The Lawman's Christmas Proposal

“She’s...?”

“Six months.”

“Yeah, she’s young.” He did the math. By rights, he and Andi could have started a family of their own before either of her kids had been born. But she had left him, and they had lost their chance.

The sudden faraway look in her eyes prompted him into speech. “Jed tells me you’re staying at the hotel.”

“Temporarily,” she shot back.

He winced at the echo of his response when Jed had mentioned his coming home. Hopefully, he hadn’t sounded as defensive. Looked as if Andi didn’t plan to stay around Cowboy Creek. Neither did he.

“I’m only here through the holidays,” she added.

“This is just a short visit for me, too.”

“And then you’ll go back to Los Angeles.”

She sounded as if what he did concerned her. He couldn’t trust that he’d read her right. But he would bet good money she hadn’t forgotten their summer.

He would never forget that day he’d looked across the barn to find the hottest girl he’d ever seen standing in the doorway, a blonde angel in a T-shirt, jeans and riding boots. He’d fallen head over heels and would have sworn she’d done the same.

Every day, once his work at the ranch was done, they had spent as much time together as they could. Until that one day she had just up and left without saying a word.

But here they were.

He had the feeling she was about to repeat history and walk off. “I belong in LA,” he said, half to remind himself and half to keep her with him, as pathetic as both of those felt for him to admit. “I’m with the police department.”

“That’s a dangerous job. A tough one for you, and just as hard on your wife and kids.”

As she ought to have seen by her own husband’s death, in the right—or wrong—circumstances, any job had its risks. He shook his head. “I don’t have a wife. Or any family there. It’s just me.”

Alone at home. On his own on the job.

And now standing here beside the girl who’d started him down that road.

He couldn’t stop himself from reaching up to gently stroke the fine, lined skin near her eye.

“I’m not wearing well,” she said with a forced laugh.

“We’ve all gotten older.” But maybe not wiser. He cupped her cheek with his palm. The warmth spreading through his hand more than made up for the risk he’d taken in touching her. For a brief moment, she tilted her head, resting against his hand. Her reaction closed the gap left by all the years they had lost. It finally chased away all his resentment.

Her eyes misted. She turned away. “I’m sorry about not contacting you. Everything was just too much for me. I had to focus on my mom.”

She looked toward the barn, as if planning to head over there. He didn’t want her to leave.

“That’s a big load for an eighteen-year-old to handle,” he said.

“For anyone to handle, believe me.” She sighed. “Sometimes, life doesn’t seem fair.”

“That’s because it isn’t. We all get the luck of the draw—and sometimes it’s bad luck.”

Just what he’d heard from everyone back in LA.

After a quick nod, Andi walked away.

He leaned against the rail, easing the pressure on his knee, and watched her go. That summer afternoon years ago, he’d had no idea he wouldn’t see her again. Would the same thing happen now? Was he simply destined to have bad luck when it came to her?

Though he could parrot the words his buddies on the force had told him, that didn’t mean he wanted to accept their verdict about the situation.

And though everything in him said he should keep his distance from Andi, that didn’t mean he had the strength to heed his own warning.

Chapter Four (#ulink_d0024360-564c-5f7a-a60b-4722e5e52b3c)

As she crossed the yard to the barn, Andi could almost feel Mitch’s gaze on her back. She could definitely still feel the warmth filling her from the touch of his hand against her cheek. In that one all-too-brief moment, she had changed into a teen again, and he had become the boy she loved. In his eyes in that moment, she saw the boy who loved her, too.

But their teenagers-in-lust days were long over.

Resolutely, she focused on the group standing in the barn doorway and kept moving toward them, away from Mitch and his warm hands and his crooked smile and his unfamiliar stiff-legged walk.

When she approached the group, her son gave her the wide grin that always reminded her so much of his daddy. “Mommy, I rided Bingo.”

“I saw you,” she said. “You did a great job.”

“He did,” Eddie, the stable hand, agreed. “I’ll be happy to give him another practice run anytime.”

“I’m sure Trey would love that.”

“Yeah, Mommy, wanna ride horse. Bi-i-ig horse.”

“Don’t you worry, mister,” Eddie said, “we’ll get you up on Bingo again tomorrow. How’s that?”

“Yay!” Trey clapped his hands. No sign of the terrible twos now, as Mitch had mentioned.

With a smile, she watched Eddie ruffle her son’s hair. She didn’t need a policeman’s skills to note that the tall, quiet teen grew much more talkative every time Mitch’s sister Laurie arrived at the ranch. Whenever she saw the two of them together, the pair made her think of Mitch and herself.

With luck, this couple’s summer romance would end more happily than her and Mitch’s had done.

When he came to stand beside her, she turned to Trey. “Come on, sweetie, we need to go back to the hotel.”

“I don’t wanna! Wanna see Daff now.”

“So do I,” Laurie said quietly over his head. “Is it okay if I take him with me for just a few minutes?”

“I’ll go and keep an eye on things,” Eddie said.

His tone made it evident he considered himself responsible for everything on the ranch. Just the way Mitch had when she’d met him.

The trio entered the barn.