The Rancher's Surprise Baby

“Wow, remind me to tell the single ladies of Blue Falls to give you a wide berth.”

“And there went my dating life, pitiful as it is.”

Mandy laughed. Who knew Ben Hartley was so funny? And dang if being funny wasn’t one of the things that really attracted her to a guy.

“We should totally mess with Greg, convince him he’s the best matchmaker ever. Go in tomorrow and tell him we’ve set a date. I could take a bridal magazine and ask him to help me pick out a dress.”

“I’ll ask him to be my best man.”

“Oh, oh, I’ve got it! Tell him we want him to get ordained online so he can marry us.”

Ben snorted. “Greg Bozeman an ordained minister. And that’s where you lost me.”

“Yeah, that was the step no one would actually believe.” She stared out into the darkness. “We could always toilet-paper his house as payback.”

“Shrink-wrap his truck.”

“No, wrap it in pink streamers. We just happen to have a couple of cases in the back of the shop.”

Ben slowly turned his head to look at her, and up this close, even in the half-light, his blue eyes threatened to make off like a bandit with her ability to breathe.

“Already stocking up on decorations for Valentine’s Day?”

Valentine’s Day. Romance. Kisses in the moonlight.

Oops, keep your brain in the present if you don’t want to look like a dimwit.

“No. They were delivered to the wrong place. Were supposed to go to a party store in Austin.”

“That mix-up doesn’t make sense.”

“Nope, but the company said to just keep them and they’d send new ones to the right address.” She smiled wide. “I’m thinking that’s the universe telling us they have a greater purpose here in Blue Falls.”

He lifted a dark blond brow. “You’re serious?”

“I am.”

“And if we get caught?”

“We won’t.”

“You know this is going on the front page of the Gazette if we do,” he said.

“I expect you to use your connection at the paper to keep that from happening.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “What the hell? Not as if I’m going to get any work done tonight anyway.”

“And it’ll be a lot more fun than sitting out here waiting for Mr. Kitty to make an appearance.”

“Mr. Kitty?”

“Makes him seem less scary.” She jumped to her feet. “Be right back.”

Mandy hurried inside and pulled on her sneakers, trying not to think about how excited she was to go out pranking with Ben. Or how the idea of it seemed to dispel her earlier fatigue and frustration. She didn’t dawdle, not wanting him to have second thoughts. Maybe she should let him go home. Maybe she could ignore how much she liked being around him. But she simply didn’t want to.

He looked up at her approach. “We’re really doing this?”

“Come on. Live a little.”

She expected him to call a halt to her crazy plan, but when he didn’t, she nearly sprinted to his truck. Granted, that probably wasn’t the wisest move when a mountain lion could be lurking about. She’d probably just made herself look even more like dinner. But she made it safely and breathed in a quick, deep inhalation while Ben took one more look at the surrounding area before opening his door.

His truck smelled like him—a mixture of horses, leather and another striking scent that reminded her of pine trees and long, tall Texans making Wranglers the sexiest piece of clothing on the planet.

Ben secured the rifle in the rack in the back window then slid into the driver’s seat. “I must be crazy doing this.”

“Sometimes you need a little crazy in your life to make things interesting.”

As Ben turned the truck around and headed down her driveway, she watched his hands on the steering wheel. They looked strong, probably also a little rough from his work on the family ranch. She really needed to find a safe topic of conversation before he caught her staring or, heaven forbid, drooling. Maybe she ought to toilet-paper Devon’s house instead for putting these kinds of hot-and-bothered thoughts in her head in the first place.

“So, did Greg happen to say what all he was going to have to fix on my car?”

“No, just that it would take a few days.”

“Well, that’s frustratingly vague.”

“Just part of the frustrating theme of the day.”

“It wasn’t all bad.”

Ben glanced across the cab at her. “Which part exactly didn’t make you want to crawl under the covers and start over tomorrow?”

Now, why had he gone and mentioned crawling under the covers? Images that had no place taking up residence in her head strolled right in and made themselves at home.

“Let’s see. I may have been on my feet all day, but at least I have a job.” She held up two fingers. “I did have some nice wine before my feline scare.” She pointed out the windshield at the road in front of them. “And this will be fun. I haven’t done anything like this since high school. Oh, but don’t tell my mother that. I don’t want her image of me as the perfect child to be shattered.”

He chuckled. “I doubt my mom thinks of me as the perfect child.”

“I was under the impression you and your mom have a good relationship.”

“We do. There’s no doubt she loves me. She’s just not blind.”

“My mom isn’t blind,” she said with mock offense.

He looked over at her, eyebrow raised. “Uh-huh.”

Mandy playfully swatted his upper arm with the backs of her fingers, which just made him laugh even more.

When they rolled into town, she directed him to the alley behind the strip of stores along Main Street. He parked outside the back door of A Good Yarn. She fumbled with her ring of keys when he stepped up behind her. She’d swear she could feel his warm breath on her neck and wondered what would happen if she turned to face him.

Oh, get a grip on your hormones, woman.

She managed to finally slip the right key into the lock. A rush of cool air wafted over her when she opened the door. She flicked on the light to the storage room just inside the door and Ben entered behind her.

“You’d think we live in North Dakota judging by how much yarn you’ve got here.”

She noticed him eyeing the shelves of brightly colored yarns stretching up one wall. “Knitting is enjoying a resurgence in popularity.”

“It must be, to support a store in a town this size.”

“We have other things, too.” She pointed toward the shelves filled with bolts of cloth, sewing notions, candles, soaps and a variety of other craft items. “And tourism is growing by leaps and bounds, which really helps.”

He nodded. “I’ve gotten a bit more work because of the rodeos.”

“Saddles, right? I saw the article Arden did about them.”

“Yeah.”

Realization hit her. “That’s what you were going to work on tonight, isn’t it? I’m sorry. I get myself caught up in stuff sometimes.”

“It’s okay. The way today has gone, I would’ve probably just nailed my thumb to the saddle anyway. Or cut it off.”

“So I’m actually performing a service, then, saving you from yourself.”

He huffed out a laugh. “Where were you when that pigeon attacked me?”

“I can’t be everywhere at once.” She kicked one of the boxes that contained the streamers. “Let’s usher this day out on a fun note.”

* * *

MANDY WAS RIGHT. Turning Greg’s truck into what looked like a pickup-shaped piece of cotton candy was just what he needed to lift his mood. The only problem was he was having a hard time not cracking up. From the light in Mandy’s eyes and the way she kept having to cover her mouth, it appeared she was having the same problem. When she snorted after tying a big pink bow on the truck’s trailer hitch, he nearly lost it.

“You know, this can also be a long-time-coming payback for when Greg got me in trouble in high school. He hung those pictures of swimsuit models all over the school and put Mr. Kushner’s face on them, then swore up and down that I did it.”

“I remember that. It was hilarious. Well, not that you got in trouble if he did it.”

“Oh, he did it, all right.”

“Why didn’t you tell everyone it was him?”

“Let’s just say it was better to take the heat for that than deny it.”

“That sounds as if he had something on you.”

Ben shrugged. “Maybe.”

“You know I’m going to bug you until you tell me, so you might as well go ahead.”

“It was a long time ago. Not relevant anymore.”

Mandy shook her finger at him “Oh, no you don’t. You can’t start that story and not finish it.”

Why had he opened his mouth?

Mandy shoved his shoulder in a playful gesture matched by the mischievous grin she wore. The sudden urge to kiss that grin right off her mouth challenged his willpower not to act on that thought.

“Come on. Fess up.”

He used the last of his roll of streamer to completely cover the driver’s side mirror. “I had a thing for Shantele Drayton, but I knew I didn’t have a chance so didn’t want her to know. The only reason Greg knew is I let it slip one night when a bunch of us were out camping. Luckily no one else heard me.”

When Mandy didn’t respond, he glanced toward her and found her staring at where she’d managed to cover the rear tire in pink. He got the impression, though, that she was staring instead at a memory.

“Mandy?”

“I think that about does it.” She took a step back and admired their handiwork.

The mood had changed, and he had no idea why.

“You okay?”

“Yep.”

“Uh-huh.” He didn’t think he’d ever heard anything less convincing. It must have shown on his face, too.

“Fine. I just think Shantele was a self-centered twit. Every time she found out somebody wanted something or liked someone else, she either took it for herself or spilled the beans.”

“You sound as if you’re speaking from experience.”

“It’s possible.”

“And that experience would be...?”

Mandy propped her hands on her hips. “If you must know, Devon and I were shopping for homecoming our freshman year and there was a dress I really wanted. But I had to save up to buy it. The lady who owned the store agreed to set it aside for me for a week until I got my babysitting money. When I went back to get it, not only had Shantele bought it, she was wearing it out of the store as she walked by me. She’d been in the store that first day and overheard Devon and me talking about the dress.”

“But the lady said she’d save it for you.”

“The dress was on sale, but Shantele offered her full price. Money talks. Devon was so mad because she could have bought it for me, but I wouldn’t let her.”

“Did Shantele have something against you?”

“I won the spelling bee in third grade and she came in second.”

“You think she held a grudge that long? Over a spelling bee?”

“She’s probably still walking around now with that grudge. Shantele is used to getting what she wants. But I smile every time I hear the word tantrum. Kind of appropriate that she couldn’t spell it. So I personally think you were better off without her.”

“Sounds as if you’re probably right. I never said teenage boys were smart.”

Mandy laughed at that, then pulled out her phone and aimed it at the truck. “This would be better in the daylight, but I’ve got to at least try to take this for posterity’s sake.”

When she snapped the photo, it felt as if the flash lit up half of Blue Falls. And moments later, Greg’s front porch light came on.

“Oh, crap!” Mandy said as she fumbled her phone, nearly dropping it.

A shot of adrenaline mixed with laughter went through Ben as he grabbed Mandy’s hand and pulled her away from the truck. “Come on.”

Mandy squealed then laughed as she kept pace with him. The sudden appearance of headlights caused her to yelp. He switched their direction and pulled her into a darkened area on the opposite side of Greg’s garage, which sat a short distance from his house, surrounded by cars in need of repair—including Mandy’s.

They were both breathing heavily, but the sound of Greg’s surprised “What the...?” was still clear and caused Mandy to descend into a fit of giggles.

“Shh or you’re going to get us caught.”

When she dropped her forehead against his chest, his breathing screeched to a halt. He resisted the urge to place his hand against her back to bring her closer. Instead, he smiled as he felt the laughter shaking her body.

“I’ll find out who you are!” Greg called out, which only made Mandy shake harder with suppressed laughter.

“Cut it out,” Ben whispered close to her ear, trying to ignore the flowery smell of her. “You’re going to make me lose it, too.”

“Sorry,” she whispered as she looked up.

Her laughter froze when their eyes met. The brightness staring back at him stole what was left of his breath. And from the way she was gazing up at him, he knew he wasn’t alone.

Chapter Four

Come on, lungs, breathe!

Honestly, how could someone forget how to breathe? But as Mandy looked up at Ben’s face, it was as if someone had flipped the switch on her respiratory system to Off.

Damn, he was even more handsome up close. Thank goodness they were in near darkness. If he looked this good hiding in the shadows, this type of proximity in full light might just be her end. His mouth parted, and she felt her traitorous body start to move toward him.

But the sudden sound of footsteps on gravel caused them both to jump. Ben’s arms came around her and pulled her even deeper into the shadows. Greg might very well be about to find them, but all she could think about was the warmth and weight of Ben’s palms against her back, the faint smell of laundry detergent clinging to his shirt even after a long, hot day. The way her breasts were pressed against his chest and how much she liked how that felt and wasn’t in any hurry to end the contact.

It seemed to take forever for Greg to give up with a muttered curse and head back toward his house. That he hadn’t looked in just the right spot to see them was no small miracle. Ben didn’t move until the sound of Greg’s footsteps totally faded. When he did, part of her wanted to whimper.

But he only eased his hold on her, not totally releasing her.

“That was close,” he said.

“It was.” Every part of her wanted him to kiss her. Before that afternoon, she couldn’t even say when she’d last had a passing thought about Ben Hartley. Now she was having thoughts that would make the knitting club that met at A Good Yarn blush. Or maybe they’d remember their own youth and cheer her on. Was she daring enough to steal that kiss herself? She was just beginning to lift onto her toes when Ben set her farther away and stepped out of the nook where they’d hidden.

“We better get out of here while the getting’s good.”

He didn’t take her hand, and she had a ridiculously hard time not reaching for his. That was it—she needed to go home and get a good night’s sleep. Maybe she’d wake up and not feel on the edge of throwing caution to whatever wind happened to blow by.

They stayed quiet as they walked back to where he’d parked his truck. She opened her door and hopped in before he could open it for her. Best to leave her sudden attraction to Ben back there in their dark hiding place. If he wasn’t interested, she sure didn’t want to make a complete fool of herself. Not in a town the size of Blue Falls, anyway. Somehow someone would be able to read the truth on her face and she’d never hear the end of it. Worse, town matchmaker Verona Charles would move the potential pairing to the top of her matchmaking list regardless of Mandy’s or Ben’s feelings about getting together.

When the quiet stretched too long for her comfort, she said, “Well, I think the streamer antics have finally worn me out. I’ll probably conk out before my head hits the pillow.”

“Looking forward to some sleep myself.” He didn’t even glance toward her and sounded more distant than he had a few minutes before.

Maybe he was simply as tired as she was, but it was also possible that he was concerned she’d felt more in that up-close-and-personal moment than he had and perhaps expected something from him. She didn’t force any further conversation, instead leaning her head back against the seat and staring out the window. Before the lights of Blue Falls even faded into the darkness of ranch country, she felt herself drifting and her eyelids drooping.

* * *

MANDY JERKED AWAKE when something shook her. Had she been having a bad dream? About to fall out of bed? Movement out of the corner of her eye startled her so much that she jumped and in the process banged her elbow.

“Ow!” She rubbed the offended body part as the truth settled in her mind. “Oh, jeez, I fell asleep?”

“Vandalism is tiring.” Ben smiled a little, relieving the awkwardness that had settled between them as they’d left town.

“Yep. That excursion will probably last me another decade. Thanks for taking part in my temporary insanity.”

“I’m blaming the pigeon.”

She laughed. “That excuse expires at midnight.”

“I’m going to expire before then.”

“Me, too,” she said as she clasped the door handle. “Good night, Ben.”

“Wait.”

Her heart leaped, but then she saw him reaching for the rifle.

“I’ll walk you to the door.”

That sounded very chivalrous. Part of her wished it had romantic overtones, but she’d picked up enough of who Ben was in the last several hours to know it was instead his need to make sure she was safe before he left. Of course, that was nice in and of itself. She needed to focus on that and not on the part of her that was disappointed.

They walked side by side up to the porch. When she passed her frog statue, she thought about how he wasn’t who she wanted to kiss tonight. Just a few more minutes and she’d be safely inside her house, away from her sudden abandonment of good sense. One didn’t end the day by kissing the person who wrecked your car earlier in the day, especially when you’d known that person forever and would likely know them the rest of forever.

“You know how to use this?” he asked.

She eyed the rifle. “Only in the vaguest of terms.”

Somehow she managed to pay attention to the instructions, enough that she was confident she wouldn’t, in fact, shoot off her foot. That had to be an A plus for effort, considering how much her senses were demanding she ignore his actual words and instead focus on the warmth coming off his body, his undeniably male scent, the deep rumble of his voice, the memory of how it had felt to be pressed close to him with his strong arms around her.

“Got it,” she said too suddenly, judging by the startled look on Ben’s face. “Sorry, but Cinderella is about to turn back into a pumpkin.”

“I know I’m a guy, but I’m pretty sure Cinderella wasn’t the one who turned into a pumpkin.”

“Whatever—it sounded better than ‘poorly dressed, mistreated orphan girl.’”

Ben’s amused smile caused a fluttery feeling inside her, as if she’d swallowed a migration of butterflies who’d taken up square dancing.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” he said.

“Yep.”

Yep? Really? She supposed that was better than the other thought that had been near the tip of her tongue—that he might as well stay over since it was only a few hours before he had to be back here. Instead, she gave him a nod and stepped inside the house. She resisted the urge to bang her head against the wall, instead storing the gun safely in the corner.

She finally let out a long breath and sank onto the couch when she heard Ben start his truck. As the sound of the engine retreated into the night, an aloneness she’d never felt since moving to her own piece of land descended. The night surrounding her tiny house seemed darker, quieter, more filled with potential danger.

How could she feel so different from when she’d gotten up that morning? She was the same person with the same job, the same home. And yet as she sat there, there was no denying that something had changed within her sometime since she’d looked up at the sound of her car being crunched.

And she wasn’t sure what she was going to do about it.

* * *

WHEN BEN REACHED the porch of his family’s home, his sisters were sitting in two of the rocking chairs in the dark.

“Thought maybe the mountain lion had eaten you,” Sloane said.

He leaned against one of the porch supports. “Glad to see you were so concerned you decided to lounge out here with a glass of lemonade.”

“What? I’ve got two other brothers.”

“Sloane!” Angel said and kicked at her older sister’s foot.

“What? He knows I’m just giving him a hard time.” Sloane looked over at him. “Seriously, though, did you find the mountain lion? I’m not about to bring any more kids out here to camp in tents if it’s still running around.”

“I didn’t see him, but there were tracks. He’s not a small animal.”

“Did you follow the tracks in the dark?”

He shook his head.

“Then where have you been all this time?” The teasing crept back into Sloane’s voice.

He considered brushing off her question, but that would just make her more persistent, like a dang mosquito buzzing around his ear, determined to draw blood. Better to tell her the truth. Well, partial truth. He wasn’t about to tell anyone about his unexpected reaction to Mandy, how he’d dang near kissed her as they’d hidden from Greg. She’d felt so good in his arms. Warm, soft, full of a zest for life.

“You remember that time Greg got me in trouble in high school?”

“How could I forget? Those pictures were epic. I thought Mr. Kushner was going to pop a vein.”

“Mandy may have given me a way to finally get some payback.”

“Okay, now I’m intrigued,” Sloane said.

He told them about the wrongfully delivered pink streamers and how Mandy had suggested they wrap Greg’s truck in them and how he, in an evident moment of insanity, went along with it. He mentioned how they’d almost been caught but skipped right over how he’d held Mandy in the dark, feeling her soft curves and her chest rising and falling against his, how he’d experienced the almost irresistible urge to drop his mouth to hers.

“I’d give good money to have seen Greg’s face when he saw that truck,” Sloane said.

“Heck, I’d settle just for seeing the truck.” Angel laughed.

Ben pulled out his phone and scrolled to the photo Mandy had sent him then extended the phone to Angel.

“Oh, my, that’s awesome,” she said before handing the phone to Sloane.

Sloane snorted. “I cannot wait to tease Greg about this.”

“Don’t tell him who did it.”

“I won’t, but probably half the town knows about this by now. People are probably hopping in their cars to cruise by to see it.”

“He may have it all off by now.”

“Trust me, a fair number of people would have gone to gawk before he managed to remove all that. You and Mandy did an excellent job.” She shook her head then looked up at him. “One thing I don’t understand, though. How did that prank on Mr. Kushner even come up in conversation?”

He shrugged as he took his phone back. “Don’t remember how we got on that topic.”

“Nice try but you’re lying.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yep, you are, and I’m going to figure out what you’re hiding.”

“You live to annoy people, don’t you?”

“Side benefit of being part of a big family.”

He shook his head in annoyance. “Good night, Angel.”

Sloane just laughed as he headed inside. He wished he’d gone straight in when he arrived instead of confessing what he’d been out doing. This day just needed to end before the house caved in on him.

* * *

MANDY DRANK THE last bit of coffee in her cup as she stared out the window over her sink, which gave her a good view of the driveway. She wasn’t normally an anxious person, but waiting for Ben to arrive had her fidgety. She’d only been able to eat a piece of toast. There was probably a trip to Mehlerhaus Bakery in her future about midmorning.