Keeping Katie (A Mother's Heart #1) (7 page)

His mind drifted to the strength he’d seen in her Sunday night. He liked that about her. He’d never had any use for clinging vines, no matter how beautiful or unfamiliar the flower.

With a sigh, he tossed his pen on the desk and once again turned toward the windows. What was the use of trying to figure something like this out? Maybe if he just let it alone, eventually …

Then he caught sight of them: Maureen, with Katie skipping along beside her. Just like every other day this week. Only today, there was an extra child gripping one of her hands. Alan recognized the boy as Tod Winters, one of the neighborhood children, maybe a year older than Katie.

They came abreast of his office, and Maureen glanced in his direction, but quickly turned away. That didn’t surprise him. She’d stated her position clearly Sunday night, and without speaking a word, she repeated it every time she saw him. At the diner, she barely acknowledged his presence, freezing up when he spoke to her. But he didn’t buy it. And he was nothing if not persistent.

With a smile, he rose from his chair. Maybe he’d wander down to the playground himself and pay Maureen and Katie a visit. After all, it was Saturday and a great day to spend a little time outside.

Grabbing his hat, he headed for the door.

As he approached the playground, he could hear Katie’s high-pitched giggles and Maureen’s light and lovely laugh filtering through the air. The sounds brought a smile to his lips, and he quickened his pace.

When he saw them, a warmth stole through him. The children were on the swings, side by side, while Maureen scrambled behind, alternately pushing one laughing child, then the other. She looked almost like a kid herself, dressed once again in baggy jeans, obviously enjoying catering to the children’s whims.

“Higher, higher,” called Katie.

Maureen laughed as she gave the swing another push, then stepped sideways to do the same for Tod. They were going to wear her out, she thought, but the afternoon was clear and warm, and she loved having both children with her. It seemed like nothing could go wrong on a day like this.

Then she spotted Alan.

He stood watching them, smiling, his arms crossed, one broad shoulder propped against an old oak that stood at the edge of the playground. Apprehension coiled inside her.

He acknowledged her with a slight nod of his head and a brief touch to the brim of his hat. Then he pushed away from the tree and walked toward her. She kept her gaze on him, unable to look away as he approached.

Why was he here?

Over the last few days, she’d maintained her resolve to avoid him as much as possible. He came into the diner every day, but she barely spoke to him. She was polite but reserved. It didn’t seem to do any good. The man had a stubborn streak a mile wide. He smiled and flirted with her, ignoring the distance she tried to put between them. And now here he was, showing up in the last place she expected to see him.

“Afternoon,” he said.

“Hello, Sheriff.” Maureen nodded and gave Tod’s swing a sturdy push.

Alan shoved back his hat and tilted his head to admire the perfect spring sky. “Great day.”

“Yes, it is.” She tried to concentrate on the children, to ignore the strange, disturbing effect he had on her. Then, because she needed to put a little distance between them, she put ice into her voice and asked, “Isn’t this a little off your beat?”

Alan chuckled, and the sound trickled down her spine. “The whole town’s my beat.”

“Mommy,” Katie interrupted. “Push me.” Thankful for the distraction, Maureen moved to do as her daughter asked, but Alan stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“Here, let me.”

Her gaze fell to the spot where he touched her, to the hand sending ribbons of heat through her system. As if burned, she pulled her arm from his grasp and took a step backward.

Alan grinned, and she could have sworn she saw laughter in his eyes before he shifted his attention to Katie. Grabbing hold of her swing, he said, “You don’t mind if I push, do you, princess?” The little girl giggled, and Alan released the swing, sending her soaring into the air.

Maureen moved over behind Tod, trying not to think about the feel of Alan’s hand on her arm. It was only a touch, she told herself. A light, friendly gesture. Nothing more. But it had felt like something else. Lust, she decided.

No woman in her right mind would deny the attractiveness of this man. Why should she be any different? Now that she’d seen him in skin-tight jeans, not even the loose-fitting sheriff’s uniform could hide his physical attributes. With broad shoulders, a flat stomach, narrow hips, and long legs, the sight of his body would melt any woman.

But she wasn’t any woman. And he wasn’t just any man. She was on the run, and he was a lawman. It was a distinction she couldn’t afford to forget.

“So, how did you end up with two kids today?” Alan asked, breaking into her thoughts.

Maureen closed her eyes briefly and took a deep breath. She couldn’t allow him to get to her, to make her forget herself. “It’s part of the arrangement I have with Josh’s mother.” To her surprise, her voice sounded normal. “She watches Katie while I’m working, and as partial payment, I take Tod two afternoons a week.”

“Sounds like a good deal.”

“Yes.”

“You seem to enjoy the kids,” he said after a moment’s pause. “Almost like you’d rather be one yourself.”

Maureen laughed lightly, nervously. This man saw too much. “Yes, well, I guess there are times when we all wish we didn’t have to grow up.”

For a few moments, neither spoke. Maureen pushed Tod. Alan tickled and teased Katie. The children laughed and called to each other, oblivious to the wall of tension between the two adults.

“Seems to me,” Alan said, shattering the silence between them, “that a woman who loves children as much as you do should have more than one.”

The statement startled her, and she turned to meet his gaze. There was a glint in his eyes she couldn’t read. Was he teasing her? She had no intention of answering his unspoken question. Yet she heard herself saying, “Actually, I’ve always wanted about a dozen.”

He didn’t look away as she’d hoped, but let his gaze linger on her. “You’re still young.” His smile disappeared, and his eyes seemed to bore into her soul. “You might have more yet.”

“No.” She shook her head, and her thoughts flew to the endless tests that she and David had endured. The years they’d waited and hoped for a baby, only to be told in the end that it wasn’t possible. She would never carry a child, never hold her own son or daughter in her arms. Then Katie had come into her life, and Maureen had loved her more than life itself.

Turning away, she added, “It wasn’t meant to be.”

Alan remained silent, and she thanked whatever powers were listening. She couldn’t predict what she would tell him if he probed further. He had a way of luring her where she didn’t want to go, making her remember things she’d rather forget. He asked questions and she answered, giving away pieces of herself she would have preferred kept hidden.

“Okay, kids,” she said when she’d regained her composure. “How about giving us old folks a rest? Go on over and play on the ponies for a while.”

“Yeah!” Tod answered, and was off the swing in a flash, with Katie close behind.

“Good move,” Alan said.

Maureen nodded and lowered herself onto one of the now-vacant swings. “I figured you could use a break.”

Alan laughed and moved to lean against one of the swing set’s metal supports. “What about you?”

“I’m used to it.”

An uneasy silence fell between them.

Maureen felt Alan’s gaze on her, but she kept her eyes on the children. She watched them climb onto painted wooden ponies set on large springs. Tod immediately set his in motion, forcing the red-and-white reproduction to rock back and forth with a vengeance. Katie was slower, electing to sway gently and watch Tod.

Maureen’s thoughts shifted to the man standing a few feet away. He made her uncomfortable. She didn’t know what to say to him, and she was afraid she’d already said too much. But whatever he was here for, whatever he wanted, she felt herself more capable of handling it without two sets of tiny ears listening.

“So,” he said finally. “How do you like Wyattville so far?”

Maureen wrapped her arms around the metal chains and idly rocked the swing. “I like it a lot. As you said the other day, it’s peaceful here.”

“Some people would say it’s boring. Especially coming from a big city.”

“I’m not looking for excitement.” She kept her eyes on the children. The small talk was a reprieve, but she was becoming impatient with it. “Just a place to raise my daughter.”

“Well, you’ve come to the right place then.” His voice was smooth, confident. “This is definitely a family town.”

Her impatience grew.

What did he want from her? Why was he here? Was he looking for answers? Or was there something else? She thought of their conversation on the porch Sunday night, and how close she’d come to letting him kiss her. Just the memory warmed her. But she didn’t want to think about that. She didn’t want to be attracted to Alan Parks.

Turning to look at him, she asked her question aloud. “Is there something in particular you wanted, Sheriff?”

He smiled, a slow, guarded smile. “When are you going to start calling me Alan?”

She lifted her chin a bit. “I didn’t realize we were on a first-name basis.”

“Everyone in Wyattville is on a first-name basis.” His smile faded. “It’s not a very formal place.”

“I see.” She steadied herself, trying desperately not to show the effort it took to meet his gaze.

“My name is Alan.” He kept his voice low, but there was an underlying command to his words.

“Yes. I know.” She hesitated, not wanting to say his name, not wanting to pass over the invisible boundary between thinking of him as the sheriff and thinking of him as a man. But something told her he wasn’t going to let it go.

“Well?”

“Okay,” she said, and dropped her gaze. “Alan.”

“That’s better.” He let out his breath, unaware till that moment that he’d been holding it, waiting for her to speak. Now that she had, the sound of his name on her lips stirred him more than he would have thought possible.

Shaking the feeling, he moved over to lean against one of the other metal supports, once more in her line of vision. “Now that that’s settled, I want to apologize for the other night at Rita’s.”

She looked up at him again, and he saw her surprise. Then she looked away and shrugged. “It was nothing.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that.” He chuckled, thinking that if it had been nothing, they wouldn’t be having this conversation.

She looked at him again, but now she was irritated. He couldn’t be exactly sure what was bothering her, but he had a pretty good idea. She didn’t want to admit how close she’d come to enjoying what had almost happened on Rita’s porch. The lady was fooling herself if she thought either of them would forget.

Suddenly, he knew what he planned to do about it. “I was out of line Sunday night,” he said.

Wariness crept into her eyes, and he suppressed a grin.

“We don’t get many new faces around here,” he continued. “And, well, I know you’ve just suffered a loss …”

She nodded but remained silent.

“Anyway, I’m sorry about Sunday.”

For a moment, she didn’t answer. Finally she said, “Apology accepted.”

“Good.” He pushed away from the swings with a smile. “So, I guess I’ll just stay out of your way.”

“Thank you … Alan,” she said, but the uncertainty returned to her eyes.

She didn’t trust him, but that was okay. He imagined she would think a lot about him over the next few weeks. And that was exactly what he wanted.

“R
eally, Lynn, I’d rather not.” Maureen refilled the last of the catsup bottles and put the lid back on. She wished she could finish her conversation with Lynn as easily. The last four weeks had taught her otherwise. Once Lynn got her teeth into something, she didn’t let go.

“You need to get out more,” Lynn insisted.

Maureen picked up the tray of plastic bottles and slid it into the small refrigerator behind the counter. “I need to go home, put my feet up, and spend time with Katie.”

“That’s what you do every night.” Lynn settled on the stool opposite Maureen and began removing lids from mustard bottles. “What about getting out, having a good time, meeting people in town?”

“I have a good time with Katie, and I meet someone new in here every day.”

“That’s not the same.”

“Lynn—”

“Afternoon, ladies.” Maureen and Lynn both turned at the familiar voice. Closing the door behind him, Alan strolled into the diner and made his way to the stool next to Lynn. Dropping his hat on the counter, he ran his hand through his hair.

Maureen suppressed the urge to turn and leave the room—just as she did every time she saw him. It was difficult being around him. Since the day he’d shown up at the playground, her emotions rode a roller coaster of annoyance, fear, and desire whenever he was around.