Montana Mistletoe. Roxanne Rustand

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СКАЧАТЬ That was the last time this ranch will ever skip a background check and references—even for Mary Poppins.”

      “Well, no one could argue with you being careful at hiring a nanny. You’re being a good father. Just as you should be.”

      “About that...” He took a long slug of coffee and paused, apparently sorting out his thoughts. “The twins aren’t mine. Not yet, anyway. We have no idea what will happen.”

      At his dark, pensive expression, Abby waited for him to continue. She’d guessed he was widowed or divorced, and the thought that he’d found someone who was the true love of his life, instead of her, had made her inexplicably sad. But the possibility that those little girls had suffered loss and uncertainty was much worse.

      “I got a call from Child Protective Services in California last December,” he continued. “A neighbor reported that young children in the adjacent apartment had been crying all night and into the next day. The girls were only four at the time. The landlord and a CPS social worker found them cowering in a locked closet, scared to death. No one else was there.”

      Abby closed her eyes, imagining their terror. “Those poor, sweet babies.”

      “They were so traumatized that they couldn’t give any information, but they were hungry and dehydrated. The social worker suspected that they’d been alone for a good twenty-four hours.”

      Abby stared at him, feeling more than a little sick.

      “Apparently my cousin Lindsey arrived just after the CPS social worker did. She insisted that she’d left the girls with her boyfriend, and he’d never left them alone before. She actually seemed frightened when the social worker tried to pressure her into giving his name.”

      Abby had seen more family dramas during her years as an inner-city teacher in Chicago than she’d ever thought possible, but it never failed to break her heart when helpless children suffered. “What a horrible situation.”

      “The social worker told her she would be assigned a caseworker and insisted on taking the names of some relatives. She warned Lindsey about the possibility of an emergency removal of the children if things didn’t improve immediately. That’s why we were called—to verify that the girls could be sent here, if necessary.”

      “Is that how the girls ended up here in Montana?”

      Jess nodded. “Apparently Lindsey got into a fight with her boyfriend when he finally came back. He became violent, and she fled to a friend’s place with the twins. She called Betty and asked if we could take the girls for a month or so. She wanted them out of state, probably worried she’d lose them for good if the CPS got involved again. Personally, I think she was also afraid the boyfriend might hurt them.”

      “What about Lindsey’s parents?”

      “Her mother—Betty’s daughter—died soon after Lindsey was born. Her dad and new stepmother divorced years ago. Neither wanted anything to do with Lindsey or her kids when I contacted them last winter. And neither of them have ever called to ask how the twins are doing.”

      Abby felt her heart wrench. “So you’re the twins’ second cousin?”

      “They just call me Uncle Jess.”

      “And they call their great-grandmother...”

      “Grandma Betty.”

      “I’m so glad they had family who could take them in.”

      “I keep hoping we’ll get a call from Lindsey so at least we’ll know she’s all right, but it’s been over eleven months with no word. I filed a missing-persons report with the police in Los Angeles long ago and finally hired a private detective. But we still don’t know where she is or if she’s even alive.”

      Abby bit her lower lip, her heart aching for the motherless little girls. “It’s all so sad.”

      “I’m telling you all of this in strict confidence, so you’ll understand if the girls are moody or difficult sometimes. They haven’t had an easy life.” He sighed heavily. “We think Lindsey and her boyfriend left them alone more often than she would admit. You’ll see that Bella is quite the guardian of her sister, and Sophie depends on her a lot.”

      “What if Lindsey does turn up again—or some guy claiming to be the twins’ father—and tries to take them away?”

      Jess’s mouth flattened. “That thought keeps me awake at night. I would help her any way I can. But if she refused my help and took off with them, how safe would they be? What if we couldn’t find her again, and she was into drugs, or running with a bad crowd?”

      Like that violent boyfriend. Or worse. “I’m going to start adding the girls to my prayers. They’ve been so blessed to end up with you, Jess.”

      A brief smile crinkled the corners of his eyes. “I can’t imagine life without them, even if they can be a handful at times.”

      The glimpse of his smile made her insides tighten and warmth rise into her cheekbones. Even after all these years, her reaction to him was as strong and instinctive as ever—which was going to make their working relationship even more awkward than she’d guessed.

      Hiding her blush, she turned away toward the windows facing the barns and the foothills of the Rockies. “I don’t know how you managed while Betty was gone.”

      “Working a hundred miles an hour while the girls were in school.” Jess poured himself another cup of coffee and offered her a refill, but she shook her head. “Most years, cattle could still be on the higher range and stay fat and healthy there for another few weeks. But we got heavy, early snow in mid-October and it hasn’t let up. They can’t paw through it to get enough to eat.”

      “So you’re already hauling hay to them?”

      “Yep.” He studied the contents of his coffee cup for a moment, then raised his gaze to hers. “Which adds hours to each day, but now the snow is too deep to reach them. As soon as I can, I need to drive that last herd down closer to the barns, where it’s easier to keep them on hay. The rest of the cattle were already moved.”

      “Any leads for another ranch hand?”

      “Not yet.”

      “No wonder you need help.”

      Jess settled into a chair opposite hers at the round, claw-foot oak table and wearily ran a hand through his thick, wavy black hair. “Even after Betty is back on her feet, I don’t want her fussing over the cooking and housework. I’d like her to take it easy for the rest of her life.”

      “Good luck with that, because from what I remember of her, she never liked to sit still.”

      “True. But at least it would be her choice.”

      Again, a corner of his mouth kicked up into a grin, and once again her foolish heart skipped a beat.

      She pressed her lips into a firm line, reining in the impulse to smile right back. She was pretty sure that the quickest way to lose this job would be to look like she was going to follow him around like a lovesick teenager, and she most definitely wasn’t planning to do that.

      He СКАЧАТЬ