Frisco Joe's Fiancee

There was a baby—and a woman—in his sheets now. He couldn’t figure what she might be wearing to bed. Something. Maybe nothing. He couldn’t identify the sudden surge of emotions he felt at that thought.

“Why?” Last asked. “Why do they have to go? What are they hurting?” The other brothers murmured, as well.

Frisco decided his brothers needed a cold bucket of water upside their heads. But then, they didn’t have a pile of diapers and a bottle on their bedside table. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, and if a storm is coming in, they need to get back to their families. They don’t want to stay here for a week until the back roads clear,” he said sternly, as much to be sharp with them as to clear his head from the realization that he heard water running upstairs. He held his breath, waiting for the water to shut off, but it didn’t.

Water running upstairs meant Annabelle had helped herself to his shower.

She was now definitely naked.

Chills ran all over him. “Don’t ask questions,” he snapped. “Just help me think how we’re going to transport them all back to where they came from!”

“They might be worth keeping,” Tex suggested. “Have you ever considered that?”

Frisco shook his head, ignoring the butterflies he suffered at the suggestion. “Out of the question.”

Suddenly, the sound of a baby crying drifted to the kitchen. Frisco stiffened.

“Sounds like Emmeline’s colic has started back up,” Ranger said. “That poor little baby doesn’t give her mother much of a break, does she?”

Frisco glanced at the stove clock. Annabelle had been naked for approximately three minutes. Showering for approximately three minutes, he amended.

“I’ll go see what’s going on,” he said.

ANNABELLE SIGHED, unable to remember the last time she’d been able to enjoy ten minutes to herself. Em was a wonderful baby and she loved her dearly, but the colic kept her so upset that it was hard to snatch a moment alone.

Even though Tom left me for a Never Lonely Cut-n-Gurl, I’ve still got Em, she thought.

It was worth it.

The pediatrician had said Em would grow out of her colic—these things just took time. She just needed a lot of love and comforting, and reassurance that she didn’t have to suffer alone.

Annabelle completely understood her daughter’s needs, because she felt the same way sometimes herself.

Anyway, Tom was, as Delilah called him, a louse. She had a family of women to rely on now, and she had Em. Life was so much better than it had ever been for her.

Turning around for an extra stolen moment of bliss, she let the hot water pour down her back. The truth was, she didn’t want Tom back.

He hadn’t wanted Em, and she’d never forgive him for that.

Never.

TO FRISCO’S SURPRISE, the baby had managed to worm a piece of blanket over her head as she flailed. “That’s easy enough to fix,” he said quietly to the infant, with a hurried look at the bathroom door. The shower was still running, so it was safe. Annabelle wouldn’t come out in a state of undress he was certain they’d both rather avoid.

He was pretty sure the petite blonde looked good in a towel, though.

“Hey, baby, don’t be so upset,” he said, reaching out to stroke the tiny back. “You’re not alone anymore.”

Baby Emmeline—had Annabelle called her Emmie?—seemed to hesitate in her wails, either at the sound of his voice or the human contact. “Hm. I barely know what to do with an angry woman, but maybe it’s something a man has to work up to. Starting small might be the way to go.” Gingerly he reached to cradle Em in his fingers, and then balanced her in his palms until he was certain he had her positioned properly. Then he lifted her to his chest, cradling her as he hummed.

The crying completely ceased.

“Like falling off a log,” he sang to her to the tune of a low country song. “A man never forgets how to make a woman feel good. At least not if he’s smart.”

She snuffled against him.

“You like my singing, huh? You’re the only one who likes it, then. My brothers show no respect for my vocal attributes.”

Em didn’t object, so he hummed to her and stood, about to leave the room in case Annabelle should put in a towel-clad appearance. “Since you’re obviously a lady who likes late-night excitement, let’s go watch some Classic Sports Channel. I bet if you learned young enough, you’d love football.”

But when he slid into his leather recliner and turned the TV on softly, he realized Em was asleep. “You just wanted to know you’re not alone,” he murmured. “We all feel like that sometimes, little baby.”

LAREDO AND TEX STOOD beside the recliner, staring down at Frisco. The chair was tipped back, his mouth was open, his boots were pointed tips to the ceiling, and there was a baby on his chest. The remote, which would usually lie where the baby was, had fallen to the carpet.

“Are my eyes lying to me?” Laredo whispered.

Tex shook his head, dumbfounded.

“Where’s the camera? Get me the camera. I need a picture of this! No one will ever believe that my foul-tempered brother actually let a baby crawl onto his person.”

Tex handed him the camera and Laredo squeezed off a shot.

“You wake that baby, and Frisco’s gonna chew your head, Laredo.”

They both froze for a second as the baby sighed. Neither brother nor infant awoke, however.

Laredo gestured to Tex to follow him back into the kitchen. “I just had a brainstorm.”

“I’m wary of storms, myself.”

Laredo eyed him wryly. “I’m thinking about all these women.”

Tex raised a brow. “You and all the rest of us. Glad to hear you’re normal, Laredo.”

“I’ll ignore that for the moment, in the spirit of brotherhood.”

Tex grinned.

“I’m serious here. Give me a listen before you shoot this down, Tex. What if a woman was the way to get Frisco in a better frame of mind?”

Tex gave him his most sober look, which was nearly ruined by the twinkle in his eyes. “Frisco’s frame is bent. Totally. I do believe there’s not a woman alive who can make him hang on the level.”

Laredo sighed, used to his brother’s clowning.

“But maybe some womanliness is the way to get Frisco to act like a human being.”

“Like a shot of instant female hormones to counteract his overload of testosterone?”

Laredo shook his head. “No, I’m talking flesh-and-blood woman. Like sweet Annabelle.”

Tex burst out laughing.

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