing fireworks. I think they’re going to be overwhelmed.”
“I’m glad I’m here to see it with them,” he said.
“I am, too.”
“Are you?” he asked, sliding one hand across the counter to sweep beneath the screen to touch her fingers.
A quick bristle of sensation swept through her at his touch and she pulled her hand away. She was standing on a razor’s edge here and one push either way was going to dissolve what was left of her balance.
“Of course I am,” she said. “The girls will love having you here.”
“That’s a start,” he said.
“Sadie,” Abby asked, as she walked up with a smile, “everything okay?”
“Fine,” she answered. “Abby, you remember Rick Pruitt.”
“Sure. Nice to see you again. Love a man in uniform.”
He grinned and Sadie’s stomach did a quick flip-flop.
“That’s just why we wear them, Abby. Marines like to please their women.”
“Women?” Abby asked.
His gaze shot to Sadie. “Woman,” he corrected.
Then, as if he hadn’t started a brush fire in her bloodstream, he pulled out his wallet. “Give me a few of those red, whit
e and blue sparklers and a couple of the Fiery Fountains.”
Getting busy, Sadie grabbed up his order, put it all in a bag and took his money.
“Keep the change for the shelter,” he said.
“Thanks. The shelter appreciates it.”
“Happy to help.” His gaze was locked on hers.
She pulled in a deep breath and sighed. “Rick, what do you really want?”
“You already know the answer to that, Sadie.”
Sadie searched for something else to say, but came up empty. What was there left to say? Hadn’t they been talking circles around each other for a week now? Nothing had changed. He wanted to marry her for their daughters’ sakes and she refused to get married for the wrong reasons. Again.
He picked up the bag and asked, “I’ll see you later, then?”
“We’ll be here for the fireworks show.” Knowing how the girls would be excited to see him, she pointed off to the gigantic black oak that stood in the town square. “Hannah and the girls are over there if you want to say hello.”
A wide smile creased his face. “Thanks. Think I will.” His gaze shifted to Abby. “Nice to see you.”
“Thanks, you, too.”
When he walked off, Sadie watched him until he was swallowed up by the slowly moving crowd. Then she sighed and Abby nudged her in the ribs.
“What?”
“He’s still gorgeous.”
“Yeah?”
“He looks at you like you’re the last steak at a barbecue.”
“I know.” That’s just how she felt when he was around.
“So what’s the problem?”
“He’s not here to stay, Abby,” Sadie said, resting one hip against the counter.
“You don’t know that. Word is he’s thinking about retiring.”
“Maybe,” she said, looking back over the crowd in the direction Rick went. “But even if he did stay in town, it isn’t me he wants. It’s his girls.”
Abby laughed and dropped one arm around her shoulders. “Not what it looks like to me, Sadie. He’s really into you. It’s in his eyes.”
“He just desires me. That’s different.”
“And could be fun.”
She shook her head even though she was smiling. “Fun isn’t on my schedule,” she said sadly. “I’m a mom now. I have to do what’s best for my daughters.”
“And what exactly is that?”
“Wish I knew,” Sadie whispered as Abby moved off to wait on another customer.
The rest of the day passed in a flurry of activity. There were rides for the twins, a small petting zoo and a country-fair-like atmosphere at the booths filled with pies and handmade crafts.
Sadie had as good a time as a woman could who was twisted into knots. Rick was there. All day. He carried the girls when they got tired, indulged them in ice cream and candy and Sadie could only hope their tummies were tough enough to handle all the sugar. Sadie should probably have drawn a few lines in the sand. Put a lid on sugar consumption at least. But Rick was so excited with his daughters and the girls were simply nuts about their daddy. She simply couldn’t force herself to be the disciplinarian at the party when everyone was having so much fun.
They settled on the blanket beneath the tree for a late lunch. It was just the four of them since Hannah had found a group of friends among the crowd. While the girls ate bananas and mac and cheese, Sadie unwrapped the sandwiches Hannah had packed for her. She handed one to Rick.
When he took it, his fingers brushed hers and she gasped a little. He heard it and smiled. “Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me,” she protested. “Hannah packed the lunch.”
“I wasn’t talking about the sandwich.”
“Oh?” She looked at him as she reached over to hand Gail a cup of milk.
“I meant,” he said, smoothing one hand over Wendy’s dark brown curls, “thanks for sharing our girls with me today.”
“You don’t have to thank me for that, Rick,” she said softly. Yes, he was confusing the hell out of her personally, but his obvious love for the twins warmed her heart. “They’re your daughters, too. I want you to know them. I want them to know you.”
He glanced from each of his daughters’ tiny faces back to Sadie. Dappled shade danced across his face as the leaves of the black oak dipped and swayed in the sultry breeze.
“I appreciate that. I do.” He took a bite of the sandwich, chewed and swallowed. “But I want more than the occasional day with them, Sadie.”
“I know that.” She picked up the sippy cup of milk Wendy toppled over and set it upright again. “But—”
“No buts about it, Sadie. They’re my family. My blood.”
“And mine,” she reminded him.
“Yeah, which brings me back to my point.”
She cut him off. Sadie wasn’t going to give him the chance to talk marriage again. Sharing the twins wasn’t enough of a reason to get married. She wouldn’t take that step again unless she was in love. “I know what your point is, Rick, but I haven’t changed my mind.”
“Why the he—” he broke off, looked at the girls and gave a rueful smile. “Why the heck not? We were good together.”
“Yes, for one night.”
“Could be every night.”
“Marriages aren’t only lived in bed.”
“Doesn’t hurt.”
She sighed. “Rick, we’ve been over this already.”
“And will be again,” he told her, his brown eyes locked with hers.
“What’s the point?”
“We have kids.”
“And we can both love them without being married to each other.”
“We could be a family,” he said softly.
And for one brief moment, that word seemed to reverberate inside her. She had always wanted a family of her own. It was the main reason she had agreed to go along with her father’s plan when he married her off to Taylor. She had believed back then that even if a marriage hadn’t started out for the right reasons that two people who wanted to badly enough could build something good.
But she’d found out soon enough that a marriage without love wasn’t a marriage at all.
“It’s a bad idea, Rick,” she said finally and met his eyes.
“You don’t know that.”
She actually laughed and Gail looked up at her with a grin. “Oh, yes,” she said, “believe me when I say I do.”
“You can’t use your marriage as a measure of what we could have.”
“It’s exactly what I should do,” she told him firmly. “My marriage was a misery because there was no love there. I married him for all the wrong reasons and I paid a heavy price.” She paused, looked down at her daughters, laughing and babbling to each other, and she felt a well of love fill her. Shaking her head, she looked at Rick. “This time, it wouldn’t be only me paying the price. And I won’t risk putting my girls into an unhappy home.”
“You think I would risk that?” Rick picked up a piece of banana and handed it to Wendy. “I only want what’s best for them.”
“And I believe you,” Sadie said. “We just disagree on what’s best.”
He laughed shortly. “You think you’ve got your mind made up about me,” he said after a long moment, “but things change, Sadie.”
“I’m not going to change my mind,” she warned.
“Don’t make statements that are going to be hard to back down from when I finally convince you to see things my way.”
“Are you always this confident?”
“When I know I’m right,” he assured her.
A squeal of sound shattered their conversation and had Sadie’s ears ringing. Wendy cried for her mommy and Gail crawled to her father and scrambled up onto his lap.
The mayor stood on a hastily built stage at one end of the square. Tapping and blowing into a microphone, the feedback was loud enough to tear paint from walls.
“Sorry about that noise,” the mayor said, “but I think we’ve got it whip
ped now.”
The crowd stirred, then settled down as they waited for the inevitable speeches. Sadie’s gaze slid to Rick. He had one arm wrapped around Gail’s sturdy little body and jiggled her instinctively to keep her happy.
He did that so easily, Sadie thought with a sigh. He had stepped into fatherhood so smoothly, it was as if he had been with the twins since the beginning. And if he had, she wondered, how would things be different now? Might they have already become the family he claimed to want?
“I know,” the mayor called out, his voice echoing weirdly through the speakers, “that none of you came to listen to speeches…”
“That won’t stop you, Jimmy,” someone in the crowd shouted.
“That’ll be enough outta you, Ben,” the mayor chided with a smile. “I’ll make this short. But since we’re all here and since it’s our country’s Day of Independence, I wanted to take the time to honor a few of our own.”
A ripple of applause skittered through the crowd. Hesitant, since no one was sure what the mayor was up to yet.
Then he let them all know.
“Rick Pruitt?” Mayor Jim called. “I know you’re here son, so come on up to the stage, will you?”
Frowning a little, Rick set Gail down on the blanket. His features went dark and his eyes were suddenly shadowed. Dutifully, though, he shrugged, then walked through the other picnickers toward the stage. Meanwhile, the mayor went on with his small roll call.
“Donna Billings. Frank Haley and Dennis Flynn, you come on up here, too.”
Sadie’s gaze locked on Rick as he walked up the steps to take his place on the stage. The other people who had been called up stood alongside him, each of them in uniform. They all looked as uncomfortable with the attention as Rick did.
Then the mayor announced, “How about we give a big Royal round of applause for our very own finest. Let’s thank them all for their service to us and our country.”
As the gathered townspeople erupted into wild shouts and thunderous applause, Sadie felt a chill of pride ripple along her spine. From across the square, Rick’s gaze locked with hers and she knew that he had been right. If she wasn’t careful, he might just change her mind.
One Night, Two Heirs Page 6