Reunited with the Rancher (Texas Cattleman's Club: Blackmail 3)

Eight

Emily got out when Tom did and they both gathered all they picnic supplies they could handle. Tom carried a big cooler loaded with ice and bottled drinks. He slung a tote bag on his shoulder, with pinwheels and kites sticking out of it. Emily carried a big sack with two beach balls. Two little wooden flutes were in the bottom of the sack. Tom also had an electronic toy for Colby and a little box containing a tiara, a feather boa, bangles and a beaded purse for Lexie to play dress-up. Before he picked up the cooler, he waved and Natalie waved back.

Miss Molly saw them and came bounding over. She went to Tom, but was too well behaved to jump all over him. He put down everything he carried to pet her and scratch her ears. It was obvious the dog loved him and it was mutual. She looked at Emily, who held her hand out, and Tom stepped closer to her. “Here’s Miss Molly. She’s friendly and has been through obedience school, so she’s well trained.”

Miss Molly sniffed Emily’s hand and looked up expectantly. Tom took a doggie treat from his pocket and handed it to Emily. “Give her this and she will love you forever.”

“That’s a bribe.”

“And it works beautifully. Try,” he said.

She held out the treat, which Miss Molly politely took and ate, wagging her tail. She moved closer and looked up at Emily expectantly.

“See, you have a friend now,” Tom said, picking things up to carry to the picnic spot.

Emily smiled as she petted Miss Molly and retrieved what she had been carrying. Miss Molly ran to catch up with Tom and walk beside him, moving around to his left side.

Natalie was sitting at the picnic table with a little redheaded girl on her lap. “Lexie is a little doll,” Tom said. “At two, Lexie is too young for outdoor games, so I brought some toys and musical instruments. And I have two beach balls and two kites, but we’ll need more wind than this. I have some pinwheels, too.”

“You’re a walking toy store. No wonder they’re excited to see you.”

As they drew close, Natalie set Lexie on the ground. The minute her feet touched the grass, she ran with her arms out. Tom put down his things and scooped her up, laughing as he said hello. He looked around and w

alked over to pick up Colby with the other arm. “Hi, Colby,” he said easily. “Isn’t this fun? We’re at the park and I brought some toys and some things to do.” The children were both talking to him and he laughed, setting them on their feet.

“Wait a minute. I need to mind my manners. We have someone new with us. Emily, meet Lexie and Colby. This is my wife, Miss Emily to you two.” He looked at Emily. “Lexie’s still a toddler, so no telling what you’ll be called.”

“Whatever she settles on, it’ll be fine.”

Emily greeted them with a smile while they politely said hello. She barely heard Colby, who shyly looked away.

“We’ll get to what I brought, but first, I want to talk to your mama,” Tom told them.

As they approached the picnic table, which already had a red-and-white-checkered plastic tablecloth covering it, Emily saw Natalie Valentine turn and come forward to greet them, smiling.

“Emily, I’m Natalie. I’m glad to finally meet you.”

“I’m glad to meet you,” Emily answered politely, amazed Tom hadn’t fallen in love with Natalie, who was pretty with huge green eyes.

Natalie held out her hands. “Let me carry something.”

“Here’s a cake you can carry,” Emily said, handing a covered pan to the other woman.

“Lexie woke up an hour earlier than usual this morning because she was so excited about the picnic today. The kids love to see Tom. He’s wonderful with them and he’s good to share his time. Jeremy picked the right guy to be friends with, and I know why.”

“He’s good with kids,” Emily said, watching him hunker down to let Lexie and Colby look in the sack he’d brought and pull something out. They each got a pinwheel and stepped away to swing them through the air and make them spin. It was obvious they had played with them before.

“Tom has been a lifesaver for us,” Natalie continued. “Last month he installed two new motion-detector lights outside at the B and B. And then I had an appointment to take Colby to the dentist and Miss Molly had an appointment at the groomer at the same time—both hard to change—so Tom took Lexie with him to get Miss Molly to be groomed while I took Colby to the dentist. He even took Lexie to the pediatrician when she had to get a tetanus shot because she cut her foot on a rusty piece of metal. He held her hand while she got her shot, took her for ice cream and then to the bookstore.”

Emily continued to listen to Natalie talk about how much Tom had helped her. She was so effusive in her praise for Tom, talking about all the things he had done for her and her family, that Emily realized she had pushed Tom away and hadn’t let him take care of her when that was probably what he needed to do.

It was what he was doing now, but she had been fighting him on it every step of the way, while Natalie accepted his help and was grateful for it.

In the past Emily had robbed him of his need to be her protector, a need she decided after listening to Natalie that was as essential to his life force as breathing. He had tried in the days after they lost Ryan, but she had wrapped herself in a shell and withdrawn from him. She hadn’t relied on him then and she wouldn’t have now, but he’d simply taken charge because of worrying about what Maverick might be intending to do.

She thought about Tom telling her that he had lost Ryan, but he wasn’t going to lose her to a troll.

She watched him with the kids and wondered if part of the reason they were getting along so much better now was because he felt he was helping her and doing things for her. If so, she had made really big mistakes by shutting him out of parts of her life after Ryan’s death.