Winter's Embrace (14 page)

“Henry?”

“It’s me.”

His sandy hair and gentle eyes
were appealing. He didn’t seem to have any dark secrets hidden in them. It was
refreshing to know that what you saw is what you got, but he wasn’t Stone.
“What are you doing here?”

“I was out in the barn
checking on a few of the horses and Stone asked me to light the fire for you
before I left. I guess he forgot to tell you.”

“Guess so. Listen I’m sorry I
had to cancel on you.”

“I’m sorry too, but I guess it
would have been courting disaster. I’m not giving up on us. I have almost
enough saved to buy a world class bull and Stone offered me a great deal on
some cattle. I guess what I’m trying to say is I won’t be working for Stone
forever and it looks to me as though you plan on being here for a while,
helping raise Rachael and all.
Friends for now?”

“Of
course, Henry.
We’re friends but I can’t make any promises as
far as waiting goes.”

“Stone?”

“No, yes, I don’t know. I’ve
loved him for so long that it’s become a habit, one I can’t seem to break. We
have our issues and I don’t see how they can be resolved but at the same time,
I wish they were resolved. None of this makes sense.” She clenched her hands
into fists. “I do think you’re a great guy.”

Henry walked over, took her
hand and unclenched it. “It’s all good,
Winter
. I know
all about the heart and head wanting different things. You do what’s best for
you. I’m here if you need me.” He bent and kissed her on the cheek. He gave her
hand a quick squeeze, put on his Stetson, and pulled up his collar against the
wind as he left.

Winter locked the door after
him. Shrugging off her winter coat, hat, and boots, she put them all in front
of the fire to dry. Henry was right, there was no hurry and hopefully she’d get
her feelings sorted out.

The fire was a nice idea and
it was thoughtful of Stone to think of it, but why did he ask Henry to light
it? Shaking her head, she walked up the stairs and turned into her bedroom. She
started to get undressed when the phone rang. She picked it up and did not even
get a chance to say hello.

“Damn it woman don’t you know
enough to pull the curtains closed before you take your clothes off? It’s quite
a show.”

She grabbed her robe, and put
it on wondering if anyone else had watched her. Damn, he must think her stupid.

“Are you there?”

He could see she was still
there. She’d just brazen it out. There was no way she was giving him the
satisfaction of being right. “Why, Stone, you’re my first caller. Henry was
here lighting a fire for me. He said you sent him.”

“I figured since you had a
date and all.”

“You know I canceled it.”

“I thought he’d be gone before
you got there. He didn’t stay long.”

“You’ve been spying on me?”

“Well, um, just for the sake
of your safety, I wouldn’t call it spying.”

“I see.”

There was silence. “Well just
close the curtains.”

“No problem. I’ll do it now.”
She walked to the window, waved, and pulled the curtains closed. “Better?”

“Good night!”

Hanging up, she went to the
window and peeked outside once more, hoping that no one else had seen her.
Relief washed over her when she didn’t see Henry or anyone else out in the
snow.

When she finally got ready for
bed, she fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

A loud noise woke her. She lay
there for a moment then realized someone was banging on her front door. Winter
quickly got out of bed, grabbed her robe and put it on while she ran down the
stairs. “Hold on, I’m coming!”

She opened the door and caught
Stone in mid knock. “What’s going on?”

“Rachael is crying for you.”

“Is she sick?”

“I don’t think so, oh hell, I
don’t know.” The worry on his face was all she needed.

“Let me get dressed.”

Stone grabbed her up in his
arms. “No time. I left her with Snoopy.”

There was no choice but to
wrap her arms around him. “Why didn’t you just call?”

“She was crying hysterically
and I didn’t even think.”

“Well hurry up, I have a
daughter to comfort.”

The relief on his face gave
her pause. Did he think for a second that she wouldn’t come?

Stone carried her across the
yard, into the house, and, despite her protests to let go, carried her
upstairs. Winter wished her stomach didn’t coil in want. It was hard to be so
near Stone and not have him.

She jarred out of her musing
as soon as she saw Rachael’s tear ravaged face. Stone set her down, and she
immediately took Rachael into her arms. The front of her little girl’s
nightgown was soaked with tears.

“Oh, sweetie, what has you so
upset?” They both sat on the floor.

“You left me.”

It was a stab to
Winter’s
chest. “I was just across the way. Remember I said
I would leave the kitchen light on?”

“I want you here. Mommies stay
with their babies.”

Taking a deep breath,
Winter
closed her eyes. She wasn’t sure what to say.

“I want you to stay here
tonight.”

Her red eyes swayed
Winter
.
“Of course.
Let me get you
into a dry nightgown and I’ll sit right next to you until you fall back to
sleep.”

Rachael crossed her arms, and
shook her head. “I want you to stay with me.”

“I guess I could stay in my
old room.”

“Mommy, I want you with me.”
Tears ran down her little face.

“All right, Ray. I’ll stay in
your room.”

Rachael shook her head. “No, I
want to sleep in Daddy’s bed like when we take naps together.”

Winter quickly looked at Stone
who had the nerve to smile at her.

“Rachael I don’t sleep with
your daddy. Let’s—”

“No!”

Winter sighed. She’d seen that
stubborn look on Rachael’s face before. In fact, Stone made a similar face when
he wasn’t going to back down. “Rachael, I can’t give in to you all the time.
I’m going to have to say no.”

Winter glanced at Stone hoping
for some back up but he just grinned wider. He was enjoying himself way too
much. “Perhaps Daddy can sleep elsewhere. He never takes naps with us.” She
paused and looked at Stone. His grin wasn’t so big anymore. In fact, he was
frowning and she had to bite her bottom lip to keep from laughing.

“Please, Mama?”

“Just
this once, Ray.
Let’s get you into dry jammies, and then you and
I can both sleep with Daddy.”

Rachael smiled and jumped out
of bed. She ran to her dresser and pulled out a pink nightgown. “Ready, let’s
go!”

Winter watched her in
amazement. She wished she could go from misery to happiness as fast. Taking
Rachael’s hand, she started to lead her out of the bedroom.

“Come on, Daddy. Mommy and I
are having a
slumper
in your bed.”

“Slumber,” he corrected.

Rachael tilted her head.
“Huh?”

Stone took a deep breath.
“Well, let’s all get ready to hit the hay.”

“Hit the hay? Daddy, you don’t
have a hay bed.”

Winter and Stone exchanged
amused looks, and she felt it in her heart. Darn him, she liked it better when
he annoyed her. She didn’t have to deal with heart-smiling emotions while being
annoyed.

* * * *

Stone couldn’t sleep. He had a
king-sized bed, but for some reason it felt small. Rachael squirmed while she
slept and somehow, she turned her body 180 degrees so that her feet were on her
pillow, near his face. He’d been kicked twice already. He knew she would
somehow move full circle because she always had her head on her pillow each
morning.

The other reason for his
insomnia was adorned in pink lace. His expression when she took off her robe
must have been something because
Winter
had actually
laughed and told him to close his mouth.
Pink, luscious, hip
hugging, body revealing pink.
Damn, it was winter in Montana. Where were
her granny flannels? He needed to give her some money to buy some.

Stone turned again, facing the
window. Nothing seemed to help. He wished he could scoop Rachael up and put her
in her own bed. He sighed.

He turned over again and found
Winter
staring at him. He wondered what she was
thinking.

“Can’t sleep?” she whispered.

“No,
you?”

Winter shook her head.

The moonlight allowed him to
see her beautiful, blonde hair and his desire to bury his face in it grew.
“You’re beautiful.”

Winter smiled. “You’re full of
it.”

“It’s nice to see you smile.”

Slowly, her smile turned sad.
“There’s been a lot going on lately with the move and all.”

“I talked to Clare, she won’t
be calling back.”

“That’s nice.”

Stoned frowned. “I’m missing
something. You’re going to have to tell me why you can’t seem to stay in the
same room with me anymore.”

“We are in the same room.”
Winter turned and he was left staring at her back covered in pink.

She was in his bed, but there
might as well have been an ocean between them.

Chapter Twelve

Winter slipped out of bed,
trying to be quiet. The sun was about to rise, and she hadn’t slept at all.
Putting her robe on, she crept out of the room and bemoaned the fact that she
didn’t have her coat or boots.

When she climbed down the
stairs, she spotted a quilt on the couch. She wrapped it around her and decided
to borrow Stone’s boots rather than brave the cold on her bare feet. The boots
were so big it was ridiculous, but they did the trick. The minute she stepped
outside, the cold wind hit her full force. Would she ever get used to such
harsh winters?

Halfway to her door she saw
Henry walking toward the barn. He waved in greeting and hurried toward her.
“Here let me help.” He scooped her up into his brawny arms and carried her to
her front door. He held her as though she was precious cargo and it made her
smile.

“Thank you, Henry, you’re
sweet.”

The corners of his mouth
titled up. “Thanks. Don’t forget to save a dance for me at the Winter
Wonderland.”

Surprised, she nodded. “I
will.”

Finally, walking into her
house, she breathed a sigh of relief. It had been a torturous night, trying to
sleep in the same bed as Stone. Somehow, she’d have to make sure it didn’t
happen again. He looked too sexy in his sleep with his mussed brown hair and
lopsided grin.

She quickly took a shower and
got ready to head back. Rachael had gotten her way this time, but it would have
to stop or it would become a real problem.

When she returned to the other
house, she found Stone standing in the kitchen his arms crossed in front of
him.
“Must be nice to have a friend like Henry.
A friend that picks you up and carries you.”

“He was just being a gentleman
and you’re jumping to conclusions.”

“Am I? I was under the
impression that you weren’t interested in Henry.” Somehow, his intense stare
made her feel guilty. Why did relationships have to be so difficult?

Stone walked to the door and
grabbed his winter clothes. “You know there are friends and there are
friends
. What category is Henry?” He
raised his hand shoulder height. “Wait, don’t answer. I already know.”

The sound of the door slamming
echoed through the house. Snoopy gave her a sad look and went up the stairs.

Why did everything always get
so confused? She couldn’t play his,
he
loves me, he loves me not,
bull anymore. Try as she might to deny it, her
heart was fully invested in that man. That stupid, stubborn, lying man she
loved. How? How could she love him? She felt as though time flew backwards and
she was a teenager again. She hadn’t changed at all. She was still stupidly in
love with Stone.

“Damn it.”

“Mommy, that’s a bad word.”

Winter spun around. Rachael
looked as though she was ready to scold her again. Winter reached out and
gathered Rachael to her. She still felt snuggly warm from bed. “I’m sorry, Ray.
You are right, Mommy shouldn’t say bad words.”

“Daddy says all types of bad
words.”

Winter kissed the top of her
head and smoothed down her hair. “Is that so?”

Rachael smiled up at her. “I
know them all and I can tell you if you want.”

Winter laughed. “I don’t think
I want to know. How about some French toast this morning?”

Rachael didn’t
answer,
she just ran to the table and sat down.

“I’ll take that as a yes?”

Rachael nodded eagerly.

Breakfast was made in no time
and they sat at the table eating and laughing together. It was a balm to
Winter’s
heart. Rachael’s love was a gift and
Winter
intended to enjoy every moment of it.

She cringed when she heard the
front door open and she turned away as soon as she saw the sour expression on
Stone’s face.

“Invite any friends over?” his
voice was laced with sarcasm.

Something wilted inside her.
Enough was enough but she wasn’t going to take his bait and she was not going
to fight in front of her daughter. “No, believe it or not you are my only
friend and it hurts when your best friend doesn’t believe you.”

His eyes softened as he stared
at her. “Are you sure?”

Nodding she felt something
profound pass between them and watched as he visibly relaxed.

“Daddy, guess what?”

Stone smiled. “What?”

“Mommy said dawn. No, I mean
she said damn. Yep, it was damn,” Rachael told him, her eyes wide.

It was obvious Stone was
biting his lip to keep from chuckling. He took off his hat and slapped it
against his thigh. He glanced at
Winter
then looked
away. Finally, he turned toward Rachael. “What do you think we should do?
A time out?”

Rachael frowned and shook her
head.

“Hmmm,
maybe no dessert tonight?”

Rachael shook her head and
rolled her eyes. “Daddy, you need to tell her that she was a bad girl. Then you
kiss and make up.”

Winter enjoyed the exchange
between father and daughter up until the kiss. “I’m really, really sorry and I
shouldn’t have said it. No kiss needed.”

She got up from the table and
began to put the dishes in the sink. Stone grabbed her around the waist from
behind, startling her. His hands were cold as they snaked around the front of
her and she shivered. His breath was hot on the back of her neck and when he
kissed it, she could feel his stubble. “I’m not sure we should jump into
kissing yet.”

“Kisses are always needed,” he
whispered in her ear.

Winter elbowed him in his
stomach and the resulting grunt made her laugh. “You always were a bit
delusional.”

Stone released her and she
continued with the dishes.

“What did Mommy mean? Can you
do magic tricks with your
lusions
?”

“No, pumpkin, I’m not sure
what she means. Do you want to go out to the barn? Colt is there and he brought
us a colt to take care of. His place is full.”

Winter turned around. “Why?
Does he have too many horses?”

“Colt takes in rescue horses.
They are horses that have been neglected or abused. He seems to have a special
way with them. Put your coat on and come see.”

She couldn’t turn down his
invitation. She could have just told herself it was because she wanted to see
the horse, but she knew she foolishly wanted to spend more time with Stone.

* * * *

Stone watched his two girls
tromping through the snow on their way to the barn. The intense pleasure on
Rachael’s face made his heart melt and it was all due to
Winter’s
nurturing. He was her best friend. He knew he wore a shit-
eatin
’
grin but he couldn’t help it. He’d known the whole time she’d eventually
realize he was her man.

 
“Daddy, where is the baby?” Rachael sounded
breathless.

“Come here, and get warm.” He
encased her in a bear hug. “Now we have to walk up nice and slow. Don’t make
any loud noises. He’s had a hard time of things.”

“What happened?” Winter asked
as they slowly made their way further into the barn toward a metal-gated pen.

“His mother died shortly after
his birth. The owner didn’t remove the dead horse or feed the foal.” Stone put
Rachael down and the three of them stared at the horse.

“What type of horse is he?”
Winter asked.

“He’s an Appaloosa. See how
he’s white with dark spots?”

Winter smiled at him. “Like
freckles.”

“Exactly, like freckles or
leopard spots.”

Rachael craned her neck and
pulled at the bottom of Stone’s blue jacket. “Do we get to keep him?”

“No,
honey.
We just take care of him and get him better so he can
be adopted.”

Rachael nodded. “I’m ‘
dopting
him. His name is Spot.”

Winter smiled at him. She was
probably enjoying the fact that he had to say no, especially after last night.

She knelt down and kissed
Rachael on the cheek. “You know that’s not how it works. Let’s get him healthy
and see what Colt has to say. This horse may already belong to someone else.”

Rachael eyed her,
then
nodded. “I want to help Spot.”

Winter’s lips twitched. “As
long as you realize that Spot isn’t ours.”

“Okay, Mommy. Can I ride him?”

Winter laughed. “He’s too
little yet.”

Rachael frowned. “Oh, well
when?”

Stone reached for a bottle of
milk with a nipple attached. “As soon as we get him eating he’ll start to grow.
Trouble is
,
he doesn’t want to eat.”

“Spot,” Rachael called,
putting her hand into the gate.

Stone was about to grab her
hand when the colt came over sniffed it and bumped his head against it. “Well
look at that. He wouldn’t let me touch him.”

“That’s because he knows I’m
gonna
‘
dopt
him.”

Stone watched
Winter’s
lips twitch again. He’d misread her earlier. She
wasn’t enjoying his discomfort. By the look in her eyes, he’d guess she was
enjoying being a family. At least he hoped so.

Winter touched his arm. “Here,
give me the bottle.”

Stone handed it over. He
didn’t have much confidence in her success after what he’d gone through with
this colt, but he would let her try.

“Oh Spot, you are such a
pretty boy,”
Winter
crooned. She got on her knees and
slowly approached him.

Stone was amazed when the colt
made a beeline for her and the bottle. Before he knew it, half the bottle was
gone. “Well I’ll be dam—darned. Looks like you missed your calling, darling.
You should have had babies…” He’d done it again. He was the reason she never
had children. Every time he opened his mouth he said the wrong thing. He didn’t
want to lose his best friend status. The Winter Wonderland was only two days
away and at this rate, there would be a dozen other men waiting to sweep her
off her feet.

Winter closed her eyes, and
swallowed hard. She acknowledged his words with a slight nod and continued to
feed the colt.

“Spot loves you, Mommy, just
like me and Daddy do.”

Winter gave her a weak smile,
glanced at Stone, then turned away, but not before he saw the sheen of tears in
her eyes.

* * * *

Winter couldn’t remember ever
being so frazzled, annoyed and excited all at the same time. Stone was
underfoot while Rachael chattered nonstop. Adding to all the “fun”
Colt stopped by to make sure she was
still saving a dance for him and Henry stopped her on her way back to her house
to issue a reminder as well. It was going to be an interesting evening.

Thank God for her cruise
clothes,
which gave her something appropriate to wear.
She had on a gold beaded gown and short shrug jacket with shoes and a purse to
match. She’d gotten her share of compliments when she’d worn it before and
today she needed all the confidence she could gather. She hoped that the
townspeople accepted her.

It had been so heart wrenching
and humiliating when her own hometown practically shunned her. They were people
she’d known all her life and it still boggled her mind how, when she needed
them the most they cast her away. She’d done plenty of good for that town, but
her good deeds meant nothing in the end. How people could be so cruel she would
never know.

Well, there was no help for it
now. She’d hold her head up high and hope that if there were whispers about
her, they weren’t loud enough for her to hear. She could imagine them already, criticizing
her for living in Stone’s house and being shocked when she danced with a few
other men. What would they say when Rachael called her Mommy?

Her pep talk about holding her
head high faded rather quickly the more she thought about it. Maybe she should
tell Stone she was sick or something.

“I haven’t seen that dress
before have I?” Stone entered her house carrying Rachael. He surveyed her up
and down and excitement grew in the pit of her stomach.

“No, you haven’t seen this one
before.”

His eyes glowed “You look
beautiful, so beautiful.”

“Mommy!
You
look like a princess.”

Winter stopped staring at
Stone and focused on Rachael. “You look like a princess, too.”

“Are we ready to go?” Stone
asked.