The Rancher's Expectant Christmas. Karen Templeton

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СКАЧАТЬ Josh twisted to haul the boy into his arms. “How about trying that again? Only so she can actually hear you this time.”

      “Austin,” the kid got out, giving her a sweet, heart-squeezing smile. Dark hair, like his daddy. Same eyes, too.

      “Pleased to meet you, Austin—”

      “How come your tummy’s so big?” he said, pointing to her belly, and Josh’s face blazed.

      “Oh, jeez...”

      Deanna laughed, even as she thought, At least one person in the room is being honest. “It’s okay, I’m used to it.” Returning her gaze to Austin, she bent over as much as she could and whispered, “There’s a baby growing inside me.”

      The kid frowned. “Like the horses?”

      “Exactly. Except this baby doesn’t have hooves.”

      “Oh. Is it a boy or a girl?”

      “A girl.”

      Austin frowned at her belly again. “What’s her name?”

      “Haven’t decided yet.”

      The kid gave her a maybe-you-should-get-on-that look that made Deanna’s chest tickle as she bit down on a smile. Then, heaving a breathy “Okay,” he wriggled out of his father’s arms and took off to mess with the cat, who’d thudded to the tiled floor then flopped in the morning’s first sunbeam, belly bared to the world. Or in this case, little boys. Brave cat.

      “Sorry about the interrogation,” Josh said, and Deanna turned to see his mouth pushed into something reasonably close to a smile.

      “Hey. At least he didn’t ask how the baby got in there.”

      “Give him a minute,” Josh muttered, and for a second she saw the boy who’d kept her from losing it, all those years ago.

      The boy she might have loved, if she’d been inclined to such foolishness.

      “Austin’s adorable. He looks like you.”

      “So everyone says.” He frowned. “Your...the baby’s father let you come alone?”

      “We’re...not together.”

      There was no denying the judgment in his stony expression. And not only about her pregnancy, she guessed. The baby kicked; stifling a wince, Deanna glanced over at Austin before meeting that penetrating gaze again. “I had no idea Dad was even sick. I swear. Because he’d made Gus swear not to tell me. Because if I’d known, nothing would’ve kept me from being here. And the worst thing is...” Her eyes stung. Tough. “I can’t even tell Dad how angry I am. How...hurt.”

      The staring continued for several seconds before Josh said, “I know he didn’t tell you. But if you’d bothered to pay a visit in the last six months—”

      “And why would I do that when Dad made it more than clear he didn’t particularly want me to?”

      And why was she was even trying to explain something she didn’t entirely understand herself?

      A long, tense moment passed before Josh said, “For what it’s worth, it happened pretty fast.”

      “So Gus said.” Deanna glanced over at Austin, now lying beside the cat and apparently telling it a story, before facing Josh again. “Although I gather the only reason he did was because he figured I’d see the death certificate, discover the truth whether Dad wanted me to or not.”

      Another breath left Josh’s lungs. “I suppose he didn’t want you to worry—”

      “What he did,” Deanna said, not even trying to hide the bitterness in her voice, “was unfair and selfish. Kind of a major thing to keep from me.”

      Josh’s eyes once more dropped to her swollen middle, and Deanna’s face warmed. Especially when he looked back up.

      “Just like I’m guessing Granville had no idea about his granddaughter.”

      “I didn’t intend to keep her a secret forever, for cripe’s sake! But I did know...” Her lips pressed tightly together. “That the circumstances surrounding my condition wouldn’t exactly make Dad happy. At least not...not before he had a chance to meet her. I had a plan,” she said over the stab to her heart. “Unfortunately it didn’t jibe with the Universe’s.”

      That got a hard stare before Josh walked away to open the fridge.

      “What would you like for breakfast?”

      Deanna frowned, confused. “You don’t have to—”

      “When was the last time you ate?”

      “Um...lunch yesterday? But cereal’s fine, don’t go to any trouble—”

      “Not planning on it. But Gus left pancake batter, and even I can scramble eggs. The squirt already ate, an hour ago.”

      “Eggs, then. If you’re sure—”

      He shot her another look that shut her up...a look that said they only had to get through the next few days. Then everyone could get back to their regular lives.

      Or whatever.

      Another wave of grief shunted through her, as she thought about the ramifications of her father’s passing, not only for her but for the entire community. Weird, how she’d never thought much about what would happen to the ranch after his death, mainly because that’d always seemed so far in the future. Even though he’d been significantly older than her mother, somehow Deanna had always thought of Dad as immortal, like some Greek god. Especially since he’d never discussed the disposition of the property with her—

      A sudden burst of voices from the mudroom shattered her thoughts. “Gramma!” Austin yelled as he abandoned the probably very relieved cat and sprinted across the room, where the woman who’d so often filled the gap in Deanna’s life, and heart, after her mother died dumped several recyclable grocery totes on the counter, then swept her grandson into her arms. Gus, the belly cantilevered over his giant belt buckle nearly as big as Deanna’s, followed a moment later, hauling several more bags which landed unceremoniously on the floor. Her long ponytail a mass of delicate, staticky silver wires against her back, Billie Talbot turned, her expression softening when she spotted Deanna.

      “Oh, sweetheart...” she crooned, and fresh tears sprang to Deanna’s eyes. A moment later she was wrapped in the older woman’s arms. “I’m so sorry...so, so sorry...”

      Unable to speak, Deanna nodded against Billie’s shoulder, the coarse fabric of the older woman’s poncho scratching her cheek. “Such a good man, your daddy,” Billie whispered into her hair. “Whole town’s gonna miss him like crazy...and oh, my goodness!” Holding Deanna apart, Billie grinned. “Seven months?”

      “More or less.”

      “And they let you fly?”

      Scrubbing a tear off her cheek, Deanna smiled, remembering that Josh’s mother was a midwife. “Believe me, the flight attendants all breathed a huge СКАЧАТЬ