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  He shuffled his feet and seemed fascinated by the pattern on the linoleum. “Profit?” he muttered.

  “Is there anything else?”

  When he named a figure that stopped Riki’s heart, she wanted to cry. Not that he was losing all that money, but his little construction company just took on gigantic proportions. How could he ever give that up and start again in Virginia? Here she was visualizing him sitting at her desk figuring out additions, new roofs, and the cost of adding an extra bathroom. What would he ever do in Mountain View? With what he was losing on this one deal, he could put a down payment on the entire town.

  Jason saw the tears gather in Riki’s eyes and quickly crossed the floor to pull her into his arms. “It’s okay, Riki, I won’t go broke.” Hearing a muffled response against his chest, he added, “I’ll think of something if it’s so important to you, darlin’.” As he rocked Riki in his arms, his gaze never strayed from Charlie who was busy eating Cheerios.

  An idea slowly formed in his mind. It would work, but Riki would never agree to it. A slow smile curved his mouth as he spotted seven partners in crime. It really wasn’t fair to Riki, but all was fair in love and war.

  He cleared his throat and practically shouted, “Hey, everyone!” When he had the attention of the kids, he asked, “How would you all like to go to Dallas for a few days?” When he received blank stares and open mouths, he clarified, “You know, in a big airplane. You can all sleep at my place.” In the next instant he wished for those opened-mouthed stares. How could seven children cause such a racket? Between the exuberant shouts and questions he could feel Riki drawing back. When he saw the stubborn tilt of her chin and the determination in her lovely eyes, he knew he had a battle on his hands. She opened her mouth and quite firmly said. “No.”

  This brought immediate quiet to the room. “Why?” he asked.

  She stated the most obvious answer. “School.”

  Jason looked at the kids. “Is anyone doing so badly at school that he can’t afford to miss three days of it?” When Riki answered “no,” he pinned the boys and Charlie with a stern look. “Is everyone in agreement that when we get back from Dallas you will make up all classwork and homework with no complaints?” Receiving five nods, he turned back to Riki and raised an eyebrow.

  “Tiny and Dust Ball,” she said.

  “Don’t you have a neighbor who would look after them?”

  “Harold looked after them when we went camping,” Travis shouted.

  “Next objection,” Jason said.

  Riki racked her brain for any possible objections. The best she could come up with was, “Money. Do you have any idea what it would cost to fly us all down to Dallas for three days?”

  “That’s peanuts compared to what I lose if I don’t go. And I won’t leave Charlie here. Do you think she could handle being at my sister’s day and night for three days while I’m in meetings?”

  “No.”

  “Neither do I, Riki. I want you and all the kids to come to Dallas with me. I would like you to meet my sister, Stella, and her family. You’ll like them. I want them to get to know Charlie and all of you.” He ran his index finger over her lower lip. “Please, for me.”

  How could a woman refuse that? she asked herself. Glancing at the clock she saw the children had already missed their buses. If she went to Dallas it would mean three more days with Jason. She cupped his cheek and answered, “For you, anything.”

  A shiver slid down his spine and he crushed Riki to his chest. “Thank you, darlin’.”

  To say that Jason was a “mover and a shaker” was probably the understatement of the century. Within four hours Riki found herself and seven smiling children on a 727 bound for Dallas.

  Ten

  Three days later Jason awakened in the same state of mind as when he had gone to bed - frustrated. The past few days had been pure hell. Sleeping an average of four hours per night in a cold lonely bed while Riki was in the next room wasn’t his idea of fun. He rarely saw Charlie, only for a couple of minutes before he had to leave to attend an unrelenting parade of business meetings.

  After a quick cool shower to try to take the bite out of his frustration, he entered the kitchen. So much for privacy, he thought. All seven children were present and discussing the upcoming trip to the aquarium.

  Riki had her back toward the door as she fried bacon. At the sound of Charlie shouting “Daddy,” she turned around. Jason was standing in the doorway looking at her with desire burning in his eyes. Pure joy shot through her. Her gaze dropped to his mouth. Lord, how she wanted that mouth.

  Jason watched a smile form on her lips, watched her eyes start to shine with happiness. He stood very still as her gaze traveled from his face and down past the silk tie that was suddenly choking him. Then he saw the happiness in her eyes replaced with sadness and a touch of pain. He stood there helplessly as the smile died.

  This was the Jason who lived in Dallas, Riki thought. This was the Jason who owned a condo that probably cost three times as much as her whole house. He wasn’t the same Jason who fixed her brick walk, who helped coach the boys’ T-ball team, and who made incredible love to her all through the night.

  The man standing in front of her was a successful businessman from the top of his still-damp black hair to the tips of his handmade leather shoes. This man was a shaker and a mover. He owned a business so large, she was still having problems handling it. There was no other way to explain it. Jason was downright rich.

  Add being rich to his list of sins, she thought. That included being handsome and charming, possessing a great sense of humor, and being the cream of the crop as far as lovers go, and it all added up to zero.

  She looked down. Seeing her new white sneakers, she grimaced. Boy, she must really look lovely, dressed in jeans and a sleeveless yellow top. When you go sightseeing with seven children, you have to dress for comfort and the hell with fashion. Now, standing in front of Jason, who was dressed in a suit that definitely did not come off the rack, she fought the incredible urge to excuse herself and change into something formal.

  Jason instinctively moved forward to embrace and comfort Riki. He had taken two steps when his daughter stepped in front of him. He kneeled down and opened his arms to gather up his child. When she hesitated, he softly called her name.

  With both hands behind her back, she stared down at the floor. “I bought you something.” Her voice was so low, he had trouble hearing her.

  He looked up at Riki. She smiled, and he returned his attention to Charlie. “You did?”

  “You read us a story about a lion who had a thorn stuck in his foot.” He nodded. “You said that when you were little like me, you always wanted a lion.”

  “So I did.”

  Charlie brought her hands out from behind her back. Nestled in them was a stuffed lion, who looked more comical than fierce. His heart overflowing with love, he took the lion from her. This was his first gift from his daughter. How many Father’s Days had he missed? What about birthday cards done by hand with crayons? The mangy mane of the lion blurred as his eyes filled with tears. He tried desperately to swallow the lump in his throat. Somehow this cross-eyed lion with the lopsided grin took away all the bitterness he was feeling for being deprived of his daughter for six years.

  Gathering Charlie into his arms, he buried his face in her hair until he gained some semblance of control. He stood back up and swung her around in a circle. As she smiled he said, “I love you, Charleen Nesbit.”

  Her small arms encircled his neck and her lips brushed across his cheek. Then he heard her whisper, “I love you too, Daddy.” Joy exploded within him at those simple words. It seemed he had waited a lifetime for them.

  His whole world brightened. The only dark spot was Riki. What was bothering her? Whatever it was, he’d take care of it as soon as they were back home. He knew she loved him. There was just no way she could be so responsive to his every touch if she didn’t. But this was not the right time or place to talk with her
about their future. She had been nervous and upset since coming to Dallas. In fact, if he didn’t know better, he’d swear she was avoiding him. Since he had definite plans to spend the entire night tonight in her brass bed nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, it would be kind of hard for her to pretend he wasn’t there.

  He returned his thoughts to his daughter, who was still clinging to his neck. “Thank you, sweetheart. He’s the most handsome lion I have ever seen. Does he have a name?” She shook her head. “Would you like to help me name him?” As her little head bobbed up and down, he felt that motion was connected to his heart.

  He watched in amusement as her small brow furrowed in concentration. When she made no suggestions he supplied one. “How about Leo?” Her little nose wrinkled up in apparent contempt, and he burst out laughing. “Okay, so you don’t like Leo. Do you have a better suggestion?”

  “Roar.”

  “Why Roar?”

  “Mommy-Riki told me that’s what he says.”

  He glanced questioningly at Riki. “She wanted to know what to call me,” Rikl said. “Mrs. McCor- mick made me sound like an old lady. Do you mind?”

  “No. In fact, I kind of like it, Mommy-Riki.” He smiled at her, then at Charlie. “And I like ‘Roar.’ ” He held the cross-eyed lion up and announced that Roar was going to the office today with him. This statement brought forth a fit of giggles from his daughter and from the six children watching from the dining room table.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked. “Do you think Roar will scare my secretary?” Receiving more laughter, he held the lion up to his nose. He crossed his eyes and proceeded to lecture Roar on office etiquette. When all the laughter died down, he saw he was running late. He’d sacrifice breakfast any day to hear his daughter laugh like this morning. Now if only he could make Riki laugh again.

  He affectionately ruffled the boys’ hair, quickly kissed the girls, and warned them all to behave themselves for their mother. As he passed Riki he latched on to her wrist and pulled her into the living room with him. He positioned her with her back against the door. His trembling hand cupped her chin and forced her to look at him. “I’ve missed you.”

  No sweeter words ever touched Riki’s ears. She clasped the back of his head, her gaze as heated as his. “I’ve missed you too,” she whispered while she applied downward pressure to his head.

  Jason didn’t need much urging. He met Riki’s waiting lips with a kiss that held three days of pent-up frustration. He felt her soft and yielding body pressed against his and almost lost control.

  What was he thinking of? There were seven children in the next room and he was going to be late for his meeting. Whenever he kissed Riki, he lost all sense of time and place. At least the kiss answered one question. Riki still wanted him.

  He stepped away from her and bent down to retrieve Roar, who had landed on the floor during the embrace. He slowly straightened, giving himself time to regain some control over his emotions. He knew Riki was experiencing the same desire that surged through his body. They would work out whatever was bothering her when they got back home, he vowed silently. They had to. “Darlin’, I don’t know what’s been bothering you, but we will straighten it out tonight back home, okay?”

  She nodded. He kissed the end of her nose and left. Somehow it just seemed right that he walked out the door carrying a crazy lion.

  Jason downed the remaining Scotch in his glass while staring unseeingly out into the Virginia night. It had been a mistake to take Riki and the kids to Dallas, he thought. Charlie was on her way to becoming a little chatterbox. The boys and Billy-Jo had had a real blast visiting museums and sightseeing. Riki had been the mistake. She had grown more withdrawn every day.

  Since they had arrived back in Virginia earlier that evening, she hadn’t said more than a dozen words to him. After tucking all the kids into their beds for the night, he asked to see her for a moment in her study. She explained she had a couple of things to handle first, but she’d be right down.

  He knew the moment she walked into the room. An inner alarm went off in his body. His heart beat picked up, his arms ached to hold her, and his jeans became uncomfortable with embarrassing speed. Maybe throwing this surprise on her wasn’t such a good idea after all. He should have let her in on it from the beginning. It was her future too. What was going to happen if she totally disagreed with all the plans? He’d have to play his trump card, Charlie. There was no way Riki would throw a homeless child out into the street.

  As of this afternoon Charlie had no permanent home. Jason had signed the agreement of sale on his condo in Dallas. Charlie also had an unemployed father. Granted, her father still owned a substantial share of stock in a construction company in Dallas, but all major decisions were to be handled by her uncle Sam.

  As the silence stretched between them and the tension took on a life force of its own, Jason became more and more convinced he had made an error in judgment. He slowly turned from the darkness of the night to gaze at his sunshine, Riki. She looked incredibly nervous. He silently weighed his options and decided the direct approach was the best.

  He set his empty glass down on the desk, cleared his throat, opened his arms, and asked, “Riki, will you marry me?”

  His arms slowly lowered to his side as pain filled Riki’s eyes.

  Her heart shouted Yes! Her mind roared No! Not now, not enough time. Never enough time. She would love Jason with her last breath, would go to her grave loving him, but she couldn’t marry him. It had taken months of love and understanding to get her sons to accept the fact that their father was never coming home again and that this was their new home. She had vowed two years ago never to uproot her family again. Some promises were meant to be broken, and for the love she felt for Jason she’d break that vow in a moment.

  The promise she had made Jake and Pete couldn’t be broken, though. How could she possibly adopt them legally from the state of Virginia if she were married and living in Texas? She had had to get permission from the state even to take them to Dallas for three days. What would they say if she told them she was moving there?

  She couldn’t take a chance the state would make an exception to the rule for her. She’d been caught up in bureaucratic red tape before. Sometimes the tape was so thick it smothered little people like Jake and Pete.

  With tears in her eyes, she whispered the words that would condemn Jason to a life of loneliness and despair. “I’m sorry, I can’t.”

  “Why? You love me.”

  “Yes, I love you.” She crossed her arms and hugged herself as tears slipped down her cheeks. “Please, Jason, don’t make this harder on me.”

  He watched those tears in total bewilderment. Yes, she loved him, no, she wouldn’t marry him. Nothing Was making any sense. “Okay, Riki, I’ll let the subject drop for tonight if you tell me why.”

  She tried to gain control and took a deep breath. “Promises.” “To whom?”

  “Jake and Pete.”

  “What promises did you make to Jake and Pete?” “That I’m adopting them. I’ll become their real mother.” When Jason stared at her as if she was a candidate for the funny farm, she explained further. “How in the hell do you expect me to adopt them in the state of Virginia when we’ll be living in Texas? It’s on file that I’m a single parent with four children living in rural Virginia. What do you think will happen when I turn up married with five children and living in a two-bedroom condominium in Dallas, Texas? Do you have any idea what kind of investigation they have done on me? Dammit, they don’t let just anyone adopt kids.” Joy flooded through Jason’s body as her words started to make sense. Riki was afraid of losing Pete and Jake when they moved to Texas. Well, since he wasn’t planning on moving Riki and the children to Texas, that eliminated her reason for saying no.

  “Why, Erika, I believe that’s the first time I ever heard you cuss.” Grinning broadly, he added, “I really don’t think it’s appropriate for a mother of seven to use such language.”


  As he leaned casually back against the wall, Riki searched her mind for the reason behind his silly grin. She’d just turned down his proposal and he was grinning. For that matter, why had he called her a mother of seven? When he left with Charlie, that would leave her with six. He was definitely up to something. “Do you know something I don’t?”

  The grin faded from his face. “I’m afraid there’s quite a bit you don’t know. When I was in Texas I signed papers selling my condo. I also sold a major portion of my construction company to my brother-in-law, Sam. I still own the majority of the stock in the company, but Sam’s going to run it.”

  “But what are you going to do?”

  “I’ve had a couple of preliminary meetings with Dave Moyer at the Mountain View High School. Come September I’ll be starting a new construction company geared to hire teenagers who are willing to work half a day and go to school in the mornings. Since the kids will all be trainees, we can afford to offer our services at a very reasonable rate. Many of the senior citizens will be able to afford us.”

  He watched as a smile started at the corners of Riki’s mouth. “Of course, I won’t be making megabucks, but with a little conservation I might be able to support a wife and seven children.”

  Her smile turned into a full-blown grin. “With a real frugal wife you might be able to support eight kids.”

  His gaze slid down to her waist and he visualized Riki carrying his child under her heart. “Definitely eight.”

  Riki’s eyes turned passionate as she imagined all the ways they could go about making number eight. “Ask me again.”

  Without a moment of hesitation Jason asked Riki to become his wife for the second time within ten minutes. The question was barely out of his mouth when she shouted “Yes” and flew across the room into his waiting arms.

  He hugged her fiercely. “When?”

  With tears of joy and love in her eyes, she an-

  swered, “Today, tomorrow. How about yesterday?” She stroked his cheeks and whispered, “I love you, Jason Nesbit.”