The Bull Rider's Twins (17 page)

Darla blinked big blue eyes at him. “I had my two-week doctor's appointment, Judah. Goodness.”

“Oh.” Sheepishly, he stepped away from the window, and the mirth in Jackie's eyes. “Sorry about that. Hi, Jackie. Thanks for driving Darla.”

“Hi, Judah,” Jackie said. “Mind moving your truck so I can get by?”

“I'm going.” Okay, he was going to be the laughingstock of the town. He'd just made a superior ass of himself. He backed up, parked, then followed the ladies to the house. They didn't pay a whole lot of attention to him as they went inside. Darla slowly seated herself on the sofa, and Jackie got her a glass of ice water.

“I'm going now,” Jackie said to Judah. “Think you can handle it from here?”

“Yes,” he said, his tone gruff, his gaze drinking in his tired wife. “Thanks, Jackie.”

“No problem. She has another appointment in a couple of weeks, so put that on your calendar so you don't give yourself a coronary.” His sister-in-law smiled at him and waved goodbye to Darla as she popped out the door.

“Sorry,” Judah said. “I've lost my mind.”

Darla sighed. “I didn't think to tell you because it wasn't important.”

“Yeah.” He took a seat beside his wife. “I won't always be like this. I don't think so, anyway.”

“You won't,” Darla said, “or I'll put you back in the pond, toad.”

“Speaking of ponds,” Judah said, “Fiona told me you might be looking for a new one.”

She closed her eyes, leaning her head back. “It's as good a time as any, I suppose.”

“I thought we talked about the fact that you're not supposed to be doing anything, not even so much as moving one of those tiny, pink-painted piggies of yours,” he said with a frown.

“Judah, I only made a phone call. I didn't lift weights or pull a truck.” Darla sighed. “Are you always going to be difficult and overbearing? Because I'm not sure I saw this side of you when I let you sweep me off my feet.”

“Who swept who?” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it, then took the plunge. “Are you thinking about moving out to the ranch?” He ran a lock of her silver-blond hair between his fingers, mesmerized by the silkiness of it, as he waited for her to give him the answer he wanted so badly.

“I've always wanted to live in a renovated bunkhouse,” Darla said.

“Have you really?” Judah asked, and she said, “No. But I'm willing to give it a shot.”

He grinned, the happiest man on earth. “Thank you,” he said. “If you're sure.”

She rolled her head to look at him. “I'm not completely sure.”

“Oh.” He didn't know what to make of that. He just knew he'd feel better if she was at the ranch, where more eyes could be on her, and on his daughters.

“But I've always been practical.” She gazed at him. “Something tells me my downside risk is minimal.”

“Can I have your cell number now that I've talked you into moving into a run-down bunkhouse with me?” he said, and Darla smiled.

“Exchanging cell numbers seems like a very serious step.”

He kissed her nose. “Commitment is fun. You'll see.”

T
HE NEXT MORNING
, Judah was feeling slightly better about things. He and Darla had spent a pleasant evening together, even sleeping in the same room. It was a milestone for him. He was becoming less afraid of hurting her, and the future seemed pretty rosy. One small step at a time, baby steps, he told himself, whistling as he went to the barn.
And soon my babies will be coming home, too.

“Hey, did you hear the big news?” Sam asked from the barn office. Jonas and Rafe were sitting in there with him. They all wore half-moon grins.

Judah paused. “I never hear any news. What's the news flash?”

They all laughed, practically waiting to pounce on him
en masse.

“That you got your wife's cell phone number!” Sam said, guffawing like a pirate. “You're really slick now, bro.”

Rafe nodded. “Jackie told us all about it. She said you were in a panic when she brought Darla home from her appointment yesterday. That you were breathing like a woman in labor.”

“I was not.” Judah slung his hat onto the desk. “I just…I mean, what the hell was I supposed to think?”

“We're just ribbing you. The news is that Sidney and Diane eloped,” Jonas said.

“What?” Judah's jaw went slack.

“Yep,” Sam said. “Just think, if Sidney had married Darla,
he'd probably have had her cell number by now. But that's okay. We're not embarrassed by you or anything. Every family's got its runt in the love department.”

“No one has to tell me that the small details have been known to get by me.” Judah looked at his brothers. “Is this good news about Sidney and Diane?”

They all shrugged.

“It's not bad news,” Sam said. “It's just news.”

“I guess.” Judah sank onto a chair. “But it's so fast.”

“Maybe for you,” Rafe said. “But not every man is frightened of women.”

“I am not—oh, hell. Why do I bother?” He was a little afraid of Darla, he supposed. He definitely had her on a high pedestal, keeping her out of reach. “I don't feel like I'm standing in knee-deep mud. It feels like I'm running pretty fast.”

“But you're not getting anywhere.” Sam nodded. “We understand. We're trying to help you.”

“I don't need any help.” Judah got up. “We get plenty of help. More than we need.”

“But Sidney bagged his female and is off on a beach in Hawaii, while you're making your wife move into a little-used bunkhouse,” Rafe said. “We think your romance quotient is low. We've been theorizing about where you went wrong.”

“I haven't,” Judah said, heading off to the stalls, wondering if he had gone wrong, when he wanted everything to be so right.

“So the ballistics showed that the bullet was from a .38,” Fiona told Judah as she swept out the bunkhouse. “Sheriff Cartwright doesn't think it was a random hunter's bullet.”

“I could have figured that.” Judah watched his little aunt getting the bunkhouse ready for his brood to take over. “What can I do to help?”

“Stay out of my way,” Fiona said cheerfully. “I think I'm going to have to take down these red-and-white gingham curtains. They're too bunkhousey for a new family. I know Darla will want to decorate your home, but she doesn't have any time right now, and this can all be changed later. So I think we'll do plain white lace curtains Darla can replace.”

Judah helped his aunt move some furniture. “You work too hard. Let me have that broom.”

“You just take care of your arm. Don't think I haven't noticed that you bark at Darla but haven't exactly been taking care of yourself.”

He shrugged. “It was a scratch.”

Fiona sighed. “Judah, remember when you found the cave?”

“Yeah.” He pushed the furniture back and waited for Fiona's broom to land in a new spot so he could try to help her. “If you tell me what needs cleaning, I can do this, Aunt Fiona.”

“You're not paying attention.” She wrapped a rag on the end of the broom and gestured to the overhead fans for him to dust. “You didn't mention the cave to anyone, did you?”

“No. Not even my daughters, whom I spend every waking moment with when I'm not with my wife.” He grinned. “They're making good progress. And the doc says in a month or so they'll be over five pounds and can come home.”

His aunt smiled. “Maybe home will be here, if Darla doesn't change her mind.”

“Why would she?” He frowned but didn't look at Fiona as he dutifully moved the broom around the wagon wheel chandeliers and fans.

“I don't know.” She watched him with an eagle eye to make certain no dust was missed. “Anyway, if we can keep to one subject, Burke and I have been talking it over, and we think there's possibly a connection between you getting shot and the cave.”

Just talking about it was making his arm hurt. Or maybe reaching for dust and cobwebs was doing that. Judah ignored the pain and kept dusting, wanting everything perfect for Darla. He was so happy she was willing to live here that he could hardly stand it. And then, in time, he'd build her the house of her dreams.

Their family would begin here, at Rancho Diablo.

“Did you hear me?” Fiona asked, and Judah snapped his thoughts away from Darla.

“Yes, dear aunt. You said the cave is the reason I got shot. But that makes no sense, because Bode doesn't know about the cave, and he wouldn't shoot me at my own wedding, anyway.” He handed the broom back to his aunt. “Clean enough even for a nurse.”

Fiona looked at him. “Bode didn't do it.”

She had his full attention now. “How do you know?”

“A feeling I have.”

Judah snorted. “You don't act on feelings. You've always been too practical for anything but data and hard evidence. Even when we were kids, you didn't believe anything you heard about us until you saw proof that we'd painted a neighbor's goat for the Fourth of July, or that we'd been smoking in the fields outside of town.”

Fiona's lips went flat. “If I'd believed every rumor I'd heard about you kids, you would have been doing chores for the rest of your lives.”

Judah shrugged. “So it makes no sense that you'd be dealing in hunches now.”

“Except that it's not really a hunch. There are things I can't tell you—”

“Why?” Judah demanded. “We're all full-grown men, Aunt Fiona, not little boys. You don't have to bear the burden of protecting us any longer.”

“I know.” She nodded. “I'll tell you eventually, as soon as I know the time is right. And I know that time is coming very soon. I knew it the night you got shot.”

“I just don't understand what it has to do with the cave. I know someone would love to help himself to the silver. But why pick me?” He looked at her for a moment. “Because I found it and whoever it was didn't want me to?”

She didn't say anything. Judah's blood began to run cold. “You're not trying to tell me that Darla and the girls might be in danger, are you?”

“I don't know,” Fiona said. “I didn't expect anyone to try to harm you. Frankly, I'm scared to death.”

He sank onto the old sofa in front of a fireplace that hadn't been used in years. “What does Burke say?”

“That you should be careful,” Fiona said simply. “We don't know what we're up against now.”

“But it has nothing to do with Bode trying to run us off.”

She shook her head. “We think Bode is the type of man
who tries to buy everything he wants, or cheat people of it, but he wouldn't kill anybody. I know I cracked him with my bag that night, but once I cooled down, I realized how unlike him it would be to use foul means. He's too much about the thrill of destruction. He likes being able to take people down legally, and sometimes a little bit under the law. I'm not saying he'd bring us a loaf of bread if we were starving. He'd enjoy watching a family be run off. But he wouldn't physically harm any of us. He wouldn't want Julie to see him in a bad light.”

“So you're telling me I'm bringing my wife and kids here, and we have a murderer running around?” Anger assailed Judah as he thought of what he would do if anybody ever tried to harm Darla and the babies.

For the first time, he knew he was capable of harming another human. And it scared him. But he knew he would protect his family at all costs. It made him keenly aware of how Fiona must have felt all these years about the family for which she'd been responsible.

“We were at Darla's for your wedding that night,” she said softly, reminding him. “We weren't here.”

His throat went dry; blood pounded in his ears. “You're right. I've always thought of Rancho Diablo as the unsafe place because of Bode.” But Fiona was correct. Whoever shot him—if it had been on purpose—had followed him to his own wedding, a time when he would have had his guard down completely. It felt like a warning.

“Darla's alone at the house,” Judah said, and ran for his truck.

D
ARLA LET OUT A SCREECH
when the back door crashed open. As Judah burst into the living room, she wanted to bash him with the baby name book she was holding. “What in the world, Judah?”

He slowed down, his eyes crazy, his dark hair blown and
wild around his head. He was, unfortunately, handsome as all get-out, but she wanted to slap him silly. Maybe she would as soon as her heart slowed down.

“What are you doing?” he demanded.

“What does it look like I'm doing? I'm trying to pick baby names. For heaven's sake, Judah, you frightened me!” She glared at him. “I thought we talked about this. You were going to calm down.” She worked herself up into some righteous anger. “You just can't keep acting like a madman. You've been crazy ever since you found out I was pregnant, and it's only gotten worse.” She bit her lip, then said, “Or maybe I never really knew you.”

“Of course we didn't know each other,” Judah replied. “I could never get you to even talk to me.”

“Well, I'm talking now, and I swear, if you don't calm down…” She looked at him. “Why did you come in here like you were running from the devil, anyway? What is your problem?”

He put his good arm around her, holding her. She could feel his heart beating hard in his chest, ricocheting in panic. “What is wrong with you, Judah?”

“I don't know,” he said. “Actually, I do know, but some things are better left unsaid.”

She pushed him away and went to stare at him from the sofa. “I don't know that I can live with a crazy man. You literally frightened me out of my wits. I didn't know who was coming in the house.” She frowned at him. “Why did you use the back door, anyway?”

“I overshot the driveway,” he said, a little embarrassed. “So I came in the rear. I was in a hurry.” He gathered her to him once more, ignoring his wounded arm. “I worry about you, I guess. And did you know that Sidney and Diane eloped?”

She pushed him away a final time and said sternly, “The driveway is not a speedway. You nearly hit Jackie's truck
the other day.” Darla gave him a long look, thinking it was a shame that her handsome husband had such race car driver tendencies. “Look. Is there anything I can do to make you feel less insane?”

“I don't think so,” Judah said. “I think it's the new me.”

She sighed, trying to be patient, which wasn't easy. “You can't be jealous if Sidney and Diane have eloped, so what's bugging you now?”

He shrugged. “I wouldn't say I'm done being jealous of ol' Sid. Sometimes I wonder what women see in that bony bronc buster. But as far as what's bugging me, it's not Tunstall. I haven't figured everything out yet, to be honest. It's a work in progress.”

“So maybe you're always going to be a fat-headed ass?” Darla was in no mood to let him off the hook. “You're going to have to get a grip.”

He would, but not today. He'd been a dad for only four days—and as far as he was concerned, he had over a month to change. He could do it. “Keep the faith, wife.”

O
N THE FIRST OF
A
UGUST
, Judah could honestly say that “Coming Home Day” was the best day of his life. “Miss Jennifer Belle Callahan,” he said proudly, laying daughter number one gently in her bassinet, “and Miss Molly Mavis Callahan.” He placed his second daughter near her sister in a matching bassinet.

Instantly, both babies began to cry. “They don't like their names,” Judah said, feeling helpless.

“They want to be together.” Darla sat up in bed and motioned for him to hand her his daughters. Gingerly, as if he was handling small, fragile pieces of china, he passed the girls one by one to their mother. Darla made sure their blankets were wrapped properly, then put the girls side by side next to
her on the bed. Instantly, they stopped fussing, and Judah's nerves stopped jumping.

“I don't like it when I don't know what they want.”

“You'll learn. We'll learn. Right now, I'm sure the girls just want to feel like they did in the womb.”

He nodded. “Looks good to me. Any room for Dad?”

“Come on.” Darla motioned to the other side of the twins.

“I don't know,” Judah said, hanging back. “I read that it was bad for Dad to sleep in the bed with babies.”

“It might be, but you're not going to sleep,” Darla said. “I haven't seen you sleep for weeks. Do you ever?”

He thought about it. “Now that you mention it, I don't think so.”

Darla smiled. “Just don't roll over on them, and everybody will be happy.”

He stared down, wanting very much to get in but not sure it was safe. The bed seemed so big, for one thing. And it was full of females. While this was normally a good thing, these females were all in a very delicate state. “I think I'll wait until everyone is a little more, uh, ready for company,” he said, backing away. “I'll sit over here in the rocker and watch you ladies enjoy having the bed to yourselves. It won't last forever, so take advantage of it while you can.”

Darla shook her head at him. “You're afraid of your daughters.”

“Sometimes I'm afraid of you. I'm not ashamed to admit that.” Judah waved his hand and then reached for a pink baby blanket to roll up behind his head. “The guy who can't admit the truth isn't much of a man.”

“That's nice. Did you make that up?” Darla asked. “I've never known the philosophizing side of you.”

He yawned. “I think so. Then again, I might have plagiarized it from somebody smarter than me.”

And then he fell asleep.

Darla looked at her knocked-out husband and smiled tenderly down at her babies. “He's going to be better now, I think, girls. Bringing you home was the best thing that could happen to him.” It was true. The moment he'd held his daughters and brought them home, she'd sensed a change in him. He wasn't frantic or rattled up anymore.

Judah seemed content.

Darla kissed each of her daughters on the head, falling in love with all the new people in her life, and the magic she could feel binding them together as a family.

W
HEN
J
UDAH OPENED
his eyes, he found Darla and the babies gone. Pushing himself out of the rocker, he went to find his family. They were quietly nursing on the sofa in the den, and he was amazed that he'd apparently slept through baby calls for breakfast. “Sorry. I guess I was tired. What can I do to help?”

“Hold a baby,” Darla said with a smile, and he thought he'd never seen her look more beautiful. He found himself literally gawking at his wife.

“I want to marry you,” he said, and Darla laughed.

“We are married.”

“I know. But I'm afraid you'll get away from me. Maybe I'll marry you once a month just to make sure you're holding tight to our commitment.” He sank onto the sofa and trailed a finger over his daughter's face as she nuzzled her mom. “Remember when you used to talk about our marriage as something you wanted to do until the girls were born?”

Darla nodded. “Is that what's making you all nervous and weird?”

“No, this is my natural state now,” he said, and she nodded.

“Probably.” She handed him the daughter who'd gone to sleep on her breast.

“So,” he said, taking the baby tenderly, “if you don't mind,
I'd like to make this a solid, no-holds-barred commitment. I have a feeling you're going to like being married to me.”

Darla laughed. “Well, confidence isn't your short suit.”

“So, I'll go rustle up some breakfast. What are you in the mood for, little mama?” The least he could do was grab some grub, since she was doing all the work—and as lovely as that work was, she didn't seem to need him all that much.