The Rancher Takes a Bride (3 page)

He bypassed Jake's place and drove down the dirt road to his house. The two-story home had a pillared front porch and a veranda that ran across the second floor. It had been a showplace years ago when his grandfather had been alive. And then it had been abandoned and had started to fall apart. Posts on the porch had needed to be replaced, along with the roof, siding and many of the windows.

Beyond this house was a caretaker's cottage, with two bedrooms and a sunny living room. He'd lived in the cottage for six months, since he'd begun the initial repairs to the main house. Today he'd had an idea.

The cottage was one story, no steps and no porches. Just a nice little rock house with a front door, a back patio and a few flower gardens. Perfect for Oregon and Lilly. Not that he thought it would be that easy. He could already hear Oregon's objections in his head.

A truck pulled up the drive as he sat there looking at the cottage. He groaned as he took a quick look in his rearview mirror. The last thing he needed was big brother time. But sooner or later it would have to take place.

He got out of his truck as Jake parked. Jake stepped out of his own vehicle with an easy smile on his face. Jake had always been the one taking charge of their family, making the hard decisions. Duke guessed it hadn't been all Jake's fault. Duke hadn't been that much younger; he'd just found other ways to deal with life. He'd been out partying, team roping and running from the pain their mother had caused them all.

Jake had grown more and more resentful, taking the burden of raising the Martins and keeping the ranch in the black.

“Saw you drive by,” Jake said as he shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his jeans and rocked on the heels of his boots. He looked from the house to Duke. “Is Lilly okay?”

Duke stared at the cottage and avoided looking at his brother. He guessed that Jake really wanted to ask if he was sober. He'd passed seven bars and three liquor stores on his way home. He hadn't stopped at one of them. Hadn't even been tempted. That said something.

“Yeah, she'll be okay. Broken leg, concussion, a bruised spleen.”

“Where are they?”

“Still at the hospital. I thought they might be able to stay here. More room and no stairs.”

“Right.” Silence stretched on, and finally Jake smiled a little. “She's yours, isn't she?”

Duke nodded. “Yeah, she's mine.”

“Do we need a DNA test?”

That made him mad. “She isn't here to get anything from me. The last thing she wanted to do was tell me I had a daughter. But today seemed to be the day.”

He had a daughter. The idea settled inside him, making him angry and glad and hurt, all at the same time. Jake's grinning wasn't going to help. He shot his brother a warning look and stomped off. Jake gave him a few minutes to cool his heels before following him inside the cottage.

“This isn't something you keep from a man,” he told Jake as he rummaged through the kitchen cabinets.

“No, I reckon it isn't.” Jake opened the fridge and pulled out a package of moldy lunch meat. “Wouldn't hurt you to get a wife.”

“I proposed. She isn't interested.”

Jake laughed. “Proposed? What did you say, ‘Gee, I guess we should get married'? You're the ladies' man. I expect better from you.”

Duke laughed, and it loosened something inside him, something that had been tight as a clock and ready to spring loose. “I expect better from myself. I guess if a guy was going to have a kid, he'd expect to remember that he had her.”

He brushed a hand across the top of his head. Jake watched, hip against the counter, cowboy hat pulled low.

“Well, now you know. Guess what you gotta do is decide how to go forward from here.”

“I go forward as a dad. End of story.”

Jake shrugged, looking comfortable in his own skin. Duke had always thought of himself as the comfortable one. Today cool and unflustered belonged to Jake.

“Might call Charlie and get advice.”

“I don't need your attorney.”

“Fine, you'll figure it out.” Jake gave the easy answer as he stepped away from the cabinet.

Yes, he would find a way to be Lilly's dad. He guessed he'd start by getting her that horse she wanted.

And he'd have to figure out his relationship with Oregon.

Chapter Three

“W
here are we going?” Lilly asked as they got closer to Martin's Crossing. She was in Duke's truck, leaning against Oregon. Her leg in the bright pink knee-to-foot cast was stretched out, nearly touching Duke's leg as he drove.

He'd showed up at the hospital that morning with the news that he would be driving them home. Oregon had allowed it because she didn't have a car there and because he was Lilly's dad.

She'd spent a lot of sleepless nights thinking about how everything would change when she told him. It was no longer the Lilly and Oregon show. Duke was now a part of their lives. They couldn't go back. In some strange way they were now a family unit. They would have to figure out how it changed things, what it meant for the future. She knew he deserved this, to be in Lilly's life.

Oregon knew it would hurt in ways she hadn't expected. Because the young cowboy she'd met thirteen years ago had been a force to be reckoned with. He'd had a charming smile, too much confidence and a way with words. He'd melted her resistance. She'd wanted love. She'd wanted forever. All from a man she'd known for a weekend.

Looking back, she knew how wrong that had been.

But present-day Duke was more of a concern. This man now had shadows in blue eyes that once had been carefree, full of laughter. This man now knew how to be a friend. How to be there for the people he cared about.

It didn't take a genius to know her heart could be broken all over again if she wasn't careful. Lilly moved, repositioning herself, bringing Oregon out of her own thoughts.

“Yes, Duke, where are we going?” She repeated her daughter's question.

He'd been pretty mysterious since he showed up in the hospital room carrying a bouquet of flowers with a half-dozen balloons attached. It took up the entire backseat of his truck.

“We're going to the ranch. I want to show you all something,” he answered. Once again mysterious, but this time with a hint of a smile.

“We should go back to our place so Lilly can rest.” Oregon hooked an arm around her daughter and Lilly snuggled close, probably drifting back to sleep again.

“Yes, rest is a good idea,” Duke answered vaguely and kept on driving.

They turned onto the road to the Circle M. The paved road ended at Jake's house and became dirt. Fences lined both sides of the road. They drove past Duke's house and then past a barn. In the field cattle grazed, and near the barn a few horses raised their heads and watched the truck drive by.

“This is pretty,” Lilly mumbled, lifting her head to look around.

“Yes, it is.” Duke pulled up to a stone cottage.

“Duke, what is this?” Oregon felt a twinge of uncertainty bordering on fear.

She'd been in Martin's Crossing long enough to know he wasn't going to let her call all of the shots now that he knew about Lilly. A part of her wanted to tell him to back off. Another part of her wanted him to pretend nothing had changed.

“Let's get out,” he said. He opened the truck door and reached in the backseat for pink crutches, handing them to Lilly. “Come on, kiddo.”

Lilly, suddenly wide awake, grabbed the crutches and allowed him to help her out. No, it wouldn't take Oregon's daughter long to adjust to this new situation. Lilly smiled up at him and he leaned, giving her a loose hug. He was everything that any little girl would dream of in a dad. Especially Oregon's little girl, who had watched with envy when other little girls sat on their daddy's shoulders or rode bikes down the street together. Oregon knew that type of envy because she'd felt it often growing up.

“Coming?” Duke glanced back inside the truck, and Oregon nodded. Did she have a choice? Duke wasn't smiling. His mouth was a straight, unforgiving line. His jaw was set. No, he wasn't giving in.

She climbed out of the truck and met her daughter and Duke on the lawn, standing in front of the little stone house. “It's nice. This is where you've been staying while you remodeled the old house?”

“Yes, and it's where you're going to stay now. It doesn't have any steps. Even the porch is ground level. And the doors are wide.”

Oregon stood there on the freshly mowed lawn, speechless. A black-and-white dog came down the drive. Of course it went right to Lilly, circling her, sniffing, brushy black tail wagging. “Lilly, be careful. Don't let him knock you down.”

“She isn't going to knock me down, Mom.” Lilly dropped one crutch and leaned down to pet the Border collie.

“But you can't fall. You have to be careful.”

“She's careful.” Duke spoke in a quiet voice of reason. She didn't want reasonable. Not right now. She picked up the crutch her daughter had dropped, and handed it to her. Lilly took it with a grimace and shoved it back under her arm.

When Oregon faced Duke, he nodded in Lilly's direction, stopping her from saying anything she'd regret. Oh, that didn't help. Reasonable, thoughtful, considerate male. How dare he?

“Oregon, I'm moving into the main house. I've been remodeling and it's close to finished. That means this cottage will be empty. It's quiet. It has room, and it doesn't have steps.”

She left Lilly and Duke in the yard, Lilly sitting on a lawn chair, the dog practically climbing into her lap. Duke was answering a question about the horses he owned. Lilly had always been horse crazy. And dog crazy. They already had a dog at home. Joe had been taking care of it for them.

Oregon walked through the front door of the house, and her heart ached to claim this place as her own. It had windows that let in the breeze, freshly polished hardwood floors, a kitchen with white-painted cabinets and out the back door, a stone patio with a pretty teakwood table and a gas grill.

She strode out the back door. Alone, she stood on the stone patio and stared out at the grasslands of Texas. In the distance there were the hills that made Hill Country a destination for many travelers. It was late May, and the grass was green; wildflowers bloomed.

Footsteps told her she was no longer alone. Duke touched her back, his hand resting lightly. She had a sudden, overwhelming urge to lean into his embrace, to welcome the comfort he was offering. She wanted to soak up his scent, his strength. She turned to tell him this was too much, that she couldn't accept it, but when she turned, his arms went around her, and he pulled her close, bending to drop a kiss on the top of her head. It was what she'd dreamed of, and the last thing she wanted.

No, she didn't want to need him. But she couldn't make herself pull free from the embrace and all it offered.

“It's just a house, Oregon. It isn't a commitment. It isn't a ridiculous proposal offered on the spur of the moment. It's a place to live.”

“It's too much,” she tried to insist.

“You've raised my daughter alone for twelve years. I think I owe you a home to live in and more. Let me do this.”

She nodded. “Thank you.”

“Thank
you
. For bringing her here...and for telling me.”

Behind them they heard the sound of crutches on the tile floor of the kitchen, then the squeak of the screen door. Oregon wiped her eyes and moved away from him to face her daughter. Lilly looked from Duke to Oregon, her eyes wide, suspicious.

“What's going on?” Lilly asked.

“Let's sit down out here and we'll talk,” Oregon said with a lightness she was far from feeling.

“I'll get us a glass of tea,” Duke offered.

Oregon nodded, accepting the offer as she held out a chair for Lilly. Her daughter sat and was immediately joined by the dog.

“What's your dog's name, Duke?” Lilly asked.

“Daisy.”

“Very manly,” Lilly teased. Her smile was back, but she wouldn't offer it to Oregon.

Duke returned with three glasses of tea on a tray. “I stocked the fridge and cabinets.”

“You didn't have to do that.” Oregon didn't want him taking over, feeling as if he suddenly had to provide for them. Her shop, selling handmade creations of her own design, was doing quite well. She hadn't come here for support, for money. She just wanted her daughter to have what she'd never had. A real dad. A place to call home.

“I know I don't have to, Oregon. I wanted to make things easier for you.”

“What if I'd said no?” she countered as she lifted the glass, condensation making the outside damp and cold.

“Okay, could we not start some kind of family disagreement,” Lilly said. And then she looked at the two of them. “We're not a family.”

Oregon bit down on her bottom lip and let her gaze slide to Duke. He was looking at her daughter, at
their
daughter. Oregon nodded when he looked to her for direction.

She had to do this.

* * *

“Lilly, we need to talk.” Oregon began with those words, and Duke couldn't disagree. He didn't know any better way to start. But now that the words were said, he wondered if they should have given it more time. Maybe they should have prepared Lilly in some way. This was big news for a kid.

It had been pretty big news for him.

“Okay.” Lilly sank her fingers into Daisy's black-and-white coat, and she looked at Duke as if he could make this any easier. He gave her what he hoped was an encouraging, hang-in-there smile.

“Duke and I knew each other a long time ago. We met at a rodeo when I was eighteen.”

The words hung between them, and he felt like an acrobat on a tightrope, hanging precariously above this situation. Lilly continued to pet Daisy. She dropped her gaze to the dog with its tongue hanging out, a dog smile on her face. Daisy whined and moved in closer to Lilly, as if sensing that this wasn't good.

“How many years ago?” Lilly raised those blue eyes and looked from her mom to him.

“Almost thirteen years.” Oregon spoke in a quiet voice, her gaze shifting from her daughter to him.

“Thirteen,” Lilly whispered, her face pale, her hands clasping the dog, pulling her close. She buried her face against Daisy, and he had the sneaking suspicion she was hiding tears. His kid would do that. She'd hide it when she cried, and she'd fight anyone who said those were tears on her cheeks.

Duke sat there watching the girl who was his daughter. He didn't know what to say. He definitely didn't know what a dad would do in this situation.

He did know he'd knock down mountains for her. “Lilly, I'm sorry. If I'd known...”

She glared, eyes narrowed. “Sorry?” She shook her head, one tear sliding down her cheek. She brushed it away. “For what? For not telling me? For acting like my friend?”

Oregon opened her mouth; he was sure she meant to reprimand Lilly. He put a hand up, stopping the words. “She has a right to be angry.”

He didn't have a manual on parenting, but he knew all about being an angry kid.

“Yeah, angry.” Lilly said it like she was trying to find the emotion that fit. He guessed there was a lot of hurt. How much did they tell her? How much did they keep from her?

He looked to Oregon because she had the experience he was lacking. She moved her chair closer to her daughter. No, retract that, his daughter. Their daughter. He studied her face.

“Lilly, Duke didn't know. I waited too long and by the time I had found him, he'd joined the army and was on his way to Afghanistan.”

“But you came here to tell him, and you didn't. Right?” Lilly swiped at angry tears chasing a trail down her cheeks. Duke brushed dampness from his own cheeks.

He hated that she was crying and that he didn't know how to fix this for her. He loved this kid and had from the first moment she bounded up the steps of the diner, asking for odd jobs to raise money for a horse. He'd given her a bridle for Christmas. She'd made him a card with a horse she drew. She'd signed it “with love, Lilly.”

They'd had an immediate connection, he guessed. And he hadn't been smart enough to figure it out, to see the smile, the blue eyes, for what they were. His eyes. His sister's smile. Yeah, he saw it now. Lilly looked like his little sister, Samantha, but with Oregon's dark hair.

“I took too long,” Oregon admitted. “For that I owe you both an apology, and I hope you'll forgive me. I just wanted to know for sure...”

She looked up, meeting his gaze. He saw tears gather in her eyes and escape down the slopes of her cheeks. “I messed up,” she whispered.

“Yeah, you did.” Lilly wasn't all about forgiveness at the moment. Duke knew she'd get past it. She was that kind of kid.

“Lilly, your mom wanted to know that I was a person she'd want in your life. And I can tell you, a few years back, I wasn't. I've made a lot of mistakes.”

She shot him a look. “Yeah, you did.”

“No. You're not a mistake,” he countered.

“Not a mistake, just...” She grabbed her crutches and stood. “What am I?”

“Our daughter,” Duke said, wishing he could take back twelve years and redo everything. But he couldn't.

“I'm taking a walk.” Lilly hobbled off.

Duke started to go after her. Oregon stopped him, a hand on his arm. “Let her have a few minutes alone.”

He sat back down in the chair next to Oregon. He watched his daughter walk away, Daisy at her heels but keeping a careful distance. He knew where she was going. She was going to the horses.

“What are we going to do?” he asked Oregon. She was watching Lilly walk away.

“We're going to be parents together. We'll figure it out.”

“Right. Of course we will.” But Oregon had already figured it out. He was the one who had a lot to learn.

He'd spent most of his life not planning to marry, not planning on kids. And now he had one. A girl named Lilly. And where did that leave Oregon, the mother of his child?

Since yesterday he'd been forcing himself to remember, trying to recall that summer. Man, he'd been out of control that year. He'd watched his dad drinking his life away, Jake trying to be the man of the house and his younger siblings, Samantha and Brody, lost and alone. Duke had run wild, trying to make it all go away. But he remembered bits and pieces of a girl who thought she was having an adventure barrel racing.