To Protect His Own. Brenda Mott
Читать онлайн книгу.
his feet as Hallie reappeared clutching Spike in her arms. Her smile obviously did Alex’s heart good, by the look in his eyes.
“Boy, your dog sure can run. I only caught him because he’d stopped to try to dig that rabbit out of its burrow.”
Caitlin rolled her eyes, hoping it would help hide her emotions. That Hallie wouldn’t be able to see her empathy. “That’s a Jack Russell for you. They’ll go to ground after a rabbit or just about anything else they see.”
“That’s what kind of dog he is?” Hallie asked. “I thought he was a mutt.”
Caitlin laughed. “He is. But he’s a purebred mutt. They’re a pretty popular breed out on the show circuit. Those and Welsh Corgis.”
“What’s a Welsh Corgi?” Hallie asked.
Caitlin laughed again, enjoying the girl’s curiosity. She proceeded to describe the breed.
“Hey, cupcake,” Alex said, tweaking his daughter’s ponytail. “If you’re going to pester Caitlin with a million questions, then the least we can do is offer to feed her.” He looked her way. “Your horse has had his breakfast. Have you had yours?”
“No,” she admitted reluctantly. The last thing she wanted was to go out to breakfast. Especially with Alex, with his dark eyes and cowboy drawl.
“Neither have we. Why don’t you come over and eat with us? I was about to whip up a batch of scratch pancakes anyway. You can even bring Spike.” He gave the dog’s head a pat.
Caitlin raised her eyebrows. “You make your pancakes from scratch?”
His deep chuckle sent shivers down her back and arms. “What, you don’t think a man is capable?”
“No. I mean, yes, I’m sure you’re capable. It’s just that…” Just that she’d mostly eaten out in restaurants or had her meals prepared by the family’s chef. How pretentious would that sound? She shrugged and laughed. “I’m not much of a cook myself, so actually that would be nice.” How could she say no? Especially with the way Hallie was looking at her, as though she walked on water.
Her heart went out to the girl. She’d suffered such a horrible trauma. Come close to being killed herself. It was something, regretfully, they had in common.
“Good,” Alex said. “Then it’s settled. Let’s go.” He slipped his arm around Hallie’s shoulder and began to walk back toward their house.
At least now Caitlin knew the answer to the question at the back of her mind. Alex wasn’t married.
As he waited for her to catch up, Caitlin had a nice view of his snug-fitting Wranglers.
Maybe that fact wasn’t such a good thing after all.
CHAPTER FOUR
PANCAKES. Alex made them every Saturday, yet he couldn’t remember having enjoyed them so much in a long while. He wondered if his pleasure had anything to do with watching Caitlin’s face as she closed her eyes and savored a bite of maple syrup-covered, made-from-scratch hotcake.
“Mmm, these are delicious.” She opened her eyes and looked at him, smiling. “I don’t normally eat such a heavy breakfast, but this is wonderful.” She helped herself to a fourth slice of bacon. “Thanks for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Dad cooks pancakes all the time,” Hallie said, heaping another serving onto her plate. “I love them.”
“You’d better slow down,” Alex said with a chuckle. “Or we’ll have to roll you out the door.”
Hallie gave him a mock grimace, swallowing a mouthful. “How many horses do you own, Caitlin?”
“Foxwood Farms has about thirty or forty head at any given time, depending on how many foals we’ve got. But personally, I’ve got three. Silver Fox is my grand prix show jumper, then I’ve got Black Knight—my hunter—and my retired gymkhana gelding, Red Fire. He was my first, and he’s a quarter horse/Thoroughbred cross.”
Hallie’s brows lifted. “You used to do gymkhana?”
“Uh-huh. Barrel racing, pole bending, scurry jump. It was the scurry jump event that gave me the bug to want to become a show jumper. That and watching those classy jumpers at the Denver National Western Stock Show.”
Hallie’s eyes widened even more. “Dad used to take me to the stock show every year. I love watching the jumpers. And the barrel racers.” Her animation made Alex’s heart soar. “I want to barrel race soooo bad. Dad says he’ll buy me a horse, now that we live in the country. But first we have to fix up the barn.”
“Really?” Caitlin paused. “If you’re serious, Alex, why don’t you bring Hallie out to Foxwood Farms to look at what we have for sale.”
“Actually, your brother already suggested that. But I’m not so sure a Foxwood Thoroughbred’s in my budget.” He smiled, his face warm.
Caitlin’s chuckle filled him with a pleasant heat. “You might be surprised. Not everything on the place is six figures, or even five.”
“Thank goodness,” Alex said. “I’d hate to have to take out a second mortgage to afford a horse for my kid.”
“Dad makes good money,” Hallie spoke up proudly.
“Hallie!”
“Well, you do.” She shrugged unapologetically.
“What do you do for a living?” Caitlin asked, her curiosity more obvious than her tone of voice let on.
For some reason that pleased him. “I design video games.”
“Not violent ones,” Hallie said.
Her words hurt. “I used to,” he said quietly. “But not anymore.” He exchanged a pointed look with Caitlin.
“Yeah, now he just designs boring games rated E for everyone,” Hallie said. “But he still makes good money.”
Not as much as he’d made in Denver, now that he worked out of his house. But the money didn’t matter. His daughter’s happiness and safety were all he cared about.
“Good enough to buy a horse?” Caitlin teased.
“Yeah, I think so.” He grinned, cutting into another pancake.
“So when can we go look at them?” Hallie practically jumped up and down in her chair.
Suddenly, Caitlin’s smile faded, and Alex felt her playful banter wilt like a deflated balloon. “I’ll call Dillon and make arrangements for you to see the horses.”
Hallie frowned. “Why can’t you take us?”
“Hallie,” Alex reprimanded, “don’t be rude.”
“It’s okay,” Caitlin said, looking at Hallie. “I’m not sure I’m up to showing you around. Your dad can bring you out to the ranch this afternoon though, and we’ll see. How does that sound?”
“Cool!” Hallie’s face immediately brightened.
Caitlin glanced at her watch. “Speaking of which, I’d better head home. Mom is going to pick me up in a half hour.” She grimaced. “I can’t drive yet.”
“I see.” Alex could only imagine how her limitations must frustrate her. “What time would you like me to bring Hallie out?”
“How does one o’clock sound?” Caitlin reached for the pen in the center of the table near the salt and pepper shakers. “If you’ve got a piece of paper handy, I’ll give you directions. It’s easy to find—about three miles from here.”
“If it’s that big ol’ place with the wrought iron gates and white rail fences, I already know where it is.”