Kael (Texas Rascals, #6)

by Lori Wilde

  had Kael thinking crazy, illogical thoughts. How he wished

  for a time machine where he could return to the past and

  do things over. If God granted him a second chance with

  her, he’d do his level best not to fumble again.

  The sun shone on her face, accentuating the sprinkle of

  freckles across the bridge of her nose. Her lips, a lovely

  shade of peachy rose, lay perilously close to kissing dis-

  tance. Her complexion was flawless. She didn’t look a day

  older than she had seven years ago. Kael’s breath hung in

  his lungs.

  Before he had time to think, to consider his actions, im-

  pulse seized him. Kael grabbed her by the shoulders and

  tenderly planted his mouth upon hers.

  The touch was pure heaven, sweeter than the most suc-

  culent honey. Old feelings roused in him, hard and potent.

  He wanted her. Desperately. And not just physically. For

  the first time in his life, Kael Carmody wanted something

  far more meaningful.

  Daisy’s breath came hot and ragged. Her body tensed

  beneath his fingers. Her lips did not respond to his kiss.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” she cried, jerking

  away.

  “I...I just wanted to comfort you.”

  “Yeah. That helps a lot,” she said sarcastically. “Get

  your hands off me, Carmody.”

  Damn! There were no words to express his regret.

  “Don’t you dare touch me again. I’m allowing you to

  assist me because I have no choice. This relationship is

  strictly business. Got that?”

  “Daisy, please. Let me explain.” The hardness in her

  eyes cut him to the quick. “I’m not the same Kael Carmody

  you knew seven years ago.”

  She snorted. “Who are you trying to convince? Me or

  yourself?”

  “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking since the accident

  and...”

  “There’s no atheist in a foxhole.”

  “What?”

  ‘ ‘A bull trampled your leg and that changed your whole

  life. Yeah, right. You’re just feeling a little mortal, Car-

  mody. You’re still the same arrogant womanizer you al-

  ways were.”

  “I was never a womanizer!” he denied.

  “Name one female in Rascal under the age of thirty-

  five that you didn’t sleep with.” She rested her hands on

  her hips. “Besides me.”

  “You’ve been listening to too much gossip, Daisy Anne.

  I might have had a reputation for having fun, but that didn’t

  mean I was sleazy.”

  “Right. And that explains why you slept with Rose!”

  Kael froze. He’d known that sooner or later they would

  have to deal with this issue, he just didn’t think it would

  be so soon.

  “I tried to explain to you what happened that night, but

  you wouldn’t listen to me.”

  Daisy raised her chin. “You expected me to believe you

  over my sister.”

  “It was the truth.”

  Pain zinged through him as the memory slammed into

  his brain. Over the years he’d tried to put the image from

  his mind but he’d never been successful.

  Even now acid burned his throat, and his stomach tight-

  ened as he recalled the night his life had unraveled.

  It had been a warm Saturday evening and he’d just won

  a PRC rodeo in Corpus Christi. The next event was to be

  held in Oklahoma and Kael could talk of nothing else.

  He remembered the drive back from Corpus with Daisy

  in the pickup beside him. He’d been full of glory and ex-

  citement, chattering nonstop about his career until at last

  he’d realized Daisy was strangely silent.

  “What’s the matter, honey?” he’d asked, reaching

  across his pickup’s seat to take her hand. “You’re awfully

  quiet.”

  “You’re going to leave me, aren’t you?” she’d blurted.

  Kael had tried his best to skirt the topic, two-stepping

  around the truth, but Daisy hadn’t been fooled.

  “Bull riding means more to you than I do.”

  “No, it doesn’t,” he’d denied.

  “How can we get married if you’re off chasing the rodeo

  circuit?” She had folded her arms over her chest in that

  condescending manner of hers. It rankled him.

  “Whoa there. I love you, Daisy Hightower, but we’re

  way too young to get married.”

  “Don’t give me that. You’re just too irresponsible to

  settle down! You like the parties and the adulation and the

  girls that hang around.”

  “Is that it?” He was flattered by her jealousy. “You’re

  afraid someone’s going to steal me away? Honey, I love

  you and nobody else but you. Why don’t you come with

  me? We can follow the circuit together.” He’d squeezed

  her hand, but it hadn’t appeased her.

  “Kael, I’ve got a bee farm to run, I can’t just walk off.

  Rose and Aunt Peavy depend on me.”

  “Well then, if they’re more important to you than I

  am...” He’d let the sentence dangle.

  After that statement they’d had a free-for-all verbal

  brawl, ending with Daisy issuing an ultimatum and Kael

  adamantly refusing to give up rodeoing for her.

  Deep in his heart he’d known she hadn’t meant it when

  she’d told him she never wanted to see him again. His plan

  had been to let her cool off and try to talk some sense into

  her the next day. He’d make her understand that one day,

  after his rodeo career was over, he’d be honored to have

  her as his wife.

  Despite their fight, he’d still been in the mood to cele-

  brate his victory. He’d dropped her off at home, then made

  his way to the bar.

  He wasn’t proud of the fact he’d downed over a half

  dozen beers. But he’d been angry at Daisy for spoiling his

  night, and it had been easy to drink to excess.

  What happened next was inexcusable—his only defense

  that he’d wanted to make love to Daisy so badly he’d al-

  lowed himself to be tricked.

  He was drunk. Kael admitted it. When the bar door had

  swung open and Rose walked in wearing one of Daisy’s

  dresses, her hair pulled back in Daisy’s signature ponytail,

  her lips adorned with Daisy’s pink lipstick, he’d assumed

  her twin sister was Daisy.

  Rose, playing her role to the hilt, had apologized for

  arguing with him. She’d kissed him passionately, caressed

  him and urged him to take her some place private. Kael

  had been excited by his good fortune. For months he’d

  dreamed of making love to Daisy, but she’d been holding

  out for marriage. He’d respected her request, but here she

  was offering that most precious gift—her virginity—and

  begging his forgiveness. He’d been blinded by love and

  suckered in by his hormones.

  If he’d been sober, he would never have mistaken Rose

  for Daisy. For one thing public displays of affection were

  not Daisy’s style. But he’d been so desperate to make up

  with her, so hungry for her approval, so eager to mend

 
fences that he’d followed Rose like an eager puppy.

  Even now, Kael’s face flamed with shame at the mem-

  ory.

  He and Rose had gone to the ranch. They’d slipped out

  to the bam. He didn’t remember much else. Except that he

  had kept calling out Daisy’s name.

  Then suddenly Daisy had been standing in the doorway,

  looking shocked and hurt as her twin sister made love to

  her boyfriend.

  Kael winced. The ensuing scene had been ugly and full

  of recrimination. Rose had told Daisy that Kael seduced

  her. Kael had tried to make Daisy understand that he had

  confused Rose for her.

  But Daisy was having none of it, and how could he

  blame her? He’d wounded her in the most profound manner

  imaginable.

  “I’m real sorry about what happened,’’ Kael said

  hoarsely, shaking the memory from his head. “It changed

  the course of my life.”

  “Mine, too.” Daisy’s gaze skewered him like beef on a

  barbecue spit.

  “You don’t know how many times I agonized over what

  I did.”

  “Ah, poor baby.” Her words were cold.

  “It was damned hard living without you. That’s why I

  haven’t come back home. It hurt too much.”

  “You think it was easy for me?” Anger snapped in her

  green eyes. “Assuming responsibility for Rose’s mistake,

  raising Travis alone, knowing that there was a strong pos-

  sibility he was your son!”

  “What?” Kael stared at her as the reality of her state-

  ment sunk into his brain. “What do you mean? Travis can’t

  be my son.”

  “Rose discovered she was pregnant only weeks after you

  made love to her. Did you bother to use protection, Kael

  Carmody, or were you too drunk?”

  Kael’s mouth dropped open as he stared at Daisy. Shock,

  more violent than any earthquake, jolted through his body.

  If he’d been shot in the gut he wouldn’t have been more

  astonished. Was it true? Could that regrettable union with

  Rose have produced a child?

  “I...I...I,” he stuttered.

  “Yes.”

  “Why didn’t you tell this to me before now?” he whis-

  pered, clenching his fists. He felt oddly cold yet hot all at

  once, as if he were coming down with a serious virus.

  Daisy looked down at her hands. “I wasn’t sure you

  were the father. Rose had lots of boyfriends. I still don’t

  know.”

  “It doesn’t matter, you should have contacted me and

  told me what you suspected. I would have come back.”

  “Would you have, Kael? Honestly? What would you

  have done? Would you have married Rose?”

  Kael squirmed in misery. His mind whirled with Daisy’s

  suppositions. Could Travis Hightower really be his son?

  “Probably not,” Kael replied grimly. “When I, when

  we...well, you know. I swear to you, Daisy, that night I

  thought Rose was you.”

  “I really don’t care.”

  “That’s not true. I know I hurt you deeply.”

  Daisy raised both palms. “It doesn’t matter. There’s no

  point rehashing the past. What’s done is done.”

  Kael ran his hand over his jaw. “You’re right. The ques-

  tion is, where do we go from here?”

  “Excuse me?” Daisy raised an eyebrow. Was that fear

  he saw flit across her face? “What do you mean ‘we’?”

  “I have to know if Travis is my son.”

  “Look, it’s better to leave well enough alone. I’ve raised

  him for seven years by myself. I can do it for the next

  eleven. There’s no point troubling yourself at this Me

  date.”

  “Yes, you’ve done an excellent job of raising Travis, but

  eveiy child deserves to know his father.”

  “Not a father who’ll just abandon him again,” Daisy

  said bitterly.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Rancor coursed through Kael. Daisy had done wrong by

  not telling him he might be a father, and the severity of his

  resentment surprised him. He’d never really thought about

  having children before, but now the idea suddenly appealed

  to him.

  “Come on, Kael. You were right to leave Rascal. We

  both know you’re not the ‘Father Knows Best’ type.

  You’ve got too much wanderlust in your veins and you’re

  too irresponsible to be a good dad.”

  “Dammit, Daisy, you’re writing me off without giving

  me the chance to show you I’ve changed.”

  “There’s a scorched alfalfa field and a hundred thousand

  dead bees that say you haven’t changed one whit.” Her

  eyes were liquid fire, but Kael was just as angry. He felt

  used, betrayed, disrespected by the woman he’d once loved.

  “Fine. Think what you will. But one thing’s for cer-

  tain—I’m going to find out if Travis is my son. First thing

  come Monday morning, we’re going to Corpus Christi for

  a blood test and don’t you dare try to stand in my way!”

  Chapter Four

  Stunned, Daisy stared at Kael Carmody. Gone was the

  easy smile, the casual countenance, the teasing light in his

  hazel eyes. In his stead stood a scowling, rigid-shouldered

  stranger with a harsh, narrow gaze and a determined set to

  his jaw.

  His light brown hair was in disarray from where he’d

  stripped off the bee hat, one errant lock sticking straight up

  in back. He still wore the zippered coveralls, and a streak

  of soot smudged one cheek.

  He looked like a warrior. Stalwart, unwavering, tense and

  ready for combat.

  Meeting Kael’s challenging glare, Daisy felt the color

  drain from her face. She wet her lips with the tip of her

  tongue.

  “Wh-what are you suggesting?”

  “I’m not suggesting anything, I’m putting you on notice.

  I will discover the truth about Travis.”

  Panic, unlike anything she had ever experienced, scram-

  bled through her system in an adrenaline surge. She raised

  her chin defiantly. “What if I refuse?”

  “Then I’ll retain a lawyer. You don’t have the resources

  to fight me on this, Daisy.”

  A claustrophobic sensation gripped her chest in a tight

  squeeze. For seven years she’d lived in terror of this mo-

  ment. Now her greatest fear had come to pass, and the

  expression on Kael’s face told her he would not be

  thwarted. If he pursued this issue as fiercely as he rode

  bulls, she was in serious trouble. She had to do something.

  “That’s such a selfish attitude,” she accused, grasping

  at straws, anything to throw him off balance and make him

  think twice about his actions.

  “Excuse me!” Kael raised his voice. “You’re calling

  me selfish when you’ve been hoarding my son from me for

  seven years.”

  “We don’t know that he’s your son, do we?” She hurled

  the accusation back in his face.

  “And whose fault is that?”

  “Yours.” She matched his hostile tone. “You’re the one

  who ran off wi
thout a backward glance for either me or

  Rose.”

  “I never would have left if I’d have known about the

  baby.”

  “Ha!” Tears burned her eyelids and came dangerously

  close to slipping down her cheeks. As she had during every

  adversity in her life, Daisy mentally braced herself, hard-

  ening her heart against the volatile emotions Kael Carmody

  stirred. “Easy for you to say now.”

  “That’s why I want a blood test. To make things right.”

  “See. You are selfish.”

  “Why is that selfish?”

  “Because you’re only thinking of your wants and de-

  sires. Of your redemption, not what’s best for Travis.”

  “Oh-ho, now wait a minute.” Kael held up his palm like

  a stop sign. “My only concern is to provide for my son.”

  “Then why would you subject that poor child to a blood

  test?”

  “To discover the truth.”

  Daisy shook her head and crossed her arms over her

  chest. “No. I won’t allow it. He’s too young to be put

  through such a trauma.”

  “Having blood drawn isn’t pleasant, but he’ll get over

  the pain. Will he get over not knowing his father?’ ’

  “It’s not just the needle stick that concerns me.”

  Kael arched an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

  “Are you going to explain to him the complexity of his

  conception? Because I’m certainly not going to tell him his

  mother was a loose woman and his father a no-good scoun-

  drel.”

  Suddenly, silence more deafening than the loudest noise

  crashed about her ears. Kael’s eyes blazed pure fire. He

  clenched his fists at his sides. The veins on his forehead

  bulged prominently. She’d never seen him so angry. A bi-

  zarre thrill coursed through her at his anger. A thrill

  strangely akin to sexual attraction.

  “Daisy Anne Hightower,” he said at last. “That remark

  was uncalled for.”

  “But true.”

  “Do you really believe that?”

  Slowly she nodded, remembering the misery she’d suf-

  fered after discovering the man she had once adored mak-

  ing love to her identical twin sister.

  “Then I guess we never really knew each other, did

  we?”

  He sounded sad, wistful, as if her reply had drained all

  the fight from him.

  “I suppose not.”