Rancher Daddy. Lois Richer
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morning a child sat on the steps that led to the front door.
A horn sounded behind her, a short beep, just enough to let her know someone didn’t appreciate her pausing in the middle of the street. Holly identified the rusty brown half-ton truck in her rearview mirror and smiled. Luc Cramer, aka Mr. Just In Time.
Luc had come to her rescue many times but especially during her father’s illness and after his death three months ago. He’d continued as Holly’s ranch manager leaving her free to focus on her work as the community’s nurse practitioner which often meant she helped pregnant moms deliver healthy newborns. A side benefit of that was that she got to work with moms-to-be at Family Ties.
Holly mostly accepted what Luc suggested in regard to the ranch and so far it was working out great. The only negative side was that whenever Holly voiced her concern that Luc wasn’t benefitting as much as she was from the arrangement, he brushed her off.
Now Holly thrust her hand out of her car window, pointed to the boy on the steps then steered hard left, crossing the street to pull into an angled parking spot in front of Family Ties. Two seconds later Luc’s truck pulled in beside hers as she jumped out of her orange jeep.
“Holly, you can’t just stop in the middle of the street and then pull across it like that,” he began in that quiet but pained tone he sometimes used, which carried a kind of big-brother resignation.
“What are you doing in town so early, Luc?” she asked.
“Just coming home from Calgary.” He smiled at her arched eyebrow. “No, I wasn’t partying, I was trying to help a friend who’s going through a messy, painful divorce.”
“That’s nice of you.” She tilted her head in the boy’s direction. “Who’s this little guy?”
“No idea. Let’s find out.” Luc followed Holly as she hurried forward. She was aware of him but her focus centered on the little boy in worn-out jeans and a tattered red hoodie sitting in front of Family Ties. Big black glasses made him look like a wise owl.
“Hi, honey,” she said in a soft voice, crouching down to meet the child’s gaze. “What’s your name?”
“Henry.” He blinked huge brown eyes at her then his gaze shifted to Luc. “Are you a real cowboy?” he asked in awed tones.
Holly turned to see Luc’s slow, easy grin slash across his handsome, tanned face.
“Real as they get, partner,” Luc said in a drawl that reminded her of some Hollywood star in a bygone Western movie. When he hunkered down beside Holly, his elbow brushed her arm, sending an electric charge up it as he thrust out a hand to shake Henry’s.
Holly noticed the contact with her hunky foreman because it caused her stomach to do that shaky dance. But she couldn’t figure out why that was. Luc was a friend but nothing more. That was the way she wanted it.
“Pleased to meet you, Henry. I’m Luc and that’s Holly.” Luc smiled then quietly asked, “What are you doing here?”
“Waiting.” The boy reached up to touch the brim of Luc’s jet-black Stetson, the one Holly had only ever seen Luc remove for church and funerals. But this morning the cowboy took off his hat and set it on the boy’s head. Henry’s eyes widened. “I wish I had one of these.”
“Maybe one day you will.” Luc shot Holly a look that asked for help.
She nodded. They needed to find out more about this boy so they could figure out what to do next.
“Are you waiting for someone special, Henry?” Holly asked.
“Uh-huh. The people who work here.” The boy jerked a thumb over one shoulder. “They find families for kids. I want one.”
Nonplussed, Holly glanced at Luc, who stared right back at her, his brown eyes crinkling at the corners with his lazy grin. That was Luc—laid-back, comfortable in his skin and always in a good mood. When she arched an eyebrow at him he simply shrugged. Obviously he was waiting for her to continue the investigation.
“What’s your last name, Henry?” she asked.
“Brown. Henry Brown.” His little chest puffed out. “I’m five and three quarters.”
Five and three quarters. He was almost the same age as her baby... Holly gulped at the memories of that tiny innocent child and instead concentrated on what Henry was saying.
“Last night I stayed with this lady—Ms. Hilda.” Henry’s big brown eyes narrowed. His lips pressed together as he scrunched up his nose so his glasses would move back in place. “She snores.”
“I see.” Holly shot Luc a look meant to stifle his snort of laughter. She guessed Henry was one of the many foster kids from Calgary for whom Mayor Marsha often agreed to find temporary care.
Holly considered phoning the mayor but hesitated. Marsha was still recovering from complications after her second knee surgery. Maybe Abby Lebret, owner of Family Ties, would be a better choice. But it was barely 6:00 a.m. and if Abby’s young twins hadn’t yet woken her, she wouldn’t appreciate an early-morning call, either.
“I want a family,” Henry said with a glance over one shoulder, his voice and face as serious as a little old man.
“Me, too. Are you hungry, Henry?” Luc’s grin flashed at Henry’s emphatic nod. “Hey, me, too.”
“Well, what’s new about that?” Holly grumbled, irritated that her ranch manager didn’t seem to be taking the situation seriously. “You’re always hungry, Luc.”
“Sounds like maybe you are, too, Miss Cranky,” Luc teased, his eyes as warm as his smile. “Long shift, huh? What say we go get some breakfast?”
“Luc, you can’t just take him—”
“Can I have pancakes? I love pancakes,” Henry asked, his voice beseeching.
“Pancakes it is.” Luc straightened. “We can come back here, Holly. When Family Ties is open,” he added when she frowned.
“Well, all right,” she agreed. “But we’d better phone Hilda first. She might be missing Henry.”
“She’s prob’ly still snoring.” Henry’s tone was utterly serious.
Holly had to turn away to hide her smile. When she did she bumped into Luc. He grasped her arms to steady her, which set her heart on a gallop.
“Whoa there, little lady. You must need some food if you’re swaying on your feet.” His hands dropped away but his gaze never left her face. “Did you forget to eat your lunch again?”
“I ate an apple around midnight,” Holly said, avoiding his gaze. “I can take care of myself, Luc.”
“Oh, I know that,” he said, nodding, though his next words belied that. “But you do forget to eat when you’re on night shift. Come on. Let’s go to Brewsters.” He swung his arm around Henry’s shoulder. “They have the best breakfast,” he said in a low voice.
“They have the only breakfast at this time of the morning,” Holly corrected, noticing how easily Henry and Luc had bonded. Feeling left out, she dialed Hilda’s. When there was no answer, she left a message on the machine then followed the two males while wondering how Luc knew she usually forgot her lunch.
He knew because he was always there for her.
Luc’s being there had started the day he’d purchased the land adjoining her dad’s Cool Springs Ranch. It continued after Holly’s dad got a terminal diagnosis and elected not to fight his lung cancer. Marcus Janzen had chosen instead to live out his days at home. Since her mom had long since abandoned her daughter, husband and Cool Springs Ranch, Holly was the only one Marcus had left. Because she loved her dad dearly she’d focused her time and efforts on making his final days perfect, with Luc’s help.
Marcus and Luc had become fast friends the day