“What makes you say that?” he asked in surprise.
“Mother wanted a mini-me and I was absolutely nothing like her. I didn’t care about what a chair cost or where it came from. I didn’t appreciate expensive clothes or shoes or any of the finer things in life. I loved animals and children and knew I wanted to be a teacher when I was still in grade school.”
“An admirable profession,” he commented. Her hair looked like spun silk in the candlelight that flickered in the center of their table. More than anything he wanted to reach his hand out and touch it, wrap one of the loose curls around his fingers and draw her closer to him.
At that moment Bonnie banged her sippy cup on her high chair tray. “More,” she said and pointed to the box of crackers visible in the diaper bag.
Without missing a beat Grace gave each of the girls another cracker. “Natalie was much more like my mother. She loves nice things and she was desperate for my mother’s attention. Sometimes she got it and sometimes she didn’t.” She paused to take a sip of her wine. “Sometimes I think I’ve indulged her too much to try to make up for the attention she didn’t get from our mother. And without any father present in her life, I think it was really difficult for her.”
“Family dynamics can definitely be difficult,” he replied. “Even though my brothers are the same age as me, I feel as if I’ve been taking care of them all my life. That’s why I’ve decided never to marry or have kids of my own. Once Kerri and Jeffrey move out I’m looking forward to being alone for the rest of my life with nobody to take care of ever again.”
She smiled ruefully. “And here I am with a busted-up shoulder and three babies depending on you for the time being.”
“But it’s not permanent,” he countered. “Although, no matter what happens with you and Justin, I’ll always consider you and the girls a part of the family.” He could tell his words touched her.
“That’s nice, but we both know how this is going to work. I’m going to leave here and probably never see or hear from Justin again. I’ll get on with my life and you all will get on with yours. The odds of us staying in touch are pretty minimal.” There was no self-pity or recrimination in her voice, just a calm stating of the facts of reality.
At that moment the waitress arrived with their orders. “They may need to get out the garden hose after we’re finished here,” Grace said with a touch of humor as she scooped up a small serving of spaghetti on three little plates for the triplets.
Jake had expected chaos, and there was, but there was also a lot of laughter as they ate the meal. Casey picked at her spaghetti with dainty fingers and ate one noodle at a time. Abby seemed more interested in the people around them than in the food in front of her. But Bonnie ate with gusto, smooshing the spaghetti into her mouth until sauce decorated her face from ear to ear.
As the kids ate, Grace and Jake enjoyed their meals, but even more, Jake enjoyed the conversation. He liked the way her eyes sparkled as she talked about teaching, sharing funny stories of the children who had passed through her classes. It was obvious that she was well suited to be a teacher, not only from her love of children, but also by the steady patience he sensed in her.
All the qualities that made her a good teacher made her a great mother. Her patience throughout the meal with the girls never wavered, not with spilled drinks, sloppy faces and an occasional cry for attention.
She was beautiful and quick-witted, and every minute he spent with her fed a well of desire that he knew was dangerous. He wanted her. He wanted her in his bed, but the last thing she needed was another Johnson man to take advantage of her and let her down.
And he would let her down. Just like his brother, Jake had no interest in being a husband or a parent for her or any other woman. Still, that didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy the here and now with her and the girls. And it didn’t mean he wouldn’t enjoy having her in his bed for just a single night.
When he’d offered dinner out he’d expected a frantic chaos that would turn him off, but instead what he’d found was three well-behaved little girls and a delightful dinner companion who stirred all the senses he possessed.
When they were finished eating, Grace cleaned off the girls’ faces and hands with wet wipes and then looked at him. “Do you mind holding down the fort for a few minutes while I make a fast trip to the ladies’ room?”
“We’ll be fine,” he agreed with a smile to the shiny clean faces of the triplets. “While you’re gone I’ll settle up the bill.” He raised a hand as she started to protest. “My idea, my treat.”
“Thank you,” she said graciously.
He watched as she made her way to the back of the restaurant where the restrooms were located. Her hips held a subtle sway as she walked that enticed him more than a stripper’s strut.
There was no cheap flash to Grace, just an understated sexuality coupled with a quiet elegance that made him wonder why Justin had pursued her in the first place.
Justin liked flash and Grace wasn’t flashy. She was much more Jake’s type. He clenched his jaw tight at this thought. Of course she wasn’t his type. He didn’t have a type. Hell, he didn’t want a type.
At that moment, as if conjured up by his very thoughts alone, his brother entered the restaurant. Shirley was at his side, clinging to his arm like a tick to a big-haired dog.
Justin waved and wove through the tables toward Jake, who felt a rise of his blood pressure as they drew closer. This could not be good.
“Hey, what a coincidence seeing you here,” Justin said with a bit of a sheepish grin.
“The way I remember our last conversation, I was supposed to see you back at the house,” Jake replied with a curt nod to Shirley.
“Yeah, but he forgot he had promised me dinner out tonight,” Shirley exclaimed as she looked at the three little girls. “So, this is Moe, Larry and Curly?” she said.
Justin’s laugh was cut short by Jake’s glare.
“We were just getting ready to leave,” Jake said. This had disaster written all over it, and he suddenly wanted to bundle up the girls and get them out of here and away from Shirley and Justin as quickly as possible.
Shirley glanced around and then smiled at Justin. “I’ll be right back. I think I need to use the little girls’ room.”
Before Jake could stop her she took off in the direction Grace had just headed.
Chapter 7
It had been a wonderful night, and Grace couldn’t remember the last time she’d enjoyed a man’s company as much as she enjoyed Jake’s. He scared her just a little bit—because she did like him so much, and because she knew there was nothing there for her or her daughters where he was concerned.
Still, it was far too easy to imagine herself and the girls living with Jake in that big house, sharing days filled with laughter and then going to sleep each night in the safety of his strong arms.
She shook her head to dispel the inappropriate visions. She’d be crazy to even entertain those kinds of dreams. That was definitely the stuff of heartbreak.
She was at the sink in the ladies’ room washing her hands when the door opened and a tall blonde woman walked in. She instantly recognized her as the woman who had been with Justin.
“Grace, we haven’t officially met yet,” the woman said. “My name is Shirley Caldwell. I’m Justin’s fiancée, and I just wanted to let you know that you can’t have him.” She raised her chin in obvious defiance.
Grace fought the impulse to laugh. “That’s fine, because I don’t want him.” She dried her hands and tossed the paper towel into the trash. “And I hope the two of you will be very happy together.”
Shirley frowned, as if she was spoiling for a fight that she now recognized probably wasn’t going to happen. “I’m going to give him lots of babies, and he’ll never love yours like he’ll love mine.”
Grace saw the desperation in Shirley’s eyes, heard it vibrating in her voice. This woman was obviously in love with Justin and saw Grace and the triplets as a threat to
that love.
“Shirley, I’m not your enemy,” she said as kindly as possible. “I don’t want to take anything away from you and whatever life you build with Justin.” She edged toward the door, just wanting to escape the awkward situation.
“We weren’t together, you know, when you got pregnant. We weren’t dating then so he didn’t cheat on me to be with you.” Shirley raised her chin proudly. “We’ve been together for six months and he loves me like he’s never loved any woman before.”
“Then I wish you both the best of luck.” Grace left the bathroom with Shirley at her heels. She felt sorry for the woman, had a feeling there was plenty of heartache in her future if she was planning on hitching her star to Justin. She didn’t even want to think about the fact that if Justin married Shirley, then Shirley would be the triplets’ stepmother. That was the stuff of nightmares.
She was conscious of Shirley following right at her heels as she headed back to the table where Jake stood, a look of strain on his face, quickly followed by an expression of relief at the sight of her.
He stepped toward her and grabbed her good arm. “You okay?” he asked with a quick glance at Shirley.
“I’m fine,” she assured him, surprised by how much she liked the feel of his arm on hers. She felt protected by his nearness even though she didn’t need any protection.
“Hi, Grace,” Justin said. “Guess you and Shirley already met.”
“We did,” she replied, vaguely disappointed when Jake dropped his hand and stepped away from her.
“Good, then you can help me carry the girls out to the car,” he said to his brother. He plucked Casey from her high chair and handed her to the surprised Justin. “As you can see, it’s difficult for Grace to carry the kids with her arm in the sling. Shirley, if you can grab that diaper bag, then we can all get the girls settled into my car.”
There was a ring of authority in Jake’s voice that Grace was surprised both Justin and Shirley responded to. Jake picked up Abby and Bonnie, and Grace followed them all, slightly bemused by the procession that had her empty-handed and lagging behind.
“That has to be the most bizarre thing that has ever happened to me,” she said moments later as Jake was driving her and the girls back to the ranch. “Starting with being confronted in the bathroom by my baby daddy’s latest girlfriend.”
Jake shot her a quick smile. “I was afraid I might have to storm in there to protect you from her pulling out all your hair or something.”
“And what makes you think I couldn’t have kicked the stuffing out of her if I’d needed to?” she countered with a grin.
“You look more like a lover than a fighter,” he replied. He snapped his gaze from her to the street ahead and just that quickly it was there between them again, that simmering tension that curled heat in her stomach and made her want…something…something she shouldn’t, something she couldn’t have.
“It was a surprise to turn around from the sink in the bathroom and see Shirley standing there,” she said in an effort to ease some of that tension. “She’s in love with Justin. She just wanted to stake her claim.”
“He’ll only break her heart, too. That’s what he does, breaks hearts.”
Grace smiled. “He didn’t break my heart. Oh, he might have destroyed a little fantasy I’d entertained.”
Jake cast her a quick glance. “What kind of fantasy?”
“You know, the kind where I meet the man who fathered my children after a long time apart and sparks fly and we suddenly realize we belong together and live happily ever after.”
“Did you really expect that to happen?”
“No, but as I was driving here I kind of hoped it might. Of course, it took about two seconds with Justin to realize that wasn’t going to happen.” She shifted her gaze and stared out the window into the darkness of the night. “But eventually I’ll find my happily-ever-after, not just for my girls, but also for myself. I don’t want to live alone like my mother did for all her life. I want somebody to share both the good times and the bad times with me. I want a soul mate.”
“It’s not going to be easy, finding a man who will not only want to be with you but will also want to be an instant father to three little girls.”
“I know I’m a package deal. Nobody ever told me life would be easy,” she replied. “It doesn’t have to happen today or next week or even next year, but eventually I’ll find a man who wants to be a part of my life and my children’s lives.”
“At this point I think we can both agree that it isn’t going to be Justin,” he said drily.
“We definitely can agree on that,” she replied with a small laugh.
By this time they had reached the ranch, and all three of the girls had fallen sound asleep in their car seats.
Jake managed to place Casey over Grace’s good shoulder and then he carried both Bonnie and Abby in his arms. He looked so right with a sleeping little girl in each arm as they climbed the stairs. He laid each of them in the crib with a gentleness that touched her heart.
He stepped to the back to the doorway as she covered each child and touched each sleeping face with love. Then, together, she and Jake went back down the stairs.
“How about some coffee?” he asked.
“Sounds good,” she agreed. As she followed behind him toward the kitchen, she tried to tamp down the emotions that pressed tight in her chest where he was concerned.
Jake Johnson was getting to her, inching his way into her heart in a way that could only lead to heartbreak. She moved her shoulder beneath the sling, unsurprised by the sharp pain that was her reply.
Not yet. She wasn’t ready to take off from here tomorrow, but maybe by the next day she could load up her daughters and head back home. In the meantime she just needed to guard her heart the best she could from Jake.
They lingered over coffee in the living room, continuing their conversation about everything and nothing. They talked about favorite foods and books read, about the antics of the girls and the fact that Bonnie would probably be the first of the three to walk.
“Abby is too content wherever she sits to walk too quickly. Casey is too shy to be the first one to explore the world of being upright. Bonnie is definitely my adventurous little soul,” she said.
“She’s a corker,” he agreed with an easy smile.
“She definitely likes you.”
“They all seem to like people,” he replied.
“I think it’s because from the time they were two months old they’ve been in day care. They’re used to seeing new people all the time.”
Jake drained the last of the coffee from his cup. “We should probably go to bed. I imagine the girls are early risers.”
“They are,” she agreed, reluctant to call an end to what had been a wonderful evening. She stood and together she and Jake carried their coffee cups to the kitchen.
She wasn’t sure exactly how it happened, but as they both reached to set their cups in the sink, her face was suddenly too close to his. His breath felt warm on her cheek and his eyes flared dark with a desire that was unmistakable.
They both straightened, and somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she should step away from him, gain some needed distance, but her feet refused to obey her mental command.
He was going to kiss her. She saw his intent shimmering in his eyes, and as sure as she knew he was going to kiss her she also knew she wasn’t going to stop him.
She’d never wanted a kiss as much as she wanted his at this very moment. When he dipped his head she met him halfway, rising up on her tiptoes.
His mouth touched hers softly…tentatively at first, as if unsure of his own intent or his welcome. She opened her mouth and he took the welcome, deepening the kiss with a searing intensity that shot thrilling sensations through her body.
It lasted only a minute and then he stumbled back from her, his midnight-blue eyes still blazing with desire. “That was a mistake.” His voice was deep, almost gravelly as his gaze linge
red on her mouth.
“I agree.” The words whispered from her with a sigh of longing.
“I want to do it again.” The words sounded as if they’d been pulled from the very depths of him.
“Oh, Jake, I want you to.”
The words were barely out of her mouth before his lips silenced her once again. Hot and greedy, his lips plied hers and she melted against him as well as her sling would allow.
His arms wound around her gently, as if he remembered her shoulder and didn’t want to hurt her, yet needed her as close to him as possible. And she wanted to be that close.
His tongue swirled with hers, demanding a response that she gave eagerly. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew this was wrong, so very wrong. This wasn’t a man she should be kissing, this wasn’t a man she should be wanting. But that didn’t stop her from doing either.
His mouth finally left hers and trailed a blaze of hunger down the side of her throat. She dropped her head back with her eyes closed, dizzied by his scent and by his very touch.
He kissed her just behind one of her ears. “Stop,” he murmured against the sensitive skin. “We have to stop this.” He slowly dropped his arms from around her and once again stepped back, this time his eyes dark and unreadable. “I’m sorry. That shouldn’t have happened.”
“I know, but I wanted it as much as you did,” she admitted, her voice slightly shaky with the emotions still raging through her. She still wanted him, she thought.
“You know by now that there’s no future here with Justin. There’s also no future for you here with me.” He jammed his hands in his pockets, as if afraid of where they might wander if left somehow untethered.
“To be honest, I wasn’t looking for any kind of a future. I was just in the moment and looking forward to the next. I’m a big girl, Jake, and you’ve made it very clear to me what your desire is about being alone for the rest of your life. I just thought maybe you didn’t want to be alone tonight.” She felt the burn of a blush fill her cheeks. She had never said anything so forward to a man before, but she’d also never felt this way about a man before.
Cowboy's Triplet Trouble Page 9