Drive-By Daddy: Drive-By Daddy / Calamity Jo. Patricia Knoll

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СКАЧАТЬ eyelashes, Darcy stared at him, noting his intense blue-eyed gaze. “I don’t mind at all, Darcy. In fact, I’m honored. I’m just pleased I could help. And that everything turned out so well.”

      “Me, too.” And then she had nothing else to say. Nothing that could keep him here and talking. Which was crazy because all she really wanted was for him to go away. Because he filled this room with his presence—and made her feel small and warm and safe. All the things she couldn’t afford to feel. He was from Montana. And she and her daughter would be living in Baltimore. No chance of a relationship there. Not that she wanted one anyway.

      “I noticed,” he said suddenly…and a little too loudly, “on the drive out here from Phoenix, that your car wasn’t beside the road. I guess someone took care of that for you?”

      “Yes. My mother had it towed in. It’s at the garage now.” Her mother. Dear God. “Oh, no. I need to warn you about something.”

      He sat up, alert, questioning. “What’s that?”

      “My mother. She’s trying to find you.”

      He looked askance at her. “And yet, here I am.”

      “I know. But she doesn’t know that. And she has your stuff. But not your name.”

      His frown intensified. “I don’t know what—”

      “That book of matches. The blanket. And your pocket knife.”

      Suddenly, understanding showed in his expression. “She does? That’s good. I realized this morning that I didn’t have my knife. I figured it’d dropped out of the truck in all the excitement. But it’s mighty nice of your mother to try to get it back to me. I appreciate that.”

      Darcy shook her head. “No. It’s not nice. She’s not looking for you in a good way. Trust me. She’s like a bloodhound. In fact, she set Johnny Smith on you. And he’s a real bloodhound.”

      “Someone named a bloodhound Johnny Smith?”

      The man wasn’t getting any of this. “No. He’s a policeman,” Darcy explained. “He just looks like a bloodhound.”

      “I see.” But his bewildered expression said he didn’t. “Why would your mother set a policeman on me?”

      “Well, not set one on you, I guess. You didn’t do anything wrong. She means it in a good way.”

      “A second ago you said it was in a bad way.”

      “Well, a good way for her. But bad for you and me.”

      He stared intently at Darcy. “Now it’s you and me. Bad how?”

      Darcy put her hands to her steadily warming cheeks. “I am so embarrassed.” She plopped her hands down to her lap. “Okay. Here we go. First things first. Despite all my babbling here, I’m a college professor. A little over a year ago I earned my doctorate in English Lit. I teach in Baltimore. I’m here with my mother until I’m back on my feet. And I’m what you’d call an unwed mother.”

      He nodded…calm, accepting. “Congratulations. About your doctorate, I mean. About the other…well, I thought something like that was going on, from the things you said yesterday.”

      Darcy recalled yesterday’s labor-and-delivery tirade and nodded. “Yes. I said a lot of things, didn’t I? And I apologize.”

      “It’s okay. Hormones, like you said. My sister’s had five kids. I know a little bit about that.”

      Darcy’s eyes widened. “Five?” As he nodded his confirmation, her sore, sore, sore nether regions were screaming Never again. “Anyway, the you and me part,” she continued. “Mother believes that my baby needs a father.”

      “Aah.” He firmed his lips together, and glanced around the room as if trying to figure out where the closest exit was.

      That hurt. But Darcy couldn’t really blame him. After all, the man had no responsibility here, no relationship with her. So why else would he feel anything but trapped? But still, the last time she’d seen a similar expression, it had been on Hank’s face when she’d told him she was pregnant. It was just too funny, the effect she had on men. “Don’t worry. Montana already has a father. One who’s not the least bit interested in her. Or in me, either. Which is how I want it, believe me. But nevertheless, she has a father. You’re safe.”

      He stared at her. Seconds ticked by on the clock mounted on the wall behind him. His expression never changed. Darcy swallowed, felt too warm. And then too cold. Finally, he said, “I wasn’t thinking that at all. Actually I was thinking of a man who didn’t live up to his responsibilities. Still that was quite a speech.”

      Darcy raised her chin. “All that lecturing I do, no doubt.”

      “I suppose. But I guess it’s my turn to spill my guts, right?”

      Feeling a bit defensive, Darcy shrugged. “Sure. Why not? We’re all friends here.”

      His eyebrows raised. “I sure hope we are, Darcy.

      I’d like that. But it’s your call.”

      His expression radiated sincerity. And intelligence. And kindness. Three things Darcy liked in people but pretty much hadn’t encountered in the men she’d chosen to have relationships with in the past. Which, she suddenly realized, said more about her than it did the men. She quirked her mouth and brushed her annoyingly curly hair back from her face. “We are, Tom. We’re friends. Someone just needs to knock this chip off my shoulder, I guess.”

      He smiled. “It’s not as bad as all that, Darcy. I imagine you’re scared right now, maybe a little unsure of things. You’ve been through a hell of a lot, it sounds like. I can’t blame you for being a little wary.”

      Darcy stared at this Tom Elliott, more and more convinced he was some wonderfully put-together animated robot programmed to say everything a woman wanted to hear. She felt certain she could go to a toy store and find a whole row of Tom Elliott look-alikes in bright, shiny packages. If she did, she intended to buy one for every female friend she had. “Are you always this wonderful?” she asked.

      He shrugged and looked embarrassed. “No. Not usually. In fact,” he said, “I expect there are some lawyers and land brokers over in Phoenix who are tacking up Wanted posters of me this minute.”

      “Really? Who’d you kill?”

      He grinned. “Nobody yet. I’m down here on my late grandfather’s business. He owned—and now I do—a piece of land outside of Phoenix that some developers are interested in. I’ve been looking it over.” He sat up straighter and pointed at her. “As a matter of fact, I’d been looking at it when I came across you yesterday.”

      “Well, thank God for your grandfather and his land, then. Or I’d have been scorpion bait. But you must have been really lost because Phoenix is a pretty good ride from here.”

      He nodded. “Yeah, I know. I’d already found the land. I just wanted to take a look around a little farther out, maybe see why my granddad had hung on to it for so long. Periodically he’d have to make a trip down here and deal with some paperwork. So did my father. It was always a hassle for them. And now, it СКАЧАТЬ