LITMIR.BIZ

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vowed she would never let herself get fooled by an attraction again, the tough-girl pose was just about all she had left.

      But maybe that was okay. It gave her armor against falling for the sort of charm that had left her pregnant and alone. It helped let a man like this doctor know his handsome face and hunky physique weren’t going to bowl her over any time soon. If she had to be hard and caustic to make that plain, so be it. Better he know right up front. Better they all know. And better that she keep in mind the consequences of letting silly romantic notions creep into her thinking.

      “So I’m an Allman,” he was saying, looking quizzical. “What exactly does that mean to you?”

      She drew herself up a bit. “Do you really want to know?”

      “Yes.”

      She sighed. “Okay. To me, growing up around here, the Allmans were cowboys, trending toward the wrong side of the law. The Allmans always seemed to be starting fights or causing trouble. Especially for the McLaughlins.”

      He laughed, and she flushed, not sure what he found so funny. He couldn’t possibly know her relationship to the McLaughlins. No one knew. So that couldn’t be it. Frowning, she went on.

      “Now I come back to town and find the Allmans are the movers and shakers of the place. What happened?”

      It was a remarkable transformation from what she’d seen. Those low-life Allmans now had a thriving company and the high-and-mighty McLaughlins had hit hard times. That had to be difficult for everyone concerned.

      She’d been thirteen when her mother had finally told her that her father had been William McLaughlin, from the family she’d worked for years ago. And because that family was so important in Chivaree, she’d held the secret close and been proud of it. Watching McLaughlins whenever she came to town, she’d felt an identification with them that she couldn’t communicate—and they had fascinated her.

      Now, all alone with a baby coming, she’d come back instinctively to the place where her “family” lived, to find out a few things. First, was it true? Did she really have blood ties to these people? And second, would they accept her? Or would they want to deny that she had any right to their attention at all?

      So far she hadn’t decided exactly what she was going to do—which McLaughlin she would approach and what she would say when she did so. The man she’d been told was her father had died a few years before, so that bit of closure would be forever denied to her. But he’d had other children, three sons. What would they say when she showed up on their doorsteps?

      Soon after she’d arrived in town, she’d found a way to insert herself into the McLaughlin consciousness. She’d seen a wanted notice for a once-a-week housekeeper at the McLaughlin Ranch, and she’d applied for the job right away. Since she was only working part-time here at Millie’s, she had plenty of time for it, and the housekeeping job gave her a sort of foot in the door. The fact that she was working in a position very like what her mother had once had with the family was a little troubling. But she couldn’t be choosy at this point. She needed to get the lay of the land. Time was moving on and a baby was coming. And she knew she was going to have to do something about that very soon.

      “What’s your name?” he was asking.

      “Annie Torres.” The first name was pinned to her uniform, but she wondered if he would recognize the last name. Probably not. After all, why would he remember the name of the McLaughlin housekeeper from so many years ago? The McLaughlins themselves hadn’t.

      “Nice to meet you, Annie,” he said casually. “In time I hope you’ll come to see that Allmans aren’t so bad.”

      “But that doesn’t mean you’re now the good guys,” she said hastily. “Just because you’re rich and all.”

      “Oh? Why not?”

      She shrugged, turning her palms up. “Leopards and zebras.”

      He looked as though he wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly. “What?”

      “Spots and stripes don’t change that easily.”

      “Ah.” He nodded wisely. “Wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

      “Exactly right.” She gave him a skeptical look. “For all we know, you could be playing possum.”

      He groaned. “Are you always this glib with the animal aphorisms?”

      A small spark of satisfaction flared in her chest. She finally felt as though one of her barbs had hit home. “Not always. I’m as game for a good sports metaphor as the next girl.”

      “Good.” He rose and held out a hand to her. “Because you’re being traded.”

      “What?” For some reason, maybe because she was still trying to figure out what he was talking about, she meekly let him take her hand and pull her to her feet.

      “How do you feel?” he asked, studying her eyes.

      She took a deep breath. He hadn’t let go of her hand, but maybe that was to help her steady herself. Frowning, she pulled her hand out of his and rubbed it against her skirt, trying to erase the delicious feeling his touch had given her.

      “I’m fine,” she said crisply. “I need to get back to work.”

      He shook his head. “Negative. I’m taking you in to my clinic. You need a thorough checkup.”

      “I need not to lose my job,” she told him, trying to maneuver around him toward the door and failing to make any headway.

      “You’re quitting this job,” he told her, looking intently into her eyes for a moment. “Doctor’s orders.”

      This was crazy. It was all very well to tell her not to work too hard, to get plenty of rest and keep her feet up and so forth. But the fact remained that she had to make a living somehow. Lifting her chin, she glared at him defiantly.

      “Doctors can throw their weight around all they want, but patients have still got to eat.”

      She turned toward the door but he moved to block her progress and she looked up, a little startled by how big he was, how wide his shoulders seemed. And how knowing his gaze seemed to be. Did this man ever have any doubts about anything?

      “You’ll eat,” he said. “I’ve got another job for you. One that won’t keep you on your feet all day.”

      She wondered why he so casually assumed she would trust him enough to hand over life’s little decisions to him.

      “And that would be…?”

      “Office work. My office assistant abandoned me. She’s gone back East to help her fiancé pass the New York state bar exam. I need someone to fill in until she gets back.”

      Office work. Air-conditioning. A soft, plush seat. Regular hours. It sounded heavenly. But it never paid as much as waiting tables and getting tips.

      “How long will that be?” she asked anyway, tempted against her better judgment.

      “At least three months.” His grin had become endearingly crooked. “That fiancé of hers needs a lot of work and she’s the determined type.”

      She looked at him curiously. “What makes you think I’d be good at doing the sort of office work you need done?”

      He shrugged. “I’ve seen you working here with Millie over the last few weeks. Competence just radiates from you. Don’t you know that?”

      It was a nice compliment, but she hesitated, then shook her head.

      “I can’t quit here,” she said, putting a hand on her rounded belly. “I’m totally dependent on what I make and I need to save for my recovery period after the baby comes.”

      His blue eyes darkened. “No husband handy?”

      He asked it quietly, no moral judgment implied, and she felt a small twinge of

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