Operation Cowboy Daddy

“Is there a specific reason why you don’t want any children?” she asked.

His eyes immediately shuttered and his shoulders stiffened slightly. He set the plastic keys on the coffee table and then scooted back deeper into the sofa. “It’s just a decision I made a long time ago. It’s not like I hate kids or anything. I’ve just never seen myself as a father.”

She knew he was one of the cowboys that several not-so-nice people in Bitterroot referred to as the lost boys. They were men who had been hired on when they’d been young teenagers, mere boys who either had been thrown away by their families or had chosen to run away.

She couldn’t help but wonder what Tony’s story was and then she reminded herself she shouldn’t even be interested. Within the next day or two Amy would show up or he’d find her and then she’d never see Tony Nakni again.

Chapter 3 (#ulink_abe91590-fdfd-5dc7-9d20-f89b42aaaf9f)

Tony walked out of Mary’s front door at just after eight thirty. He’d given the baby a bottle and then he’d changed his diaper and clothes and placed him in the playpen for bed.

Mary accompanied him out to his truck. “What time should we expect you tomorrow evening?”

“About four thirty or five,” he replied.

The deep shadows of approaching night clung to her features, emphasizing her straight nose, her high cheekbones and the dark depths of her eyes. God, she was beautiful in moonlight and shadows, he thought.

“We’ll hold dinner until you arrive.”

“You don’t have to do that,” he protested. “You’re already doing so much for me.”

She smiled. “Setting another plate on the table is no big deal.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets and stepped back from her. “I don’t think your grandmother likes me very much.”

Her smile widened. “If she’s giving you a hard time, then she likes you. If she isn’t speaking to you at all, then you have to worry.”

He frowned. “She didn’t have a lot to say to me.”

“That’s because you were interrupting our usual routine. Sunday and Wednesday nights are always movie nights for us, complete with popcorn and theater candy.”

“Why didn’t you say anything? I could have taken the baby into the bedroom so that you two could have gone about your normal routine.”

Once again she smiled at him. “A little shake-up in the routine isn’t always a bad thing. Now, you’d better get back to the ranch and we’ll see you tomorrow evening.” She didn’t wait for his reply but instead turned and headed into the house.

He got into his truck and took off for the Holiday ranch with Mary on his mind. She’d smelled of dark and mysterious spices, so different from the light floral scent that Amy had always worn.

He’d cared about Amy and he worried about the trouble she might be in now, but something about Mary Redwing stirred him on a level no woman had ever done before. Amy had been like a delightful teenager, but Mary was definitely all grown-up woman.

And something about her scared him just a little bit. A lick of desire burned in his stomach when he got near her and he couldn’t afford to make any mistakes where she was concerned.

Just a couple of days, he reminded himself. He needed her now because he had no other alternative. He was just grateful that she’d agreed to help him out.

Why wasn’t she already married? She must be in her early thirties. She was beautiful and was a successful entrepreneur and she even knew how to cook. Why hadn’t some man already snapped her up to build a family?

As he turned onto the long Holiday ranch drive that would take him to the shed where the men parked their vehicles, his thoughts shifted back to Amy. Maybe while he’d been gone today she’d come back here. Maybe she was sitting in the cowboy dining room right now just waiting for him to return with Joey.

Although he didn’t see her car anywhere it didn’t douse the modicum of hope that rose up inside him. She might not be here right at this very moment, but it was possible she’d been here earlier in the afternoon. Hopefully, if she’d been here and gone, she’d spoken to several of the other cowboys and had given somebody a phone number where Tony could contact her.

That hope carried him from the shed to the back of the cowboy motel, where he knew a few of the men would still be up in the recreational area of the large dining room.

Before he even entered, the dulcet tones of Mac McBride’s guitar drifting out on the cool night air met his ears. The man could make magic with that musical instrument and he sang as well as he played. Most evenings ended with Mac entertaining the men with a few songs before bedtime.

Mac stopped playing and set his guitar down next to him when Tony entered through the door. Mac wasn’t alone in the room. The ranch foreman, Adam Benson, was there, along with Sawyer, Brody and Clay.

“You didn’t have to stop playing,” Tony protested.

“It’s all right. We were about ready to call it a night anyway,” Mac replied easily.

“The men told me about the baby,” Adam said.

“Yeah, I’ve arranged with Mary Redwing to watch him during working hours until I get back in touch with Amy. I don’t suppose anyone saw her around here today while I was gone?” Tony’s heart sank as the men all shook their heads.

“What are you going to do, Tony? How are you going to find Amy?” Sawyer asked.

Tony swept his hat off his head and released a deep sigh. “I’ll wait another day or two and then I suppose I might talk to Dillon to see if he has any contacts in Oklahoma City who might help me locate her.”

“Aren’t you afraid she’ll get in trouble if you go to the police?” Sawyer asked.

“She didn’t abandon the baby someplace on the street, so there shouldn’t be a legal issue,” Tony replied. “If I have to, I’ll hire a private investigator to help me find her.” He eased down in one of the chairs that faced the sofa.

What he wanted right now was just a little male small talk. His head had been filled with women all day long. One woman had pulled forth old bittersweet feelings and the other one had evoked new, exciting feelings that he definitely didn’t want.

“Anything new going on around here?” he asked.

“Cassie informed me this morning that she’s going to hire on another ranch hand or two,” Adam said.

“I hope it’s somebody who fits well with all of us,” Sawyer replied.

“We could definitely use more help around here,” Mac added.

“But it’s good news for all of us that she’s hiring on somebody,” Tony replied. “That implies that she intends to stick around here.”

Since the moment the New York artist had taken over the ranch, the fear had been that Cassie would sell it and displace all the men who had called it their home for so many years.

The ranch wasn’t just their home—the men had also formed a family unit based on common pasts and a fierce loyalty to each other that had been branded into them by the tough, but loving, Cass Holiday.

“I still can’t get a feel for if she intends to stay here forever or eventually sell the place and head back to New York,” Adam replied.

“Have you gotten a feel for anything else about her?” Clay asked with a teasing glint in his eyes.

A flush of color rose up in Adam’s cheeks. “Cassie and I have a strictly professional relationship.”

“Who are you kidding? We all know you have the hots for her. When are you going to get up the nerve and ask her out?” Sawyer asked.

“When I feel like the time is right,” Adam replied curtly. He turned to look at Tony. “Have you spoken to Chief Bowie today?”

“Yeah, I saw him right after noon in the café.” A touch of anger stirred in him as he remembered the encounter with the men from the Humes place.