Her Texas Hero

“I’d do the same if it were an old woman,” Carter said, feeling the need to defend himself. But he doubted an older woman would have plagued his thoughts the way Audra Marshall and her children had since he’d left their place. “So about that door...”

Nathan motioned toward the pole barn. “Have at it. Just watch you’re not the one who ends up in over your head. And I’m not referring to the renovations to her house.”

“No worry there,” Carter called back over his shoulder as he started for the entry door to the pole barn. “I like my life just the way it is.” No family of his own to worry about losing far too soon, like Nathan had. He’d seen what his brother went through, was still going through, and he never wanted to stand in his shoes. So while he dated on occasion, he made sure the women he went out with knew he wasn’t looking for a long-term relationship. Just someone to grab dinner with or see a movie.

Nothing more.

* * *

“What in the world?” For the second time in two days, Carter found himself barreling up Audra Marshall’s driveway in his truck.

Lodged within the frame of the open front door was what looked to be a box spring. Behind it, attempting to push it into the house, were Audra and her young son. Lily stood off to the side, happily cheering them on.

Carter threw the truck into Park and leaped out.

“It’s the Lone Ranger!” Lily exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement.

Audra paused to look back over her shoulder. “Mr. Cooper,” she greeted between the labored pants of her determined efforts.

“Looks like I got here just in time,” he said as he stepped up onto the porch.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded as she reached up to push a strand of hair that had come loose from her ponytail away from her face. She looked oddly adorable in her rumpled, oversize #1 MOM T-shirt that practically swallowed up her petite form, knee-length leggings and hot-pink tennis shoes. Not that he ought to be noticing those things.

“I came to do my Christian duty,” he said, reaching past her to grab hold of the box spring.

“We don’t—”

“Need my help?” he said, arching a challenging brow.

She bit at her bottom lip.

“Now that we got that settled, let’s get this thing through the doorway.”

“It won’t fit,” Lily told him.

“Sure it will, little darlin’, but not at this angle.” He looked to Audra. “I’ll need to shift it slightly and then we should be able to ease it through.” His gaze focused on Mason. “I’ll need your help with this, big guy. Think you could crawl in through that gap at the floor and tell us how much farther we need to push the box spring to get it all the way inside?”

“I can do that!” he replied.

“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea,” Audra said with a worried frown.

“Trust me,” Carter told her. “This box spring isn’t going anywhere the way it’s sitting right now.”

She eyed the gap between the door frame and the bottom portion of the box spring and then looked to her son. “Watch you don’t bump your head going through there.”

“I will,” her little boy replied. A second later, he was scooting through the narrow hole.

Carter kept a firm hold on the box spring until Mason had cleared the doorway. Then he adjusted the box spring with an ease neither Audra nor her children could have managed. “It’s best he stay out of the way while I take this through,” he whispered for her ears only.

She looked up at him, understanding dawning. “I appreciate your taking my son’s well-being into consideration,” she whispered back, her voice catching slightly.

“How are we looking on your side, Mason?” he called out to her son.

“All clear!”

“Okay, coming through.” With a powerful nudge of his shoulder, he worked the box spring in through the open door. Then he managed, with some maneuvering and a little help from Audra, to get it upstairs to her room. He did the same with the mattress. Then he turned to the kids. “Time to bring your beds up.”

“They’re already up here,” Lily said.

He looked to Audra, who nodded. “You got them upstairs by yourself?”

She smiled. “They’re only twin-size and Mason helped.”

“I did, too, Mommy,” Lily whined.

“Yes, she did, too,” her mother quickly amended. “Lily carried up their pillows.”

“I see,” Carter said with a nod. “My next question is, why didn’t the movers carry your things inside for you?”

“I didn’t hire movers,” she admitted. “I just hired a company to store our things and then deliver them to the house the day after we got here. We’re supposed to unload everything and they’ll send someone to pick up their storage pods in two days.”

Reaching up, he dragged a sleeve across his damp brow. “Two days?”

She nodded.

“Then you’re gonna need help moving your things in before the rain gets here.”

“Rain?” she gasped.

“It’s expected to hit tomorrow afternoon,” he told her. “And according to the local weather station it’s gonna be hanging around a spell.”

“I’ll just have to work faster getting things inside,” she said determinedly, her response not surprising him one bit.

“Darlin’, there’s a time for holding on firm to our pride and there’s a time for swallowing it,” he told her as he pulled his cell phone from the front pocket of his jeans and punched in Nathan’s number.

“What are you doing?” she asked, her gaze dropping to the phone in his hand.

His mouth pulled up into a grin as he replied, “Calling for backup.”

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