Jodi's Mail-order Man

“Jodie?” His hand covered her fingers and she jumped. “What do you say? A few weeks with my mother would be a great vacation. She’s a good cook and you can see all the tourist spots around Fairbanks.”

Her mouth dry, Jodie stared at the large male hand clasping hers. The cautious side of her said no, but the impulsive side said yes. She’d taken a lot of chances in her life; why not try one more time?

“I guess we could stay,” she said slowly. “For a few days at least.”

“Great.” He stood and collected the suitcases from beside the table. “Let’s go.”

Chapter Two

Donovan frowned as he looked at Jodie’s two suitcases. “This doesn’t look like enough for a month, not for the three of you.”

“There’s a larger bag I checked through,” she said. “I hope it got here safely. We had to change planes a couple of times.”

“Okay, we’ll go to the baggage claim area first.”

She called the children, lifting Penny into her arms so they could walk faster. Donovan wondered how she’d managed at each of the airports, handling both luggage and children by herself, then stopped wondering when he thought about the determined tilt to her chin.

It was too early to tell, but Jodie might be exactly what his brother needed.

Just what he needed?

Donovan mentally smacked his forehead. Cole didn’t need to get married, he needed his head examined. Marrying a woman like Jodie Richards might be appealing for the obvious reasons, but Cole had never seen her outside of a photograph. No matter how gorgeous she looked in that photo, it couldn’t be enough to make his brother’s hormones scream “marriage.”

“You got awfully quiet all of a sudden,” Jodie murmured, breaking his train of thought.

He cast a glance at her, noting the healthy pink color brought to her face by the exertion of walking and carrying Penny. Maybe he was silently arguing the merits of Cole’s proposed marriage because he was attracted to Jodie himself, but couldn’t make any moves on her. Only a heel would flirt with his brother’s fiancée.

“I was just trying to guess how you and Cole got hooked up together,” Donovan answered, more or less honestly. “He mentioned you lived in Florida, but he didn’t have time to explain much else.”

A small frown creased Jodie’s forehead, though he didn’t know if she was just thinking, or annoyed again. “My brother was stationed at Eielson Air Force Base a few years ago, and they got to be friends. As the story goes, David told Cole about me and suggested we start writing to each other.”

“Hmm.” Donovan suspected there was a lot more to the “story” than Jodie was saying. “Sounds simple enough.”

Jodie wrinkled her nose. “Not really. David is a lot like my father—which means he thinks he has the right to arrange everyone’s lives. At the beginning I wasn’t going to write back, but the first letter sounded interesting, so I…” She shrugged. “The McBride men can’t always be wrong, even if they do have the tact of stampeding buffalo.”

Donovan swallowed a laugh. He’d gotten an absurd image of Jodie holding a toreador’s cape as she fended off the men in her life. “How many ‘McBride men’ are there?”

“Five. Four brothers, one father.”

“All air force?”

“Except for Robert. He’s the black sheep in the family—he enlisted in the navy.”

“I see.” Donovan didn’t ask how Jodie fit into the picture, black sheep or otherwise. It was obvious that her family caused her a great deal of amused exasperation.

“You can imagine how well my father accepted the news,” she added, giving him a droll smile. “‘Third-generation air force and he wants to wear white sailor pants,”’ she mimicked.

“I guess the rivalry between the different armed services is just as intense as I’ve heard.” Donovan steered the small group downstairs.

Jodie shrugged. “At least it is for anyone who serves under my father’s command.”

“Including his family?”

“Especially his family,” she corrected. “It’s worse than being born into a dynasty. At least a dynasty doesn’t operate under military rules of engagement.”

Everything she said raised more questions for Donovan, questions he didn’t feel it was his place to ask. “Here we are,” he said as they approached the baggage claim area.

To his surprise, Jodie’s third suitcase wasn’t much bigger than the two she’d carried onto the plane. From his experience with flying tourists around Alaska, he’d gotten the notion that women always packed too much. Apparently she wasn’t guilty of that problem.

In the parking lot they belted Tadd and Penny into the back seat of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, which he’d borrowed from the local branch office of Triple M Transit. It was convenient being one-third owner of a business that provided service over most of Alaska. Whenever he visited from his home on the Kenai Peninsula, he was able to have his own ground transportation in Fairbanks.

He’d reached to open the passenger door when Jodie shifted her feet uncomfortably. “Uh, Donovan?”

His hand dropped. “Yes?” he asked cautiously.

“About what happened at the terminal…?”

“Yes?”

“I was just trying to be spontaneous. And I thought you were Cole, so I thought a kiss would be an icebreaker.” Jodie stopped, deciding her explanation was just making matters worse.

“You don’t want me to tell Cole, is that it?”

She gave him an annoyed look. “That isn’t ‘it’ at all. I just didn’t want you thinking I went around like that, kissing strange men.”

“Boy, that hurts.”

He sounded serious and she frowned. “What hurts?”

“I may be frustrated some of the time, but I’m not strange.”

Irritation tensed her jaw. “You know perfectly well what I meant.”

His golden-brown eyes laughed at her. “Your secret is safe with me.”

Jodie’s fingers tightened on the strap of her purse. It wouldn’t be civilized to hit him over the head with it, but she was tempted. “Would you stop…It’s not a secret.”

“You worry too much. It’s no big deal. And I’m to blame—I should have said something when Penny ran up calling me ‘Daddy.”’ He opened the door and bowed, sweeping his arm down and around in a grandiose gesture. “I bet my mother is planning a great dinner to welcome you to Alaska, so we’d better head out.”

Still glaring, Jodie hiked her slim-cut skirt up a couple of inches and climbed into the high seat of the vehicle. She should have worn slacks for the flight, but feminine vanity had won out over common sense.

It’s no big deal.

In all honesty, she wasn’t so upset about the teasing, it was the way he’d brushed off their kiss. Her lips still tingled from the brief contact with Donovan’s mouth, but he said it wasn’t a big deal.

Jodie drew a deep, calming breath into her lungs. She needed to get a grip. Women invested too much meaning into things like kisses. Men were better off without the kind of feminine second-guessing she went through.

Like now.

She twisted in the bucket seat of the vehicle, wishing life was a little simpler. It had seemed simple, coming to Alaska. She could get her children away from the stifling life on an air force base, give them a father and build a new life in a place she’d loved as a child.

Simple.

Until she’d mistakenly kissed her fiancé’s brother and gotten more confused than she’d felt in a long time.

Jodie looked around with restless energy. Donovan stood just outside the driver’s door, talking on a cell phone. She surreptitiously studied him, trying to understand the reasons he’d affected her so strongly. Anticipation? Perhaps that was the answer. For weeks she’d anticipated meeting Cole, hoping they’d like each other in person as much as they’d liked each other in their letters. The kiss was just a culmination of all that expectation and hopeful thinking.

Donovan punched a button, then dialed another number into the phone. He said a few words, waited, then said something else, his mouth tight with apparent irritation. After a long moment he nodded and opened the door.

“It’s Cole. He wanted me to call once you got here,” he said, handing over the phone.

Jodie swallowed and took the cell phone. Ah, the miracles of modern life. A man could take off for a climb on Mount McKinley and still apologize to the woman he’d promised to meet.

“Hello?” she murmured into the receiver.

“God, Jodie, I’m so sorry,” Cole exclaimed, his voice eerily similar to his brother’s. “I didn’t mean for this to happen, I swear. But they would have been forced to cancel the expedition if I didn’t go.”

She bit her tongue, literally, not wanting to say something she’d regret.

“You there, Jodie?”

“Yes. I understand this was the opportunity of a lifetime,” she murmured, congratulating herself on her steady tone. “I’m glad you were able to join the climb.”

“That’s great of you. I’ve go—”

Static crackled the line and she waited, wondering what else needed to be said. “Cole?”

“Sorry. This damn phone doesn’t get good reception up here, and it’ll be worse the higher up we go. I can’t talk long, but how did the kids take the trip? It’s a long way from Florida.”

“They’re fine. We stopped over in Denver for a couple of days.”

“That’s why I couldn’t reach you. Well…” His voice trailed and she could hear the sound of impatient voices in the background.

“You’d better go. We’ll talk when you get back,” Jodie said.

“Okay.” Another crackle of static followed, then silence.

She handed the phone to Donovan, who slipped it into his shirt pocket. “Did Cole straighten everything out?”

“What’s to straighten out?” she asked evenly.

“You know what I mean.”

Yeah, she knew. Donovan might be easygoing and laid-back the way Cole had described, but nothing seemed to escape his notice. Donovan realized she was upset that Cole had left, and that she was upset because she ought to understand his dream of climbing Mount McKinley. And she did understand, except now she had to question all over again whether Cole was the right man for her to marry. Men who craved dangerous challenges didn’t make ideal husbands.

“I think this is something between Cole and me,” she said firmly. It didn’t do any good to avoid Donovan’s knowing gaze, so she met it squarely.

“Fine.” Donovan started the engine and drove out of the lot.

Jodie glanced into the rear seat. Tadd and Penny were gazing around, curiosity in their eyes. Despite the turmoil in her thoughts, Jodie smiled at the way Tadd held his sister’s hand in a protective grasp.

It had always been that way. Since the moment Penny was born, her brother had assumed the role of protector. Though hardly old enough to understand, he’d realized she was small and defenseless. For an instant her smile wavered. She’d been pregnant with Penny and had almost lost her in those terrible months after Mark died.

“Hey. It’s not so terrible,” Donovan murmured, watching her face. “I’m sure Tadd will decide that a mountain climber is almost as good as a pilot.”

Jodie stiffened. She knew Donovan was just teasing her again. He didn’t know her husband had been killed in a plane, so he couldn’t understand how she felt. How could he? He was a pilot, just like Mark. And if Mark had survived that damned crash, he would have climbed aboard another jet as soon as he was able.

“Jodie?” Donovan’s teasing smile faded into concern. “I didn’t mean to say anything to upset you. Honest, you can’t take me seriously. I joke around too much.”

“Don’t be silly. I’m sorry Tadd was rude,” she said quietly, still keeping one eye on the back seat. Neither Penny or Tadd seemed aware of their conversation, but as the old saying went, little pitchers had big ears.

“At least Cole will always know where he stands.”

“That’s one way of putting it.”

Donovan chuckled at Jodie’s droll tone, though he sensed a forced quality in her voice. Something had brought a shadow to her catlike eyes.

With an effort he focused his attention on the road ahead. If Cole hadn’t gone on that climb, then he’d be here, worrying about Jodie’s eyes and the things that made her sad. Instead, it was big brother Donovan, always safe to call in an emergency. And it might have been safe if Jodie hadn’t mistaken him for Cole and given him a kiss that nearly knocked his shoes off.

A frown creased the space between his eyes. As kisses went, that one was utterly chaste. But it had made him see her first as a woman, instead of as a potential sister-in-law.

“Do your parents live far from here?” Jodie asked a few minutes later. They’d passed the city limits and were getting into a less-populated area.

Donovan flashed her a reassuring smile. “It’s just a few miles. I don’t really think of Shamus as my father. I’d already moved out and was working on the Alaska pipeline when Mom remarried.”

“That’s too bad.”

“But Cole is closer to Shamus. He was sixteen at the time, so it’s more like a father-son relationship between them.”

After another fifteen minutes Donovan turned down a neatly laid driveway of crushed rock. They wound through the trees for a quarter of a mile, then pulled up next to a massive log house halfway down the hill.

“It’s beautiful,” Jodie breathed, staring at the structure and surroundings with obvious pleasure.

“Not too bad.” He went to help her out, carefully ignoring the way her skirt rode up her legs. Earlier he’d caught a glimpse of Jodie’s smooth, tanned thighs and his temperature had gone up another few degrees, no doubt explaining his foul temper when he’d called Cole.

Donovan winced, thinking of the brief, biting comments he’d passed on to his little brother. He should have kept his mouth shut. The last thing Cole needed on a dangerous climb was something to break his concentration.

“Welcome to Alaska,” cried a voice. Donovan looked up in time to see his mother pull Jodie into a hug. “I’m so happy to meet you.”

“We’re happy to be here, Mrs. Carney. Cole wrote about you in his letters.”

“No, dear, please call me Evelyn. I’ve waited too long for a daughter-in-law to waste time being formal. Heavens, I thought neither one of my sons would ever get married.”

“Th-thank you. But we’re not married yet.” Jodie tried to catch her breath. Evelyn Carney crackled with bustling energy and good humor. She was surprisingly youthful, with just a few threads of silver in her brown hair and a fan of laugh lines at the corners of her eyes.

“But you will be, very soon. And I can’t wait to meet your children,” Evelyn said happily. She opened the Jeep’s door. “Aren’t you a darling?” She lifted Penny and held a hand out to Tadd. “And goodness, you’re so grown-up and handsome, young man.”

The genuine warmth and friendliness in her voice broke through Tadd’s usual reserve and he puffed with pride. “I’m eight.”

“That old? But you still like peanut butter cookies, right?”

Tadd nodded quickly.

“Oh, good. Because I have a whole plateful inside, along with a big pot of cocoa. I’ve always wanted a couple of grandchildren to spoil. Now I get my chance.”

Jodie watched bemused as Evelyn Carney disappeared into the house with Penny and Tadd. A warm hand at the small of her back made her jump.

“Mom does that,” Donovan murmured. His eyes, so much like his mother’s, were filled with affection. “I told you she loves kids.”

“Yes. She’s wonderful.” Jodie caught her lower lip between her teeth and dealt with a nagging stab of guilt. Evelyn had greeted her affectionately, but what would she think if she knew her much-anticipated daughter-in-law was already having doubts whether a marriage would take place?

Not that anything was decided. She couldn’t decide anything until Cole had finished his climb and she met him. But the climbing? She’d never feel comfortable about something so dangerous. On the other hand, maybe things could work out if Cole honestly intended to give it up.

“Cole said this would be his last chance to climb McKinley?” she asked, needing some kind of reassurance.

Donovan dropped his hand. “I got the impression he didn’t think it was a proper hobby for a married man,” he said carefully.

“It isn’t.” Without intending it, the words came out harsh, almost angry. Closing her eyes for an instant, Jodie took several deep breaths.

She wished she could explain she wasn’t angry with Cole, she was angry with herself. She’d married a man who cared more about going supersonic in his jets than being a family man. As a result, her children didn’t have their father, and that was the hardest part about losing Mark.

“Well,” she said finally, “I’d better go inside and make sure your mother doesn’t spoil Tadd and Penny too much. They aren’t used to doting grandparent types.”

“If you think my mom is bad, just wait until Shamus gets home.”

“Oh?” Jodie lifted her eyebrows as they climbed the steps to the porch.

“Yup. Shamus never had kids of his own, so he’s just as eager for grandkids as Mom.”

“You sound fond of him.”

Donovan paused. He’d never thought of it that way. Shamus Carney had always been somebody his mother cared about, someone who made her happy after years of being alone. “He’s all right.”

Jodie shook her head and stepped through the door he was holding for her. “Would it kill you to admit you like him?”

“Of course I like him.”

She shook her head again. Men had trouble expressing their feelings—at least the men she’d grown up with. It didn’t surprise her to discover Donovan had the same trouble.

Inside, Evelyn looked up with a pleased smile. “Donovan, give Jodie a tour of the house. I want you to feel right at home, Jodie. Shamus and I couldn’t be happier to have you.”

“Thank you.”

“See? Didn’t I tell you?” Donovan whispered as they left the kitchen. “Mom lives for company.”

The interior of the house was just as warm and welcoming as Evelyn herself. A number of bedrooms were in the back and on a second floor, but the front half was a large, unbroken space of wood and light, with high windows that encompassed the valley and mountains beyond. Colorful braided rugs were scattered on the polished oak floor, and native art accented the walls.

“That’s a Tlingit mask, right?” she asked, gazing at a rather fierce woodcarving over the couch.

Donovan blinked. Not only had Jodie correctly identified the cultural artisan, she’d used the proper pronunciation. “I guess you did live in Alaska.”

“You didn’t believe me?” Her hand trailed across the pattern of a Chilkat blanket hanging on another wall. She turned and looked at him with an odd intensity in her slender body. “Did you ever feel there was a place that waited for you, a place where your soul belonged, even when you were thousands of miles away? A place where the north winds call your name.”

The last was said so softly, Donovan barely heard, yet his scalp tightened in primitive response. It was as if she’d reached inside and opened a part of him he didn’t know existed. He’d traveled, sometimes for pleasure, sometimes for business, but Alaska was in his blood. It was, indeed, as though the north winds called his name.

“Never mind.” Jodie looked flustered. “I get carried away. Too poetic—at least that’s what my father used to say.”

“I don’t agree,” Donovan said simply. “Not everyone hears Alaska calling. I’m glad you do.”

Her smile took his breath away. “Even if I don’t marry Cole, I’m glad we came.”

Alarm and his growing sense of guilt drove other thoughts from Donovan’s head. “Even if you don’t marry Cole? You’ve changed your mind?”

Jodie shrugged. “You have to admit this isn’t the most promising beginning.”

“It’s just a…a…” Donovan thought furiously, trying to think of something that would keep Jodie from dumping his brother before she’d ever met him. Even if he didn’t agree with this marriage, he didn’t want to ruin things for Cole.

“It’s a what?”

“It’s just a temporary condition,” he muttered finally. “Maybe it’s even good. You can see Fairbanks and get acquainted with the family without any distractions.” Even as the words left his mouth, he silently groaned.

Jodie laughed. “Right. Every marriage should begin without the distraction of a groom.”

“Okay, you got me. You now know the Masters family secret—we have incurable foot-in-mouth disease. Mom?” he called. “Come rescue your son.”

Come rescue both your sons.

Evelyn had been ecstatic that Cole was considering marriage. And when Donovan had called from his cell phone to let her know about the children, she’d gotten more excited than ever. It didn’t matter that it was a mail-order marriage—she felt her sons were irresistible, and that any woman alive would fall in love with them.

His mother came out of the kitchen, smiling. “Is Donovan being difficult?” she asked Jodie. “You have to forgive him. He means well.”

“He’s relatively harmless,” Jodie said. “I’ve just been admiring your home. It’s lovely.”

Evelyn beamed. “And I’ve been admiring your children. Penny is the sweetest thing, and Tadd is so smart. You must be proud of them.”

A faint, pleased blush colored Jodie’s cheeks as she nodded. Donovan sat back in a chair, trying to decide why she was so damned attractive to him. He’d always avoided dating women with children. Somehow it didn’t seem right to have casual affairs with single mothers—sort of disrespectful, and certainly ripe for disaster. It might be different if he wanted to get married, but he didn’t.

“Daddy, cookie?” asked Penny’s voice next to him. She held out the cookie, bits of it crumbling away between her fingers.

“Oh, dear,” Jodie said, hurrying to her daughter. “You’re making a mess, munchkin. We’d better clean you up.”

“It’s all right, she won’t hurt anything,” Evelyn called, but Jodie had already swept Penny up and was disappearing into the kitchen. When the door had swung closed, Evelyn looked at her son and raised an eyebrow. “Daddy?”

He squirmed under her questioning gaze. “It’s a misunderstanding, that’s all.”

“A big misunderstanding. In case you’ve forgotten, your rank in this arrangement is ‘Uncle,’ not ‘Daddy.”’

Donovan agreed; he just didn’t know how to repair matters. “Jodie tried to explain it to Penny, but she just assumed I was going to be her new daddy…and for a little angel she’s remarkably stubborn.”

“She is an angel,” Evelyn agreed thoughtfully. “And I like Jodie, too, don’t you?”

“Yeah.” Donovan shot to his feet and paced the room. “She’s okay. Look, I’ve been thinking I’ll head back home to Kachelak. You and Shamus can show Jodie and the kids around Fairbanks, and I’ll get back to work.”

“Certainly not. You’re going to stay right here and get acquainted with your new sister-in-law. Besides, you can work out of your Fairbanks office. You’ve done it before.”

He turned and looked at his mother. “She isn’t my sister-in-law yet. And it’s not as convenient to work up here. It’s easier in Kachelak.”

“But you were coming up in a few days anyway,” she said stubbornly, “along with Mike and Ross and their families for the Golden Days celebration. You know, it’s been so nice since they got married—they’re all so happy together,” she murmured as though it was an entirely new thought, which it wasn’t. She played hostess to his partners on a regular basis and often urged her eldest son to find a “nice wife” of his own.

“Don’t,” Donovan warned.

“Don’t what, dear?”

“Don’t start in on the joys of marriage.” He usually laughed off her matchmaking efforts, but not today.

His mother’s smile was edged with mischief. “What’s wrong with marriage?”

“Of anyone, you ought to know,” he said tightly.

Most of the time Donovan didn’t think about the way his father had walked out, leaving a wife and two young boys to fend for themselves. It was harder to forget his mother struggling to clothe and feed them, not knowing what had happened to her husband, much less getting any support from him.