Everybody laughed.
“I’m sure they’ll cause a lot of ad-lib moments,” Ben said. “You can’t have babies around and expect everything to go as planned.”
“How about more whipped cream on that pumpkin pie?” Mary asked.
Mary and Ben had blocked off one area of the living room so the babies could crawl around and play with their toys in relative safety. Jamie sat on the floor with them, and Paige did, too. Jamie said to Bella, “If you want to go for a walk or anything, go ahead. We’re fine for a while.”
Paige waved at her. “We’ve got this.”
Bella looked up at Hudson, who immediately got to his feet.
“I’ll go get our coats,” he said. “We’ll take a look at that new horse.”
As they made their way from the house to the barn, Hudson took Bella’s arm. “Do you think you can get away for a few hours Saturday evening? I’d like to take you into Kalispell for a surprise.”
“I’ll have to talk to Jamie and see if he has other help.”
“That’s fine. I’d just like to take you on a real date. We can get dressed up, go to dinner, and then I’ll show you my surprise.”
Bella had no idea what Hudson was going to surprise her with, but whatever it was, the idea excited her.
The stables on the Circle D were a classic rectangular shape. Hudson opened the door for Bella and flipped on a switch just inside. The overhead light revealed a long center aisle with stalls on each side and a door at the other end, too. As they walked down the aisle, they saw plaques with the horses’ names. They passed one for a giant black horse named Zorro.
“I think they have the heater on in here,” Hudson said. “It’s not as cold as outside.”
Hudson was right, and Bella unzipped her parka as he unbuttoned his. They walked farther in, finally stopping in front of Trixie’s stall. She was a cute little chestnut. The horse turned from her trough and gave them an interested look.
Bella held out her hand. “Come here, pretty girl. Let me pet you.”
The horse apparently liked the sound of a friendly voice, because she turned and came to Bella, hanging her head over the slats so Bella could touch her nose. “No matter how many times I touch a horse’s nose, I’m always amazed at the softness.”
“I know what you mean,” Hudson said. But there was a huskiness to his voice that made her think he was talking about her rather than the horse.
“You and Mary seemed to hit it off,” he said.
“Yes, we did. She’s nice.”
He laid a hand on Bella’s shoulder. “I feel for you that you lost your mother.”
“Thank you. Lindsay’s lucky. This whole family is lucky that they’re still together and have each other.”
“I think they realize that. Anderson does a great job managing the place. He wants to do it not just for himself, but for his family.”
Bella had noticed more than the family atmosphere today. She’d noticed the couples in love—Lindsay and Walker, Anderson and Marina, Paige and Sutter, Caleb and Mallory. Had she been aware of them because of her own feelings for Hudson? If happily-ever-after was possible for them, maybe it was possible for her.
Suddenly she was very aware of Hudson beside her. He sidled closer and put his arm around her.
“Every time I’m close to you, I want to kiss you,” he murmured in her ear.
She turned into his arms. “I feel like that, too.”
Slowly he lowered his mouth to hers. This wasn’t one of those quick let’s-do-it-before-we-can’t kisses. It was one of those I-want-to-take-my-time-with-you kisses. He began it softly but with the firm pressure of his lips. Seconds later, his tongue teased the seam of her mouth.
Her heart was beating so fast she couldn’t breathe. But she didn’t have to breathe. Not when Hudson was giving her his air, his taste, his desire. Her hand slipped into the collar of his jacket, felt his sweater and then the skin of his neck. Hudson’s body was becoming more familiar now. She could feel the tension in it because of the need coursing through him, just like the need coursing through her.
His hand caressed the side of her face, then moved down her sweater to her breasts.
She nipped at his mouth, and he took that for assent of what he was doing. She was assenting all right. She couldn’t seem to get enough of him. The stable seemed to spin around her, and she clung to Hudson as if he were the only thing in her world that was stable. He took her tongue deeper into his mouth, and she melted against him. His palm on her breast was replaced with his fingers as he kneaded her and searched for her nipple under the sweater. When he found it, she knew it was hard, and she could imagine him doing things to it with his tongue.
He groaned, dropped his hands to the waistband of the sweater and dived underneath. Skimming her stomach, they came to rest on her bra. Masterfully he flipped open the front catch, and then he was holding her, caressing her breasts, making her want him with a need so strong she could only hope it would soon be satisfied.
He said roughly, “I want you.” He brought her hips tight against his so she could feel how hard he was and just how much he wanted her.
All of a sudden, Trixie neighed. The sound penetrated Bella’s passionate haze. Then she heard bootfalls and the clearing of a throat.
“I was going to turn around and leave, but you might as well know that I know.”
It was Walker’s voice.
Hudson backed away slowly, but made sure Bella’s coat was closed over her sweater. He wrapped his arm around her and faced his brother. “Don’t you say a word,” he warned Walker. “Not after what you and Lindsay did.”
Bella knew her eyes were wide, and she felt stricken. No matter what Hudson had said, Walker owned the Just Us Kids franchise. Would her job be in jeopardy?
As if Hudson understood what she was thinking, he said to Walker, “This won’t affect my working relationship with Bella.”
Walker focused on Bella. “Your job is safe. You don’t have to worry about that. No one could have handled everything as well as you have, especially with Hudson coming in to oversee you.” He motioned to his brother and then to her. “In fact, this attraction between you might have helped that along, encouraged both of you to work for the good of the center.”
“Then why does it matter that you know? You could have turned around and left and saved us a lot of embarrassment.”
“I could have. But I still need to know if you’re staying until Valentine’s Day, or if you’re going to leave before that for the job in Big Timber.”
“And you have to ask me now?”
“Maybe it’s a good thing I am, because Bella has to know, too, doesn’t she? Or is she just another diversion until you’re on your way?”
Bella’s heart sank because Walker knew Hudson’s history. And he knew Hudson’s nature, too. If she was just a diversion, was she going to let their affair continue?
“I have to give Big Timber my answer on Monday,” Hudson said. “I’ll give you my answer then, too.”
“So you haven’t made up your mind?” Walker asked as if he expected nothing less.
“I’m still considering the pros and cons.”
Again Walker looked from one of them to the other. And then he nodded and walked away.
They both heard the barn door close. They’d been so engrossed in their kiss, they hadn’t heard it open.
Quickly Bella reached under her sweater and fastened her bra. She moved away from Hudson, thinking about everything Walker had said. Then she looked up at the tall cowboy and asked, “So you really don’t know yet if you’re staying or going?” Though she knew that if he stayed until Valentine’s Day, that didn’t mean he was going to stay longer.
He took her by the shoulders. “Bella, there’s a lot to think about. Believe me, I’ll tell you bef
ore I tell anyone else what I decide.”
She supposed that was something, but it certainly wasn’t enough.
“Are we still on for our date Saturday night?” he asked.
She thought of saying no and ending it then, so she could start nursing her heart back to health. But her heart wouldn’t let her say it.
“Yes, we’re still on for our date.” Whether he stayed or whether he left, she loved Hudson Jones. For this weekend, that was going to be all that mattered.
* * *
Hudson glanced over at Bella on Saturday evening as she stared out the front windshield, eagerly anticipating where they were going. So far, everything had gone smashingly well. She’d joined him at the dress rehearsal for the pageant, so she’d be able to give teachers direction, too. Although there was tension between them because his decision about Big Timber was still in the offing, they’d seemed to put that aside during the dress rehearsal as well as at dinner tonight.
He’d taken her to the fanciest restaurant in Kalispell. She’d dressed festively in a beautiful long-sleeved red dress. Although the dress seemed modestly cut, its folds accented all her curves in just the right places. When he’d picked her up, she’d looked at him as if he were some kind of GQ model, which was crazy since he was wearing a Western-cut suit and bolo tie, a Stetson and boots. She’d given him a smile that had practically twirled his bolo.
Dinner was incredible, but the night wasn’t over. He still had one more destination. To make conversation while he drove, he asked, “Do you think we’re really ready for the pageant tomorrow? All those babies and kids at one place at one time—”
“We’re as ready as we’re ever going to be. Sometimes the more you regiment children, the more chaos you provoke. For the most part, all we have to do is make sure the babies are in their carriages and hope that the carriage decorations don’t fall off. The one that looked like Santa’s sleigh was pretty elaborate.”
“The older kids really worked hard on them.” Hudson was finding that he liked kids more and more...from babies to high-schoolers. And when he thought of kids, he thought of Bella. He didn’t examine that thought too closely because he knew exactly where it might lead—Bella as a mom, him as a dad, a family like the Daltons had someday.
He glanced at Bella again and decided to concentrate on the here and now—on his attraction to her and on her surprise.
There were several cars parked in front of the building already. He pulled up to the curb in front of a bakery storefront.
Bella looked puzzled as he went around his truck and helped her out. She was wearing high-heeled boots, and he didn’t want her to slip or fall.
“The bakery’s closed,” she said in a puzzled voice.
“We’re not going to the bakery. I’d have you shut your eyes, but there are some icy spots.”
“Why would you want me to shut my eyes?”
“You aren’t used to surprises, are you?”
“Not good ones.”
Hooking his arm into hers, he guided her along the sidewalk until they came to the Artfully Yours gallery. She looked up, saw the name and blinked. “You want to buy a painting?”
“You never know,” he said with a smile.
They went up the steps, and he opened the door to lead her inside. At first, there didn’t seem to be a huge selection. The gallery owner was selective on what he hung where, on what sculptures he positioned on pedestals.
The gallery manager came to greet Hudson, and they shook hands. Hudson had spoken with Jim Barringer on the phone several times. Jim gave Hudson a nod, and he led Bella to a side exhibit set in an alcove.
“Aren’t you going to let me look at the paintings?” she started to ask, but then her eyes settled on the photographs hanging in the alcove. “Oh my gosh! They’re mine. My photos. They’re matted and framed.”
“As well they should be. This isn’t your own show...yet. But it is a showing. Notice the little red dots on two of them? That means they’re sold.”
Bella’s mouth dropped open as she noticed the two sold prints—the landscape she’d shot at sunrise at the Stockton ranch and the close-up of one of the horses. The frames were perfect, rough-hewn like barn wood.
Bella turned to Hudson. “Did you do this?”
Hudson wondered again if he’d been too high-handed by doing it without her permission.
But then she threw her arms around his neck. “I can’t believe you did this.”
He squeezed her hard. “I didn’t do the framing. I left most of that up to Jim, though he did ask my opinion. I just happened to know the gallery owner and asked him to take a look at your photographs. He thought they were well worth showing. You could have more than one career, if you want it, Bella.”
Unmindful of where they were and who was around, Bella gave him a smacking kiss on the lips. When she broke away, she said, “Thank you.”
“I’d do it again for another kiss like that,” he teased.
She looked around the gallery. “I can’t believe my photographs are hung here with all these talented artists.”
“You’re talented, too. You have to know that.”
“Maybe I’m starting to.”
For the next hour, they went from painting to painting...from sculpture to sculpture...from photograph to photograph until Bella had her fill.
On the drive back to Rust Creek Falls, Hudson thought that Bella might want to call Jamie and tell him her news. But she didn’t. She just kept glancing at him, putting her hand on his thigh, looking at him as if he was Christmas all wrapped up in a cowboy package.
“Do you want to stop at my place?” he asked as they neared town.
“More than anything,” she answered with such fervor that it took Hudson’s self-control to the limit not to press down hard on the accelerator.
When they reached his house, he hurried out of the truck, going around to her side. When he opened her door, he saw longing in her eyes, too. He lifted her down from the truck and held on to her as they walked to the door. He fumbled with the keys as he tried to get the door open. All he could think about was holding her in his arms...naked. Time alone with her was precious, and honestly, he didn’t know how much more they’d have.
After he punched in the code for the alarm, he took her into his arms, kissing her the way he’d wanted to kiss her all night. The ride home had seemed endless. He shrugged off his jacket, letting it fall to the floor. She was still unzipping her parka when he helped push it from her shoulders and let that fall, too. Her breath and his heightened and so did every look between them, every brush of their fingers, every touch of their skin. Bella’s ability to return his hunger still amazed him. She undid his tie while he found the zipper at the back of her dress and ran it down its track. She unbuttoned his shirt while he pushed her dress down off her shoulders. It weighed on her arms as she was trying to undress him.
He laughed and said, “I can probably do it faster.”
By the time he finished undressing himself and her, their clothes lay in a pile in the foyer. They couldn’t seem to wait to reach the living room to touch each other. When her hands slid up his chest, he was a goner. He kissed her hard, and she returned his fervor, clutching his shoulders, pressing against him until he thought he’d die from the wanting. Lacing his fingers into her hair, he angled her head for another kiss.
When he broke away this time, she murmured, “I’m ready. We don’t have to wait.”
“Yes, we do,” he said. “I have to grab a condom. Don’t move.”
She didn’t.
“Turn around,” he said, and she followed his gentle order, bracing her hands on the wall.
He wanted to give Bella every experience, every pleasure, every peaked orgasm. He just had to hold on a little longer. Stepping close behind her, he ran his hands over her breasts,
teased her nipples, then slid his hands down her sides to her hips.
She understood what he wanted to do, and in the next second, he was thrusting inside her, pulling back, then doing it again until she moaned with as much pleasure as he felt. The wall braced them both as he felt her release come first, and then his followed. He rested his chin on her shoulder, and then he just held her.
When he could breathe again almost normally, he said, “Now we can try that in bed and take it a little slower.”
She turned into his arms, wrapped hers around his neck and placed a kiss on his lips so tender that he thought he’d fall apart at the seams.
Scooping her up into his arms, he carried her to the bedroom, wanting to make each moment they had together last as long as it could.
Chapter Thirteen
On Sunday afternoon, Hudson felt a bit like a horse in the midst of a cattle stampede. It looked and felt as if everyone in Rust Creek Falls had come to the holiday pageant! That was understandable, he guessed, since the pageant was an important event and there wasn’t much else in the way of entertainment in the small town.
Chairs had been set up in rows in the elementary school gymnasium with an aisle down the center. Teachers and volunteers milled about backstage along with a few parents, under the watchful eye of Eileen Bennet.
Classes from the elementary school had already performed. Scenery for the production had been swiveled around for two different segments. The first was an old-time scene where kids in costumes from the 1900s paraded onto the stage. The audience had been invited to sing traditional Christmas carols. The second segment depicted the 1960s with women and girls dressed in maxi-coats, fur rimming their hoods, and men in peacoats. More carols accompanied by the piano had brought a rousing response from the audience.
Now the audience awaited the third and last segment, a modern-day rendition of the holidays. In this segment, children would parade across the stage in Christmas finery. Bella had decked herself out in her red dress. Hudson had complied with the theme by wearing a green sweater and black jeans. Other teachers had dressed in holiday colors, and they would push the decorated carriages onto the stage. They would be followed by a wagon with kids and, of course, Santa Claus, who was actually one of the big, burly, white-bearded dads.
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