Page 18 of Chasing Trouble
“I’ve missed you too, Daddy,” she whispered, trembling in his arms.
Apparently not seeing Mac as a real threat, he handed the shotgun to Whitney and hunkered down to greet Luke and Amelia.Amelia threw herself joyfully into his arms.“Daddy,” she squealed.Then her lip dropped.“Why you stay gone so long?”
Daniel chuckled.“I’m sorry, honey, it’s a long story.”He pulled Luke into his embrace with his daughter.“Hello, son.You been taking care of things?”
Luke’s chest filled with pride.“Yes, sir.”
“That’s my little man,” his father praised.Then he stood up.“Luke, take your sister into the house.I need to have a conversation with Whitney’s young man here.”
“But...but, Daddy,” Whitney stammered, flushing, and then going pale.
He watched as the children obeyed quietly, and then he turned his attention to Mac.
Mac stiffened with wariness.“Sir, my name is...”
“I know who you are, Wainwright,” he stated bluntly.“What I don’t know is what you’re doing in my home in the early morning with my daughter.”
“There was a cougar in the area and two questionable men chasing it, so I’ve slept in the barn for the last two nights to make sure the men didn’t come back,” Mac replied.
“Where’s the cougar now?”
“It’s dead.I gave the carcass to the men.”
“And what were you doing here on Thanksgiving?”he asked in a steely voice.
“Dad...”Whitney tried to interfere, but her father just held up his hand, indicating silence on her part.She fumed impatiently, but she didn’t contradict him.
Mac cleared his throat.“I...ah...discovered your family by finally catching the poacher who grabbed one of my turkeys.It turned out to be your daughter.She kindly invited me to Thanksgiving dinner, and I accepted.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “That invitation to dinner just rewarded you with a wife, Mr.Wainwright.Now that you’ve been in her company for three days with no chaperone, you’ve impugned her honor.”
“Dad...”Whitney objected again, turning red with embarrassment, but Daniel just held up his hand again, and she subsided.“Go in the house, Whitney.Wainright and I need to talk.
Whitney was furious, but respect for her father was deeply ingrained.She whirled around and went inside, slamming the door behind her.
***
AFTER WHITNEY LEFT, Daniel patted his shotgun with a steely gaze.“You understand me, son?”
Mac could read the outrage beneath the soft words.He was no fool, and neither was Daniel Johnson.He stared at the big man with the rawboned hands and hooked nose.He was not an old man, but he had quite a lot of graying hair among the dark blonde, and a mustache above his lip.Whitney’s father was every bit as big as he was, and Mac knew he could pack a wallop if he chose to punch him.
“I do, sir.But I assure you, nothing happened.I have too much respect for her.I intend to marry her if she’ll have me, so the shotgun isn’t needed.”
Daniel stared.“You’ve already proposed?And you’ve only known her for three days?”he asked suspiciously.
Mac nodded warily.“Yes, sir.I admire and respect her spirit and what she’s done here in your absence.She explained and showed me her hard work, telling me she planned to go to town next spring and get a job if you hadn’t returned.She also expressed how she didn’t want to lose Amelia and Luke.I wanted to help her.”
He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck.“Aw, hell...I know it sounds lame, but I think I fell in deep just from the kindness and determination she showed for her brother and sister.I want a woman like that, sir, and I am already experiencing deeper feelings for her.I think, if she agrees, that we will get on well together.”
Daniel was silent for a moment, and Mac watched as his eyes seemed to glaze slightly, as if he was thinking of something—or someone.Finally, he spoke with a gentle smile.“I can see how that could happen, Wainwright,” he replied, his body seeming to relax.“It was the same way for me and Danielle.I loved that girl from the moment she first smiled at me.His voice broke slightly.“It appears you have the means to take care of my daughter, Wainwright, and I’m pleased with that part of this deal.And if Whitney feels the same way, you both have my blessing.
“No shotgun?”Mac joked warily.
Daniel chuckled.“No shotgun.I needed to make sure your intentions were honorable.No one is allowed to take advantage of my children if I can help it.”
Mac relaxed his tense stance as well.He could afford to be generous now that Whitney’s dad was on board.“Call me Mac.”
“Mac then,” Daniel replied, “but I’m curious.If you two have already talked about marriage, then why didn’t you take her and the other two youngins to your place for the winter if you knew she wasn’t prepared?As an engaged couple, that would have been appropriate, especially with other women in the residence.You have chaperones there.”
