More Than a Mistress (5 page)

Soft and cuddly. Her smile was a knockout. He hadn't expected that. Confused, he frowned. “Hi.”

She covered a yawn and eased one of her arms out from under Luke. “Did Carly send you?”

He nodded, watching the gentle way she handled Luke. She ran her hand over the little boy's forehead. “Still warm.” A tiny frown knitted her eyebrows as she concentrated on getting up without waking Luke.

She wobbled a little as she straightened, and Daniel shot out a hand to steady her.

Her eyelids still droopy, she smiled again. “Sorry. I'm not too steady on my feet when I first wake up.”

“It's okay.” He kept his hand on her arm and noticed that she didn't try to move away. “Where do you want to go?”

“Kitchen. Coffee.”

He led the way and nudged her into a chair. When she protested and tried to get up, he put his hand on her shoulder to keep her seated. He found the coffee, noticing it was a fancy blend, not the basic stuff he kept at home, and started the coffeemaker.

Watching her from the corner of his eye, he saw her sigh a few times and push her hair behind her ears. He wondered if she always woke up this way, full of soft sighs and vague smiles. She looked as though she needed to be held. He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep from doing just that.

The aromatic brew dripped into the glass pot, and Daniel located a mug. “Sugar or milk?”

Sara nodded.

He kept his grin to himself, adding milk and two teaspoons of sugar. He'd learned another little secret about Sara. She had a sweet tooth. He put the mug in front of her. “You're diluting the caffeine.”

Sara shook her head. “The sugar's insurance. If the caffeine doesn't kick in, a sugar high will.” Inhaling deeply, she lifted the steaming mug.

“Don't burn your mouth,” Daniel cautioned.

She pursed her lips and blew, and Daniel thought he'd never seen anyone make drinking coffee look sexy. Someone ought to get her to do commercials.

She took a little sip, a few more, then looked at him. “Ninety seconds, and I'll start to make sense.”

He took a seat opposite her and propped one foot on the opposite knee. “Don't rush on my account.”

“Luke was very sleepy,” she said after another sip.

“I don't think Luke was the only one.”

At that point she seemed to come to her senses. She glanced down at her wrinkled shirt, quickly ran her fingers through her hair and winced. “I'm a mess.”

“Not too bad,” Daniel said. “The flour on your cheek's a nice touch, and the mascara under your eyes is interesting.”

Sara groaned and held up her hand. “Stop. You're worse than a mirror.”

“The cookies smell great,” he said, changing the subject.

Chagrin crossed her face. “I'm sorry. I should have offered you something.” She stood, muttering to herself, “Ugly
and
rude.” She glanced at the clock. “Have you had dinner?”

“No, but—”

She opened her freezer. “I don't suppose you eat Lean Cuisine. Wait a minute. Here's a Hungry-Man meal I picked up by mistake one rime.”

Daniel dragged her away from the freezer. “Sara, you haven't been rude. And if this is ugly, you're gonna have to work a helluva lot harder at it. You don't have to feed me dinner. I dropped by without an invitation to pick up Luke. If I don't get one of those cookies, though, I'm gonna get nasty.”

Her lips twitched. “You really should eat dinner before cookies.”

His gaze just this side of predatory, Daniel lowered his head closer to hers, knocking her pulse out of kilter. “I'll eat what I want. I'm a big boy.”

If she weren't so fascinated, she would feel completely overwhelmed by him. Sara looked at his broad shoulders and superb body in feminine appreciation. “So you are.” She heard the husky note in her voice and backed away. She cleared her throat. “Coffee, tea or milk?”

Daniel's gut tightened at the expression on Sara's face. The woman had no idea what she brought out in him. “Coffee, tea or me?” he invited in a deep voice, looking straight into her eyes.

Her stomach dipped. The air seemed to crackle between them. She had to block the urge to say, “You anytime.” There was something just a little reckless in his eyes, something that called to her and seemed to say,
Honey, it wouldn't take much.
She exhaled slowly. “You don't look like a tea drinker. Coffee, milk or ginger ale?”

“Sara,” Luke called from the den.

“He's awake,” she said, relief echoing in her voice. “Coming, sweetie,” she called.

Wondering what it would be like if Sara called
him
sweetie, Daniel followed her out of the room.

Luke was sitting up, rubbing his eyes. “I'm all sweaty.”

Sara put her hand on his forehead. “It's the fever.” She unbuttoned Luke's shirt, and Daniel felt another ridiculous surge of envy.

“Do you want some ginger ale?” Sara asked. “It's time for your medicine again.”

Luke made a face. “The gross stuff?”

“Yes. You want another bath?”

He shook his head adamantly, then his face lit up and he hopped off the sofa. “Uncle Daniel!”

“Hey, sport.” Daniel crouched in front of Luke and gave him a hug. “I came to take you home.”

“Do I get to sleep at your house?”

He shook his head. “No. I'm taking you to Carly's, and I'll stay with you till she gets there. Her afternoon appointment ran late.”

After all her reservations about keeping Luke, Sara suddenly felt reluctant for him to leave. “He can stay here if you need him to. I've got his medicine and everything.”

Daniel shrugged. “It's no problem. I thought we might watch a basketball game together.” He nudged Luke. “Besides, he's family.”

Luke beamed, and Sara's heart twisted. “Of course. Well, let me get his things together.” She bustled around, avoiding Daniel's thoughtful gaze.

Within a few minutes they were all standing at her front door.

Daniel lowered his voice. “Are you okay?”

Startled that her mixed emotions were showing, Sara nodded emphatically. “Of course.”

He frowned. “You seem kinda upset.” She gave him her best smile. “I'm not,” she said, unsure of what her feelings were at the moment. She handed a small bag to Luke. “Here are your cookies. Since you helped make them, I thought you should have some. Just don't eat them all at once.”

Luke peeked into the bag and grinned at her.

“Thanks, Sara.” He hugged her legs, and she reached down to return the spontaneous gesture, feeling her throat tighten up.

“Thank you. I hope you feel better soon.” She stood and handed another bag of cookies to Daniel. “Sorry it's not dinner.”

“You could always give me a rain check.” Drawn to him much more than she wanted to be, Sara shook her head. “I'm
giving
you the cookies so you won't get nasty.”

“Hey,” he said, his eyes full of laughter, “I could get nasty if I don't get dinner. I'm a hungry man.”

He was flirting. Straight-arrow Daniel Pendleton was trying to finagle a dinner from her with a flirty remark and a hot and heavy glance from those killer violet eyes of his. To her chagrin Sara found she wouldn't mind giving him dinner and a little more.

Mustering all her restraint, she opened the door and sweetly suggested, “If you're that hungry, then by all means stop by McDonald's on your way home.”

“McDonald's doesn't have what I want, Sara,” he said in a low, silky voice. “I'll wait for that rain check.”

Daniel stared at the roses in the florist's window. He'd spent the last two days with Sara sitting firmly in the back of his mind. She joined him for breakfast. She was there when he worked in the fields. She crossed her legs and watched while he talked with his brothers. And she was there in the damned red silk slip when he went to bed.

He'd spent an inordinate amount of time trying to figure her out. Unless his ego was talking, it was that old cliché “Your lips say no, no, but your body says yes, yes.” She was susceptible to him. He knew it in his gut. She wanted him. It seemed that all she needed was a gentle shove and she would go right over the edge.

He grinned. And he would catch her.

Her nutty reasoning about why she couldn't get involved with him came to mind. Impatience sliced through him, and he felt his grin contort into a scowl.

The shopkeeper poked his head out the door. “Are you trying to make my roses wilt?”

Daniel felt self-conscious that he'd been caught. “No. I'm just looking. It's no crime to look, is it?”

The shopkeeper pushed back a strand of white hair on his balding head. He must have sensed a prospective customer. “It's no crime to look. It's no crime to buy either. The roses are on special today.” After he imparted that information, he went back in his shop.

Daniel stewed in his juices for another two minutes, vacillating. After seeing the crack in Sara's resistance to him, he concluded that he needed to be a little more aggressive. Not a dozen roses, though. That would be overstating his case. One single red rose, he decided and pushed through the florist's door.

 

“It's for you.”

Shaking her head, Sara looked at the single red rose in horror. She'd always hated roses since her affair with the senator. Her throat closed up. Daniel extended it over her desk for her to take. The sweet aroma wrapped around her and squeezed her with memories and all the self-recriminations she'd tried to leave behind years ago.

Sara held up her hand. “No,” she whispered, fighting a dozen overwhelming emotions.

“It's just a rose, Sara.” Daniel's eyebrows furrowed together.

But it wasn't just a rose to her. It reminded her of the danger of wishing for things she wouldn't get. Not so much things, but people—such as a man who would love her, such as a family, such as children.

“I can't—” Her voice gave out when she looked at Daniel. If she were foolish enough to wish for a man to love her, she'd wish for Daniel. Appalled at the thought and deeply disturbed by the sight of the rose, Sara felt tears threaten. “Oh, no,” she nearly wailed. Where had her control gone?

Totally confused, Daniel watched Sara stand. He caught sight of her watery eyes. “Are you allergic to them?”

Sara gave a little shake of her head. “No. I—I—” She bit her lip as if composing herself. “Thank you very much for the thought,” she said in a wobbly voice. “But I don't like roses,” she finished, her words fading into a broken whisper.

He watched her face crumple and felt his gut tie into a knot. He tried to reach for her, but she backed away, shaking her head.

She opened her mouth as if to explain, but the only sound that came out was a sob, then she stumbled out of the room.

That little feminine sob put a lump in his throat.

“What have you done?” Carly entered the room and glared at him. Apparently she had witnessed the last few seconds of the scene. Daniel hadn't noticed her. His complete attention had been focused on Sara.

Bemused, he shook his head and pointed at the rose. “I just brought her a rose. I swear. She started crying.” He glanced at Carly. “Did you know she hates roses?”

“No. You must have said something.”

“I didn't even ask her out for dinner.”

Carly frowned. “I've never seen Sara close to tears.”

“Yeah, well, she was crying just a minute ago. She looked upset.” He felt helpless, and if there was one thing Daniel Pendleton hated, it was feeling helpless. “Maybe you'd better go check on her.”

He stared at the offending rose. The sweet aroma teased his nostrils, but a bitter taste rose at the back of his throat. He swore under his breath in disgust. “Maybe it's not the rose she hates. Maybe it's me.”

 

After that, Daniel stayed the hell away from Sara Kingston. It shouldn't have been all that difficult, between taking care of Erin's horse farm while she and Garth honeymooned, managing his own farm and helping with the little emergencies that always seemed to come up during a major holiday like Christmas.

Just yesterday Daniel had received a call from Elbert Willis's very pregnant wife, Tina. Elbert had fallen off a ladder and broken a leg while he'd been stringing Christmas lights across the roof of his house.

Daniel fed and watered the livestock while Tina jiggled her one-year-old child on her hip. “This is really nice of you, Daniel. Elbert's daddy will be able to help us next week, but he's got a bad case of the flu right now.”

“No problem. Troy, Jarod or I can help you out till then. You okay for Christmas?”

Tina nodded. “I did my shopping through a catalog, and we're going to my mom's for Christmas. She lives two counties over.”

Daniel thought Tina looked awfully young to have two babies. She couldn't be more than nineteen. “You just make sure you stay near a hospital.” He glanced over at a litter of six golden-haired puppies playing tag and nipping at each other. “They're close to being weaned. What are you gonna do with those?”

Tina smiled. “You want them?”

Daniel laughed. “No. I've got enough animals at my place.”

“Well, spread the word,” she said, following him out the barn door. “The mom's sweet-natured, and there's nothing like having a dog to come home to. If you know anyone who wants an adorable puppy for Christmas, send them over here. I'll be happy to share.”

During the drive home Daniel's mind drifted to Sara and what she was doing for the holidays. He wondered if she would be alone. It would be strange to be alone during such a time. Over the years he'd frequently resented his lack of privacy, but never during holidays. There was never a shortage of people at Pendleton family gatherings. Daniel wondered if Carly would invite Sara for Christmas dinner.

Sara probably wouldn't come. She seemed uncomfortable around his family, almost as if she wanted to join in, but wasn't sure how. The thought made his gut twist. She probably hated him for that rose. He still felt guilty about it.

A memory flashed through his mind of her sleeping on the sofa with Luke cuddled in her arms. Daniel frowned. There was more than one color to Sara Kingston's personality. She seemed satisfied with being single and childless, yet she had obviously loved taking care of Luke. A caring woman with no one to care for.

He wouldn't mind letting her care for him.

But she wasn't interested, he admitted with a dismissing snort.

 

Sara stared at the box, then at Troy. “What's this?”

His mouth lifted in a secretive grin. “Don't blame me. Check the note. It's from Daniel.” He swallowed a chuckle and placed the box in her arms. “Merry Christmas.” Then, before she could protest, he made tracks down her sidewalk to his truck.

Something shifted inside the box, and Sara looked at it suspiciously. She heard a little whine and felt trepidation. “He wouldn't,” she muttered, stepping back inside the house.

Setting the box on the floor, she knelt beside it and tugged at the floppy bright red bow. Sara lifted off the top and stared into a pair of big brown eyes. The puppy let out a yip. Startled, Sara jumped, muffling her own sound of surprise.

“Oh, Daniel, what have you done?” she murmured. She studied the wiggling little animal with the floppy ears, lolling tongue and, to her dismay, huge paws. He cocked his head as if studying her in turn.

The gesture tugged at her heart. Sara sighed, and lifted him—she checked—it was a
him.
The bottom of the box was suspiciously wet. “What am I going to do with you? I always thought I'd be a cat person.”

She brought him close, relishing the sensation of his soft fur. He gave her nose a quick lick, snuggled against her for a moment, then wiggled free to investigate his surroundings.

Sara glanced at the carpet, wondering how long it would be safe. Looking back at the box, she snatched the envelope and opened it.

She'd had Daniel Pendleton figured all wrong. She'd thought he was the most solid, sensible, upstanding man she'd ever met.

 

“He's nuts,” she said to Troy later that night.

Troy laughed lightly. “I could have told you that.”

Sara cradled the phone and looked at the latest puddle on her kitchen floor. “I really need to speak to Daniel, please.”.

“He's…ah, not available. I'll give him a message.”

Sara frowned. “You've already said that three other times today. What am I supposed to do with this dog? You know, the Humane Society doesn't approve of surprising people with pets for gifts.”

“Daniel knew you'd like this one.”

“Daniel knew wrong. I have no idea what to do with this puppy.”

“Get a gate for the kitchen. Put a soft blanket in the box—”

“The box is wet.”

Troy snickered. “Get another box. If he won't go to sleep, try an alarm clock or a hot-water bottle, and call Daniel in two weeks.”

“Troy—” Sara heard the click and knew she was talking to a disconnected line. Hanging up her phone, she admitted to herself that she needed to talk to Daniel for more than one reason. Sara cringed in embarrassment when she remembered how upset she'd gotten over the rose Daniel had tried to give her. He probably thought
she
was nuts.

He'd brought the rose at a weak moment for her, and it seemed she was having more than her share of those lately. Her feelings for Daniel were getting stronger. Denial wasn't working. Her mind needed no provocation to drift to thoughts of him.

Over the next few days Sara repeatedly tried to get in touch with Daniel. She simply could not keep the dog. She didn't have the space. She was gone during the day. And the animal yipped all night.

By the end of the week she'd bought a license tag, leash, an assortment of dog toys and named him Pavi. She installed a gate in the kitchen doorway and sneaked home during lunch to take him for a walk. Whenever the cute little fellow greeted her, he wagged his tail so hard, he nearly lost his balance.

Sara faced the truth. She was now the owner of a dog.

 

Three days before Christmas, when everyone was finishing their last-minute shopping and doing their baking, the temperature shot up into the fifties, and Beulah County got twenty inches of rain within two hours.

Emergency volunteers were called in, and Carly and Sara closed the office to help at the community center. People brought in food and blankets. Medical personnel volunteered their services.

In the northern part of the county a few families had been trapped by the sudden deluge. Daniel and some other men worked late into the night to bring them to safety.

Sara was getting ready to leave the community center when Daniel finally showed up around midnight. Just seeing him kicked her nerve endings into overdrive. She watched him strip off the yellow rain poncho and push back the drenched hair from his head. Even from a distance she could see the weariness on his face. He must have felt her staring at him, because he looked up and held her gaze for several moments.

Her breath stopped. His face and body said he was tired, but the expression in his eyes said he wanted her. Badly. And Sara felt a tightening inside her. Her breasts felt heavy, her face went flushed and her upper thighs tingled.

He gave a quick nod and looked away. Sara swallowed hard. She'd spent so much energy denying, avoiding and rejecting her unwanted feelings for Daniel that she hadn't realized how much she'd missed him, just seeing him.

She felt uncomfortable about approaching him. What could she say that wouldn't sound idiotic? Especially since the last time she'd seen him, she'd burst into tears. Sara felt a flush of remorse and embarrassment creep up her cheeks. At a loss, she went to the food table where she'd been working with Carly most of the night.

“I see Daniel just walked in,” Carly said.

Sara nodded as she filled a plate for the man in front of her. “Yes. I noticed.”

“Bet he's hungry.”

She stopped and looked at Carly. Her friend had just provided the solution to her dilemma. Sara felt a slow smile grow from the inside out. “I'm sure he is.” She filled another plate, grabbed a canned drink and made her way across the room.

Daniel sat talking to a couple of men about the flood. Sara thought about turning around and letting them finish, then shook off her cowardice. She took a deep breath and stepped forward. “Excuse me. I thought you might be hungry.”

Daniel turned to look at her. Surprise flashed in his eyes. “Thanks. I am.”

He continued to look at her but said nothing else. The two men silently watched. Sara couldn't think of a single intelligent thing to say. She felt ridiculous. Clearing her throat, she took a step back. “Well, I—”

Daniel quickly stood, his gaze nailing her feet to the floor. “Don't go.”

Sara bit her lip, her gaze sliding to the onlookers.

Daniel narrowed his eyes. There was something different about her tonight. If he wasn't mistaken, he'd say she was a little more open to him, maybe a little softer, a little less guarded.
If
he wasn't mistaken. Sensing her self-consciousness, Daniel casually turned to the other men. “You guys are as hungry as I am. Go on and get your food, and we'll get together tomorrow morning.”