Czytaj książkę: «Denim and Diamond»

Chapter One

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Piper Diamond felt her breath catch when she recognized the deep resonant voice.

She’d been visiting the stables at her parents’ California ranch located on the outskirts of Kincade, when she heard footsteps approaching. She’d expected to see her brother, but the tall black-haired man standing before her wasn’t Spencer.

Though she hadn’t seen Kyle Masters in eight years, she’d have known his darkly handsome features and stormy gray eyes anywhere.

“I thought you were Spencer,” Piper said as the baby nestled beneath her heart give a sharp kick.

“He’ll be along in a minute,” Kyle replied as his gaze dropped to where her right hand rested on her rounded stomach, and for a fleeting moment she caught a flicker of emotion in the depths of his eyes.

“You must be here to see Firefly,” Piper said, wondering about the sudden erratic beat of her pulse.

“Yes,” Kyle replied, but he made no move toward the mare’s stall. “So the rumors I’ve been hearing in town are true,” he said. “Congratulations.” His gray eyes held hers, their expression unreadable.

“Thank you,” Piper said, wondering not for the first time, what it was about Kyle Masters that stirred her senses. Years ago she’d had a monumental crush on him, and she remembered all too well during those fun-loving, carefree days that she only had to catch sight of him for her heart to kick into high gear, just like it was doing now.

“When’s the baby due?”

“Mid-November,” she replied, wishing now she hadn’t ventured down to the stables. Being around horses had always helped soothe her, but finding herself alone with Kyle Masters was having the opposite effect.

“Piper! So this is where you got to,” Spencer said as he joined them. “Ah…I see you’ve met Kyle. Kyle, you remember my sister, Piper?”

“Yes, I remember Piper,” Kyle replied, and hearing the hint of amusement in his voice, Piper felt a warmth creep up her neck, as the memory of her last encounter with him returned.

“If you’ll excuse me,” Kyle added, “I’d better take a look at Firefly. Nice to see you again, Piper.” He opened the door to the mare’s stall.

“Come on, Sis. I’ll walk you back to the house.” Spencer put his arm through Piper’s and led her out into the afternoon sunshine.

“Does Kyle come to the ranch often?” Piper ventured to ask as they headed down the path to the security gates.

“He’s here once a week during the racing season or if one of the mares is pregnant,” her brother explained.

“I suppose he’s working with Henry Bishop now,” she said, remembering Kyle had been helping out at the veterinary clinic the summer she graduated from high school, the summer she made a complete and utter fool of herself.

“Henry retired. He moved to Arizona to live with his sister three years ago,” Spencer said. “They worked together for a few years, then Kyle took over the clinic.”

“Is he married?” she asked in a casual tone, curiosity getting the better of her.

“Divorced.”

She threw her brother a startled glance as he punched in the security code and opened the gate.

“He doesn’t talk about it much,” Spencer continued as they climbed up the path. “He has a daughter, April. She’s a real cutie. She’s four.”

“How often does he see her?”

“Every day,” Spencer replied. “Kyle has sole custody,” he explained. “You might remember his wife, Elise Crawford. She was a couple of years ahead of you in high school.”

Piper cast her mind back, recalling the striking blonde. “Didn’t she go off to New York to take up acting?” she asked.

“That’s right,” Spencer confirmed. “She didn’t have much luck and came home shortly before her mother died. I think that’s when she hooked up with Kyle.”

“I see.”

“But, it turned out she was still hankering for a shot at the big time after all, and a few days after April was born she packed her bags and hightailed it back to New York.”

“That must have been hard on Kyle, being left with a newborn baby to care for,” she commented.

“He’s not one to complain,” Spencer said. “And believe me, he’s had his share of things to complain about. I don’t imagine it’s been easy running a business and raising a daughter alone.”

“Other people seem to manage juggling family and a career,” Piper said, strangely reluctant to feel any sympathy for him.

“That’s true. But he was just telling me earlier that ever since his receptionist quit a month ago he’s had trouble finding a replacement. He’s put an ad in several newspapers, but so far he’s had no response.”

They approached the stairs leading to the wide veranda that surrounded the two-story ranch house.

“Enough about Kyle. I’m more concerned about you,” Spencer continued. “You’ve been here a week, and you’ve hardly said a word,” he chided gently. “I know we didn’t get a chance to talk much back in June, what with the wedding and everything, but you must have been pregnant then, right? So why didn’t you tell us?”

Piper flashed a smile. “Because, silly, it was yours and Maura’s big day, and I didn’t want to steal your thunder,” she said teasingly.

Besides she’d had a lot on her mind at the time, not the least of which was the fact that prior to her departure from London to attend Spencer’s wedding, she’d broken up with Wesley Adam Hunter, the baby’s father.

She’d been grateful that the bustle and activity surrounding her brother’s wedding had kept the focus away from her. Barely three months along, no one had noticed she was pregnant, and she hadn’t volunteered the information, still trying to come to terms with the news herself.

When the doctor told her that the cause of her continuous nausea wasn’t flu-related, she’d been stunned. In fact the idea of becoming a mother sent her anxiety levels soaring.

Being the baby of the family herself, she’d had very little contact with small children. She’d never even had a baby-sitting job. Her career had always come first; that’s why she’d risen so far so quickly, and while she’d watched several of her friends get married and start a family, that hadn’t been on her own list of priorities.

Truth be told it was actually the impending birth itself that terrified her. She hadn’t spoken of her fears to anyone, not even her mother.

She knew that giving birth was a normal and natural occurrence, and women did it all the time, but Piper couldn’t seem to get her mind around it.

She’d tried to tell herself she was being ridiculous, that it would be a wonderful and memorable experience but that did nothing to diminish the fear embedded deep inside her.

“What about Wes? He must be pleased.” Her brother’s comment brought Piper’s thoughts back to the present. “He is going to join you isn’t he, or is he off on another one of his daring assignments? I hope you told him you caught Maura’s bouquet and that means you’re next in line to get married.”

Emotion suddenly clogged Piper’s throat threatening to choke her. “There isn’t going to be a wedding,” she told him. “Wes is dead. He was killed in an accident in Asia while I was here at your wedding. I didn’t find out about it till I got back to London.”

Spencer’s shock was evident on his face. “Piper…My God! I’m so sorry.” He hauled her into his arms and held her for several long seconds before pulling away to look at her once more. “I don’t remember seeing anything in the papers.”

Piper’s smile held a hint of bitterness. “His family had it hushed up.”

“Why? What happened?”

“Apparently he’d been drinking with a group of young militant students,” she began. “You know Wes, always looking for a new angle, always trying to pry information from someone, somehow. Billy Brown, another reporter chasing the same story, came to see me in London after I got back. He told me the students had challenged Wes to a drag race.”

“And, of course, he accepted.”

Piper nodded. “Wes could never turn down a challenge.”

“But, how…?”

“He missed a turn and drove off the road. And because of the circumstances surrounding the accident, all that appeared in print was a small announcement saying he’d died in a car accident.”

“You should have called us.”

“And say what?” Piper countered. “Besides, you and Maura were on your honeymoon, and I needed time to deal with the news in my own way.”

“But you shouldn’t have had to go through it alone,” he chided softly. “That’s what families are for, to help you through the bad times.”

Piper couldn’t speak as emotions she’d been trying hard to keep in check threatened to bubble to the surface.

She hadn’t told her brother about the terrible row she’d had prior to Wes’s departure for Asia. Though the discovery of her pregnancy had been a shock initially, she hoped that carrying his child would help bridge the gap steadily forming between them.

Her announcement, however, had the opposite effect. Piper doubted she’d ever forget the look of icy disdain on Wes’s face when he’d asked if she was sure the child was his. At the memory, fresh tears, never far from the surface these days, gathered in her eyes.

“Awe, pip-squeak,” Spencer said, using the nickname he’d bestowed on her when she was a little girl desperately trying to keep up with her bigger, older brothers. Pulling her into his arms, he held her tightly. “We love you, you know that. We’re here for you no matter what.”

She eased out of his arms. “Why do you think I came home?” she replied, her voice thick with emotion.

“Oh…here comes Kyle.”

Piper hurriedly brushed the moisture from her eyes and turned to watch Kyle approach, noting as she did that he hadn’t changed much in the past eight years.

Slowly she let her gaze travel over his six-foot frame from his jeans-clad legs and powerful thighs, his flat stomach to his big, broad shoulders, hidden under a black T-shirt. Silently she acknowledged that he was still the most handsome man she’d ever known.

“Everything all right with Firefly?” Spencer asked.

“She’s in great shape,” Kyle assured him. “I’ll be back to check on her again next week.”

“Fine. See you then. Oh…good luck in your hunt for a receptionist,” Spencer said.

“Thanks.” Kyle smiled ruefully. “Right about now, I’d settle for someone willing to come in for a couple of hours a day, just so I can get caught up with the paperwork.”

“Maybe Piper could help you out,” Spencer said turning to her. “What do you say, Sis?”

Startled, Piper couldn’t think of a suitable response. The air seemed to crackle with tension.

Kyle broke the silence. “Thanks, Spencer, but I’m sure your sister doesn’t appreciate you volunteering her services.”

“Nonsense!” Spencer replied. “Besides, she could use the distraction. Isn’t that right?”

Both men turned to her, and she felt her face grow warm as they waited for her to speak.

“Well, I…” she began, her thoughts in chaos as she tried to frame a polite refusal. She met Kyle’s steady gaze and knew by the resigned look in his gray eyes that he was expecting her to brush him off. “I’d be happy to help out, on a temporary basis, of course.” With some satisfaction, Piper noted the flicker of surprise that danced across Kyle’s handsome features.

It was Kyle’s turn to stutter. “Uh…well, thanks, but I couldn’t impose. Besides, I really need someone with accounting experience.”

“Piper’s your gal,” Spencer assured him. “She and a friend are partners in a small photo studio in London. Piper knows all about bookkeeping. Isn’t that right?”

“Yes, I do,” Piper replied.

“Really,” Kyle commented, though he didn’t sound in the least impressed. “I appreciate the offer, but I—”

“I thought you said you’d be glad to have someone to help. Besides, you’d be doing me a favor,” Piper said, annoyed that he’d been about to turn her down. She flashed what she hoped was a winning smile. “The baby isn’t due for another eight weeks, and as Spencer said, I could use the distraction,” she added suddenly realizing it was true.

“I…well…” Kyle ground to a halt, and Piper almost laughed out loud at his expression.

Spencer slapped his friend on the back. “I’ll leave you two to sort out the details. I have to get back to the stables. See you next week,” he added, before heading off.

“So, when would you like me to start?” Piper asked sweetly, knowing by the tightening of his jaw that Kyle wasn’t exactly pleased with the way things had turned out.

“Are you sure your husband will approve of you taking on a job, especially this late in your pregnancy?”

At his cutting words Piper drew a sharp breath. She knew she’d annoyed him, and that was the reason for his gibe, but the knowledge did little to diminish the pain and sadness washing over her.

“There is no husband to approve or disapprove. The baby’s father is dead,” she announced in a voice that wavered slightly.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his tone contrite.

“So, when would you like me to start?” she asked in a challenging tone.

“The clinic is open every weekday from nine to noon.”

“Fine. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at eight-thirty.” Turning away she climbed the stairs to the veranda.

It was eight-fifteen the next morning when Piper pulled into the parking lot alongside the two-story building that housed the veterinary clinic, two blocks west of Kincade’s Main Street.

She sat for a moment in the station wagon she’d borrowed from her brother, remembering the time she was twelve when she’d found an injured cat on the road as she walked home from school. She’d picked up the bleeding animal and carefully carried it all the way back to town.

Although the clinic had been closed, Henry Bishop had answered her frantic knock and immediately ushered her inside. After treating the injured animal, he’d praised her quick action. She’d burst into tears, and he’d comforted her, before calling her parents to tell them where she was and why she was late.

Somehow Piper had trouble seeing Kyle Masters in the role of comforter, but that was probably because he had been neither kind nor understanding the night she’d made a complete and total fool of herself trying to seduce him.

Piper pushed the embarrassing memory aside. She wasn’t sure now why she’d agreed to help the man who’d humiliated her years ago. Maybe she just wanted to prove to herself and to him, that he no longer had the power to affect her.

With a sigh she climbed from the station wagon and made her way across the parking lot. As she rounded the corner of the building, two dogs, a Doberman pinscher and a Jack Russell terrier, came racing to greet her, their tails wagging.

She noted with some surprise that the Jack Russell terrier was missing a hind leg, but that didn’t stop him from reaching her first.

She smiled. “Well, hello there, you two.”

“Mutt! Jeff! Come!” The authoritative voice belonged to Kyle. As he stood in the open doorway, his jet-black hair, still wet from the shower, glistened in the morning sun. He wore a white lab jacket atop his T-shirt and jeans, adding just the right air of professionalism to his appearance.

Piper ignored the leap her pulse took as she walked the short distance to the door. The dogs disappeared inside.

“Good morning.”

“Good morning,” Piper replied. “Mutt and Jeff. Surely you could have been a bit more creative?”

“That was the best I could come up with at the time,” he replied, a hint of a smile on his face. “You’re early.”

“If it’s a problem I can leave and come back,” Piper quipped.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked abruptly, his gray gaze locking on hers.

Her heart skipped a beat, just as it had years ago each time she’d set eyes on him. “Yes, I’m sure.” She needed the distraction, needed to occupy her mind with something other than the problems facing her.

Tension, like a living, breathing thing, arched between them. Kyle was the first to look away.

“You’d better come in then,” he said. “I’ll give you the quick tour.”

Piper slowly released the breath she’d been holding. She moved past Kyle careful not to brush against him, not an easy task when at seven months pregnant she already felt awkward and cumbersome.

“The waiting area is down the hall on the right, and there are two consulting rooms on your left,” he said.

“The clinic looks different than I remember.” Piper opened the door to one of the consulting rooms and peeked inside where she saw a chair, a stainless steel examination table and a shelf with an assortment of instruments.

“You’ve been here before?”

“It was quite a few years ago.” Piper withdrew from the examination room and bumped into him. “Sorry!” A shiver of sensation danced across her nerve endings when his arms instinctively came around her in what was nothing more than a protective gesture.

“No problem.” Kyle quickly released her. “The waiting room and reception desk are through here.”

“When did your receptionist leave?” Piper asked as she followed him through the doorway.

“A month ago,” he replied. “She left a message on the answering machine saying she was leaving town. No reason, no explanation.” He shrugged his shoulders.

“You weren’t joking when you said you’d fallen behind with your paperwork,” Piper commented, nodding at the growing pile of mail and files on the desk.

“You got that right.” Kyle flashed her a grin that sent her pulse skittering. “I started going through it. Paid a few bills, but I didn’t get very far, what with the interruptions. I haven’t had time to tackle it again.”

“I’d better get started,” Piper said, picking up a handful of unopened mail.

“Thanks, I really appreciate this.”

“No problem,” Piper replied, warmed by the sincerity she could hear in his voice.

“Keep track of your hours,” he told her. “And put yourself on the payroll.”

Piper opened her mouth to tell him she neither wanted nor needed his money but closed it again when she saw the glint of determination in the depths of his eyes.

“Fine,” she said.

“Daddy!” The sudden cry startled Piper, and she turned to see a golden-haired little girl dressed in bright-red pants and a white shirt, followed by the two dogs, come running toward them.

Kyle bent to scoop his daughter into his arms, and Piper felt her heart jolt against her rib cage as a look of adoration and love softened his handsome features.

“Hello, squirt…what are you doing down here? Where’s Nana?”

“Upstairs, on the phone,” his daughter replied with a grin. “Who’s that?” The child twisted in her father’s arms and pointed to Piper who was once again fending off the two dogs.

“It’s rude to point,” Kyle scolded his daughter as he captured her hand. “This lady’s name is Piper.”

“That’s a funny name.”

Piper laughed softly, charmed by the smiling cherub-faced child. “What’s your name?”

“My name’s April Franshish,” the little girl replied.

“April…ah…Francis,” Piper repeated in sudden understanding. “That’s a lovely name.”

“That’s Mutt,” April said, pointing to the Doberman. “And he’s Jeff.”

“We’ve already met. Hi, Mutt. Hello, Jeff.” Piper scratched Mutt’s ear while Jeff sat at her feet wagging his tail frantically.

“You’re going to have a baby, aren’t you?” April asked and at her question, Piper almost burst out laughing.

“April!” Kyle spoke a little sharply.

“That’s okay,” Piper said, thinking Kyle must indeed have his hands full with such a precocious child. “Yes, I am going to have a baby.”

“Kyle. Something’s happened and I—”

They turned to the newcomer, a woman in her midsixties Piper recognized as Kyle’s aunt. Vera looked anxious and upset.

“What’s happened?” Kyle asked, as he lowered April to the floor.

Vera hesitated, her glance shifting from Kyle to Piper and back. “Mary Bellows just called from Frank’s office.”

“And?” Kyle prompted.

“She thinks he might have had a heart attack. The ambulance is there now. They’re taking him to the hospital.” Her hand came up to cover her mouth, and Piper saw tears gathering in her eyes.

Kyle led his aunt to a nearby chair. Frank was obviously a close friend of his aunt.

“Do you want me to drive you over to the hospital?” he offered.

“Would you?” Her relief was obvious.

“Of course,” he assured her.

“Can I come, too?” April asked.

Kyle turned to his daughter. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, sweetie. You better stay here.”

“Who’s going to look after me?” the child asked.

Kyle’s gaze shifted to where Piper stood by the desk. She’d watched the entire exchange, unaccountably touched by Kyle’s concern for his aunt.

“Piper’s here. She’ll look after you till I get back. Won’t you, Piper?”

“Well…yes, I—” Piper began, but the rest of her reply was drowned out by the wail of the siren as an ambulance, lights flashing, drove past the window and down the street.

Kyle turned to his aunt. “Get your things. I’ll meet you outside at the truck.”

Vera rose from the chair and hurried from the room.

“Can’t I come with you?” April asked her father again.

Kyle lifted his daughter into his arms. “I’ll be back before you know it. You stay with Piper and show her around the clinic. Put the dogs out back in their run. Okay?”

“Okay,” April reluctantly agreed.

“Atta girl.” He kissed her forehead before setting her down.

He glanced at his watch and turned to Piper. “I have a few appointments this morning, they’re marked down in the blue book,” he told her. “I shouldn’t be more than half an hour, but if anyone wants to reschedule that’s fine. And thanks, I really appreciate this.”

“I’m ready,” Vera said as she reappeared in the doorway. With a reassuring smile, Kyle ruffled April’s hair then joined his aunt.

Piper tried to quell the butterflies fluttering madly inside her. She’d never been left to look after a four-year-old child before. What if something happened?

Suddenly she felt a hand slip into hers and glanced down to see April staring up at her.

“Is Uncle Frank going to be all right?” April asked with a slight hitch in her voice.

Piper drew a steadying breath and managed to smile. “They’re taking him to the hospital where the doctors will take care of him,” she said, sounding more confident than she felt.

April frowned. “I was in the hospital once.”

“Really?” Piper commented, finding the conversation both interesting and distracting. April didn’t appear to be upset at having been left with her, and the fact that the child had confidence in her somehow dispelled her initial anxiety.

“Daddy told me. He said I was born too early, and I had to stay in a cubator for a little while, until I got bigger, then he took me home,” she explained solemnly.

Piper smiled. “Well, I’d say they must have taken good care of you.”

April nodded. “And they’ll take care of Uncle Frank, too.”

That she was a well-behaved, well-adjusted child was apparent, and Piper admired the wonderful job Kyle was obviously doing as a single parent.

Surely if Kyle Masters could do such a good job, there was hope for her.