One Hot Momma (6 page)

“You need a swift kick in the ass, that’s what you need!” Jack was mad. She knew he was upset with
Rafe
, but she didn’t know until just now how upset he really was. She snuck back in the house to hear the conversation, and now she was glad she made the phone call before this whole thing got even worse.

“You think you can kick my ass, little brother. Let’s take a walk outside,”
Rafe
challenged.

When Heath arrived, she felt a sigh of relief.

“What the hell is going on here?” Heath barked as he entered Jack’s kitchen.

“What are you doing here?” Jack asked

“Your wife called and said she needed me to deal with my little brothers before they did something real stupid.” Heath crossed his arms and leaned a hip against the doorframe. “So what is going on?”

“
Rafe
left Bethany to take care of his mess this morning. My pregnant wife is not his chauffer service, and certainly she was not in any position to pick a grown woman up off the floor and deal with two crying kids,” Jack snarled.

“
Rafe
?”
Heath looked to
Rafe
. They couldn’t see her from where she was standing, but she could see Heath, and she could hear Jack and
Rafe
.

“I asked her to give them a ride home. I didn’t know it was going to be a damn soap opera.”
Rafe
didn’t sound like himself. Lately he wasn’t acting like himself.

“Jack, what the hell is he talking about? When I dropped the kids off, she looked like she always does, mad and stuck up. So how did she end up on the floor? Don’t tell me Bethany hit her.” He cast a look in her direction and winked. Apparently, he could also see her.

“I don’t know. Bethany said she passed out when Savannah said she chose us as her family or something.” Jack had settled down a bit. She heard the chair being pulled out from the kitchen table. “I feel for the gal, I really do, but Bethany is my wife, and when she called, she was upset, and you know she’s pregnant, and I just… that’s my world, you know. I don’t want anything or anyone upsetting her.”

Heath put out a hand, which probably looked weird to them, but it stopped her from running to Jack.

“
Rafe
?”

“They aren’t her kids. Apparently, she is their aunt, but she was raising them as her own.”
Rafe
still had not sat down. “She lied about the ex-husband. She lied about everything.”

“What happened to the parents?
She in some kind of witness protection or something?
That would explain a lot.” Heath nodded.

“No,”
Rafe
answered. “It was a scandal though, no doubt. Her twin sister had been cheating on Brice and Savannah’s father, and when he caught her, he killed her, her lover, and then himself.
Layla
became their guardian through their wills, and she left Georgia to get away from the scandal.”

“So the kids know, and she didn’t know they knew until today.
Gad-
zooks
.
I need to remind Buck how lucky he is our little sister isn’t a whack-job like the rest of the women around here.” Heath smiled in her direction. She stuck her tongue out at him. He was right. Jan was the only woman to have a “normal” start to a relationship in this family. “You know that’s twice I’ve said something that normally would set you on end, little brother, and yet you haven’t defended her once.”

“I’m done with her,”
Rafe
said smoothly.

“What?” Jack, Heath, and Bethany all said in unison. She came into the kitchen then and went to Jack. He frowned at her, but she simply kissed his temple and held his hand. He was only defending her; she couldn’t be mad about that.

“I asked her to marry me, and she said no.”
Rafe
laughed. It was a haunted sound.
Terribly full of heartache.
Heath winced. Bethany wished she could be everywhere at once to console them.

“Ask again,” Jack said and squeezed her hand.

“I asked three times.”
Rafe
clenched his jaw and looked away from them. “I’m riding tomorrow in the rodeo. If I win, I might keep going for a while. You might want to ask around to fill my spot here on the ranch. I won’t need my salary of course. That should help.”

“Tell me you’re riding
Broncs
,
Rafe
.” Heath didn’t hide the expression of frustration and worry on his face. Grown men or not, they were his little brothers, and Bethany knew how far he would go to protect them.

“More money in bulls.”
Rafe
shifted his weight to his other leg and then looked at them in turn. “I need to get my life back. I don’t know who I am anymore, and I don’t know what I want to do. I had a plan. I never made a back-up plan. I never saw it coming down to this, but it has. I’m sorry this puts the ranch in a bind, but I can’t stay here right now. You will either support me in this, or you won’t.”

Bethany could feel the muscles in Jack’s back go rigid under the hands she had placed on his shoulders. He let out a long breath and asked, “What time?”

Layla
returned home to find a message waiting for her. The shelter had closed; the grant didn’t go through. She spent the afternoon with Brice and Savannah and the shoebox she kept in her bedroom.

“She looks just like you,” Savannah whispered.

“We’re twins.”
Layla
smiled. “Brice looks a lot like your dad, but you look like your mom.”

“And you,” she added.

“And me.”
Layla
nodded.

“Did they die because they were married?” Savannah asked.

“No, sweetheart.
They were in an accident.” There was no need to tell them the whole truth about the circumstances of their parents’ deaths. It was horrible enough that she knew the truth. She didn’t want those images or dreams haunting the children, too.

“I thought I heard you tell grandma you would never get married.” Savannah looked at her. “I was supposed to be in bed, but I was in the hall. I heard you.”

“I… I made that promise to keep you and Brice safe because I didn’t think you knew, and I didn’t want to confuse you and… I didn’t want to tell anyone the truth.”
Layla
frowned. “I didn’t want to risk anyone being that close to us.”

“But
Rafe
is,” Brice said as he put the pictures back in the stack. “I need a daddy, too.
Rafe
would be a good daddy, and you are a good mommy, so why can’t we make our own family?”

“It’s not that simple, sweetheart.”
Layla
swallowed the lump in her throat. Of course, they loved him. Of course, he would make a good daddy. Of course, she had the chance to give them what they were asking for now, but she was too stupid to realize it was best for them at the time.

“I told him not to marry you.” Savannah looked down. “I thought he would die, and I didn’t want him to die.”

“Oh, honey, you didn’t do anything wrong. I did.”
Layla
hugged both of the children close to her. For the first time since being their “mother” she felt like a mom. “But maybe I can fix it. Okay, I will try to fix it, so we can have
Rafe
as part of our family. But if I can’t…”

“You’re still our mom.” Brice looked at Savannah.

She nodded, then added, “But please
try
to fix
Rafe
.”

* * *

Rafe
was easy to find. Apparently, the entire family was there to see him ride a bull.
Layla
was horrified at the thought. She asked Chance to take the children to get a hot dog while she found
Rafe
and tried to talk sense into him. They were all in agreement. No one wanted him riding the bull, but no one would tell him not to.

She made her way past cowboy after cowboy until she found her cowboy.
“
Rafe
!”

He turned to look at her, his expression confused, and then he looked away. He wasn’t getting off that easily. In fact, he was stepping down into the cage to straddle a huge brown bull that was already trying to kick and buck him off. She moved faster and was finally as close as she could get.
“
Rafe
!”

“I’m busy right now,
Layla
,” he said in a matter-of-fact voice.

“
Rafe
, I lied. I want to marry you, okay. Just get off that bull!” She watched as they tightened the straps. He was paying more attention to the men on either side of him than to her. “You don’t have to do this,
Rafe
. I’m sorry. I messed up. I messed up bad. So can you please forgive me? At least get off that bull and talk to me?”

He turned his head to say something to her, but the gate man mistook his hand gesture to her as the gesture to open the gate. She watched in horror as he bounded out of the gate on the most ferocious animal she had ever seen.

* * *

That woman would be the death of him he knew for sure as the gate opened and the bull shot out. He wasn’t ready. He wanted to tell her to mind her own damn business, to get the hell out of here, but when he raised his hand to point at her, the gate sprang, and now here he was, holding on for dear life as this beast beneath him did his best to get him off of its back.

It seemed like an eternity but an instant at the same time. He was up, way up in the air, then down. He could feel the ribs snap, something hard on his right arm, something warm down the right side of his face. The bull was jumping still, but away from him. He couldn’t feel anything anymore. His mind was drifting. Everything around him seemed to be closing in. They were calling for help over the speaker. He could hear it in the distance. He could also see three men running toward him with four more in security vests running after them. As Heath, Jack, and Buck came to a halt at his side, he just couldn’t see anything anymore.

* * *

“Well, I guess that about does it.” The doctor patted his hand. “I was always surprised I never got to bandage you up as a kid. Unfortunately, as a grown man, this is going to hurt worse and take longer to heal. When it does, you’ll still feel it. I’m just glad it made a clean break.”

“Is that all we need?” Heath asked.
Rafe
looked at his brother who seemed a bit fuzzy to him.

“It’s not that bad really,” the doctor said in a cheery voice. “The stitches can come out in a couple weeks. The ribs need to be taped for a few days, and the cast will come off in a few months. As long as he’s good to that ankle, he should be fine once it’s all healed up. The first week or so he’s going to be in a lot of pain. Watch the amount of meds you give him. They are addictive and easy to overdose on. He should feel pretty numb right now, but he should not be up and moving for a few weeks, and he should have limited movement after that. Someone needs to be with him for a while, especially until some of the swelling goes down.”

“We will be.” Heath shook the doctor’s hand. “Thank you, Dr. Beasley.”

“Tell your mother hello for me. I miss that woman’s cooking. She always brought me a plate after I fixed you or Jack up.” He laughed. “Best fried chicken in the world.”

“I’ll tell her, and I’ll send you a plate from Momma’s Kitchen. Chance makes it just the same.” Heath looked at
Rafe
when the doctor left the room. He walked three long paces to stand next to the bed. “When you get better, I am going to kill you. You scared the shit out of us.”

“Sorry.”
Rafe
closed his eyes. “I feel really weird.”

“Well, you’re all drugged up, so I guess you would feel weird.” Heath snorted. “Come on, we need to get you in the wheelchair and get you home.”

“Wheelchair?”
Rafe
opened his eyes. “What all’s broke?”

“Just your arm, and a few ribs cracked.” Heath laughed. “A few inches farther and that bull would have landed right in your chest. Most of this damage came from the fall and the fact that you went up, hit the bull on the way down, and then hit the ground. You looked like a pin ball in a machine and everything was hitting.”

* * *

“Jan, you need to go to class. This is your last semester, and you can’t miss anything or you risk your grade point average.” Buck was trying to reason with her
Rafe
could tell.

“I’m not leaving him,” Jan said stubbornly.

“Go to school, Jan,” he croaked out. “Get me a glass of water, and then go to school.”

“
Rafe
, you’re awake.” She seemed so pleased by that he laughed.
Laughing hurt.

“Ah, still hurts.” He smiled. “What day is it?” It dawned on him if Jan was in school it sure wasn’t Sunday anymore.

“Thursday.”
She held out the glass of water Buck brought in. “You seem to be in and out, but most of the time you just sleep. The doctor said you would be like that for a few days.”

He realized he was propped up, and Jan had the straw pointed his way. He reached up for the glass and knew why she was holding it. His right hand was in a cast. “Well hell.”

“Yeah, you’re going to have to be a lefty for a little while.” She held the glass closer. He took a long drink of water.

“I’ll stay with him, Jan. You need to get off to school,” Buck reminded her.

“
Rafe
?”
She looked at him.

“Go to school. I’m awake now and fine, really.” He smiled when she kissed his forehead. “You’re my favorite little sister.”

“I’m your only little sister.” She shook her head at him. Then she turned to Buck and whispered something in his ear. They shared a brief hug and kiss and an exchange of quiet words before she left.

“You hungry?”
Buck asked after a moment of looking at him.

“Yeah, I think I am.”
Rafe
nodded. His head still hurt. He could definitely feel the ribs ache. He moved his legs, and his right ankle spiked a new pain for him to deal with. “Man, this feels like hell.”

Buck nodded. “You look like hell, too, buddy.”

“Thanks,”
Rafe
said.

“Anytime.”
Buck left the room.

* * *

Layla
approached the house at the same time Jan was leaving. No doubt
Rafe’s
little sister was going to give her an earful.

“I’m not happy about this,” Jan said to her point blank.

“I understand.”
Layla
nodded. She did understand.

“Well… okay then.” Jan seemed to have lost her argument when the children caught up to them. “Hi guys, how are you?”

“Is
Rafe
awake today?” Savannah asked.

“Yes, well, he was a minute ago…” The children ran past them into the house calling his name.

Layla
moved quickly behind them so as not to give her a chance to say anything else.

“Hey there.”
Buck, Jan’s husband, greeted her with a friendly smile. “You need help getting your things?”

“No, thank you. I’ll grab it later… there really isn’t much
to
…” She looked away toward the stove. “He wants to eat?”

“Yep.”
Buck stirred the soup again. “I figured we might need to start with liquids first, see how that goes, then move on if he stays awake and keeps this down.”

“Well, I guess there’s no time like the present.”
Layla
turned off the stove and poured the soup in a bowl. She grabbed a few napkins and the crackers Buck had laying out. “Don’t leave in case he doesn’t take this well.”

“I’ll be in the hall if you need me.” Buck nodded. The giant grizzly bear Jan was married to was the easiest person to be around.

Layla
picked up the tray she had placed everything on and took in a fortifying breath.

When she came closer to the bedroom, she could hear him talking to Savannah and Brice. They were so afraid he was dead they cried every night. It didn’t matter that they could see him in the bed, and that everyone had told them otherwise. Until today, they didn’t fully believe it. Of course, he looked a wreck to grown up eyes, so he must have looked worse to the children.

“Be careful, Savannah,”
Layla
whispered unintentionally. Savannah was on the bed next to him, and it made her nervous. She could hurt him very easily right now, and that would only make her little heart sad if she did.

“Yes, ma’am.”
Savannah eased off the bed.

“She’s fine,” he said, defiance laced his tone. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, it’s a long story…”

* * *

“I’ll take the readers digest version if you don’t mind.” He was certainly in a foul mood today.

“Savannah, Brice, why don’t you ask Buck if he would put in a movie for you. Let mommy and
Rafe
have a few minutes alone.” She watched him watch them. They listened to her now. She wasn’t frazzled or confused. By no means was the relationship perfect, but she was learning, and they were eager to help her be the best mom she could be. They had open communication now, and that made a world of difference.

She set the tray on the tray table and then sat boldly next to him on the bed. “I’m taking care of you.”

“The hell you are,” he said in a low breath.

“You wanted the readers digest version.”
Layla
looked at him, at the stitches over his right eye, the bruising on his chest over his ribs, the cast on his arm. It was pointless for him to refuse. “I’m here. Actually, we are here. Bethany told us to move in because you needed twenty-four hour supervision and assistance, and everyone else around here has to work, and you know better than me this place is a full-time job all on its own. It never sleeps with the guests and the workers…”

“I know how this ranch operates, but that doesn’t mean Bethany, or anyone else can let you move into my house, or… what about your job?” He seemed to think she cared more about the job than she actually did. If she could apply elsewhere, she would have, but no one else was flexible with the childcare hours and what she almost had a degree in wasn’t in high demand in Montana. “I lost my job. They closed the shelter. The lease is month by month, so of course, in a week this month would be up, and I couldn’t see spending my last paycheck on a place if it would only buy us a month. When we came to the hospital, Bethany pulled me aside and asked if I needed a job. So now, I am here, at your beck and call. My job is to take care of you.”