The Millionaires' Club: David, Clint & Travis: Entangled with a Texan / Locked up with a Lawman / Remembering One Wild Night

Two

The woman was wearing a pink sunbonnet the likes of which he had seen only in movies or in pictures of his great-great-grandmother. She had on a flowered, frilly dress covered with lace and pink velvet bows. Her dark blond hair was tied in long pigtails with pink bows and each cheek had bright rose circles. Her lashes looked too thick for her to be able to open her eyes, black feathery lashes that framed lively chocolate-brown eyes that gazed at him with a curious intensity. She had a luscious, deep red rosebud mouth.

In turn, Marissa Wilder gaped at David Sorrenson, taking in all six feet two inches of the ruggedly handsome man. Her heart thumped faster, and her temperature rose. How old had she been when he’d first had this effect on her? She was probably eleven years old. At eighteen, he had barely known she was alive. As a matter of fact, she suspected that right now he didn’t have a clue who she was. But was he a sight for female eyes! More handsome than ever with his thick, wavy raven hair and sexy sea-green eyes.

Then she became aware of the tiny baby in his arms. The little one was bawling at the top of its lungs and he simply stood there and looked helpless and desperate. Where was the man’s wife? Coming out of her spell, Marissa reached out.

“Let me hold your baby,” she said, taking the infant from his hands.

“Is there a microwave oven in this store where I can heat a bottle for her?” he asked. He fumbled in the brown paper sack he was carrying and fished out a bottle.

“Yes, there is,” Marissa answered, taking the bottle and motioning to him to follow her. David trailed after her to a tiny lounge with chairs covered in yellow vinyl and signs to employees lining the walls. He watched her warm the bottle and then take it out of the microwave to give it to the baby.

She cuddled the baby in her arms and placed the bottle close, letting the nipple touch the baby’s cheek. The little one turned her head the fraction needed, found the nipple and began to suck.

Quiet settled and Marissa gazed down at the baby. Longing filled her. How much she wanted her own baby! She yearned for a child. She forgot the man watching her as all her attention settled on the child. Yielding to her imagination, she wished the baby was her own precious darling.

“You’re a natural with her,” said a deep voice that yanked her out of her reverie, and she looked up into green eyes that now were fully focused on her. David Sorrenson looked as if he wanted to devour her, and her breath caught.

“A natural?”

“With babies,” he said, nodding his head as he looked at the baby in her arms.

“Oh, well, I’ve been around a lot of them. I have one niece and three nephews and two younger sisters,” Marissa answered. “She’s a precious baby. Where’s your wife?”

“I’m not married. And she’s not my baby. Well, she is for now.”

Marissa stared at him, realizing the man was distraught. This was rather shocking, because she had been to more than a few football games when he had been a senior and quarterback of the Royal High team and he had always remained cool and unflappable. She had been much younger, but she had heard her older sisters talk about him and she had seen him play football. She studied him. He needed a shave. His shirt wasn’t buttoned correctly. He ran his fingers through his tangled mop of black hair while he continued to stare at her as if she were a bug under a microscope.

“Are you married?” he blurted.

“No, I’m not,” she answered, beginning to wonder if he was under some kind of mental pressure that was causing him distress. “I’m divorced.”

Her answer seemed to relieve him, but she couldn’t imagine why, because she knew all too well, he didn’t want a date. He thrust out his hand.

“I’m David Sorrenson.”

“Yes, I know,” Marissa said, feeling her hand enveloped in his large, warm one. The contact was as disturbing to her jangled nerves as his steadfast gaze. “You were in school with one of my older sisters. I’m Marissa Wilder. You were in high school with Karen.”

“You don’t say. I didn’t recognize you. You’re a natural with babies, though. And you seem to like them.”

“I love babies,” she said softly, looking at the little girl in her arms. “What’s her name?”

“Autumn,” he replied.

“Autumn. That’s a lovely name. How old is she?”

“Five to ten days probably, give or take a few.”

Give or take a few? What kind of daddy was he? she wondered, some of her illusions about David Sorrenson shattering. “And you’ve been sent out to buy some diapers?” Marissa guessed.

“Something like that. Have you worked here long?”

“About two years,” she said. If she didn’t know whom she was talking to, she would summon the store security guard. David’s questions were weird, and she clearly recollected a lot of female discussion through the years about David Sorrenson. Never once had the description “weird” been included.

“Would you like a job as a nanny?” he blurted. “I need one badly and I’ll pay extremely well. Whatever you’re making here, I’ll triple it.”

After moments of silence ticked past, Marissa realized she was staring at him with her mouth open. Dumbstruck by his offer, she was momentarily speechless. “Triple my salary?” she repeated finally.

“Yes. You seem to know how to deal with a baby and I don’t. I need help.”

If it had been anyone else on earth, Marissa would have sent him packing, but for the better part of seventeen years of her twenty-eight-year-old life, she had had a schoolgirl crush on David Sorrenson. Once again, she was speechless. Work for him? Triple her salary?

“This is sort of sudden. Do you mean to come to your house every day?”

“No. I mean to live in my house and care for Autumn daily.”

“Oh!” Live in David Sorrenson’s house? “Be still my beating heart,” she whispered.

“What’s that?” he asked sharply, studying her even more closely.

Her brain began to function again. “I’m sorry, but I can’t do that. My folks are out of the country, and I take care of my grandmother and my younger sisters.”

“Maybe they can all move to my house. How old are your sisters?”

“My grandmother won’t move,” she replied, thinking he had the most sinfully seductive eyes she had ever seen. Cool, clear green with a thick fringe of long, black lashes. “Greta is a junior in college, and Dallas is a senior in high school.”

“The junior in college is old enough to take care of your grandma and your youngest sister.”

“Well, that’s true,” Marissa reasoned. “When do you want someone to go to work for you?”

“This morning.”

Again she stared at him. The man’s mind must have slipped a cog in the past few years. Although, physically, he still looked extremely well put together. Those were very broad shoulders. “I have a job. I can’t walk out on the store.”

“I’ll pay you to walk out. I’ll talk to the manager and straighten it out with him,” David said decisively. “I’ll give you an extra thousand-dollar bonus to leave your job this morning.”

“A thousand dollars? Just like that?” She stared at him, still stunned by his sudden offer and his snap decisions.

“Just like that. I’m desperate,” he replied.

“I’m beginning to believe you are.” Her head swam now. He had stepped into her world and turned it upside down. Triple her salary. Live with David Sorrenson. A thousand dollars. She had heard the man had retired from Air Force Special Operations. He was independently wealthy, living on his ranch. There were two or three women in town whom he had been seen with—wealthy, sophisticated beauties. Marissa hadn’t heard any remarks about his mental condition. Or that he had a baby.

Triple her salary. A thousand dollars. Live in his house. The offer spun in her thoughts repeatedly. That last thing—live in his house—she knew she should avoid, because that was the road to heartbreak. As distraught as he was and as rumpled and unshaved and uncombed, he was still a hunk. But weird. On the other hand, enjoy the moment, she thought.

“I don’t know about leaving my job right this minute,” she replied cautiously, her mind racing over the possibilities. “This is a drastic decision. I think you and I need to sit down and discuss your offer.”

“Okay. Tell the manager that you’re taking a break and we’ll go confer about the nanny job. It’ll be very temporary, probably only a day or two at the most.”

“A day? Then you don’t really need a nanny.”

“Oh, yes, I do!” he snapped. “I can’t go through another night like last night. Actually, I don’t want to go another hour without help.”

The man was unhinged, but nonetheless, for the money he was offering, she was interested.

“We do need to discuss this,” she said, leading him out of the employees’ break room and going back to her station.

“We can go to the Royal Diner to talk. Have you had breakfast?”

“No, I didn’t eat breakfast this morning,” she replied, dazed by what was happening and barely thinking about breakfast.

“Want me to tell your manager?” David asked, looking around the store.

“Oh, no!” she gasped, imagining her supervisor’s reaction to all this. “I’ll tell him. You take Autumn.”

“No,” David replied in a no-nonsense, take-charge voice. “You hold Autumn and keep feeding her because she’s happy. I’ll tell the manager and square it with him and I’ll drive. What’s your manager’s name?”

“Jerry Vickerson, and his office is in the southeast corner of the store.”

“I’ll be right back, Marissa Wilder. Don’t go away,” David ordered, giving her a look that immobilized her as he started to walk away. “And when I get back, I need to buy a baby carrier for her before I leave the store. I don’t care about the price. You pick it out.”

Turning to stride away, he combed his fingers through his hair and squared his shoulders.

“Baby Autumn, you have a very decisive, persuasive caretaker. Where’s your mommy, sweetie?” A nanny with triple her current salary. Wow. It wasn’t going to do her 401K any good, but to take care of this little baby would be wonderful. To live at David Sorrenson’s would be—exciting? Heartbreaking, most likely. She probably would spend half her time fantasizing about him. Although, his behavior this morning hadn’t made him too adorable. Still, the man had gotten what he wanted in no time flat.

As she cuddled the baby close against her, Marissa hummed to herself while she selected a carrier. She remembered the brown paper sack David had had in his hand and picked up a pretty pink diaper bag with teddy bears on it.

In minutes he came striding back. “It’s settled. Your job is terminated. You can have it back whenever this nanny job ends—which may be soon.”

She stared at him in amazement. Her boss was just a step away from being a modern-day Ebenezer Scrooge to his employees. To have him suddenly become so cooperative surprised her, and she wondered what incentive David Sorrenson had offered her boss.

“All right,” she said cautiously. “I picked out this carrier and here’s a diaper bag. You look as if you need one,” she said, eyeing the paper sack.

“Oh, yeah, I do. Good.” He pulled out his wallet and glanced at the price tags. “That’s good. I’ll transfer this stuff from the sack to the bag and then, when we get to my car, we’ll put Autumn into the carrier. I’m using a borrowed one that I need to return.”

Marissa rang up his purchase with one hand, completing the transaction and watching him empty the sack and toss it into the trash.

“Do you want to get your things and leave your name tag?” David asked. “I told your manager I would bring you back later to pick up your paycheck. He said he would have it ready in an hour.”

She realized David was waiting and she hurried to get her purse. “You’ll have to hold the baby for me. I need both hands free to get this name tag off.”

“Let me do it,” David said, stepping close.

Her pulse jumped as he moved within inches. His warm fingers brushed her collarbone and her shoulder. He stood close and she looked at his unshaven jaw covered in black stubble, his mouth with his slightly full lower lip, the sight of which stirred a bushel of curiosity about how those lips would feel on hers. He deftly removed the pin and placed it under the counter. “Anything else?” he asked.

“Oh, yes!” she answered dreamily while looking at curls of dark chest hair at the open neck of his blue, short-sleeved western shirt and thinking she could let his fingers flit over her for another half hour or so.

“Yes?” he repeated, his voice filled with curiosity while he stared at her with arched brows. Then she realized what she had just said.

“I meant no!” she replied swiftly, feeling her cheeks flush. She turned away, but not before she saw his eyes narrow and his gaze became more piercing than ever.

He took her arm. “My car is this way.”

She had a ridiculous feeling she had just lost control of her life. All because she knew how to feed and hold a baby. “Don’t you like babies?”

“I don’t know anything about them. Well, now I know they cry a lot and I know how to change a diaper.”

Marissa hurried beside him, trying to keep up with his long-legged stride as they left the store and crossed the parking lot to his low-slung, dark green sports car. Sunshine spilled over them on the crisp November day, and Marissa still couldn’t believe what was happening to her. She glanced over her shoulder at the store and it seemed as if she were in a dream. Why wasn’t she back there working?

She looked at the tall man beside her. In less than thirty minutes he had changed her life. Now here she was outside, invited to breakfast with an unbelievably appealing man and she was going to get to care for a precious little girl and make a lot of money doing it. She had to be dreaming, yet the sunshine was warm and very real. Enjoy the moment, she thought.

He held the door for her. “I’ll take Autumn now and put her into her carrier.” Once again, their hands touched and she was too aware of each tiny contact. What was happening to her? She didn’t usually have that reaction when she handed things to men at the store.

She looked down at her clothes. Did she want to go to the Royal Diner in her Bo-Peep costume she had worn for the store special today? Deciding she would, she sighed. It was her own outfit, not the store’s, and it would be too complicated to go home to change.

Climbing into the car, Marissa watched David put the baby into her new carrier in the back seat. He buckled the infant and the carrier in and then slid behind the wheel.

Beware of charming, appealing men, she reminded herself silently, glancing at David. She remembered how she had fallen head over heels in love—or had it been infatuation?— for her handsome ex-husband who had turned out to be a crushing disappointment in her life. A man who had used her for his own purposes, cheating on her while she worked to help put him through medical school. When he’d achieved his goal, he had discarded her, hurting her badly.

When Autumn began to cry, Marissa twisted in the seat to talk to the baby and to try to give her the bottle. As soon as she did, Autumn became quiet.

“Thanks for doing this,” David said.

“She’s an adorable baby. So pretty.”

He didn’t answer, and in minutes they whipped into a parking place in front of the Royal Diner. “I’ll take the carrier inside with us,” he said, climbing out to unbuckle the carrier. While he held the door for Marissa, she entered the warm Royal Diner. With every step she was aware of David’s presence, aware of brushing against his arm as she went through the open door.

When the smell of frying bacon and brewing coffee assailed her, she realized that she was hungry. Sliding into a booth, Marissa smoothed her skirt and petticoats and patted the seat. “Put Autumn’s carrier here beside me. When she finishes this bottle, I can watch her.”

He didn’t need any arm-twisting for that one. Instantly, he set the carrier with the sleeping baby beside Marissa and then he slid into the booth and sat facing her.

Feeling nervous and self-conscious, Marissa smiled at him. She glanced around the diner and saw a familiar waitress heading toward them.

Popping gum and giving a tug to her tight, pink polyester uniform, Sheila Foster brought them glasses of water and plastic-coated menus. “Hi, Marissa. Hi, David,” she greeted them, looking again at Marissa. “Cute dress and cute baby.”

“Thanks, Sheila,” Marissa said with a big smile that revealed a dimple in her right cheek.

“Would you like coffee?” Sheila asked.

David nodded, still staring at Marissa’s dimple. “What about you, Marissa?”

Every time he said her name in his deep voice, a tingle slithered through her middle. She shook her head. “No, thanks. I’ll have a glass of orange juice.”

“I’ll have orange juice with my coffee,” David added.

As soon as they were alone, Marissa asked him, “So, David, how are you related to Autumn?”

David met Marissa’s gaze squarely. “I’m not,” he answered carefully, realizing that for once in his life, he hadn’t thought ahead to explanations.

“She’s not related to you,” Marissa repeated, and there was no mistaking the surprise in her voice. “So how come she’s in your care?”

The woman might dress strangely, David thought, but her brain was clicking right along. And those dark brown eyes of hers were slicing into him. He weighed what to reveal and what to keep to himself.

“I was here last night with friends, and while we were eating, a woman came rushing in and collapsed.”

“This is her baby?” Marissa demanded. “That was on last night’s news. How did you get the baby? Why isn’t she with her mother?”

He had been so distraught over feeding and caring for Autumn, he hadn’t considered how fast the word would spread in Royal. Royal might be a town filled with some of the greatest wealth in the Lone Star State, but it was still a small place and news traveled like wildfire.

“I know Dr. Justin Webb,” David answered carefully. “When my friends and I took the woman and her baby to the hospital, we met with Dr. Webb. Instead of turning the baby over to a state agency, he said I could take care of her until her mother is able to,” he explained.

“Wow! No wonder you looked a little upset.”

“Yeah, well, I haven’t spent time around a baby before. I haven’t ever even held one before last night.”

Marissa looked at sleeping Autumn as if she was filled with sympathy for the little girl. “Well, I’m here now and I’ve held plenty of babies,” she said, with a confident tone that was reassuring to him. “We better discuss this job I’m supposed to do. I guess you want me to move in today.”

“Damn straight I do,” he said with heartfelt sincerity. “I’ll be counting the minutes.”

“I have to go home, break the news to my family, pack, get my family arranged and then I’ll be over. Maybe four today. How’s that?”

“Fine, but if you get there sooner, it’ll be great.”

“You don’t have a girlfriend who could do this?” she asked curiously.

“No, I don’t. None of the women I date is into babies and diapers and formula. Not even remotely.”

“I can imagine,” she said, and again, David wondered what she thought of him. In her eyes he might be an irresponsible playboy. “The mother is all alone in a coma in the hospital?” Marissa asked.

“Not altogether alone. One of my friends, Clint Andover, is standing watch.”

Marissa nodded in approval. “What are my hours?”

Startled, he stared at her. “All the time, I thought.”

She shook her head. “I have a family and I want some time off.”

He tilted his head to study her, desperation looming inside him again. “This may be a short-term job, but I really need the help. I’ll pay you extra if you’ll stay on the job twenty-four-seven.”

“Double my pay on weekends,” she suggested.

“Done,” he said, nodding. He would have agreed if she had demanded that he quadruple it. Money wasn’t the problem here. He glanced at the little baby who slept so serenely and looked angelic, yet he knew that was a mere facade.

David’s gaze shifted to Marissa Wilder, and he was unaccustomed to the feeling of losing control to a slip of a girl who, in her frou-frou dress, appeared to be all of twelve years old. And the dress looked like something no female past the age of five would want to wear. With the glob of makeup on her face, she was ready for the stage. But he didn’t care if she wore feathers and pajamas and had purple hair. She knew how to take care of a baby, and he had a dim recollection of her family and her older sister Karen, so she wasn’t a complete stranger.

“Now, at night, am I to get up with Autumn?” she asked.

“Yes,” he answered instantly, and held his breath to see if she was going to refuse.

She nodded. “Of course, I’m giving up all my benefits, my health insurance, my 401—”

“Marissa, I’ll not only triple your salary—which, by the way, I found out from your manager what you’re making— but I will pay your premiums for health insurance and I’ll put in whatever the store contributed to a savings plan,” he said, deciding she had a mind for money as well as a knack with babies.

“Thank you,” she answered, brightening. “That’s generous.”

“It is, but I’m desperate.”

“Why did you want to take Autumn if it was going to be such a big deal to you?”

“It’s a long story,” he replied, “but I’ve told you the main reasons—I didn’t think she should become a ward of the state and her mother should be able to take her very soon. It hasn’t been twenty-four hours yet.”

“Here comes Manny,” Marissa said, and then smiled. “Hi, Manny.”

“Hi, there, Marissa,” he said, wiping his hands on his apron, wearing his customary white undershirt that revealed his bodybuilder’s muscles. “Look at you. Aren’t you cute today.”

“Thanks, Manny,” she answered, her dimple showing again.

“Hi, Manny,” David said.

“Hi, David.” Manny looked at the baby. “This is the baby from last night, isn’t it?”

“Yes, little Autumn,” David said, still marveling how news circulated in the small town. He pulled out his wallet. “Let me pay you for the chili and for the other guys’ dinners.”

Manny waved his hand. “Forget it. It’s on the house. You earned a free dinner last night. The chili is on me,” the man said gruffly.

“Thanks, Manny, but you don’t need to do that.”

“Forget it. Did you see me on the tube last night?” Manny asked.

“No, I missed that. I was probably still at the hospital.”

“Yeah. I got interviewed by a Midland station, too. Wanted to know all about the woman and baby.”

So much for keeping a low profile, David thought. “How did Midland pick up the story?”

Manny shrugged muscled shoulders. “You know how news gets around in this part of the world. How’s the mother?”

“I don’t know,” David replied. “I’ll probably go by the hospital this afternoon.”

“Yeah, well, hope she recovers real quickly. It’s good you’re helping her out. Good Samaritan Sorrenson. What are you folks having? I’ve got a breakfast special—eggs, grits, sausage, biscuits and gravy.”

“Sounds fine,” David said. “Okay, Marissa?”

“I think just eggs and toast for me,” she replied.

“Aw, come on, Marissa. You need to put some meat on your bones,” Manny urged. “I’ll send out two specials plus some toast. You eat what you want.” He turned and left, passing Sheila at the counter and giving her a pat on the behind. Sheila giggled and sashayed away with platters of steaming bacon and eggs.

“Where do you live, David? You have a house in Pine Valley, don’t you?” Marissa asked, mentioning an exclusive gated area in Royal.

“That’s where my dad lives—when he’s in Texas and when he’s not traveling somewhere. Right now, he’s out of the country. I live on our ranch, just west of town.”

They talked about the job until Sheila brought platters of eggs, sausage, pale yellow grits with cheese and fluffy golden biscuits.

“I need to get some supplies for Autumn—she has very few clothes,” David said, putting salt and pepper on his eggs.

“I can help you select some clothing,” Marissa volunteered.

“Can we go back to the store from here and you show me what to get for her?”

“Sure. With your powers of persuasion, maybe you can talk my boss into letting me use my employee discount,” Marissa teased.

“That’s no problem.” David waved away her suggestion. “You just pick out what we need, including diapers and a crib.”

Marissa sat back and daintily wiped her mouth. David idly noticed that her mouth was delectable. He glanced at her platter.

“You didn’t eat much,” he said.

“I couldn’t possibly eat all that. I only ordered eggs and toast.”

“Yeah, well, Manny has never been known for small helpings. Ready to go?” he asked.

“Yes.” She paused when he picked up the bill. “I can buy my own breakfast, David.”

“You’re my employee now, and I’ll pay for your breakfast,” he said, picking up the carrier. He glanced at Autumn. “She’s sleeping better now than she did any time last night.”

“She may be more relaxed now. Babies can sense when someone is tense, I think.”

“Yeah, well, I was tense, all right, and so was she,” David admitted.

They left the Royal Diner and drove back to the store, where Marissa made selections. David bought far more than she thought was necessary, but he insisted that he didn’t want to have to come back and do this again. As soon as they finished making selections he arranged to have everything delivered to his house.

Outside in the parking lot, she turned to face him. “I’ll go home and pack. Would you like to come meet my grandmother?”

“I’d like to and I will sometime soon. I don’t want her to worry about your new job, but I have a meeting at noon and we shopped longer than I thought we would.”

“That’s because you almost bought out the store. Well, I’ll be at your ranch at four o’clock.”

He looked into her eyes, and he wondered if she had ever told a lie in her life. She didn’t look as if she possibly could. Idly, he wondered how Grandma Wilder dressed. She couldn’t be one degree more eccentric than her granddaughter. What was the house like? Visions of a gingerbread house danced in his mind.

“Okay, Marissa. See you at four. And thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” she said, giving him one of her big smiles. She turned and walked away, pigtails bobbing and her full skirt and petticoat flouncing with each step. She wore some kind of striped stockings and what looked like pink ballet slippers, and he wouldn’t have been surprised to see her start skipping to her car. Before he climbed into his vehicle, he glanced over his shoulder again and saw her behind the wheel of a very ordinary-looking four-door sedan.

“Well, little Autumn, you have a nanny now. One I think you like and whom I certainly like,” David told the sleeping infant. “Tonight ought to be livable. Now, just keep sleeping, please. I have to go to the club to meet the guys, and babies aren’t usually allowed in the clubhouse. You sleep through that and I’ll buy you a rocking chair on the way home.”

In minutes David parked in the Texas Cattleman’s Club lot. The simple exterior of the clubhouse belied the elegant interior. With the carrier in hand, David entered the sprawling clubhouse, which was built in 1910 by Henry “Tex” Langley.

David strode through the familiar foyer, where walnut paneling was lined with oil paintings of past members. He continued through a lounge that held crystal brandy decanter sets, leather chairs, mounted animal heads and cases of valuable antique guns.

He finally entered a smaller room, reserved for their meeting. He was the first to arrive and settled down in a maroon leather chair, placing Autumn and her carrier on a chair next to him. Sunlight spilled through the long windows across the lush oriental carpet and over the pool table that stood on one side of the room. Along the opposite wall was a credenza holding another crystal brandy decanter set. A waiter quietly entered the room.

“Good afternoon, sir,” he said, smiling at David. “Ah, and how’s the little one?”

“She’s fine at the moment, Jimmy.”

“Can I bring you something to drink?”

“You might as well bring us some coffee and probably some pop.”

“Fine. Anything else? Lunch?”

“Not for me. You can ask the others when they get here.”

“Fine,” the tall, graying man said, and left the room. No sooner had he disappeared through the door than Alex Kent came striding in. One look in his green eyes and David knew that Alex was bringing bad news.