The Texan’s Happily-Ever-After Read online

  As they neared the kitchen, loud boys’ chatter turned into more of a shouting match. Six-year-old Roy and eight-year-old Joey were coloring at a large rectangular pedestal table. But Joey was now drawing on Roy’s picture, and in retaliation Roy was drawing on Joey’s.

  They were pointing fingers and making accusations while a woman in her fifties, with white-blond spiked hair and long dangling earrings stirred a pot on the stove and firmly called their names. “Roy. Joey. Stop squabbling. You don’t want your dad to come in and hear you.”

  “Dad’s too busy to hear us,” Joey said defiantly, his dark brown eyes snapping in his mocha-skinned face.

  Roy nudged his brother’s shoulder. “Dad don’t want us to fight.”

  “We’re not fighting,” Joey declared, making another mark on Roy’s paper. “We’re just drawing.”

  “Drawing very loudly,” Shep admonished them as he stepped through the doorway into the kitchen. “Eva, shouldn’t they be helping you get supper ready?”

  “We did help her,” they both chimed in unison, running to him for a hug.

  “Oh, I just bet you did.”

  Suddenly Joey looked around Shep and saw Raina. “What are you doing here? Did she come to do something to Manuel or to me or Roy?”

  Raina couldn’t imagine what they thought she’d do. She’d examined Joey when he had a sinus infection, but that had been about the extent of it.

  “Why is she carrying Manuel?” Joey wanted to know.

  Raina suddenly wondered if any parent could answer all of the questions a child might ask in one day.

  “Dr. Gibson came home with me to make sure Manuel feels okay,” Shep responded, and quickly introduced her to his housekeeper, who had kind, hazel eyes.

  “The doctor came home with you so you can spend time with us,” Roy decided, looking happy at that idea.

  From their exchange Raina guessed Manuel’s earaches had shifted most of Shep’s attention to him, and the older boys didn’t like it.

  “Supper in fifteen minutes,” Eva called. “Boys, you’d better wash up.”

  Their heads swung to Shep almost in unison, and he nodded. “Do what Eva said.”

  But before they ran off to the bathroom, Roy studied Raina again. “Are you staying for supper? We’re having chili. Eva doesn’t make it so hot, ’cause I don’t like it that way.”

  Raina laughed. “I don’t know if I’m staying.”

  “We’d like you to,” Shep said quietly.

  Eva added, her eyes twinkling, “I made plenty.”

  She really hadn’t intended to stay and share a meal. Sharing a meal formed a…bond. But with little Manuel clinging to her, Roy looking at her hopefully, Joey studying her a little suspiciously and Shep standing only a few feet from her, giving off signals that he wanted her to stay, she agreed. “All right. Thanks for the invitation. My mom makes chili, too, and I don’t like it too hot, either.”

  At that, Roy grinned and ran off with his brother to wash up.

  Manuel cuddled against her, looking up at her with big brown eyes. “How do you feel, little one?” she asked gently.

  He reached for her chin, and when his fingers made contact he said, “Rocky, rocky.”

  Raina looked to Shep for an explanation. He was watching Manuel’s fingers on her skin. He was looking at her lips. She felt hot and cold, and much too interested in what Shep was thinking right now.

  Eva explained, “When Manuel first came here, all he wanted Shep to do was to rock him in the big rocking chair in the living room.”

  Raina bought her attention back to Manuel’s words. “I suppose he’s associated rocking with comfort. I can do that.”

  “I can hold dinner longer, but the boys are going to get their hands dirty again,” Eva warned.

  “There’s a solution,” Shep assured her. “I’ll bring the rocker to the table.”

  “She still won’t be able to eat if she’s rocking Manuel.”

  Since Raina would rather talk with than be talked about, she assured them, “I can rock and eat at the same time. It might get a little messy, but maybe I can get Manuel to drink.”

  Eva nudged Shep’s shoulder. “I can see why you brought her along. She’s on top of things.”

  “I’ll say she is,” Shep said, looking at her almost as if he didn’t want to be looking at her. The same way she knew she shouldn’t be looking at him?

  Dinner was a rowdy meal, as the boys dipped corn bread into their chili and talked with their mouths full. Roy told Raina about his bus ride that morning and afternoon. Joey talked, mostly about Roy—but not about himself.

  After supper, the boys helped Eva clean off the table and Raina was impressed. “I could never get my brother to do that unless I bribed him.”

  “Your brother’s the police officer, right?” Shep asked.

  “Don’t tell him I told you about the bribing. I’ll never live it down.”

  “Rumor has it he’s a good detective.”

  She knew small towns listened to the rumor mill more than cable news channels.

  Thoughts of Sagebrush’s gossip line faded as Manuel stirred. She brought her head down to his and whispered close to his ear, “You’re such a good little boy.”

  He looked up at her as if he’d heard every word, and gave her a smile.

  Shep was sitting next to her in a high-backed wooden chair that looked like an antique. He leaned closer to her. “Whispering words of wisdom in his ear?”

  With Shep’s face so close to hers, she became breathless when she gazed at his lips. “Just some positive reinforcement. You can do that for him anytime.”

  “I’ll remember that,” Shep returned in a low, husky voice, then leaned away.

  To distract herself from the magnetic pull Shep exuded, she complimented Eva on her chili, as well as on the corn bread, the coleslaw and the ginger cookies she’d baked for dessert.

  Suddenly Shep stood. “Okay, boys. How about if you go get ready for bed? Morning comes a lot quicker when you have to go to school.”

  Roy’s “Aw, do we have to?” and Joey’s quick look at Raina had Shep arching a brow. “I’m going to get Manuel changed into pj’s, too. I want you two finished by the time I’m done.”

  Both boys mumbled, “Yes, sir,” slid last peeks at Raina, then scrambled off.

  After they were gone, Eva said to Raina, “They find toys to play with and forget to put their pajamas on. I’ll go up and make sure they don’t get too sidetracked.”

  “Thanks,” Shep called to her, and Raina could see he meant it.

  “I guess it’s time to put those eardrops in,” Shep said with a frown. “Is there a right way and a wrong way?” he asked Raina.

  “If we coax him to lay on his side, that will make it easier.”

  Shep motioned through the doorway to the living room. “Let’s go to the playroom. I set up a changing table in there.”

  Raina wasn’t used to being around a man who put kids first. Gina’s fiancé, Logan, did. He’d had to. But Raina didn’t know Logan all that well yet.

  Shep took Manuel from her, his large hands grazing her midriff as he securely took hold of the little boy. She was surprised by her body’s startled awareness of the man’s touch. Her cheeks flushed and she felt oddly off-balance.

  Shep looked down at her, their gazes locking for a few intense moments. Neither of them said anything as Shep carried Manuel, and Raina followed him to the playroom.

  They passed what looked like a guest bedroom, then entered a bright, sunny room with yellow walls. There were two long, floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the backyard and smaller ones in a row on the other side.

  “Was this once a porch?” she asked.

  “Yes, it was. I closed it in, put a smaller porch on this entrance and fenced in the yard.”

  “Did you do it yourself?” If he did, she was curious why. He could have hired an entire crew! Now she really was curious about him.

  “A contractor did most of t
he work on the ranch for me. I wanted it restored rather than razed and rebuilt. But I did this. I learned to work with my hands early on. I like building things. I guess that’s why I bought the lumberyard, so I could help other people do it.”

  He took Manuel over to a dark wood chest with a changing table on top. The room had been furnished with kids in mind—a couple of royal blue beanbag chairs, a game table with stools, cupboards and shelves that held toys—everything from remote-controlled vehicles to drawing sets. This room created a pang of longing in Raina, a pang she hadn’t experienced in a very long time. Clark had wanted children badly. So had she.

  “What are you thinking about?” Shep asked her.

  With that question, Raina knew he could be a perceptive man. But she didn’t share her private thoughts very easily. “I was just thinking about parents and kids. When did you know you wanted to adopt?”

  As he undressed Manuel, Shep seemed to consider her question very carefully. “I knew about foster care firsthand. I grew up in the system. It wasn’t pretty. Once I got a start in life and learned how to make money, I had a goal—to find a place I could turn into a real home for kids, kids who needed a family as much as they needed a roof over their heads.”

  Shep set Manuel’s shirt aside, but it began to slip from the table. Raina caught it. Closer to Shep now, she could almost feel the powerful vibrations emanating from his tall, hard body. She sensed he was all muscle, all cowboy, silent much of the time, only revealing himself when he chose or had to.

  “Why Sagebrush?” she asked.

  “Why not Sagebrush?” he responded with a quick grin that she realized he used to disarm anyone who maybe got too close. That grin had the power to make butterflies jump in her stomach. She hadn’t felt that sensation for so long she almost didn’t recognize it. But when she felt a burning heat crawling up her neck again, she knew exactly what it was. Attraction. She’d been fighting it ever since she’d met Shep McGraw.

  Concentrating on their conversation, she took a quick breath. “This isn’t an area of Texas most people think about when they want to move somewhere. I just wondered how you landed here.”

  Shep helped Manuel into a pajama shirt covered with horseshoes. The toddler yawned widely as Shep concentrated on the tiny buttons, his fingers fumbling with them.

  “My father came from Sagebrush. He died when I was four. Then my mother and I moved to California. So you might say I just returned to my roots.”

  Raina knew she should back away from Shep and his story, which was bound to deepen her awareness and sympathy. She didn’t want to get involved with anyone. She’d lost her husband in the most awful of ways, and the aftermath had been heart-wrenching. Moving on had been an almost insurmountable task. But she had gone on. She was past tragedy. And she wanted to keep it that way.

  Still, she was so intrigued by a cowboy who could run a ranch and a lumberyard, yet change a diaper, too. Trying to be as tactful as she could, she asked, “And you lost your mom, too?”

  “Yeah, I did.”

  When Shep didn’t say more, Raina moved a step closer to him. “I’m sorry.”

  Stilling, he peered down at her. He was so much taller than she was. The blue of his eyes darkened until she felt a tremble up her spine.

  “Don’t be sorry,” he said, his voice husky and low. “Everything that happened to me back then made me who I am now.”

  Who was Shep McGraw, beyond a rancher and a dad? Did she even want to find out? Wasn’t that why she had accepted his invitation tonight?

  The moment was broken when Manuel began kicking his legs and reached his arms out to Shep. “Up, Daddy, up.”

  Shep broke eye contact and concentrated on the little boy. “Not yet. Let’s get you changed so we can put your eardrops in.”

  “Dwops?” Manuel repeated.

  “I left them on the kitchen counter,” Shep told Raina. “Would you mind getting them?”

  No, she didn’t mind. She felt as if she needed a breather from him and the obvious love he felt for his sons.

  A few minutes later Raina distracted Manuel as Shep squeezed in the drops. Both of them seemed to be going out of their way not to get too close, not to let their fingers touch, not to let their eyes meet.

  Footsteps suddenly thundered down the stairs. “Dad! Dad!” Roy and Joey called as they ran through the living room towards the playroom.

  “I’m right here,” he said with a laugh, “not out in the barn.”

  His gentle rebuke didn’t seem to faze the boys. “We want to say good night to Dr. Gibson. Eva said we could.”

  Raina drank in the sight of the two little boys, her heart lurching again. What was wrong with her tonight? Joey was dressed in pj’s decorated with racecars. Roy’s were stamped with balls and bats. “I’m glad you came down.”

  “We’re not going to bed yet,” Joey explained. “We can read in our room before we go to sleep. Dad says that quiets us down.”

  Raina couldn’t help but smile. “Sometimes I read to quiet me down before I go to sleep.”

  “We wanted to ask you somethin’,” Roy volunteered.

  Raina glanced at Shep but he just shrugged. “What did you want to ask me?”

  “Can you come back and see the horses sometime?”

  She didn’t know how to respond. What did Shep want? What did she want? Did that even matter, when these two precious children were staring up at her with their big, dark eyes? “I suppose I can.”

  “Promise?” Roy asked, possibly sensing her hesitance.

  Joey added, “If you promise, you have to do it. Dad says no one will be your friend if you can’t keep a promise.”

  Again her gaze sought Shep’s. His expression was friendly but neutral. Apparently, this was her decision. She liked the idea of him teaching his sons about promises being kept.

  “I promise,” she said solemnly.

  “If you come Saturday, we can go for a ride after we do chores,” Joey informed her, as if warming to that idea.

  “You can help with chores!” Roy added enthusiastically.

  At that, Raina laughed out loud. “Well, maybe if I’d help you with chores, I’d develop some muscles. My brother’s always telling me I should work out.”

  “You have a brother?” Roy asked, wide-eyed.

  “Sure do.” She thought about her schedule Saturday. “I’ll tell you what. I have to go to the hospital Saturday morning, but then I’ll stop by here afterward.” She looked at Shep. “Is that all right?”

  “That’s fine,” he replied, still giving nothing away.

  Eva came into the room then, and asked Shep, “Is Manuel ready?”

  The two-year-old had cuddled against Shep’s shoulder. Now Eva took him and said, “Come on, boys. Let’s head on up.” As they followed their nanny, they turned around and stared at their dad.

  He assured them, “I’ll be up in a few minutes. Go on. Pick out a book you want me to read to you.” He said to Eva, “I’ll bring along some of that oat cereal for Manuel.”

  After Roy waved at Raina, both boys took off after Eva.

  Feeling awkward, Raina checked her watch. “I’d better be going.”

  “I’ll walk you out.”

  Raina gathered her purse from the counter, feeling Shep’s gaze on her as she went to the door and he followed. She wondered what he was thinking. She knew what she was thinking.

  The end-of-August evening was warm. As they stepped outside, the breeze tossed the ends of her hair. They walked to her car in silence.

  The motion-detector light on the side of the house glowed as they neared her car. She knew she was going to have to ask Shep the question in her mind. Distracting herself for the moment, she pressed the remote and her doors unlocked.

  Shep opened the driver’s-side door for her.

  Rather than climbing in, she faced him, close enough to him to see the beard shadow on his face. “Do you want me to come out on Saturday?”

  “You have to. You promised.”
/>   “I know. I wasn’t sure what to say. When Roy looked at me with those big eyes, I didn’t know how to refuse.”

  Shep chuckled. “I know exactly what you mean.”

  “You didn’t answer my question.” She needed to know if he wanted her here or not.

  “I like you, Dr. Gibson. It won’t be a hardship to take you on a trail ride.”

  “Raina,” she said softly. “If we’re going on a trail ride, first names seem more…comfortable.”

  “Comfortable,” he agreed, looking down at her with interest she hadn’t noticed in a man’s eyes for years. He shoved his hands into his pockets, though he didn’t step away. “Thanks for coming over tonight.”

  “I really enjoyed myself.”

  Awkwardness settled between them, the kind of awkwardness that happened after a first date, she thought. Only, they hadn’t been on a date. Still, she felt pulled toward Shep. Yet something else urged her to move away—probably memories, heartache and regrets over a love lost.

  After she slid into the driver’s seat, Shep closed the door. Then he laid his hand on the open window and bent down, his face close to hers. “Remember, a promise given is a promise that should be kept.”

  She had the feeling his boys had had promises made to them that weren’t kept. He was protective of that and protective of them. “I’ll remember,” she murmured, unable to take her gaze from his face.

  Shep straightened and stepped away from the car.

  With a trembling hand, she pressed her smart key to start the engine. As she backed out of the parking space and drove away, his words echoed in her mind.

  A promise given is a promise that should be kept.

  Did Shep McGraw keep his promises?

  Chapter Three

  “You are wrong!” Roy yelled. “Wrong, wrong, wrong.”

  “I am not,” Joey yelled back.

  “Boys,” came a stern voice.

  Raina had parked beside Shep’s ranchhouse and, hearing voices at the barn, headed to it. She walked toward the corral, guessing the boys were outside the stall doors. At the fence, she stopped.

  Shep had crouched down in front of Roy. His voice wasn’t stern now, as he said, “It’s still early. Not even lunchtime.”