One Man and a Baby Read online

  Ben laughed. “Sorry, Ashley. I just wanted to make sure Rick knew what he was doing.”

  “Come on, now, Ben,” Ashley scolded affectionately. “Would my dad hire somebody who didn’t know what he was doing?”

  “Absolutely not!” Elizabeth said.

  Ben shook his head, looking repentant. “You know what? I’m sorry. I’m tense because of this election and I’m taking everything too damned personally. I’m thrilled that you hired Rick. I know Rick learned a lot the years he was away. I admit I’m having trouble seeing him as an adult.” He turned to Rick. “I’m sorry. The timing of your coming home was bad or I would have told you the day you returned that I know you’ve done some great things and I’m proud of you.”

  Ashley turned to Rick with a smile, pleased that his dad had been so honest. But though Rick was smiling, the emotion of it didn’t reach his eyes. His beautiful blue orbs held an expression of wariness.

  Still, he slapped his dad on the back and said, “Don’t worry about it.”

  Ashley waited until they were on the dance floor to ask Rick about his dad and Rick paused, not quite sure what to say. He didn’t mind that she’d asked. The problem was that he wanted to tell her. He liked having someone who understood him, especially somebody so pretty, funny and smart. He wanted everything she wanted. The itching of his palm against the soft skin of Ashley’s back was a reminder of just how much he wanted it. But any day, any week, any year Senator Martin could discover his granddaughter and change the entire course of Rick’s life.

  “At first he seemed angry with you, then he did a complete turnaround.”

  Rick took a quiet breath. Though it might not be wise to get any more emotionally involved than they already were, conversation might be the only way to get his mind off how physically close they were. “He was furious that I took up with Jen Martin.”

  “Really?”

  “He knew nothing good would come of it and he was right. She hurt me. When I came home, he was sympathetic, but in an I-told-you-so sort of way. I can’t even imagine how he’ll react when he finds out about Ruthie.”

  Rather than share his concerns, Ashley shrugged. “He might fall instantly in love the way everybody else does when they see your beautiful daughter.”

  “Maybe. But he’ll also know as well as I do that this situation isn’t ever going to be easy. Until I prove myself to be a good parent, a good provider, technically a completely changed person from the guy who created Ruthie, Senator Martin can’t find out about her or I’ll lose a custody fight. When I tell my dad about Ruthie, he’ll wonder if I can keep everything together that long.”

  “Really?”

  Rick shook his head. “He thinks I’m a screw-up because I was. He was angry with me when I dropped out of college, skeptical when I reenrolled to finish my degree after Jen dumped me, and somewhat appeased when your dad gave me the job. But Ruthie will change everything. I’ll be back to square one with him.”

  “I don’t know, Rick,” Ashley said thoughtfully. “He really seemed to be trying. You saw the way he pulled back and the way he apologized.”

  “Only because he’s not allowed to get angry. It’s not good for his heart. For the first time in his life he has no choice but to accept the things his kids do.”

  “I see.”

  Rick laughed. “I don’t think you do. He rode my back for my entire life, now he’s got to accept me. But the truth is I’d be much happier if he’d leave me alone.”

  She gave him a wide-eyed look of surprise and Rick laughed. “You’re always trying to get your dad’s attention, so I know it seems weird to you that I’ve been running from mine. But it’s true. Half the reason Jericho and I rebelled was because our dad was so strict. We got in trouble because he dogged us. You got in trouble because your dad let you alone.” He laughed again. “We’re a pair.”

  She looked up at him with a soft, feminine smile that just about knocked his socks off. “I think we are.”

  With that she shifted closer, nestling against him like a lover, not a boss, and everything inside of Rick wanted to lean into her and enjoy her. But he didn’t. He couldn’t.

  “And though I agree with you that Senator Martin could try for custody if he finds your baby, I don’t think he’s ever going to find her since he has no reason to look.”

  “He might not have to look,” Rick said with a laugh. “Jen or her mother could tell him.”

  “But why?”

  “I don’t think either would do it deliberately, but it could slip out in an argument.”

  Ashley shook her head. “Honestly, Rick. I know you see a credible threat. But I don’t. I think needing to hide Ruthie is a safety net for you. A logical way to keep you from having to get involved again.”

  “With you?” he asked, unconsciously pulling her closer. He’d never wanted anything as much as he wanted what she was offering. Not sex. But easy companionship. He’d never spoken so candidly or so easily with anybody. It was almost laughable that she seemed to think he was making up a crisis to avoid her.

  “With me.”

  “Whether you understand it or not, even without my problems with Ruthie, I still wouldn’t pursue you. Not to protect myself, but to protect you. I won’t let you get so starry-eyed that you miss out on what you need.”

  “I need you.”

  “You need somebody in your own social circle. You need somebody who’s going to bring you up, not pull you down.”

  “You do that.”

  “I might be able to do that for you emotionally, but I can’t do it for you professionally.”

  “You’re already teaching me. And I’ve already hired you. Rick—” She pulled back and caught his gaze. “We complement each other. I’ve never met anybody who understood me the way you do. I’ve never met anybody who has helped me and at the same time forced me to be strong, the way you have. You think I need somebody from my social circle but I’d rather have somebody I like.” She caught his gaze. “Somebody I trust.”

  “You trust me?”

  She smiled. “If you’re telling me I can’t, that means you think it’s inevitable that you’re going to hurt me.”

  “Only if I leave.”

  “And what if you don’t? What if you spend Ruthie’s entire life until she’s eighteen living in that guesthouse? Won’t we both be sorry if we don’t take the gift life seems to have given us?”

  Looking into her soft green eyes, while holding her so intimately, he could almost see the future she was describing, and for the first time since Jen left him, he felt normal. Whole. Like a guy who could finally forget his past and move on into a life that was a great deal more than worry over Ruthie.

  She snuggled against his shoulder again. “Every decision doesn’t have to be made tonight. Let’s just enjoy ourselves.”

  He didn’t necessarily agree that they should enjoy themselves, but he did relax with her. Particularly in the car, feeling the quiet companionship they so easily shared. They did fit. And if she was right about Senator Martin never discovering Ruthie then maybe she was also right in thinking that he was using his daughter to keep him from a relationship. If he could make Ashley happy and she could make him happy, everything else shouldn’t count, but for some reason or another even when he took Ruthie out of the equation he still had a horrible sense of unease about getting involved with her.

  For as much as he wanted it, something in the back of his mind told him to avoid it at all cost, but without a valid reason for that nagging doubt, Rick had to admit maybe Ashley was right. Maybe all his protests about having a relationship with her were nothing but fear.

  Chapter Nine

  On election day, the vote count was running so far in Rick’s father’s favor that within an hour of the seven o’clock closing of the polls it had easily become apparent that incumbent Ben Capriotti had beaten Auggie Malloy. Knowing that the people of the town supported him, Rick’s dad was in fine form at the victory celebration being held in his living roo
m, happily shaking hands, pouring drinks, swapping jokes.

  Paused in the foyer, watching the scene with Ruthie on his arm, Rick wasn’t a hundred percent sure how Ashley had gotten herself invited, but when he walked into the house Ashley was standing in the circle of breeders, congratulating Rick’s dad, discussing the future. It struck Rick again how far she’d come in the past few weeks. How different she was. How ready she was to take over and his heart swelled with something he didn’t even want to try to identify. He remembered his thoughts driving home from the dinner Saturday night and wondered again if he wasn’t manufacturing problems because he was afraid. She seemed so perfect and he liked her so much. But nothing had ever been easy for him. Still, was it so farfetched to think that finding Ashley, falling in love and making a commitment could be as simple as letting nature take its course?

  Rick’s dad suddenly turned his attention in Rick’s direction and Rick watched his father’s eyes cloud with confusion when he saw the baby on Rick’s arm. Excusing himself from the circle, he walked over to Rick.

  “What’s this?”

  Ruthie slapped her grandfather with her rattle.

  “This is my daughter.”

  Rick’s dad’s expression shifted several times. Finally he said, “Nobody told me you had gotten married.”

  “I didn’t.”

  “Then I think you and I need to go someplace quiet to talk.”

  His father led him to the den at the end of the corridor to the right. The second they were alone in the room, he reached for Ruthie.

  “My goodness,” he breathed. “She’s beautiful.”

  Rick laughed uneasily. “You’re only saying that because she looks like our side of the family.”

  “I think we’d better say thank God about that. If she looked like Jen Martin it wouldn’t be so easy to keep secret who her mother is. Since she looks like us, things will go easier.”

  Rick nodded. He knew his father would understand that Ruthie’s mother’s identity would have to be kept a secret.

  Further confirming his comprehension of the situation, Rick’s dad said, “You didn’t tell me about her because of the election.”

  “Because we were afraid this news would add to the stress of the election.”

  “Okay.” He paused and caught Rick’s gaze. “What are you planning to tell people about her?”

  “That her mother and I never married.”

  “And what if somebody asks who her mother is?”

  “I’m just going to say she’s a girl I met on the rodeo circuit, because that’s true.”

  “I see.”

  From his father’s first comments Rick had thought this was going to be simple, but just as he believed about most of life, nothing was ever easy. Knowing his father would want to dissect every facet of his decision and that he would have to defend himself, Rick took a breath and jumped in with both feet.

  “I don’t think you do see—”

  “No, Rick, you’re wrong. I see. A see a guy who is taking care of things.” He laughed. “My God. I have a granddaughter.”

  Totally confused that he’d misinterpreted the situation, Rick said, “You’re okay with this?”

  “Would it matter if I wasn’t? Rick, you’re a grown man. Just as I said at the preelection dinner, I might have been having trouble seeing you as an adult when you first came home, but I’m forcing myself and it’s getting easier.”

  “I might end up embarrassing you if Senator Martin finds out about her and files for custody.”

  Ben shook his head. “I’m not worried. I’ll remind people you are an adult, entitled to your own life and decisions. But I don’t think there’s going to be a problem with Senator Martin. Now that the election is over, even if he finds out about Ruthie, he doesn’t have a reason to storm the gates so to speak and take her from you. In fact, it works to his advantage to keep this low-key.”

  Rick cautiously said, “That’s my thought, too.”

  His dad took a breath. “I can’t believe this. This has been some year. I won the election that Mark Fegan worked so hard to make me lose, my daughter married a guy I actually like and I have a granddaughter.” He kissed Ruthie’s head. She rewarded him with a swat of her rattle. “She’s feisty.”

  “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  Rick’s father laughed. “A man doesn’t stare death in the face like I did last year when I had my heart attack without seeing his life for what it really is.” He took a long breath and caught Rick’s gaze. “I was hard on you when you were younger. I was hard on Jericho, too, but I was harder on you.”

  Rick laughed. “I was worse than Jericho.”

  “That’s a matter of perspective. But it’s all water under the bridge now. You’re adults and you both turned out okay. There’s no reason for me to ride you. Even less reason to bring up the past.”

  Rick only stared at his dad. This was more than a civil, normal conversation. His dad had just totally absolved his past.

  “Did you know your brother’s a detective with the Las Vegas Police Department?”

  Unable to stop his reaction, Rick hooted with laughter. “Are you kidding?”

  “Nope,” Ben said, then slapped Rick’s back as he directed him to the door of the den. “And I’ve decided to offer him the job here in Calhoun Corners, when Chief Nelson retires.”

  “Chief Nelson is retiring?”

  “Life goes on, Rick.” He chucked Ruthie under the chin. “Sometimes in the most unexpected ways. I’m glad you’re home. I’m glad you’re the man you are.”

  Overcome with emotion, Rick stopped walking and faced his dad. “Thanks.”

  “You’re welcome.” He gave Ruthie back to Rick. “She’s just a little heavy for me, but stay close. I like to look at her.”

  Ashley knew she could have been knocked over with a feather when she saw Rick and his dad walking up the hall from the den to return to the party. Not only was the air around them totally relaxed, but also Rick was holding Ruthie.

  After giving Rick time to speak with his sister, hand off Ruthie to his mother and mingle with some of the other farm owners, she sidled up to him by the punch bowl.

  “Everything okay?”

  Rick took a breath, then faced her. “Yeah. Things are good. Really good. My dad thinks you’re right about Senator Martin.”

  “That he has no reason to come after Ruthie?”

  Rick nodded. “He’s also totally smitten with Ruthie and proud of me.”

  Ashley let all that soak in, then she grinned. “Well, what do you know.”

  Rick caught her gaze. “Yeah. What do you know.”

  Ashley turned away, not about to remind him that roadblocks to their relationship were falling away so fast he shouldn’t have any more doubts. She’d said her piece the night of the preelection dinner. She’d given him time to think about it. These decisions were his.

  Of course, it wouldn’t hurt to remind him she was still interested.

  “So,” she said, then licked her suddenly dry lips. “Who’s keeping Ruthie tonight?”

  Touching her forearm, Rick brought her gaze back to his and said, “Me. But now that my dad knows about her, there will be grandma sleepovers in her future.”

  Holding the gaze of his stunning blue eyes, Ashley said, “Really?”

  “Not this week. Maybe not even next, but soon.”

  “Okay.”

  “But only if you’re sure.”

  She had never been more sure about anything in her life. Still, she’d come to her conclusions about loving him over a week ago. She’d had time for all this to settle in. Rick had not.

  So, she continued to allow him his space, knowing that with their sexual chemistry it wouldn’t be a long space.

  “I’ll be ready when you are.”

  When the big black Cadillac began crawling down the lane for Seven Hills on Friday afternoon, everybody stopped working.

  Ashley followed the gazes of her workers who seemed hypnotized and she
laughed. “You guys have seen visitors before,” she said as she turned to walk up to the house. Whoever it was, the style and color of the car hinted that they weren’t the type of people who would meet her in the barn. She also decided there was no need to disturb Rick about this until she got past the preliminaries of finding out what they wanted.

  She jogged up the back porch steps, glad she’d implemented her more professional policy. Wearing a brown tweed blazer over plain beige trousers, she was appropriately dressed to do the public relations work she was undoubtedly about to do.

  In the laundry room, she took off her barn flats and slid into a pair of pumps. As she walked through the kitchen, the front doorbell rang.

  “Coming!” she called, hastening her steps to the foyer. She took a breath, pasted on a professional smile and grabbed the doorknob to admit her guest. When she saw Senator Paul Martin standing on her front porch, her smile faded.

  “Ms. Meljac?”

  “Yes, I’m Ashley Meljac, Senator Martin.”

  He smiled. “I see you know me.”

  “Anybody in the United States who watches the news knows you.”

  “I’m looking for Rick Capriotti.”

  Ashley stepped out onto the front porch, closing her door behind her. “I figured that out, too. He lives in my guesthouse.”

  “With my granddaughter.”

  Ashley swallowed, unsure of what to say. She wasn’t the only person who had been convinced Senator Martin wouldn’t have reason to look for his granddaughter when the election was over. But it appeared she and anybody else who had advised Rick not to worry had been wrong.

  But before she could speak, Rick walked up to the porch. One of the hands had probably told him about the Caddy.

  “What do you want, Senator?”

  “You and I need to talk.”

  Rick inclined his head and motioned for the senator to follow him and Ashley quickly said, “You can use my office.”

  Rather than turn toward the access road that led to the guesthouse Rick changed directions and faced the porch again. “That’s probably a good idea.”