Kael Read online

  Was he making the right decision, demanding a blood test? What if he was Travis’ father? What would the boy think of him then? How could he explain his absence without casting either Rose or Daisy in a bad light?

  Kael blew out his breath. What a mess! A lonely boy without a father. A hardworking woman trying to make ends meet. A wealthy cowboy, aimless and unhappy, without any goals left in life. Sad, really, that they were isolated from each other when they should be together.

  The thought caught in Kael’s mind and hammered at him. They could be a family. Yeah. Sure. As if Daisy would ever forgive him.

  His fault. All his fault.

  No. Although he certainly wasn’t blameless, Daisy had brought a lot of this upon herself. If she’d been honest with him, he could have been here to help her through the hard times. Daisy had known nothing but hard work her entire life. The woman had no idea how to have fun.

  It was a wonder, Kael marveled, that he and Daisy had ever gotten together at all. They were such opposites. She was stable, solid, dependable. He was flexible, rootless, wayward. She, quiet. He, wild. Daisy was self-contained, while he’d hungered for the limelight.

  Of course, she’d been the one person who hadn’t fallen at his feet, and he’d respected her for that. In fact, Kael remembered with a wry smile, he’d had a devil of a time convincing her to even go out with him.

  He’d lived next door to Daisy Hightower all his life, but he’d never thought of her as a woman until the summer she turned sixteen just a few short months before her parents’ fatal automobile accident.

  He’d been checking on the cattle for his father when he spotted Daisy working in the apiary. Her long red hair, unencumbered by a bee veil, glistening in the early morning sunlight. She’d looked like a fairy princess—lithe, lissome, and completely captivating.

  Her lean, graceful body had been encased in white coveralls that could not camouflage her spectacular figure. The sight of her had taken his breath. His body’s response had been swift and immediate.

  He’d known it was Daisy right off the bat. Rose had little interest in the bees. She spent her spare time riding horses and chasing boys. No, from the very start it had always been Daisy.

  She’d been humming under her breath, a soft, lilting melody, and Kael recalled thinking she was the most incredible creature he’d ever seen.

  Forever cocky and sure of himself, he’d sauntered over to the fence row and called out to her.

  “Hey, good-looking.”

  She’d sent him a look that would have withered grapes into raisins and kept going about her business.

  “Perhaps I should have said, Miss Stuck-Up,” he goaded.

  Daisy ignored him.

  He’d flung a leg across the fence and climbed over onto the Hightower property.

  “You’re trespassing, Mr. Carmody,” she had said without even looking up from her work. Bees buzzed around her like she was their queen. Kael didn’t blame them for their devotion. She was the most majestic girl he’d ever seen. Aloof, detached, poised, and serene.

  “What are you going to do about it, Miss Hightower?” he’d asked, coming toward her.

  She’d raised her head, and her eyes met his.

  Even now, years later, the recollection of that exchange raised something deep within him—an odd sensation of panic and euphoria as if he’d met his match and she was far too good for him.

  “You really aren’t interested in tangling with my bees, are you, Mr. Carmody?”

  “You’re kidding, right?” He’d allowed a killer grin to spread across his face.

  She never cracked a smile. “Am I?”

  “You wouldn’t have your attack bees sting the greatest bull rider ever born, now would you?”

  “I might. If such a man were in the vicinity.”

  “I’m the greatest bull rider ever born.” He’d thrust out his chest in a preening gesture, an arrogant eighteen-year-old.

  She’d been completely unimpressed. Daisy had rolled her eyes and turned her back to him. “Ever heard of humility?”

  Quickly, he’d circled around to face her again.

  “Hey, can you really make the bees sting someone?”

  “Try me.”

  He hadn’t braved to take the dare, but from that moment on, he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Daisy.

  He’d pestered her, asking her out two or three times a week.

  She’d fed him a passel of excuses. Most of them legitimate: she was too busy helping out on the honey farm in her spare time; she was an honor student and had to maintain a high grade-point average in order to get into the college of her choice; her parents were old-fashioned and

  wouldn’t allow her to date until she was seventeen.

  But Kael kept after her until she told him the truth—that she just wasn’t interested in someone stupid enough to risk his neck by climbing onto the back of a bull.

  Rebuffed for the first time, Kael refused to take rejection lying down.

  Daisy had been cool, distant, but once a while, she’d offered him just enough encouragement. A smile, a chuckle, a coy sideways glance. Whenever she’d come to the rodeo arena to watch Rose race barrels, Kael flirted with her. Daisy would pick up a book and pretend to read.

  “Are you shy?” Kael asked one day. “Or just rude.”

  “Rude,” she’d answered.

  “All the other girls think I’m one heck of a guy, why don’t you?”

  “Do the words arrogant jerk mean anything to you?”

  “Ah, come on, Daisy, give me a chance. I’m not so bad.”

  “Says you.”

  “One date with me, and you’ll change your opinion,” he wheedled. “How about it?”

  “Don’t hold your breath, Kael.”

  He gave her his best “sad puppy dog” expression. “Please.”

  “Why don’t you quit bothering me and go out with Rose. For some crazy reason, she thinks you’re charming.”

  “I don’t want to go out with Rose. I want to go out with you.”

  She’d given him a dubious look. “Everyone wants to go out with Rose.”

  “Not me.”

  “Why not? We look exactly alike. Pretend she’s me.”

  “I don’t want to date you for your beauty.”

  Both Daisy’s eyebrows had shot up on her forehead. “Oh, that’s believable.”

  “I can’t help it. You intrigue me.”

  “Only because I won’t go out with you.”

  Kael shrugged. “Gotta confess, I love a challenge.”

  “All right.” Daisy sighed. “If I agree to have a cold drink with you, will you promise to leave me alone after that?”

  He’d been so happy, he’d tossed his hat in the air and shouted, “Yippee.”

  His happiness, however, had been short-lived. Before he and Daisy had had a chance to sip that cold drink together in the worn vinyl booth at an old-fashioned soda fountain inside the Rascal drugstore, Daisy’s parents had been killed in an automobile accident.

  For the first few weeks, he’d stayed out of her way, giving the sogginess of immediate grief time to ease. Then he’d shown up on her doorstep, offering to help around the honey farm.

  Daisy, as he had expected she would, refused. But Rose and Aunt Peavy had embraced his help, giving him chores to do and rewarding him with home-cooked meals. Eventually, Daisy had come to rely on him, too, even though she never admitted it.

  Kael shook away the memory and smiled wistfully from where he crouched beside the fence row. He gazed across the pasture, studying the child that might be his son as the boy climbed higher into the branches of the ancient oak tree.

  A few minutes later, Daisy came out on the patio and called Travis in for supper. Kael’s stomach scaled his throat at the sight of her.

  Lordy, but she was beautiful—her red hair caught in her signature ponytail and her lean body wrapped in tight blue jeans and a faded western shirt. She wore no makeup or jewelry, but Daisy didn’t need
such things. Her loveliness was the natural kind that outshone any professional runway model or sleek, sophisticated actress. Daisy was a down-to-earth woman. She didn’t mind getting her hands dirty or breaking a fingernail or sweating. She worked. Hard. Had her whole life. Strange, really, how she and her identical twin sister, Rose, had come from the same background but turned out so differently.

  He swallowed hard.

  Daisy placed her hands on her hips and looked briefly toward the ranch before turning her attention to the apiary. He caught a glimpse of her face. Her eyes were worried, her mouth pressed into a firm line.

  How he longed to put a smile on those lovely lips, but it seemed as if he just kept adding to her suffering.

  What he wouldn’t give to hear her laugh again! The woman roused in him such an intense fighting spirit. A spirit Kael had only previously experienced on the back of a bucking bull.

  Actually, Miss Daisy was much more dangerous than any rip-snorting Brahma. The bull might have macerated his leg, but Daisy had mangled his heart.

  Kael still felt the pain. A deep lingering ache he feared might never heal. Such a crying shame. They had once had so much potential. Could they ever hope to bridge the chasm separating them?

  Daisy sank her hands on her hips and called to Travis again.

  Observing her, Kael tried his best to ignore the burning in his gut. Seven years, and his unintentional betrayal stretched between them. He lost his window of opportunity with her. The most he could hope for was to become a good father to his child.

  Daisy and Travis disappeared into the house.

  Kael sighed and got to his feet. The odor of charred grass clung to the air. He dusted his hands on the seat of his pants. Perhaps Daisy was right. Maybe he should simply leave well enough alone and not proceed with the blood test. Yet part of him balked at the idea. He’d made a lot of mistakes, and he didn’t want to compound them. Whether Daisy liked it or not, he had to know if Travis was his son.

  DAISY PUT OFF TELLING Travis about the blood test for as long as she dared. Sunday evening, after supper was over and the dishes had been washed, she called him into the kitchen.

  Aunt Peavy was snoring gently on the couch, the television set tuned in to a rerun of The Golden Girls. A stack of unpaid bills sat on the sideboard awaiting Daisy’s attention, and the clock on the wall ticked loudly as if counting down her fate.

  “Sit down, son.” Daisy indicated the chair with a nod.

  “Did I do something wrong?” Travis fretted.

  Unfortunately, the child took after her. She wished he wasn’t such a worry wart.

  “No, honey, I just need to talk to you.”

  “Is it about money?”

  Daisy heaved a deep breath. “Sweetheart, you don’t have to be concerned about money. I’ll take care of that.”

  Travis said nothing, just eased into the chair and stared down at his hands.

  Clearing her throat, Daisy wondered how to begin. “I’m keeping you out of school tomorrow,” she said at last.

  The boy’s head came up. “How come?”

  “I’m taking you to the doctor in Rascal.”

  Travis’ face blanched pale. “What’s the matter?”

  “You need to have some blood work done.”

  “I’m not sick.”

  Panic shone in her son’s eyes, and Daisy knew she’d taken the wrong track. Travis was too smart to be easily assuaged, but he was too young to be told the whole truth.

  “No, you’re not sick.” She quickly backpedaled. “This is a different kind of test.”

  Travis frowned. “Do I have to?”

  Daisy swallowed. Dang you, Kael. Her only goal in life was to take care of Travis. “I think it would be a good idea.”

  “But why?”

  “Well,” Daisy hedged, postulating the excuse she’d devised over the past few days. “Your teacher has been a little worried about you.” This was true enough. On more than one occasion Travis’ teacher had expressed concern over the boy’s quiet disposition.

  His brows drew down in a frown. “Worried about me? How come?”

  “You’ve been so sad lately, and you hardly ever play with the other kids. I thought it might be a good idea to see the doctor to make sure something isn’t wrong.”

  Travis studied his feet. “Wanna know why I’m sad?”

  Her heart caught in her chest as his words rent a hole through her. “Yes, sweetie. I want to know everything about how you’re feeling.”

  “I’m sad ’cause I don’t have a daddy like everyone else. Even kids whose parents are divorced got daddies, but not me. Jimmy’s even got two daddies!”

  “Oh, baby, come here.” Daisy gathered him to her breast.

  His despair cleaved her right in two. How long had this been bothering Travis? Poor kid. Perhaps it wouldn’t be such a bad thing if Kael turned out to be his father.

  “Maybe you’ll have a daddy someday.”

  Travis face brightened. “You think so?”

  “Who knows, maybe I’ll get married someday.”

  “Really?”

  Daisy smiled. “Stranger things have happened. In the meantime, I still think we need to have you checked out by a doctor. Okay?”

  “Okay.” Travis nodded.

  “Come on,” she said, “time for bed.”

  She ushered him through the kitchen, her mind whirling. The boy deserved to know his father. But Daisy dreaded what Kael might do if he was Travis’ father. He was a wealthy man accustomed to getting his way. Would he try to take control of the boy’s upbringing? Or worse, would he attempt to wrest custody from her entirely? Daisy clenched her fists. Anxiety, dark and cloying, took hold of her and refused to let go.

  Travis slipped his small hand in hers, and Daisy clutched it tightly. They ascended the stairs together. Mother and son. Alone. As they had been for over six years.

  And until recently they’d gotten along just fine. Or perhaps she had just wanted to think they were doing fine. She’d had no idea Travis was pining for a father. Daisy bit her lip. Had she been wrong all this time, keeping Travis from Kael?

  What about Kael? a voice in the back of her head asked. How does he fit into this picture?

  Indeed, what about him? Their relationship had ended a long time ago. The man couldn’t still harbor feelings for her. He’d never once tried to contact her after he left.

  Why not? You still harbor feelings for him.

  I do not! Daisy denied hotly.

  And even if she did have the faintest of feelings for the man, she couldn’t forgive him.

  So why, when Kael kissed her on Friday afternoon in the bee field, had Daisy been transported back in time? What was it about his lips that drove all common sense from her mind? Why did the man possess the ability to turn her mind to instant oatmeal with a mere glance?

  For that brief moment when he kissed her, she’d been nineteen again and falling deeply in love.

  Her reaction to Kael’s kiss had reminded her what a fool she’d been to lose her head over a footloose male with a roving eye. It was only her prideful nature that had prevented her from declaring her love to keep him from leaving town seven years ago. Now she was so glad she hadn’t.

  This way Kael would never know for sure how she felt about him. And that’s exactly where she wanted him, squarely off balance.

  Because if Travis was his son, then the man had her over a barrel. She’d have to let him see the boy. Much as she hated to admit it, he needed a paternal influence. And once Kael was back in her life, would she be stupid enough to fall in love with him again?

  Dang.

  She was torn, conflicted. She wanted Travis to know his father and yet she really didn’t want to share her child with anyone. Especially someone as pushy and opinionated as Kael.

  Running Travis’ bath water while he shucked off his T-shirt and blue jeans, Daisy tested the temperature with her elbow before dumping in the bubble bath. The fresh smell of soap teased her nose, and bubbles flo
ated gaily above the tub.

  At this point, there was only one thing left to do. Pray furiously that Kael was not the father of her boy.

  Chapter Six

  FOR ONCE KAEL’S INFAMOUS cool failed him.

  He could straddle a wild bull without a second thought, but the idea of becoming a ready-made father had him shaking in his boots. In the matter of a few hours, the course of his life might be irrevocably changed forever, altered in ways he couldn’t imagine.

  Early morning dew still clung to the grass blades when Kael pulled into Daisy’s driveway. His stomach was wadded in such knots he’d been unable to eat breakfast, and he felt oddly tongue-tied. How much had Daisy told the boy about the trip into Rascal?

  Daisy and Travis waited for him on the front porch. With their solemn faces, they looked as if they were headed for a funeral.

  Travis wore starched blue jeans and a crisp white shirt, and Daisy had on a knee-length, black dress that showed off her shapely legs. Her vibrant hair was upswept in a severe bun, and her feet were shod in sensible flats.

  Kael caught his breath at the sight. Even in such plain garb, Daisy was a stunner. He opened the door and climbed out at the same time they walked over to meet him.

  “Morning.” Kael doffed his Stetson.

  “Good morning,” Daisy replied primly.

  Travis mumbled something.

  They all three pretended to study their feet.

  “Thanks for taking us to the doctor’s office,” Daisy mumbled. “We really appreciate you giving us a ride, Mr. Carmody, since the green monster is out of commission.”

  Kael angled her a look. Mr. Carmody? Was this a cue to how she wanted him to behave around Travis? What had she told the boy about this doctor visit?

  “No problem.”

  Travis squinted against the sun edging up the horizon and peered at Kael. “I gotta have a blood test.”

  “I heard.” Kael nodded. He searched Daisy’s face for clues, but she carefully avoided his gaze.

  “It’s making sure I’m not sick or anything.”

  “That sounds like a good idea.” Nervously, Kael clasped his hands together, the magnitude of the situation registering for the first time. He was about to discover if he had a six-year-old son.