Page 19 of Texas Temptation

“Oh pooh, those dogs know their jobs. A bit of fun with a little boy won’t spoil them, will it Cade?” Amelia said.

He glanced at her. “Jack handles that Amelia.”

“But you could tell him to let Caleb play with the dogs when they aren’t working. Vicki did. A little boy needs to have a dog.”

The tension at the table rose dramatically. Jordan held her breath at the change, looking at Amelia in dismay. From the little she’d learned from the woman that morning, Cade had taken his daughter’s death hard and didn’t speak of her.

It almost seemed as if Amelia was pushing Jordan and Caleb at Cade—to replace his lost family. Jordan hoped she was misreading the situation. Nothing could be farther from her own reason for being here.

If Amelia became too pushy, she and Caleb would have to leave.

Cade pushed back his chair and rose.

“If you will excuse me.” In two seconds, he had left the room.

“Oh dear, I shouldn’t have said that. Cade’s still so touchy about Marissa and Vicki. But I wanted Caleb to have the fun of playing with the dogs while he’s here. Sophie is the dog Vicki used to play with. I think they have a couple of new ones that she never saw. But it doesn’t matter. The dogs wouldn’t hurt the boy and he couldn’t possibly untrain them.” Amelia shook her head, staring after her nephew. “He acts as if Vicki and Marissa never existed. I miss them, too. We all do. But I remember the good times, and wish I had someone to share them with,” she said sadly.

Jordan knew staying would be impossible with the situation the way it was. Kind as Amelia had been, she couldn’t remain. She’d have to find accommodation on her own, preferably before Cade asked her to leave. She only hoped that he’d let her keep the job. She couldn’t bear it if he snatched that away just when she thought he could help Caleb.

Once they had finished dinner, Jordan took Caleb to his bedroom.

“In the morning, we’re going to look for a nice apartment in Tumbleweed,” she said, sinking on the edge of his bed. He’d been given the rose room. She looked around, admiring the decorations, knowing a small boy would be happier with fewer things to knock against or stay away from.

“Can we get a dog?” he asked, leaning against her leg.

Jordan brushed back his light brown hair and shook her head regretfully.

“No, we won’t be here that long. When we go back home, I’ll see if the apartment manager will let us get a dog. How’s that?”

“And a horse?”

Jordan laughed and hugged her son.

“Not a horse. Goodness, it’ll be crowded in our apartment with a dog. Where would we put a horse?”

Caleb laughed at her nonsense and offered several suggestions, each more outlandish than the other. Soon they were laughing together, as they often did. Love surrounded them.

Jordan savored the happy moment. She loved her son so much. How much of his life his father was missing. She wished she had found the man after searching for so long.

When she put him to bed sometime later, she kissed him and tucked him in.

“Sleep well, sweetie,” she murmured, imagining how Cade must feel having lost his little girl.

For a moment, Jordan wanted to snatch Caleb up and hold him tightly away from harm for the rest of their lives. The worst nightmare—losing a child. How did Cade stand it?

She went back downstairs. The house was quiet. Lights were on in the living room and down the hall in the study. Jordan peered into both rooms. They were empty.

She turned to go back upstairs when something had her push open the front door and step out into the wide veranda.

Cade sat in one of the chairs on the right, his legs stretched out, hands tucked into the pockets of his pants. It was dark, only the light from the living room spilled out to provide illumination.

“Are you asleep?” she whispered.

If he was, she’d tiptoe away.

“No.”

The short answer wasn’t very conducive to conversation. But what she had to say couldn’t be delayed.

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