Lisa Jackson - The Mccaffertys - Slade

“I get it! I get it!”

“No. Me!”

Two sets of small feet scurried through the living room as Molly and Mindy, their dark ringlets flying, scrambled into the entry hall and raced for the door. Small hands vying for the handle, they managed to yank the door open and there on the front porch, looking professional, feminine and surprised as all getout at her reception, stood Jamie Parsons, Attorney-at-Law.

CHAPTER TWO

“WHO’RE YOU ?” MOLLY DEMANDED, her brown eyes trained on the woman in black.

“I’m Jamie.” With one quick glance at Slade, she bent down on one knee, mindless that her coat was getting wet in the snow melting on the floorboards of the porch. Good Lord, he’d gotten better looking! “And who are you?” she asked one girl.

“Molly,” the bolder twin asserted, rubbing a hand on her pink sweatshirt.

“And you?” Jamie’s eyes moved to Molly’s identical sister. They were Slade’s daughters, she thought wildly. Surprised that she cared. “What’s your name?”

Mindy took a step behind Slade’s jeans-clad leg. Her small arms wrapped around his knee and she hid her face.

“She’s Mindy and she’s shy,” Molly stated.

“Am not.” Mindy’s thumb was suddenly in her mouth as she peeked around Slade’s thigh. Slade was amused as he read Jamie’s case of nerves. Another set of footsteps announced Nicole’s arrival. Tall, slender, with amber eyes and blond-streaked hair, she was a doctor at St. James Hospital and the mother of the imps, not to mention the reason Thorne wore a smile these days.

“Hello,” she said to Jamie. “I’m Nicole McCafferty.” She extended a hand and tossed a lock of hair off her shoulder. “And these two tornados—” she indicated the twins with her chin “—are my daughters.”

Straightening, Jamie accepted Nicole’s handshake. She glanced at Slade, and something dark shifted in her hazel eyes. Her smile became a little more forced, her voice more professional and cool. “Pleased to meet you. All of you.”

“I take it you already know Slade?” Nicole said as she peeled Mindy from Slade’s leg and gathered the shy girl into her arms.

“Yes…we’ve…we’ve met. Years ago.” Jamie’s voice was husky and she cleared her throat.

Slade noticed that she inched her chin up a fraction as she turned to him and, gesturing to the girls, said, “You’ve been busy.”

He lifted one eyebrow.

“Your daughters…they’re lovely,” she added.

“Why thank you,” he drawled, smothering a smile at her discomfiture—now what was that all about? “But they’re not mine.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I was married before,” Nicole explained. “I just recently joined this family.”

“I see.”

Nicole laughed as she finally caught on. “Oh. No. No! It’s not what you think. Slade’s my brother-in-law. I’m married to Thorne.”

“Poor woman,” Slade drawled, and Nicole sent him a dirty look. He witnessed a blush steal up Jamie’s neck. He remembered that. How easily her fair skin would color a soft, embarrassed pink.

“Oh. Well. My mistake.” Was she relieved? “There wasn’t any reference to wives in the documents.”

“ That will have to be changed.” Nicole chuckled and stepped out of the doorway as a black-and-white-spotted cat darted up the stairs. “Come in. It’s freezing out there. Let me take your coat, and Slade—if he has a gentlemanly bone in his body, which is highly unlikely in my opinion—can show you into the dining room where the rest of the clan is waiting.”

“I can manage that,” Slade allowed.

“I hope so.” Nicole transferred a squirming Mindy to the floor. “Meanwhile, I’ll see if Juanita can scrounge up some coffee or tea.”

Jamie was working the buttons of her coat. “That would be great.”

“I’ll take that,” Slade offered as Nicole headed toward the kitchen, her daughters trailing after her like ducklings behind a mother duck.

Jamie set her bags down and shrugged out of her overcoat with Slade’s help. His fingers brushed her nape for the briefest of seconds and he thought she stiffened, but he might have imagined it. She probably barely remembered him.

All business in a black suit and shimmery blouse, she picked up her bags again. “Ready?” she asked.

“As I’ll ever be.” He showed her along the hallway to the dining room. They passed by what he referred to as the McCafferty Hall of Shame where photos of the family were mounted. With cool disinterest Jamie’s eyes skimmed pictures of Thorne in his football uniform, Randi going to the prom, Matt on a bucking bronco and Slade skiing downhill as if the devil were on his tail. Jamie didn’t react, just walked smartly into the dining room.

“Hi,” she said. “You all probably know this, but I figured I’d better get the formal introductions over. I’m Jamie Parsons with Jansen, Monteith and Stone.” Thorne had some trouble scrambling to his feet as one of his legs was in a brace, but Matt reached forward to shake her hand. Slade made quick introductions. “All right,” she said, offering them each a smile that Slade was certain she’d practiced a thousand times in front of a mirror, “let’s get started.”

Everyone settled into a chair. Jamie flipped open her briefcase and distributed copies of legal documents. “The way I understand it is that Matt—” she pinned the middle McCafferty brother in her gaze “—wants to sell his place north of Missoula on contract to Michael Kavanaugh, his neighbor. He then wants to buy the two of you—” she motioned to Slade and Thorne “—out, so that he’ll own half of this place and, Randi, you’ll own the other half.”

“That’s right,” Matt confirmed.

“Matt’s agreed to run the ranch,” Randi contributed. “Then he…well, he and Kelly, since they’re going to be married soon…can live here.”

“What about you?” Thorne asked, his brows beetling.

Randi shook her head and flipped a palm toward the ceiling. “I do have a life in Seattle, you know.”

Thorne’s scowl deepened. “Yeah, I do know. But until we’re certain you’re safe, I don’t want you going anywhere. Not until we figure out who’s been trying to kill you and he’s safely behind bars.”

With a smile that dared her oldest brother to try to tell her what to do, she arched a dark brow. “I’m not arguing about it now, okay? I think Ms. Parsons has business here and she’d like to get down to it.”

“Jamie. Let’s keep this casual.”

Slade stiffened.

“We’re all from around here, so there’s no reason to be formal,” Jamie said coolly. “Okay, you’ve all got a copy of the paperwork, so let’s go over it.”

Slade tried not to notice the slope of her jaw, or the way she flashed a smile or how her eyebrows knitted in concentration as she read through the documents. What had happened between them was ancient history. Ancient.

Besides, he didn’t like lawyers. Any of ’em. He reached into his shirt pocket, his fingers searching for a nonexistent pack of cigarettes. He was trying to cut down and had left his smokes in his truck. Not that anyone would let him light up in here anyway.

Nicole brought in a tray of coffee, tea and cinnamon cookies, but Jamie seemed to barely notice. The baby started to fuss and she glanced at J.R. for just a second, her eyes turning wistful for the barest of moments before she became all business again.

Apologizing in Spanish and English, Juanita bustled in. Dark eyes flashed with pride as she fixated on the baby. “ Dios, little man, you are a loud one.” Expertly she plucked the infant from Randi’s arms. “He is hungry, sí? ”

“Big time,” Randi said, starting to climb to her feet.