The Tycoon's Tots (6 page)

Loosening the grip on her shoulders, Wyatt slid his arms around her back and pulled her up against him. Through the softness of her sweater, he could feel the thrust of her firm breasts, the narrow indention of her waist and the hardness of her thighs. She tasted sweet and giving. Nothing like the acid words she'd spat at him, and Wyatt couldn't help but want to go on exploring this soft, feminine side of her.

When Wyatt finally decided to end the kiss, Chloe was totally breathless. For long moments she could do nothing more than stand there, her eyes closed, her senses scattered.

In the dim moonlight, Wyatt could see the faint quiver of her bottom lip, the throb of her pulse at the side of her neck. Hair was tangled over one eye and her lashes lay like dark little wings against her pale skin. She looked far too sexy for any one man to bear. Yet there was a vulnerableness about her face that made him want simply to draw her head against his chest, hold her tightly to him until all her fears and doubts had quieted.

Wyatt had never felt such desire, such fierce protectiveness for anyone in his life, and the realization stunned him.

Turning away from her, he said, “I'm…sorry about that.”

So was Chloe. Sorry that she'd liked it. Sorry that for those few moments in his arms she'd felt like a real woman again.

She swallowed, then said, “Don't apologize. You got your point over.”

Wyatt turned back to her, his eyes narrowed with skepticism. “You think I was trying to make a point?”

She nodded while thinking how strange it was to be so cool and distant from him now when only a few moments ago she'd been so close and warm in his arms.

“You're a man. Not a bank account.”

She was so on target with his feelings, he was momentarily taken aback. In the past, he'd dated women for months at a time and none of them had ever picked up the message. Chloe had gotten it after one kiss. The whole idea shook him like the gale of a windstorm.

“That's right,” he said more gruffly than he intended. “And you'll do well to remember it. Now I think it's time for me to go.”

He brushed past her and Chloe stood where she was. It would be better to let him find his own way out, she thought.

And she hoped he'd soon find his way back to Houston. Without the twins. And without her heart.

T
he next morning, Chloe looked up from her seat in the medical clinic waiting room to see Rose and Justine hurrying toward her.

“What happened?” Rose questioned.

“How is she?” Justine wanted to know.

The two women took seats on the plastic chairs next to Chloe. She waited until they were settled, then answered Rose's question first.

“I don't know exactly how it happened, and I don't think Aunt Kitty does either. It was before daylight and I'd been down at the stable feeding. On the way back to the house for breakfast I found Aunt Kitty in the yard trying to hobble on one leg back to the porch. She'd been carrying out the trash and stepped in a hole or something and fell. It's a miracle she didn't bust her head wide open. You know how rocky the ground is around the trash barrel.”

“Was she able to walk at all?” Justine asked, aghast.

Chloe shook her head. “Not really. Dr. Bellamy thinks her ankle is broken. They're taking X rays right now.”

“Where are the twins?” Rose asked, noticing for the first time that the two babies weren't anywhere in the waiting room.

“Vida, Aunt Kitty's friend, came over to watch them while I drove her to the doctor.”

The three women fell into a worried silence. Finally Justine said, “If Aunt Kitty's ankle is truly broken, she's going to be out of action for a long while. Someone will have to help you with the twins, Chloe.”

Sighing, Chloe slumped against the back of the uncomfortable chair. Finding Kitty injured and in so much pain had taken the starch out of her. She already felt as if she'd done two days' work when actually the morning wasn't even over yet.

“I know. That's already crossed my mind. And what a time for this to happen,” she said with a groan.

“What do you mean?” Rose asked, “Anytime would be bad.”

“I know,” Chloe agreed. “But with Wyatt Sanders here, he's going to be poking his nose in things. He'll probably say it's a good time for him to take the twins to Houston because I won't be able to care for them.”

Justine said with a wave of her hand. “Don't be ridiculous. We'll shift things around so some of us can take care of the twins during the day. I could do it part of the time.”

Chloe instantly shook her head. “You're in no condition to be chasing after two babies!”

“Chloe is right,” Rose spoke up. “We know you want to help, Justine, but you've got your own unborn baby to think about. It would be exhausting for you to take care of the twins for two hours much less all day.”

Justine rolled her eyes at her sisters. “Girls, I'm as healthy as a horse.”

“And that's the way we want to keep you,” Chloe
countered, then added, “Speaking of kids, where's Charlie?”

Smiling at the mention of her son's name, Justine said, “He's riding around with his daddy in the sheriffs car. They're going to pick me up in a little while.”

Another silence fell between the sisters as more people came and went in the waiting room. After a while Rose glanced at her youngest sister, “So tell us how things went last night with Wyatt Sanders.”

Chloe was in no state of mind to be thinking about last night. That kiss she and Wyatt had shared was still curling her toes, and she wondered what her two sisters would think if they knew she'd been in the enemy's arms.

“Wyatt was…nice at times. Despicable at others. The man just doesn't understand what children need. The only thing he relates to is money and possessions. He thinks all we Murdocks know about is cows and horses and he doesn't want the twins to grow up in such limited surroundings.”

“And what does he want the twins to know about?” Justine asked tartly. “The price of raw crude and how much money it takes to drill for it?”

Rose looked at both her sisters. “I think you should both calm down and give Wyatt a chance. He doesn't know us, and we don't know him. Once he sees how things around here really are, he might have a different opinion about where the twins should grow up.”

“Oh, Rose,” Chloe said with a weary sigh. “You're far too open-minded. I thought you could spot a skunk when you saw one.”

“As far as we know, the man hasn't taken any legal action to take the twins away from you. Until then, I'm going to remain hopeful.”

“But what if he does file some sort of suit against us? How will we fight it? He's rich. A court battle wouldn't
hurt him. We'd have to file bankruptcy. And wouldn't that look good for the Murdock case?”

Just as Rose was making a calming gesture at Chloe, Dr. Bellamy strode into the waiting room. He smiled fondly at the three of them.

“Sorry it took so long, girls, but we've had a busy morning.” His gaze singled out Justine. “You're looking pert and pretty. Had any more pains?”

Justine shook her head. “No. I'm feeling fine.”

“Good,” the doctor said with satisfaction, then turned his gaze to include all three women. “Now about Kitty. I've just read the X rays and her ankle has two major fractures and possibly a torn ligament. The orthopedic surgeon can tell more about that once he operates.”

“Operates?” Chloe repeated worriedly. Dr. Bellamy nodded. “I'm afraid so. Though I'm not certain, I'm pretty sure her ankle will have to be pinned.”

“Oh, dear Aunt Kitty,” Justine murmured.

“Will it be a serious operation?” Rose wanted to know.

“Kitty is a very healthy woman. She'll come through this fine, I assure you. But I should warn you the complete recuperation time for her ankle will probably be at least eight weeks, six at the earliest”

The doctor's prognosis was exactly what Chloe had feared. Yet the problem of being shorthanded on the ranch was a minor thing compared to her aunt's health. Getting Kitty well again was all that really mattered. They would somehow handle the rest.

“We'll make sure she takes care of herself,” Chloe assured the doctor.

He smiled. “I don't think you're going to have the chance. I've already made arrangements at the hospital in Roswell for Kitty's surgery. She's going to stay there with a friend until she gets back on her feet. As for now, I've given her an injection for pain and a nurse will be wheeling
her out in a few minutes. Can some of you drive her over to Roswell later today?”

“Of course, Dr. Bellamy. We'll make sure she gets there,” Rose told him.

After the doctor left, Chloe stood and faced her two sisters. “We know Lucille is a good friend of Aunt Kitty's and I'm sure she'd take good care of her, but don't you think she needs to be with her family at a time like this?”

Rose got to her feet and pulled the straps of her purse up on her shoulder. “Aunt Kitty knows you already have your hands full, Chloe. Justine is pregnant, besides having Charlie to care for, and I'm stretched thin helping you with the ranch and seeing after my own home. She'll be much better off recuperating in Roswell where Lucille can see to her needs and she won't feel like a burden to us.”

“Thank goodness one of you has a level head,” Kitty spoke up as the nurse wheeled her into the waiting room.

The three women rushed over to their aunt. Chloe kissed her cheek, Rose grabbed her hand and Justine, always the nurse, began to examine her ankle.

“You're going to be all right, Aunt Kitty,” Chloe said, sniffing back her tears.

Kitty shook her head as though she couldn't believe her nieces were making such an unnecessary fuss over her. But the smile on her face said she was enjoying it.

“Of course I'm going to be all right! Now get me out of here. I've already called Lucille and told her I'd be there by lunch time. She's saving me a piece of cheesecake.”

Later that afternoon, Chloe was changing Adam's diaper on the living-room couch when the doorbell rang.

“Just a minute,” she called. She hurriedly secured the diaper, then hefting Adam onto her hip, hurried over to the door.

To her dismay she opened it to find Wyatt standing on the porch.

“Hello,” he said, amazed at just how much the sight of her affected him. He'd been with her only last night yet a strange exhilaration poured through him as though he'd been yearning for months to see her face and his wish had finally come true. “May I come in?”

Chloe supposed she'd been staring, but she hadn't expected to see him today. Nor had she planned on feeling so mesmerized by the sight of him.

“Uh—yes, of course.” She stepped back to allow him entry into the living room. For once in her life, Chloe was acutely aware of her worn jeans and stained work shirt. Her hair was gathered at the back of her head in a messy braid and her face was bare of makeup. Thank goodness she'd just given the twins a bath.

“I know I should have probably called first, but I was…afraid you might try to put me off.”

“I doubt anyone has ever been able to put you off,” she said. Walking back over to the couch, she took a seat, then sat Adam down on the floor between her legs. A few feet away, Anna was asleep in the playpen.

Seeing she wasn't going to offer him a seat, Wyatt took it upon himself and sat down in an armchair opposite her. “I'm surprised to find you here in the house. Don't you have work to do with your horses?”

For a moment she wondered if he'd heard about Kitty's accident, but she didn't see how. He didn't know anyone in this area.

“Plenty of it. But at the moment I'm taking care of the twins.”

He glanced around him. “Your aunt isn't here?”

Chloe grimly shook her head. “Aunt Kitty broke her ankle this morning. It has to be operated on so she's gone to Roswell.”

“Oh. I'm sorry to hear that. How did she break it?”

And he honestly looked like he was sorry. The idea that he might actually care about her aunt made Chloe feel a
little better. If the man had even an ounce of compassion in him, then she had to believe there was hope he'd finally see the light about the twins and her resolve to be their mother.

“She was walking out behind the house early this morning before daylight and stepped in a hole,” Chloe explained. “It was one of those simple accidents that make you want to kick yourself for not paying closer attention.”

“How long will she be gone?”

Chloe knew his mind was already at work. She could see the calm, calculating look in his gray eyes.

“Six weeks at least,” she said, then waited to hear his suggestion about how perfect a time it would be for Adam and Anna to go to Houston. The mere idea made Chloe want to pull Adam back into her arms and hold him tightly.

“That's obviously going to make things hard on you around here. Is there anyone who can help with the twins?”

She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. There wasn't any point lying to the man. From his earlier comments, she knew he wasn't going to disappear back to Houston any time soon. He'd be able to see for himself there was no one to take care of the twins but herself.

“Not at the moment. But I'll find someone. Rose and her stepdaughter, Emily, will shoulder some of my load down at the stable.”

Even though Chloe had probably said more insulting, infuriating things to him than any male or female ever had, the idea of one more hardship falling on her shoulders didn't necessarily please him.

“I'm sure this was the last thing you needed to have happen,” he said, watching Adam wobble to a standing position with the careful aid of Chloe's finger.

She praised the baby boy's accomplishment then kissed him on the cheek before she turned to Wyatt. “I could think of worse things happening.”

Like his coming here and announcing he wanted the twins, Wyatt thought, suddenly feeling like an ass but not really knowing why. He had every right, every reason to concern himself with Belinda's children. He had no reason to feel guilty about causing Chloe Murdock extra grief. But he did.

Wyatt got to his feet and rubbed his palms down the thighs of his jeans. “Maybe I should go,” he said as it dawned on him that, except for the twins, he and Chloe were alone.

Easing up without breaking Adam's balance, Chloe heard herself say, “Nonsense. You just got here and I was about to make a fresh pot of coffee.”

For a moment Wyatt couldn't believe she was inviting him to stay. “You won't dose mine with arsenic, will you?”

Her smile was tentative, but teasing. “Just a little rat poison ought to shut you up for a while.”

“That makes me feel a whole lot better.”

They walked slowly to the kitchen so that Adam could walk with the help of Chloe's two hands.

The baby squealed with delight at being mobile and Wyatt couldn't help but be touched by the sight of Chloe's gentleness and Adam's total dependence on her.

“I see the babies don't necessarily take naps at the same time,” Wyatt said as the three of them entered the kitchen.

“No. They have habits and personalities of their own.”

She sat Adam in the extra playpen they kept in the kitchen and gave him a graham cracker to chew on.

As she put the coffee on to brew, Wyatt came to the cabinets and leaned his hip against the counter. From the corner of her eye she noticed he was dressed casually today in a pair of blue jeans and a navy blue shirt checked with small white windowpanes. On his feet were a pair of brown roper boots, a city man's way of dressing “cowboy,” she supposed, and smiled to herself.

“Chloe, about last night—”

“I've forgotten about last night.” She hadn't, but she definitely needed to make him think so.

He stepped closer, prompting her to look at him. As soon as her eyes met his, heat poured through her body and she could think of nothing but the way it had felt to be held in his arms, to taste his lips.

“I've had a little time to think about those checks you showed me. And…”