The Bridal Path: Danielle Read online

  Since she hadn’t actually thought it through before making the impulsive offer, she improvised. “Well, I never seem to have enough time to do what needs doing around here. The porch needs sweeping again right this minute, for one thing. The windows probably should be washed. I never did get to my spring cleaning this year. And somebody has to clean up all these blueberries before they stain the wood.”

  They eyed the porch dubiously. There was no mistaking what a daunting task that would be.

  “It might even need painting,” Timmy suggested unhappily. “Dad doesn’t let us paint.”

  “Not since you spray-painted the dog,” he agreed. He gazed at Dani. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but I really don’t think this is such a good idea. You can’t possibly know what you’re–”

  Dani cut him off before he could say another discouraging word. “Of course I do, and it’s a wonderful idea,” she said. “Extra pairs of hands are always welcome.”

  “I think these hands will be more of a hindrance than a help,” he said.

  “Let me worry about that,” she insisted. “I think Timmy, Kevin and I understand each other. I’ll enjoy having them here.” She glanced at the dog. “Pirate, too, of course.”

  Slade Watkins actually gaped at that.

  Dani returned his startled expression with an amused look of her own. She doubted anyone in Riverton had volunteered to spend so much as a second more than necessary with his boys. Left unspoken was the fact that she craved the noise and confusion these two imps would bring into her too-quiet house. How could she explain a thing like that to this man who seemed totally bemused by that very same mischief?

  “Dad, would that be okay?” Timmy asked. “Please. We’d do whatever she says. You were going to have to find somebody to baby-sit us soon, anyway. You said so yourself. You said we couldn’t be left to our own devices one more minute.”

  He was clearly echoing his father’s precise words. Slade Watkins looked too chagrined not to have said exactly that, and quite recently.

  “I’m sure you would be very helpful,” Dani said, cheerfully agreeing with Timmy. “Really, Mr. Watkins, they’d be just fine with me.”

  “I’m less concerned with their welfare than yours,” he said.

  “No need to worry about that,” she assured him. “I adore children.”

  “They’re something of a handful,” he added, as if she needed reminding of that.

  Talk about an understatement! Yet he sounded so weary that Dani immediately wanted to throw her arms around him and tell him everything would be all right.

  This was the role she’d been born to play–mother, wife, nurturer. Never before had she seen a man or children so in need of what she had to offer. Never had she felt this quickened pace of her pulse just gazing into a man’s eyes or hearing his voice. She wasn’t going to let the three of them disappear from her life so easily.

  Even as the implication of those thoughts registered, an outrageous idea began to take shape. As bold as anything Sara or Ashley had ever considered, she was sure, the idea began to blossom.

  Pure happenstance had caused their paths to cross, though in a town the size of Riverton that would have happened eventually, she supposed. But this particular set of circumstances, which suggested that these boys desperately needed more supervision than their widower father could give them, struck her as fortuitous.

  She didn’t have to be smacked over the head to recognize that perhaps Slade Watkins and his two boys were the opportunity she’d been waiting for practically forever, it seemed. Maybe everyone who had known her her whole life long had tucked her into a quiet, boring niche, but she hadn’t spent all those years around sassy Sara and bold Ashley without learning a few things. Reaching out and grabbing on to a dream was at the top of the list.

  Her dream–a little messy at the moment and a little intimidating from the looks of the three males before her–finally appeared to be within her grasp.

  How, though, could she make that happen? How could she convince a virtual stranger that she was the answer to his prayers?

  Well, she didn’t have to do all of her convincing today, she concluded. She just had to get Slade Watkins to agree to this first step.

  “You won’t find anyone in town who’ll take better care of the boys,” she promised him.

  He eyed her warily, clearly not convinced. “How did we go from them working off their debt to you taking care of them? You’re volunteering to do what I would be paying an arm and a leg to someone else to do. As it is, I already owe you for all those pies.”

  She waved off the transition as if it were of no consequence, a mere matter of semantics. Stepping off the porch, she deliberately reached for two berry-stained hands. With Timmy on one side of her and Kevin on the other, they gazed into Slade Watkins’s grim face.

  “It will be just fine,” she promised him one more time. “All the work Timmy and Kevin will do around here will more than make up for the pies.”

  Slade looked doubtful, but Timmy and Kevin nodded solemnly. Even Pirate seemed to approve of the plan. He nosed his way between Dani and Kevin for a united front. Slade wiped his hand across his eyes, then sighed heavily.

  “If you’re sure…”

  “I am,” she said staunchly.

  Relief and worry warred in his expression, but relief won. He held out his hand.

  “I appreciate your taking this so well,” he said solemnly. “Some people, well, a lot of people wouldn’t have been so understanding.”

  Dani couldn’t think of anything to say at all. She was too busy wondering why she’d never known that a man’s touch could set off fireworks more glorious than any the town had ever shot off on the Fourth of July.

  “Will eight o’clock tomorrow morning be okay?” he asked.

  She had to shake herself before she could imagine what on earth he was talking about.

  “Oh, yes,” she said, fighting the breathless sensation washing over her. In fact, she thought, eight o’clock couldn’t possibly come soon enough.

  Chapter Two

  “I heard the terrors of Riverton struck,” Sara said, settling down at Dani’s kitchen table to watch as Dani started a fresh batch of pies later that afternoon. “How could any descendents of Seth and Wilma be such brats?”

  “Don’t call them that,” Dani retorted sharply as she scooped blueberries into the crusts. “People live up–or down–to what’s expected of them.”

  Sara’s perceptive gaze narrowed. “You sound awfully defensive about two kids who destroyed an entire morning’s work. What’s that all about?”

  Before Dani could respond, her sister’s expression shifted from bemusement to sudden understanding. “Wait, wait, I get it. They’re kids, right? Your huge, soft heart went pitter-pat just at the sight of them, even though they were covered from head to toe in your blueberries.”

  Dani winced at the all-too-accurate assessment. “So, kill me. I’m a sucker for children. There are worse traits. How did you hear about this, anyway?”

  “Myrtle Kellogg next door saw the whole thing. After that, she had lunch at Stella’s.” Sara shrugged. “It’s only a short hop from there to the entire universe. I heard about it from Ashley, who had heard every detail by twelve-fifteen from Dillon, who’d stopped for coffee at Stella’s. He couldn’t wait to call home and fill in our baby sister.”

  “The Riverton grapevine lives,” Dani muttered, uncertain why she’d thought for a minute the incident would go unnoted. At least no one knew about the plan she intended to set into motion to make those darling boys–and their father–her own.

  “So, what’s he like?” Sara asked.

  Dani stared at her blankly. “Who?”

  “Slade Watkins, of course. I barely remember him visiting. I heard he grew up to be a hunk, even if he does let his children run wild. According to our dear brother-in-law, poor old Myrtle could hardly catch her breath, she was so overcome by the sight of him.” She regarded Dani speculatively. �
��What about you? Were you overcome, too?”

  Denying that she’d noticed anything at all about Slade Watkins would be about as believable as saying she could hardly wait to go hunting for moose. “He is rather nice-looking,” she admitted, praying that she’d struck just the right balance between truth and nonchalance.

  “Nice-looking,” Sara mimicked. “Gracious, Dani, if you can’t tell the difference between gorgeous and nice-looking, maybe you ought to take that free eye examination the doc is offering.”

  Dani sighed. “Okay, he’s gorgeous. Satisfied?”

  Sara grinned. “Then you did notice. Good.” She propped her elbows on the table and leaned forward intently. “Does he meet the Danielle Wilde daddy-factor test?”

  The probing personal question was irksome, but unavoidable. Her sisters had been on the lookout for someone just like Slade Watkins for her for years. “Shouldn’t you be home chasing cattle around the range or something?” Dani grumbled.

  “Ah, an evasive answer. I love it!” Sara gloated. “Maybe Jake and I ought to be neighborly and invite Slade Watkins to a family dinner at the ranch so he can get reacquainted with Daddy and Ashley and Dillon.”

  The very thought made Dani shudder. She leaned down and peered directly into her sister’s sneaky, laughing eyes. “You do and you’re a dead woman.”

  Sara’s expression turned innocent. “Of course, you could come, too, if you’re interested.”

  “I’m warning you,” Dani said. “No cozy little dinners. No getting-to-know-you chats. No one really remembers Slade anyway and you know it. Stay out of this.”

  “Out of what? I’m just trying to be friendly.”

  “Fiddle-faddle,” Dani retorted succinctly. “You’re meddling. You’re turning out to be worse than Daddy. Ever since you and Jake got hitched, you’ve been blissfully determined to see the rest of us settled down, too. Be satisfied that Ashley and Dillon are married and let it go at that.”

  “Are you saying you’re no longer interested in having a houseful of kids?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Well, then, what’s wrong with nudging that along a little? You have to admit Slade Watkins is the most likely candidate to stride into Riverton in years. He’s a widower. He has two cute-as-the-dickens little boys who’ve obviously already stolen your good sense and your heart, despite their obvious character flaws. Marrying him would be a whole lot better than marrying one of the candidates Daddy’s dreamed up for you.”

  “Maybe so, but I can handle my own love life, thank you very much.”

  Sara regarded her skeptically. “I haven’t seen any evidence of that up until now. When was the last time you actually had a date? And don’t count lunch with Horace to discuss how many pies to bake for his store.”

  For a fleeting instant Dani almost longed for her father’s interference. At least she had learned to tell him to butt out. Sara was harder to dislodge than a burr. She sighed and tried to exhibit a little patience. The more she balked, the longer Sara was likely to stay.

  “Like you just said, there haven’t been any candidates around worth mentioning.”

  Sara’s expression turned triumphant. “Then you do agree that Slade Watkins has potential?”

  Unfortunately, persistence was a trait shared by all three of the Wilde sisters. “If I do, will you go home?” she pleaded.

  “Naturally,” Sara said. “I’ll have what I came for–insider information.”

  Dani waved her spoon threateningly under her sister’s nose. “And you know what happens to people who share insider information, don’t you?”

  “What?”

  At first Dani couldn’t think of anything quite dire enough to terrify her sister into silence. She eventually settled for telling her that she would happily put a bug in Trent Wilde’s ear that Sara and Jake were about to make him a grandparent. Horror spread across her sister’s face.

  “You wouldn’t dare,” Sara said.

  “Oh, but I would,” Dani assured her. “Just imagine how Daddy will be plaguing you two for news about the impending big event. He’ll probably take up a post outside your bedroom door to make sure you and Jake are working on the project. He won’t let it rest until you’ve delivered the perfect grandbaby. You’ve already been married a year. He thinks it’s way past time for you to produce an heir. He’ll be so excited to know you’re trying that he’ll start passing out cigars in town. Everyone in Riverton will know the details of your sex life. Are you beginning to get the picture of the misery your life will become?”

  “Yes, sister dearest, you’ve made your point.”

  Satisfied that Sara was suitably impressed with the consequences of blabbing a single word about Dani’s interest in Slade Watkins, Dani grinned. “So, do I have your word that nothing leaves this room?”

  Sara solemnly crossed her heart. “On my oath to Jake that we will wait at least another year before having a baby. Now, talk.”

  “Slade Watkins makes my knees go weak,” Dani confessed.

  Her sister bounced out of her seat and threw her arms around Dani. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so glad for you. It’s about time.”

  “Way past time, if you ask me.”

  “Does he know how you feel?”

  “Sara, I just met the man this morning. Other than talking about his sons, we barely said two words.”

  “When are you seeing him again?” Sara asked. When Dani didn’t respond, she demanded, “You are seeing him again, aren’t you? Tell me you didn’t let this opportunity slip through your fingers.”

  “I certainly did not. I’m seeing him tomorrow,” Dani finally admitted.

  “Well, hallelujah!”

  Lest her sister get too carried away, she added, “He’s dropping the kids off at eight.”

  Sara looked thunderstruck. “You’re baby-sitting those terrors?”

  “Sara,” Dani warned.

  “Sorry, but I can’t believe you’ve actually invited them back here without seeing to it that they’ve been put through some sort of military school regimen to break their wild little spirits.”

  “Their wild little spirits, as you put it, are what I love about them. Besides, they’re working off the damage they did,” Dani said defensively.

  Sara’s expression turned thoughtful. “And you’ll be seeing a lot of their father. I take it back. That’s ingenious. Subtle. You don’t want to scare him off by appearing too eager. Dani, it’s perfect.”

  “This isn’t just some scheme to lure Slade Watkins back here. I like the boys,” Dani argued. “They’re sweet.”

  “If you say so.”

  “I want them here.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Go home, Sara.”

  Sara dutifully headed for the door.

  “And keep your mouth shut.”

  “I promised, didn’t I?”

  “I know exactly how persuasive and sneaky Daddy can be when he wants information,” Dani reminded her. “If you heard about this morning, he will have, too. He’ll have questions. He’d better not get answers from you. One word crosses your lips and the talk at Sunday dinner will turn to babies. I guarantee it.”

  Sara looked suitably impressed with the repeated warning, but Dani knew her father as well as anyone on earth. If he couldn’t wrangle anything out of Sara when she got home, he’d be on Dani’s doorstep in the morning. Fortunately, years of ranching had made him an early riser. With any luck, he’d come and go before Slade Watkins showed up with the boys. It was certainly something worth praying for.

  * * *

  Naturally her prayers fell on deaf ears. Slade was in the process of admonishing the boys to be good-for the tenth time–when Trent Wilde pulled to a stop at the curb in front of Dani’s house promptly at eight the next morning. His smirking expression as he exited his four-wheel-drive vehicle set her teeth on edge. Given the impeccable timing of his arrival, she vowed to throw Sara and Jake’s timetable for baby-making to the wolves. In the meantime, she had her father to deal
with.

  “Hello, Daddy,” she said, kissing his cheek. Then she added pointedly, “I wasn’t expecting you.”

  “Since when can’t a father pay a surprise visit to his daughter?” he inquired distractedly, most of his attention already focused on her company. “You must be Slade Watkins. I knew your grandparents. I’ve been hearing a lot about you lately.”

  “I’m sure,” Slade said dryly. “And I’d wager these two are the cause of most of it.”

  “Mr. Watkins, this is my father, Trent Wilde,” Dani said. “He used to be a rancher. Now he spends his retirement meddling.”

  Slade grinned. It was the first time Dani had seen anything resembling a smile on his face and it was enough to weaken not just her knees, but her spine. What it did to other parts of her anatomy made her breathless.

  “That’s what fathers do,” he reminded her, then glanced at his sons. “Right, boys?”

  “Yes, sir,” Timmy said, though most of his attention was reserved for Dani’s father, who was wearing his favorite handmade snakeskin boots, pressed jeans, a Western-cut shirt and his best Stetson in honor of this opportunity to meet Dani’s potential beau.

  Kevin was staring, as well. “Are you a real cowboy, sir?”

  “Some would say so,” Trent said, hunkering down in front of him. “You interested in being a cowboy?”

  “Do you have to ride a horse?”

  “Quite a lot,” her father said.

  Kevin’s eyes widened. “Really? Wow, that’s the best. I want to learn to ride.”

  “Sure you do, squirt,” Timmy said with big-brotherly skepticism. “You’re scared of horses.”

  “Am not.”

  “Are, too.”

  “You’re the one who’s chicken.”

  “Boys,” Slade said softly. “Enough.” He glanced worriedly at Dani for about the hundredth time since his arrival. “Are you sure…?”

  “We’ll be just fine,” she promised. Pirate woofed his agreement in that bizarre, husky tone he had, then settled down in a patch of sunlight nearby.

  Slade handed her his business card. “You can reach me anytime. I can be here in ten minutes or less.”