Elusive Echoes (3 page)

"Maybe I'll see you tomorrow, then?" As
always she felt a little anxious about his answer, though she
usually tried to cover her anxiety with an attitude of
nonchalance.

He smiled and gave her a peck on the cheek
with one last warm hug. Then he rubbed the back of his neck and
cast a sheepish glance her way. "Hope so."

She breathed more easily when she caught his
"yes" tell. He always seemed just a little on the shy side when he
said yes to something that was important to him.

Sean waited for her to cross the parking lot
again before he left. He probably didn't know she routinely stood
at the door and watched his taillights disappear.

Mel slid the sweater from her shoulders. A
white envelope fell to the floor and she groaned. Her brother's
letter. LeeAnn must have seen it by the register and slipped it
into her pocket.

Shaking her head, she tore open the envelope
as she walked into the kitchen. The letter was typed and unsigned.
If not for the address on the letter, written in her brother's
familiar careful script, it might have come from anyone. But it had
come from her brother, and read simply, "You should be interested
in this."

Wearing a frown, she looked
in the envelope, and pulled out an article cut from a newspaper.
For no reason other than this was her family, her hands were
shaking as she unfolded the clipping. The headline was to the
point:
Prominent Oklahoma City Attorney
Indicted on Adoption Fraud and Baby Selling
Scheme
.

Letter and article slipped from Mel's frozen
fingers.

****

The sitting room light was still on when
Sean pulled in to the ranch yard. That meant Ryan was waiting up
for him. Aw, man, just what he probably needed and didn't want.
Sean kicked the door of his truck closed with more force than
necessary.

"Dang, bro. Shoot it and put it out of your
misery already," said Ryan from the shadows.

Sean almost dropped his keys. "Jeez, man. If
you're gonna jump me, can it wait 'til we're inside? It's freezing
out here."

"It's October. It's supposed to be
freezing." A lighter flared, harshly illuminating Ryan's face in
the glow.

The acrid smell of a cigar wafted over Sean.
"Didn't you eat enough smoke when you worked in L.A.?" He started
walking for the house.

Ryan took a puff. "You'd think. But I guess
a year or so of chatting with Dad on the porch while he lights up
got me in the habit." He took another puff. "So what's eatin' at
you tonight?" He stared at the lit end of the cigar. The gesture
was so like their father's, Sean groaned.

"Nothing."

"Horse puckey."

Sean tried to remember why he'd missed his
brother for sixteen years. He sighed. May as well get it over with.
"It's Mel."

Ryan frowned. "Get in a fight?"

"Nope. We never fight." Sean blew out an
exasperated breath. What the heck? Maybe talking it out would take
some of his edge off. "She keeps hinting at wanting something
more."

Ryan stepped back to eye Sean with a
critical eye. "More than what? Like she wants to get married?"

Sean stopped walking at the bottom porch
step. "No, not exactly. As in she invited me to her place tonight,
and not so we could watch a little TV."

Ryan's mouth fell open. The cigar he'd just
lit tumbled to the ground in a shower of sparks, and with a
muttered oath, he stooped to retrieve it. Then he scrutinized Sean.
"And yet the man came home. Interesting. So, you told her no?"

Sean nodded.

"Why?" Ryan's gaze drifted below Sean's
waist. "Everything—ah—all . . . works, right?"

Irritation flared. "Yes. Everything works.
Get your mind out of the gutter, man. It's not always about
sex."

Ryan's face registered
total disbelief. "It's
almost
always
about sex. You've been . . .
um,
seeing
Mel
steady for over two years now, right?"

Here it came. The big brother lecture about
getting laid. Sean lifted a shoulder. "Yeah, 'bout that."

"And
you've—
never
?"

"Nope. Never did the deed," Sean said
impatiently. "Satisfied?"

"No, I'm not satisfied!"
Ryan took another puff of his cigar. Then he frowned. "Ah, when you
say never, do you mean
never
-never or just
never-with-Mel?"

Sean glared at his brother, just for one
second wishing Ryan was back in L.A. "Jeez, Ryan! Not that it's
your business, but yes, I've had sex. It's just—things are
different with Mel."

"You don't like her?"

Sean turned, looked out into the darkness.
"I love her. I want everything with her. I want what you and Sandy
have with her."

"Then I don't get it," said his brother, as
if the answer was just that simple. "Ask her to marry you."

Sean turned back. "I got nothing to offer
her, Ryan."

There. Now it was out. Sean didn't know what
was up with Mel lately, but something was off and he felt like they
were drifting in separate directions. Yet he couldn't begin to sort
things out and fight for her without having his own life together.
Every time he tried to bring up the possibility of a future
together, she turned it around and made it about something
physical. She clearly wanted a physical relationship, and so did
he, but he wanted more than that. Sean wasn't made for casual. He
was done with unsatisfying, going-nowhere relationships.

Ryan looked stunned. "Nothing to offer?
There's your share of the ranch. We're turning things around.
You've got your horse rehab business. You earn a decent income.
You'll be able to take care of a family."

"And we can share my bedroom here, all cozy
with everyone in the main house." Sean blew out a frustrated breath
and kicked at the dirt. "It's already crowded with you and Sandy,
Dad, Ricky, and now your baby on the way."

"That can change, Sean." Irritation had
crept into Ryan's voice. "You don't have to live in the main house
to keep working the ranch. Heck, live in town at her place. Just
get engaged, let her know you want to be with her. The two of you
can work out the details later. And for the love of mercy, when she
asks you up to her place again . . . go."

Sean shook his head. "Can't."

"Why?"

"Because Mel's worth more
than a few vague promises and getting hot between the sheets. I
thought
you
would
get that." Sean turned on his heel and stomped onto the porch and
through the front door, leaving Ryan behind.

Chapter Two

Sean stared at his brother. He'd seen him in
a lot of states over the past couple of years, but this was new. He
looked . . . frazzled.

"Sandy's still in bed, says she's feeling
lazy today. Finally. I've got my cell but we'll have no service for
a few miles up in the mountains." Ryan stood half-in and half-out
of his father's pickup. "So call Clint Westover's office and leave
a message if you can't reach me. But if it's an emergency—"

Sean allowed his voice an edge of
irritation. "Jeez, Ry, I don't know how I managed to take care of
things before you came home. Do you want to leave a list so I can
make sure I'm doing it right?" He played in the dirt with the toe
of his boot, drawing a line between them. Then he met his brother's
gaze. "You're gonna be gone what, three, four hours? How much
trouble can your pregnant wife get into?"

"You'd be surprised," muttered Ryan. He
touched Sean on the arm, his eyes softening. "She's everything to
me, okay?"

Sean suddenly felt like a jerk, given that
his brother and Sandy had fought so hard to be together and it was
only by a miracle that they were. "I know. I promise I won't let
anything happen to her."

Ryan looked at Sean for a long moment,
emotion playing over his face. "Thanks." He climbed into the truck
and started it.

Sean found comfort in working the ranch. The
sameness of the daily chores appealed to him as much as the
day-to-day challenges that made things interesting. Keeping on top
of things, knowing what was likely to happen and watching for it,
being prepared for unexpected complications; ranching required all
of that and more. Ranching was something he knew.

Women, on the other hand . . . he wasn't
sure he got them. At least not one particular woman.

He finished mucking the last stall in the
rehab barn. Hiking his collar against the chill of the approaching
rain, he checked on the horses in the paddock. Lacey wandered over
to the fence looking for an apple. She was a pretty little smoky
black gal, fine-boned, with a good disposition considering she'd
been starved and abused for most of her life. He'd planned to put
her up for sale now that she was rehabbed, but he had to be honest
and admit he didn't really want to give her up. With her ladylike
manners and sometimes coy attitude, she made him think of Mel.

Not the Mel of last night though.
Man-oh-man, what was with that kiss? His heart rate was bumping up
again just thinking about it. He'd been about to go off like a
Fourth of July bottle rocket when they'd stopped. He knew Ry
thought he was nuts but fact was, Mel meant too much to treat her
feelings carelessly. He wasn't sure if she returned more than the
physical aspect of their attraction. And he wanted more, way more,
with Melanie. She wasn't casual sex material. She mattered. Even if
she didn't think so.

The clatter of hooves on wood drew his
attention. Domingo wasn't especially happy today. Racing from one
end of his enclosure to the other, he was kicking at the fence with
each stop. The bottom rail by the gate was already split. If he
wasn't stopped, the horse would hurt himself.

"Hey, buddy, settle down." Sean held out an
apple.

For the first time since he'd come to the
Cross MC, an apple didn't buy the roan's cooperation. With a toss
of his head, he raced in the other direction, and crashed sidelong
against the fence.

Sean grabbed a lead. He'd have to put the
colt in his stall, see if that calmed him. He was probably just
spooked by the misty rain moving in. He hoped. It took every trick
Sean knew to get the lead on the horse. Every time he got close,
Domingo skittered away to the far side of the enclosure. Finally,
with two apples and a lot of soft talking, Sean was able to snap
the lead to Domingo's halter.

"Come on, big fella."

Domingo pranced sideways as Sean led him
inside. He barely got the lead off before the horse laid his ears
back and snapped his teeth.

From a safe distance, Sean looked Domingo
over. No visible wounds and he was acting temperamental, not ill.
Sean observed him for a few minutes with a critical eye. Unless he
got worse, they could probably keep a close watch on him for a day
or so before calling the vet to check him out. He set the latch on
the stall and froze.

"Sandy!"

His instincts were screaming that something
was horribly wrong. Sean took off for the house at a dead run.

She stood at the kitchen table and for just
a second Sean thought he must have been wrong. Then a spasm of pure
agony contorted her face.

"Hey, Sean." She greeted him calmly after
the wave of pain passed. "You'll never guess what just happened. My
water broke all over the kitchen floor."

He glanced down at the floor, which looked
surprisingly clean.

She noted the direction of his gaze and
chuckled. "I mopped it up."

"Oh." Sean began edging back to the door.
"Are you okay, then?"

Sandy held up a finger and gripped the edge
of the table. She blew out a couple of long breaths, and then began
panting like one of the dogs rounding up the cattle. When she
looked up again, she gave him a weak glare. "Do I look okay? The
baby's coming. Now. I've called for an ambulance but I'm not going
to make it. I probably have about—" Her face contorted again.

Sean's eyes drifted to her belly and he saw
it ripple beneath her simple white maternity shirt. His breakfast
stirred in his stomach, and suddenly the fried eggs and sausage
he'd eaten didn't seem like such a good idea.

"Ryan's an hour out—I got him on the
two-way. But he probably won't get here before the ambulance."

"Why didn't you call
me
on the radio?" asked
Sean.

"I tried. I couldn't raise you." Sandy
closed her eyes and rubbed her head.

That didn't make sense. Sean pulled the
radio off his belt clip and looked at it. The settings were
correct. He pressed the test button. Nothing. Not even a squawk.
"Dead. I'm sorry, Sandy. I grabbed this one off the charger this
morning. It must be broken."

"I also tried your cell but I heard it going
off upstairs."

"Sorry," Sean mumbled again. He'd been in a
hurry to get at the day. And it wasn't like his cell routinely
burned up with incoming calls.

"That's okay. You're here now." She
grimaced. "Oh man, I really want to push here."

Sean felt his blood drain from his face.
"What? Well, don't!"

Sandy winced. "Sean, I need your help. Get
some towels and the sterile scissors from a debridement kit. Also I
need the package of new shoelaces from my purse." She pointed to
the giant bag on the kitchen counter.

Sean's breakfast was really demanding a
repeat showing. He closed his eyes and drew a few deep, slow
breaths.

"Sean!" Sandy's shout brought him back to
their circumstance. "I'm having this baby. You. Have. To. Help.
Me."

Right. A baby. It suddenly occurred to him
that the result of his sister-in-law's nine-month gestation would
be a little person. He didn't move, just kept staring at her, part
of him thinking if he put off doing anything, the ambulance would
get there.