Expecting the Rancher's Heir (6 page)

“None of that is going to happen,” he said calmly.

Turning to face him, she couldn't believe his assertion. “You know Elmer Madison and Clara Buchanan. They are huge investors in Jarrod Ridge and two of the most puritanical members of the group, not to mention the most influential. We both know they'd disapprove of me becoming an unwed mother and convince several of the other investors to take their money elsewhere. I can't be responsible for—”

“The first thing I want you to do is calm down,” he cut in. “Stress isn't good for you or the baby.” His commanding tone indicated that the issue wasn't up for debate. “And the second is, you're worrying for nothing. Once they learn we're getting married, there's nothing they can say without looking like the pompous, judgmental asses they are.”

“Shane—”

“Hear me out, Lissa.” He rose to his feet, then walked over to loosely wrap his arms around her waist. “There's no way I'm going to allow you to go back to California to have our baby alone.”

“You're starting to sound like a bully again,” she warned. No one had told her what she was or wasn't going to do since she had left home after high-school graduation, and she wasn't inclined to let Shane pick up where her father had left off.

“I'm not being a bully. I'm trying to get you to see reason.” His tone was less dictatorial and he had
apparently gotten the message that she wasn't going to be ordered around. “This is my child, too, Lissa. We may not have planned on you becoming pregnant, but that doesn't mean I don't want to be just as much a part of his life as you do.”

She had always wanted children some day and prayed that their father would be more interested and involved than her own father had been with his. That would be next to impossible with her living in one state and Shane in another.

Nibbling on her lower lip, she shook her head. “I'm sure we could work something out that gives us both equal time.”

“Don't you see? Marrying me solves everything, angel.” He drew her close to press a kiss to her temple. “You get to keep your inheritance, the resort keeps its investors and our baby gets a full-time momma and daddy to raise him.”

Either her resistance was down or what he said was beginning to make sense to her. She did want to maintain her share of Jarrod Ridge and she could likely only do that by remaining in Aspen to manage Tranquility Spa. If she married Shane, some of the investors might grumble about her becoming pregnant before the marriage, but it should be enough to keep them from pulling their funding.

Leaning back, she gazed up at his handsome face. She had always hoped to have a husband and family, but in her dreams she had imagined marrying for love, not to save the resort's reputation and funding.

He must have sensed her resolve was weakening. “I give you my word that you won't regret becoming my wife, Lissa,” he promised. “We can make this work. We already have a lot more going for us than other couples have.”

His statement took her by surprise. “We do?”

He nodded. “We get along well, we enjoy and appreciate some of the same things, we have a fantastic love life and a baby on the way. The way I see it, that's a damned fine start.”

“But there's still a lot we don't know about each other,” she said, unwilling to give in so easily.

“We'll learn as we go,” he said with a knowing grin.

The skunk knew she was going to agree with his plan. Was it too much to ask that he not gloat about it?

“How would we tell everyone the news?” she asked, wondering what her family would say.

Shane looked thoughtful for a moment. “I can make reservations to throw a dinner party in the Sky Lounge. I'm a Jarrod Ridge investor and given the way your family feels about losing its backers, I'm sure your brothers, sister and their significant others will feel compelled to attend.”

If there was one thing she was certain of, it was the compliance of her family with one of the resort's investors. Shane and his father before him had contributed quite a lot of money to special events at
Jarrod Ridge. There was no way her brothers would risk losing that.

“I can't think of a single reason that anyone in my family would turn down your invitation.”

“Good.” His grin widened. “Now, can you think of anything else we should do before we tell your family?”

She shook her head. “Not at the moment.”

“Then there's only one thing left to do.” He dropped to one knee and taking her hand in his, smiled up at her. “Melissa Jarrod, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

Staring down at Shane, she couldn't help but wonder what she was getting herself into. “I can't believe I'm about to say this,” she murmured. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. Then, straightening her shoulders, she opened her eyes and nodded. “Yes, Shane, I'll marry you.”

T
he following week as he sat thumbing through a magazine in the obstetrician's waiting room, Shane took note of the pregnant women around him. Their stomachs were various sizes, and he couldn't help but wonder what Lissa would look like in the months to come.

Tossing the magazine on a table beside his chair, he glanced over at her, sitting beside him. He tried to envision her slender figure growing large with his child. From his research, he had learned that some women didn't start showing their condition until late in the pregnancy, while others blossomed early. He wondered which way Lissa would carry their baby.

His speculation was cut short when a nurse called
their names. “Melissa and Shane, if you'll follow me, we'll get your blood work taken care of and weigh you before the doctor does your examination.”

Once the woman had drawn Lissa's blood and collected what she needed for a variety of other tests, they were ushered into a small room at the end of the hall. Taking both of their health histories, the nurse finally gave Lissa instructions on preparing for the examination and left the room.

“I think they know more about me now than I do,” Lissa said as he helped her lay back on the uncomfortable-looking table.

“If you stick with the same doctor, they'll have all the information on record and it won't take as long the next time,” he said, seating himself in a chair beside her.

Raising up on one elbow, she looked at him as if he had sprouted horns and a tail and carried a pitchfork. “Next time?”

“Well, I assumed you'd want more than one child,” he said, wondering what the hell had gotten into him. They were just at the beginning of one pregnancy and he was talking about another?

If someone had told him a week ago that he would be sitting in a doctor's office, waiting to find out when his baby was due, he would have laughed them into the next state. Now, he found himself looking forward to learning the approximate time he would become a daddy and discussing the possibility of even more children.

Unreal.

“Let's get me through this pregnancy first,” she advised, lying back down against a pillow. “Then we'll discuss our options.”

He was saved from opening his mouth and making things worse with her when an attractive middle-aged woman, wearing a set of scrubs and a lab coat, walked into the room. “I'm Dr. Fowler,” she said, smiling.

For the next half hour, the doctor examined Lissa, told them what to expect during the first trimester and answered their questions. Then, giving them an approximate date in April for the birth, she handed them a list of do's and don'ts and told them to make an appointment to see her in a month.

“I think I'm on information overload,” Shane said as he escorted Lissa across the clinic parking lot to his truck. He helped her up into the cab, then walked around to the driver's side and slid in behind the steering wheel. “What do you say we go to the ranch and chill out until the dinner party tomorrow night?”

“That sounds good,” she said, buckling the shoulder belt. “I don't particularly want to run into any of my family until after we tell them our news.”

“Why not?” he asked, starting the truck. Never having had a brother or sister, sibling dynamics were something of a mystery to him.

“My brothers probably haven't noticed my frequent absences from the spa this week, but I know
my sister, Erica, and my brother's fiancée, Avery, have.” She shook her head. “They're sure to ask why I canceled our lunch date today, and I don't want to lie to them.”

“I don't blame you.” He liked that she was honest and preferred not to say anything, rather than tell a lie.

“Have you told Cactus anything about all of this?” she asked, hiding a yawn behind her delicate hand. “I'm sure he's curious.”

Shaking his head, Shane turned the truck onto the road heading west out of Aspen. “No, but he has to know something is up.”

“Has he said anything?”

“Not a word.”

“Then how do you know he's aware there's some thing going on?” She looked bewildered and so darned cute, it was all he could do to keep from stopping the truck in the middle of the road and kissing her senseless.

“I've never brought a woman to the ranch before,” he answered.

“Never?”

Shane shook his head. “Nope.”

“So that's why Cactus was so surprised to see me that morning,” she said, sounding sleepy.

“Yup. He hadn't seen a woman in that house since my aunt and her family left Aspen to move to Santa Fe.”

He wasn't sure why, but he had never before felt
compelled to bring a woman home with him. Nor had he ever been tempted to take a woman to see Rainbow Falls. At least he hadn't until he met Lissa.

Glancing over at her, he realized she had fallen asleep. What was it about her that was different from other women he had been involved with?

As he steered the truck onto the private road leading over the ridge to the ranch, Shane decided that he was probably better off not knowing. There were some questions that were better left unanswered and he had a feeling this was one of them.

 

“Melissa, you look amazing,” Avery Lancaster said, when she and Melissa's brother Guy walked up to her outside of the doors to the Sky Lounge. “Is there a new facial treatment in the spa I haven't heard about?”

Hugging her brother's fiancée, Melissa smiled as she shook her head. “I've just been getting more rest and eating a bit healthier.”

It wasn't a lie. Of late, all she wanted to do was sleep and she had added an extra serving of fruits and vegetables to her diet each day.

“Well, whatever you're doing is working,” Avery said, laughing. “You're positively glowing.”

“You do look different,” Guy agreed, frowning.

The fact that her brother thought he noticed a change in her was a bit of a shock. Since meeting the beautiful wine expert at his side, he was barely aware of anything else around him.

Melissa's brother Trevor chose that moment to stroll over to them. “Do any of you know what this party is all about? I've never known McDermott to be overly social. Usually the guest lists for his get-togethers consist of himself and the lady of the moment.”

“Are you sure you aren't talking about yourself?” Guy asked, grinning.

Unrepentant, Trevor laughed. “I never said I thought McDermott was in the wrong on that.”

“To answer your question, I have no idea what this dinner is about,” Guy said, opening the door to the lounge. When the three went inside, he held the door for Melissa. “Are you coming?”

“I'll be there in a minute,” she said, spotting her half sister, Erica, and her fiancé, Christian Hanford, as they got off the elevator.

Listening to her family speculate about Shane's invitation was the last thing she needed. Her nerves were already as tight as a bowstring. Once they made their announcement about getting married and having a baby, the course would be set. She just prayed with everything that was in her it was the right one.

“Avery and I missed you at lunch yesterday,” Erica said, hugging Melissa close. “Are you all right?”

Feeling guilty for avoiding her newfound sister for the past week, she nodded. “I'm fine. I've just been preoccupied lately with…a new project.”

Melissa truly liked her half sister and regretted that her father hadn't let them all know about her.
But whatever Donald Jarrod's reasoning had been, the family hadn't learned of her existence until the reading of their father's will two months earlier.

“Let's go in and see what McDermott has up his sleeve,” Guy's twin, Blake, suggested as he joined them. As usual Blake had his trusted secretary, Samantha Thompson, at his side, and Melissa wondered for at least the hundredth time since meeting her how long it would take for Blake to realize what a beautiful woman Samantha was.

As the five of them entered the Sky Lounge, Melissa immediately spotted Shane at the doorway of one of the private gathering rooms, greeting her family as they arrived. He always looked good to her, but tonight he looked positively devastating in his black suit and tie. Very few men could look at ease in business suits as well as jeans and a work shirt. Shane managed to do it effortlessly.

“Where's Gavin?” he asked when they reached him.

“He should be here shortly,” Blake answered, shrugging. “As we were getting on the elevator, I saw him in the lobby, talking to an old friend of his.”

Motioning toward a large round table in the center of the room, Shane smiled congenially. “Have a seat and we'll get started as soon as he gets here.” Trailing behind the two couples, Melissa stopped when Shane touched her arm. “I want you to sit in one of the two chairs tipped up against the table,” he whispered close to her ear.

Seeing the chairs with their backs leaning against the table's edge, she nodded. Walking over, she set the chair upright and seated herself. She knew from the look on Erica's face that her sister expected Melissa to sit in the empty chair beside her. She hated that she might have hurt Erica's feelings, but she was sure her sister would understand once she and Shane explained the purpose of the party.

“Sorry I'm late,” Gavin apologized as he and Shane approached the table together. “I ran into one of the guys we graduated high school with and stopped to say hello.”

Once her brother was seated with the rest of her family, Shane straightened the chair beside her, but instead of seating himself, he remained standing. “I know you're all wondering why I invited you here tonight,” he said, making eye contact and smiling at each individual at the table.

“Well, now that you mention it, we did—” When his oldest brother elbowed him, Trevor stopped short to glare at Blake.

Shane smiled. “I don't blame you. I would have been curious, too, Trevor.”

Melissa tightly clenched her hands, resting in her lap. He was about to reveal the secret they'd kept for the past two months, and although it would be a relief to have their affair out in the open, she just hoped they were doing the right thing.

Lost in thought, she was surprised when Shane reached down to take her hand in his and pull her
up to stand beside him. “Since your sister's return to Aspen a few months ago, we've been seeing each other and our relationship—”

“I knew it!” Trevor said triumphantly. Obviously proud of himself for noticing what the others had missed, he added, “When I saw the two of you together back in July, I knew something was going on.”

“Don't break your arm patting yourself on the back there, Trevor,” Gavin said drily. “I suspected Melissa was hiding something, too. I just didn't know what it was.”

When the laughter at the table died down, Shane put his arm around Melissa's shoulders and gazing into her eyes, announced, “Lissa and I wanted all of you to be the first to know, we're getting married and will be welcoming our first child next spring.”

Before anyone could react, Shane lowered his head and gave her a kiss that caused her head to spin and her toes to curl inside her sensible black pumps. When he finally raised his head, there was a hushed silence. Then, everyone started talking at once.

“Congratulations you two,” Guy said, grinning from ear to ear. “It looks like my pastry chef is going to be busy for quite some time making nothing but wedding cakes.”

“That's great,” Trevor said happily. “Now that McDermott is off the market, I won't have as much competition with the ladies.”

“I'm so happy for you,” Erica said, rushing around the table to hug Melissa.

Avery was right behind Erica to wrap her arms around Melissa. “I never suspected a thing. I don't know how you managed to keep quiet about a relation ship as serious as this.” Giving her a watery smile, Avery added, “I think it's wonderful.”

As her brothers and Christian took turns shaking Shane's hand, Melissa noticed that although Blake's secretary, Samantha, added her congratulations, the woman seemed uncharacteristically quiet and subdued. What could possibly have the vibrant brunette so down in the dumps?

Before she had a chance to speak to the woman and ask if everything was all right, Gavin wrapped Melissa in a brotherly bear hug. “I wish you every happiness, little sister.”

Tapping on his water glass with the edge of his knife, Blake drew everyone's attention. “I'd like to make a toast.”

To her surprise, one of her brothers had ordered a bottle of champagne and the waiter had just poured them all a glass of the sparkling pink wine. All except for her and Avery. Their glasses held sparkling white grape juice.

“I'm pregnant,” Melissa said, pointing to Avery's glass. “What's your excuse?”

Her friend made a face. “Remember, champagne makes me sneeze.”

Melissa didn't have time to dwell on the matter when Blake raised his glass.

“To Melissa and Shane,” he said, smiling. “May you have a long and happy life together.

Everyone raised their glass in agreement, then taking a sip of wine, settled down to dinner and conversation. As it always did, talk turned to plans for expanding the resort's services and special promotions. Melissa tuned most of it out as she watched her family.

Apparently so did Erica and Avery. They'd been huddled together since finishing their desserts and she wondered what the two of them were up to.

All in all, the evening had gone quite well, she decided, feeling more at ease than she had in several days. It was a huge relief to have her and Shane's relationship out in the open.

As the evening drew to a close and everyone gathered their things to leave, Erica and Avery pulled Melissa aside. “Let's get together for lunch on Wednesday,” Avery said, her eyes twinkling.

“We want to start making plans for a baby shower,” Erica added, just as excited.