"Perfect," Megan said.
"Yes, it is. But he's gotten so used to having his time with Ben every day that I know there'll be an adjustment period. We'll all have to adjust. Martha will miss him, too. She's already talking about quitting her job as the house manager and coming along as nanny to Ben."
"Actually," Emma said, "I can't think of anyone better suited to be Ben's nanny, can you?"
"We're seriously contemplating the idea, though all the ranch hands are horrified at the thought. They're wondering who would cook for them if she left."
"I sense a ranch revolt in the making," Sam said.
Des's lips lifted. "Yes, the next month or so should be interesting while we wrangle all the details."
They all chatted about the babies and work for a while. Loretta got up and went upstairs to check on Hazel, who was comfortably stretched out on one of the spacious leather reclining chairs doing battle with Tabitha and Ryan on a video game. Since she seemed to be fine, she wandered back downstairs and ran into Deacon in the kitchen.
"Hey," he said as he put a platter on the drying rack. "I was just washing off this plate. Ribs are on the grill. What are you up to?"
"I was checking on Hazel."
"Is she doing all right?"
"She's fine. Upstairs in the media room battling it out on some robot-something-or-other death match thing."
His lips ticked up. "Sounds fun. Did you get the house tour from Sam?"
"I did. How about you?"
"Some of it, but then the doorbell rang, so Reid had to take care of that."
She looped her arm in his. "Well, come on. We'll walk around together."
His lips curved. "I like that idea. Maybe we'll find a dark closet somewhere and we can make out."
"I like the way you think, Deacon."
They wandered through the house, taking in the master bedroom downstairs. It was huge, and had an amazing bathroom with a giant tub and an equally immense and spacious shower.
"I'm going to have that someday," he said.
"What? A big soaker tub?"
"I meant the huge shower, but the tub's not a bad idea. Sometimes I feel beat-up at the end of a long day. I wouldn't mind a good, hot soak."
"I can see that." They wandered back out. "I love that the master opens up onto the back patio. I can imagine breaking out a wall in my master so I could do the same."
"That would be easy enough to do at your place. Put in some French doors and add a patio space. End your day with a glass of wine and a look at the stars."
Her lips lifted. "Yes. Someday, maybe. Have to do the deck first."
"We could amend those plans that Reid's drawing up for you. Have the deck extended around the side of the house."
"Hmm. Something to think about. I'll let you know."
He ran his hand down her back. "I'll mention it to him. And you don't have to do it all at once. The addition off the master can always be added later, and it's much easier if it's already in the plans."
She nodded. "Okay."
They wandered down the hall, then up the stairs, checking again on the kids, who were totally oblivious to them as they argued with each other over some mystical world. There was also an office on the second floor, along with two other bedrooms.
"How many bedrooms in your imaginary house you've yet to build?" she asked.
"Four, at least. Plenty for kids, plus an office."
She stopped and turned to him. "Why haven't you bought or built a house yet?"
He shrugged. "I thought I'd wait until I get married. I figure the woman I marry will want some say-so in how things are done."
She thought about that for a minute, about the fact that Deacon might have been married when she got back to town. He could have built an entire life for himself, with a wife and a child or two. He might have had a house just like this one that he'd constructed with love, taking into consideration his wife's desires.
The thought caused a violent twinge of jealousy that had no business being there.
She was the one who had walked away, and Deacon had had every right to move on with his life.
Only he hadn't.
"So why didn't you?" she asked as they lingered on the stairs.
"Why didn't I what?"
"Ever get married?"
He shrugged. "Never found the right woman to settle down with, I guess. I was busy building my business, and that seemed to be a priority."
"I understand that. And I'm glad you don't have a wife and three kids."
He laughed. "You are, huh?"
She took his hand as they made their way downstairs. "Yes. Very happy about that."
"Hey, Deacon," Hazel said, running down the hall to launch herself at him.
"Hey, tough girl." He caught her and hauled her into his arms. "How did the battle royal go up there?"
"I won three games. Tabitha won three games, too. Ryan won four. We say he cheated."
Deacon laughed. "Oh, he did, did he? Let's go challenge him and see."
Deacon looked over his shoulder at her. "Be right back. Gotta go kick some butt."
Loretta laughed. "Okay. You go do that."
She loved that he was so comfortable around her daughter. Around all the kids. He had never made it all about her, but instead had always included Hazel.
Someday that man was going to make a great father.
She felt another twinge in her stomach at that thought, but cast it aside. Those were deep thoughts, and she was already three glasses of wine into the evening, so that was as far as she was going to allow wine thoughts to go.
Instead, she hung out and ate and drank and enjoyed her friends for the rest of the evening, until it was time to leave. They headed back to the farm. Hazel took Otis outside to run off some of his pent-up energy.
Loretta had already had enough to drink earlier in the evening, so she decided on ice water.
"What would you like?" she asked Deacon.
"Water's good for me, too."
Hazel came back inside. "Hey, Deacon. You wanna have a movie and popcorn night?"
"Isn't it a little late for you, miss?" her mother asked.
"Aww, just a short movie, Mama?"
"Yeah, how about just a short movie?" Deacon gave her a tilt of his head.
"Fine. I'll make the popcorn."
They ended up watching a comedy. Hazel and Deacon both laughed, tossing popcorn at each other, and Loretta enjoyed watching them more than the movie. After it was over, Loretta sent Hazel to get ready for bed, and she went into the kitchen to put the dishes in the sink.
Deacon went with her.
"Thanks for hanging out with us," Loretta said.
He came up behind her and nuzzled her neck, putting his arms around her. "Like I'd want to be anywhere else."
She turned around to face him, and he kissed her, a kiss that quickly turned passionate.
"I'm ready for bed, Mama."
They broke apart, and Deacon said, "I should go."
Loretta nodded. "I'll see you later."
"Okay." He walked toward the door, but stopped and went over to Hazel, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Night, sweet girl."
"G'night, Deacon."
Loretta went with Hazel into her room and got her tucked into bed.
"Mama?"
"Yes?"
"You like Deacon, right?"
Uh-oh. "Yes, I do."
"I like him, too. But you like him like him, don't you?"
She cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"
"Like a boyfriend?"
"I guess. Is that okay?"
"It's really okay. He's nice to you. And to me. And he shows up when he says he's going to. And when he says he's going to do something, he does it."
Loretta's heart squeezed. She realized that Hazel had been so often disappointed by her father that Deacon was something of a revelation to her. She felt both sad and happy about that. Tom had let Hazel down so much, and she felt so bad about that. But at le
ast Deacon had been there for her.
"Yes, he's a great guy, isn't he?"
"Super great. You should marry him. Then he wouldn't have to keep leaving at night."
Her eyes widened. "Uh, I don't think we're there yet, honey."
Hazel rolled over on her side. "Well, if you get there, I'd be okay with it."
Life was so simple when you were a kid. "Good to know. I love you, Hazel."
"I love you, too, Mama."
She turned out the light and closed the door to Hazel's room, a little shocked from the conversation she'd just had.
She wasn't certain Hazel had been aware of what was going on with Deacon. She'd been careful not to date after the divorce. It had been confusing enough uprooting Hazel and moving her, though she'd taken it all in stride. And with Tom being so wishy-washy about seeing her, that had been tough.
Plus, dating had been the last thing on her mind after the divorce. She'd been fed up with men, and all she'd wanted to do was carve out a life for Hazel and herself. That had been satisfying enough.
But then Deacon had come into their lives, and she hadn't been sure how that would affect Hazel. She'd tried to keep their relationship on the down low. Kids, after all, tended to live in their own bubble with their own activities and interests and didn't pay much attention to what adults had going on.
Apparently her daughter was quite observant and knew exactly what had been happening between Deacon and her.
Of course she would. It wasn't like some guy would start coming around on a regular basis and her child wouldn't notice that. Loretta wasn't hiding her affection for Deacon, nor was he hiding his for her. So it was kind of ridiculous for her to pretend the relationship didn't exist.
But what if things between Deacon and her didn't work out? Hazel would be hurt by that. How was she supposed to handle her relationship with Deacon now that Hazel knew about it?
Parenting. This was hard business.
She had to do some thinking about the future.
Chapter 32
* * *
DEACON WAS JUST finishing up work on Friday when he saw Luke McCormack's police cruiser pull up in front of the building. He swiped the sweat from his brow with the hem of his shirt and closed the bed of his truck.
Luke got out and opened the door for his K9 German shepherd, Boomer. Deacon didn't approach the dog until Luke gave the okay, since the dog wouldn't know if Deacon was friend or suspect until Luke told him.
"Hey, Boomer." Deacon gave the dog several scratches and pets. Boomer's tail wagged furiously.
"What's up, Deacon?" Luke asked.
"Nothing much. Finishing up for the day. What's going on with you?"
"Just doing a walk around. We've had a few reports of suspicious activity on the main streets here."
"Oh yeah? Like what?"
"Not sure exactly. Over the past couple of days people have reported lurkers in the back alleys. Like maybe someone was casing businesses after they closed for the day. Boomer and I are going to take a stroll and check things out. We've got another unit patrolling the south side of the street doing the same."
Deacon nodded, realizing Luke was on duty and this was serious business, not a social call. "I won't keep you, then. Let me know if you find anything."
"Will do. Make sure you're locked up tight in the building."
"I'll do a double check before I leave. And I'll make sure Loretta does the same for the bookstore."
"Thanks. See you later."
As soon as Luke gave Boomer the signal, the dog transformed from friendly pet to K9 police officer on duty. His ears went up and he started sniffing. Deacon lingered long enough to watch Luke and Boomer disappear down the alley, then he went over and knocked on the door to Loretta's bookstore. He knew she was still there, because her car was parked on the side road.
She came over, smiled, and unlocked the door.
"I was just about to leave. We have a date tonight, you know."
"I do. Luke just stopped by. He's doing a search for suspicious lurkers who might be casing businesses, so I want to make sure you're locked up tight before I leave. Let me come inside and do a walk around with you."
"Oh, sure." She let him in, and they went around to all the doors to make sure all the locks were done. Then she set the alarm and locked the front door. He walked her to her car and waited while she got in.
"I already dropped Hazel over at Jane's house, so I'll see you when you get to my place," she said.
He nodded, leaned in, and kissed her. "See you soon."
She laid her hand over his. "Be careful."
His lips curved. "I'll be fine. I don't think anyone's going to be lurking around with Luke and Boomer wandering the alleys."
"You're probably right about that."
Loretta drove off, so he walked back and checked all three stories of the building. When he was satisfied everything was locked up tight, he got in his truck and drove down the street to Sam's flower shop, since it was still open. She was inside, so he chatted with her for a few minutes about what was going on. She hadn't seen or heard anything, but while he was in there, he had Sam put together a bouquet. Then he headed back to his town house, took a shower, and changed clothes.
He pulled the bouquet out of his truck when he got to the farm. Rain was starting to fall, so he hurried to the front door and rang the bell.
"Door's open," he heard Loretta call. He rolled his eyes and walked in.
"I could be a serial killer, you know."
She walked down the hall. "But are you?"
"No. But don't leave your door unlocked. You're isolated out here. Anyone could just come in."
"Okay, Dad. I promise to be more careful."
He laughed.
"And are those flowers for me, or are you selling them door-to-door?"
"Oh. Yeah. They're for you. I realized I've never brought you flowers before."
She took the bouquet he gave her and inhaled. "These are beautiful. Thank you. And you have given me flowers before."
"I have?"
"Yes. You bought me a corsage for prom."
"Oh, right. I forgot about that. And that one didn't count."
"It didn't?"
She made her way to the kitchen, so he followed her.
"No. My mom picked it out. I chose these for you. Though, actually, Sam helped me."
She reached into the cabinet to grab a vase and filled it with water. "She helps me, too, when I buy flowers, so these do count. And they're gorgeous, Deacon. Thank you for thinking of me."
"You're welcome." While she arranged the flowers, he took a moment to admire her legs in the dress she was wearing. He sure liked when she wore dresses. This one was black-and-white polka dots, and she had on some kind of sandals with heels that made her legs look even longer.
She turned around, so he brought his gaze up to her face. "Were you checking me out?"
"I was. You look beautiful. I like the dress."
"Thank you. You look pretty spectacular yourself."
He looked down at his jeans and button-up shirt. "Nothing much to look at here."
She made her way toward him, snaking her palms along his chest. "Oh, I disagree. Plenty to look at. And to touch."
He breathed in deeply as she moved her hands over his chest and shoulders. It had been too long since he'd been alone with her, and, despite his intentions to take her out to dinner first, he couldn't resist a taste of her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her against him, then bent to put his mouth on hers.
When she moaned against his lips, he knew this was what Loretta wanted, too. Her lips were soft, and he slid his tongue inside to lick against hers. His cock went hard, and he cupped her butt to draw her against him.
She pulled her mouth from his. "Do we have dinner reservations somewhere?"
"No."
"Good. Because being naked with you is the only thing I've been thinking about for a week or more."
That was all he needed to hea
r. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her down the hall to her bedroom. He put her down, then turned her around so he could unzip her dress. He pushed her hair to the side and pressed his lips to the back of her neck.
She shivered.
"Such a pretty dress," he said, sweeping his fingers over the spot where the material met her skin.
She looked over her shoulder at him. "It served its purpose."
He drew the straps down, then stopped to kiss her shoulder. She took the dress off and laid it on the chair by the bed.
His jaw nearly dropped as he took in the black bra and panties she had on under that dress. The dress had been sexy enough, but the underwear?
Wow. The cups of the bra barely held in her breasts, and the panties scooped low on her hips, tiny straps holding the material in front. He walked around her to see the back was just a strip of fabric that disappeared between the cheeks of her butt.
Oh, hell yeah.
He smoothed his hand over each butt cheek, then teased the straps of her underwear.
"You need to lay on the bed so I can get up close and personal with this underwear."
While she slid off her heels, she said, "And you need to start shedding some clothes."
"I can do that." He got rid of his clothes, his gaze glued to Loretta as she lay back on the bed.
He climbed onto the bed and hovered over her, taking in the sight of her beautiful body. The way her hips curved, the beauty of her thighs, the strength of her calves, and the swells of her breasts. He started at her ankles and cupped her legs as he mapped his way up her body, feeling the need to touch every inch of her skin, listening to the sound of her breathing as he did.
When he skimmed her hips and made his way to her stomach, he touched every inch there, including the silvery lines that stretched across her skin.
"Ugh. Stretch marks," she said.
He looked up at her as he rested his hand on her lower belly. "You grew a baby in here. Nothing sexier than that."
She shuddered in a deep breath, then let it out as he moved up to her rib cage, then teased his fingers over that damn sexy bra, brushing his fingertips over her nipples. He pulled the fabric down, releasing one of the buds so he could put his mouth on her.
Her nipple was soft as he took it between the roof of his mouth and his tongue and sucked. The bud hardened, and Loretta arched upward. He undid the front clasp and released her breasts so he could tease her nipples and play with her breasts.