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River didn’t want to be pursued, and she wasn’t certain how to get that through his head—or hers. She’d felt the unmistakable surge of excitement at the thought of being romanced by him. When he’d made love to her, it had been like magic, pure magic, and she’d adored every minute of it.
“You know you want me,” Tighe said, his voice teasing, and River looked at him, and thought, Yes, I do. But it’s just not going to happen.
* * *
“THIS IS SO going to happen,” Tighe said, following River to her room. “We need to get to know each other much better since we’re going to be parents.”
“We don’t know for sure.”
“I know for sure. And I can’t wait. Pack up your stuff, doll face. I need a night nurse.”
“You need nothing and no one. I have this on good authority from your sister.”
River wouldn’t even look at him, the cute, shy little thing. “Don’t listen to Ash,” Tighe told her. “She thinks she’s the family font of all knowledge, but we humored her growing up. She was sheltered, babied. She doesn’t know a thing.” He settled on River’s bed. “I can’t sleep here with you. It wouldn’t be appropriate for the twins.”
“Yes, I know,” River said sweetly, but he wasn’t fooled in the least.
“You’ll have to be my night nurse at the bunkhouse.”
“If you need a nurse, ask Fiona. I have a job. In fact, my job is the exact reason why nothing further is going to happen between you and me.”
He frowned, not liking the sound of that.
“The thing is, it’s unprofessional. In fact, it was unprofessional, what I did with you,” River said, her cheeks turning a becoming pink Tighe thought was adorable. “I shouldn’t have allowed your aunt and family to talk me into that little adventure, and I should have...turned you away when you came to my room that night.”
He laughed. She was just such a sexy fireball. “Sweetcakes, you wouldn’t have turned me away. As I recall, you scooted over and made room for me in that tiny little bed.”
Her face went bright red. He grinned. “I liked it. Made me feel very welcome. And that’s what I’m going to do for you tonight, when you come to my bed.”
“I won’t be doing any such thing,” she said, a little snappishly, but he wasn’t afraid of a girl with spirit.
Tighe got to his feet. “See you later.”
“I don’t think so.”
He headed out the door to the bunkhouse. He’d be seeing River all right—the lady liked him.
But not as much as he liked her.
Give me time. I’ll change her mind.
* * *
TIGHE HEARD HIS door open about midnight, and smiled in the darkness. This was awesome. He’d known River would come. She couldn’t resist him. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, they shared something special. He pretended to be asleep, so he wouldn’t ruin her surprise.
He’d act so surprised, and then make love to her until she admitted she was crazy about him.
The light flipped on, jarring his eyes open. River stood there, wearing a robe and high-heeled slippers. He grinned. “Well, hello, gorgeous. Come to nurse me back to a full-strength wild man?”
He watched her move his crutch away from his nightstand, a bit out of his reach. Of course, he wouldn’t need that tonight. River gave him a long gaze, then opened her robe, and he swallowed so hard he thought he might choke. Not a scrap was on her body.
“Holy smokes,” he said, “come to Daddy. And don’t take the long route. Jump right into my arms.”
River closed her robe.
He looked at her. “If you’re cold, I’ll be happy to warm you, darling.”
She gave him one last look, took his crutch and left the room.
“That little devil. What was that all about?” He hobbled out of his room, glanced around the bunkhouse. His nocturnal angel had gone, taking all the sexy joy away.
Now he was stiff in several places.
“That little lady and I have got to work some things out,” he muttered, and climbed back into bed, completely disgruntled.
And then he got it. She was trying to drive him mad. That was the plan, while he was in no shape to give proper chase. She was going to make him crazy, make him want her, until he begged her to be his woman.
* * *
“NO, YOU DOPE,” Jace said the next day when Tighe mentioned that he’d had the strangest dream in the night, wherein River had nearly killed him with a vision of divine beauty, then cruelly snatched it away. “She’s not softening toward you. I heard Ash and her discussing it. She was showing you how cruel it had been that you sandbagged her in her hotel room that night. Ash told her you had to realize that what happens in the night doesn’t necessarily translate to real life. Sort of what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”
“My sister put my girlfriend up to giving me a relationship lesson? Isn’t that the blind leading the blind?” Now that he understood what had happened, Tighe felt a whole lot better. It explained the wild look in her big eyes, as if she wasn’t totally committed to the caper, perhaps might have even been nervous.
“I wouldn’t put it so harshly. Ladies cook up these plans all the time. Guys do, too, but we’re more interested in getting into ladies’ drawers than staying out of them. River wants you to know that the two of you don’t have anything that translates to real life.” Jace kicked back in the bunkhouse, grinned at his brother. “This one’s gonna be tough, bro. And you’ve only got one leg to chase her on.”
“Won’t matter.” Tighe felt a bit deflated suddenly. Maybe River didn’t want him. Was that possible?
Nah. No way.
“Hey, give me a ride, will you?” he asked Jace.
“Heading back to the canyons?”
“No. Not yet.” He stumped toward the jeep. There was only one place to go when a woman was on the fence about a man, and if a man was smart, he got himself there and did the thing right. Big. Huge.
He could do impressive.
* * *
“THIS ISN’T A good idea,” Ash said, poking her nose into his business as she loved to do. “What message did you not receive during her midnight visit? What happens at night isn’t real life, bro.”
“Why did you come with me to Diablo, anyway?” Tighe muttered, wondering if his sister was right as he stared into the jewelry case at all the twinkling engagement rings. He was suddenly doubtful, and Ash wasn’t helping.
“You don’t even know if River’s having your child,” Jace pointed out. “This is premature. Maybe.”
“I want River to know that, baby or no baby, I want to marry her. Whatever happens, I’m the man she wants.”
“I don’t think so,” Ash said. “Not that I’m trying to knock your good leg out from underneath you, but I’m pretty sure she hasn’t changed her mind about you.”
Tighe shook his head. “She has a great poker face.” And a great body, but he forbore adding that.
“She’s not faking it,” Ash told him. “I believe in my heart that River thinks a real relationship isn’t built on nighttime shenanigans.”
“I’ll take that one,” he said to the jeweler, pointing to the biggest sparkler in the case. “Bigger is always better.”
Ash sighed. “Your head is bigger than most men’s, and that’s not better.”
“True,” Jace said. “Why don’t you wait another month, so you don’t crowd her? You know how sometimes if you try to rush an animal, it goes in the opposite direction?”
Tighe debated whether he was getting good advice from his siblings. If he was, it would be the first time.
“Since our family came here to Rancho Diablo,” he said softly, “we’ve changed. All of us have worked hard. We’ve done what Running Bear wanted us to do. The mission was understood, and we’ve kept to it. But River is outside of the mission. And she makes my heart whole. That’s the only way I know how to explain it.”
Ash nodded. “I know. But we were just trying to keep you off of Firefreak,” she said gently. “We didn’t expect that the plot would go as far as it appears it did.”
He swallowed hard. “River didn’t sleep with me to keep me off a bull. Nothing and nobody could have kept me from that ride.”
“I know.” Ash sighed. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
Tighe looked at the ring he’d selected with some regret. “Maybe you’re right.”
“Probably this once, she is,” Jace said. “You hate to jump the gun. Ladies can be so giddy.”
“Not really,” Ash said. “We’re just practical. We can see the forest for the trees. We can—”
“Come on,” Tighe said. “Drive me back, Sophocles.”
He felt a bit roughed up and heartbroken. No man wanted to think a woman wouldn’t be thrilled with his proposal and a beautiful ring. But Ash knew River better than he did. Feeling like a dog with a tucked tail, Tighe allowed his brother and sister to usher him out of the jewelry store.
By the jeep stood their uncle Wolf, grinning at them with his typical up-to-no-good grimace. Tighe wished he wasn’t using a crutch, hated to appear weak in front of the enemy. “Look what the summer wind blew in. Pollution.”
“Well, if it isn’t my favorite family members,” Wolf said.
“Spare us,” Ash said, getting into the jeep. “When are you going to give up? We’re not going anywhere. Rancho Diablo is our home.”
“Just wanted to warn you that we saw some strange things in the canyons, me and my men.” Wolf looked at them. “Might have been some birds of prey. Never can be sure at a distance.”
“What are you getting at?” Tighe demanded.
“Have you checked on Running Bear lately?”
Tighe settled into the back of the jeep, and Jace got in the passenger seat while Ash switched on the engine. “No one needs to check on the chief. He checks on everyone, including you. Even black sheep get watched by the shepherd.”
Wolf’s expression turned peeved, though he shrugged. “Just a thought.” He walked away, went inside the Books’n’Bingo Society bookshop and tearoom. Up the main street, Tighe saw a few of Wolf’s merry stragglers staring them down.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” he said under his breath.
“So do I,” Ash murmured. “For one thing, Wolf’s gone into Fiona’s tearoom, which means he plans to stir up trouble. But that bit about Running Bear—”
“Is a trap,” Jace said.
“Agreed. Head for home.” Tighe shoved his hat low on his head, settled his leg more comfortably, trying to ignore the sudden yawing pit in his stomach. No one could get to Running Bear; their grandfather was part of the canyons and the wind and the sun.
They knew Running Bear wasn’t immortal. He just seemed like it.
Closing his eyes, Tighe tried to envision his grandfather as Ash sped toward Rancho Diablo. Searched his mind for the old chief’s spirit.
Something didn’t feel quite right. He just couldn’t put his finger on it.
It felt as if change was coming.
* * *
THE RANCH WAS alive with women when Tighe returned with his siblings. Ladies of all shapes and sizes filed into the house, carrying bags and boxes and notebooks.
“Wow.” Ash parked the jeep, staring. “Has Aunt Fiona got one of her meetings today?”
Jace grunted. “Looks like every woman in Diablo is here. Maybe she forgot to tell everyone the meeting is at the Books’n’Bingo tearoom, as they always are.”
Tighe got down out of the vehicle, ignoring his brother’s help. “I’ve got a crutch,” he snapped. “Anyway, my leg is almost healed.”
“Not until Galen examines it and says so. No heroics. We’ve had enough of those.” Jace headed toward the house with Ash, leaving Tighe to stump along behind.
Inside, the ladies were an excited gaggle of happy faces and energetic voices. His aunt was in her element in the middle of the crowd Tighe estimated to be somewhere around thirty. He kissed her on the cheek. “Aunt Fiona, did you forget to send me an invitation to the party?”
River stood nearby, gorgeous but not pleased, if he gauged her mood correctly. She wasn’t smiling, though to be fair, she was beautiful even when she frowned. “I sure do have a thing for you,” he said to her, and she shook her head and drifted into another room.
“What’s going on, Aunt Fiona?”
“I think you better talk things over with River,” Fiona said.
His heart fell into his boots.
“You always were the unpredictable one,” his aunt said with a grin.
“Oh, no, Aunt Fiona, this baby shower isn’t for River, is it?” River already had a tiny touch of cold feet. This wouldn’t help. He strode out of the room to follow her.
“River?” She was putting some small, crustless sandwiches on a tray in the kitchen. “What’s going on?”
“Well,” River said, “apparently we’re definitely pregnant.”
His heart leaped for joy. Yet she wasn’t smiling, so he sensed a heartfelt “Hurray!” wasn’t appropriate. “And Aunt Fiona already planned a baby shower?”
She shook her head. “This isn’t for me, although the word is definitely out and plans are in full swing. I’m surprised you weren’t mobbed with congratulations when you walked into the house.”
He glanced over his shoulder to where the women were corralled in the den, chatting. “You could have called and let me know. I’d have liked to be first and not last.”
“Don’t worry. This is just a planning meeting for the upcoming Christmas ball.” River handed him the tray. “Six months is hardly enough time for Fiona to get everything done she wants, so the planning must begin now. Volunteers must be pressed into work, committees formed.”
