The Forest Ranger's Child

“Mine?” Confusion filled her mind.

“If you’ve got the gumption to stay this time, I’ll give him to you, Lily. I figure we can turn Peg to stud. Now you’re here, we can build Emerald Ranch up again like it used to be when your mother was alive.”

She froze, her mind racing. In spite of everything, Dad wanted her to stay. To help run the ranch. And from the looks of things, he needed her help. Badly.

His request touched her like nothing else could. And yet, she knew it was futile to think of staying. Maybe Dad loved her in his own way but he didn’t like her much. They just didn’t get along. They never had. She couldn’t stand to spend the rest of her life arguing with him. “But you can do that, Dad, can’t you?”

He shook his head. “If you’re not here, I have no reason to work the ranch anymore.”

His words shocked her. He loved Emerald Ranch, just as she did. “But Emerald Ranch is your whole life.”

“No, Lily.” He looked at her, his hazel eyes piercing her to her soul. “The ranch isn’t my life. You are. And now that baby you’re carrying.”

She’d never expected to hear such words from her father. He hadn’t said he loved her, but he couldn’t put his feelings more bluntly. Her heart gave a powerful squeeze.

“I’ve been a bit under the weather lately,” he said. “I’m getting old and my body’s wearing out. I just can’t do it alone anymore.”

Something was wrong here. Something she didn’t understand. Was Daddy ailing? She’d speak with Dr. Kenner when she went in for her next prenatal appointment. He’d been the family’s doctor since she was born. Hopefully he knew something about Dad’s hacking cough and why he didn’t seem to have as much energy anymore. And in that moment, she felt so selfish. Dad had always been here, waiting. Bigger than life. Too tough to ever die.

Or was he?

He stared at her, not quite smiling, his eyes aglow with expectancy. “Well? What do you think, darlin’? It’ll take a lot of work, but once you have the baby, you can start training horses again. We can make a go of this together. Mom would be so happy if she were here.”

He talked as if he expected her to stay. As if he expected her to keep the baby. “Dad, I think we should talk about this a little more. I’m not sure I can—”

“Hello?”

Lily turned and found Nathan Coates standing behind them. His broad shoulders filled the doorway, blocking the sunlight, his warm eyes cast in shadow. The moment Lily saw him, her pulse sped up into triple time.

“Nate! I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.” Dad walked toward the forest ranger, his hand extended.

Lily remained where she was. Why was Nate here? If she didn’t know better, she’d think the forest ranger had taken a special interest in her. Not surprising considering he’d saved her life several days ago. But she wanted to be left alone. To have time to heal her relationship with Dad and the Lord.

Obviously her father liked the man. He had a lot in common with the ranger. But Lily didn’t want Nate hanging around all the time. Enough was enough.

Now, she just had to find a way to convince Nate.

Chapter Five

“Didn’t mean to intrude.” Nate shook Hank’s hand and smiled, trying to appear casual when he felt anything but. Lily eyed him with a perturbed frown and he felt like an interloper. He shouldn’t have come out here so soon, yet he felt compelled. Like an inner force was pushing him to watch out for this woman and her child.

Now he felt like a dunce.

“What do you want?” Lily asked, her dainty forehead crinkled with disapproval.

“Lily! Don’t be rude,” Hank said.

Nope, Nate shouldn’t have come. He couldn’t explain why Lily had become so important to him, or the sensations swarming his chest every time he looked into her expressive brown eyes. A man like him ought to have more control over his emotions. Some invisible force pulled him to her in spite of his resolve to stay away. He was acting like a young, lovestruck kid. And he wasn’t in love. He’d know it if he were. He didn’t believe in love at first sight. It took years of deep friendship and growing trust to love a woman.

Didn’t it?

“I…I came to see Peg.” Nate stepped farther into the stable and gazed at the stallion standing in the farthest stall.

Okay, nice recovery, if Lily bought it. Nate loved working with horses and he was good at it, too. He didn’t come out to Emerald Ranch often, but when he did, he always stopped in to see the stallion.

As he reached a hand out to run his palm over the horse’s left cheek, he peered at Hank. “Have you given him his candy today?”

Hank jutted his chin toward Lily. “She just gave it to him and he gobbled it down.”

Nate chuckled as the horse nudged his shoulder. On occasion, Hank let him give the horse his treat. The two men had a rodeo bond. They both loved this horse and it seemed they both cared for Lily, too. “No, boy, you’ve had enough for today. We don’t want you to get the colic.”

A deep sigh of impatience whispered past Lily’s lips and Nate looked at her. Her eyes narrowed on him, her expression completely hostile.

Nope, he definitely shouldn’t be here.

“Well, I best be on my way. I have a few streambeds I want to check throughout the valley, to see what the flooding level is doing today. I’m planning to go up the mountain in a helicopter tomorrow afternoon.” Nate stepped back, prepared to leave.

“Why a helicopter?” Lily asked.

He turned to face her, liking the way her beautiful brown eyes crinkled with curiosity. “With three bridges out in Ruby Valley, I called the regional Forest Service office in Ogden, Utah, for help. Because of our serious flood situation, we’re the only ones in the region they’ve allowed to use a helicopter. I plan to fly across the East Humboldt area and the Ruby Mountains. We’ll look for any debris dams that are building up in front of a potential flood. It’s the best way to be aware so we can prepare for danger down below.”

Her brow furrowed. “What kind of danger?”

“Debris torrents. They move fast, usually strike without warning, and destroy property and kill anything in their path.”

Hank scratched his chin. “You mean like a mudslide?”

Nate shook his head. “No, a debris torrent is caused by boulders, tree limbs and rootwads that dam up in places like narrow canyons and ravines. The melt-off from heavy snows or rains builds up behind it. When it breaks loose, the destructive force is astounding. It can come down the mountain at speeds above thirty-five miles per hour. It obliterates anything in its path, including a ranch house. I’ve seen the devastation it leaves behind afterward, and it’s serious. I want to take a look and see if we’ve got any of our ranches in danger.”

“Ah, I’ve lived in this valley all my life and never seen anything like that here,” Hank said.

“It could still happen,” Nate said. “The snowpack we’ve had this past winter beats anything on record to date. We’ve probably had a one-hundred-and-fifty-year winter.”

Lily rested a hand atop her round stomach. “What do you mean by that?”

“The snows we had this winter probably come only once every one hundred and fifty years. It’s just not normal. I don’t want to be an alarmist, but I want us to take precautions if the excess melt-off might cause a debris torrent to come down on one of our ranchers.”

“Bah! We’ll be just fine.” Hank waved a hand in the air, brushing Nate off.

Lily didn’t look so convinced. Her tiny nose crinkled with her frown. “Do you think Emerald Ranch is in danger?”

At first glance, she looked relaxed, her voice casual, but Nate knew better. He heard the slight catch in her voice and knew his admonition worried her. And he didn’t want this woman to fret about anything except having a healthy baby. “Not yet, but I’ll be flying up tomorrow and then again in a couple of weeks, just to make sure.”

“I’d like to go with you, if that’s possible.”

Nate coughed, surprised by her request. But then he realized she was motivated to protect Emerald Ranch, not be near him. He glanced at her stomach, then up to the butterfly bandage covering the small gash on her forehead. A feeling of warmth and protectiveness blanketed him. If he did anything to cause her to lose her baby, he’d never forgive himself. “You can come along, but only if your doctor says it’s okay.”

“I can call Dr. Kenner’s office today, but I should be okay to fly for a couple more months. I feel fine. And the baby moves all the time.”

Nate would love to feel the baby’s movements. How he wished he had a right to press his palm against her stomach and feel the little kicks there. The thought of spending the afternoon with her appealed to Nate, no denying it. “Good. I’ll swing by to pick you up around noon tomorrow.”

“Okay.” She turned and walked toward the house, her long hair bouncing with her brisk stride.

With her gone, Hank clasped Nate’s upper arm. “Look, Nate, I really like you, but I don’t want you to get Lily all worked up over nothing. She just got home and I don’t want to worry her. Not with a baby on the way.”

Nate nodded. “I agree, but I don’t think it’s wise to keep her in the dark, either. She has a right to know the dangers, in case she needs to get herself away from the ranch in a hurry. I wouldn’t tell you about debris torrents if I didn’t think they were something to take very seriously. Hopefully nothing will come of this, but if it does, I hope you’ll trust my judgment.”

Nate walked away, giving Hank no opportunity to argue. Nate knew what he was doing. If he didn’t go up on the mountain and then warn the ranchers of potential hazards, they could blame the Forest Service. Nate had to do everything in his power to ensure that didn’t happen. But his concern for Lily went even deeper. He’d saved her and her child’s life from a flash flood and he wasn’t about to see her harmed by something even worse.

* * *

The whir of the helicopter blades overhead stirred up a dust cloud around the tarmac at the small airport just outside of Jasper. Lily shielded her eyes against the afternoon sun and waited beside Nate while the chopper landed. She’d called the doctor the day before and he’d signed a note saying she could go up in the air if she felt well. She should avoid flying in a big airliner after eight months.

“Come on.” Nate cupped her elbow and led her out onto the blacktop. The sliding door of the chopper opened and Nate helped her step up inside before greeting the pilot.

“Howdy. I’m Eddie Slater.” The pilot reached across the seat to shake Nate’s hand.

“I’m Nate Coates and this is Lily Hansen, one of our local ranchers. Thanks for flying in to help with this project.”

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