“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Adelaide said the following morning.
Wyatt emerged from his pickup truck and walked around to open her door. He gave her a gentlemanly hand down, much as if they had been on a date. Leaning over, he brushed his lips across her temple. For show? Or for real? It was impossible to tell.
Straightening, he smiled down at her. Then promised, “It’s just a few hours.”
Adelaide shivered, whether from the wintry February air or nerves, she did not know. “And a lot of scrutiny.”
Wyatt wrapped a protective arm about her waist as he led her down Main Street toward his sister’s coffee shop and bakery, The Cowgirl Chef.
“From afar.” He leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Hope promised the paparazzo she hired to follow us around on our errands wouldn’t get closer than a thousand feet.”
Adelaide leaned into the curve of her husband’s body, appreciating the warmth and strength. Her pulse pounding, she stopped to turn and look up at him. “Problem is, we don’t know in which direction Marco Maletti will be shooting us from,” she whispered.
Wyatt tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Like Hope said, it’s best we don’t know. Otherwise, it wouldn’t look as if we were getting surreptitiously photographed. It’s got to seem like these are unguarded moments.”
When something was happening between them.
Something romantic, Hope had stressed.
Adelaide felt the heat pour into her face. “I don’t know if I’m cut out for this,” she confided in a trembling tone. She already felt ridiculously self-conscious.
He leaned down, and his lips brushed hers. “Then just don’t think about it,” he murmured huskily.
The next thing she knew, his arms were wrapped all the way around her, and his mouth was on hers. Hot and insistent. Patient and sweet. Caressing. Tempting. Her body responded with a tidal wave of lust.
Telling herself this was all for show and not what she really wanted deep down in her heart, Adelaide wrapped her arms about his neck and rose on tiptoe, pressing her body fully against the hardness of his. Avidly, she met his kiss.
And that was when they heard it.
Guffaws. Followed by a loud cough.
They broke apart and turned in time to see two of Wyatt’s brothers, Chance and Garrett, grinning from ear to ear.
Both were in on Hope’s plan to battle the rumors with an emerging “story” of their own. “Too bad Mom’s not here to see this,” Chance ribbed.
Garrett ran a hand along his jaw, teasing, “She’d think her fondest wish was coming true.”
Lockhart family unity was also on Hope’s agenda of things to be publicly demonstrated. Although in this case the action synched with Adelaide’s instinct, too.
The members of the Lockhart clan were famously strong individually. United, they were invincible. It made her feel a lot safer, knowing that she and the twins were now part of the famous Texas family.
“Nice to see you.” Adelaide went to give both big men a warm and welcoming hug. Like Wyatt, his brothers were tall and fit, with rangy muscular frames.
Chance winked. “Mom’d probably also tell you to get a room.” Adelaide blushed, and they all laughed.
Garrett flashed a devilish smile. “Where are the little ones?”
Glad to have something else to focus on besides her PDA with their brother, Adelaide answered, “At the Circle H. Lucille and Hope are going to bring them into town in a little while.”
Arm locked around her waist, Wyatt wheeled Adelaide in the direction of his sister’s bistro. “Meantime, we’ve got a breakfast to get.”
“Lots of luck.” The brothers inclined their handsome heads down the street, where a line was coming out the door. “Sage has her usual crowd.”
All of whom, as it turned out, wanted to congratulate Adelaide and Wyatt on their “news.”
“Looks like love is in the air,” the mayor said with a wink. “And it’s not even Valentine’s Day yet.”
“Didn’t the two of you elope on Valentine’s Day?” his wife asked.
Wyatt grinned proudly. “Ten years ago.”
“So you’ve got an anniversary coming up,” Nurse Bess Monroe observed.
Her twin, Bridgett, winked. “The traditional gift is tin.”
Family law attorney Liz Anderson said, “That’s changed with the times. These days, the gift is supposed to be diamonds.”
“I can’t see Wyatt wearing diamonds,” Rebecca Carrigan-McCabe said teasingly.
Octogenarian Tillie Cartwright squinted. “He’d look good in tin, though.”
Chuckles abounded.
“Speaking of Valentine’s Day, are the two of you volunteering for the Laramie Chili Festival?” the mayor asked.
It was a major fund-raiser for the community. As well as a good time.
“I’m manning the cutting-horse training demonstration at the fairgrounds,” Wyatt said.
“Adelaide?”
“I’m on the planning committee for the Lockhart Foundation, and I also signed up for shifts in the LF Information booth as well as the WTWA Go Fishing game for children.”
“She’s also going to be assisting me,” Wyatt added.
Adelaide whirled, a question in her eyes.
“Looks like it’s news to your wife,” Travis Anderson observed.
Adelaide batted her lashes comically. “I guess that must mean we are married.”
Everyone laughed.
“Well, we’re happy to have you both,” the mayor said.
They chatted a little more, enjoying the warm congratulations from the community, then Wyatt and Adelaide walked out and headed across the street to the local park.
They sat side by side on a bench, munching on iced Danish pastry, stuffed with almonds, and made in the shape of bear claws. “You have to work today?” Wyatt asked.
“For about four hours this afternoon,” Adelaide said, aware how cozy this all was.
“Can it be done at the ranch?”
“It’s work for the foundation, so I need to do it at their office, on their computer system.”
Which had state-of-the-art cybersecurity protection and more firewalls than anyone thought was necessary. But after the embezzlement scandal the previous summer, Adelaide wasn’t about to take any chances. Or make it possible for her father, the foundation’s previous CFO, to strike again.
Intuiting her need for comforting, Wyatt draped his arm along the back of the bench. “What about the twins?”
She snuggled against him, loving his warmth and his strength. “I’ve been taking them with me when I have to go in. There’s usually no shortage of people willing to pitch in and hold Jake and Jenny if need be. Although most of the time they usually sleep. Probably because there actually are an abundant number of people willing and ready to hold them,” she quipped. Unable to help herself, she scanned the surrounding landscaped areas. Saw nothing. No one. Which meant what? The paparazzo wasn’t here yet, or he was? In any case, they wouldn’t be able to spot him at that distance.
She turned back to Wyatt. Unlike her, he was totally relaxed and oblivious. “You?” she asked.
Playfully, he nudged his thigh against hers. “Troy and Flint can handle things at Wind River today.”
“Do you have anything else you need to do today?”
He grinned sexily. “Just be with you.”
That should have been comforting. Having him shadowing her. There to help with their twins while she recorded the latest donations, did the foundation payroll and updated the LF books. But right now all she could think about was her unoccupied home. Feeling more jittery than ever, Adelaide took another hasty sip of coffee, started to rise. “Listen, as long as we’re in town, why don’t we...?”
Firm hand on her shoulder, Wyatt tugged her back down and delivered another long, toe-curling kiss.
Finding she was just as susceptible to his brazen seduction as ever, Adelaide drew back breathlessly. “What was that for?”
He waggled his brows. “In case Marco Maletti didn’t get the last one.”
“Is he here?”
Wyatt’s eyes twinkled. “I assume so.”
She let her gaze rove over his handsome face and powerfully built frame. “Meaning you haven’t seen him?”
He looked at her, as if completely besotted. “Haven’t really tried.” He traced her lips with the pad of his thumb. Bent down to kiss her again. “I’ve been too busy looking at you.”
“I really don’t think...”
He captured her lips with his. When she could finally breathe again, Adelaide said, “You’re enjoying this.”
He caught her hand and held it over his heart. “Aren’t you?”
“Heck, yes. But I’m not in the habit of making out in the middle of Laramie.”
He tunneled his hands through the windswept strands of her hair, bent his head. And kissed her...cheek. “Maybe you should be.” His lips ventured to the sensitive area just beneath her ear. As he worked his magic, it was all she could do not to moan out loud. There was absolutely nothing she could do about the dampness between her thighs.
Adelaide shut her eyes as another wave of desire sifted through her. Heaven help her. The reckless, wild boy—the one who had caused her so much trouble in her youth—was back.
“Your mother wouldn’t approve,” she argued weakly, sensing he was about to try to kiss her—really kiss her—again.
“Actually,” Wyatt said with a grin, “I think she does.”
Adelaide bolted upright. “What?”
He nodded. “She’s over there, parked in front of the coffee shop. Waving. Looks like she was about to send Hope over to get us. To let us know the twins are here.”
Was this Step 3 or 4 or 5 of their fight-fire-with-fire plan? Adelaide couldn’t remember. She was so dazed from their smoldering hot make-out session.
She rose on wobbly legs. “Time to take them on a stroll?”
“Apparently so.”
They walked across the street. A delighted Lucille approached them, just as the sun peeked through the clouds. “Everything’s going well, I take it?”
“Oh, yes,” Adelaide said. If you could discount how real it all felt, that was.
As Wyatt got the convertible double stroller out of the rear seat of his pickup truck, her phone went off.
She stepped back to answer it. Saw a Snapchat had come in from someone she’d gone to college with.
Curious, she tapped on the icon and instantly her screen was filled with a photo. Not of any of her pals, but of a deeply tanned fiftysomething man, with spiky peroxide bleached-yellow hair, a salt-and-pepper goatee, tropical shirt and cargo pants. He had a camera slung around his neck, earrings glinting from both ears. Sunglasses covered his eyes. She couldn’t say how tall, but five feet ten inches seemed about right. He was a little chunky around the middle and had a gorgeous beach behind him. The message Can’t Wait To See You and the Kids! flashed across the screen.
Causing Adelaide to take another, harder look.
Could that be...
My God.
Was that her father?
His nose was all wrong.
And he’d gained weight. Changed his hair.
But the rest of him...
The image disappeared. Meaning ten seconds had passed.
Wyatt and Lucille were both looking at her. “Is everything okay?” Lucille asked.
Adelaide thought about everything the matriarch and her entire family had already been through. Thanks to her criminal dad.
A chill went down her spine.
Ignoring the curiosity and concern in Wyatt’s eyes, she forced a smile. “Yes. I just remembered something. Is it okay if I meet the two of you over at my house? I really need to check out the framing for the foundation of the new addition. See how that’s going.”
Without waiting for permission, tacit or otherwise, she rushed off.
“This wasn’t the plan,” Lucille said worriedly as Adelaide drove off in Wyatt’s pickup truck, while he and his mom pushed the double stroller down Main Street. Wyatt knew that, and even worse, he sensed his wife was keeping something from him. Again. He hoped it was just about her house. Some unexpected—and probably costly—problem there she did not want to discuss.
He soothed his mother with a reassuring smile. “Adelaide and I can walk Jake and Jenny in her neighborhood, instead of the park, Mom. It will be fine.” Which, as it happened, was only three blocks from historic downtown Laramie anyway.
Lucille fretted. “She looked white as a ghost to me.”
To me, too, Wyatt thought. But there was no need to worry his mom. He pointed out casually, “Renovating can be nerve-racking, even when you have a normal amount of sleep.”
His attempt to change the subject worked. “How are things going with the twins?” Lucille asked.
They make great chaperones. “We’re still trying to get them on a schedule,” he admitted.
“It’ll happen. Although, in addition to the wind-up infant swings we brought you, you might try...” His mom proceeded to give him a dozen tips. Most of which went right in one ear and out the other because he was so focused on wondering what was going on with Adelaide.
Lucille squinted at him as they reached the front of Adelaide’s home. Construction trucks were parked all around. “You think I’m interfering, don’t you?”
I think you don’t trust me to be as capable as my siblings would be in this situation. And we both know why.
But figuring it was best to let the ghosts of old problems recede into the past where they belonged, he said instead, “I think we’re all doing our best, Mom, which is all we can do. Right?”
Lucille offered a smile so dubious it hurt. “Right.”
Wyatt pushed aside his resentment. “Do you want to come inside?” he asked politely.
At the rear of the cottage, there was a lot of sawing and hammering going on. Lucille wheeled the stroller in the opposite direction. “I think I’ll walk a little more. I don’t want the construction noise to wake up our little darlings.”
“Okay. I’ll get Adelaide and be right out.”
Familiar voices floated toward him as Wyatt walked in. Although the rear walls of her home were still intact, big drapes of heavy duty plastic had already been hung from ceiling to floor. Through the windows, Wyatt could see half a dozen workers putting together the frame for the addition to the cement foundation.
In the kitchen, his brother Chance and his wife, Molly, stood with Adelaide, who looked increasingly uneasy.
“So everything looked good to you, when you got here this morning?” Adelaide was asking.
The couple nodded. “Yeah. It was fine,” Chance said.
Molly put her hand on Adelaide’s shoulder. “Are you worried about your house being unoccupied?”
Adelaide hesitated as Wyatt closed the distance between them. “A little,” she admitted as he took his place next to her.
“In a city as big as Dallas, that might be warranted,” Molly soothed. “But here? No one is going to bother your stuff, Adelaide. Even if you left your door unlocked, it would still be fine.”
Wyatt had the feeling that wasn’t it. “Okay,” Adelaide said.
“You ready to walk the twins?” he asked.
Behind him, more footsteps sounded. After a short rap at the door, Deputy Detective Kyle McCabe walked in.
Adelaide had only to look at Wyatt’s face to know he had completely misunderstood why the uniformed lawman was there. Figuring she’d know how to deal with that later, she smiled and said hello to their visitor, who also happened to be one of the first people she’d met in the community she now called home.
“Hey, Adelaide.” Kyle gave her an affable hug, then turned to Wyatt. After the two men shook hands, Kyle continued, “I didn’t know if you’d be by to check on the renovations today...”
He did however know about the creepy message she had just received, Adelaide thought. And—thanks to the surveillance software the department had installed on her phone—exactly where to find her. Not just now, but at all times.
“...but I’m glad I saw your vehicle because my parents tasked me with giving you a baby gift.”
“That’s sweet of them.”
“They know how it is to deal with multiples...”
Adelaide chuckled. “I guess so, since they had five boys—triplets and twins!”
“Anyway, they thought whatever the gift is might help. So—” Kyle gave her a look that signaled he needed to speak with her privately “—it’s out in the squad car.”
“I can get it,” Wyatt offered.
Guilt and anxiety flooded Adelaide. She had promised not to keep things from Wyatt but she had also privately vowed not to ever hurt him—or his family—unnecessarily again.
She would tell him everything—as soon as she could. Meantime, she would do what had to be done.
So, tensing with the duplicity required, Adelaide turned back to her husband. Aware it was all she could do not to wring her hands, said, “Actually, would you mind going up the block and seeing if your mom needs some help? That double stroller can feel like a lot to push after a while.”
Wyatt paused. Then met her gaze with a completely inscrutable one of his own. “Sure.” He shook hands with Kyle again. “Nice to see you.”
“Likewise.”
While Wyatt headed off to catch up with his mom, who was almost to the next cross street, Adelaide walked out to the squad car with Kyle. The beautifully wrapped present was sitting on the front seat. “Is that a real gift or just a ploy to see me?”
“Both.”
“You saw the photo-message on Snapchat?”
Kyle nodded imperceptibly. “Was it your dad?”
“I think so,” Adelaide said nervously. “I mean his nose and his entire look were different, but yeah, I think so.” It was an effort to stay casual. “Were you able to record the photo?”
“Yep.” Kyle reached into the front seat and got the package. “Have you told your husband what’s been going on?”
Guilt flooded her anew. She and Wyatt had promised to be direct with each other...and here she was, already lying and hiding. “No.”
“Good.” Kyle handed the box to Adelaide. “Don’t.”
“He’s going to get suspicious,” Adelaide warned.
“The last thing we need is him interfering with our investigation by trying to protect you. You can tell him everything when it’s all over.” Kyle paused meaningfully. “But nothing, not a word, Adelaide, before then. I mean it.”
Adelaide gulped nervously and nodded her head. She prayed this didn’t backfire.