As Ina wheeled Colin out of the barn, Mandy dipped her fingers into the milk again and pushed them inside the calf’s mouth. It took a feeble suck. “That’s it. Come on. You can do it.”
“Ina’s probably right. I think he’s blind, too.” Garrett waved his fingers in front of the calf’s eyes. It didn’t flinch.
Moving his hand back to the animal’s side, he softly rubbed across the calf’s shiny black coat in gentle strokes. The movement mesmerized Mandy.
He had such strong-looking hands. His fingers were long and blunt with short, clean nails in spite of his outdoor life. She liked that about him.
Sitting next to him in the soft hay, listening to the sounds of the other cattle in the barn was comfortable in a way she’d never known with another man. She liked his gentleness, his determination to raise his son, even the way he kept a pretty much useless dog with a broken tail.
How could a man like that be involved in anything illegal? He couldn’t be. She simply couldn’t be that wrong about him.
She dipped her fingers into the milk and repeated the process of getting them into the calf’s mouth. “If he’s blind, he’ll learn to cope. No one is perfect. We all have to learn to deal with our flaws.”
When he didn’t say anything, Mandy looked up. She didn’t understand the yearning she saw in his eyes. “What kind of flaws do you have?” he asked at last.
“Too many to enumerate.”
“I don’t believe that. Name one.”
Her pulse stirred at the intensity of his gaze sending flutters all through her body.
“I wear size ten shoes.” Making a joke seemed easier than revealing too much about herself.
“That’s not exactly a flaw.” The light in his eyes changed. He withdrew and the loss was as sharp as a thorn under her skin.
“I’ll never be as good a cop as my father,” she admitted in a rush.
Garrett tipped his head slightly to study her. “Why is that important?”
“Because I loved him. I wanted him to be proud of me. He was killed in a drug raid. The men who worked with him said he was incredibly brave. I want to be like him, but I’m not.”
“I think you are. My father is the last man on earth I want to be like.”
“Why?” She really wanted to know.
“Ina would have called him mean and ugly. He drank too much.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No big deal.” He shrugged it off, but Mandy wasn’t fooled. It was a big deal.
The calf began to suckle more eagerly on Mandy’s hand. “I think he’s getting the hang of it.”
“Try the nipple again,” Garrett suggested.
Mandy reassembled the feeder and tried once more to get the calf to suck by stroking his throat once she had the bottle in his mouth. He gave one firm pull.
“That’s a good boy,” she crooned.
He responded with a second and a third suck quickly followed by more.
Mandy grinned at Garrett. “He’s doing it.”
“I see that. You have the touch.”
Delighted by his praise, she stroked the calf’s head. “What are we going to call him?”
“He’s not out of the woods yet. Maybe we should wait to name him.”
She liked that he said “we.” “I think we should call him Joey.”
“Guess it’s as good a name as any.”
“I’m ashamed to admit, I live in the middle of cattle country, but I don’t actually know much about them. Why isn’t he out of the woods?”
“He needs to be able to stand or his lungs will fill with fluid and he’ll die.”
“Joey is not going to die.”
“Because you say so?”
“Yes,” she stated firmly.
Garrett looked skeptical. “And do you always get your way?”
Casting a glance at him from the corner of her eye, she shrugged. “Not always, but wearing a gun has improved my statistics.”
He laughed. She loved the deep timbre of the sound.
Smiling at her, he said, “I didn’t know cops had a sense of humor.”
“Oh, yes. We can be a barrel of laughs. A gun barrel that is.”
“Not the ones I’ve known,” he replied.
She arched her brows. “And you’ve known a lot?”
His smile disappeared. He looked down at the calf. “A few more than I would have liked, but you knew that already, didn’t you?”
“I knew you’d been arrested for possession of marijuana and meth and served two months.”
“Yeah.”
“In my career I’ve found that there is usually more to the story than the official report.”
“So, if I told you it was Judy’s stash and that I didn’t know she’d hidden it under the seat of my truck, you’d believe me?”
“Is that what happened?”
Their little patient had finished with his meal and laid his head on Garrett’s leg. Shifting Joey’s weight to a more comfortable position, Garrett avoided looking at Mandy. “Does it matter?”
Mandy set the empty bottle aside and stroked Joey’s head. “Would you believe me if I said that it didn’t?”
Garrett eyes met hers. “I’m not sure.”
Mandy drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. “Everyone makes mistakes. I’ve made mistakes. Big ones that have hurt innocent people. I have to live with that.”
“Living with them—that’s the hard part, isn’t it?” he said quietly, staring toward the barn door and the house beyond.
His voice held such an odd quality that a shiver of foreboding skittered over Mandy’s nerve endings.
She wanted to reassure him, to offer him comfort, but for what she wasn’t sure. “Only God is perfect, Garrett. The rest of us are merely human.”
When he didn’t answer, she reached out and laid her hand over his where it rested on Joey’s neck. Her touch jerked his attention back from wherever it had gone.
He glanced from her hand to her face. His pupils darkened as their eyes met. His gaze traveled over her features one by one until it came to rest on her mouth. Her lips tingled under his scrutiny.
He was going to kiss her.
TEN
Mandy’s heart thudded against the inside of her chest and sent her pulse racing. A dozen disjointed thoughts tumbled through her mind. She barely knew him. She was crazy to be thinking about kissing him.
He reached out and drew his fingertips along the edge of her jaw with exquisite tenderness as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. She didn’t pull away.
The sudden sound of Ina’s voice broke the tenuous thread between them. “I figured if you was gonna try and save the little runt this might help.”
She carried a quilt in her arms, which she held out to them over the stall door.
Mandy rose to her feet hoping Ina didn’t notice the flush on her face. Taking the blanket, Mandy was surprised by its heat.
“I tumbled it in the dryer to get it nice and warm,” Ina admitted with a sheepish look.
Mandy took back every harsh thought she’d had about Ina’s attitude. The old gal had a soft heart beneath her tough exterior after all.
Carrying the quilt to Garrett, Mandy helped him wrap it around Joey until only the calf’s head stuck out.
Ina folded her arms on the top of the gate. “If you can get him strong enough to stand, you might be able to get one of the other nursing cows to adopt him.”
Mandy brightened. “Will they do that?”
“Sometimes,” Garrett replied slowly.
“It’s worth a try,” Mandy insisted.
Ina straightened. “I’ll go put another quilt in the dryer and we can trade them out when they get cool.”
Throughout the night they took turns working to keep Joey warm, coaxing him to eat and trying to help him stand. While Mandy and Garrett worked with the calf, Ina kept watch over Colin and brought out a rewarmed quilt when they needed one.
Sometime around four o’clock i
n the morning, Ina came out to take a turn in the barn and sent Mandy to the house.
Grateful for the break, Mandy checked to see that Colin was sleeping quietly, then she settled herself on the sofa and leaned her head back for a few minutes.
The next thing she knew, Wiley was pawing at her leg. Prying her eyes open, Mandy glanced out the windows. The eastern sky glowed faintly with hues of rose and gold, but the sun wasn’t up.
Wiley whined and trotted over to sit in front of the crib. Looking that way, Mandy saw Colin peeking at her between the crib rails.
She sat up and smiled at him. “Hey, little man. Remember me?”
He gurgled happily, slobbering on his fist as he tried to get the whole thing in his mouth.
“Wait right there. I’ll get your bottle.” She headed into the kitchen, happy to find Garrett had several bottles lined up in the refrigerator.
It took her only a few minutes to warm the formula and change Colin’s diaper. Lifting him out of his crib, she settled into the recliner with him, taking care not to jar his injured shoulder.
Wiley took her vacated spot on the sofa and laid his head on his paws, but he never took his eyes off Colin.
Unlike Joey, Colin had no hesitation about downing his food. When he was finished, Mandy snuggled him upright beneath her chin. Warm and content, he gave a sailor-like belch and soon drifted off to sleep. Mandy leaned back a little more in the chair.
This child—Garrett’s child—fit perfectly in her arms. Without trying, Colin had filled a place in her heart she hadn’t known was empty. Laying her cheek on his head, she breathed in the milky, baby scent of him and relished the warm feel of him next to her skin.
Time went by and the light grew in the east, but Mandy couldn’t bring herself to lay him down in his crib.
Garrett walked into his house with the intention of giving Mandy the news that Joey had managed to stand on his own wobbly legs and take his first steps. What he saw when he glanced in the living room stopped him in his tracks.
Mandy had fallen asleep in his chair. Colin lay curled on her chest.
With their same shade of blond hair and the sweet smiles on their faces, they could easily have been mistaken for mother and son. The vision caused unshed tears to sting Garrett’s eyes.
Judy would have held Colin like that, her arm curved around him, holding him safe even in sleep. Why had someone taken her life? The thought that he might never know left him empty, sad and angry.
Memories of his marriage were bittersweet. He’d wanted so badly to love Judy and to be loved in return.
It seemed his whole life had been made up of wanting something he couldn’t have. Wanting his father to stop hitting him, wanting his mother to come home, wanting Judy to care enough to stay. Now, he wanted something even more unobtainable.
He wanted the woman holding his son.
He might as well covet the moon. Mandy worried that she wasn’t as brave as her father. She’d never respect a man who didn’t possess the kind of courage she admired.
Garrett leaned his shoulder against the archway and watched them sleeping. A smile curved his lips. Simple pleasures were rare in his life, but this was one he would call out of his memory for years to come, the sight of Mandy holding his son.
Caring so much for her was a mistake. He wouldn’t give another woman the chance to walk away from him.
Even as the thought formed, he realized he was fighting a losing battle against his growing affection for Mandy.
The need to send her away before his heart was torn apart wasn’t half as strong as the need to cherish her and keep her near.
As he watched silently, longing for things that could never be, her eyes fluttered open. She blinked, then squinted at him. “What time is it?”
“Seven.”
Sitting up carefully, she shifted Colin’s weight to the crook of her arm. “How’s Joey?”
“Standing.”
“He is?” Joy brightened her face.
Garrett straightened. “A few wobbly minutes was all he managed, but it’s a start.”
“That’s great. You must be exhausted.” She scooted forward in the chair and tried to rise, but winced in pain. Wiley looked on from the sofa.
Crossing the room, Garrett lifted Colin from her. “I might be in bad shape, but I think you’re in worse shape.”
“You really know how to flatter a woman.”
“Sorry.”
He didn’t know much about women and he certainly didn’t know how to behave with one who was the sheriff. He turned away and laid Colin in the crib without waking him.
Rising, Mandy stretched and rolled her shoulders. “Where’s Ina?”
His hands itched to cup Mandy’s shoulders and knead her pain away, but he knew if he touched her, he’d have to kiss her. He pushed his hands deep in his pockets. “She went home about an hour ago.”
“I should get going, too. I have to be at the office by nine and I really need a shower.”
He sniffed loudly. “No comment.”
“You’re no petunia yourself, buddy.” A scowl put a furrow between her brows, but there was a twinkle in her eyes.
“Guilty as charged.”
“What time should I come back?”
“Back?”
“Won’t Joey need to be fed and cared for around the clock? Between him and Colin, you can’t do it all.”
She was offering to lend a hand. A quiet happiness settled in Garrett’s chest. “Aren’t you forgetting that you have a job?”
“I multitask and I delegate well. Besides, my mother is always telling me that I need a hobby. Helping raise Joey will be an excellent project, although I imagine Mom was thinking more along the lines of knitting or tennis.”
“Are you sure Joey isn’t an excuse to keep an eye on Colin?” He knew he sounded defensive, but he couldn’t help it.
Raking her hair back with both hands, she gathered it at the nape of her neck and held it a second before letting it spill loose again. “Okay, guilty as charged, too. I adore your son. I’d love to see more of him. If that’s okay with you.”
Don’t do it. Don’t let her into your life. She won’t stay. No one ever does.
Clenching his teeth until they ached, he hardened his heart against the yearning to have her near.
Her eyes filled with soft pleading as she took a step closer. “Please?”
Did she have any idea how beautiful she looked in the morning light? How could he deny her? The truth was, he didn’t want to. He gave in, knowing he’d regret his decision, but at this moment, the pain seemed worth the risk.
“If you come back this evening, I’ll let you take over for a few hours while I grab a nap.”
“Great. I’ll be back right after supper.”
Wiley exploded off the sofa, barking wildly and leaping in circles. Startled, Mandy jumped backward and collided with Garrett. He grabbed her arms to steady her. Colin began crying.
Their quiet interlude came to a noisy end. Mandy laughed. “I can’t believe you taught the dog to do that.”
Her bright smile drew one from Garrett. He reluctantly dropped his hands from her shoulders and picked up his squalling son. “It was funnier before there was a baby to wake up.”
“As I was saying, I’ll come out after s-u-p-p-e-r.”
She was coming back. The thought drove the shadows of Garrett’s past into retreat. Maybe, just maybe, Sheriff Amanda Scott was the one person who could keep them at bay.
She said, “If you want, I can even take Colin with me to church Sunday morning. You can get some rest while we’re gone.”
“You really are determined to get him into church, aren’t you?”
“I believe it’s important.”
“Even at his age?”
“I consider it important at any age to be a part of God’s family.”
To be part of a family. What would that be like? “I’ll think about it.”
Stepping closer, Mandy reached out to stroke C
olin’s hair. “You’re welcome to come, too.”
“Me? To church?”
“If you’ve never tried it, how do you know you won’t like it? Give God a chance. Knowing His love changes everything.”
Garrett shook his head. “God had His shot with me and He blew it.”
“I’m sorry you feel that way. I’m sorry something happened that made you turn your back on God, but He’s waiting for you to find Him again. Faith grows from the tiniest of seeds. Maybe Colin is that seed in your life.”
Or maybe Mandy was. “If you’re as persistent at tracking down criminals as you are in arguing for God, then Timber Wells is gonna be crime-free in no time.”
She sent a beaming smile his way. “Does that mean you’ll come?”
“That means I’ll think about it.”
After spending an unusually quiet Saturday afternoon in her office, Mandy stopped to pick up a fast food supper, then headed home to change into boots, jeans and a comfortable cotton shirt. Wolfing down the last bite of her burger, she pulled a bottle of water from the fridge and headed toward the door. Before she reached it, her cell phone rang.
A rush of frustration hit her. She could only hope it wasn’t something that would keep her from returning to the ranch. The realization of just how much she wanted to see Garrett and Colin amazed her.
Snapping open the phone, she relaxed when she saw it was her mother.
“Mandy, I hope you aren’t busy.” Kathryn’s cheerful voice sounded just a shade too cheerful.
“Actually, I am.”
“Oh. I thought maybe you’d be free this evening. I just ran into Candice and we were hoping you could join us for dinner.”
Mandy wasn’t fooled. “You were hoping I could join you, Candice, and Candice’s unmarried doctor son for dinner.”
There was a long pause. Then her mother said, “It was just a thought. I didn’t want you spending the evening alone.”
“Thanks for thinking of me, but I’ve got plans.”
“You do?”
“Don’t sound so shocked, Mom.”
“I’m not shocked. I’m just disappointed that you can’t join us. I guess I’ll see you at church tomorrow.”
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