Dalton's Undoing

by RaeAnne Thayne

  Seth laughed. "You might be right. I can't imagine the folks in Detroit took as much care building her as we've spent restoring her."

  Cole grinned and held up his bandaged index finger, the result of a minor accident with a rough piece of metal. "And we've got the war wounds to prove it."

  If Seth hadn't been watching Jenny, he might have missed the raw emotion on her face when she looked at her son.

  "How's the work on the car coming?" she asked. Seth opened his mouth to answer but saw her gaze was still trained on her son so he waited for the boy to answer.

  "Okay," Cole said. Though he spoke only a single word, his tone wasn't at all his usual surly one.

  "Better than okay," Seth corrected. "We've got the minor dings smoothed out and we're waiting for a new headlamp we had to order from a specialty shop back East. Cole here is kicking butt on smoothing out the scrape on the side."

  The boy looked pleased. "It's nothing. I'm only doing what you tell me to do."

  "That's just what you're supposed to be doing," he growled. "Now if only I can keep you from throwing in those crappy CDs you call music, we'll get along fine."

  "Just because you drive an old car doesn't mean you have to listen to the same music my grandpa does."

  "It's blues and classic rock. And good for your grandpa, if he listens to CCR and Bob Seger. Maybe between the two of us, we can teach you to appreciate fine music."

  Cole made a gagging sound that sent his sister into the giggles. Seth had to admit, for all his belligerence at first, the kid had warmed to him far easier than his mother had.

  Cole Boyer loved cars. No question about it. Every time he walked into the garage to work on the GTO, he became a different kid. It was a physical and emotional change that Seth found fascinating to watch. He lifted his shoulders and stopped the perpetual slouch, he made eye contact more, he climbed out of his attitude and talked and chattered as much as Seth's nephew Tanner.

  He glowed while he was working on the GTO and it was one more vivid reminder to Seth of himself. It didn't matter how small he'd been until he was fifteen, that he was wheezy and raspy and weak. Behind the wheel of a hot car, everything was relative.

  Cole even seemed to respond to the horses. Every time he came to the ranch, Seth saddled a horse for him to ride a little. At first he hadn't been very enthusiastic about it, but as he gained more confidence in the saddle, that seemed to be changing.

  Today Cole had even spurred his horse to a slight lope around the arena and had looked as thrilled by it as a bronc rider the first time he hit eight seconds on the timer.

  He had to admit, he liked the kid. He was smart and worked hard. Though he still adopted his tough-guy attitude from time to time, when he relaxed his guard enough to let it slip, he was funny and bright and full of interesting observations about the world around him.

  His favorite days of the week were those when Cole came out and helped him around the place—and only part of that had to do with knowing he would probably see Jenny, since she usually drove out to the Cold Creek to pick him up.

  "When we have her back to her full glory, we'll all have to take a celebratory drive somewhere," Seth said. "Maybe we can run over to Idaho Falls for dinner or something."

  "Can we take Lucy?" Morgan asked.

  "If she learns to behave herself and doesn't pee on my floor mats."

  Morgan giggled. "She is so cute. I wish we could take her home."

  "You should see her with her brother," Seth said. "The two of them are quite a pair."

  "Is he bossy, too?" Morgan asked him, with a pointed look at her own brother.

  "I think she's the bossy one, but it's hard to tell. They wrestle and play and get into all kinds of mischief when they're together."

  "I bet they're funny," Morgan said.

  "Come on, kids," Jenny finally broke in. "I have another school board meeting tonight and I don't want to dump all the chores and homework on Grandpa to supervise."

  "Can I throw one more time?" Morgan asked. "I know she'll bring it back to me this time."

  An idea sparked in his head as he watched the girl with the puppy—who finally seemed to get it right and dropped the ball at her feet instead of Jenny's.

  He discarded it at first as completely out of the question, but it seemed to rattle around in his head as Cole and Morgan were climbing into her little SUV. He didn't want her to feel backed into a corner so he waited until they were settled inside the car, out of earshot, before he spoke.

  "Do you have plans tomorrow?"

  She looked at him warily. "Why?"

  "I know it's still a week before Thanksgiving but my family is getting together tomorrow to go up on some land we've got up in the mountains to cut Christmas trees. We try to do it a little early before the real heavy snows hit. Why don't you all come along? My mother and brothers will be here. I'm sure Mom will bring Linus so Morgan can have the chance to play with both of the puppies."

  She blinked, clearly not expecting that kind of invitation from him.

  "It's a lot of fun," he pressed, warming to the idea more and more. "We usually take sleds up and make a big party out of it. The kids would have a great time."

  She pursed her lips. "I don't think so. It sounds like a family outing. I wouldn't want to intrude."

  "You wouldn't be, I swear. Wade has already invited our vet and his family along and there's always room for a few more. I was up there on our land a month or so ago during round-up and tagged more than a dozen little spruces that would be perfect for Christmas trees. You only have to pick out your favorite and there are plenty to go around. You won't find fresher trees anywhere."

  She looked tempted as she gazed up at the mountains. Her eyes softened and her expression turned wistful. What would he have to do to have her turn that kind of expression in his direction?

  Right then he would have crawled up that mountain on his knees and ripped a tree out with his bare hands if it would make her look at him with those soft green eyes.

  "Just think what a great holiday memory that would be for your kids," he pushed, wondering when he'd become so ruthless.

  * * *

  Jenny let out a breath at his words. Blast him. Seth Dalton could sell sunshine in the desert. She had been right about him that day at her father's house. The man knew just the right buttons to push, somehow instinctively finding exactly a woman's weakness and using it against her. How could he possibly know that she dreamed of creating the perfect holiday for her children?

  She had such hopes for this year, wishing she could make up for the awful holidays past. The last few had been anything but pleasant as both children had been angry and upset after their father had broken yet more promises to visit.

  Even before he'd left for Europe and completely abdicated his responsibility to his family, she'd been on her own most holidays. Richard often chose to work extra shifts during the holidays and Cole and Morgan saw him only sporadically.

  Like Chevy Chase in Cole's favorite Christmas movie, she had dreamed about making this year perfect. They were in a new home, with a clean, blank slate for creating family traditions. And wouldn't riding into the mountains for their own tree be a perfect start?

  Oh, she was tempted by his offer. Her mind was already conjuring up some Currier & Ives images of sleigh rides and hot cocoa and jingle bells on stamping, snorting horses.

  But this particular offer came with some serious strings—attached, unfortunately, to a man she was finding extremely difficult to withstand.

  She could feel her resistance to him slipping away every time she was with him and she knew she couldn't just surrender it without a fight. She couldn't afford to fall for a handsome charmer, not now when things were finally starting to go right.

  "I don't think so." She put on her most brisk tone, the one she used with recalcitrant students throwing food in the lunch room. "Thank you for the offer, but we couldn't possibly intrude on a family event."

  For a long moment he studied h
er, his head canted to one side, then he finally sighed. "I know you dislike me, Ms. Boyer—"

  "I don't!" she protested instinctively.

  "Come on. The kids can't hear us so you don't have to pretend for politeness' sake," he said. "I'm not sure how it happened or why but I always seem to rub you the wrong way. Whatever I did, can't we somehow figure out a way to move past it for one day, just so you can allow Cole and Morgan to participate in something we both know they'll enjoy?"

  Oh! How could he make her so angry and so guilty at the same time? He was right, blast him. She wanted so much to say yes. Morgan, at least, would have a wonderful time. Cole would probably say it was all lame, but she had a feeling he would secretly enjoy it, too, especially with Seth around.

  The only reason she resisted the invitation was because she wasn't so sure she could resist him.

  How could she deprive her children of this opportunity to create a lasting memory because of her own weakness?

  For two weeks she had been doing her best to keep him out of her head, to pretend cool indifference to him. She tried to convince herself the little hitch in her chest every time she drove onto the Cold Creek was simply a little heartburn from eating school lunch with her students.

  She knew it wasn't. Even though he was as polite and friendly and noncharming as she could have asked for, her attraction to him only seemed to blossom.

  Somehow—without apparently making any effort at all—Seth seemed to be whittling away at her defenses. The prospect of having to pretend disinterest for an entire day was daunting.

  She could do it, she thought. For her children's sake, she could be tough, couldn't she?

  "What time?" she finally said.

  He grinned with triumph, looking so gorgeous in the thin, fading sunlight that she had to remind herself she was supposed to be resisting him.

  "We're probably heading up right after morning chores, maybe around eleven or so. Does that work?"

  "It should. Yes."

  "Bring your father along if you'd like. He can ride a sled up or my mother and stepfather usually stay behind to hang out."

  "All right. Thank you."

  "Make sure you dress warmly. It's supposed to snow tonight so we'll have plenty of fresh powder."

  She nodded as she slid into her car, wondering as she started the engine if the temperatures would possibly cool enough overnight to keep her unruly hormones in the deep freeze she'd stored them in for the last three years.

  Chapter Five

  She was a bright, successful woman who was certainly mature enough to know her own mind, Jenny thought the next morning as she drove along freshly plowed roads toward the Cold Creek.

  So how had she let Seth Dalton con her into this? Through the long, snowy night, she'd had plenty of time to think through the ramifications of what she'd committed herself and her children to by agreeing to come on this outing today.

  An entire day in his company. What had she been thinking?

  Easy. Thinking apparently wasn't an activity she excelled at when Seth Dalton was around. The man only had to look at her and her brain cells decided to head to the Bahamas.

  However this excursion had come about, she didn't doubt Cole and Morgan—and Jason, when it came to that—would enjoy the day. She had to keep that uppermost in her mind.

  It was a beautiful morning, at least. Seth had been right about the snow. Maybe some ranching instinct helped him predict the weather—or maybe he just watched the forecast more assiduously than she did.

  He had said they would have fresh snow today. As predicted, three to four inches had dropped on the area during the night, something she learned from her father wasn't at all unusual for mid- to late-November in eastern Idaho.

  Everything was gorgeous: fresh and white and lovely. This was the perfect kind of early storm, just enough to cover the ground but not enough to make driving a nightmare.

  Not much of one, anyway. Her SUV hit a wet spot suddenly and her wheels lost traction a little but she turned into the skid and quickly regained control.

  "That's my girl." Jason smiled. "Watch your mother, Cole. Before much longer, you're going to be driving in these kind of conditions. You should be sure you pay attention now and follow her example."

  "Does that mean I have to scream like a girl every time I hit a slick patch?" Cole asked with a smirk.

  "Hey! I didn't scream," she exclaimed hotly. "That was simply a loud gasp."

  Her father and son shared a conspiratorial look. She didn't mind being the source of their amusement, as long as Cole wasn't brooding in the backseat.

  The rest of the drive passed smoothly and she wanted to think it was a good omen when the sun peeked through the clouds just as they reached the Cold Creek, gleaming off the snow that covered everything from fence lines to barns.

  The Daltons' gravel drive had been cleared and sanded and she tried not to imagine Seth out here on a tractor taking care of his family's and his neighbors' driveways.

  Why she found that such an appealing image, she couldn't begin to guess. Better to focus on the picture the ranch made as the pale sunlight glittered off the new snow.

  She parked behind a silver pickup. Almost as if he'd been standing at the window watching for them, Seth hurried out of the house an instant later to greet them, accompanied by two puppies dancing around his feet.

  He made a stunning picture, she had to admit, the strong, masculine figure in a Stetson and ranch coat, surrounded by playful puppies. Her insides gave a quick little shiver that had nothing to do with the weather, and she worried that even the presence of her father and children wouldn't be enough to insulate her from his effect on her.

  She let out a breath. She was tough: she could do this. How hard could it be to resist the man for one day?

  She received some inkling of the answer to that question when he reached to open the door, his broad, delighted smile somehow outshining the sun.

  "You made it! I was afraid the snow might deter you."

  She made some murmured reply—she wasn't quite sure what—and was relieved when he turned his attention to the rest of the vehicle's occupants. "Hey, Morgan. Cole. Mr. Chambers."

  "Call me Jason," her traitor of a father said.

  "Jason, then. Welcome to the Cold Creek. I'm so pleased you're all coming along with us today."

  "Is that Lucy's brother?" Morgan asked, climbing out to greet the cavorting dogs.

  "Sure is. This is Linus."

  "They're so cute!" she exclaimed, giggling as they licked her.

  "We're just about ready to go," Seth said. "I was just giving the sleds one more look. Jason, you are more than welcome to come up the mountain with us. Or if you'd prefer, my mom and stepfather and our neighbors, Viv and Guillermo Cruz, are staying behind to sit by the fire and enjoy a fierce game of gin rummy while the rest of us are slaving out in the cold hunting Christmas trees for them."

  Jason perked up. "Now that sounds like my idea of fun."

  "Come on inside, everyone, and I'll introduce you around."

  "Are we going to ride horses to find our Christmas tree?" Morgan asked eagerly.

  Seth reached down and tugged the long tail of her fleece stocking cap and something sharp and sweet yanked at Jenny's heart.

  "Sorry, sweetheart, but it would take all day to get up to where the trees are on horseback. We usually go after our trees on snowmobiles. It's faster that way. But you and Natalie can maybe ride around the arena later when we come back down the mountain if you'd like."

  So much for her Currier & Ives fantasy, Jenny thought wryly. A reality slap was just what she deserved for jumping to romantic conclusions. Noisy, growly snowmobiles didn't quite fit her idea of a perfect holiday, but she supposed they would be more efficient.

  She shook her head at own foolishness but followed Seth and the two wrestling puppies up the cleared sidewalk into the large log-and-stone ranch house.

  Inside, she was assaulted by warmth and welcome. A fire snapped in a h
uge river-rock fireplace and the house smelled of apples and cinnamon and the sharp scent of wood smoke. For all its size—the soaring ceilings and the grand wall of windows overlooking the western slope of the Tetons—the house struck her as comfortable instead of pretentious.

  "We're just waiting for Jake and Maggie," Seth said. "They had some kind of emergency at the clinic but called a few minutes ago and said they were on their way. They shouldn't be long. Take your coats off out here and come in and meet everyone else."

  She complied and spent a moment gathering everyone's coats then handing them to Seth. For a moment their arms brushed and she felt hard strength beneath the heavy fabric of his coat.

  She had to hope nobody else—especially Seth—noticed she sucked in her breath at the contact.

  Seth gave no indication that he had seen anything amiss as he took their coats and set them over the arm of a big plump armchair.

  The kitchen was just as welcoming as the great room but on a smaller scale. Painted a cheery yellow, it was airy and bright, with crisp white appliances and a huge pine table overflowing with people.

  She was assaulted by noise as everyone seemed to have something to say at once to welcome the newcomers.

  The instant they walked in, Natalie—Morgan's good friend and daughter to Seth's oldest brother, Wade—jumped up from her chair with a squeal and ran to Morgan.

  They hugged as if they'd been separated for months instead of merely overnight, before quickly running off.

  Jason slid right into Natalie's newly vacant chair and immediately struck up a conversation with a distinguished-looking gentleman and a woman Jenny recognized as Marjorie Montgomery, Seth's mother.

  That left her and Cole as the odd ones out. For an awkward moment she and her son stood on the fringe of the crowd, and she experienced a rare moment of sympathy for him.

  She had always been a little hesitant about meeting new people, though she had been forced to work hard to overcome it through nearly fifteen years as an educator.

  Cole was a great deal like her in that respect, she realized suddenly. Perhaps he feigned indifference—and sometimes even contempt—to hide his own social discomfort. It was an astonishing revelation.