White Pines Summer

by Sherryl Woods

  “Wilkie’s looking for me, too?” Petey asked worriedly. “How come?”

  “Because you took off without telling anyone where you were headed,” Chance informed him. “Leesa’s half out of her mind with worry.” He turned to Jenny. “Can I use a phone? I should give her a call.”

  “There’s one on the counter over there.” She pointed to it just as Wilkie walked in. He took one look at the melting sundaes in front of Petey and her father and sat down at the table.

  “How ’bout fixing me up one of those? Missed my dinner riding all over the countryside.”

  Jenny got the distinct impression he wouldn’t be budging until he had one. Her father started to get up, but she put a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll do it.” As Chance returned from making the phone call to Leesa, she said to him, “Wilkie wants a sundae. How about you?”

  “This isn’t a blasted ice-cream social,” he muttered.

  “Try telling Wilkie that.”

  Chance sighed. “Okay, okay, fix me one, too.”

  “Extra hot fudge, I’ll bet.”

  He hesitated, then winked. “Make it extra whipped cream,” he said, lowering his voice. “I’ve always thought there was something downright sensual about whipped cream.”

  Jenny trembled at the images he’d deliberately evoked. She’d wanted him distracted for a moment from his fury with Petey, but she hadn’t intended that he focus his attention on her.

  She turned her back on him and pulled the half-gallon of ice cream from the freezer. She was dishing scoops into three more bowls when Lizzy came in. She halted in the doorway and surveyed the scene before her, her gaze locked with Jenny’s.

  “Is this a celebration?” she asked cautiously.

  Jenny knew exactly the sort of celebration Lizzy thought it might be. “Sure,” she said hurriedly. “We’re celebrating finding Petey safe and sound.”

  Lizzy nodded slowly. “I see. Nothing else?”

  Jenny scowled at her sister. “Nothing,” she said firmly.

  Chance chuckled. “Come on, darlin’. Now that everybody’s here, you might as well spill the news.”

  “What news?” her father said eagerly. “You two have something you want to tell the rest of us?”

  “No,” Jenny said flatly just as Chance said, “Yes.”

  “Well, which is it?” Wilkie asked.

  “This is not a good time to get into it,” Jenny said with a meaningful glance in Petey’s direction.

  Chance looked disappointed, but he backed off. “I suppose you’re right. It can wait.”

  Petey regarded them both suspiciously. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing that needs to concern you right now,” Chance said. “In fact, if I were you, I’d be concentrating on coming up with an explanation for your behavior that’ll keep me from grounding you until you graduate from high school.”

  Petey turned a sly look at his great-uncle. “Maybe you’d better let me move in here,” he said. “I don’t think it’s gonna be safe for me to go home.”

  “Oh, I imagine you’ll be safe enough,” Harlan said. “But if you ever get released from your grounding, maybe your dad will let you come back to spend the night in your grandfather’s old room.”

  Petey’s eyes lit up. “You’d let me do that?”

  “Of course I would.”

  “You should see it, Dad. It’s really cool. It has posters of cowboys and stuff in it.”

  Jenny regarded her father with surprise. “I’ve never seen a room like that here.” Then the explanation dawned on her. “That’s the room on the third floor we were never allowed to go into, isn’t it?”

  Her father looked uncomfortable. “I kept it the way Hank left it. Mama tried and tried to get him to stay in one of the larger rooms on the second floor with the rest of us, but he liked being way up high. Said the housekeeper didn’t like to climb all the way up there, so she never messed with his things.”

  Jenny heard the catch in his voice and wondered if Chance did. “You never stopped regretting that he left, did you?” she asked quietly just to be sure Chance got the message.

  Her father shook his head. “In the back of my mind I suppose I was hoping that one day he’d come home again.”

  Jenny did glance at Chance then and saw that his hand shook as he put his spoon back on the table.

  “It’s time to go,” he said tersely.

  This time when he stood up and moved toward the door, no one argued.

  10

  Back at Wilkie’s Chance saw to it that Petey apologized for worrying Leesa and then went straight to his room. Once he was assured Petey was settled in for the night, he walked Jenny to her car.

  “Don’t be too rough on him tomorrow,” she said.

  “Now that’s surprising advice coming from you,” he said. “I expected you to be praying I’d hog-tie him and set him up for home schooling.”

  A flash of humor lit her eyes. “Yes, well, that is a thought.”

  Her expression sympathetic, she reached up and almost put her hand on his cheek. Chance felt his heart go still as he waited for the caress that never came. She was about to pull away, when he captured her hand in his and placed it against his jaw. The reluctant touch soothed him even as it set his blood on fire.

  “You’ll be okay driving home?” he asked more to keep her with him than because of worry she wouldn’t be perfectly safe. For reasons he hadn’t had time to examine too closely, he liked being around her. It must just be the sexual attraction, he thought as she grinned and his entire body reacted.

  “Chance, I’ve been driving these roads longer than you can possibly imagine,” she assured him.

  His gaze narrowed suspiciously at her amused tone. “Meaning?”

  She winked at him. “I think I’ll let you ponder that for a while.”

  “I’d stand here and try to wrangle it out of you, but I have to go in and make sure Petey is staying where I left him,” he said with regret.

  “I know.”

  “See you tomorrow?” he asked impulsively, uncertain why Monday’s planned dinner suddenly seemed way too far away.

  “I don’t think so. We have church in the morning. The whole family comes afterward for dinner.” She hesitated, then said, “You and Petey could come, too.”

  Chance thought about it. It would ease the family into the possibility that there was a relationship growing between him and Jenny, but he wasn’t sure he wanted that to happen until he was certain what her answer to his proposal was going to be. Besides, Petey didn’t deserve a return visit to the ranch so soon after today’s escapade.

  Nor was Chance entirely certain he was ready to butt heads with Luke, Cody and Jordan. He had a feeling they were not going to be as easily won over or as trusting as Harlan Adams appeared to be.

  “Another time,” he said eventually. “But you and I have a date for Monday night. Don’t forget.”

  “I’m not likely to,” she said dryly, then regarded him thoughtfully. “Of course, you probably shouldn’t leave Petey with another babysitter.”

  “Nice try,” he said, amused by her attempt to put off giving him an answer. “Of course, you could answer me now and get your worrying over with and save me having to lock the doors and bar the windows to keep Petey inside while we’re gone.”

  “Maybe you ought to leave him with my father, instead. He can be an impressive disciplinarian when he puts his mind to it.”

  “Yeah, I noticed that tonight when he and Petey were loading up on hot-fudge sundaes. You let me take care of Petey. You concentrate on planning our wedding.”

  “Don’t get overly confident. You gave me forty-eight hours,” she reminded him. “I’m taking every one of them.”

  He shrugged. “Suit yourself, but in the end the answer’s going to be the same. You’re going to say yes.”


  As soon as the teasing words were out of his mouth, Chance regretted them. Jenny was as stubborn as any Adams, and if the rest of them were anything like him, they hated being backed into a corner.

  “Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to push.”

  “Yes, you did, but it’s okay. You come by it naturally. Fortunately I know how to push back.”

  He regarded her speculatively. “Will you push back if I get the notion into my head that I have to have a kiss before you drive off?”

  Alarm flared briefly in her eyes, then shifted into something that might have been longing. He waited to see which turned up in her response.

  “Try me,” she suggested quietly.

  Oddly shaken by her acquiescence, Chance didn’t give her time to change her mind. He drew her at once into his arms. After taking one long, lingering look deep into her eyes, he lowered his mouth to hers. The contact sent a surge of pure adrenaline rushing through him. He was fairly certain a live wire couldn’t have jolted him more.

  Then Jenny was melting against him, molding her body to his and making soft little whimpering sounds in her throat. With her here in his arms, there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that she wanted him as desperately as he wanted her. Every time he let her go, though, rational thought intruded, certainly for her, and, more often than not, for him.

  What was he doing? The barrier between them, the one that history dictated, was growing indistinct. His proposal had been totally impulsive, an instantaneous reaction to his body’s need and his obsession for White Pines. It was an incendiary combination.

  He had always wondered exactly how he was going to manage to stake his claim on the ranch. This afternoon the answer had come to him like a bolt from the blue. If even so much as an acre of that land was destined to be Jenny’s, then he was going to claim her—and the land right along with her.

  What worried him was the increasingly distinct and totally unexpected possibility that he wasn’t going to come through this maneuver unscathed. She was staking a tight-gripped claim on his heart at the same time.

  * * *

  No sooner had Jenny walked in the front door of White Pines after leaving Chance than whirlwind Lizzy confronted her with a barrage of questions that proved she’d inherited their mother’s interrogating skills. Apparently, though, Lizzy at least kept her word about remaining silent about the possibility of Jenny’s marrying Chance. Otherwise their mother would have been blasting Jenny with her share of questions.

  “Would you mind telling me what the heck is going on?” her sister demanded.

  Jenny deliberately misunderstood the question. “Petey ran away, he turned up here and we just took him home,” she replied blandly. “Now I’m back. You knew most of that, so why are you asking?”

  Lizzy impatiently waved off the evasive response. “Not that. What about this engagement?”

  Jenny sighed. “Not now, please. You know the basics. That’ll have to satisfy your curiosity. I’m tired. I’m going to bed.”

  “Not until we talk. This isn’t just idle curiosity,” her sister retorted. “A lot’s at stake for all of us.”

  Her chin was jutting and her eyes were flashing with determination. She might be only twenty, but she had a highly developed stubborn streak. In fact, evidence suggested she might be the most willful Adams yet, which was a very scary thought. It ought to have the men in Los Piños, maybe even in all of Texas, trembling in their boots, especially a certain rancher named Hank Robbins. Lizzy had eyes for him and she always got what she went after.

  “Lizzy, please. Can’t it wait?” Jenny pleaded.

  “Until when?” Lizzy countered. “You can’t drop a bombshell like you did and then wave it off as inconsequential. Do you expect me to sit back and wait until you make an announcement to the whole family? Somebody has to try and talk some sense into you. Either you listen to me or I’ll call Dani and Sharon Lynn and get them involved. We’ll gang up on you.”

  That threat was enough to force Jenny to detour into the living room. She sank onto a chair and held up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Please, leave them out of it, at least for the time being.”

  “Okay, fine,” Lizzy agreed. “Then you can talk to me. What on earth do you think Daddy’s going to say if you suddenly tell him you’re going to marry Chance Adams?”

  “First of all, I haven’t given Chance a definite answer yet. Second, I have no idea what Daddy’s going to say.” Jenny rubbed her temples where a throbbing headache was making its presence felt. “He’s unpredictable at the best of times. You saw the two of them tonight, along with Petey. Didn’t it strike you that they’re only a minute or two away from being thick as thieves?”

  Lizzy hesitated, her expression thoughtful. “Daddy did seem to accept the two of them, didn’t he?”

  “Accept them? He practically invited them to move in. Maybe he figures with a couple more guys around the house, the odds will shift back in his favor and he’ll get to sneak in a few more snacks.”

  “Not if Mama and Maritza ever find out about tonight,” Lizzy said dryly. “They’ll padlock the refrigerator.” Her gaze narrowed. “How did we get away from this marriage business? What exactly happened after Daddy and I rode off and left the two of you? Don’t leave out any of the details, either. I’d have laid odds you were going to throttle each other, not get all lovey-dovey.”

  “That would have been my choice,” Jenny admitted. “Chance had other ideas.”

  “Details,” Lizzy reminded her.

  “Are you sure you’re not just being nosy?”

  “Jenny!”

  “Okay, okay. We were talking and then, out of nowhere, he asked me to marry him. It’s as simple as that.” And as complicated, Jenny thought. She knew the proposal had nothing to do with love and everything to do with a backdoor way for Chance to get exactly what he wanted.

  Unfortunately, she could also see that it was the safest way to ensure that he caused her father the least amount of stress. She couldn’t tell Lizzy or anyone else any of that. If she agreed to this idiotic scheme, everyone had to believe it was because she’d fallen head over heels in love with the man. Just thinking of the lies she was going to have to tell made her headache throb harder.

  “Jenny, what is it?” Lizzy asked worriedly.

  Jenny managed a smile. There was no point in upsetting her sister, an idealistic young woman who still had stars in her eyes when it came to romance.

  “Nothing,” she assured Lizzy.

  “It doesn’t look like nothing,” her sister insisted. “A marriage proposal, especially from a certified hunk like Chance Adams, ought to make you deliriously happy. I’ve never seen you look sadder.”

  And possibly wiser, Jenny thought. In all of her thirty-five years she had never once fallen madly in love. Now when her skittering pulse told her she might be on the verge of it, the man turned out to be one who could never truly love her back.

  * * *

  Jenny hadn’t slept a wink the past two nights. Sunday, with all the family gathered around and bursting with questions about Chance and Petey, had been filled with tension. She was so on edge she was afraid her nerves would snap like old rubber bands.

  Nor could she manage to concentrate for more than a minute at a time in class on Monday. Naturally the kids spotted the weakness right away and set out to exploit it. She’d lost all semblance of control by lunchtime.

  Fortunately one of the other teachers was scheduled to supervise the cafeteria. Jenny, however, refused to subject her to these pint-size terrors. They were going to be on their best behavior or she was going to quit her job and find a cabin in the wilderness to hide out in until she could restore her self-respect. Preferably it would be a cabin that Chance would never in a million years be able to find.

  Clinging to her sanity by a thread, she looked at the restless students and managed to demand qu
iet in a tone that suggested a definite lack of tolerance for disobedience. It took several minutes, but they eventually settled down.

  She regarded them evenly. “If I so much as hear a whisper about any of you misbehaving during lunch,” she said quietly, “you’ll have enough homework this week to keep you glued to your books at home until bedtime. Got it?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Felicity said dutifully.

  “Oh, stuff a sock in it,” Petey muttered to the little redhead.

  “Yeah, stuff a sock in it,” several others chimed in.

  Jenny sincerely wanted to echo the thought, but it would set a very bad example, one that would more than likely be dutifully reported to Felicity’s father, the principal from hell.

  Instead, she said mildly, “We’re not getting off to a very good start here.” She directed a stern look straight at Petey, who turned red, but remained silent.

  “That’s better. Petey, why don’t you lead the line to the cafeteria?”

  “Huh?” He stared at her, clearly amazed that he was being chosen for this important role.

  She stood up and moved to the door. “Right here, okay?”

  He glanced at Timmy McPherson, who was making faces, but he eventually joined her. She nodded. “Good. Now everyone else. A nice straight line, if you please. Timmy, you be last so you can make sure everyone is together.”

  That ought to keep enough distance between her two worst troublemakers, she thought, pleased with the ingenuity of her plan.

  She actually managed to get them into the cafeteria without further mishap. When they were all settled at tables, she turned to Megan Richards, the sixth-grade teacher. “They’re all yours.”

  Megan chuckled. “You sound relieved. Bad morning?”

  “You’ll never know how bad.”

  “Oh, I think I will. There are some days it just doesn’t pay to get out of bed.”

  Jenny grinned. “And some that are worse.”

  She spent the next half hour praying the aspirin she’d taken would kick in and relieve the headache that had started two nights before and continued unabated. Naturally the pills didn’t help at all, and before she knew it she was back in the classroom with twenty-five kids who’d all had too much sugar for lunch. If she’d had the strength herself, she would have taken them for a long brisk walk to burn off a little of their energy.