Page 7 of Seized by the Lawman

Chapter 2

TOSSING HER PHONE back into her purse, Melly frowned. Would he return her call? Sweat beaded between her breasts as she traveled down the night she’d spent in the arms of the sexy cowboy. From the time she’d spotted him sitting at the table, surrounded by his brothers, she’d been interested in getting to know him better. She wasn’t much of a believer in that certain mystical immediate connection, at least not up until four months ago when Nixon Cade walked into her life. No, he hadn’t just walked, he’d strolled like a panther eyeing his prey, his willing prey. They’d flirted from across the room for a good fifteen minutes, catching each other’s gaze, a sweep of his tongue across his plump bottom lip and a toss of her hair over her shoulder, until he couldn’t control himself any longer. He’d strolled right up to her where she’d been nursing a cocktail, sitting with her friends, and asked her to dance. She’d said yes quicker than she’d ever said yes before.

Two hours later they were partially naked in his bed, getting to know one another on a more personal level. Melly wasn’t naïve or innocent by a long shot, but she compared making love to Nixon like a woman trading in her slow four cylinder for a Porsche 911. It was all in the engine and this man had driven her like a pro.

Picking up an envelope from the console, she fanned herself, wishing she could move the vent and point the air conditioning to her inner thighs where the heat was almost unbearable. Nixon Cade wasn’t a man a woman could forget too easily—forget the way he’d made her feel under his large, callused hands and powerful moves.

When he’d invited her back to his place, a nice, comfy cabin sitting on a lake, she should have known her life was about to change. They’d made love most of the night before falling asleep, exhausted. She hadn’t planned to wake up there, and the realization of what she’d done would strike her like a storm. As she was reaching for her clothes wadded up on a chair, she’d accidently knocked his jeans off onto the floor, and while picking them up, his wallet fell out of his back pocket. It opened and there it was…a shiny star. She couldn’t quite explain the feeling that had spread over her at that moment when she’d realized this man who had turned her inside out was a lawman. It wasn’t that she had anything against it but growing up with a father who retired from the military then went on to wear a badge, and remembering how he’d missed birthday parties, vacations, Christmas gatherings, you name it, because duty had called instantly brought back unsettling feelings. She’d watched her stepmother cry on hundreds of occasions from fear that her husband wouldn’t walk back through the door because he was working a case. This was something she swore she wouldn’t go through ever again. Wouldn’t put her kids through it, and yet…

Her heart sank.

Reality burrowed into her core and she laid her head back on the headrest, closing her eyes against the ache developing in her temples. In a perfect world, when she’d snuck out of Nix’s house at sunrise, she would pleasantly remember one of the best nights of her life, and then move on and concentrate on her ranch. Fate had different plans.

Opening her eyes, she pulled down the visor and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked ragged and worn from lack of sleep and sickness. Her father would know immediately something was wrong with her and, as always, he’d give her the lecture about getting her life in order.

Finger combing her wild, curly locks, she tried to tame the tresses that seemed to have a mind of their own. It was no use. She instead went for a layer of lip tint. She’d applied make up that morning to hide the dark circles under her eyes, but her father was perceptive, always had an eagle eye for details. That’s what made him one of the best at his job. No matter what, she couldn’t let him know that she was pregnant. Eventually she couldn’t hide it, but for now she wanted—needed—the deed to Shy Brooke to be placed in her name.

Over the years, her father had been disappointed in her time and again. The plan had never been to rebel against him, but she’d always found his stringent rules and expectations to be hard to abide by. Her stepmother had been the buffer, but when she passed away, Melly and her father had been faced with all the problems between them that made them ram heads. He’d never liked her choices in boyfriends, yet looking back, she didn’t either. He’d complained when she chose to attend an out-of-state college instead of staying close to home. When she’d dropped out two years in, he didn’t talk to her for months. He came around eventually, but he still believed she’d screwed up her life. He’d never understand that she saw an opportunity, one she couldn’t refuse. She applied for a reality show, Survivor Island, which focused on kids of cops and survival skills, and even when she’d won the cash prize, he had only asked, “Will you be going back to college?”

Getting the ranch in her name was never as important as it was now. After finding out she was pregnant, she made up her mind that she needed to settle down and provide a stable upbringing for her child. Yet she was tired of jumping through hoops to get her dad to sign over the deed to a place that belonged to her anyway. Her biological mother had wanted Melly to have Shy Brooke one day, and that day had finally come.

But if her father found out she was pregnant, with a stranger of all people, he’d chalk this up to another impulsive, irresponsible act, and he’d probably never sign the deed over. It didn’t matter that she was an adult and thirty years old. To him, she’d always be the little girl who was born out of wedlock to his mistress.

Just as her child would be.

She instinctively pressed her palms to her still flat stomach, wondering what it would be like when she grew round with baby. A baby she hadn’t planned but would love all the same.

This was only the tip of the iceberg.

Although she didn’t believe that Nixon would want anything to do with the baby they’d conceived together, she had a responsibility to let him know that the condom—one of the many condoms—had malfunctioned.

Pulling the keys from the ignition, she dropped them into her purse and headed toward the plain, unmarked building. Her father said he needed to see her. Melly anticipated that he’d finally give her what she’d been asking for. The hope of what this would involve excited her. Her life would be on track and she’d have time to get the hang of running a ranch before the baby was born. She had the plan worked out in her mind and it felt good.

“Hi, Claire,” Melly said to the woman sitting behind the reception desk. She’d worked for her father for as long as Melly could remember.

Claire dropped her phone and pushed her thick glasses further up her nose. In her mid-thirties, she wore her hair in tight curls and her normally pasty skin was bronzed. Melly also noticed the larger set of boobs, although the modest blouse with the high neck hid them well. “Hi, Melly. I-I didn’t know you were coming in today. Your father usually tells me.”

“It probably slipped his mind. Have you been on a vacation to paradise?”

“Uh, no…why?”

“You are glowing.”

Ding. Ding. Claire’s cell lit up, but she ignored it. “Thank you.” She lowered her eyes shyly.

“New boyfriend?”

Ding. Ding. “New boyfriend?” The other woman’s cheeks turned red. “N-no.” Her phone was being blown up and she seemed frustrated.

“Oh, okay. I’ll let you get that while I have a seat and wait for my father.”

While waiting, she stared at the rows of framed pictures of the beautiful landscapes of Wyoming. Her chest filled with pride, thinking that soon she would be home on her own picturesque land.

Things would be normal again.

As a kid, she’d come home after school, change out of her fancy clothes, and throw on worn jeans, boots and an old Stetson her mom gave her, then run out onto the land where she’d help her grandfather, mom, and Randy with chores before a long horseback ride at sunset. Melly stuck to the hands like glue, following in their footsteps, taking in as much as she could about ranching life.

When night would fall, she would cry when her mom made her come inside. After all, what ranch girl wanted to be indoors? She’d adored the land and never wanted to leave.

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