A Baby on the Ranch

Lonnie tossed several of the Oreo cookies onto the plate, then added a few of the vanilla wafers for good measure. Behind him Katherine said, “A sheriff doesn’t come to a person’s house just to let him know someone has died. He has deputies for that kind of thing. What are you really doing here?”

Her quickness shouldn’t surprise him. She was half Ketchum, he reminded himself, and they were a damn smart bunch. This woman was no more gullible than her siblings.

“Let’s go sit down and I’ll tell you,” he said soberly.

For long moments her green eyes studied his somber face, and then finally she nodded and quickly swished past him.

Back in the living room they both took up the same seats they’d had earlier. After Lonnie had resettled himself, he took a long drink of the coffee and looked across the room at her. She wasn’t what most people would describe as petite, yet to Lonnie she seemed small and vulnerable and he wished he could simply rise to his feet and say his goodbyes. He wanted to tell Seth to leave this girl alone. She’d already had enough upheaval in her life. But she deserved to know the truth about her parentage, he argued with himself. She deserved to have a family.

“You remember that a few minutes ago I asked you about your father? Well, I had a reason for that,” he said. “I wanted to know just what your…what Celia had told you about him.”

A puzzled frown puckered her forehead. “I don’t understand. I’ve already told you what little I know about my father.”

He let out a long breath and leaned forward in his chair. “I realize that. But I just don’t know how else to get into this, except—” He stopped, shook his head and wiped a hand over his wavy hair. “Let me start again, Katherine, and hopefully I can make some sense to you. I have a friend who’s a Texas Ranger. He contacted me three months ago and asked me for help in finding you.”

He watched her go very still.

“A Texas Ranger?” she asked.

Her voice was quiet and quavery, and everything inside of Lonnie wanted to go to her and hold her hand tightly between his. He wanted to assure her that she was never going to be alone again. But he was a sheriff and he’d never met this woman before. He couldn’t let himself behave in a familiar way with her. It wouldn’t be professional. But then, the strange feelings he got whenever he looked at her weren’t exactly professional, either. They were a little unsettling.

“Yes. His name is Seth Ketchum. He lives in San Antonio. The rest of his family lives in New Mexico. Does the name mean anything to you?”

Lonnie watched her mull the name over in her mind.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “It sounds familiar. But Mom never said much about her family or friends. I accused her once of not having any, and she got so angry I never asked her anything else about them.”

“So she never mentioned her family? Or a woman named Amelia?”

Frowning, Katherine struggled to remember. “Except for a few cousins out in Arizona, she said her family was gone. As for a woman named Amelia, I remember she used to correspond with someone of that name. She told me that this woman was an old school friend. But, as well as I can remember, I never met her.”

“Well, Katherine, I don’t know how else to tell you but…there’s been evidence uncovered that leads me, and the Ketchum family, to believe that Celia wasn’t actually your mother.”

She gripped the coffee cup and scooted to the edge of her chair. “Whh…at?” she stuttered.

“It’s true,” he said starkly. “Celia McBride wasn’t your mother. She was actually your aunt.”

One slender hand fluttered up to her cheek where the blood was quickly draining away to leave her skin a pasty-white color. Lonnie was so alarmed by her reaction that he left his chair and hurried over to the couch.

Quickly reaching for the cup in her hand, he commanded, “Here. Let me take that before you drop it.” After placing the coffee on the floor, out of the way, he squatted on his heels and reached for her hand. “Are you okay? You’re not going to faint, are you?”

Katherine closed her eyes and breathed deeply. It was hard for her to tell what was more unsettling—what he’d just told her about her mother, or the fact that he was holding her hand in a very intimate way.

“I…I’m all right,” she insisted. “I just—this is all too unbelievable. You’re going to have to show me some proof. Good proof.” She opened her eyes and looked at him. “I simply can’t take your word about this.”

“I understand that,” he said softly. “And I understand this has given you a shock.”

She stared at him, utterly dumbfounded. “A shock! That’s putting it mildly. You’re talking about my mother!”

He patted the back of her hand while thinking none of this could be good for the baby. Dear God, Lonnie prayed desperately, if he didn’t get her calmed down, it might even send her into labor!

“I can see why this whole thing sounds like a wild, made-up story to you. And I don’t blame you for not believing it. But I do have a bit of proof. Seth sent a letter with me. One that your real mother received from Celia. Would you recognize your au—well, Celia’s handwriting?”

His announcement appeared to frighten her, and she drew back in her chair and stared at him with wide, dark eyes. “A letter?”

Lonnie nodded and reached to the back pocket on his jeans. “Yes. I have it right here—”

Grabbing his forearm, she blurted, “No! I don’t want to read a letter now!”

He looked at her with confusion, and she blushed profusely and said, “I mean—maybe I need to hear more about this whole thing from you first. Maybe then the letter will make more sense.” She paused and the corners of her mouth turned downward in a skeptical frown. “But I doubt it,” she added.

“All right.” He squeezed her hand and peered anxiously at her white face. Her features were pinched, and Lonnie was shocked to find himself wanting to smooth his hand across her brow. He liked women. And he could list a long string of females who were his friends. But once he’d had his heart broken he’d come to the firm resolution that a friend was all he would ever be to the opposite sex. So why was he suddenly feeling so possessive of this one? Just because she was soft and pretty and about to have a baby didn’t make her any different. “If you’re sure you’re okay.”

She let out a heavy breath, and then all of a sudden she seemed to realize she was still holding on to his forearm. Slowly she pulled her hand away from him and settled it on her short lap.

“I’m all right,” she said quietly. “Please go ahead.”

Lonnie probably should have put some space between them and gone back to his chair. But she looked so fragile, and being close to her made him feel a little more assured. Which was a sure sign he wasn’t behaving like himself. Normally he went out of his way to make sure he kept a respectable distance from women.

“I think I should start way back at the beginning,” Lonnie said. “I don’t know how else to explain things.”

She nodded and he went on, “You see, Katherine, it’s all about the Ketchum family. They own a huge ranch in northern New Mexico close to Aztec. It spreads over more than a hundred thousand acres and they raise cattle and horses. Mostly to sell for breeding prospects.”

“Do you know these people? Personally?” she asked.

Lonnie nodded. “Seth, he’s the Ranger, he helped me get elected to the sheriff’s position I hold now. And I have visited with his siblings. They’re fine, quality people.”

“It sounds like they’re rich,” she murmured as though that was equivalent to having royal blood.

Lonnie shrugged. “Oh, they’re not what you’d call stinking rich. But they’re well off. They don’t have to scrape around to pay their bills if that’s what you mean.”

“I wouldn’t know any of those sort of people,” she said wryly.

Well, the Ketchums were the only rich people Lonnie rubbed elbows with, but he kept that information to himself.

“The ranch—it’s called the T Bar K—was started by Tucker Ketchum and his brother, Rueben. Tucker was married to a woman named Amelia and her maiden name was McBride. They’ve both been dead for several years now.”

Katherine’s eyes swept back and forth across his face and he could see that her mind was whirling like a Texas tornado.

“You mean—this Amelia—she was the woman my mother wrote to? And her name was McBride, too?”

Lonnie slowly nodded. “That’s right. She was a McBride before she married Tucker. She and Celia were sisters.”

Clearly disturbed now, Katherine began to shake her head in disbelief. “But…but my mother never said anything about a sister or her being kin to some rich people in New Mexico. Why wouldn’t she have said something? Those people would be my relatives!”

Once again he felt the unaccustomed need to touch her and reassure her, and this time he didn’t resist the urge to reach for her hand. He pressed her soft skin between his fingers and watched her expression turn to total bewilderment.

“They’re more than just relatives, Katherine,” he said gently. “Seth, Ross and Victoria—they’re your brothers and sister. Amelia was your real mother. Celia only raised you for her.”

“No! No! That can’t be!”

Jerking her hand from his, she shoved herself to her feet and ran across the room to where a window displayed the dusky skyline of Fort Worth. Lonnie hurried after her, and as he took her by the back of the shoulders, he realized she was crying. Not on the outside where he could see her tears, but on the inside where emotional pain was causing her whole body to shake. The notion of her anguish cut him deeply. Because he understood exactly how she was feeling. In his younger years he’d done a lot of crying on the inside, too. Maybe that was why Seth had thought Lonnie would be perfect for this job. He’d probably figured a man without a family could empathize with a woman who believed she was entirely alone in the world.

“It’s true, Katherine,” he said gently as he stared down at the shiny crown of her dark hair. “Amelia Ketchum was your mother.”

For long moments she didn’t say anything, and then slowly she turned and tilted her face up to his. “If that’s true,” she said accusingly, “then why wasn’t I raised with my brothers and sister? Why was I sent to Texas?”

Lonnie glanced away from her, drew in a bracing breath and tightened his hold on her shoulders. “Because you—” He forced his eyes to return to hers. “Because Amelia had been having an affair and she didn’t want her family to know about her pregnancy.”

Katherine’s hands instinctively pressed against the mound of baby she was carrying, and Lonnie could see from the torn look on her face that she couldn’t imagine any circumstances that would make her separate herself from her child.

“All right,” she said, then swallowed convulsively. “If that’s the case, then who is my father?”

“I hate to have to tell you this, Katherine. But your father was Noah Rider.”

If possible, she went even whiter, and her lips began to move but no sound was coming out.

“No-No-ah?” she finally whispered.

Lonnie started to nod, but he didn’t have time. Before he could respond, she wilted like a sunflower, and he caught her just as she fell against his chest.

Chapter Two

“Whoa! Whoa, now, Miss Katherine! Don’t you faint on me!”

With his hands gripping her upper arms, Lonnie attempted to steady her. To his relief, she stayed upright, but her neck couldn’t seem to hold her head straight, and her gaze was blank.

Cursing under his breath, Lonnie quickly scooped her up in his arms and carried her over to the couch. As he eased her down on an end cushion and propped a pile of throw pillows against her back, she began to protest.

“You can let go of me now. I’m…okay,” she said stammered weakly. “I just had a woozy moment. It’s passed now.”

Reluctant to loosen his hold on her, Lonnie kept his fingers tightly fastened around her arm as he sat down on the cushion next to her. “I think I’d better take you to the emergency room,” he said with concern. “Just to make sure you’re okay.”

She looked at him, and her cheeks flushed pink, a sign that relieved Lonnie. At least her blood was pumping at a regular rate again.

“No! I’m fine, really. My head swam for only a few seconds. And that’s not unusual for a pregnant woman. Believe me, if I feel the least bit woozy in the morning, I’ll head to my obstetrician.”

The Deaf Smith County sheriff looked at her with faint skepticism. “I don’t know much about pregnant women. But you’ve had a shock and—”

“I’m tough,” she quickly interjected. “Besides, now that I’ve had a few moments to collect myself, I’m beginning to think about all you’ve said. And I might as well tell you—I’m not at all convinced that I should take any of your story at face value. As far as I’m concerned, a letter doesn’t prove anything. Anyone could have written it.”

She straightened her slumped shoulders and reached up to push several strands of disheveled hair from her face. The movement caused the grip of his fingers on her arm to loosen, and Katherine likened the feeling to a piece of hot iron being pulled away from her skin. She’d been around men before. Even rugged, outdoor types like Sheriff Lonnie Corteen. Yet she couldn’t remember one, including the father of her baby, whom she’d reacted to as violently as she had this man. It didn’t make sense. He wasn’t what she’d call handsome. He was tall and rawboned and his features were more rough than smooth. Hooded blue eyes set over a big nose. Hollow creases bracketed a wide, roughly hewn set of lips. The angle of his jaw and the jut of his chin were strong, even a little arrogant. Everything about him was potently masculine, and it embarrassed her to be reacting to him in such a downright sexual way.

“No,” he said slowly. “A letter doesn’t necessarily prove anything. After all, it could have been forged. But for what reason? What would anyone gain out of making up a story like this?”

Katherine couldn’t think of one thing anyone might gain, and that unsettled her even more. Saying Celia wasn’t her mother was like saying the sun didn’t rise in the east. “I would know my mother’s handwriting,” she quickly informed him.

He looked at her regretfully. “Don’t you mean your aunt’s handwriting?”

Her nostrils flared as she took in the meaning of his question. “Celia McBride was my mother. She’s the only mother I’ve ever known. And I…I think it’s despicable that you’ve come into my home and questioned the veracity of my family.”

“I’m not questioning anything, Miss Katherine. This is the story Seth Ketchum gave to me. And Seth doesn’t lie. He’s a Texas Ranger.”

And that was close to being godly, Katherine thought as her stomach tilted wildly. Honor and truth were a motto the Rangers lived by. But that didn’t mean this Seth person was automatically right. He could have gotten his information confused. It was some other woman, not her, that had been born to Amelia Ketchum all those years ago!

“I’m not saying that your friend is lying about any of this. I’m just thinking that he could have received misinformation.”

The sheriff reached for her hand and she allowed his big fingers to wrap around hers. The size of his hand and the rough skin of his palm reminded Katherine that he was a big, tough lawman. Yet she felt a unique tenderness in his touch as his fingers gently squeezed hers.

Shaken by that contradiction, she glanced away from him and swallowed.

Lonnie said softly, “I understand this is a whole heap of information for you to take in at once, Katherine. And if I were in your shoes, I’d probably be protesting a lot louder than you are. I’m not asking you just to take my word for the truth. I realize you need facts. And so do the Ketchums. That’s why they asked me to find you. If you’re really their half sister, they want to know it. Don’t you?”

She slanted a woeful glance at him as fear of the unknown crept over her like a night shadow. “I don’t know. I pretty much like things the way they are.”

Sighing, he pushed a hand through his hair. Katherine couldn’t help but notice it was thick and slightly wavy, the color somewhere between russet and chestnut. For a person with red highlights in his hair, he had darkly tanned skin. From hours spent in the Texas sun, she supposed. That could only mean he did much more than sit in a sheriff’s office behind a wide desk and bark orders to his deputy.

Why are you even noticing these things, Katherine? It isn’t like you to be thinking about a man in this way. Stop it! Before it gets you in trouble.

The little voice in her head made her want to laugh with self-mockery. What was she thinking? A man had already gotten her into trouble. She was facing the future of raising a child alone. But she was bound and determined to do it and do it well. Just as her mother had raised Katherine all on her own.

“But you might like things better with a family,” he reasoned.

The suggestion caused a fissure of pain to creep slowly between her breasts. Of course she would like a family. Since she was old enough to remember, she’d longed for siblings. But Celia had always told Katherine that a family had to have a daddy to have babies and they hadn’t had a daddy in their little family. As a child, that reason had been enough for Katherine to quit asking her mother to give her a sibling. But later, when she’d grown up, she’d often wondered why her mother had never married and given them a true family. Was it because Celia hadn’t really been her mother? No! That couldn’t be. The woman simply hadn’t trusted men. Ben had hurt her and she’d never wanted to be hurt again. Katherine certainly couldn’t blame her mother for being gun-shy about marriage. Especially now that Walt had deserted her like a pile of oily rags.

“Maybe,” she said to Lonnie. “But being part of a family isn’t—it’s not just something you can learn how to do! And besides, these people don’t know me. And once they did, they might not want me in their family. I don’t want to go through that sort of rejection. Not for any reason.”

His brows lifted slightly as he studied her face. “Does this mean—are you actually beginning to believe that Amelia Ketchum and Noah Rider are your true parents?”

Was she? No! It was going to take more than a sheriff and a letter to persuade her.

Her mouth set in a grim line, she looked at him. “I’m sorry, but no.”

“I’m sorry, too,” he murmured as his eyes flicked regretfully over her face. “Because I think you’re turning away from a wonderful, loving family.”

Her gaze fell to his big brown fingers wrapped around her pale hand. To have such a man as Lonnie Corteen sitting here holding her hand and talking about family was unbearably sweet. So much so that she knew she had to pull away from him. She had to quickly put an end to this whole disturbing episode. Not only the story of the Ketchums, but also her time with this man.

Pulling her hand from his, she slowly pushed herself to her feet. “I understand you’re only the messenger and you’re trying to help. But I’m really not up to this. In fact, I’m very, very tired. I’m going to have a bite to eat and lie down.”

She was asking him to leave and Lonnie certainly couldn’t argue. But it bothered him that nothing was settled. It also bothered him to say goodbye to the woman. He felt an unexplainable need to hang around and protect her. From what, he didn’t know. Hell, it looked as though he was the only one giving her a problem.

“Yeah. Maybe you should,” he agreed. Rising to his feet, he collected his hat from a spot on the floor near the armchair. As he settled it down on his forehead he looked to see she was about to rise to her feet. Swiftly, he waved her back down. “No need for you to get up, Katherine. I’ll see myself out. But there is something I need to know before I leave.”

Her brows arched with question. “Yes?”

“When can I see you again?”

She sat straight up and stared at him. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t leave town with things as they are. We’ve got to talk about this. You’ve got to decide what you’re going to do so that I can tell the Ketchums.”

Katherine said in dismay, “I can’t tell you something like that now!”

“What about tomorrow?”

She smacked a palm against her forehead. “No! I don’t—I don’t even want to think about it tomorrow or the next day! Just go back to Hereford and tell the Ketchums…tell them I’m Celia McBride’s daughter and that’s all I want to be!”

He was closer to the door than to her, but her words caused him to return to the couch and look down at her. “I can’t do that, Miss Katherine. It wouldn’t be good for them or for you.” He grimaced as he studied her bright cheeks against her pale, pale face. “Do you have a friend you can call? Someone who can come sit with you? You looked pretty peaked, and I don’t like the idea of leaving you alone.”

Squaring her shoulders, she pressed her lips into a straight line of disapproval. “I don’t need anyone. I’m not a weak woman, Mr.— I mean, Sheriff Corteen. Not physically or mentally. I’ll be just fine. Don’t worry about me.”

Lonnie would worry about her, but there wasn’t much he could do about her situation. Especially when she didn’t want his help. Sighing to himself, he walked over to the door. “All right, I’m leaving. But I’m not leaving Fort Worth. Not until we’ve hashed this all out.”

Lonnie stepped out into the cold night and, across the room, Katherine fell back weakly against the pile of throw pillows.

“I’m telling you, Seth, this isn’t going to work,” Lonnie said into the phone the next morning as he sat on the edge of his motel bed and swigged weak coffee from a foam cup. “You or Victoria or Ross will have to come here and try to talk some sense into the woman. She doesn’t believe a thing I say.”

The Texas Ranger on the other end of the phone let out a long sigh. “Look, Lonnie, I’m not a bit surprised the woman doesn’t believe the story you told her. My Lord, it sounds crazy even when I hear it myself. Obviously she’s going to need some time to let all this sink in.”

Lonnie reached for one of the fresh doughnuts he’d collected from the motel lobby. A continental breakfast wasn’t like biscuits and gravy, but it would do until he got home.

“Well, that’s probably true,” Lonnie agreed. “But I sure can’t hang around here while it sinks. I’ve got a county to see after.”

“I understand that, Lonnie. If you have to go home, you have to go home. But I was sure hoping you could persuade her to talk to us. She’s our sister, we’d like for her to be a part of the family.”

Lonnie swallowed a huge bite of the doughnut before he replied. “I tried, Seth. And to tell you the truth, I probably pushed her a little too much. Uh, I haven’t told you this part yet. But the woman is expecting a baby. Real soon,” he added while recalling the sight of her bulging waistline. “And I felt bad about giving her such a shock. But once I was there, I didn’t have much choice.”

“A baby!”

“Yep. In about three weeks, she said.”

“Is she married?” Seth asked.

Lonnie reached for another doughnut as he tried not to think about Katherine being pregnant and alone. “No. Seems like she doesn’t want to be, either. I guess the daddy must have left her bitter about that. Anyway, she appears to be pretty much all by herself. Celia died a couple of years back from kidney failure.”

Seth was silent for a few moments, and Lonnie figured his friend was thinking the same thing he’d been thinking since he’d met Katherine McBride last night. She was obviously going to need help. A woman shouldn’t bear a child and then come home to an empty house.

“That’s not good, Lonnie. Not good at all.”

“Well, I could be wrong. She may have plenty of friends who might see after her. I don’t know. I tried to ask her about that last night, but she’s pretty touchy and more or less put me in my place before I could get anything out of her.”

“Hmm. That’s a surprise. You always were good with women. That’s why I wanted you to meet with Katherine. I thought if anyone could talk to her, you could.”