“You’d better get that,” she said in a choked voice, then turned and ran from the room.
Ignoring the phone, Laramie trotted after her. At the doorway leading into her private living quarters, he caught up to her and as his hand closed around her upper arm, she whirled back to him.
“Forget the phone,” he muttered. “I want to talk to you first.”
With her gaze focused rigidly away from him, she said, “There’s nothing to talk about. I let you push me into behaving recklessly!” Her gaze swept up to his face and this time there was a fierceness in the dark brown depths. “I won’t let that happen again!”
“Kissing me makes you reckless, huh? Then what does it make me? A fool for thinking you might actually be a woman with a woman’s feelings?”
Clearly furious, she jerked away from his grasp and slammed the door in his face.
Laramie instantly raised his hand to pound on the wooden partition, but he let it drop. The last thing he wanted to do was wake Dillon. The boy didn’t need to see his mother upset.
With a rueful sigh, he turned away from the door and started back to the kitchen. He’d already done and said far too much tonight. And the phone call was probably from someone who needed him to deal with something. Being the manager of this huge ranch always kept him in demand. But just for once Laramie would like to think he was needed by a woman. Especially a woman with long black hair and dark wounded eyes.
*
When Leyla entered the kitchen early the next morning, she found a note from Laramie fastened to the refrigerator. He’d had to leave the house early so there was no need to prepare his breakfast, but he did plan to be back for supper.
Leyla didn’t know it was possible to feel disappointment and relief at the same time, but as she crumpled the note and tossed it into the trash, the conflicting emotions did a good job of confusing her. But then so had his kiss last night. The touch of his lips had swept her away and filled her with longing. She’d wanted it to go on forever, but somehow, some way, sanity had prevailed and given her enough strength to pull away from him. But what about the next time? How could she possibly resist the man?
Trying to shove away her worrisome thoughts, she made coffee, then prepared a pot of oatmeal for Dillon and herself. The child would be up soon and no doubt would race here to the kitchen to see if Laramie was around.
Last night, before he’d gone to sleep, he plied her with questions about the man. The last one being did he have a little boy, too.
Even now the question dug at her in places she’d believed she’d shut the door on long ago. It was still hard for her to fathom the idea that Laramie’s mother had left her newborn. Had the woman meant to come back but for some reason couldn’t? If she wasn’t dead, why had she left her son behind to be raised by someone who’d not even been a relative?
Laramie had said that when he looked at Dillon he saw a bit of himself. That had touched her. She’d not expected anything like that from the rancher. In fact, she’d never expected him to take any sort of notice of her or Dillon. But already he’d kissed her senseless and promised to be a friend to Dillon. Oh, God, where was it all going to end? When Reena came back and she and Dillon were forced to leave, that’s where it would end, she thought dismally.
You can always bring him back for visits.
Visits were not what she and Dillon needed. They needed a home they could call theirs, a place that no one could take away from them. And she needed to get on with her education to make those dreams come true. And later, maybe years later, she’d be in a stable position where she could allow a man to come into their lives.
*
After breakfast, Dillon was sitting on the floor playing with a set of farm animals while Leyla finished the last of her coffee when the phone on the breakfast bar rang.
When Sassy was around, Leyla always let her take the calls, but the other woman hadn’t yet arrived to work, so she hurried over to the bar and picked up the receiver.
“Chaparral ranch,” she answered.
“Leyla, it’s Reena. I was just calling to make sure everything is going okay.”
“Everything is fine.” Except that the sexy ranch foreman had gotten under her skin, Leyla thought with a measure of frustration.
“Good. I also forgot to tell you that whenever you’re in town shopping for the ranch, you’re perfectly welcome to use the credit card for things you might need for yourself.”
Leyla couldn’t imagine charging any sort of personal expense to the ranch. She was fiercely independent and made it a rule to never ask for anything more than her salary. “I wouldn’t dream of taking advantage like that.”
Reena chuckled. “Leyla, I wasn’t suggesting you go out and buy diamonds or mink. I’m talking about basic necessities that a woman needs. Those are considered part of your working expenses.”
“Thank you, Reena, but I hardly need a thing. This place is a mansion. Especially after living in my aunt’s house on the res. The roof leaks when it rains or the snow starts to melt and the water pipes only work in the bathroom. So you see, I have more than plenty.”
Reena paused for a moment, and Leyla figured the description of her aunt’s house had taken the other woman aback.
After a moment, she said, “I’m glad you got the chance to enjoy the Chaparral, Leyla. And I want you to feel at home. Laramie is very special to me. And I know you’ll take extra good care of him.”
Leyla wondered what the cook would think if she knew exactly how good she’d taken care of Laramie last night. Just the memory of his hard lips rocking over hers was enough to send a shock of heat through her body. And she was still asking herself why she’d allowed the kiss to happen.
“Don’t worry, Reena. I promise to take care of your rooms and not let Dillon break anything. And Laramie doesn’t seem picky about what he eats. I don’t think I’ll have any problems with him.” At least not with the cooking part of her job, she thought. “Uh, Reena, this morning when I came down to the kitchen he was already gone. That was five o’clock. Do I need to make breakfast earlier?”
Reena chuckled. “Don’t worry about getting up with the roosters. Some mornings Laramie has to be out very early. He’ll find something for himself or eat at the bunkhouse.”
Leyla’s thoughts rolled back two nights ago when she’d met him for the very first time. He’d looked saddle-weary. And she suspected that while she was here on the ranch, she would see him in that condition more often than not. He worked very hard. Just not for himself. That didn’t make sense to her. The Cantrells trusted him to run their family business. That meant he was top-notch at his job. A man with that much talent could be using it on a ranch of his own. But maybe Laramie didn’t want a home of his own, she thought. No more than he appeared to want a family.
Trying to push the nagging thoughts of Laramie away, she asked, “How are things going for you at Apache Wells?”
“The Chaparral has been my home for forty years, so it feels very strange to be away from it,” Reena admitted. “But Abe is a sweetheart, so I can hardly complain.”
A sweetheart? That seemed like an odd term for the cook to be using for her employer. “Sassy told me the man is a crotchety old thing.”
Reena laughed and Leyla could detect a sense of deep affection in the sound. Maybe the term “sweetheart” wasn’t so odd after all, she thought.
The cook said, “Sassy is too young to appreciate a man like Abe. As far as that goes, Sassy wouldn’t know a good man if one walked right under her nose.”
“She’s very sweet, though,” Leyla defended the maid.
“And so are you,” Reena said kindly.
The two women talked for a brief moment more and then Reena ended the call. As Leyla hung up the phone, she wondered if the cook knew anything about Laramie’s parents and what might have happened to them.
Stop it, Leyla! Forget that the man grew up without his real parents. Forget the way he looked at you, touched you. And most of all push tha
t kiss of his from your mind.
*
When Laramie trudged his way through the atrium and into the kitchen that night, it was well past ten. Except for a night-light burning over the cabinet counter, the room was dark and empty. At this hour, he’d not expected Leyla to be up and waiting, but he’d found himself hoping she would be. In fact, he’d spent the whole damned day thinking about the woman and that kiss. And that irritated the heck out of him. With one problem after another popping up on the ranch, his mind needed to be on work, not a lovely little woman with sweet-tasting lips.
He scrubbed his hands at the sink, then pulled out the warming drawer at the bottom of the gas range. Inside he found a plate of smothered meat, a bowl of seasoned potatoes and another with candied carrots.
He ate the meal quickly, then rinsed the dishes and placed them in the dishwasher. He planned to shower and go straight to bed, so he dismissed the idea of having coffee and dessert and left the kitchen to go upstairs to his room.
On the way through the dark, he was passing the door to Leyla’s living quarters when it suddenly swung open, nearly hitting him in the face.
“Oh, hell!”
“Laramie!”
Their words came out at the same time and it was obvious to Laramie that she’d not had any idea that he was in the house, much less that her door was about to slam him in the nose. For a second night in a row.
“I didn’t know you were back,” she said with concern. “Did I hit you with the door?”
She’d not seemed too worried about slamming him in the face last night, he thought wryly. “No. You just startled me, that’s all.”
Even though the small hallway was illuminated dimly, Laramie could see she was wearing a robe made of something soft and blue. It was tied at the waist and the V of the neck dipped low to a spot between her breasts. Her long hair had been loosened from its knot and now lay like a shiny piece of satin upon her shoulders. She looked more than pretty, he decided—she looked downright sexy.
“I thought I’d check the kitchen to see if you’d eaten so that I could put away the dishes.”
“No need for you to bother. I’ve already put everything away.”
Her lips pursed with disapproval. “That’s not good. That’s my job.”
“It was nothing,” he assured her. “Thanks for the supper.”
“That’s why I’m here. Just to prepare your meals.”
Her remark jerked his wandering thoughts back to reality. She was here to cook for him, not to seduce him. She wasn’t here to make him dream about things that were out of his reach. She wasn’t here to turn him into some sort of lovesick fool.
“Yeah,” he said, “Reena used to cook for the whole Cantrell family. Nowadays it’s mostly just me here since Frankie is staying with her sons in Texas.”
“And they keep Reena on the payroll just to cook for you?”
He shook his head. “It’s not that simple. Reena has been here for so long that she’s part of the family. And she still wants to contribute to the ranch. This is her home, too, so cooking for me gives her a reason to keep working.” He didn’t add that he’d told Quint outright that he could prepare his own meals or eat with the men in the bunkhouse. More than anything he wanted Leyla to think she was needed. Besides, the more he thought about it, the more he’d decided that Quint had hired Leyla more as a way to help her than to provide Laramie with a cook.
“I see. The Cantrells must be very loyal to their employees.”
“After you’ve been here a while you’ll understand just how loyal they are,” he told her, while thinking there was no reason for him to keep lingering. He should tell her a quick good-night and be on his way. But everything inside of him was screaming to stay put and drink in the lovely sight of her just a bit longer.
She nervously clasped her hands in front of her. “Well, about last night—I’m sorry I behaved so badly. And I wanted you to know that I was more angry at myself than you.”
He was surprised that she’d brought the incident up. He’d expected her to be cold and quiet about the whole matter.
“Hmm. You could have fooled me. But I’m the one to blame, Leyla. I shouldn’t have kissed you.” He couldn’t stop himself from moving closer and as he looked down at her, his fingers ached to touch the smooth brown skin exposed by the robe, to press his lips against the throbbing pulse at the base of her neck. “But I’m not sorry I did.”
She swallowed, and he could see that his remark troubled her. As his gaze traveled over her face, he realized how very much he wanted to pull her into his arms, to assure her that he wasn’t like the man who’d gotten her pregnant and then walked out. That he wasn’t a man she needed to fear.
“I’m not—it’s nothing personal, Laramie, but I—” She turned slightly away from him and stared into the darkness of the hallway. “Well, I have plans for Dillon and me. And I’m just not sure I’m ready to let another man into my life just yet.”
In spite of her words, he reached out and snared a shiny strand of her hair between his fingers. “I haven’t been picturing a woman in my future, either,” he said huskily. “I doubt that I’m the family type, Leyla. My friends all have wives and children and I see how fortunate they are to have each other. But I wasn’t raised in a family environment. And I figure a husband or father isn’t something that should be done on a trial basis. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want or need to be loved. And I have a feeling that you want and need that just as much as I do.”
Swallowing again, she turned her gaze back to his. “You accused me of being unfeeling. But that’s not true. I’m just like any other woman—I want to be loved. But I want it to be right and true. I don’t want to make another mistake.”
He wrapped his hands over her shoulders and the warmth of her flesh spread through the fabric to his fingers. “I understand that, Leyla. And you need to understand that you don’t have to worry about me hurting you.”
An anguished look came over her face and then she shook her head. “You’re wrong, Laramie. I’m already worried. Because I’m beginning to like you…very much.”
Her words pierced his chest and landed right in the center of his heart. “Oh, Leyla,” he said in a hoarse whisper, “I’m beginning to like you very much, too.”
Before he could say or do something he might totally regret in the morning, he bent and placed a tiny kiss on her cheek.
“Good night,” he murmured.
Dropping his hold on her shoulders, he turned and quickly strode to the stairs. As he climbed them two at a time, he heard Leyla’s door close firmly behind her.
Chapter Four
Because Leyla had started to work in the middle of the week, the next day was Saturday. Reena had warned her that, more often than not, Laramie worked seven days a week. But on Sundays he would fend for himself, so a cook wouldn’t need to be on duty.
This morning Leyla was already in the kitchen mixing biscuits when he entered the kitchen dressed in work gear with his black hat pulled low over his forehead and spurs jingling with each long stride he took. Expecting him to go straight to the coffee machine, it surprised her to see him heading for the door instead.
“Sorry, Leyla. I don’t have time for breakfast this morning. I just got word of an emergency. You might as well take the day off, ’cause I don’t know when I’ll be back.”
“Okay. Thank you,” she said, but she doubted he heard her words as he was already hurrying out the door.
It wasn’t until later in the day that Sassy managed to find out from one of the ranch hands what the emergency was all about. Early this morning before daylight, a horse wrangler had discovered two of the ranch’s prize cutting horses missing. Now practically every cowboy on the place was out looking for them.
“If you ask me, there’s a traitor among us,” Sassy said as she sipped from a tall glass of iced tea.
“What do you mean? You think someone on the ranch took the horses?” Leyla asked the other woman.
; The redhead grimaced. “Listen, if you’ve ever been down to the horse barn, you’d see it would be pretty nigh impossible for two horses to work their way past several gates. Some of them are Houdinis at slipping latches but not that many latches.”
The two women were seated at the kitchen table and Leyla could hardly keep her gaze away from the distant view of the ranch yard. Shortly after daylight there had been a flurry of activity around the barns. Now practically nothing was going on and both women presumed all the ranch hands were gone on the search for the valuable horses.
“That would be awful to think that someone on the ranch would steal or cause mischief. Do the barns have guards?”
“Sure do. That’s why I think it’s an inside job.” Wrinkling her nose, she rose to her feet. “You can bet Laramie is fit to be tied. The horses on this place are his babies.”
Seeing the troubled look on Laramie’s face this morning as he’d hurried out the door had knocked Leyla off-kilter. Up until today, she’d not really thought of him as a man who had worries. He was such a strong, able-bodied man that it seemed like he should be able to ward off any sort of problem before it ever got near him. The incident today had shown Leyla he was human just like everyone else. The notion softened her heart and had her wishing that she could make everything right for him.
“His babies. Why do you say that? Does he own them?” she asked Sassy.
The maid carried her tea glass over to the sink and dumped the dregs of her drink. “Before Laramie was promoted to foreman, he managed the ranch’s horse stock. As far as that goes, he still does. As for him owning them, I think he has a few of his own personal horses in the bunch. I’m not sure about the ones that went missing today.”
With one last glance toward the ranch yard, Leyla rose to her feet and walked over to where Sassy was washing her glass.
“If someone did take the horses or even let them escape, that might mean the person had a grudge against Laramie or someone here on the ranch. That’s a scary notion.”
A Daddy for Dillon Page 5