Daddy Wore Spurs (Mills & Boon Cherish) (Men of the West, Book 32) (10 page)

“The vet’s here,” she told Finn. “I don’t want him to see me in my nightclothes. I’m going back to the house.”

As she started off, he called to her. She paused long enough for him to walk over to her.

“Yes?”

A crooked grin twisted his weary features. “Thank you.”

His tender words of appreciation added to the incredibly tense moments they’d shared over the mare all came together at once to cause Mariah’s eyes to mist over. “I didn’t do anything,” she said.

“Just being here was exactly what I needed.”

Her heart melting, she touched his hand and then scurried back to the house.

* * *

Another hour and a half passed before the vet finished administering care to the new mother and baby. Once the doctor packed up and drove away, Finn walked slowly back to the house.

He should’ve been dog tired. He’d been at the barn for hours and the fear of losing the mare and baby had been worse than stressful. But the joyous outcome had wiped all his weariness away. Now, in spite of his watch reading close to three in the morning, he was wide-awake.

When he reached the back door, a light was on in the kitchen. But when he stepped inside and spotted Mariah sitting at the breakfast bar, he was more than surprised.

“It’s late,” he said. “You should be in bed.”

He hung his hat and jacket on a hall tree located a few steps away from the door. When he turned back around, Mariah was standing in front of him, her pale face strained, yet hopeful.

“The mare and baby?” she asked anxiously.

She honestly and truly cared. The realization filled him with incredible joy. “Both fine. The filly is already on her feet and nursing.”

She let out a tiny groan of relief and then suddenly she was wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his chest.

“Oh, Finn. I was so worried about you—and them.”

Finn didn’t bother to wait or wonder what had brought on this show of affection. She was holding him, touching him as though she never wanted to let him go. And that was all that mattered. With a hand beneath her chin, he tilted her mouth up to his and kissed her hard and quick. “Mariah, my sweet. Before I went out to check on the mares, I was fighting myself to keep from going to your bedroom.”

Pink color stained her cheeks and he kissed the soft, heated skin while his nostrils pulled in the sweet, musky scent of her hair. Having her in his arms was like an incredible dream, one that he wanted to remember long after it ended.

“And I was lying awake,” she whispered. “Hoping you would.”

“And now?” he asked.

“Now all I can think about is being next to you. Like this.”

Groaning deep in his throat, he lifted her into his arms and carried her straight to her bedroom.

The room was dark, but a yard lamp outside the window slanted strips of faint light across the bed and floor. The rumpled bedcovers exposed a wide expanse of white sheet.

Finn placed her in the middle of the bed, then stood staring down at her, allowing himself a moment to let his mind catch up with desire that was already gripping his body.

“I washed my hands at the barn,” was all he could manage to utter. “But my clothes are dirty.”

She pushed herself to a sitting position and reached for him. “I don’t care about that,” she whispered. “I’m going to take them off you anyway.”

Her boldness sent a thrill of anticipation through him, and when her hands grabbed his belt and tugged him forward, he went willingly down beside her.

Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her tight against him and pressed his lips to the middle of her forehead. “I can’t believe this is happening,” he mouthed against her. “After we came home from the meadow you were—so withdrawn. I was sure you were wishing you could wipe out everything that had happened with us.”

Her hands came up to cradle his face. “I wasn’t regretting, Finn. I was thinking. About myself. And you. I don’t want to be afraid anymore. Afraid to let myself make love to you—to let myself be a woman.”

Emotions he didn’t quite understand poured into him and suddenly he felt as though he was ten feet tall and walking on air.

“Mariah, my sweet.”

Finding her lips, he began to kiss her deeply, his mouth searching for the same wild excitement he’d felt when they’d kissed in the meadow. And he wasn’t disappointed as it crashed into his head as quick as thunder after a violent flash of lightning.

Desire hummed along his veins as she opened the front of his shirt, then flattened her palms against his heated skin. While his lips continued to devour hers, he felt her fingers begin a search of their own. They lingered at his flat nipples, then slid to the small of his back before coming to rest on the waistband of his jeans.

Tearing his mouth away from hers, he climbed off the bed and started stripping away his clothing.

Mariah levered herself up on one elbow and watched him peel off a pair of navy blue boxer shorts. “I was going to do that,” she complained.

“Next time, baby. We’ll go slower. Right now I can’t wait to touch you—get inside you.”

With his clothing lying in a heap on the floor, he leaned over her to remove her gown and robe. Once they were tossed over his shoulder, he rejoined her on the bed, where she immediately rolled into him and swung her leg over his hips.

The sensation of her warm flesh touching his robbed his breath, and suddenly the pleasures attacking his senses were almost overwhelming. He wanted to taste her lips, her breasts, every curve and nuance of her body. He wanted to touch and hold and feel her soft skin sliding against his.

He’d torn his mouth from hers and was circling his mouth around one pert nipple when her fingers slid into his hair and gently tugged to garner his attention.

Tilting his head back, he saw that her gray eyes were half closed, her long black hair fanned against the white sheet. The swollen curves of her lips beckoned him. But then, so did the rest of her body, and he wanted to explore every inch of it. But if she was having reservations, he’d have to find the strength to get up and walk out of the room.

His throat thick, he shoved out the question. “Is something wrong?”

“No. But I think I should tell you that I haven’t done this—well, in a long, long time.”

Shifting slightly away from her, he propped his head on one hand and used the other to gently push a curtain of tangled waves from the side of her face. Uncertainty darkened her eyes, and the corner of her lips trembled.

Her vulnerability pierced him and all he wanted at that moment was to protect and reassure her. “Sweetheart, don’t be scared. I’ll be as gentle as you want me to be.”

Her head moved back and forth against the mattress. “That’s not worrying me,” she mumbled. “I’m inexperienced. And I...just don’t want to disappoint you.”

Groaning with disbelief, Finn cradled her head against the curve of his neck. “Oh, darling, you couldn’t do that. Having you in my arms—loving me. That’s all I need from you.” Tilting her head back, he traced a fingertip across her cheekbone. “Do I need to wear protection?”

Relief eased the tension on her face. “I’m on oral birth control. But maybe you’d feel safer with more protection—I won’t mind.”

Oddly enough, the idea of creating a baby with Mariah felt natural and right to him. What did that mean? That he was too full of lust to care? Or that Mariah had already become very, very special to him?

Squeezing those questions to the far fringes of his mind, Finn kissed her softly. “I don’t need to feel safe. Not with you.”

He heard the soft intake of her breath and then everything faded away as he brought his lips down on hers and her arms wrapped tightly around him.

He kissed her until his breath was gone and he was forced to tear his mouth away. While his lungs gorged themselves on oxygen, his hands made a sweeping exploration of her curves. Over her breasts, down her rib cage and across her flat belly. And then finally, the heated juncture between her thighs.

When he touched her there, she moaned and arched against him, inviting his fingers to slip inside. The slick warmth made his loins ache with need, and though he wanted to linger and enjoy each sensation to the fullest, his body refused to wait.

Rolling her onto her back, he poised himself over her and in the semidarkness of the room, her gaze locked with his. The connection sent a shock of awareness through him and suddenly he was almost afraid to make the final, ultimate link with her. Because he understood it would be irrevocable and life changing.

“Finn.” As she breathed his name, the upper part of her body lifted from the mattress and molded itself against his. “Don’t think. Or worry. Or make me wait another second,” she pleaded.

Even if he’d wanted to, he couldn’t turn back now. His heart, mind and soul were screaming for the chance to absorb her sweetness, to draw in the very essence of her being and hold it fast inside him.

“Mariah.”

Her name was but a whisper as he blindly thrust himself into her welcoming body. Delicious heat instantly wrapped around him, rocking him with vibrations of pleasure so intense that his teeth snapped together.

Beneath him, Mariah’s hips shifted upward, drawing him deeper within her. The movement was very nearly his undoing, but after a steadying breath, he regained enough control to begin a steady thrust.

Hot. Sweet. Perfect. On and on it went until his mind no longer belonged to him. At some point Mariah had taken control of his every movement, every thought that entered his brain. He’d become a willing prisoner and he never wanted her lips to release his, her arms to let go. If there was such a place as paradise, she was quickly leading him straight to it.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he registered her soft moans and the frantic foray her hands were making upon his chest, across his belly and buttocks. Each touch of her fingers, each kiss of her lips upon his skin, scorched him, tightened every cell in his body until blood was roaring in his ears and his gasps for air were harsh and rapid.

“Finn. Oh, Finn.”

The sound of his name coming from her lips was all it took to break the last fragile thread of his control. With his hands clenching her buttocks, he held her hips tight against his until a burst of light exploded behind his eyes and suddenly he was breaking into tiny pieces. The ragged bits flew to the ceiling, then floated aimlessly around the dark room before they finally settled slowly back to his sated, sweaty body.

Yet even after the axis of his world righted itself, Finn recognized that a part of him was now missing. And he had the very real and scary feeling that the lost piece of him was his heart.

Chapter Nine

T
hree days later, Mariah was in her classroom, gathering the books and papers scattered across the desk top. Less than five minutes ago, the final bell for the day had sounded and the students had scattered out the door. Except for tall, brown-haired Lucia. With a heavy backpack fastened to her shoulders and a sweater tied around her waist, the teenager paused at the corner of Mariah’s desk.

“Did you need to talk to me about something, Lucia?”

Winding a finger through the end of her ponytail, the girl nervously chewed on her bottom lip. Mariah wished she had the right to give her a reassuring hug. Although Lucia made excellent grades, Mariah understood the girl’s home life was not the best in the world.

“It’s not about our assignment for tomorrow, Ms. Montgomery. I’ve just been wondering. Since school is almost out for summer...I mean...will you be coming back next fall?”

Next fall? For the past few days Mariah hadn’t allowed herself to think too much about the future, even the near future. Enjoying the fleeting time she had with Finn was all that mattered. But Lucia’s question was forcing her to picture the future and at this moment, it looked very uncertain.

Frowning thoughtfully, she asked, “What makes you ask that?”

The teenager blushed. “Well, uh, some of the kids have been saying that you’re going to Nevada. I sure hope that isn’t true, Ms. Montgomery. I’d really miss you.”

Mariah had no idea how the rumor had gotten started about her going to Nevada. She didn’t think Sage had spoken to anyone about it, but that day in the lounge when they’d been discussing the subject, someone could have overheard their conversation. Now apparently the rumor was all over the school.

Smiling at the girl, she reached for a tote bag. “Don’t worry, Lucia. If I go to Nevada it will only be for a short visit. I’ll be back for the next school year.”

Grinning with relief, Lucia bounced on her toes. “That’s great, Ms. Montgomery! Really great!”

Mariah smiled, then glanced pointedly at her wristwatch. “The bus will be leaving in a few minutes. You don’t want to miss it.”

“Oh! I gotta run!”

The teenager raced out of the room and Mariah thoughtfully began to load the tote bag with the things she needed to carry home.

Home to Stallion Canyon.
Strange, how much that image had changed in her mind. For the past few months, she’d thought of little else but selling the place and moving to a new home and a new life. She’d wholeheartedly believed everything would be better for her and Harry if the ranch was out of their lives once and for all.

But now that Finn was here, everything had changed. She was seeing the ranch as it had been years ago, a beautiful home where she’d lived and loved and laughed with her father and sister. And hope had begun to stir within her. Hope that the impossible might happen and she could somehow manage to keep Stallion Canyon.

Face it, Mariah. You’ve fallen in love with Finn. He’s the reason Stallion Canyon looks so good to you now. With him living in your house and sleeping in your bed, the place feels perfect to you. But sooner or later, with or without Harry, he’ll be leaving. And then what will you have? Besides a broken heart?

Mariah shoved a stack of tests papers into the tote and refused to let the mocking voice prick the happy thought of going home to Finn. The time would come soon enough to face the sad fact of losing her home, her baby and her man.

* * *

Back on Stallion Canyon, Finn sat in the kitchen, gently nudging the toe of his boot against the floor to keep the old rocking chair in motion. Harry had already finished a bottle and now his blue eyes were closed in sleep. Finn needed to rise and carry the boy to his crib, but each time he held Harry in his arms he was fascinated with his tiny features and the little hands that were already learning to grip. He loved feeling the baby’s warm weight resting against his chest, while he dreamed of the day his son would become a man.

“Harry is going to be as tall as me, don’t you think?”

Across the room, Linda continued to fold laundry atop the breakfast bar. “Probably. But do you ever wonder if you might be setting yourself up for a disappointment? It’s not right to talk about the dead, but I have to say that Aimee was no angel.”

Maybe she hadn’t been perfect, Finn thought. But that hardly mattered anymore. Mariah was the only woman he could think about. Making love to her these past few nights had changed him. Now as he looked toward the future, he could see only her and Harry in his life. If that meant he’d fallen in love with her, he didn’t know. He only knew that she’d become just as important to him as little Harry.

“The DNA isn’t back yet. But Harry is mine,” Finn said with confidence.

“Hmm, and then what? You’ll be taking him home to Nevada?” she asked.

He hadn’t expected Linda to prod him about his personal plans. At least not until they had complete confirmation of the baby’s DNA. But considering the time and emotions the woman had invested in Harry, she had a right to ask.

“That’s right. That’s where my home is.” He looked at her. “Why? You didn’t think I’d be leaving him here, did you?”

She cast him a sly look. “Actually, I was thinking you might be considering making your home here. What with all the fencing and other work you’ve been doing around here, you’d think this was your ranch.”

For the past four days, Finn had been working diligently to patch sagging wire and leaning fence posts so he’d have a secure pasture to turn out the geldings. Or he’d told himself that was the reason. In truth, he should be making arrangements to get the horses and mares shipped back to Nevada. Instead, he wanted to find every excuse he could to keep them here, and more important, to keep himself here.

“I like keeping busy. And this place needs lots of work to get it back into shape.”

Frowning, she picked up a towel and shook out the wrinkles. “So someone else can buy it?”

Finn looked down at the sleeping baby. In years to come, Stallion Canyon should be handed over to Harry, or at the very least shared with any children that Mariah might have in the future.

Mariah having children with some other man. The ranch being sold to a stranger. The thoughts were agonizing to Finn, and yet sooner rather than later, they were realities he would have to face.

He looked over to Linda. “The real estate agent called Mariah last night to let her know that two different men are interested in the property. One wants to harvest the timber on it. The other one wants to plow the meadows and grow potatoes.”

Both ideas sickened Finn. Stallion Canyon was a wild, beautiful mixture of mountain ridges and valley floors that stretched along a narrow, winding river. It wasn’t meant to be stripped of timber or plowed into fields. It was a land to raise horses, not lumber or vegetables.

Linda scowled. “I suppose they’ll be coming out to look the place over. I hope I’m not here when either of them come. I—well, Ray is surely turning over in his grave. That’s all I can say.”

She picked up the basket and left the room. Finn rose to his feet and carried Harry to the nursery. As he carefully put the baby to bed, the whole situation gnawed at him like an empty stomach begging for a bite of food. Mariah, Harry and Stallion Canyon. This past week all three had begun to feel as though they belonged to him. Was he thinking liked a damned fool? Or was he thinking like a man who’d finally figured out what he wanted in life?

* * *

Back in Alturas, Mariah was about to leave the school parking lot when she spotted Sage hurrying toward the driver’s side of her car.

Mariah pressed the button to lower the window. “What’s wrong? Car won’t start?”

Sage smiled. “No problems. I wanted to catch you—I thought we might stop by the Silver Slipper and have an ice cream together before you go home.”

“You’re a sweetheart to ask, but I really don’t have the time. Linda will be expecting me.”

Sage frowned. “All you have to do is pick up your cell and call her. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind staying with Harry another thirty minutes. Besides, Harry’s father is there. He can look after his son.”

Yes, Finn was there. The fact made her heart smile. It made her want to rush home and spend every precious minute she could with him. “He’s been staying pretty busy around the ranch. Besides working with the horses, he’s been repairing fences and working on the irrigation pump.”

Sage’s expression turned to sly speculation. “Hmm. Why would Finn be doing all that? He’ll be leaving soon and you’re selling the ranch.”

Actually, Mariah had been asking herself the very same things. She could understand the time and work he put in on the horses. They belonged to him. But the ranch was a different matter. Was he doing it for her? Because he knew she had no money or means to make upgrades to the property?

“Finn isn’t the sort of man who can just sit around. He wants to keep busy.”

Sage didn’t look at all convinced, but mercifully dropped the subject.

“Well, call Linda,” she said. “I’ll meet you at the Slipper.”

Assuming that Mariah would agree to follow, Sage turned away from the window to leave.

Mariah called out to her. “Sage, I don’t have time. It’s not just keeping Linda overtime. I have—things to do. Supper to cook for Finn.”

Sage’s brows shot up. “Oh? Sounds like this whole thing has turned into a family situation to me.”

Mariah sheepishly glanced away from Sage’s inquisitive face. If her friend only knew how she’d been making love to Finn these past few nights, she’d be properly shocked. But nothing about sharing her bed with Finn felt shocking. It felt right and special. And though she was probably crazy for thinking of her and Finn and Harry as a family, she couldn’t help it.

“So what if it is?”

Sage groaned. “Oh, Mariah, don’t tell me you’re really falling for the guy? I mean, I know I’ve always wanted you to find somebody and I’ve been teasing you a bit about him. But seriously he’s—well, he’s one of Aimee’s castoffs! You can’t be getting serious thoughts about the man!”

Mariah’s fingers unconsciously touched her fingers to the cross dangling against her throat. Aimee had already ruined one relationship for Mariah. She couldn’t let her sister’s memory interfere with her feelings for Finn. If she did, she’d be letting Aimee win a second time.

With her foot on the brake, Mariah pulled the gearshift into Drive. “I have to go,” she said curtly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Reaching a hand through the window, Sage squeezed Mariah’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Mariah. I shouldn’t have said that. It was an awful thing to say. Finn is your business, not mine.”

“Forget it,” Mariah muttered. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She gave the other woman a halfhearted wave and quickly drove away.

* * *

At the same time on Stallion Canyon, Finn was working in the meadow, attaching a huge pipe to the irrigation pump, when his cell phone rang. Tossing the heavy wrench aside, he reached for the phone and was somewhat surprised to hear his father’s voice on the other end of the connection.

“Did I catch you at a bad time?” Orin asked.

Still working to catch his breath, Finn said, “No. Just doing a bit of plumbing on an irrigation system. I think I’m close to having it going again.”

“Irrigation system? Finn, what in hell is going on up there? I thought this trip was all about a baby.”

Finn wiped a hand across his sweaty brow. “It is about Harry. But I can’t just sit idle while we’re waiting on the DNA results to come back. There’s plenty of work to be done around here.”

Orin spluttered. “There’s a hell of a lot of work to do here on the Horn, too. Your home, remember?”

The testiness in Orin’s voice put a grimace on Finn’s face. “Yes, Dad. I remember. Is anything wrong there?”

Orin sighed. “No. I was calling just to check on you. I didn’t mean to go off like that. It’s just been—well, different with you away this long, Finn. I miss you. I want you to hurry up and get back here.”

Finn leaned his back against the wheel on the irrigation line as warring emotions tore through him. From the time he was born, the Silver Horn had been his home, and he loved his family with every fiber of his being. But now there were new feelings growing inside him. For Harry and Mariah. And for Stallion Canyon. In spite of his ties back in Nevada, and in spite of the uncertainty of the future, he felt his roots sinking into this fertile land.

“Well, I’ve missed seeing everyone there. How are the horses? Any problems?”

“Not really. We’ve bred the last two mares. So the spring breeding is all wrapped up. Dandi, the yearling with the curly mane, cut her foot. We’re not sure how. But Doc Pheeters has sewn it and seems to think it won’t be a problem. Other than a scar.”

“That’s good.” Finn’s gaze wandered over the meadow. With the pump going, he could irrigate until the grass was growing thick and lush. The mustangs would thrive here. If only he had more time. But he expected that one day next week the DNA test would arrive in the mail. And then Mariah would be out of school and he’d have no reason to linger here on Stallion Canyon. Unless she asked him to stay. “Uh—did Clancy speak with you about the mustangs?”

There was a long pause. “No. What are you talking about?”

Damn it, he should have known Clancy wouldn’t say anything to their father about the mustangs. His brother didn’t want to hear Orin yell any more than Finn did.

“I purchased ten mustangs from Mariah. They were the last ones she had here on the ranch. Five mares, four geldings and one stallion. A few nights ago, one of the mares foaled a filly, so I actually have eleven now. The baby is precious, Dad. She’s bright chestnut with four white feet and a snip on her nose. She’s going to be a real looker. And the other four mares will be delivering soon.”

The pride that Finn was feeling was quickly smashed as Orin muttered several curse words. And for a split second Finn considered ending the call. But this was his father, and sooner or later he was going to have to deal with the situation. Might as well be now rather than later, he decided.

“What are you thinking, Finn? You know you can’t put them on the Horn! Hell, your grandfather is probably going to have a stroke when he hears about this.”