Read Online A Baby in His Stocking by Laura marie Altom - Free Book Online Page A

alone.
    He’d just snagged the sole box of Froot Loops when the last person he cared to see careened onto the cereal aisle. Not in the mood for Natalie, Wyatt held his ground, doing nothing to acknowledge her other than tip his hat.
    In that snippy, Miss Priss voice of hers she noted, “You are aware your mom and Josie have already stocked enough food at the ranch to survive two winter storms?”
    â€œLast I checked, they haven’t done squat to fill my pantry.” Whether from windchill or fighting the crowd, the heightened color in Natalie’s cheeks looked good on her.
    â€œWhy stay at your house when your whole family plans on holing up in the main house?”
    On that, he had to chuckle. “Um, let’s just say that fact alone is all I needed to convince me to ride this one out on my own. Ask me, I’ve got too many nieces. The whole damned ranch is overrun with women.”
    She laughed. “Your brothers seem to think that’s a good thing. What about Cash and Luke? Why not use this storm as an opportunity to spend more time with them?”
    Wyatt crammed his hands into his jeans pockets. Good Lord, the woman loved to bicker. “You should’ve been a lawyer.”
    â€œWhy’s that?”
    â€œâ€™Cause you argue damn near every point I make.”
    â€œExcuse me.” A wild-haired brunette with a screaming baby hitching a ride in the shopping cart and two whiny toddlers in tow wedged between Wyatt and Natalie, snatching up sugary cereal as if each box were a gold bar.
    â€œPoor woman,” Natalie noted once she’d left. “Having three that close in age must be rough.”
    Wyatt snorted. “Apparently her man’s never heard of condoms.”
    Only when Natalie’s expression shifted from her usual pinched know-it-all mode to openmouthed shock, and a teary-eyed melancholy that included cupping her hands protectively to her baby bump, did Wyatt realize how his words must’ve stung. Had that been the case with Natalie’s boyfriend, Craig? One wild night with no protection and bam —she’d been knocked up?
    At one time, if Wyatt had found himself with a woman in Natalie’s condition, he’d have married her on the spot. Lately, he’d come to realize he was lucky to not have a future full of kids. Munchkins were loud and sticky and way more trouble than their apparent worth.
    â€œWyatt Buckhorn,” Natalie said as if his name were a dirty word, “I hope you lose power and freeze up in that modern monstrosity of a house. But then wait—how could a little cold weather bother you when you already have ice running through your veins? Your family loves you, yet you’re too thickheaded to recognize just how much. Ever think of the obvious by telling them the truth behind why you’re leaving?”
    In a low tone he fired back, “Ever think of keeping my private matters private?”
    â€œSorry.” Crossing her arms, she raised her chin. “Ijust thought it might be nice for the twins to spend a little more time with their uncle.”
    â€œThat might be, but did it ever occur to you I don’t feel capable of spending my last few days here with them? In case you missed the memo, I want nothing more than to lock myself in a kid-free zone—which, considering the ever-growing size of your belly, now includes you.”
    Â 
    H AD SHE BEEN A CAT , N ATALIE could’ve purred with contentment. Wyatt’s forked tongue trapped at the ranch, her groceries put up, the scent of beef stew filling her home with its mouthwatering promise of a hearty meal, a fire crackling in the hearth and a stack of her favorite horror DVDs ready to watch—she was more than ready to ride out what forecasters were now calling a historic blizzard in high style.
    In front of the sofa, she’d set up the card table, and while the opening credits to The Shining rolled, she assembled her scrapbooking