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Authors: Beverly Barton
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man—a man's adoration, his protection and his love. She was a woman who should be loved often and well. He wanted to be that man.
He'd like to tell her that he might have left Crooked Oak nearly eighteen years ago without obtaining his high school diploma, but that he was a world traveler and widely read. She'd be shocked if she realized just how much money he had in the bank. Enough to pay cash for Old Man Henry's quarter horse ranch. Enough to send Sugar Baby to college, too. But let Donna assume he was a stupid, penniless cowpoke who was going to beg a loan from the bank to buy the ranch. Still, it hurt him to think she might look at him like everyone else in Marshall County had.
"Jake, I think maybe we should wait a few days, until I've had a chance to recuperate and then we can decide exactly what part you should play in Louisa's life."
"You're probably right. With your hormones all wild and crazy, you might say or do something you'll regret later."
She nodded agreement. "Let's give ourselves a week, all right?"
"A week's fine with me."
"You can call as often as you'd like and check on Louisa."
"I take this to mean you don't want me to stay here with you?" Narrowing his gaze, Jake focused his attention directly on Donna's face. "All right, I'll move out to the ranch. I'm going to be working for Old Man Henry until the sale goes through. But a daily phone call won't cut it. I'll drop by every day to see my daughter."
"Is that necessary?"
"Yeah, it's more than necessary. It's essential. For me and for Sugar Baby."
Donna huffed and took a deep breath that sucked in her cheeks. "You aren't going to make this easy for either of us, are you?"
"I've been taking the easy way out all my life, but not now, not about this. I'm going to be a real father to my daughter and whether you like it or not, I'm going to be a major part of her life and yours."
"Even if I don't want you in our lives?"
"Sugar, you want me in your life—you just don't know it yet."
With that said, Jake walked over, took a last look at his daughter and left the bedroom. Donna jumped up and rushed out into the hallway. She watched as Jake took the steps two at a time. She wanted to call out to him, to tell him that hell would freeze over before she'd ever want him in her life on a permanent basis, but the words died on her lips.
It wasn't that she didn't want Jake. She did. Her body, even now, yearned for his. It wasn't that she couldn't accept him as Louisa's father, no matter what his background. The honest truth was that she was scared senseless. Afraid that if Jake Bishop stayed in her life, she'd wind up falling in love with him.
Four
Although Donna knew Louisa was in good hands with Mrs. Winthrop, she felt guilty for having left her two-week-old daughter, even for the few hours it would take to tie up loose ends at the office. The spring quarter had ended and although she wasn't teaching any classes this summer, she had no intention of giving up her position at the college. When Edward died, teaching had been her lifeline, the day-to-day contact with others that had kept her sane. She loved teaching. For her, being an educator was a true calling, not just a job, as it was for many others.
Even with Jake Bishop a daily visitor, Donna had been able to put her life back on an even keel since Louisa's birth. She prided herself on always being in control. Friends told her she was a control freak. The first week had been less than perfect, too much company, not enough sleep. But the second week had passed more smoothly. Despite Louisa being a little angel, Donna didn't think she could get along without Mrs. Winthrop. The warm, friendly, motherly woman knew all there was to know about babies. She was a completely different sort of woman from the nannies her parents had hired to care for her when she was a child. Donna's parents had been too involved in their careers and social life to personally oversee the upbringing of their only child—an
He'd like to tell her that he might have left Crooked Oak nearly eighteen years ago without obtaining his high school diploma, but that he was a world traveler and widely read. She'd be shocked if she realized just how much money he had in the bank. Enough to pay cash for Old Man Henry's quarter horse ranch. Enough to send Sugar Baby to college, too. But let Donna assume he was a stupid, penniless cowpoke who was going to beg a loan from the bank to buy the ranch. Still, it hurt him to think she might look at him like everyone else in Marshall County had.
"Jake, I think maybe we should wait a few days, until I've had a chance to recuperate and then we can decide exactly what part you should play in Louisa's life."
"You're probably right. With your hormones all wild and crazy, you might say or do something you'll regret later."
She nodded agreement. "Let's give ourselves a week, all right?"
"A week's fine with me."
"You can call as often as you'd like and check on Louisa."
"I take this to mean you don't want me to stay here with you?" Narrowing his gaze, Jake focused his attention directly on Donna's face. "All right, I'll move out to the ranch. I'm going to be working for Old Man Henry until the sale goes through. But a daily phone call won't cut it. I'll drop by every day to see my daughter."
"Is that necessary?"
"Yeah, it's more than necessary. It's essential. For me and for Sugar Baby."
Donna huffed and took a deep breath that sucked in her cheeks. "You aren't going to make this easy for either of us, are you?"
"I've been taking the easy way out all my life, but not now, not about this. I'm going to be a real father to my daughter and whether you like it or not, I'm going to be a major part of her life and yours."
"Even if I don't want you in our lives?"
"Sugar, you want me in your life—you just don't know it yet."
With that said, Jake walked over, took a last look at his daughter and left the bedroom. Donna jumped up and rushed out into the hallway. She watched as Jake took the steps two at a time. She wanted to call out to him, to tell him that hell would freeze over before she'd ever want him in her life on a permanent basis, but the words died on her lips.
It wasn't that she didn't want Jake. She did. Her body, even now, yearned for his. It wasn't that she couldn't accept him as Louisa's father, no matter what his background. The honest truth was that she was scared senseless. Afraid that if Jake Bishop stayed in her life, she'd wind up falling in love with him.
Four
Although Donna knew Louisa was in good hands with Mrs. Winthrop, she felt guilty for having left her two-week-old daughter, even for the few hours it would take to tie up loose ends at the office. The spring quarter had ended and although she wasn't teaching any classes this summer, she had no intention of giving up her position at the college. When Edward died, teaching had been her lifeline, the day-to-day contact with others that had kept her sane. She loved teaching. For her, being an educator was a true calling, not just a job, as it was for many others.
Even with Jake Bishop a daily visitor, Donna had been able to put her life back on an even keel since Louisa's birth. She prided herself on always being in control. Friends told her she was a control freak. The first week had been less than perfect, too much company, not enough sleep. But the second week had passed more smoothly. Despite Louisa being a little angel, Donna didn't think she could get along without Mrs. Winthrop. The warm, friendly, motherly woman knew all there was to know about babies. She was a completely different sort of woman from the nannies her parents had hired to care for her when she was a child. Donna's parents had been too involved in their careers and social life to personally oversee the upbringing of their only child—an
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