Daddy in the Making. Crystal Green

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      As she stopped and looked at him, those gray eyes were wide again. Something exploded in his chest as their gazes locked, and his pulse jumped, skipping over the next beat and landing hard on the other side.

      Was he wrong, or did it seem as if she was just as rocked?

      She started walking again, as if she was either resigned that he would continue to hound her or she was intent on just getting away.

      â€œAren’t you gone yet?” she asked, training her eyes straight ahead.

      He laughed at her gumption. Somehow, laughter felt natural with her, as if they’d done a lot of it that night, even if there wasn’t much in store now. “I think there’s more in St. Valentine for me besides sightseeing.”

      They were passing her hotel. Outside, where rusted iron benches waited like timeless sentries, a flock of geriatric men and one silver-haired woman wearing an Indian blanket around her shoulders were smoking cigars and watching the world go by. That included Rita and Conn, too, and their gazes followed them, even after Rita nodded a greeting.

      Conn thought that she looked a little proud, her chin lifted slightly, as if she was daring someone to say something about her weight gain or …

      The baby.

      Again, his heart raced. He had to ask. It was just a matter of when.

      She spoke when they were far enough away from the crowd. “I remember you were just as persistent then as you are now.”

      â€œMy brothers and mom call it ‘willfulness.’ They say I decide on something and I stick to it.”

      â€œYet you don’t remember that about yourself.”

      â€œNo, but it seems to be something I didn’t lose in that accident.”

      She didn’t respond, so he decided he would do more talking. “One of the first things they said to me when I was recovering is that I’m a true cowboy, a man who’s at home on the range more than anyplace else. They say I’d rather be there than off the ranch in pursuit of a real life.”

      â€œI know what you mean.”

      He got the feeling that Rita had heard this about herself, too, except in her life, it was all about the hotel, not a ranch.

      Strange that he would think this, though. Had she told him something similar that night?

      Was it starting to come back to him now?

      He reached inside his head but couldn’t recall it. All he could grasp were faraway things like sitting alone on his cabin porch, listening to the night sounds on his swing, enjoying what he had as a bachelor, content with nothing more.

      Rita gave him a sidelong glance as they kept walking.

      It was now or never.

      He took off his hat, holding it in his hands. “I couldn’t help but notice …”

      He motioned toward her stomach, trying to avoid the indelicacy of the words.

      Immediately, she placed her palm there, as if protecting herself. Was she going to tell him to go to hell for saying she’d put on some pounds? Or …

      Then she began walking again. “Don’t worry about it. The baby isn’t yours.”

      Was that relief sliding through him, from chest to toe?

      â€œI only wanted to make sure,” he said. “I might not know much about myself, but I do know that if it came down to it, I wouldn’t have left you in a lurch.”

      â€œA baby’s not a lurch.”

      Damn, she was making him work hard. “I didn’t mean it that way. I’m sorry, Rita.”

      She stopped walking again, her hands on her hips as she shook her head. “You’ve been sorry a hundred times already.”

      â€œListen, all I want to know is—”

      â€œI know what you want to know and I get the feeling that you won’t be going anywhere until you drag it out of me.”

      Did she actually believe him now when he said that he had amnesia?

      â€œSo you just want me to paint you a picture of a memory, is that all?” she said, seemingly giving in. “You want me to fill in what happened before your accident?”

      â€œI’d be grateful for it.” He held his hat with both hands. “I’ve had snippets of memory, where nothing has made much sense. So I thought I’d come back here, based on a few flashes, to get my past straightened out.”

      She smoothed down her skirt, as civil as could be. “There’s really not much to tell. It started when you strolled into the saloon down the street while I was grabbing dinner.”

      A slight glow lit in her eyes before she quickly banished it. Was she thinking of how it’d been, with him walking into the room, latching gazes with her?

      A bang-up attraction just like the one he was feeling now?

      Was she feeling it, too, but doing her damnedest to tamp it down?

      â€œI was taking a break from doing some repair work in the hotel,” she said. “So it was going to be a long night. I own the place, along with my brother and sister, but I’m the one who runs it. And the only time I have to do catch-up work is when the desk isn’t very busy. But it’s been that way ever since the Tony Amati story came to the forefront.”

      â€œI heard all about that.”

      She crossed her arms over her chest, as if resisting any small talk. “Anyway, you came right over to my table. Charming. Persistent. Long story short, we ended up in bed in one of the empty hotel rooms. And when you left the next morning, you said you’d …”

      He’d already guessed what he’d said, and he wondered how many women he’d done it to and if he’d really meant it at the time.

      â€œI told you I’d be back,” he said.

      â€œYes. You said you’d come back after you’d taken care of your business for the day.” She fingered her collar, as if missing the jewelry she used to wear. “You took my necklace from my pile of clothing and said you wanted to bring it with you. You were in a playful, good mood. ‘It’s just some insurance,’ you said. ‘A guarantee I’ll come strolling through the lobby again tonight.’”

      Insurance? A guarantee? Okay, from what he remembered about himself, this didn’t sound like him at all.

      Had he been toying with her? His brothers—his best friends—had told him that he was a pretty harmless scamp, but it didn’t sound like it right now.

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