brides for brothers 02 - cowboy daddy (14 page)

“Poor guy,” Brett muttered with an exaggerated shudder.

“You two are too hard on Chloe. It must’ve been difficult to move into this male bastion,” Lavinia said.

Brett burst into laughter. “Too hard on Chloe? That’s amusing, Lavinia. That’s like saying one of Pete’s bulls is just mischievous.”

Though Lavinia smiled, tears filled her eyes as she said, “I think it may be hard for both Megan and Janie. You will be kind to Janie, won’t you?”

While both Jake and Brett rushed to assure Lavinia that Janie would be treated well, Hank moved over and put his arm around his wife. “Don’t worry, boys. Lavinia knows you’ll be good to our Janie. She’s just experiencing post-wedding blues. Everything’s happened so fast, she’s just realized Janie won’t be going home with us.”

Hank pulled Lavinia up from the couch. “Time for us to go home, sweetheart. At least Janie’s close, and you can come see her whenever you want.”

“Yes, of course. Sorry, Jake, Brett. We’ll—we’ll call tomorrow. Thanks for all your work, Red.”

“Happy to do it, Lavinia.”

After the Dawsons had driven away, Brett looked at the other two men. “I’m glad Hank knew what to do when Lavinia started crying. I sure didn’t.”

“Well, I hope you paid attention,” Jake warned him, “because the Randalls include two ladies now. And it’s up to us to keep them happy.”

Brett looked up the stairs. “Naw, Jake. It’s up to Pete and Chad to keep them happy. Speaking of which, I hope you remembered to have that discussion with them about the birds and the bees.”

Chapter Ten

The door was open to their bedroom when Pete reached it with Janie in his arms. A good thing, he decided, since he thought Janie had gone to sleep on the way up the stairs.

He’d kept her at their reception too long, and he felt guilty because of it. She’d been tired an hour ago. But he’d loved holding her against him, kissing her to everyone’s applause.

And he’d known when they came upstairs she would withdraw.

Her eyes fluttered open as he laid her down on the large bed. “Pete?”

“Hi, honey. We’re home.” His grin invited her to find the humor.

She rose up and looked around her, her bright blue eyes wide as they lit on several vases full of flowers.

“Megan and B.J. brought in the flowers. They said it made the room look more romantic.” He hadn’t told them the only thing the room needed was Janie for him to think it was romantic. “They also left the negligee as a gift.”

Janie’s eyes widened even farther as she looked over her shoulder to the other side of the bed. There, spread out in all its glory, was a silvery silk negligee, in material that would only cast a shadow over the wearer’s charms.

“I—I can’t wear that.”

“Good.”

“You don’t like it?” she demanded, sitting straighter.

“Don’t like it? Am I alive? Honey, any man would like to see his woman wearing something like that, especially if she looks like you.” He paused, but she continued to stare at him, waiting for an explanation. “Unless he promised not to make love to her.”

She dropped her gaze. “Oh.”

“You haven’t changed your mind, have you?”

His heart stopped beating while she considered her answer.

Then she whispered, “No.”

“That’s what I figured. So I hope you brought something a little less, uh, maybe I should say a little more…unsexy.”

With a weary smile, she stood. “I did. Are—are my bags here?”

He pointed them out beside the closet door. “Just get out what you need tonight. You can unpack tomorrow, after you’ve rested. I’m going down for a late-night snack while you get ready for bed.” The relief on her face didn’t make him feel good, but he tried to ignore his disappointment. “Don’t wait up for me.”

She nodded, avoiding his gaze.

Pete stepped out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him. Then he collapsed against it and breathed deeply.

Man, keeping his hands off Janie was going to be tough. Especially when she slept in his bed. He’d better stay gone until she’d fallen asleep. With a sigh, he loosened his tie, took off his coat to hang it on the doorknob, shoved his hands in his pants pockets and strolled to the stairs.

Hearing voices still in the living room, he came to an abrupt halt. Hell, he’d completely forgotten that everyone else hadn’t gone to bed already. Now what was he going to do?

Every bedroom in the house was filled with guests spending the night. His old bedroom was off-limits. Their second room was filled with Great-Aunt Henrietta.

As he stood there thinking, he heard someone near the bottom of the stairs say, “I think we’ll go on up to bed, now, Jake. We’re too old for such late-night shenanigans.”

Pete didn’t know who was speaking, and it didn’t matter. He didn’t want
anyone
to see him lingering in the hall on his wedding night. He sprinted back to his bedroom door. Grabbing his jacket, he opened the door, slipped in and quietly shut it behind him.

Then he turned around in time to discover Janie coming out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel. A very brief towel.

“Pete!” she gasped.

“Janie!” he yelped at the same time.

She backed toward the bathroom, clasping the towel tightly around her. “I thought you wouldn’t be back yet.”

“I wasn’t—I didn’t mean to—I couldn’t get to the kitchen without everyone downstairs seeing me. I didn’t want them to know—”

She interrupted him, her cheeks red. “I’m through in the bathroom if you need it. My pajamas are in here.”

He edged his way past, avoiding touching her, but he couldn’t keep his gaze from tracing every inch of her pale flesh. He was panting by the time he closed the door behind him.

Deciding a shower was in order, he turned on the water, all cold, and stripped down. When he finally dried off a few minutes later, he felt a little more in control. As long as the door was closed.

When he finally got up the nerve to open the bathroom door, he discovered only a small lamp burning on his side of the big bed. Janie was curled into a tight little ball on the other side, almost falling off the edge.

“Janie?” he whispered.

No answer. Could she already be asleep? It would make life easier for him if she was. He crept over to gaze down at her beautiful face, pale with exhaustion but relaxed in sleep.

He reached down to caress her cheek, longing filling him. The desire to hold her against him, to protect her, to love her, filled him. Groaning, he stepped back and rounded the bed. Lifting the cover, he got in and pulled the blankets to his chin.

After several minutes of trying to ignore Janie’s presence, he made a decision.

He’d promised not to make love to her. But he hadn’t promised not to hold her. Turning, he reached out and slid her next to him. Though he feared she would awaken, he was delighted when she cuddled against him, her eyes closed.

With a sigh, he shut his eyes, too. He was tired. But he loved the feel of her against him. And, in spite of his promise, he was experiencing something new on his wedding night. He would wake up in the morning next to Janie.

Not a bad way to start the day.

J
ANIE WOKE
the next morning slowly.
Must’ve turned off the alarm.
She struggled to open her eyes. When she did finally manage that simple task, she stared around her, the events of the past day slowly reinstating themselves.

She was pregnant.

She was married.

She’d shared the bed with Pete.

At that thought, her head whipped around to be sure she was alone. During their affair, they’d never spent an entire night together.

With a mixture of disappointment and relief, she discovered Pete was nowhere to be seen. She relaxed against the pillow…until she realized her pillow was in the middle of the bed. She distinctly recalled clutching the side of the bed last night.

The indentation in the pillow next to hers showed Pete hadn’t sought the far reaches of the big bed, either. Had they spent the night together wrapped in each other’s arms…and she’d missed it?

She groaned and swung back the covers. No use thinking about such a thing. It couldn’t happen again. As soon as the other room was abandoned, she’d move in. Discreetly, of course, as she’d promised Pete, but she couldn’t risk the temptation of sleeping with him again.

Fortunately her stomach seemed settled this morning. She set about getting ready to face the world, including her new family.

When she started down the stairs, the nervous tension in her stomach surprised her. She’d known the Randalls all her life. But things were different this morning.

Red stood by the sink and Megan sat at the table, working on a sketch, when Janie entered the kitchen. “Good morning.”

Megan smiled and Red rushed to her side to take her arm as if she were unstable. “Here, Janie, come sit down,” he urged.

She looked at him in surprise.

Megan chuckled. “You didn’t know you’d suddenly become an invalid, did you?”

“Now, Megan, don’t go talkin’ that way,” Red ordered. “We’re just tryin’ to be careful.”

“About what?” Janie asked, still puzzled.

“Why, about you and the babies. Pete warned us all this morning.”

“Pete warned you about what?” Janie asked.

They’d reached the table, and Janie sat down across from Megan as she asked her question. Red didn’t answer, because he was hurrying across the room to the stove.

“Now, Janie, do you want eggs and bacon with flapjacks, or—?”

“Red, it’s ten o’clock. Lunch is in two hours. All I need is a piece of toast, a cup of coffee and, I suppose, a glass of milk.”

“But Pete said—”

“Yes, what exactly did Pete say?” she demanded, irritation building in her.

“That we were to take care of you,” Megan explained. “He laid down the law to all of us that you weren’t to lift a finger, and we were to feed you every time your mouth opened.” Her grin told Janie she would understand her reaction.

Janie shook her head, a rueful smile on her face. “Red, just toast, coffee and milk.”

“Are you sure you should have coffee? I read—”

“One cup won’t hurt me.”

“But Pete—”

Janie got up from the table and crossed to the coffeepot, reaching for the mugs stored just above it.

“I coulda done that, Janie,” Red insisted.

On the way back to the table, she kissed his cheek. “I know, Red, but I’m not an invalid, in spite of Pete’s warnings. But I will let you fix me some toast, just this once.”

Though Red grumbled under his breath, he set about fixing her toast, and Janie sat back down across from Megan.

“I’m going to have problems here, aren’t I?”

“Only if you want to do anything except breathe,” Megan agreed. “The Randall men aren’t used to having women around, much less a pregnant one. Pete envisions keeping you seated on a satin pillow, being waited on hand and foot, until the babies are born.”

“I’d go out of my mind.”

Megan nodded in sympathy.

Red brought over the toast and a glass of milk before refilling his own coffee cup and joining them at the table. “Anything else I can get for you? Megan, you need more coffee?”

“No, Red, thanks. Besides, I’m not pregnant. I can get my own coffee.” Megan’s grin took the sting out of her words.

“As far as I know, being pregnant hasn’t impaired my legs, either,” Janie protested.

“Now, Janie, don’t get all hot and bothered. Pete just wants to take care of you because of…well, past history,” Red said, and then looked alarmed.

“I suppose he warned you not to talk about my mother’s problems…or his mother’s? Does he think I don’t know?” Janie stared at the other two in disgust.

“He doesn’t want you to dwell on bad things,” Megan assured her.

Again Janie rolled her eyes. “I’m surprised he even let me out of bed.”

“Oh!” Red jumped up as if something had bitten him. “I forgot. He left you a note in case you got up before he got back.” He hurried across the kitchen to the desk where he stored everything from recipes to receipts. He returned to hand Janie a folded piece of paper.

Prop your feet up and take it easy. Red will get you whatever you want.

Pete

Janie folded the paper and put it in her jeans pocket. Not exactly romantic, but she hadn’t had too many notes from Pete. Unconsciously she sighed after sipping her coffee.

“Bad news?” Megan asked.

“No. Just orders to do nothing.”

“You should give yourself time to adjust. You’ve had several big changes in your life recently.”

“And that’s exactly the reason I need something to keep me from going crazy. I’ve never sat around the house my entire life.”

“You could watch some movies,” Red suggested, “or read. The boys have lots of books around.”

“Thanks, Red, but I’m talking about more than just today. I’m going to be pregnant for the next seven months. If all I do is sit around, I’ll be as big as a house.”

With a grin, Red said, “I reckon you’ll get big as a house no matter what you do.”

“Thanks for that depressing thought,” she returned, but she was smiling.

“Want to walk down to the horse barn with me?” Megan suggested. “I love to check on the babies.”

“Great! I haven’t seen the latest foals. I’ll go get my coat.”

“I’ll get it for you,” Red offered, leaping to his feet.

Janie, already standing, stared at him. “Don’t be ridiculous, Red. I haven’t broken a leg.” Then she rushed out the kitchen door.

“Tell that to Pete,” Megan suggested, sharing a wry grin with Red.

N
ORMALLY
P
ETE ENJOYED
his time in the saddle, especially on a day like today, when, in spite of the cold, the sun shone and the wind was still. But today, all he could think about was Janie.

Had she gotten up yet? He’d debated staying in bed, holding her until she opened her eyes. Then he’d realized that might not be such a good idea. She might feel he hadn’t stuck to his part of the bargain. Or that he was trying to tempt her into dissolving that agreement.