Fannin's Flame (6 page)

But maybe she wasn’t. She had been a virgin. Not that being a virgin made her dumb, but she hadn’t been exposed to the animal magnetism his brothers were reputed to possess. And she was
his
virgin, damn it.

Fannin steamed inside his flannel shirt.

Mason, as usual, appeared to be immune to anything except the food on his plate. “Mason, could you pass the broccoli?” Fannin asked in a bid to get Kelly’s eyes on him.

“Wait your turn,” Mason said sourly. “We always go counterclockwise with the bowls.”

And who made up that stupid rule, Fannin thought. Kelly looked at him, just a quick glance, then looked away. All right, so she wasn’t quite as hooked as he wanted her to be.

Time to pour on some more of his brothers’ catch-me-if-you-can charm. “I’m going out,” he said abruptly, standing and tossing his napkin to the table.

Now Kelly’s eyes were on him.

“Where are you going?” Archer asked.

“Out,” Fannin replied curtly.

“You’re being rude as hell to our guest,” Mason said.

“Beg your pardon, ma’am,” he said, and then left the room.

But not before he saw the grin on Last’s face.

“You’ll have to excuse him,” Fannin heard Last say. “He can be moody.”

“Yes,” Navarro said, “very sideways about his broccoli. By the way, your mother is a wonderful cook.”

Fannin hovered in the hall, eavesdropping shamelessly.

“Really?” Kelly asked. “Do you think so?”

Her voice held doubt and suspicion. Fannin was suspicious, too. There was a reason his brothers were being so nice to Helga’s daughter—nothing good could come of its ploy.

They always had a tactic to play, an ace they were hiding.

“I’m outta here,” he said to himself. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

But then the front door blew open, very nearly cold-cocking him, and Mimi stumbled into his arms.

“I feel strange,” she said, moaning.

Fannin struggled to hold Mimi up.

“Mimi feels strange!” he hollered, not knowing what else to say. Mimi’s entire weight was against him, and he knew her well enough to know that she wouldn’t be dead weight in his arms if she could help it.

Mason came running, practically leaping over chairs to get to Mimi. “Hold on, Mimi. Lay her on the sofa. Last, call Doc Gonzalez. Helga—”

But he didn’t have to instruct Helga, because Helga was already fussing over Mimi, making certain her feet were up and sweeping her hair away from her brow. Kelly crouched beside her mother, and the two of them burst into rapid German.

Fannin stood helplessly, out of his league.

“Don’t just stand there! Do something!” Mason exclaimed. “Everybody get towels. Boil water!”

“Calm down, bro.” Fannin went to stand beside his brother. “She’s going to be fine.”

“She doesn’t look fine,” Mason said, his face drawn. “She looks freaking ill.”

Mimi did not look good. Since she wasn’t the type to play the wan, fainting heroine, Fannin knew as well as Mason did that something wasn’t right.

“Where’s the damn doctor?” Mason growled.

“On his way,” Last said. “Take a deep breath, Mason. Don’t pop a coronary on us.”

“I’m gonna pop you—”

“Shh!” Kelly looked up at the brothers, who were clustered around the sofa. “Go out and burn a fire in a barrel or something, okay? Mimi needs quiet. Not a bunch of overreacting males hanging around her, losing their nerve.”

Every man in the room stared at her.

Helga glanced up, her gaze warning.

“My mother requests that you find someplace else to light. We’ll call you when we need help,” Kelly said more gently.

Silently the men filed out. They perched on porch rails and stared out at the dark fields or sat heavily on the porch step. Mason stood where he could see through the window. He wasn’t obvious about it, but Fannin knew what he was doing.

“Damn Doc Gonzalez anyway,” Mason said. “A man that old oughta retire. He drives so slow that—”

“Mason. Cool it,” Fannin demanded. “She’s not pregnant with your child, okay? Somebody figure out how to put a call into Brian.”

Mason stopped bitching. He remained there, his hands in his pockets, looking helpless.

Fannin frowned. “I’m sorry, Mason.”

“It’s fine. You’re right.”

Then his brother turned his back to him and the drama going on inside the house. Fannin sighed. “I’ll go call Brian.” He could find the number if he tried hard enough. And he figured someone needed to check on the sheriff. Going back inside, he noted Helga had Mimi quiet now, a cloth on her forehead. Mimi seemed much calmer. Kelly glanced up at him as she sat beside her mother, and he felt the stir inside him he was beginning to associate with her.

Little bit bad girl, she was. But ever so cautious.

“Mimi, I’m going to call Brian,” he said, ignoring Helga’s glare.

“No.” Mimi opened her eyes. “Do not call my husband.”

He glanced at Kelly. “Mimi—”

“I don’t want Brian to know I’m not feeling well. It’s going to pass in a moment. Helga says I just got nervous. Don’t bother Brian over something trivial.”

Kelly watched him curiously.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to call Brian? It’s no trouble.”

“Fannin,” Kelly said, “she says not to. Brian’s got a big court case he’s working right now, and she doesn’t want him bothered. Mama says Mimi’s going to be fine. Now go back out and tell everybody to
relax.
”

He’d be the last one to know about women, pregnant women especially. Kelly seemed to think the situation was under control. Not wanting to seem out of his depth, which he was, he backed out of the room and closed the door.

“Think they’ve got it under control,” he told Mason. “Think we’re supposed to go count grass blades in the yard or something.”

“It’s December, dummy,” Mason said crossly. “How much grass do you see?”

“Don’t jump on me, Mason. I’m doing the best I can with three ornery females and you eating my head!” He glared at Mason for emphasis.

“Here comes Doc Gonzalez, at the best moment,” Last said. “Before this whole place blows up over a
baby.
Interesting how much havoc a pregnant woman can wreak on men’s perfectly normal existences, isn’t it?”

But no one was in the mood for Last and his deep ponderings.

“Hey, Doc,” Fannin called. “Thanks for coming out. Mimi wouldn’t let us take her into Dallas.”

“It’s fine, boys. Been a while since I’ve been out, hasn’t it?” He peered at them as he stamped his feet clean on the doormat. “Since Frisco Joe broke his leg last year, maybe? Or was it Laredo’s concussion? Or Ranger’s—”

“Doc, Mimi’s in here,” Fannin said hurriedly, before the Curse of the Broken Body Parts—a fairy tale of Laredo’s if he’d ever heard one—could be visited
on him. Who really thought the Jefferson brothers had to be injured before they fell in love? After all, Mason was suffering from a different curse—Broken Heart Syndrome, if Fannin was any judge.

Of course, as of yesterday, Fannin was determined not to end up like his brothers, the jugheads. They’d avoided love. He was going to find meaningful sex with the redhead inside—if it killed him. She was his made-to-order girl, even if the wrong order had arrived.

He wasn’t looking a gift horse in the mouth. “Kelly, can I see you?” he said, as Doc Gonzalez went inside.

“Not now, Fannin.” Kelly shook her head at him. “I’m not leaving Mama.”

“She’s fine. The doctor’s here.”

“I’m not leaving my mother, Fannin. She doesn’t understand much English, as hard as she tries. I don’t think she’s in the best environment for learning it.”

Kelly looked away, listening to what Doc Gonzalez was murmuring to Mimi. Fannin stood thunderstruck. Had Kelly just accused their family of mistreating her mother? He had certainly tried to be accommodating, more so than his brothers. He squinted at the redhead, who was intent on the matter at hand. Sighing, he went off to a corner to wait until they determined if an ambulance, a hot meal or an absent husband was needed for Mimi. Whatever it was, he was determined to be of service.

Anything to get close to Kelly.

K
ELLY TRIED TO IGNORE
the big cowboy propped in the corner, but it was hard. For one thing, he was snoring slightly, asleep the moment he’d hit the chair. She reminded herself that they’d been up late the night before, and no doubt he found their current dilemma painstakingly slow. He was a man of action and it seemed that, for now, they were in a holding pattern.

“I’m sending you home, Mimi,” Doc Gonzalez said. “You need to be in bed until this baby comes. Mostly, you need help. I want you to put a call in to your regular physician and tell him that you’re worn out.”

“It’s a her,” Mimi said tiredly. “I went to the doctor who presided at the rodeo, the one all the Jefferson boys thought was so pretty. She’s very smart, and she agreed to help me find a midwife so I could have the baby at home.”

“What?” Mason had come in to hear what Doc had to say, and his whole body went rigid. “You can’t do that, Mimi! It’s dumb!”

She’d been pale, Kelly noticed, until Mason’s pigheaded statement. And then it seemed life was breathed into Mimi through stubborn, determined, prideful will. “It’s not dumb, Mason. You just shut
up.
”

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Then Fannin said, “Well, just like old times around here now, isn’t it?” which broke the ice and made everyone laugh, except Kelly, who wondered if it re
ally was like old times or if everybody was just doing an amazing job of hiding their true feelings.

“I’ll go over and stay with Mimi,” she said suddenly.

“No,” Helga said, “I go with Mimi.” And she patted Mimi’s hand telling Kelly what she planned to do.

“Mama has decided to move over to Mimi’s,” Kelly told Fannin. “She says the sheriff and Mimi need her.” There, she thought, that ought to make everybody happy.

And for some reason that made her mad—at Fannin. She couldn’t help remembering the conversation she’d overheard. And the order he’d e-mailed in to the Honey-Do Agency, as if he expected the world to be so easy for him that he could ask for the perfect woman. He’d tried to camouflage it as a work request, but she knew better.

He’d been shopping. The man did like to shop. She knew that firsthand from their stroll in town, where the ladies had hung out from shop doors to call hello. She’d seen one girl give him a hug that was far from just-bein’-friendly.

She knew just what Mr. Hard Case needed.

“I’m going to stay here, Mason,” she announced.

“Oh, sure, of course. Whatever you need.”

“Oh, no. It’s a matter of what
you
need,” she said sweetly, her gaze deliberately on Fannin. “You’ll need housekeeping help. Mama needs me close by.
And the Honey-Do Agency must keep their clients happy. This is a wonderful solution for everyone.”

Fannin stared at her.

“Now, you don’t need to do housekeeping here,” Mason said uncomfortably. “You’re a guest at our ranch.”

“I’d rather earn my keep, if you don’t mind. I’ll take Mama’s job, and she can do what she feels called to do.” She smiled at Fannin. “I know how happy that will make everyone.”

She didn’t miss the concerned glances the men threw each other. Boy, she had a surprise for them. They were going to wish they’d been nice to her mother—especially Mr. Cocky.

And she went upstairs to unpack.

The brothers watched as Fannin headed up the stairs, purpose in his step. “You were supposed to keep them separated,” Calhoun said to Last. “Another harebrained idea.”

“Now she’s living here,” Archer said. “And by the look on Fannin’s face, nothing could have made him happier.”

Last sat mutinously on the couch, staring at his brothers. “I didn’t know Mimi was going to have a stress attack of epic proportions.”

“I didn’t know Mimi was so lonely,” Navarro said. “I feel pretty bad about that.”

“Yeah.” Last mulled that one for a moment. Alone most of the time, pregnant and with a sick father, Mimi was overtired, the doctor had said. He’d put her
on total bed rest until the baby arrived. Which had Mason totally gonzo. He was turning into a protective bull right before their eyes—sending his precious Helga next door was the least he intended to do for Mimi.

But Kelly living at the ranch was far worse.

“What was that?” Last said, sitting up straight. “I heard a door slam.”

“I heard it, too,” Navarro said. “It came from up stairs.”

They all listened.

And then they heard it, plain as paint on a fence.

Squeak, squeak, squeak!

Last sighed. “Bedsprings locked into the rhythm of love. I didn’t even know Frisco’s old bed had bed springs in it. I think you can call that a very bad sign indeed.”

“I don’t think much housekeeping’s gonna get done around here,” Calhoun said.

“I’m hungry,” Navarro stated.

“Think the kitchen’s closed,” Archer pointed out.

“Yep, I think the only one of us around here that’s going to be happy for a while is Fannin.”

“Well, we did criticize his form with women,” Last said.

“You’re not making me feel better.” Navarro got up and peered into the kitchen. “Anybody for toast?”

“Hell, no. I’m not staying here listening to that.”

Archer put his hat on. “I’m going into town to get a burger at Lampy’s.”

His three brothers beat him to the door.

“I
WAS MAD
,” Kelly admitted, lying breathlessly on a bed in some room she’d never imagined she’d first view from her back. Something had happened between her and Fannin as she went upstairs—all the anger she was holding inside somehow uncorked when he grabbed her hand and kissed her. “I think I didn’t plan on having mad sex, though.”

“Neither did I,” Fannin said. “I hope your mood swings are always so productive.”

She tossed a pillow at him, which he ducked. “I like you,” he said. “You’re playful.”

He was so confident, it was annoying. “You know, you don’t always get everything you want, Fannin Jefferson, just because you want it.”

“I got you, didn’t I?” he said smugly.

She tossed the last pillow at him, but he dodged it, laughing as he left the room. “Okay, now I’m really mad,” she said to herself. “Now I see that there are shades to anger that I never imagined.”

Still, she had to admit that Fannin was an awesome lover. She’d liked being ambushed by him! No man had ever pursued her with Fannin’s focus, and therein lay his charm.

However, he’d be more charming if he wasn’t such an ass, she thought, pulling her skirt down and fixing her hair. It had been so much fun to let herself go….

But he
was
an ass, and there was nothing in him that could become marriage material. Maybe she re
ally was a good girl having a fling before settling down.

“It was fun, but that’s it,” she told Joy, who was napping in the window ledge, totally unconcerned with anything except her own sleep. “That’s the last time the cowboy ambushes me.” She wasn’t putting a lot of time into a man who had no heart, fired old ladies and was overcocky. He would always make her mad, and after her parents’ fiery relationship, she wanted something settled. Something secure.

Something she’d never have with Fannin.

She was not going to be his flame.

F
ANNIN FELT
better than he ever had. He was going to get to keep Kelly for the next three days! And he wouldn’t even have to admit that he didn’t want her to go. That was in line with his brothers’ modus operandi—say little and make ’em wonder.

He was happy Mimi felt better, but everybody was more comfortable with the new arrangements, he was certain. Mason had already carried Helga’s stuff over to Mimi’s, and Mimi was happily laid up in bed, lapping up Helga’s attention like a lazy cat.

And he planned on having Kelly for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Three days. Then it was Christmas, and Kelly would return home. With Helga. Kelly had made it clear that this year her mother and she were spending Christmas together in their home. One last time, as Kelly told him, because after Christmas she planned
to tell her mother that she was going to Ireland for a very extended stay. It was time to live in her father’s house and experience life through the things he’d left her.