A Rancher's Pride - By Barbara White Daille Page 0,23
abandon the peas, and slid from her chair. Kayla watched until her niece had left the room, then took a deep breath and turned back to Sam.
Becky hadn’t understood what was going on.
Neither did Kayla. That flame of interest she’d felt in Sam out in the yard had been doused by a cold shower of genuine confusion. How could he have so little regard for his daughter? And how could he sit and ignore them both? If she’d ever doubted Ronnie’s claims about Sam’s behavior, she certainly had proof of it now.
She looked up at him. “Well, Sam,” she said finally, “who else will direct the conversation around here, if I don’t? You?”
“I’m not much for talking at mealtime,” he said.
“I noticed that.”
“Good.” He shoved his chair in, leaned toward her and almost hissed, “Then I expect you won’t have a problem remembering it.”
SAM COULD HAVE KICKED himself. He had blurted those words in anger, hadn’t really meant what he’d said. To tell the truth, he had a feeling most of his temper wasn’t directed at Kayla at all.
In the living room, he watched Becky playing with her dolls. She had them lined up along the couch and sat talking to them, her fingers flying.
The sight only increased his feeling of incompetence whenever he came near her.
He would never be able to sit and have a conversation with Becky. To teach her the things daddies taught their daughters. To read her a bedtime story, tuck her in and tell her he loved her.
Maybe things would’ve been a whole lot different now if he and Ronnie had done some communicating of their own. If he’d known about his daughter. But the marriage had turned so bad, so quickly, life around here had fallen into a state as unproductive as two armed camps on either side of No-Man’s-Land.
Maybe he could have handled things with Kayla better.
On second thought, judging by the way he’d stormed out of the kitchen after supper, maybe not.
From that direction now, he could hear Kayla clattering plates together. He hadn’t given a second thought to her when he’d walked away. Just as, now, she wasn’t giving even a first thought to what it would cost to replace a whole set of dishes.
Another thing she had in common with his ex.
If he didn’t want a new expense to add to the long list Ronnie had left behind, he’d better do something about Kayla.
Besides, he needed to make her forget the parting shot he’d taken as he’d left the table. If she ran with his comment to the judge, he could kiss any chance of custody goodbye.
The thought left him shivering in a cold sweat.
He threw aside the newspaper he’d pretended to read and jumped to his feet.
Becky looked up, her face taking on that same bewildered expression she’d had at the supper table. He gave her what he hoped passed for a reassuring smile.
Then he marched past her and back into the kitchen.
Kayla walked toward the table, refusing to look at him, he knew. She reached for the noodle casserole.
“Let me give you a hand with that.” He grabbed the dish.
“I can manage it.”
“I’m sure you can. But it’s my house, remember? My kitchen, too. I appreciate you doing the cooking, and I figure the least I can do is help clear up. I’m used to it.”
She shot him a puzzled look that resembled Becky’s, but with a lot more punch behind it. “You’ve had a sudden change of heart.”
He forced a rueful smile. “Let’s just say I found my company manners.” Better to think of her that way, as a guest in his home, a temporary visitor. Which is exactly what she was.
Although not nearly temporary enough to suit him.
LATER THAT EVENING, KAYLA almost laughed as she thought of what Sam had said. She stood in the guest bedroom, rummaging through her overnight bag, and shook her head.
Did he really think she would fall for that line? She doubted he had any company manners. At least, she hadn’t seen any evidence of them yet. No, he had something else up his fresh, clean, T-shirt sleeve.
Trying to make her forget his outburst in the kitchen, more than likely.
As if she could.
Still, she had pretended to go along with the idea, needing to keep things peaceful for Becky.
The thought of her niece made her smile. The thought of the surprise she had for her made her grin.
She had left Becky in the bathroom, brushing her teeth at the sink, eager