His Pregnant Texas Sweetheart. Amy Woods

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СКАЧАТЬ Ryan, who used to call her Katydid like the bug, a nickname no one had used since, one which she secretly missed tremendously.

      Ryan, whom she’d loved in a way she’d always known she could never find twice in a lifetime. Anger swelled inside her and Katie was grateful for its presence. It was much easier to handle than the myriad of other emotions she shoved aside.

       Stupid Ryan Ford.

      “Look, Katie, I—”

      She held up a hand to stop him. “You don’t have to say anything else.” She dropped her arm to her side and before she had a chance to do anything to prevent it, his steps had eaten up all the distance between them and there he was...right there in front of her.

      Her breath caught in her throat when he opened up his arms and wrapped them around her tightly. She couldn’t have moved if she wanted to, and the worst part was...she wasn’t sure she did.

      When she could finally breathe again, his familiar smell washed over her and brought hundreds of memories with it...most of them happy, which startled her. His chest was firm and wide, and Katie resisted the urge to dissolve into him. She didn’t want to think about what would happen if she gave in, about how hard it would be to let go.

      He must have sensed her tension because he pulled back abruptly, balling his hands into fists at his sides as though he didn’t quite know what to do with them. They stood staring at each other, the air between them a silent pool of chaos, filled with all the things they weren’t able or willing to say.

      And what was there to say, really? Yes, she’d had a crush on him growing up...more than a crush. But what he’d done that night—or rather hadn’t done—had erased any chance of whatever unspoken feelings had been between them. The bottom line was, she couldn’t trust Ryan. Couldn’t trust him to be there for her and couldn’t trust him with her heart.

      “Look, Katie. You don’t have to talk to me, and you don’t have to stay. I understand if you want to get away from me. I just want you to know that I don’t feel the same way.”

      She leaned back on her heels, just to get some feeling into her legs, which had gone numb along with the rest of her body when Ryan touched her. She looked at the ground and back up again, and he was still there.

      “I really need to get home,” she said. As soon as the words were out, regret tumbled through her and she had to face the fact that she really didn’t want to go anywhere, least of all home, where she’d have nothing more to do than think about the job she’d lost and face her housemate’s endless supply of cheer.

      And to tell the truth, she wanted to talk to Ryan. She wanted to know what he’d been up to for the past near-decade and find out what kind of life he lived, what had happened with him and Sarah and the family they’d started.

      Just simple curiosity. That was all.

      Ryan’s face fell, but he nodded. “That’s fine. I understand. I’ve got to...get back to my hotel and work on a few things. Make some calls.”

      “You’re not staying with your parents?” she asked. She’d just assumed they were the reason for his visit. Why else would he be back in town?

      Darkness fell over his eyes, but he blinked it away in an instant. Katie had caught it, though, and she wanted to know what it meant.

      “No,” he said, his tone strange. “No, I’m not. I don’t...see much of them anymore...at least not my dad. Not since I left.”

       They weren’t the only ones you left.

      “Okay, well—”

      “It was nice to see you, Katie. It really was. I hope it’s not the last time.”

      She tried to keep her face neutral, but was pretty sure a funny look escaped. It was an odd thing for him to say, but then the past half hour had been odd; her whole day had been odd. This was just another slice of crazy to add to the pie.

      She gave him a small grin and held up her palm in a wave before heading to her truck. Somehow she managed to unlock the door and get inside, but it wasn’t until she reached to put her seat belt on that she realized her hands were shaking. She leaned forward until her head rested against the steering wheel, where she stayed until her whole body ceased its trembling and she could breathe again.

      She put her key in the ignition and turned it, but the result she got was definitely not the one she expected.

      Katie tried again, but all that came out of the engine was a sputtering cough.

      “All right, old man. Don’t do this to me. Not today.”

      She gave it another go and heard the same thing; the engine turned over, but it wouldn’t start.

      “Okay, please?” she begged, trying a different tactic. Maybe if she talked a little sweeter to it, the old hunk of metal would do as she asked, which really wasn’t a whole lot, considering its job description.

      She gave a loud groan and slammed her fists against the dashboard, throwing a fit like the smaller children sometimes did at the museum. She was about to try one more time when a sound interrupted her—a soft knock on her windshield.

      Ryan.

       Great.

      Now she could add being a damsel in distress to her list of experiences. October 15 was turning out to be a very bad day indeed. If this kept up, it wouldn’t hold the position of her favorite month much longer.

      He motioned for her to roll down her window. That little maneuver hadn’t been possible for a year or so, so she opened the door instead.

      “Need some help?” he asked.

      “Maybe...possibly. I don’t know.” She threw her hands up in the air.

      Why did he look...pleased?

      He gave her an utterly charming smile and she wanted to hit him.

      “Jump out. Let me have a look,” he instructed, and once again, she obeyed. She would really have to stop doing that... He didn’t deserve it.

      Once she’d hopped down, Ryan reached inside the truck and found the lever that opened the hood. He walked over and propped it open, bending to peer inside. She really wished he hadn’t done that, because her eyes immediately latched on to his backside, which was even better than she remembered—a fact she would never, ever tell him.

      After only a few minutes of poking around, Ryan pulled his head out from under the hood and faced her. A few streaks of grease tattooed his hands, which did nothing to make him look worse. “Your piston rings are worn,” he said, looking a little too smug for his own good. “We’ve got to get you some new ones.”

      Katie ran a hand through her still-pinned-up hair, which had probably started to resemble a toilet brush by then. “How long will that take?” she asked, glancing down at her watch. Even though she wasn’t going to be working at the museum much longer, Katie still had a job to do. She was determined to make this Pumpkin Festival the best the town had ever seen—even if it was the last. Especially if it was the last. And she had some shopping to do the next day and...oh, jeez...what if something СКАЧАТЬ