Smiling resolutely, she bid him good-night. “I’ll see you tomorrow, cowboy.” She sauntered toward the door, then hand on the knob, turned to face him. “About those other beaus you owe me. I trust none of the others will be over seventy?” she asked, letting him know with a determined glance they had better not be!
Looking relieved to be talking about something other than himself again, Jake flashed her his bad-boy grin and promised, “You can count on it.”
“ABOUT TIME WE connected,” Maggie told her friend Clarissa on the telephone, half an hour later. Too wired after the kisses and conversation to sleep, she’d elected to talk on the phone instead, and had called her brother Billy to check in, only to find a message waiting for her there, too, from Clarissa, and at long last, a way to get in touch with her again. “I haven’t heard from you for so long I was beginning to get worried sick about you, Clarissa!” Maggie continued.
“I’m sorry it’s taken me so long,” Clarissa apologized readily. “I wanted to get settled in Chicago before I telephoned you. Then I found out from your brother that you were in the process of settling somewhere else too—in Texas, this time.”
“I’m trying to decide where in Texas I want to live,” Maggie said.
“Where are you now?” Clarissa asked.
“I’m taking care of a rancher’s little nephews—”
“Baby-sitting?”
Briefly, Maggie filled in Clarissa on how and why she’d come to meet up with Jake MacIntyre.
“Well, Maggie, you always have liked to live life on the edge,” her flame-haired friend teased, when Maggie had finished her recitation.
Maggie laughed, then paused. Usually when Clarissa moved, it meant there’d been some kind of trouble. And right now, Maggie’s radar for problems was sounding a red alert. “Are you doing okay?” Maggie asked Clarissa gently. It wasn’t like Clarissa to completely lose touch with them and never for this long. Usually, no matter what was going on in their lives, they talked every couple of weeks on the phone.
“Yes and no. There’s no easy way to say this. Maggie, I finally did it. I—I got a divorce.”
“Oh, Clarissa.” Maggie sighed, her heart going out to her old friend. This had to be a rough time. And it was just like Clarissa to be embarrassed her relationship with her ex hadn’t worked out and think she had to shoulder the whole burden alone.
“You’re probably thinking I should have done it long ago,” Clarissa asserted.
Maggie knew she wouldn’t do either of them any favors by being less than honest. “Your ex-husband never did treat you and Tommy right.”
“Well, things are looking up now,” Clarissa announced cheerfully, “because I’ve got a teaching job, a baby-sitter Tommy loves—his name is Conor James—and I’ve finally found that millionaire Sabrina predicted I would marry. His name is Fred Tannenbaum, and he’s asked me to marry him.”
Maggie wanted Clarissa to be happy. Heaven knew she deserved to be. “That’s great, Clarissa! I look forward to meeting him. Furthermore, it’s funny you should mention Sabrina,” Maggie said, twisting the phone cord around her index finger. “Because I saw her in New York, right before I left.”
“You’re kidding!” Clarissa enthused. “I saw her, too, on the last day of the SummerFest carnival in Bridgeport.”
Maggie ran a hand through her hair. “Next thing we know, Hallie will claim to have seen Sabrina, too,” Maggie joked.
“What if she did?” Clarissa whispered.
What indeed? Maggie wondered. “There’s only one thing to do,” Maggie said. “I’m calling Hallie!”
Determined to find out, she telephoned her cousin Hallie in Chicago as soon as she got off the phone, and got her machine.
“Hi, this is Hallie. Leave a message and I’ll call you back when I can.”
The machine beeped, letting Maggie know it was okay to begin her message.
“Hallie, it’s Maggie in Texas. Call me at Jake MacIntyre’s ranch in Texas.” Maggie relayed the number and hung up.
“SO WHAT’RE WE GONNA DO today that’s specially entertaining?” Rusty demanded at breakfast the next morning.
“I’d like to hear the answer to that myself,” Jake drawled as he passed the platter of scrambled eggs.
Maggie glanced out the kitchen windows. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly. Fluffy white clouds dotted the pale blue sky. A warm breeze was shaking the leafy green trees. She knew, in an instant, she wanted to be outdoors. And so probably did the twins. “Do you guys like kites?” she asked.
Rusty and Wyatt shrugged in unison.
“Don’t know. Never tried it,” Rusty piped.
“Well, how about we go into town today—if Jake’ let me borrow one of the ranch vehicles—”
“You can take my Jeep,” he said.
“Thanks.” Maggie smiled at him, aware that between the kids and the ranch, she sort of felt as though she were on vacation, too. “And we’ll buy a couple of kites, assemble them and see if we can get them to fly. All before lunch,” Maggie decreed.
“Cool,” Wyatt said, grinning from ear to ear.
“Way cool,” Rusty agreed.
“Do you guys need help?” Maggie asked, noting they were still clad in their Texas Rangers pajamas.
“Nope. We’ll be fine,” Wyatt told her, while Rusty nodded that this was indeed so.
“Okay. Don’t forget to brush your teeth and comb your hair before you come down,” Maggie said. “As soon as you boys’re ready, we’ll go.”
They took off. Jake stood, dressed in jeans, boots and a work shirt, looking reluctant to leave. “How much do you know about kites?” he asked Maggie.
More than I know about your past love life, Maggie thought, aware she was still quite frustrated on that score. “Plenty. I used to amuse my three brothers, Deke, Billy and Frank with them in Central Park, when we all lived in New York.”
Jake grinned. “I’d like to meet them someday.”
Maggie smiled. “That can probably be arranged.”
He reached into his pocket and brought out a handful of bills. He tossed them down in front of Maggie. “For the kites and whatever else you think the boys need or would enjoy.”
Maggie pocketed the money in her jeans. “I’ll bring you a receipt.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
Didn’t she? Given the way she had researched him and sought him out, he already thought she was a gold digger. “I insist,” she said quietly. Before she left here he would know, no matter how things appeared, that she was not after his money and never had been.
Their eyes met, held. Without warning, Maggie was reminded of their passionate kisses. She could tell by the look in his eyes that Jake recalled them, too.
Frowning, Jake grabbed his hat and tugged it low on his brow. “Harry, I’m going out to check on the cattle. We’ve got a couple of sick steers, in need of attention. Call me on the cell phone, if you need me.”
Without another word or even a glance in her direction, Jake swaggered purposefully out the door, letting it bang behind him.
Harry Wholesome and Maggie were left alone in the kitchen. Maggie stood and began to clear the breakfast dishes.
Harry, who was dressed in a casual sport shirt and slacks, looked sheepishly at Maggie. She could tell that he at least had come to respect her, probably due to the way she cared for the boys. “About my, er…ah, masquerade yesterday—” Harry began awkwardly.
“You and Jake pull that shenanigan often?” Maggie teased, letting Harry know with a smile she considered there was no harm done.
Harry admitted reluctantly, “When it comes to women, more often than I care to say. You’d be surprised how many actually act interested in me, in lieu of Jake, until they find out who I really am.”
“Oh, I have a feeling you have your share of lady friends,” Maggie drawled. To women his age, a man like Harry would probably be quite a catch.
Harry merely grinned at Maggie, acknowledging t
his was so. And that he, like Jake, generally reveled in his attention from the opposite sex.
“What about Jake? Does he date?” Maggie asked.
Harry shrugged and began to wash dishes in earnest. “He squires women around here and there,” he replied evasively.
Maggie slanted Harry a glance while she wiped the table clean with a sudsy rag. “But there’s been no one serious since he had his heart broken?” she asked, curious.
Harry was so startled he nearly dropped a dish. He whirled on Maggie, demanding, “What do you know about that?”
“Obviously, not enough,” Maggie responded, sure she was on to something now. “That’s it, isn’t it?” she crowed victoriously. “That’s why Jake doesn’t date! He fell madly in love with some woman. She broke his heart. And he’s never gotten over it.”
“Anything you learn on that score, you’re going to have to learn from Jake,” Harry warned, putting up a palm to ward off further questions.
“But I’m right, aren’t I?” Maggie pressed resolutely.
To her frustration, Harry merely set his jaw and didn’t reply. Silence fell between them. Once again, Maggie knew what it was like to hit a stone wall.
“Hey, Maggie! We’re ready to go get kites!” the boys said, as they raced back in the kitchen.
Wordlessly, Harry reached into a drawer and tossed her a set of keys. Without warning, he looked relieved to be getting rid of Maggie and all her questions, too, at least temporarily. “It’s the dark green Jeep Wagoneer in the garage,” Harry told her, turning away. “Lunch is at noon. Don’t be late.”
“HOW’RE THE STEERS?” Harry asked a dusty, dirty Jake as he stomped in the back door and peeled off his sweat-soaked shirt at the kitchen sink.
“Sufferin’.” Jake wiped his brow with a swipe of his forearm. “The medicine we got from the vet should help, though.”
Harry handed Jake a tall glass of lemonade. “You missed lunch.”
Jake scowled, knowing as well as Harry that had been no accident. “Yeah, well, there was more to do out there than I thought there’d be,” he muttered.
Harry, acting more surrogate father than housekeeper now, gave him a questioning look. “Sure it’s not her you’re avoiding?” Harry jerked his head in the direction of the backyard, where Maggie and the boys were running back and forth, laughing and shouting and pulling two long-tailed kites on strings.
“She really does know what she’s doing,” Jake murmured, trying his best not to notice how long and lissome and downright sexy her legs were beneath the denim shorts.
“In more than one area, it would seem,” Harry said dryly.
And then, sure his employer should know, Harry proceeded to tell Jake about his conversation with Maggie in the kitchen that morning.
“HEY, GUYS,” Jake told his nephews half an hour and one long hot shower later. “Harry has some ices for you in the kitchen.”
“All right!” Rusty and Wyatt dropped their kites and ran off to get them.
Maggie barely had time to catch the kite strings. With a curious look at Jake, she wordlessly handed him one kite, and began to reel in the one she kept in her hands.
He struggled to keep his matter-of-fact mood. It wasn’t easy with her golden hair flowing like silk over her shoulders and the sun pinkening her cheeks. Not to mention the way she looked in the prim white sneakers, clinging T-shirt and the brief denim shorts.
“You want to talk to me?” Maggie edged close enough he could smell the scent of her perfume.
Jake frowned and concentrated on reeling in his kite. “I don’t have any true confessions to make,” he said sarcastically, “if that’s what you mean.”
Maggie’s chin set determinedly but she did not look surprised. “Harry told you I asked him questions, didn’t he?”
Jake nodded. “He was protecting me, and yes, he did.”
Maggie tossed her head. Silky blond hair flew in every direction. “Well, you needn’t worry ‘cause he didn’t tell me anything about your past love life, either,” Maggie stormed.
“That’s good.” In fact, Jake was glad she was frustrated.
Maggie lifted a skeptical brow. “I’m not so sure it is,” she said silkily, as she brought her kite in to within twenty feet of her. “Obviously, you haven’t gotten over whatever happened in the past, if just the hint of it makes you this touchy.”
“And obviously, if you are this nosy, and this interested in something that is none of your business, then you need distracting,” Jake told her emphatically as he too continued to reel in his kite.
“And how would you plan to accomplish that, Jake?” Maggie taunted, a wealth of temper shimmering in her vivid blue eyes. “By kissing me again?”
Jake moved back, as swiftly and surely as if he had been burned. As tempting as her dare was, there was no way in hell he was doing that. She was getting under his skin much too swiftly as it was. Much more and…well, he didn’t want to think about that. “You have a date coming for dinner,” he announced, bringing his kite in so suddenly, it fell to the ground.
“Tonight?” Maggie reeled hers in gently, until she was able to catch it and lower it carefully to the ground.
Jake nodded.
“Mac Malone will be here at six sharp,” he told her determinedly, knowing that if this didn’t push Maggie Porter away from him and out of his life, nothing would.
“So have yourself and the boys ready. They’ll need to wear their jackets and ties.” Jake smiled, smugly predicting, “It’s going to be quite an evening.”
Chapter Six
Quite an evening was right, Maggie thought, as she surveyed the boys, who were busy being just about as uncooperative as little boys could be.
“I hate ties.”
“See?” Rusty pulled his to the side and made awfully authentic gagging noises. “Mine is already choking me!”
“And this jacket is even worse.” Wyatt did a rude approximation of a chicken flapping its wings to demonstrate how uncomfortable he was. “It feels stiff and scratchy.”
“Why do we have to go, anyway?” Rusty complained unhappily, plopping on Maggie’s bed.
“Because your uncle Jake said,” she replied firmly as she finished spritzing on her perfume. Jake had made it pretty clear by the way he’d come on to her that he thought she’d been dressed too sexy the evening before. Well, she’d be damned if Jake could find anything wrong with the way she dressed tonight. Her long stretch velvet dress with its fitted turtleneck bodice, long slim sleeves, lower calf-length skirt and demure princess seams, had her primly covered from her chin nearly to her ankles.
“Yeah, but, couldn’t we just eat dinner in our rooms or something?” Wyatt protested.
Good point, Maggie thought as she sat to slip on her suede evening sandals and knot the thin bowties across her ankle. Why Jake was making two rambunctious little boys sit through a formal dinner was beyond her. But, seeing as she was merely the baby-sitter-for-barter it really wasn’t her place to object. She put down her perfume and turned to her two charges.
“You’re going because your Uncle Jake wants you there,” she explained as they ambled over to stand on either side of her.
Pausing briefly, she straightened Rusty’s tie and adjusted Wyatt’s shirt collar, so it lay flat. “So how about this?” When all else failed, Maggie thought, resort to bribery again. After all, what difference did it make why the two boys behaved as long as they got in the habit of doing so? “If the two of you concentrate on behaving tonight, just like your uncle Jake has asked you to—”
“Just like Jake said,” Wyatt interrupted helpfully, his brows furrowing together, as he urged Maggie to be even more specific about what was expected of them in the bound-to-be-boring evening ahead.
“Yes.” Maggie nodded firmly, knowing that Jake had already had a talk with the boys while he supervised their showers earlier. “Then you two boys and I will do something very special tomorrow, too. Something even better than kites.” Though what that was
, Maggie didn’t know.
“I don’t know,” Rusty paused, flattening a hand on his just-combed hair and inadvertently messing up the neatly sectioned part. Briefly, he looked troubled. Or maybe it was just confused. “Unka Jake…well, I mean he told us what to do—” Rusty stammered uncertainly.
“Yeah, he sure did,” Wyatt chimed in, nodding.
“Then just do it,” Maggie said, maintaining a most positive attitude in the hopes the boys would follow her example and do the same. She took them both by the hand and encouraged softly, “Just do exactly what your uncle Jake said and everything will be fine, I promise you.”
Rusty and Wyatt exchanged glances that were half baffled, half anxious. Finally, they both shrugged their small shoulders. It was clear, Maggie thought, they had very little experience in dress-up dinners. “Okay, Maggie,” they agreed finally, nodding their heads. “We’ll do exactly what you and our unka Jake say.”
DAMN IT ALL, she didn’t have to look so gorgeous all the time, did she? Jake thought irritably as Maggie descended the wide front staircase at six sharp, Wyatt on one side of her, Rusty on the other.
The boys were cute of course, in their identical navy blazers and striped ties, khaki pants and white shirts. But it was Maggie who took his breath away. Her espresso-colored velvet dress hugged her curvaceous form like a made-to-order glove. Her ridiculously flimsy shoes only added to her air of sexy yet untouchable allure. She had brushed her honey blond hair away from her face. It illuminated the sun-kissed hue of her fair skin and fell in a shimmering golden veil over her shoulders and partway down her back. Jake didn’t know if it was the time she’d spent outdoors playing with the boys or simply the flattering dark color of her dress contrasted with the fairness of her skin, but her eyes had never seemed a more vivid blue than they did at that moment, her lips more voluptuous and naturally pink.
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