Mom In The Making

by Carla Cassidy

  “Tell me something, Russ. Do you wear boxers or briefs?”

  Letter to Reader

  Title Page

  Books by Carla Cassidy

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Copyright

  “Tell me something, Russ. Do you wear boxers or briefs?”

  “Pardon me?” He felt himself blush. Surely he’d heard wrong.

  “I have this theory. Men who wear briefs are your garden-variety uptight conservatives. Men who play by the rules, never take risks and have little sense of humor. They are judgmental, restrained and controlling. I figure it has something to do with briefs cutting off the blood flow to the brain.”

  Russ wished desperately that beneath his stiff, perfectly creased uniform was a pair of paisley silk boxers. “You’re crazy,” he scoffed.

  She grinned triumphantly. “You’re definitely a briefs man, Russ.” And she was going to enjoy finding out just how badly he wanted to change....

  Dear Reader,

  What a month of wonderful reading Romance has for you! Our FABULOUS FATHERS title, Most Wanted Dad, continues Arlene James’s miniseries THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN. Single dad and police officer Evans Kincaid can’t quite handle his daughter’s wild makeup and hairdos. Luckily—or not so luckily—the pretty lady next door is full of advice....

  Do You Take This Child? is the last book of Marie Ferrarella’s THE BABY OF THE MONTH CLUB miniseries—and our BUNDLES OF JOY title. Any-minute-mom-to-be Dr. Sheila Pollack expects to raise her baby all alone. But when the long-absent dad-to-be suddenly bursts into the delivery room, Sheila says “I do” between huffs and puffs!

  In Reilly’s Bride by Patricia Thayer, Jenny Murdock moves to Last Hope, Wyoming, to escape becoming a bride. But the town’s crawling with eligible bachelors who want wives. So why isn’t she happy when she falls for the one man who doesn’t want to walk down the aisle?

  Carla Cassidy continues THE BAKER BROOD miniseries with Mom in the Making. Single dad Russ Blackburn’s little son chases away every woman who comes near his dad. It just figures the boy would like Bonnie Baker—a woman without a shred of mother material in her!

  And don’t miss the handsome drifter who becomes a woman’s birthday present in Lauryn Chandler’s Her Very Own Husband, or the two adorable kids who want their parents together in Robin Nicholas’s Wrangler’s Wedding.

  Enjoy!

  Melissa Senate,

  Senior Editor

  * * *

  Please address questions and book requests to:

  Silhouette Reader Service

  U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

  Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Out. L2A 5X3

  * * *

  MOM IN THE MAKING

  Carla Cassidy

  Books by Carla Cassidy

  Silhouette Romance

  Patchwork Family #818

  Whatever Alex Wants... #856

  Fire and Spice #884

  Homespun Hearts #905

  Golden Girl #924

  Something New #942

  Pixie Dust #958

  The Littlest Matchmaker #978

  The Marriage Scheme #996

  Anything for Danny #1048

  *Deputy Daddy #1141

  *Mom in the Making #1147

  Silhouette Desire

  A Fleeting Moment #784

  Under the Boardwalk #882

  *The Baker Brood

  Silhouette Shadows

  Swamp Secrets #4

  Heart of the Beast #11

  Silent Screams #25

  Mystery Child #61

  Silhouette Intimate Moments

  One of the Good Guys #531

  Try To Remember #560

  Fugitive Father #604

  Silhouette Books

  Silhouette Shadows Short Stories 1993

  “Devil and the Deep Blue Sea”

  The Loop

  Getting it Right: Jessica

  CARLA CASSIDY

  is the author of ten young-adult novels, as well as many contemporary romances. She’s been a cheerleader for the Kansas City Chiefs football team and has traveled the East Coast as a singer and dancer in a band, but the greatest pleasure she has had is in creating romance and happiness for readers.

  Chapter One

  Bonnie Baker frowned and sighed as she saw the flashing red lights in her rearview mirror. She eased off the gas pedal and pulled the rental car over to the side of the road, braking to a stop in front of the Casey’s Corners Hardware Store.

  Terrific. She couldn’t be more than a block or two away from her sister’s house, and unless she was very lucky, she was about to eat another speeding ticket. Her third in the hundred-mile drive from the airport in Wichita.

  She wouldn’t have been speeding had there been a lot of traffic. The road was virtually deserted, and she’d allowed her need to get to her sister’s house to overrule any speed limit. How was she supposed to know the state of Kansas had an abundance of good-ole-boy patrolmen who had nothing better to do than write speeding tickets?

  She shut off the engine and waited for the officer to approach. Maybe she could tell him she was on her way to a funeral. No, he would never believe it at this time of night. She could tell him the truth—that she’d walked out in the middle of her wedding, suddenly confused and certain she was about to make a major mistake. She’d hopped on a jet and flown from Europe. Now she was jet-lagged and on the verge of cranky. No, she wasn’t about to bare her soul to anyone.

  Well, she could certainly tell him she was Carolyn’s sister, and Carolyn was married to the sheriff of this little town. Hey, wouldn’t it be funny if this was her introduction to her new brother-in-law? She grinned at the thought of him stopping her, the vision of another ticket usurped by the more pleasant image of a family reunion.

  Straightening, she eyed the officer in her rearview mirror. If he was her brother-in-law, the first thing she needed to do was congratulate her sister on her taste. Tall and slim, he walked toward her car with a masculine stride that bespoke control and authority. Bonnie had always liked a man who took charge. She liked to make them crazy.

  Darn. She couldn’t remember her brother-in-law’s name. When the letter had come from Carolyn announcing her marriage, Bonnie had been in Europe fighting the advances of an amorous prince.

  Was the name Wade? No, that wasn’t it, although Bonnie distinctly remembered reading that her sister had married a man with a good Southern name.

  “License and registration, please.”

  She peered up at him. “Rhett?” she ventured. It was the only other Southern male name she could think of.

  “Pardon me?”

  He frowned, the gesture only intensifying his attractiveness. His face was lean, the only hint of softness a cleft in his chin.

  “Are you Carolyn’s husband?” Drat, what was the man’s name?

  “Carolyn? No, that’s Beau. He’s now the sheriff. I’m the new deputy sheriff. Now, can I see your license and registration?” He held out his hand.

  Beau. Of course. Beau Randolf. Bonnie turned slightly in her seat, stuck her hand out the window and grabbed his. She shook it and turned on her million-watt smile. “Hi, I’m Bonnie Baker, Carolyn’s sister. I didn’t catch your name.”

  “I didn’t mention it.” He released her hand and opened a summons pad. “Are you going to hand over your license and registration, or am I going to have to write you up for being uncoope
rative?”

  “I don’t suppose you’d consider giving me a break instead of issuing me a ticket?” Bonnie widened her eyes, a look of innocence that usually garnered her what she wanted.

  He shook his head. “It’s not my job to give breaks.”

  Bonnie bit back a sharp retort and grabbed her purse off the seat next to her. What a jerk. She was just trying to be friendly. She extracted her wallet and withdrew her driver’s license. “Are you sure my brother-in-law would approve of you giving his favorite relative a ticket?” she asked as she handed her license to him.

  “In law enforcement there are no favorite relatives. There are only law-abiding citizens and lawbreakers.”

  Terrific. She had been pulled over by Robocop. She tapped a sculptured nail on the steering wheel.

  He peered at the photo on her license, then her. “This doesn’t look like you.”

  She shrugged. No matter how handsome he was, the man was definitely a jerk. “When that picture was taken I was going through a ‘blondes have more fun’ phase.” She flipped a strand of her dark hair. “Since then I’ve gone back to my natural color.”

  “Natural is always better.”

  His dark eyes held the first hint of amusement. It rankled Bonnie. Sure he could afford to be amused . now; he was about to write her up a ticket.

  “Weren’t you supposed to be in Europe getting married to some prince?” He leaned against the side of her car and gazed at her with unabashed curiosity.

  Bonnie frowned. “How did you know that?”

  He shrugged, and Bonnie couldn’t help but notice the width of his shoulders. Jerks should never be hunks. It was so disconcerting.

  “Carolyn mentioned it. I thought the wedding was yesterday. Spending separate honeymoons, you and the prince?”

  “Of course not,” she snapped. “I changed my mind and decided not to marry Prince Helmut.”

  His dark eyes flickered, and one corner of his mouth curved upward. “That was his name? No wonder you backed out. Who on earth would want to go through life as Mrs. Helmut?”

  “That had nothing to do with it. Helmut is his first name, and it’s a fine old French name.” Bonnie certainly didn’t want to discuss her personal life with this stranger, particularly the details of the disastrous wedding fiasco. “Look, are you going to write me a ticket or not? I’ve been traveling for the better part of the past twenty-four hours. I’m tired and cranky and all I want to do is get to Carolyn’s house. By the way, can you tell me where Elm Street is?”

  “It was the last street you zoomed by at sixty miles an hour in a twenty-five-mile-an-hour zone.” He completed writing out the ticket and tore it from his pad. He handed it to her and looked at his watch. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to Carolyn and Beau’s place.”

  “That’s not necessary,” Bonnie protested as she threw the ticket over her shoulder into the back seat. She certainly didn’t want any favors from him. “I wouldn’t want to keep you from this important job of writing tickets to all the speeders who roar into town.”

  “Oh, I think it is necessary.”

  He shone his flashlight into the back seat, where the ticket he had just written snuggled against the two she’d received earlier in the evening.

  “I always escort habitual offenders to their destination.”

  “Fine.” Bonnie turned the key and started the engine. “Just take me to Carolyn’s house, then get out of my life.”

  He grinned, suddenly devastatingly handsome as he doffed his hat.

  “My pleasure, ma’am.”

  Bonnie rarely fought her impulses, but she did resist the urge to tromp on the gas pedal and peel rubber as she pulled away from the curb. Again she tapped a sculptured fingernail against the steering wheel as a sign of frustration while she waited for the police car to move in front of hers.

  Terrific. Not only was she appearing at her sister’s house broke and unexpected, but she also had a police escort. Bonnie grinned. Nobody could accuse her of not knowing how to make a grand entrance.

  Five minutes later, she parked behind the police car in front of an attractive, older house. Caro’s house. It was hard to believe her older sister was now married and the adoptive mother of year-old twin boys.

  She got out of her car, gave the officer a jaunty salute, then groaned as he left his car and joined her on the sidewalk. “You don’t have to be chivalrous. It isn’t necessary for you to see me to the door,” she told him.

  He grinned. “Don’t mistake me for a prince, sweetheart. I don’t have a chivalrous bone in my body. I was just going inside to talk to Beau.”

  Bonnie blushed, irritation winging through her. “Well, pardon me, sweetheart. I thought you might be a gentleman, but obviously I was mistaken.” Brushing past him, she strode up to the front door and rang the bell. The door opened immediately, and she grinned at her sister, whose eyes widened in surprise.

  “Bonnie!” Carolyn squealed.

  Throwing open the screen door, Carolyn grabbed Bonnie in a welcoming embrace. Bonnie felt a sudden sting of tears in her eyes as she allowed herself a moment in her sister’s warm embrace.

  Before the tears could fall, she pushed away and laughed in abandon. “Hey, no need to hug the stuffing out of me.” She gave her sister a dazzling smile.

  “What are you doing here? I thought you were getting married.” She pulled Bonnie out of the doorway and into the living room, spying the officer behind Bonnie. “Russ, I didn’t know you were out there, too. Beau is putting the kids to bed. He should be out in just a minute.” She gestured toward the sofa. “Well, come on, sit down both of you.”

  Bonnie started toward the sofa, frowning as her shoulders bumped into Russ, who’d headed in the same direction. She stopped and glared at him. The man was obviously a barbarian. At least he’d had the manners to take off his hat. The thick, curly, dark hair that was revealed only added to his attractiveness.

  “After you,” he said, sweeping his hand in courtly fashion for her to precede him.

  Instead of sitting on the sofa, Bonnie sank down onto one of the two easy chairs in the room, exhaustion returning full force.

  “Where did you two meet up?” Carolyn asked as she sat down on the sofa next to Russ.

  “On Main Street. She was lost. Since I was getting off duty, I offered to escort her here,” Russ explained.

  “What luck.” Carolyn beamed happily.

  “Oh, yes, I’ll be sure to include him when I count my blessings tonight,” Bonnie returned dryly, although she was grateful he hadn’t mentioned the speeding ticket.

  She focused her attention on her sister. The last time she had seen Carolyn had been two months ago at their father’s funeral. That was the last time the three Baker sisters had been together.

  “You look good,” Bonnie said to Carolyn. It was true. She appeared relaxed, at peace. She had a glow that Bonnie instantly envied, the glow of a woman who’d found the love of her life.

  “I’m happy,” Carolyn answered simply.

  Again Bonnie felt a wistful arrow of envy shoot through her.

  “Here’s my better half now.” Bonnie stood up as Caro’s husband stepped into the room.

  “This is Beau. Beau, this is Bonnie.”

  In three long strides he was across the room, grasping Bonnie’s hand warmly. “It’s nice to meet you. Carolyn has told me so much about you.” He gazed at her curiously. “We thought you were in Europe preparing to marry some prince.”

  “Prince Helmut,” Russ quipped.

  Again Bonnie glared at him irritably. Why didn’t he go home? There was something about his arrogant attractiveness that rattled her.

  “I called off the wedding.”

  “Why?” Carolyn asked.

  Beau released her hand, and Bonnie sank back down into the chair. “I was standing in the church in my wedding dress, the church was filled with guests, and I suddenly realized I couldn’t go through with it.” She shrugged, shoving away the memory of that horr
ible moment. She didn’t want to think about that now. Grinning irreverently, she waved her hands to dismiss the entire topic. “I just wasn’t ready to make a commitment to any one man. You know me, never in one place for long. But let’s not talk about that. I want to hear all about those nephews of mine.”

  “If you’ll excuse us, Russ and I will just go out to the kitchen while you two talk babies,” Beau said, motioning for Russ to follow him out of the room.

  “He seems really nice,” Bonnie said the moment the men had left.

  “Russ is a terrific guy.”

  Bonnie scowled. “I wasn’t talking about him. I was talking about your husband.”

  “Oh. Beau is the most wonderful man in the entire world,” Carolyn agreed, her face once again lit up. “But Russ is wonderful, too. He’s also very single.”

  “I think he’s a jerk!” Bonnie exclaimed. “He gave me a speeding ticket.”

  “Were you speeding?”

  Bonnie smiled reluctantly. “Yes, I guess I was. But I still think he’s a jerk.”

  Carolyn laughed and leaned forward to clasp Bonnie’s hand. “Oh, Bonnie, it’s so good to have you here. So, what are your plans? How long can you stay?”

  Bonnie shrugged. “I really don’t have any plans. When things fell apart with the prince, I just hopped on a plane and decided to come here. Your letters made me fall half in love with Casey’s Corners.”

  “It’s a great place to live,” Carolyn stated. “But if you’re looking for excitement, Casey’s Corners, Kansas, is definitely not the place to be.”

  “At the moment excitement is the last thing I’m looking for. I know I should have called first, but would you mind having some company for a couple weeks? Just until I decide what the next phase of my life is going to be.”