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Wyatt couldn’t help but smile at the thought of both the daughter and the mother. So maybe he had charmed his way back into the house. He frowned. Maybe that shouldn’t get him so excited.
Maura tried not to make too much of the invitation, reminding herself she was just following through with her agreement. After all, fixing the man a few meals was a great trade for a month’s free rent.
There was a knock at the back door and she looked up to find Wyatt standing on the porch. Right on time. Even a little rumpled from sleep, he was a gorgeous man. Tall, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. Seeing him yesterday without a shirt, she knew he didn’t have an ounce of fat on his body. It was all muscle. Her gaze moved upward to his face to catch his grin. Another blush warmed her cheeks.
“Wyatt, come in,” she said.
“Thank you, ma’am.” He opened the screen door and walked in, then winked at Kelly as he hung his hat on the peg by the door.
“Have a seat.” Maura turned back to the stove and the pancakes. This was one thing she could make without fail. “Kelly, go get your brother.”
The little girl scurried off, leaving them alone. Maura took a deep breath and released it, then picked up the plate of pancakes and carried them to the table. “Help yourself.”
“Don’t mind if I do.” He stabbed into the stack, taking four.
She slid into the chair across from him. “I want to apologize for last night.”
Wyatt stopped pouring syrup. “There’s nothing to apologize for. I overstepped my bounds.”
“You have every right to ask questions. You’re letting us stay here.”
He shook his head. “Listen, everyone is entitled to their secrets.”
Maura didn’t want to talk about her past. She wanted to move on. But she also needed to make Wyatt understand.
“My husband, Darren…we didn’t…the divorce was hard on all of us, especially Jeff. With the move from Dallas to San Angelo, he’s having difficulty adjusting.”
Wyatt knew that Maura was leaving out a lot. Just the look on her face when she talked about her ex told him she was terrified of the man. That only meant one thing—the man had abused her. He felt himself tense. In his book there was nothing lower than a man who used his fists on a woman.
“Maura, I have only one question, then I’ll drop the subject altogether. Is there a chance that your ex-husband will come here and bother you?”
“No! He doesn’t know where we are,” she admitted, terror in her voice. Wyatt wanted nothing more than to take her into his arms and assure her that he would take care of her.
“And as long as you and the kids are under this roof,” he said, “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Maura started to speak when Kelly came running into the room, crying. Soon to follow was her pleased-looking older brother.
“Mommy, Mommy, Jeff said my freckles were ugly spots.”
The little girl ran to her mother. She sobbed as if her heart were broken.
Wyatt glared at the boy, who looked satisfied that he caused chaos. “You’re not ugly, Kelly. You’re the prettiest little girl that I know.”
The girl wiped her eyes. “Really?”
“Do you know what your freckles mean?”
She shook her head causing her ponytail to swing back and forth.
“You’ve been kissed by the sun.”
A bright smile appeared as she looked at her brother. “See, I’ve been kissed.”
Jeff started to speak, but thought twice when he saw Wyatt’s challenging look. He turned to his mother. “Mom, I want some pancakes, too.”
“Please,” Wyatt added.
The boy remained silent for a few seconds, then added, “Please.”
Maura dished up two large cakes, then directed Kelly to her chair and put one on her plate and began to cut it up. “No, I want Wyatt to do it.” Kelly smiled. “Please.”
This was a new experience for him. He had never cut up a child’s food. Maura nodded as she sat down. He picked up a fork and began cutting the cake into bite-size pieces.
“There you go, princess. Want some syrup?”
She smiled at him sweetly, then looked at her brother. “Wyatt called me princess.”
Jeff mumbled something under his breath, then continued eating his breakfast.
Maura finished her own pancakes and carried her plate to the sink. She hustled her daughter along, then upstairs to brush her teeth. Handing her son his lunch, she sent him off to find his backpack.
When she returned, she discovered Wyatt running water into the sink basin. The man didn’t give up. “I told you, you don’t have to do those.”
“House rules,” he said. “You cooked breakfast, I do the dishes.”
Maura started to argue but he looked at her with those seductive blue eyes. A warm tingle pulsed through her, settling deep in her stomach and she forgot all about everything. It wasn’t until the school bus honked that she realized she was staring. She rushed off to get Jeff out the door.
Wyatt watched as Maura scurried from the room. Seemed the pretty blonde was in constant motion. He couldn’t help but appreciate the soft curves of her backside.
Whoa, just rein in those thoughts, buddy. She’s off-limits.
Just then little Kelly came into the kitchen. She dropped her backpack on the table. “I go to school, too. But I don’t hafta leave yet.” She dragged a chair over to the sink. “So can I help you?”
Definitely off-limits. “That would be nice, but I don’t want you to get wet.”
“I can wear Mama’s apron.” She darted to the drawer and pulled out a colorful floral apron and tried to put in on. She went to him. “I can’t do bows yet.”
Wyatt dried off his hands and after only two attempts, he managed to tie the too-big apron on the child. He handed her a towel and she started drying the flatware, and placing each piece carefully on the counter.
“I help Mommy a lot,” the child began. “She lets me dust.”
“That’s very nice of you to help your mother. And you’re only three years old.”
Her head bobbed up and down in agreement. “I’m going to be four on Thanksgiving. Mommy says I’m not a baby anymore. That I’m growin’ up.” She eyed him. “Do you have any little girls?”
Wyatt shook his head, wondering when the questions were going to stop. “No. No kids.”
“You all by yourself?”
Again he nodded.
“You get scared?”
“I have a mother and my brother.”
“Is he mean to you?”
Wyatt had to smile, remembering how he and Dylan had fought when they were kids. “We had fights, but not too many anymore.”
“Jeff is a mean brother. He calls me a dumb girl all the time.” Tears filled her eyes. “I’m not dumb.”
Wyatt wiped off his hands. No sooner had he turned to the girl than more tears began to run down her angel face.
“Now, don’t go cryin’ on me, princess.” He took the towel and dried her wet cheeks. He’d never felt so awkward and clumsy in his life as he patted her back trying to soothe her.
Maura stood in the doorway and watched the touching scene between her daughter and Wyatt Gentry. Kelly had never known the gentleness of a man. Her own father had never wanted her around. So Maura had done everything to keep out of his way. She was surprised that her daughter would seek a man’s attention.
Just then Wyatt looked at her and their eyes locked. A spark of desire shot through her and she wondered what it would be like to have this man’s arms around her.
Just as quickly the moment ended. “Kelly, look, your mother’s here.”
The child suddenly brightened. “Mommy, I’m helping Wyatt do the dishes.”
“I can see that.” She walked to the sink and asked her daughter, “Are you okay?”
Kelly nodded. “Jeff hurt my feelings.”
“I’ll talk to him after school.”
Maura saw Wyatt tense. She knew her son’s behavior wasn’t perfect, but he’d gone through a lot in the past months. She would deal with it…later.
“It’s time to leave for work.”
“Okay,” Kelly said as she climbed off the stool, then looked up at Wyatt. “I liked helpin’ you.”
“Thank you, princess. See ya after school.” He waved as she started out the back door.
Maura braced herself for Wyatt’s criticism for her not disciplining her son, but he didn’t say a word.
“If it’s okay with you,” he began, “I’m going to have an exterminator out to spray the place.”
“How long will we have to be out?” she asked.
“I’m hoping I can get someone out today, tomorrow at the latest. At any rate you should be able to come into the house the same evening.”
How considerate. There was a kindness that showed in his eyes, along with something else that she didn’t want to examine. He looked strong and dangerously masculine. Maura felt a shiver of awareness and realized she was a little breathless. “I’d appreciate that,” she managed to say.
“So you won’t mind if I use my key?” he asked.
“Of course not. It’s your house,” she said.
“No, it’s your house for the time being. I won’t come in here unless you say so.” He studied her for a moment. “I realize you don’t know me very well and I guess that’s my fault. There’s not much to tell, though. I was born Wyatt Alan Gentry thirty-one years ago, five minutes before my twin brother, Dylan.” He cocked an eyebrow at her. “He claims he’s the good-looking one. I’ve lived on a ranch outside Tucson, Arizona, all my life. My mother is Sally and my stepfather is Earl Keys. They’ve been a rough-stock contractor to the rodeos for years. So most of our lives were spent traveling around Arizona and California. Most of the time we lived out of a trailer.”
“It must have been crowded.” Maura had lived in a mansion growing up, and had been so lonely.
He tossed her one of those easy grins. “That’s one of the reasons I bought this ranch. I got tired of traveling. So I plan to stay put. My goal is to board and train rodeo stock here, hoping when Dylan retires from bull riding he’ll join me.” He sighed. “That’s about it. Unless you want some references, then you can call any rodeo grounds from Arizona through southern California. They’ll vouch for the Gentrys.”
Wyatt held his breath while Maura took her time studying his face. She looked so pretty in her crisp white blouse and bright flowered skirt. Her blond hair shimmered as she tugged the long strands behind her ears.
“You don’t need to provide me with any references,” she insisted.
“I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable with me around. Like I said, I can eat in the foreman’s cottage.”
“I’m not uncomfortable,” she said. They both knew she was lying. “And you’ll eat your meals—at this table—with us. That’s our arrangement.”
He folded his arms across his chest and peered back at her. “What about you?” he asked. “Where you from? Your accent doesn’t ring native Texan.”
She shook her head. “I’m originally from the east, New York State. I’ve been here for nearly eight years, but we’ve moved a lot…” Her gaze moved around the room, anywhere but at him. “I should get to work.” She pulled her car keys out of her purse and headed for the door. “Speaking of our agreement, just let me know when you want to discuss any ideas or color scheme. I could help you with the painting inside.”
“I still have so much to do outside,” he said. “I need to get the place repaired and painted before winter gets here. But I would like to hear some of your suggestions for the inside of the house.”
She nodded. “I’ll be home around five-thirty. Any suggestions on supper?”
He smiled. “Surprise me.”
For the first time she returned his smile. “Oh, it will definitely be that. See you tonight.” She turned and walked out.
Wyatt realized that he was looking forward to when she came home, to seeing her again.
That was not good.
Just as Maura had said, she and the kids arrived home about five-thirty as he worked tightening the hinges on the screen door.
Jeff was the first out of the car. He ran up to the porch without even a word of greeting.
Not Kelly. She jumped out of the car, smiling. “Hi, Wyatt.” She took off her backpack and pulled out a piece of paper, the corners a little bent. “See what I made today? A picture. That’s you.” She pointed to the colorful rough stick figure on the page.
“Really? You made a picture of me?”
She nodded proudly.
“No one has ever drawn me a picture. Thank you.”
She twisted her fingers together. “You’re welcome.”
“Where should we put this? How about on the refrigerator? That way I can see it every day when I eat.”
“Okay, I can hang it up for you.”
