Rock-A-Bye Rancher

“It wasn’t so bad. I helped with laundry and cooking. By the time I was ten, I could fix a hearty meal.”

“So the attorney is a whiz in the kitchen, as well as the courtroom.”

“If you like Mexican food.”

“That’s it?”

“Well, I can fix a pretty decent casserole, as long as I have a box and all the fixings.” She tossed him a smile.

His lips quirked as though he found her entertaining, and it warmed her heart. It warmed her cheeks, too.

In fact, it was getting hot in here.

“Whew.” She fanned herself with both hands.

Clay chuckled as though he wasn’t at all bothered by the temperature or by her attempts to cool off. “Well, now that you’re a high-priced attorney, you ought to be able to hire a chef.”

“Yeah, right.” She took off her jacket and laid it on an empty seat. Then she kicked off her shoes and rubbed her bare feet along the carpeting. “With three kids to raise and student loans to repay?”

“You’ve got three kids?” His voice rose an octave and a decibel level, bearing evidence of his surprise. As his gaze roamed over her, it seemed to peel away her clothes, as well as her facade.

But for some reason she didn’t care. In fact, she felt compelled to confide in him. “I’m not their birth mother, if that’s what you think. My dad remarried when I was ten. And my stepmom wanted a family of her own. So pretty soon the babies started coming, and I helped out with them, too.”

“You sure took on a lot of responsibility in your family.” His voice returned to normal, that deep, graveled drawl that seemed to suit him so well. A pleasurable sound a woman could get used to. “When did you manage to find time to study?”

“In the late evenings, when the house was quiet.” She smiled. “But it wasn’t that bad. Academics came easy for me and I did very well in high school. College, too. I even received a partial scholarship to Rice University.”

“I bet your family was proud.”

“They were. My dad and stepmom were struggling financially, but they managed to supplement the scholarship. They only asked that I provide financial assistance for the younger children’s college education.”

“Sort of a pay it forward thing, huh?”

“Well, that was the idea.”

The agreement they’d made had fostered her desire to excel first in school, then in her profession—and quickly. But she hadn’t counted on the unexpected. “During my first year of law school, my stepmom died in a car accident, and I nearly dropped out. My younger brother and sisters needed me. And so did my dad.”

“Obviously, you didn’t quit.”

“No. Somehow, I managed to make it through. Believe it or not, having a goal on which to focus made it easier to deal with the grief.”

“No one understands that more than I do,” Clay said. “You’re a strong young woman, Daniela.”

She leaned forward. “You think so?” Then she blew out a sigh, along with all the secrets she kept shoved into the bottom or her heart. “It’s been a struggle sometimes. Especially after my dad died.”

“That’s too bad.” His concern was touching, and the sound of his voice was growing on her moment by moment. It was nice. Rough yet soft. Sympathetic and supportive.

“Did your father pass away recently?” he asked.

“Yes, last year. He was fishing with some friends in the gulf and was killed in a freak boating accident.”

“I’m sorry,” he said again, the rugged, sexy drawl a balm.

“That’s okay. I’m doing fine. Really.” Yet tears welled in her eyes. She tried to blink them away, but they soon overflowed and slid down her cheeks. She swiped at them, struggling to keep up with the flow.

“Darn it. I don’t understand why this is happening. I haven’t cried in a long time and can’t understand why I’m so weepy and emotional now.” She sought his gaze, hoping he wouldn’t hold her display of tears against her.

“Tell me about the kids,” he said, as though maneuvering around the subject.

“They’re a handful. Sara, my fourteen-year-old sister, constantly complains about having to help me keep an eye on the others. And Marcos, who is ten, never fails to let me know what a pain it is to be the only boy in a family full of girls. Little Delia, who truly is a sweetheart, cries at the drop of the hat.”

“That’s gotta be tough.”

“It is. And I’m doing a poor job of it.” Dani blew out a weary sigh. “I love them. I really do. But it’s tough trying to support them, both emotionally and financially, by myself.”

He didn’t respond, but she sensed his understanding, his sympathy.

She reached across the aisle, placing her hand on his muscular forearm. “But don’t feel sorry for me. I’m going to make a name for myself at Phillips, Crowley and Norman.”

“I bet you will.”

“Do you know what?”

He shook his head no.

“Martin and everyone else at the firm think I’m a single, career-minded woman with no other responsibilities but my job.” So far she’d had them all fooled. But she feared her secret wouldn’t last long.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” he said.

“I try not to be.” But if truth be told, sometimes, late at night, when the kids finally went to bed and the house was quiet, seeds of resentment sprouted—when she let them. She was forced to admit to herself that the responsibility she’d inherited was overwhelming.

She opened her mouth to reveal that to Clay, as well, but for some reason, she clamped her jaw shut. Something told her she might have said too much already.

What all had she told him?

Clay glanced at his watch. “We ought to be getting pretty close to Guadalajara now.”

Dani peered out the window. Oh, wow. It was really dark outside.

“How much longer will it be?” Clay asked Roger.

“See those lights ahead?” the pilot asked. “We’ll be landing in about fifteen minutes. Are you planning to go to the church tonight?”

“No,” Clay said. “From what I’ve been told, the road to the village isn’t that easy to find in the daylight. So we’ll get a couple of hotel rooms. Then we’ll hire a driver to take us at the crack of dawn.”

What a day this had proven to be, Dani thought. She’d flown to Mexico and was going to a hotel to spend the night with a client.

Well, not exactly with him…