Little Cowgirl Needs a Mom (8 page)

Evan watched the blood drain from Jenny's face. “I've got to go.”

He stopped her. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing,” she said, pulling away, then she went down the steps.

He followed, but she wasn't going to tell him anything. So, she had a past.

She looked back at him. “It would be better if you concentrate on your daughter, Evan. I'll be leaving in a few months. I'll be going back to my job. This has to be the end of it.”

Before he could say anything, she took off down the stairs. By the time he reached her, she'd taken the cordless
phone from Millie and gone to a quiet corner. Her rejection should drive him away, but he wasn't ready to give up; something wouldn't let him let go of her.

 

Jenny had prayed she'd never hear from Todd ever again. Her stepbrother had caused her enough trouble to last a lifetime. But over the years he kept showing up like a bad penny.

She punched in the hold button. “What do you want, Todd?”

“Is that any way to greet your big brother, sis?”

“You're not my brother. And I thought you were in jail.”

“I got out early for good behavior.”

“Fine. Have a good life and stop bothering me.”

“Whoa, sis. It wouldn't be a good idea to hang up on me. What would Mom say?”

Jenny stiffened. Her mother had been Todd's only supporter after his last drug offence.

“Go call her and ask.” She turned around and saw that Evan was still there. “Look, Todd, I need to go back to work.”

“I'd like to do the same, but I don't have a job. Maybe you can set me up in a job with your fancy friends?”

How did he know? Her mother. She'd probably mentioned her job with the Casalis in letters. “I wouldn't ask any of my friends to hire you. You're unreliable. Shouldn't your parole officer help you find something?”

“I don't particularly want to be a dishwasher or a janitor.”

“Why not? It's honest work.”

“I think you can do better for me.”

“No. I told you years ago, I want you to leave me alone.” She felt the familiar panic as she recalled high school and Todd and his creepy friends. That had been the main
reason she'd told the police on him. It had gotten him his stay in juvenile hall.

“That's too bad, sis,” he told her in a voice that made her shiver. “You owe me, and you're my best bet these days. What's the big deal about helping out a family member?”

“You're not my family. So stay away from me, Todd. I won't help you.” Her hands were shaking as she ended the call. No, she wouldn't let him get to her again. The three Newsome brothers had been trouble since day one, but Todd was the worst. She hadn't been surprised that he'd gone to prison.

She turned around and saw Evan watching her. She put on a smile as he walked to her.

“Is everything okay?”

“Of course,” she said just as the bell over the shop door chimed and Gracie and Cherry returned, followed by Allison.

“Daddy.” Gracie ran to her father. “We need to go home because I have to find some material for the class.”

“You have a week before the next class.”

The girls didn't like to wait for anything.

“But all the other girls have their moms to help them pick out their material. And grandpa's fixing spaghetti and he said we need to bring Jenny and some bread home. Please, Daddy.”

He turned to Jenny. “Looks as if we're outnumbered. Would you like to come to dinner at the Rafferty house?”

It wasn't a good idea. She looked at Gracie and began to lose her resolve. The little girl would be disappointed if she didn't go. “Sure, I'd love to.”

A
N
hour later Jenny was seated beside Evan in his truck and on the way to the Rafferty home. How had she got herself into this? Okay, she was a coward. She wanted to be away from any more calls from Todd. No more abuse from her evil stepbrother.

Those days were over.

Thanks to her mother she now had to deal with him again. No doubt Marsha thought Todd had turned over a new leaf, but Jenny doubted he could do anything good, ever.

Time served or not, Todd Newsome was a convicted felon. The last thing she wanted him to do was cause any trouble for her or her friends. She only hoped she'd convinced Todd that she didn't want any more to do with him. Good luck with that. He hadn't cared about her wishes, ever. She couldn't have been happier when he was sent away.

“Jenny,” Gracie called.

She turned to the girl in the back seat. “What, sweetie?”

“All the other girls think I'm lucky because I get to take you to my house.”

She was touched. “Well, you need help with the project, too. And remember, you have to sew new blocks together.”

Gracie nodded. “Daddy, can I have one of your shirts? The one Mommy liked.”

Evan frowned. Meg had liked one of his shirts? She'd never said anything to him. “Sure. You'll have to remind me which one that is.”

He stole a sideways glance at Jenny, seeing her curious look.

“It's the one you wore when we all went to church on Easter that last time,” his daughter said. “I want to use something that Mommy liked.”

“Okay, we'll find it then,” he said hearing the sadness in his child's voice.

He glanced at Jenny. “Once an altar boy, but I'm not much on church these days.”

“Grandpa Sean is Catholic and Mommy and me are Lutherans,” the tiny voice came from the back. “What are you, Jenny?”

She smiled. “Oh, I'd say I'm a mixture of a little Catholic with some Presbyterian thrown in. All religions work if you pray.”

“At my church they say you have to repent if you do bad things. What does
repent
mean?”

Gracie was too young to hear those kinds of words. “It means to make up for what you did wrong,” Evan said. “If you were bad, you should say you're sorry, and then take your punishment.”

“Oh. What if that person was really, really mean to me? Do I still have to say I'm sorry?”

Evan stepped in. “If you said something bad to that person, you should.”

“But Aaron Jacobs is mean to everybody. He made Sara Hartley cry.”

Evan didn't like to hear of someone bullying his child. “Did you tell the teacher?”

He glanced in the rearview mirror and saw her nod.

“But he won't stop being mean to us girls.”

“Then I need to have a talk with his parents.”

“You will?”

He drove under the ranch archway. “Of course, Gracie. You should have told me sooner.”

He pulled up in front of the house. He climbed out and opened the back door as his daughter unfastened her seat-belt and climbed down. Evan squatted down to her level. “Gracie, you can always come to me if you have trouble with anything. I'll always be there for you.”

She glanced away.

“What's wrong?”

“Mommy always said not to bother you if you're busy 'cause you have a lot on your mind.”

He worked to keep his anger under control. “Remember this, Gracie Anne Rafferty. I'm never too busy for you.”

A bright smile appeared on her face. “Okay, Daddy.”

“Now, go take the bread to Grandpa.”

His daughter took the long sticks of sourdough and headed up the steps. Sadness washed over him. Had he been that distant from his own family? Or had Meg deliberately kept him from having a relationship with his daughter? He knew they hadn't had the best marriage, but why had she prevented him from being Gracie's father? If she had, he'd let her.

“Evan, are you okay?” Jenny asked.

“No. My own daughter is afraid to come to me.”

“A lot of children go to their mother first.”

“Did you?” Suddenly, he remembered Jenny saying her mother was too busy for her. “Or did you have to fight your own battles? How did you handle bullies?”

She shrugged. “I guess I did a lot of my own fighting.”

“What about your dad?”

She glanced away. “He was never in my life.”

His gut tightened as she tried to seem nonchalant, but he knew it mattered to her. “Well, I'm not going to let Aaron the bully get any more out of control. He has no right picking on little girls.” His fists clenched. “I plan to have a talk with this kid.”

“Whoa, Rafferty. As a teacher myself, I can tell you it isn't wise to go running off half-cocked. Talk to Gracie's teacher first. Better yet, to Lily Perry. She'll look into the situation, then, if that doesn't help, set up a meeting with the boy's parents.”

Evan realized how new this was to him. Had Meg handled this before? Now it was his chance. “Thanks, Jenny.”

She nodded. “It's not easy to be a single parent.”

“Meg probably would have handled this on her own, too, and never said a word to me.” His gaze locked on hers. “Now you know just how perfect my marriage was.”

“I'm sorry, Evan.” She gave him a sad smile. “But now's your chance to play hero for Gracie.”

He frowned. “Whoa, I'm nobody's hero.”

“You're going to bat for your daughter. Any girl would love it.”

He studied her for a moment. “Who was your hero Jenny?”

“Not all girls are lucky enough to have one.”

 

Evan couldn't take his eyes off her. He was getting in deeper and deeper as he watched Jenny. She got along with everyone. Not that Sean and Matt Rafferty weren't pushovers for a pretty woman, but he could see they truly liked her. And Gracie was excited just to have her here. He couldn't remember this much joy during a meal with Meg. In fact, they hadn't had many family dinners. Why
hadn't he seen it before? Was he so busy that he didn't take the time to notice? Or had Meg wanted it that way?

Throughout their marriage, it had been that way with most things. Even though he'd put his blood and sweat into this land, for a long time he'd felt more like the Kercher family's hired hand than their son-in-law. Not that he wanted a free pass, but acceptance would have been nice. After their deaths, he and Meg had worked doubly hard to keep striving toward their dream. For the life of him, he couldn't remember now what that was.

Suddenly, laughter broke out, bringing him back to the present as he caught the girls with their heads together, sharing secrets. Gracie looked at him. “Do you know any jokes, Daddy?”

He stole a glance at his dad, then back at his daughter. “I haven't heard a good one in a long time. You tell me one first.”

She looked unsure at first, then asked, “Where do snowmen keep their money?”

“I don't know. Where?”

“In a snow bank.”

A cute blush covered Gracie's cheeks.

Evan laughed. “Okay, I got one. How do you make a hot dog stand? Steal its chair.”

Gracie groaned along with Jenny.

“I know another one. What is a tree's favorite drink? Root beer.”

Gracie's eyes widened. “Okay, I have one. Why did the tomato turn red? It saw the salad dressing. Get it? The salad was getting dressed.”

Evan loved her responding to him. “What has a lot of keys but can't open any doors?”

“A piano,” everyone answered in unison.

“Okay, I guess that one's been around a while.”

“It's still funny, Daddy,” Gracie assured him. “That was fun. Maybe we can play more games.”

Another shock to him. “Okay.” Evan stood and began to stack the plates. “Why don't we do the dishes first?”

Jenny got up too. “I'll help.”

“Me, too.” Gracie picked up her plate and followed everyone to the kitchen.

Jenny enjoyed watching the interaction between Evan and Gracie. She wanted to leave the twosome alone, but it might be too obvious. She returned to the table to clear the rest of the dishes. Sean was there.

“Hey, the cook doesn't clean up,” she told him.

“I'll stop after I take these in.”

Jenny glanced into the kitchen and saw Evan tie an apron around Gracie's small frame.

“It does my heart good to see those two together.” Sean looked at her. “You brought this on, Jenny girl. Sometimes my son has trouble seeing what's right in front of him.”

“It would have happened sooner or later,” she assured him. “Just the fact that he wants to play an active role in her life means a lot.”

Sean sighed. “It should have happened a long time ago. It's sad that Megan and Evan didn't have a better marriage. It was never a perfect match.” He beamed. “Except they made the perfect little angel.”

Jenny had suspected that things between husband and wife hadn't been as perfect as people believed. “Gracie's precious, and she loves her daddy.”

“And my son loves her right back, though he may have trouble showing it.” Sean sighed. “Years ago, when his mother left, Evan took it hard. Probably the reason he holds back his feelings.”

“We're all afraid of getting hurt,” Jenny said, not real
izing she'd said it out loud. “I'd say Evan's pretty lucky to have you and Gracie.”

Those big burly arms went around her. “You have us, too, lass. And any father would be blessed to call you his daughter.”

She felt tears welling and pulled back. “Thank you. Well, we'd better get these dishes finished so we can play a game before Gracie goes to bed. And I need to get home.”

And away from what she'd always wanted. The perfect family.

 

Two hours later, Jenny closed her eyes in the passenger seat. She was enjoying the quiet music playing on the radio and Evan's company as he drove her back to town.

Talking would only interrupt the intimacy created in the darkness of the truck cab. She was surprised when he reached across the seat and took her hand.

“I have to say, I haven't had such a nice evening in a long time. And Gracie…” He shook his head. “Let's say I haven't seen her this happy since…well, in a long time.”

“She's happy because she has your attention.”

He pulled into the alley and parked behind the store. There was a soft light overhead, leaving shadows in the cab. He shut off the engine and turned toward her.

“What about you, Jenny? Could you use some attention?” Time slowed as he tugged her gently toward him. He slid his hand around the back of her neck. “I know I'd want some of yours.”

She weakly tried to pulled back. “I thought we weren't going to do this?”

“I can't seem to help myself.”

Jenny couldn't seem to fight it any longer as Evan leaned down and covered her mouth with his. She was unable to resist his taste and the feel of him. Then she
opened her mouth, their tongues touched and there wasn't any denying the desire.

He slipped his fingers into her hair and held her as he explored her mouth. Jenny's hands found his shirt, holding on tight, trying to resist, but she was losing the battle quickly.

This was not a good idea. There were too many reasons to stop, but she couldn't deny what they both wanted. And darn if he wasn't a great kisser.

With the last of her common sense urging her, she pulled back. “Rafferty, we need to stop. This isn't a good idea.”

“That's the last thing I want right now. I want you, Jenny Collins.”

She pressed her forehead against his. “Don't say that. You need to go home, be with Gracie.”

Working to steady his breathing, Evan concentrated on slowing down. He'd never ached for a woman like this, and the last thing he wanted was to leave Jenny tonight.

“My daughter's asleep. This is adult time.” He took teasing bites along her jaw, then finally closed his mouth over hers again. It wasn't enough as he tried to pull her closer, moving his hands over her.

Jenny gasped as he worked his hand under her shirt and finally touched her breasts. He wanted more.

He groaned. “You're killing me, woman.”

“You started this, Rafferty.”

Evan pulled away, looked down at her. He started to speak when something distracted him, and he glanced over her shoulder.

“Someone's in the shop,” he whispered and waited. “I see a light moving past the window. And the back door is partly open.” He climbed out of the truck and whispered through the open window. “Call the sheriff.”

“No!” She grabbed at him. “Evan, you can't go in there.”

“Call them.” He disappeared through the back door.

Jenny grabbed her cell phone from her purse and punched in the numbers as Evan went inside. “Emergency, 911.”

“Someone broke into the Blind Stitch quilt shop on Main Street,” Jenny told the dispatcher. “Please, send someone quick.”

“Are you inside, ma'am?”

“No, in the alley behind the store, but my friend went inside.”

“Then you stay where you are. A patrol car has been dispatched to the location, so wait for the officer, ma'am.”

Jenny was about to hang up when she saw the door open and a shadow appeared. Someone dressed in black took off down the alley. “A man came out of the shop,” she said over the phone. “He's running down the alley toward Maple Avenue.”

“Okay, ma'am. I'll alert the officer.”

She looked back at the doorway, hoping to see Evan come out. He didn't. Oh, no, was he hurt? She dropped the phone, got out of the truck and hurried inside. “Evan!” she yelled. Oh, God, please, let him be okay.

She heard a groan and then a curse. She reached for the shop lights and turned them on. “Evan? Where are you?”

“Here,” he said as he appeared from behind the counter.