Merry Christmas, Cowboy!. Cindy Kirk

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СКАЧАТЬ cast had a rocker ball so she could walk without putting pressure on the fractured leg, Seth had told Lauren that the doctor preferred Dani keep her weight off it for at least the next couple of days. “Tell Miss Lauren good-night.”

      Seth stepped closer and the exuberant seven-year-old surprised Lauren by flinging an arm around her neck and planting a big kiss on her cheek. “Thank you for coming and eating and playing Candyland with me.”

      Lauren gently smoothed a strand of hair back from the child’s brow. With her blond curls tousled around her face, Dani looked like a little angel. “Merry Christmas, Danica.”

      “Merry Christmas to you, too,” Dani called to Lauren as her father carried her from the room.

      Since her injury, the child had been sleeping in the master bedroom on the main floor, while Seth had moved to the guest room. When he’d shown Lauren the bedrooms, he’d made it clear that if she did agree to move in, the guest room would be hers and he’d sleep in Dani’s canopy bed.

      The thought of the rugged cowboy in the tiny twin bed with its frilly pink-and-white bedspread brought a smile to Lauren’s lips. As if her musings had conjured him up, Lauren heard the click of cowboy boots on hardwood. She turned to find Seth in the doorway, a satisfied smile on his face. “Surely she’s not already asleep?”

      “She’s pretending to be,” Seth said with a grin that caused her breath to catch in her throat. “She wants Santa to show up and knows he won’t come until she’s asleep.”

      The comment pulled her attention from his mouth. Though she told herself it didn’t matter if his daughter believed in mythological figures and he indulged such thinking, the strange tension gripping her said somehow it did matter.

      “Isn’t Dani a little old to believe in Santa?” While it may have been a question, her tone made her feelings on the matter quite clear. And Lauren didn’t stop there. She gestured to the plate of treats and the glass of milk. “And practices such as these just fuel the illusion.”

      The words hung in the air for a long moment. Lauren thought about calling them back. Though she’d meant what she’d said, she could have been more diplomatic.

      To her surprise Seth didn’t seem to take offense. In fact, by the twitch of his lips, you’d have thought she’d said something amusing. He reached over and grabbed two cookies from the plate, handing one to her and keeping the other for himself. “These practices are about embracing the magic of the season.”

      An illogical argument if she’d ever heard one, but charmingly delivered. Lauren took a bite of cookie and chewed for a moment. “Dani’s a smart little girl. She can’t really believe in elves and reindeer and Santa Claus.”

      “She seems to,” Seth said, without a hint of embarrassment. “And as long as she does, I’m going to be supportive.”

      “Supportive? Of a lie?” Lauren wasn’t sure what had gotten into her. Her training had taught her the importance of every word uttered. These outbursts weren’t like her. But something about the whole Santa lie felt…personal.

      Seth’s brows pulled together and for a second he looked as if he might argue the point. But instead he shut his mouth and studied her for a long moment. “You never got to believe in Santa.”

      Instead of comforting her as perhaps he’d intended, the observation stirred up a hornet’s nest of memories. Restless, she moved to the front window and, for several seconds, gazed out at the thick blanket of snow.

      “My parents called him a bogus, fantasy figure,” she said, turning back to face him. “A myth that contributed to the commercialization of Christmas.”

      “Did you ever go to a store and sit on his knee?” Seth asked, ignoring the outburst. “Whisper in his ear what you really wanted for Christmas?”

      “Since he wasn’t real, what would have been the point? Besides, it wouldn’t have mattered,” Lauren said with a sigh. “My parents didn’t believe in giving gifts for Christmas. Still don’t.”

      “Not at all?”

      Lauren shook her head. “To them Christmas is just another federal holiday.”

      Seth hooked his thumbs in his front pockets and appeared to ponder her words. It took a moment before he spoke. “If you could have sat on Santa’s knee and asked him for a gift when you were Dani’s age, what would it have been?”

      Lauren shifted her gaze, remembering back. “There was only one thing I ever wanted for Christmas. That year I gathered my courage and approached my mother. I told her there was something I really, really wanted. I promised if she’d buy it for me I wouldn’t ask for another gift ever.”

      “What did she say?”

      “She asked what it was. When I told her…she laughed.” Lauren pressed her lips together, the long-ago hurt returning, squeezing her chest. She took a steadying breath. “Still, I went to bed that Christmas Eve hopeful. In the back of my little-girl mind, I thought this could be her chance, a way to show that she loved me. Crazy, huh?”

      “Not crazy,” Seth said softly. “Did she buy it for you?”

      Not trusting her voice, Lauren shook her head.

      “What had you asked for?”

      “It doesn’t matter.” Lauren shifted her gaze away from those eyes that seemed to see too much. “It was silly.”

      Most men would have gratefully changed the subject. Actually most would never have pursued the topic. But she was beginning to realize Seth wasn’t most men. So Lauren wasn’t really surprised when he took her hand and tugged her to the sofa, dropping down to sit beside her. “Tell me.”

      His tone invited confidences. His eyes promised no matter what she said, he wouldn’t laugh.

      “A Cabbage Patch Kid.” Lauren felt her cheeks warm. She lifted her chin. “They were extremely popular when I was in grade school. My friend Wendy had seven of them. You probably don’t know what they are—”

      “Spencer David.”

      “What?”

      “Spencer David was Anna’s Cabbage Patch doll. She got him when she was about Dani’s age.” A tiny smile lifted Seth’s lips. “She took him everywhere she went. I remember one time…”

      A dimple she never knew he possessed flashed in his left cheek.

      “What?” Lauren touched his arm, the flannel of his shirt soft against her fingers. She immediately released her hold and let her hand drop to her side, but her heart still fluttered.

      “We were at the rodeo. Anna was about to be crowned Little Miss Yellowstone County. When my parents went down to the arena to take pictures, they left Spencer with me.” The dimple flashed again. “Just what every boy wants—to be at a public event with a doll by his side.”

      Lauren resisted the urge to smile at his pained expression. “I’m sure no one even noticed.”

      “No one except every friend I had, including Josh and Mitch.” Seth rolled his eyes. “You can imagine the comments. Then Wes Danker came up with the brilliant СКАЧАТЬ