Live-In Mom

by Paige, Laurie

  “If you have a problem, perhaps you should see the owner,” she suggested. There, that sounded cool and in control. Her heart was pounding, though.

  “The only problem I have is you.” Ty gave her a hard glance. “I talked to Shane at lunch. I’m not letting you do this.” He turned on the manager. “Stay away from her.”

  Johnson tensed as if personally challenged. “She’s over twenty-one. I believe that gives her the right to make her own decisions on what she wants to do.”

  Carly glanced from one to the other. Ty was furious. She could tell by the sweep of red up his neck. Johnson didn’t look the type to back down from a fight. His arms were as muscular as Ty’s, and she knew Ty lifted calves and bales of hay as easily as a soda bottle.

  “No, she can’t,” Ty stated. He grinned.

  She groaned at the feral gleam in his usually cool blue eyes and the challenge in that mocking smile. “I will do what I damned well please,” she stated with haughty dignity.

  Pushing her chair back, she rose, intending to march out and not return until he left. She’d gone no more than a couple of feet when a big hand settled on her arm. Ty walked out with her, his hold on her elbow propelling her along at his carpet-eating speed.

  She looked back at Johnson.

  He waved. “See you later,” he called to her.

  Giving him a nod over her shoulder, she faced forward and concentrated on keeping up with the man who seemed intent on getting her out of the place as fast as possible.

  “My lunch,” she said, digging in her heels outside the front door. “You’re making me miss my lunch. Salmon in a pastry crust.”

  Ty released her arm. He gestured toward a couple of old-fashioned rocking chairs on the side porch. No one was around at the present moment. “Sit down. I want to talk to you.”

  She took a chair. “What?” she prodded when he didn’t speak for a moment.

  “Shane told me his man was going to ask you to help with a case they’re working on. I want you to stay out of it. Undercover work is dangerous, too dangerous for a woman.”

  She hadn’t the foggiest idea what he was talking about. She told him so.

  “Weren’t you two talking about an undercover job with the sheriff’s department?” He nodded his tawny head toward the lodge and the manager they’d left at the table.

  She stuck her chin in the air. “What if I am? You have no say in it.”

  A heavy frown settled on his brow. “Hodkin may be involved with the rash of burglaries in the area. If he caught you snooping around, he’d… you could be seriously hurt. If you need a job, the one at the ranch is open.”

  “Cook’s helper?” She couldn’t believe she’d heard right.

  His lips thinned with annoyance. “No, the one setting up the ranch records in the computer. Shane said you were familiar with the financial program.”

  “Oh. Well, yes, I am. However, I have another plan. That’s why I was talking to the vendor manager here at the resort.”

  “The vendor manager,” Ty repeated as if he’d never heard the term. “Wasn’t he an undercover cop?”

  “No.” She explained her plans to open a shop in the resort.

  Ty stood, his face as dark as a thundercloud over Rogue Mountain. “That rat brother of mine. I’ll get him for this.”

  His muttered words made no sense.

  “And you can’t stop me,” she finished, keeping her tone quiet.

  His gaze flicked to her and bored holes right to the back of her skull. She held her ground. “You’re right,” he said at last, smiling. “You’re a big girl. You can do whatever you want.”

  “I can’t figure you out. First, you don’t want me at the ranch and you tell me to leave. Next, you offer me a job because you think I’m going to work for the sheriff. Does any of that make sense?” she complained.

  “Only in a certain context,” he said ominously. He stood. “I have things to do. I can’t sit around here talking all day. You’d better go back upstairs.”

  The wind wafted his after-shave lotion over her. She breathed it in greedily. Through the confusion of the moment, she realized he’d been concerned about her. It made her go soft toward him.

  He sucked in a sharp breath. “Don’t do that,” he growled.

  “What?”

  “’Smile like that, look at me like that.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it makes me think things I shouldn’t…like how it felt to kiss you and hold you. Then that makes me think of other things I’d like to do besides kiss.”

  “Such as?” she asked softly.

  “Don’t play games, Carly Lightfoot. You might come out the loser, and, believe me, that’s no place you’d want to be.”

  “There doesn’t always have to be a loser,” she told him, wondering how the subject had become personal between them.

  For a second, a haunted look appeared in his eyes. He stared off into the distance. “But there always is.”

  It came to her that this man, as big and tough as he seemed, had his own areas of vulnerability. His son was one. Could she be another? She longed to hold him, to comfort him.

  “Ty,” she whispered. She reached out and touched his cheek. He didn’t draw away. His gaze came back to her. For a long time, they stood that way, each gazing into the other’s eyes, questions rampant between them.

  “You could make me want…too many things,” he muttered hoarsely, springing out of her reach. He stood by the porch railing. “Things I’d forgotten existed.”

  “Like what?”

  “Truth, honor, loyalty, all that stuff.” He’d become cynical again. “Then I remember you were living a lie the entire time you were at the ranch.”

  “I told you why I was there. It was the truth.”

  “But what about the other things… the things between us?”

  “Kissing me outside the women’s quarters, interfering with Hodkin, taking me to your bedroom, the kisses we shared there, those things weren’t my fault. Not entirely.”

  He heaved a deep breath. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

  His apology stunned her into silence.

  He slanted her an amused glance. “Now I know two ways to shut you up,” he murmured, a tantalizing gleam in his eyes. “Come on. Your lunch has probably arrived.”

  He escorted her back to the restaurant. Johnson looked them over, then went on with his salad. After seating her across from the manager, Ty tipped his head to them and started to leave. At that moment, two women walked into the restaurant. They came to the table.

  “Ty, I didn’t know you were coming here for lunch. I could have ridden home with you,” Tina Macklin said.

  “You are. Shane asked me to pick you up. He had to go to court this afternoon.”

  She accepted the change of plans graciously. “Do you know Genny Barrett?”

  “We’ve met,” Ty said, and greeted her.

  The other woman spoke up. “Hello, Ty.” She smiled at Carly. “Are you our new proprietress?”

  “If we can work out the details. I like your place.” Carly turned from the resort owner’s wife and spoke to Ty’s sister-in-law. Tina Macklin, the sheriff’s wife, was in the last stages of pregnancy. She looked healthy and happy.

  Genny issued an invitation that included the group. “We’re giving a reception for the new theater group that will be opening here at the resort next week. I hope you two will come. You’ll get to meet the cast, as well as the playwright.”

  Carly realized Genny was issuing the invitation to them as a couple. As if they were dating. Her gaze flew to Ty’s.

  He gave her his usual sardonic smile, one corner of his mouth tilting up slightly higher than the other, lending his expression a definitely mocking edge.

  Carly looked into his eyes and smiled disarmingly. His smile was replaced by a frown. She glanced away to find Bill Johnson watching the byplay between them with interest. A silent sigh escaped her. She’d have to watch herself around the building manag
er. The man saw too darned much.

  Bill smiled as if he’d read her thoughts and wanted to reassure her that her private life was her own. She was grateful.

  “Ready to go?” Ty asked, speaking to his sister-in-law.

  Tina looked surprised at his abrupt question. She and Genny had been discussing the reception and the play. The proceeds were to go to the building fund for a new theater. “Yes, of course. I’ll talk to you later, Genny.” She said goodbye to Carly and Bill.

  Carly watched as Ty cupped Tina’s elbow and escorted her from the room. Genny Barrett said her farewells and left.

  “Alone at last,” Johnson murmured, amusement in his tone.

  She gave him a rueful grimace. “Where were we?”

  “I think we’d come to an agreement on the amount of the lease for the square footage of space you want and that you want it directly across from the restaurant. Is that right?”

  She nodded.

  “Then I think we’ve got a deal.”

  He stuck out his hand. Surprised, she shook on it.

  Chapter Seven

  Carly signed the lease for the new gift shop the following week. With her advice, Johnson directed the work crew in preparing the cozy alcove. The electrical wiring had to be added, and a gate, a metal one that rolled up like an awning, had to be installed to protect her goods when she wasn’t in.

  She commissioned the sign for the shop. The Cricket Cage was the name she chose. This new store would be nothing like the old ones in Chicago. A new place, a new name. She was pleased.

  Now she had one more idea. For it, she needed Ty’s help.

  After checking that everything was going well at the resort, she dressed carefully and drove down to the ranch. First, she had to see about her merchandise, then she needed a place to live closer to the resort.

  Her heart beat faster when she turned off the county road onto the ranch driveway. She parked in the shade of the oak tree at the side of the house. Her space, as she’d come to think of it during the time she’d worked in the kitchen.

  The house had a deserted air. No one answered the bell. She waited another minute, then went to the office to look for Ty.

  He was in. She spotted him as soon as she stepped inside. The door to his office was ajar, and she could see him through the narrow opening, talking on the telephone and riffling through some papers. He selected one and handed it to a young woman.

  His secretary? Something awfully close to jealousy curled around her insides. The secretary came into the main room.

  “May I help you?” she asked. She laid the paper on a desk and faced Carly.

  The young female, hardly more than a girl, was lovely in an overblown way. Her skirt was too tight and too short for office attire, her makeup too bright. Her lipstick matched the red, spike-heeled sandals she wore. Earrings dusted her shoulders with each move of her head. But she was pretty.

  “I need to speak to Ty,” Carly said, hiding the odd irritation she felt with the younger woman.

  “Your name, please?”

  “Carly Lightfoot.”

  “Oh, I read about you in the paper. You’re opening a shop up at the ski resort, aren’t you?” The girl’s attitude changed in the blink of her heavily mascaraed eyelashes. “Is it very hard to get something like that started?”

  Carly groaned at the hopeful tone. Most people thought opening a tiny shop like hers must be a snap. “Actually, it is. A small shop makes its money on far fewer items than a large store. If I make a mistake in choosing merchandise and something doesn’t sell, it’s a big loss for me.”

  “Oh.” She was the picture of pouty disappointment.

  “Alys, where is the file—?” Ty stopped in the doorway. “What are you doing here?” he demanded.

  “Looking for you.” Carly crossed the vinyl flooring and entered his office when he moved aside.

  Ty watched her for a second, then turned back to the outer office. “Alys, would you go help Buck with the bill of lading on that shipment of beeves going out this afternoon?”

  The girl frowned, clearly not liking the request, but she nodded. In a minute, they heard her leave.

  “Sit down,” Ty invited. From the window, he observed his office help as she walked across the stable yard.

  “You don’t trust your secretary overmuch,” Carly observed.

  He snorted wryly. “If I’d closed my door, she probably would have listened at the keyhole. She likes to know everything that goes on.”

  “Why do you keep her?”

  “Martha is her grandmother. She asked me to give the girl a job. I agreed. Actually, Alys is a good worker, she’s just curious about things. So’s her grandmother. The granddaughter gets it honestly.”

  “Ah, yes, I remember. Elena said the women on the ranch knew everything about everybody.”

  “They do.” His eyes narrowed. “So, what brings you out here?”

  “Elena and Rodrigo.”

  The dark brows rose in question.

  “I need handcrafted items for my shop. Elena showed me a necklace one of her girls made for her. She said making jewelry was a family hobby. They even make their own beads.”

  “That’s right. They have a large family. That’s how they give Christmas gifts to everyone.”

  “I need a telephone number or directions to her house. She’s on a rural route, and there are about fifty people in the county with the same last name.”

  His gaze swept down her pink cotton skirt and white eyelet blouse trimmed in pink. She wore a pink clip to keep her hair-out of her eyes. Her skin grew warm as if his gaze were a caress. She wished it was.

  He removed an address book from a drawer. Looking inside, he wrote a number and address on a notepad, then tore off the top sheet and handed it to her.

  “Thanks.” She dropped it inside her purse. “Now about Rodrigo. Is he available?”

  Ty leaned back in the chair and rolled the pen back and forth between his palms. “That’s according to what you want him for,” he said bluntly, as if suspicious of her motives.

  She considered picking up a yardstick propped in a corner and whacking him across the head. “Why, to seduce him, of course.”

  He pushed upright and ambled around the desk, an odd smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “If you want a man, try me,” he invited.

  She shook her head. “You’re too hard to handle.”

  His laughter mocked both of them. “Yes. If you laid hands on me, we would end up at the house.”

  In my bed was the rest of that sentence.

  She met his eyes, and the air sizzled like a dozen eggs frying all at once. The tension escalated when neither would look away. The ringing of the telephone shattered the duel.

  “Macklin,” Ty snapped into the receiver. “Oh, hello, Tina. No, nothing’s wrong. I was… thinking of something.”

  He flicked a glance at Carly, then turned his back partially to her while he discussed weekend plans. She grimaced at his broad shoulders. Trying not to listen, she wondered what it would be like to be part of a large, caring family. It was something she’d never had. She had her shop. That was the important thing.

  “Uh, she’s here now, as a matter of fact,” Ty said.

  Carly looked up. His sister-in-law had asked about her?

  “Okay,” Ty said, “I’ll handle it. Yeah, I promise.” He talked another moment and said goodbye. “Tina wants to know if you’ll join us for the reception at the resort tomorrow night. There’ll be a dinner, hosted by the owners. The Barretts. You’ve met them. You’re invited to that, too. Tina says she will not take no for an answer.” He waited.

  “I hadn’t planned on going.” Carly noted he’d included himself as a member of the party. There was no way she was going to spend an evening with him.

  “You’ll hurt her feelings if you refuse. Besides,” he added on a persuasive note, “the reception profits will go to the new theater. Think of it as a good deed.”

  “I don’t think so.” />
  “I already promised her I’d bring you,” he announced as if that decided the issue.

  She glared at him.

  “The reception is at six. I’ll pick you up at five. That should give us plenty of time to get there.”

  He was waiting for her to say no, she realized. She hated to be predictable. “All right,” she agreed, and was pleased to see the flicker of surprise in his eyes. “My new address is-”

  “I know where you live.” He gave her a cool glance, daring her to make something of it. “Do you have a telephone?”

  She gave him the number. It felt strange, sort of as though they were making a real date. But they weren’t. His sister-in-law had forced him into it.

  “Now,” he said, taking up another line of thought, “what did you want with Rodrigo?”

  “I want to see if he’d supply me with those tiny carvings he does from walnuts. They’re exquisite. I’d like some larger pieces if he’s willing, too.”

  “You’re trying to steal my help,” Ty complained.

  “It’s possible they could make a living doing this. But not right away. Would it be okay if I go out and look for him?”

  “Yes. I know where he’s working. I’ll take you.”

  “I don’t mind walking.”

  “It’s a long way. Rodrigo is taking soil samples in one of the back pastures down by the river. We’ll ride.”

  She gave in gracefully. Not that it would have done any good to do otherwise. Ty Macklin was a lawunto himself.

  Outside, he motioned toward his truck. They climbed aboard. He drove around to the stable. “Wait here.” He hopped out.

  William, now in charge of the horses, came to the open door. He and Ty talked a few minutes, then went inside.

  Ty returned with two paper cups of lemonade. After handing one to her, he took off again. Glancing back, she saw William standing in the shadows inside the stable, watching them. It gave her a funny feeling.

  “Thanks,” she murmured, and took a refreshing sip. It reminded her of the first kiss between them. He’d had lemonade with his dinner. The taste had lingered in his mouth, sweet and tart. She stole a glance at his lips.