Kathie DeNosky - Cassie's Cowboy Daddy

Good thing the master bedroom had a half bath. At least he wouldn’t have her glaring daggers at him when he left the toilet seat up.

Frowning, Logan took a bite from his sandwich and watched the women laugh at something Hank said. Unlike his friend, Logan had no intention of letting some woman lead him around like a puppy on a string. He’d seen that happen to some of his neighbors in the Rancher’s Emporium down in Bear Creek. While their women tried on clothes in the dressing rooms, the men stood around holding prissy little handbags in their big brawny fists, discussing the advantages of artificial insemination over a good breeding bull. The big galoots didn’t even have enough sense to look as if they found the experience humiliating.

“Logan?” Hank waved his hand in front of Logan’s face. “I asked if you found any signs of the cougar Ray reported seeing up in the high pastures while you were on your camping trip.”

Snapped out of his dismal speculation, Logan shook his head and swallowed what tasted like sawdust slapped between two slices of bread. “I tracked him all over the northwestern quadrant, but never did catch sight of him. When I reached the waterfall at the end of Shadow Valley, the tracks disappeared.”

“Do you have a lot of trouble with wild animals?” Cassie inquired.

He watched her spoon some of the nastiest-looking green stuff he’d ever seen from small jars and into the babies’ eager mouths. It looked as if their supper wasn’t any more palatable than his. So much for the widow’s cooking.

“Well, do you?”

“Huh?

“I asked if you have a lot of trouble with wild animals.”

He studied her curious expression. Maybe if he mentioned a wild animal or two, she’d decide it was far too dangerous for her and her kids and take off like a coyote with a buttful of buckshot.

“Sometimes,” Logan said slowly.

“Oh, speaking of wild animals, Samson paid us a visit while you were gone,” Hank said, as if on cue.

“Who or what is Samson?” Ginny asked.

“One of the biggest black bears you’d ever care to see,” Hank answered, leaning back in his chair.

Logan couldn’t have been more pleased with the turn of conversation. Knowing Hank and his aversion to the bear Logan had raised from an orphaned cub, Samson would no doubt grow at least two feet in height and gain a couple of hundred pounds by the time Hank finished describing him.

“When that bear stands on his hind feet, he’s every bit as big as a grizzly,” Hank said.

Logan took another bite of his sandwich to keep from grinning. He couldn’t have asked Hank for a better job of exaggerating the bear’s size.

“Do you think he’ll be back any time soon?” Cassie asked, continuing to spoon the unappealing mush from the jars and into the little girls’ mouths.

“It wouldn’t surprise me.” When Ginny scooted her chair a little closer to his, a pleased expression lit Hank’s face. “Old Samson has been known to hang around for days before he heads back up into the mountains.”

A sense of contentment surrounded Logan. The widow and her entourage would be off the ranch, out of his life and headed back to St. Louis first thing in the morning.

Unable to resist adding a little fuel to the fire Hank had kindled, Logan tried to keep his tone pragmatic. “Wild animals are just one of the hazards of living in this part of the country. At times, the weather can be more dangerous than the wildlife.”

“You might as well give it up, Mr. Murdock,” Cassie said, setting the baby-food jar on the table. The clatter of the spoon inside the empty glass echoed throughout the suddenly quiet room. She knew what he was up to and the sooner he realized it wasn’t going to work, the better off they’d both be. “You’re not going to scare me away from what’s rightfully mine. Whether you like it or not, the twins and I are here to stay.”

The shroud of stillness that descended on the kitchen was deafening as she and Logan glared at each other across the big oak table. It reminded her of the unnatural calm before a huge storm.

“Hank, why don’t you help me with the twins?” Ginny asked, finally breaking the tense silence. She rose from the table and began unfastening the safety straps on the high chairs. “I think these two need to talk.”

“But it’s just startin’ to get interestin’,” Hank protested. When Ginny leaned down to whisper something in his ear, Hank’s face brightened and he left the table so fast his chair tilted precariously. “You’re right. They don’t need us. It’s a fairly warm evening. Why don’t we take the babies for a walk?”

Hank took Kelsie, while Ginny removed Chelsea from her high chair. “We’re going to show the babies Velvet Lady’s new colt.” He waited for Ginny to wipe the twins’ faces, then helped her wrestle matching yellow sweaters on them. They each held a baby as Hank ushered Ginny toward the door. “You two take all the time you need.”

At any other time, Cassie might have found Hank’s haste to be with Ginny quite comical. But considering that their departure left her alone with Logan, Cassie didn’t see anything funny about it.

The man was raw virility personified, and from the moment he’d walked into the kitchen, every one of her senses had homed in on him like some type of feminine radar. The lingering scent of his masculine soap, the sight of his corded forearms beneath his rolled-up shirtsleeves and the sound of his slightly rough baritone had her remembering the feel of his callused hands on her upper arms. The memory of his nude body in the bathtub sent a shiver snaking up her spine that had nothing to do with being chilled.

“Ginny’s right,” Cassie said, her tone sharpened by the sudden tension gripping her body. “We need to discuss the terms of our partnership.”

The harsh sound of Logan’s chair scraping along the hardwood floor echoed through the room. “I couldn’t agree more. There are some things we need to resolve, Mrs. Wellington. And I’d say now is as good a time as any to get it done.”

“Since my children and I are going to be living here, don’t you think it would be a good idea if we were on a first-name basis?” she asked, rising to face him.

He stared at her a moment before he nodded, stepped aside and motioned toward the hall. “All right, Cassie. Let’s go into my study.”

She normally hated confrontations, but she looked forward to this one. Logan Murdock needed to be treated to a few home truths. And the sooner, the better. She’d been around one too many selfish, self-centered men to let this one get the best of her.

She only wished his deep baritone hadn’t sounded so sexy, or that she hadn’t preceded him down the hall. His voice had that rough bedroom quality that sent a tremor passing through her when he said her name, and she could feel his gaze on her backside as surely as if he touched her there.

The man was, without a doubt, the most infuriating, obstinate soul Cassie had ever met. But he made her knees wobble and her lungs forget to take in air.

Logan brushed past her to open the door, and a tingle raced the length of her. Reminding herself to breathe, she entered the study and looked around in an attempt to distract herself from the unsettling reaction. To her disappointment, it was no different than any of the other rooms in the house—cherry wainscoting, massive pieces of leather-and-walnut furniture and neutral, nondescript drapes. It appeared Logan Murdock was stuck in a decorating rut.

“Does it meet with your approval?” he asked from somewhere behind her.

Cassie turned toward the sound of his voice, but instead of the snappy comeback she’d intended, she let loose a startled squeak. A huge bear in the corner loomed over Logan, mouth agape, claws extended, and after all the talk about Samson, it took a moment for her to realize the beast was poised for all eternity in the ferocious, battle-ready stance.