Kat Brookes - The Cowboy's Little Girl

“I don’t like horses,” Blue said with a frown, a sticky drop of pancake syrup clinging to her tiny chin.

Tucker’s smile sagged with his daughter’s announcement. How could a child conceived by two parents whose lives had once revolved solely around horses dislike them? More important, how was he supposed to see to it that his daughter was happy there at the ranch when she had an aversion to the very thing that put food on the table for his family? Her family.

Autumn picked up her napkin, dipped it into her water glass and then dabbed at the sticky syrup that had dribbled down Blue’s chin. “Sweetie, we talked about this on the way here. You can’t blame Alamo for what happened.”

“Alamo?” he asked as he watched the ease with which Summer’s sister cared for his daughter.

“Mommy’s horse,” Blue replied as she stabbed at another piece of syrup-laced pancake.

“The horse she was riding the day of the accident,” Autumn explained as she set the damp paper napkin down next to her plate. “She hadn’t owned Alamo all that long, so she had no way of knowing how he would react to being spooked. I have to imagine that most horses would be a little shaken up by a snake in their path.”

He nodded. “Some horses tend to be afraid of snakes. Some aren’t.” His horse wasn’t, but Hoss knew enough to give a snake a wide berth if they happened to cross paths. Same went with Little Joe, his more recently acquired saddle horse. “If only she’d been riding Cinnamon,” he muttered with a frown. “He’d never been prone to spooking.” One of the best quarter horses he’d come across in both manner and spirit.

“There have been far too many if onlys in our lives lately,” Autumn responded with a sigh, her gaze shifting to Blue. Then she looked back to Tucker, a hint of something that could only be described as condemnation in her eyes. “She had to sell Cinnamon after Blue was born.”

“Why?” he asked, unable to comprehend his wife ever parting with her beloved horse.

Autumn’s pretty mouth twisted in a sign of irritation and one slender brow lifted.

“Babies take money, Mr. Wade,” Autumn pointed out. “Medical bills, diapers, formula. Then there’s childcare, because as a single parent, Summer had no choice but to work to keep a roof over their heads. So, as you see, my sister had no choice but to sell her horse.”

Was she attempting to point blame in his direction for the difficulty Summer had gone through? Because it felt an awful lot like she was. “She had a choice,” he said with forced calmness. He might not know much about raising children, but he knew enough to keep adult issues between adults. “I’d be more than happy to discuss it with you further at a more appropriate time,” he said with a nod toward Blue, who seemed totally oblivious to the conversation going on around her. Her interest lay in swiping up every bit of the remaining syrup on her plate with her fingertip.

As if just realizing what she was doing, Autumn reached once more for her damp napkin. “Sweetie, it’s not polite to lick the syrup off your finger.” Taking his daughter’s hand in hers, she proceeded to wipe it clean.

Blue’s tiny mouth fell into a pout. “But I get to lick cotton candy off my fingers. And icing. And—”

“That’s different,” Autumn replied, a hint of frustration in her voice. She set the napkin down and stood, collecting both hers and Blue’s plates and forks. “You’re still sticky,” she told her as she turned and started for the sink. “Why don’t you run on into the bathroom and wash your hands with soap and water while I do up these dishes?”

“There’s no need for you to do that,” Tucker countered, his thoughts still dwelling on the fact that she blamed him for Summer’s having to struggle financially.

Blue shifted in her chair, her gaze trailing after her aunt. “Can we go pick flowers afterward?”

Autumn shook her head. “It’s October, sweetie. Not a very good time of year to be searching for flowers.”

It was good to see his daughter had a fondness for the outdoors. After having spent the previous day stuck inside thanks to a sudden drop in temperature that preceded a brief thunderstorm that rolled in, Tucker looked forward to showing her around the ranch. Not that he had minded getting to know his baby girl while playing dozens of games of Go Fish and Old Maid. Autumn had spent some of that time making work calls, and the rest observing the two of them. Until he proved himself, he had no choice but to accept that everything he did was going to be under Autumn’s close scrutiny.

“Actually,” Tucker said, “I happen to know where we can find some yellow rabbitbrush in bloom.”

Blue’s face lit up. “I like yellow!”

“Don’t you have to help your brothers with those repairs today?” Autumn asked.

He shook his head. “Jackson called this morning to tell me they were going to focus on the two worst sections of the fence line today and see to the rest tomorrow. Garrett has a few vet calls he needs to make today, which means I’m free to take Blue out to find those flowers after breakfast.”

Blue straightened in her chair, beaming excitedly. “Yay! Can we go now?”

* * *

Autumn smiled. “I’ll get you ready as soon as I finish cleaning up the kitchen.”

Tucker nodded. “I’ll give you a hand with these breakfast dishes. Then I’ll go grab a quick shower before we go look for those blooms. That is, if it’s all right with your aunt Autumn.”

Blue swung her gaze around. “Can my daddy get a shower before we go for a ride?”

“Yes.” Autumn wasted no time in responding, a grin parting her pink lips. “He may.”

“That’s not what I meant,” he muttered, a flash of heat spreading through his whiskered cheeks.

A snort of laughter passed through Autumn’s curved lips, drawing his attention in her direction. He couldn’t help but notice how pretty she was when she wasn’t scowling at him with condemnation. Her humor-filled gaze met his. “For future reference, children take almost everything that is said quite literally.”

“I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

She looked to Blue. “What Tucker...that is, your daddy,” she promptly corrected, “meant to say was that he needs to make sure your going for a ride with him would be all right with me.”

“The invitation was for the both of you,” Tucker clarified.

“Oh,” Autumn said, as if surprised by his wanting to include her. “I thought—”

“You’ve thought a lot of things about me that I hope to have a chance to set to rights,” he said determinedly.

“Can we go?” Blue pleaded, her face alight with excitement. “Please, Aunt Autumn!”

Autumn looked to Tucker. “I’d hate to—”

“Don’t say impose ,” he told her as he stood to carry his own dishes over to the sink. “I want to show the two of you around. Give Blue an idea of what it will be like to live here at the Triple W Rodeo Ranch.”

“ If she lives here,” Autumn immediately countered as if he’d forgotten her telling him he had to prove himself before she’d turn care of Blue over to him. Care he rightfully should have been a part of from the beginning.

“Rest assured my daughter will be with me.” He’d lost too much precious time with Blue as it was thanks to Summer.

“Do yellow rabbits live in the flower bush?”

His gaze still locked with Autumn’s, he said in confusion, “Yellow rabbits?”

A semblance of a smile returned once more to her pretty face. “I did warn you to prepare yourself for this. And now you have a perfect example of a four-year-old’s never-ending and sometimes completely unexpected questions.” She turned to Blue. “Sweetie, there is no such thing as a yellow rabbit.”