Who was shooting at her and why?

None of this made any sense, but there was no mistaking that those bullets had been meant for her. Her heart pounded so loudly in her ears she couldn’t hear anything else. Why was this happening? What was going on? The sight of Jake barreling out of the front door with a gun in his hand forced a sob of relief to escape her lips.

He fired several shots into the woods where the original bullets had come from as he ran toward her.

“You all right?” he asked, his voice a terse snap of tension.

She gave a curt nod, unable to find her voice.

“Did you see anyone?” he asked.

“No, I just felt the first bullet buzz by my head and I ran.” A tremble tried to take hold of her body but she fought against it, knowing she couldn’t give in to her fear until she was safe and sound.

She certainly felt safer with Jake by her side, but someplace out there was somebody who had apparently just tried to kill her not once, not twice, but three times.

Dear Reader,

I love babies. I love their smell, their drooling smiles and their cuddly warmth. If my husband would have agreed I would have filled our house with babies, and then given each of them away when they got to be teenagers!

When Grace Sinclair gets pregnant after a crazy one-night stand, she’s horrified to find herself carrying not one baby, not twins, but triplets and with the daddy of the babies only a distant memory in her mind.

With the help of MysteryMom, a cyber friend, she finally locates the daddy working the family ranch with his brothers. But, when Grace goes to the ranch for a family reunion, she’s in for a surprise. Not only does danger come her way, but also so does an unexpected love.

All she has to do is survive a cunning killer and keep her babies safe to get the happily-ever-after she and her daughters deserve.

Enjoy and keep reading!

Carla Cassidy

About the Author

CARLA CASSIDY is an award-winning author who has written over eighty books for Mills & Boon. In 1995, she won Best Silhouette Romance from RT Book Reviews for Anything for Danny. In 1998, she also won a Career Achievement Award for Best Innovative Series from RT Book Reviews.

Carla believes the only thing better than curling up with a good book to read is sitting down at the computer with a good story to write. She’s looking forward to writing many more books and bringing hours of pleasure to readers.

Cowboy’s Triplet
Trouble

Carla Cassidy

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Chapter 1

“I can’t believe you’re going to do something so risky,” Natalie Sinclair exclaimed.

Grace leaned back in the kitchen chair and smiled at her younger sister. “This conversation is backward. Isn’t it usually me saying stuff like that to you?”

The two were seated in Grace’s kitchen where the late May afternoon breeze drifted through the open windows, bringing with it the sweet scents of early summer.

“That’s because normally I’m the one doing the crazy, reckless things,” Natalie replied. She picked up her lemonade and took a sip, eyeing Grace over the top of the glass as if suspecting her older sister had been replaced by a look-alike alien. “Maybe this is some sort of postpartum insanity,” she said as she placed her glass back on the table.

Grace laughed. “It’s been almost a year since I was pregnant. This definitely isn’t postpartum anything.” Her laughter faded as she leaned forward. “I have to do this, Natalie. I’ve made up my mind, and I’m leaving first thing in the morning.”

Natalie shook her head. “At least give me the directions to where you’ll be so I know where to send the police when you’re in trouble.”

Grace opened the manila folder next to her laptop and took out a piece of paper. “I already intended to give you the details, although I’m certainly not expecting any trouble.” She handed Natalie the directions she’d printed off her computer earlier in the morning.

“You’re leaving here to travel almost two hundred miles away to a place you’ve never been before because some person on the internet, who you’ve never met, told you to go there. Gee, sounds brilliant to me,” Natalie said sarcastically.

Grace felt an uncharacteristic flush heat her cheeks. “It’s not just anyone. It’s MysteryMom.”

“Yeah, and for all you know this MysteryMom is some fifty-year-old male pervert sitting around in his underwear and talking to you over the computer.”

Once again Grace couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ve been corresponding through email with MysteryMom for almost two years now. I’d think if that were the case I would have gotten a clue by now. Besides, I’m taking my gun with me.”

Both Grace and Natalie had gotten handguns from their mother on their twenty-first birthdays, unusual gifts from a strong, nontraditional woman. She had endured a violent mugging and had sworn her daughters would never be helpless victims.

“At least that makes me feel a little better,” Natalie conceded.

“It would make me feel a little better if you had a job. Are you putting in applications everywhere?” Grace asked, eager to get the conversation off her plans and on to something else. Certainly Natalie’s lack of employment was a concern, especially since she wasn’t going to school either. She was twenty-four years old and just seemed to be drifting through her life at the moment.

“Sure, I’m trying, but I can’t find anyone who wants to hire me.”

“Maybe if you’d take that ring out of your eyebrow somebody would be more interested in giving you a job,” Grace replied gently. “Or you could go back to school and get some training. You have the money to do that and you could decide to go into whatever field you wanted to.”

“Okay, that’s my clue to get out of here,” Natalie said, not hiding her irritation. She checked her watch. “Not only do I not want one of your loving lectures, but I’m meeting Jimmy in a few minutes for a late lunch.”

“When do I get to meet this paragon of virtue that you’ve been dating?” Grace asked as they both rose from the table.

Natalie gave her a secretive little smile. “When I’m good and ready for you to meet him.” Together the two walked to the front door. “You’ll call me as soon as you get to where you’re going tomorrow and let me know that you’re okay?”

“Of course I will,” Grace replied and pulled Natalie close for a quick hug. There was almost ten years’ difference in their ages, and Grace had always mothered Natalie. Now that their mother was gone, she felt especially maternal toward her younger sister.

Natalie stepped out of the embrace and opened the front door. “You know the routine. You’ve said it often enough to me. Drive carefully and be aware of any potential trouble around you.”

“I will. And when I get home I want to meet this Jimmy of yours,” Grace replied.

Natalie waved her hand as she headed toward her expensive little sports car in the driveway.

Grace watched until Natalie’s car zoomed out of sight and then shut the door and walked back into the living room.

For a moment she simply stood in the middle of the room and listened to the silence. It was rare for the house to be so quiet. Grace hoped it would stay that way for another thirty minutes or more so that she could finish packing for her road trip in the morning.

She scooted into her bedroom, determined to take advantage of what little time she had. As she began to pack the open suitcase on the bed, she tried not to think about what Natalie had said, but her words kept echoing in Grace’s head.

Risky? Grace had only done one risky thing in her entire life and the consequence of that particular action had changed her life forever.

No, she didn’t believe what she planned for the next day was particularly risky. As crazy as it sounded, she trusted the woman who had been her cyberfriend for almost two years. MysteryMom had been a source of support and comfort from the time Grace had found herself pregnant until now. She had never given Grace a reason not to trust her.

Grace put the last blouse in the suitcase and then closed and latched it. She left her bedroom and went to the doorway of the room next to hers.

The walls were a powder-pink and the furniture was white. There was a double dresser, a rocking chair and three cribs, each one holding a precious ten-month-old.

Grace leaned against the doorjamb as her thoughts drifted back in time, back to the night she’d attended her best friend’s wedding.

The wedding had been glorious and the reception had been a wild party. The handsome cowboy from Oklahoma had danced and flirted with her as they’d downed glasses of champagne like water throughout the entire event.

When she’d awakened the next morning in her hotel room bed with him next to her, she’d been horrified. She’d stumbled out of the bed and into the bathroom. The hangover she’d suffered was nothing compared to the embarrassment that flooded through her as she realized what she had done … what they had done.

When she’d left the bathroom he was gone, and she’d shoved her first and only one-night stand to the back of her mind. She’d returned to her life as a third-grade schoolteacher and hadn’t thought about him again. Until two months later when she’d discovered she was pregnant.

It was at that time that she’d tried to find him. But she only knew he was from someplace in Oklahoma and she thought his name had been Justin. She’d called her friend who had gotten married that night, but Sally had told her that the cowboy had been a friend of a friend and she had no idea what his last name was or exactly where he was from.

Two months after that, when the doctor told Grace she was expecting triplets, she’d stopped trying to find the father and instead had focused all her energy on preparing herself to be the mother of three babies.

It wasn’t until a week ago that MysteryMom had sent her a message indicating that she thought she’d found the cowboy. His name was Justin Johnson and he operated a ranch with his brothers just outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Grace had no idea how her cyberfriend had come up with the information, but it felt right. She vaguely remembered Justin telling her he ranched with a couple of brothers.

She’d sat on the information for several days and then yesterday morning, after a slightly traumatic event the night before, had decided to pack up the girls and drive to his ranch outside the small town of Cameron Creek, Oklahoma.

She now smiled as Abby peeked over the crib railing. Her dark curls were tousled from her nap and a delighted smile curved her rosebud lips.

Grace hurried over and picked her up, hoping to sneak her out of the room before she awakened her sisters. But at that moment Bonnie and Casey also woke up, squealing to get down and breaking the silence that had momentarily gripped the house.

It was after nine the next morning when the girls were finally loaded in their car seats and Grace left her house, heading to a ranch just over the Kansas state line in Oklahoma.

Thankfully it was Saturday and the Wichita traffic was light, making getting out of town a breeze. But she wouldn’t have needed to worry about traffic for a while. Summer vacation had begun a week earlier, and she had almost three months to do whatever she wanted and spend time with the daughters who were her heart.

She loved teaching, and it was wonderful to be working at a job that gave her summers off, especially now that she was a mommy of three.

The girls were contented passengers, especially since Grace had armed them with their favorite toys, oat cereal in plastic snack containers and sippy cups filled with apple juice. They chattered and giggled for the first hour of the trip and then eventually fell asleep, leaving Grace with only the softly playing radio music and her own thoughts.

MysteryMom. She’d met the woman in a chat room for single mothers when she’d first discovered she was pregnant, and the friendship had been instantaneous. It had been MysteryMom who had helped Grace cope with morning sickness and swollen feet, who had talked her through the fears of raising triplets all alone.

When Grace’s mother had fallen down a staircase and died when the babies had been only a month old, it had been MysteryMom that Grace had turned to for comfort.

Even after MysteryMom had given her the information about Justin Johnson, Grace hadn’t been sure she wanted to make contact. But then a near-fatal car accident had made up her mind. That night she’d realized that if something happened to her there was nobody to take care of the girls except Natalie—who shouldn’t have care of a goldfish.

She now glanced at the directions MysteryMom had given her to the Rockin’ J Ranch. She couldn’t imagine that MysteryMom had any ulterior motive other than to help Grace find the man who had fathered her triplets.

Grace wanted nothing from the handsome cowboy who had shared her bed for a single night after too much alcohol. She certainly didn’t expect any kind of a relationship with a man who had never tried to contact her again after that night.

But she did believe he had a right to know that he was a father, and she hoped that he would want to be a part of the girls’ lives.

She wanted that. She wanted that more than anything for her daughters. She’d never had a father in her life, and the old saying that you can’t miss what you never had simply wasn’t true. The absence of a father had resonated deeply. Not only in Grace’s soul, but, she suspected, in Natalie’s heart and soul as well. Of course, she couldn’t imagine any man taking a look at the sweet baby faces of her daughters and not wanting to be a part of their lives.

Thankfully, the small town of Cameron Creek, Oklahoma, had a motel, and she’d already booked a room for the night with the understanding that she might stay longer. If MysteryMom was right and Justin was at the address Grace had been given, then Grace was prepared to stay a couple of days in the motel so he could spend some time with the girls and they could decide how to handle things in the future.

She slowed the car as she realized she was near the turnoff that would lead to the Rockin’ J Ranch. She was vaguely surprised the sleeping babies in the backseat couldn’t hear the thump of her heartbeat.

Nerves. She was suddenly incredibly nervous. Afraid that she’d been a fool to trust a woman she’d never met in person before. Afraid that this was all some crazy wild-goose chase.

Patting her purse, she felt herself calm somewhat. Her gun was inside, loaded and ready to use if necessary. She wouldn’t hesitate to fire it if she sensed her own safety or, more importantly, her children’s safety was in peril.

Her nerves eased a little more as she reached the entrance to the ranch. Massive stones with wooden plaques indicated it was the ranch she sought. In the distance a two-story house rose out of the lush pastures. The ranch looked huge and well-kept, definitely not the place you’d expect an old man to be sitting around in his underwear and pretending to be a woman named MysteryMom.

Still, as she pulled up in front of the house and parked the car, the first thing she did was pull her gun out of her purse and slip it into the pocket of her navy blazer.

“Better safe than sorry,” she muttered beneath her breath. The girls were still soundly sleeping as she got out of the car. She’d left her car window cracked open a bit to allow in the sweet summer breeze, and she figured it would only take a minute to find out if she was at the right place or not.

Her nerves twisted in her stomach as she walked toward the front door. The worst that could happen was this would be the wrong place, the wrong man, and if that was the case then she and the girls would check into their motel room and make the trek back home in the morning.

It was just before noon, and she didn’t see anyone around. A large barn stood not too far in the distance, along with several other outbuildings. Maybe everyone had knocked off work for the lunch hour or were out in the pasture where she couldn’t see them.

As she reached the porch, she gave one last look at the car and reminded herself that she was doing this for the little girls asleep there. With one hand on the butt of the gun in her pocket, she used the other hand to knock on the door.

When the door opened, Grace’s breath caught in the back of her throat. She stared at the man who was the father of her daughters.

She’d forgotten just how hot he was with his curly black hair and chiseled features. The last time she’d seen him he’d been wearing a dark suit and white dress shirt. He now wore a pair of tight, faded blue jeans that showcased his slim hips and a white T-shirt that stretched across his broad shoulders.

A coil of heat began to unfurl in the pit of her stomach. It stopped as she saw the utter blankness in his dark blue eyes. Instead of the heat, a cold wind of embarrassment blew through her. He didn’t even remember her.

“Yes?” he asked with the pleasant smile of somebody greeting a stranger.

She was struck by a new attack of nerves. “Wait here,” she said and turned and left the large porch. She hurried toward the car, her heart pounding a million miles a minute.

She was a third-grade teacher. Maybe the best way to let him know what had happened since the last time she’d seen him was a little show-and-tell. She opened the trunk with the press of a button on her key chain and quickly withdrew the oversize stroller.

It took her only moments to unfold the stroller and fill the seats with sleeping little girls and a diaper bag. As she pushed the girls toward the house, she saw his expression transform from pleasant to utterly stunned.

“Let me jog your memory,” she said when she reached the porch again. “Nineteen months ago, Sally and David’s wedding? My name is Grace … Grace Sinclair. We were together at the wedding and the next morning you left me with a surprise. I’d like you to meet your daughters.”

“Maybe you should come inside where we can talk,” he said, his eyes dark and troubled. “I’m afraid you’ve made a mistake. I’m not the man you’re looking for. I’ve never seen you before in my life.”

Jake Johnson instantly knew he’d said the wrong thing. Her pretty cheeks filled with color as her green eyes narrowed dangerously. “The last thing I expected from you was a denial of even meeting me,” she replied, her voice icy with an edge of contempt. “Surely you remember being at the wedding.”

“Please, come inside where we can talk more comfortably.” Jake grabbed one end of the stroller to pull it up the stairs and into the house. As he gazed at the sleeping girls, there was no doubt in his mind that they were Johnsons. Their little heads were covered with dark curly hair and the shape of their faces reminded him of baby photos he’d seen of himself.

And there was no doubt in his mind of exactly who was responsible for this woman being on his porch with three babies. His stomach knotted with a touch of anger. This was one mess that wasn’t going to just go away. Jake wouldn’t be able to pay a ticket, take care of a fine or do some fast talking to make this one disappear.

Once they had the stroller inside the living room, he gestured her to the sofa. As she lowered herself down, he sat in the overstuffed chair opposite her.

He couldn’t help but notice that Grace Sinclair was a gorgeous woman. Her long brown hair held shiny blond highlights, and her legs seemed to go on forever beneath the navy slacks she wore. At the moment her beautiful green eyes were filled with anger, and her lush lips were compressed tightly together as she glared at him.

“I didn’t exactly think you’d jump for joy at the unexpected news that you were a father, especially a father of three,” she said. “I know it was only one night, but we were together for a long time at the reception.”

“I should explain that….” he began.

“Of course, maybe you make it a habit of sleeping with lots of women and don’t always remember them when you meet them again out of a bed,” she continued, cutting him off midsentence. “Allow me to remind you again—Sally’s wedding in Wichita?”

“I wasn’t—”

“Look, if you’re worried that I want something from you, that I might need anything from you, then don’t. I just thought you had a right to know that you are a father.”

“I’m not saying that—”

“I’ll gladly have a DNA test done if that’s what you want.” She sat up straighter on the sofa and tucked a strand of her shiny hair behind her ear. “I know for sure that you’re the father because I hadn’t been with anyone for a long time before you and I wasn’t with anyone after you. But I would understand if you have doubts considering the circumstances.”

Once again her cheeks became a charming shade of red. “You don’t really know me. You don’t know what kind of a woman I am, and I can understand how the fact that I fell into bed with you so easily that night might make you think I do that all the time—which couldn’t be further from the truth. I’ve never done anything like that before. My only excuse is that night for the first time in my life, I drank too much.”

Jake didn’t even try to say anything. He sensed she wasn’t finished yet, and in any case wouldn’t let him get a word in edgewise. The anger he’d felt moments before had passed, and instead a weary resignation had set in.

It was obvious what had happened—a wedding party, a night of too much booze and unprotected sex. Now somebody was going to have to step up and do the right thing. Jake knew for certain it wasn’t going to be him.

Sometimes he felt as if he’d spent every day of his thirty-five years doing what was right for everyone else. Now it was his turn to do what was right for him, and there was no way he intended to get caught up in this drama.

Yet, even as he thought it, he knew there was no way he wouldn’t be sucked into the mess. The precious little girls asleep in the stroller would ensure that he became a part of it in some way.

“I don’t need any child support from you. I just thought you might want to be a dad to the girls. Girls need fathers in their lives.”

There was a wealth of emotion in her voice, then she finally took a breath and stared at him expectantly. At that moment Jake’s brother appeared in the doorway between the living room and the kitchen.

Grace’s mouth formed a perfect O as she looked from one man to the other. Just then one of the little girls woke up with a cry, as if protesting the fact that her mother had no idea when it came to the question of who was the daddy.

Chapter 2

Grace looked from one man to the other, astonished as she realized they were obviously identical twins. No wonder the man seated across from her had insisted he didn’t know her. He didn’t know her.

She dug Abby’s sippy cup out of the diaper bag and handed it to her, an action that immediately stopped Abby’s tears and brought a happy smile to her face. Twins, for crying out loud. How was she supposed to know that the man she’d slept with had a twin?

At that moment a woman appeared behind the man in the doorway. She was a plump, pretty blonde. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Honey, what’s going on?” she asked. She took one look at the stroller and clapped her hands together. “Oh my goodness, aren’t they precious?”

Grace’s heart sank to the ground. If the man seated on the chair opposite her wasn’t the girls’ father, then the man in the doorway must be. A look at his hand showed her he was wearing a gold wedding ring that matched the one on the woman’s finger.

Married. Oh, God, had he been married on the night they’d slept together? Had he ditched his wedding band for a quick fling while out of town? The very idea horrified her. The last thing Grace would ever do was get involved in any way with a married man.

“I think maybe introductions are in order,” the man in the chair said. “I’m Jake Johnson, and that’s my brother Jeffrey and his wife, Kerri.”

“I’m so sorry. I’ve obviously made some sort of mistake,” Grace said as she rose to her feet. Jeffrey … Justin … maybe she’d gotten his name wrong at the wedding. Certainly coming here had been a terrible mistake.

She didn’t want to screw up a marriage. This had suddenly become an awful nightmare and all she wanted to do was escape from it all. “I’ll just take the girls and we’ll be on our way.”

“Grace—may I call you Grace?” Jake asked. She nodded and he motioned her back to the sofa. “Please sit down. Jeffrey isn’t the father of your daughters either.”

“Heavens, no!” Jeffrey replied. “I’d eventually like to have children, but I definitely want to do that with my wife.” He looped an arm around Kerri’s shoulder and smiled at her lovingly.

“I think you’re looking for our brother,” Jake said.

“There’s more of you?” Grace felt as if she’d entered either a comedy of errors or the Twilight Zone.

Jake gave her a tight smile. “One more. Justin. We’re triplets.”

Grace breathed a sigh of relief, although she was more than a little embarrassed that she’d just given Jake Johnson far more personal information than she’d ever want him to know. “Is Justin here?”

“He isn’t,” Jake replied.

“But he almost always shows up around dinnertime,” Kerri said as she approached the stroller. “May I?” She gestured to Abby, who raised her hands to get out of her confinement.

Grace nodded and checked her wristwatch. It was just after noon. “Could you contact Justin and see if maybe he could come by earlier? Otherwise I’ll just take the girls to the motel room where I’d planned to stay for the night and he can contact me there.”

“Nonsense,” Kerri said briskly. “I’ve got lunch ready and of course you and the girls will stay and eat with us.” She laughed as Abby grabbed her nose with a giggle.

“I don’t want to impose,” Grace protested. The whole thing felt awkward. At that moment the other two girls woke up and suddenly chaos reigned.

“We definitely need introductions to these sweet girls,” Kerri said as her husband pulled Bonnie from the stroller and Grace got Casey.

“You have Abby, Jeffrey has Bonnie and I have Casey,” Grace said. Each of the girls grinned as they heard their names. “And as you can see, they haven’t met anyone they don’t like yet. Although Casey here is definitely the most shy.” She frowned. “Maybe it would be best if I just go to the motel and you can tell Justin to meet me there.”

“You’re here now,” Jake said rather curtly. “You might as well stay for lunch and I’ll see if I can get Justin on his cell phone.” As he left the room Grace felt some of the tension that had coiled in her belly ease. At least Jeffrey hadn’t been in the room when she’d told Jake that she’d been nothing more than a drunken one-night stand with Justin. Gosh, how utterly embarrassing.

“Jeffrey, why don’t you go out to the shed and bring in the old high chairs,” Kerri said, obviously a woman accustomed to being in command. “And while you do that, Grace and I will go into the kitchen and get to know each other a little better.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jeffrey replied agreeably. He set Bonnie on her bottom at his feet and headed toward the door.

Grace felt as if everything was quickly spinning out of control and she didn’t quite know how to get any control back. At that moment Jake returned to the room. “Justin didn’t answer, but I left him a message to come here as soon as he can,” he said.

“We were just about to take the girls into the kitchen,” Kerri said. “But we seem to be short one pair of hands.”

“The story of my life,” Grace muttered beneath her breath.

Jake bent down and picked up Bonnie. He carried her away from his body, as if he’d never carried a baby before and wasn’t sure he liked it. At that moment Grace decided she wasn’t at all sure she liked him very much.

The kitchen was enormous, filled with sunshine from the floor-to-ceiling windows that created one wall. A heavy wooden table big enough to comfortably seat eight held place settings for three and a steaming casserole dish that smelled of chicken.

“Let’s put the girls here on the floor,” Kerri said. “I’ll get them some plastic containers to occupy them while I finish getting lunch on the table and you and I can have a nice chat.” She smiled at Grace, a friendly gesture that took some of the sharp edge off Grace’s tension.

At least Natalie had been wrong about the person living here being a fifty-year-old pervert. “Where did Jeffrey go?” Jake asked as he gingerly set Bonnie on the red-and-white throw rug on the floor.

“I told him to see about the old high chairs in the shed,” Kerri replied.

“I’ll go see if he needs help.” He escaped out the back door, taking with him much of the energy in the room.

Within minutes the girls were all on the rug with a variety of plastic spoons, bowls and lids to keep them happy. Grace sat at the table while Kerri bustled around the kitchen to finish preparing the meal and laid another place setting.

“How on earth do you tell them apart?” Kerri asked as she placed bread and butter on the table.

“Even though at first glance they look identical, there are subtle differences. Bonnie wrinkles her nose when she laughs and Casey’s hair is just a shade lighter. To make it easier on everyone else, I just dress them in different colors. Abby is pink, Bonnie is blue and Casey is yellow.”

“It’s the same with Jake, Jeffrey and Justin,” Kerri said. “Most people insist they can’t tell them apart, but there are definite differences. Jake is definitely the alpha dog and his eyes are slightly darker than his brothers. My Jeffrey is thinner than the other two and sweeter tempered.” Her voice held a wealth of love. “And you know Justin.”

That was the whole problem. Grace didn’t know Justin at all. She was ashamed to admit that she barely remembered being intimate with him. What she did remember from that night was how good the champagne had tasted and how Justin made sure her glass remained full and his flirting attention remained solely on her. “Do you all live here?” she asked.

Kerri placed a large salad on the table and then eased down in the chair next to Grace. “This was the family homestead but their parents died twelve years ago when they were all twenty-two. Jake took over running the ranch.”

She laughed. “But that’s not what you asked. To answer your question, Justin lives in an apartment in Cameron Creek and Jeffrey and I are only living here for another couple of weeks or so. We have a house being built on the property. And once we get moved in I want one of those.” She pointed to the girls, who were gibbering and playing, perfectly content at the moment.

“Be careful what you wish for,” Grace said with a smile. “I always wanted a son or a daughter. Apparently that triplet gene is strong, and despite how well they’re doing now, they don’t always stay all in the same place.”

At that moment Jeffrey and Jake returned, carrying high chairs that looked as if they were from another era. “They’re old,” Jeffrey said, “but we cleaned them up and they will still serve their purpose. Thank goodness that old shed hasn’t been cleaned out in years.”

“Perfect timing,” Kerri said as she jumped up from the table.

She helped Grace get the girls settled in the high chairs and then they all sat down to eat. The little girls had bowls with a bit of the casserole and green beans. Grace had retrieved their cups from the diaper bag and they dug into their meal with their usual enthusiasm.

“You didn’t mention where you’re from,” Jake said as he passed her the bowl of green beans.

There was something about the directness of his gaze that she found more than a bit unsettling. Kerri was right. Now that Grace had spent a little time with him she couldn’t imagine how she’d initially thought he was the man who had fathered her girls.

The cowboy she’d met at the wedding had been fun and flirty, with a bit of wildness in his blue eyes. Jake looked harder, his eyes a midnight-blue. He definitely looked as if he’d never lose control enough to drink too much, let alone wind up in a bed with a woman he barely knew.

“Wichita,” she replied.

“Nice place,” Jeffrey said as he buttered a slice of bread. “What do you do there?”

“I’m a third-grade teacher.”

Grace was grateful when the conversation changed from her to the ranch and the work being completed on Jeffrey and Kerri’s house. As the meal and talk progressed it became evident to Grace that Bonnie was flirting with Jake.

Her high chair was next to his chair at the table, and she fluttered her long, thick eyelashes as she cast him one toothy grin after another. He didn’t pay attention until she managed to grab his arm, grin and offer him a slightly smooshed green bean.

Kerri laughed. “Looks as though you have a little admirer, Jake.”

He eyed the green bean as if it was something he’d never seen before in his life and was highly suspicious of where it might have come from. Bonnie gibbered to him and pressed the bean closer.

“Uh … thanks,” he said as he finally took the bean from her and placed it gingerly on the edge of his plate.

Bonnie clapped her hands together in happiness, her button nose wrinkling as she smiled, then fluttered her eyes, making her long dark lashes dance.

Jake focused back on his plate and Grace was thankful he wasn’t the father. He obviously had no interest in children and didn’t appear to have any softness inside him. She definitely wanted more than somebody like him to be a part of her girls’ lives.

She wanted a man who would be unable to resist the flutter of Bonnie’s lashes, the sweetness of Casey’s smiles and Abby’s infectious giggles. She wanted a man who would be unable to resist loving them with all his heart.

The food was good and the conversation was light and easy with Kerri filling most of the awkward silences with friendly chatter. Still, Grace decided if Justin hadn’t shown up by the time lunch was over and she helped with the cleanup, she’d go on to the motel and get settled in there for the night.

She’d intruded enough on these people. Granted they were Abby, Bonnie and Casey’s aunt and uncles, but there was no way to know what part they’d play in each other’s lives until she spoke to Justin.

In the best of worlds, no matter what happened with Justin, these people would want to stay involved with the little girls. But Grace was realistic enough to know that life didn’t always work that way. In fact, in her experience life rarely worked out the way it was supposed to.

The meal was just about finished when Grace’s cell phone rang. It was in the opposite pocket from the gun in her blazer. She recognized the number of the caller and excused herself from the table.

“Natalie,” she said as she answered. “I’m so sorry. I forgot to call when I got here.”

“So, what’s happening? Are you at the right place? Is he wearing a dirty undershirt and tighty whities?”

Grace laughed. “Yes and no. Yes, I’m at the right place, but I’m still waiting to meet with Justin.” She quickly explained about the men being triplets and that she was waiting for the father of the girls to show up at the house. Promising to stay in touch, she ended the call and hurried back into the kitchen.

“I’m so sorry,” she said to the others still seated at the table. “That was my younger sister. I’d promised to call her the minute I arrived here and then promptly forgot to do so. She was worried.”

“You only have the one sister?” Kerri asked.

Grace sat back down in her chair. “Thankfully yes,” she said with a touch of humor. “Natalie is twenty-four, almost ten years younger than me, and some days it feels like I have four children instead of three.”

“What about your parents?” Jeffrey asked.

“We were raised by a single mother and she passed away nine months ago,” Grace replied. She was acutely aware of Jake’s gaze on her. Dark and unreadable, the intensity made her slightly uncomfortable.

“Jake, what’s up?” A familiar deep male voice called from the living room.

Grace’s stomach clenched tight as she realized Justin had arrived. Certainly the friendliness toward her and the children by the people around the table had given her hope, and that hope now surged up inside her.

She wasn’t expecting instant happiness from Justin, but what she was hoping for was some sort of acceptance of the situation and the happiness would come later.

He came into the kitchen. In that first instant of seeing Justin again, Grace couldn’t imagine how she’d mistaken Jake for him. Justin looked younger and his hair was longer and slightly wild with curls.

His blue eyes widened at the sight of her, and then he looked at the three girls in the high chairs. “Oh, hell no!” he exclaimed and then turned and ran out of the kitchen.

Jake watched Grace’s lovely face pale as she jumped up from her chair. “Please excuse me,” she said, her voice trembling as she left the kitchen, obviously in pursuit of Justin.

There was a long moment of silence around the table.

“Mama?” Bonnie said, but didn’t seem upset by Grace’s absence.

“She seems really nice,” Kerri said.

“Yeah, she does,” Jake agreed reluctantly. Grace Sinclair was lovely and seemed nice and she was probably in for a world of hurt thanks to Justin.

“Hopefully Justin will step up.” Jeffrey looked at the little girls still in their high chairs happily finishing their meals. “What a mess,” he muttered under his breath.

What a mess, indeed. Jake’s stomach knotted as he thought of the moment of realization on his brother’s face and his ensuing race out of the kitchen.

He shouldn’t be surprised. That’s what Justin did best … make trouble and then run from whatever the consequences. Even though there was only a seventeen-minute difference in their ages, sometimes Jake felt as if his brother was seventeen years younger.

Jake had cleaned up plenty of Justin’s problems in the past, but he wasn’t running to the rescue this time. He couldn’t. Justin was just going to have to suck it up and deal with the fact that he was now the father of three little girls.

“Maybe I should go check on her,” Kerri said and started to get out of her chair.

“No, I’ll go check. You stay here with the kids.” Wearily Jake pulled himself out of his chair.

“Bye-bye,” Bonnie said as Jake started toward the kitchen door.

For a moment he paused and stared at the three consequences of two adults’ carelessness. It had to be difficult for a third-grade teacher to be single-handedly raising three babies. Hell, it would be difficult for any woman alone, no matter what her profession.

Despite her words to the contrary, Jake had no idea if Grace needed financial help or not. Surely just buying diapers and essentials for three little ones would be a hardship on a teacher’s salary.

Girls need fathers in their lives. That’s what she’d said to him when she’d thought he was the daddy. Jake didn’t know what little girls needed, but he’d always believed that he and his brothers would have been better off with far less father in their lives.

“Bye-bye,” Bonnie said again, snapping him out of his momentary reverie.

He muttered a goodbye and then left the kitchen. Time would tell exactly what Grace needed from Justin and how his brother would step up to provide what she needed, what the little girls needed.

He was halfway to the front door when he heard Grace shriek from outside. With a burst of adrenaline he raced out the door. His heart nearly stopped when he saw her crumpled on the ground by the porch steps.

“Grace!” He rushed to her side as she sat up, her face unnaturally pale as she grabbed her left arm with her right. He glanced around but didn’t see Justin, and his truck was gone.

“What happened?” he asked as he reached a hand out to help her up off the ground.

“It was stupid. I missed the step and fell.” She winced as she got to her feet.

“What hurts?” he asked.

“I hit my shoulder.” Her face was still bleached white even though she attempted a smile. “I’m sure it’s fine.” As she tried to drop it to her side she hissed in obvious pain and pulled it back up again.

“That doesn’t look fine,” Jake replied with a scowl.

“I’m sure I’ll be okay. I just need to collect the girls and we’ll all be on our way.” They started up the stairs to the front door.

“I guess it didn’t go so great with Justin?” he asked even though he knew the answer.

She shot him a glance and he was surprised to see tears brimming in her eyes. She quickly looked away, as if embarrassed. “He basically just screamed that I’d ruined his life and then got into his truck and peeled off down the road. Yes, I think it’s safe to say that things didn’t go so great.”

“He doesn’t handle surprises very well,” Jake said as he opened the door for her. He cursed his natural impulse to make excuses for Justin. “I’m sure once he calms down he’ll be more reasonable.” At least that’s what Jake hoped would happen. But he figured Justin had probably done what he always did when he got upset—headed directly to Tony’s Tavern.

Grace slid through the door in front of him. “Once he calms down and is more reasonable he can call me or find me in Wichita. As soon as I pack up the girls, we’ll be on our way back home.”

He didn’t try to change her mind. Maybe the best thing would be for her to head home and give him an opportunity to talk some sense into his brother.

This wasn’t a speeding ticket that could be taken care of with the writing of a check. This wasn’t a drunk and disorderly charge where Jake could talk the sheriff into not locking Justin up in jail for the night.

“Everything all right?” Kerri asked worriedly as they reentered the kitchen.

“Fine,” Grace replied. “I want to thank you all for your wonderful hospitality, but it’s time the girls and I get back on the road. If I leave now I’ll be able to get home to Wichita before dark.”

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather spend the night here and get a fresh start in the morning?” Kerri asked as she got up from the table. “We certainly have plenty of room.”

Jake watched Grace, who shook her head negatively. “Thanks for the offer, but I’d rather just get back home,” she said.

Her cheeks hadn’t regained any color. He didn’t know if the paleness had to do with the situation or if it was the pain from her fall.

His question was answered the minute she tried to get Abby out of the high chair. Grace started to lift the child, but immediately cried out and grabbed her left shoulder instead.

“What happened?” Jeffrey asked as he jumped out of his chair and hurried to Grace’s side.

“I took a little tumble in the yard.” Her voice was filled with pain.

“Justin didn’t push you, did he?” Kerri asked, a touch of outrage in her voice. Jake looked at Kerri in surprise. As far as he knew his brother had never laid a finger on any woman, but of course he’d never found out he was the father of triplets before either.

“No, nothing like that,” Grace replied hurriedly. “I just missed a step, stumbled and went down.”

“We need to get you to the hospital and have that shoulder looked at,” Jake said, deciding somebody had to take control of the situation. There was no way he could let her leave knowing she couldn’t lift the little girls. It wouldn’t even be safe for her to drive her car.

He expected Grace to protest. Instead, after a moment of hesitation, she nodded, which let him know that it had to be hurting her quite a bit.

“Maybe you’re right. It’s really painful.” Still she made no move. She gazed at her three daughters, who were happily smooshing and playing and eating what was left on their plates.

“Then let’s go.” Jake dug his truck keys out of his pocket. “The girls will be fine here with Kerri and Jeffrey.”

“Absolutely,” Kerri replied with a reassuring smile. “It will be good practice for us.”

“I promise you, they’ll be fine,” Jake said to Grace. She held his gaze, as if trying to peer inside him to see if she could trust him. “Come on,” he said with a touch of impatience. “You can decide what you want to do about heading home after the doctor takes a look at you.”

He could tell she was reluctant to go, but it was obvious she was in a fair amount of pain. She was going to the hospital if he had to throw her over his shoulder and carry her there.

They didn’t speak as she followed him out of the house and they got into his truck.

A new surge of irritation filled him. He shouldn’t be the one taking her to the hospital. It should have been Justin. His brother should be the one taking care of the mother of his children, no matter what the circumstances.

“I’m so sorry,” she finally said as he pulled out of the drive and onto the main road that would take them to Cameron Creek.

“Don’t apologize. You didn’t fall on purpose,” he replied. He could smell her, the scent of a bouquet of wildflowers that was far too appealing.

“True, but the last thing I wanted was to be any kind of a bother to anyone.” She leaned back against the seat. For a moment she looked so achingly vulnerable Jake wanted to reach out and touch her, assure her somehow that everything was going to be fine.

Instead he clenched the steering wheel more tightly. “Look, I know Justin behaved badly. But I meant it when I said once he’s had time to digest everything I’m sure the two of you will be able to work something out.”

“All I really wanted was for him to know about them and maybe spend some time with the girls, be a positive role model in their lives.” She shifted positions and hissed in a breath, as if any kind of upper body movement caused her pain.

“You must have hit the ground pretty hard.”

“I did. I have a gun in my pocket, and even though the safety was on, as I was falling I was afraid I’d hit the ground so hard it would pop off and somehow I’d shoot myself, so I twisted to make sure my shoulder and not my side took the brunt of the fall.”

“A gun?” He looked at her in stunned surprise. She definitely didn’t look like the gun-toting type. “Why on earth would you have a gun in your pocket?”

“I didn’t know what kind of people you were. I wasn’t even sure I’d find Justin here. I wasn’t about to drive into a place where I’d never been before without some sort of protection for me and my girls. Besides, I got your address from a cyberfriend and my sister was afraid I might wind up at the home of some pervert sitting around in his underwear and stalking women over the internet.”

“I’m definitely not a pervert, but if Jeffrey and Kerri weren’t living with me, there might be times I’d sit around in my underwear,” he replied with a wry grin.

He felt himself relaxing a bit, some of his irritation passing. None of this was her fault, and he’d be a jerk to punish her for his brother’s actions or inactions.

He was rewarded with her smile, and her beauty with that gesture warming her features struck him square in the gut. He quickly focused his attention back on the road.

Okay, he could admit it to himself, he felt a little burn of physical attraction for Grace Sinclair. He shouldn’t be surprised. She was a beautiful woman, and it had been over a year since Jake and the woman he’d been seeing for almost six months had called it quits. Just because Grace attracted him didn’t mean there was a chance in hell that he’d follow through on it.

She was Justin’s issue, not his. And the very last thing Jake wanted in his life at this moment or at any time in the future was anyone who might need him. The last thing he needed was another issue to solve. He was totally burned out in that area.

He slowed his speed as they entered the city limits of Cameron Creek. Unlike a lot of the small towns in Oklahoma that were dying slow, painful deaths, Cameron Creek was thriving and growing. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason for the anomaly other than the fact that the city council of Cameron Creek worked hard to make it a pleasant place to live. It also helped that on the south side of town was a large dog food factory that employed most of the people in the area.

“Hopefully I’ve just bruised it and it will be fine in an hour or two,” she said as he parked in front of the attractive little hospital’s emergency room entrance.

“You still have that gun in your pocket?” he asked as he shut off the engine. She nodded. She used her right hand to reach in her left pocket and pulled out the revolver. “It would probably be best if you didn’t carry it into the emergency room. Do you mind if I lock it in the glove box?”

“You promise me you aren’t a pervert?” she asked with a touch of teasing in her voice.

An unexpected burst of laughter escaped him. “I promise,” he said as she offered him the gun. With it safely locked inside the glove box, they left the truck and headed through the emergency entrance.

Thankfully there was nobody in the waiting room and Grace was immediately whisked away to be seen by the doctor. Jake lowered himself into one of the waiting room chairs and tried to tamp down his aggravation with his brother.

There were times Jake dreamed of selling the ranch and leaving Oklahoma. There were days the thought of being on a deserted island all alone was infinitely appealing. But the vision was only appealing for a minute. He loved the ranch and would probably never leave.

Still, he’d thought that once he survived his childhood years life would get easier, but the death of his parents hadn’t changed anything. His responsibilities had only gotten heavier.

He was tired, and the only thing he wanted now was for the doctor to fix up Grace so she could be on her way home. He’d encourage his brother to do the right thing and then Jake would wash his hands of the whole mess.

He wouldn’t mind spending a little time with his nieces, eventually. But before that could happen Justin and Grace were going to have to figure things out. And that had nothing to do with him.

He’d spent most of his life shouldering responsibilities to make life easier on everyone else around him. Now what he wanted more than anything was just to be left alone.

It was almost an hour later that Dr. Wallington came out to greet him. Jake stood and shook the older man’s hand. Dr. Wallington had been their family doctor for years.

“Grace wanted me to come out and let you know she’s fine. X-rays showed no break, although her shoulder is severely sprained. I’m putting her in a sling to immobilize it for a couple of days and I’ve given her some pain medication. In the meantime she shouldn’t do any driving or lifting and I’ve told her if it isn’t better in three or four days she should come back in.”

Jake smiled, nodded and thanked the doctor while inwardly cringing at the news. There was no way he could put Grace in her car with three babies to return home. She was going to need help, and plenty of it.

A weary resignation rose up inside him. All he’d wanted from life was a little peace and quiet, but any hope for that flew out the window. His life was about to be turned upside down with the invasion of three little girls and a woman who disturbed him in a way no woman ever had before.

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