And especially not when he’d been so very careful with protection. Judah was definitely a hunk who didn’t want to get caught. He’d always been the favorite of the ladies, and he never stayed with just one.
Practical. That was how it had to be.
JUDAH WAS INTO LIVING lucky. That was his new approach. He was going to swing by his tail in the jungle of life until he beat the jungle back. He was feeling mean and tough, and resolved to win. Focused.
He put his entry in for the rodeo in Los Rios, New Mexico, and smiled at the cute brunette who took his money.
“Haven’t seen you in a while, Judah,” she said. “Where have you been hiding?”
“On the ranch.” He didn’t want to think about Rancho Diablo right now. “But now I’m back, and I plan on winning. How many entries are there?”
“Nearly a hundred, all events totaled. You’re just in time. We were about to close registration.”
“Then I’m lucky,” he said.
“You could get luckier,” she said with a smile.
He took that in, maybe half tempted, then shrugged. “You’re too good for me, darlin’,” he said. He winked at her and headed off to find some drinking buddies, telling himself that he hadn’t accepted the brunette’s generous offer because he was in a dark mood—really dark. Refusing her hadn’t anything to do with Darla Cameron.
But thinking about Darla reminded him that she was marrying another man, and he definitely didn’t want to think darker thoughts than necessary, so he pushed her out of his mind. Broken hearts were a dime a dozen, so his wasn’t special. He headed to the bar, glad to see some cowboys he knew.
He was welcomed up to the bar with loud greetings.
“You’re in?” someone asked, and Judah nodded.
“I’m taking nine months on the circuit to see what I can do. If I can break even and stay healthy, maybe I’ll stay until I’m old and gray.” He took the beer that the bartender handed him, raising it to the crowd. “And one for all my friends.”
His buddies cheered. Judah grinned. This was what he needed. A buddy chorus of men who understood life as he did.
The little brunette slid into the bar, sending a smile his way. Female companionship wouldn’t kill him, either. He couldn’t slobber in his beer over Darla forever.
He’d left his condoms at home.
And that was probably lucky, too. Judah sighed and looked at his already empty bottle. He didn’t need to sleep with a female. He needed Darla, but Darla—damn her lovely just-right-for-him body—didn’t need him at all. Just when he’d finally kissed the princess of his dreams—after forgoing the temptation for years—the princess had turned into a faithless frog.
Which just showed you that fairy tales had it all wrong. It wasn’t the woman who always kissed the frog—sometimes it was the guy who got gigged.
Chapter Three
Darla wondered if she was making the right decision. Her whole world reeled as she left the doctor’s office.
Twins. She was having twins. It was the last thing she’d expected to hear at her prenatal checkup. And now she knew why she was getting so big so fast, why her wedding gown was already tight. And her babies’ father was the wildest of the Callahans.
Her phone rang, startling her. The display read Rancho Diablo. She didn’t necessarily want to talk to Fiona at the moment, but a friendly voice was probably just what she needed. “Hello?”
“Darla, it’s Sam Callahan. Get your jeans on, doll. We’ll be by in five minutes to pick you up.”
“Why?”
“We’re getting up a convoy to go watch Judah ride. He needs all the hometown support he can get. He’s in the finals, and we’re borrowing Fiona’s party van to take the cheering squad over to Los Rios. So get your boots on and put the cat out for the night.”
She didn’t have a cat, nor any reason to follow this Pied Piper. Nothing good could come of it. “Sam—”
“And we’re picking up Jackie, Sabrina and Julie just for fun. You don’t want to be the only girl left in town, do you?”
Put that way, no. But she was getting married in four days, and she was having twins. She was exhausted.
Then again, the last thing she wanted to do was sit around and think about how her life had spun out of control. And if everybody was going to the rodeo, what harm was there in going, too? “I’ll bring my pom-poms.”
“That’s my girl,” Sam said. “We’ll take good care of you.”
She hung up, feeling like a moth attracted to a bright, hot light. “All right, babies. We’re going to go see Daddy ride a big piece of steak around an arena. Your first rodeo.”
Her children might go to rodeos for years, and they would never know that strong, handsome Judah Callahan was their father. She shivered, thinking about that one wonderful night in his arms.
It would never happen again.
FIONA, RAFE AND JONAS waited as Sam hung up the phone.
“No woman wants to be left out of a party.” Sam grinned. “Just like you said, Aunt Fiona.”
She nodded. “Now remember, when two immovable objects are forced to move into the same space—”
“It’s highly combustible,” Rafe said. “Your play on physics is unique, Aunt.”
She nodded again. “And remember step two… .”
“I feel like a spy,” Jonas said. “You’d better not ever play any of these tricks on me, redoubtable aunt.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t think of it,” Fiona said, her eyes round.
Her nephews grunted in unison, not falling for that, and headed off to pick up the other ladies.
“Did you hear my oldest nephew, Burke, my love?”
“I did.” He placed a gentle kiss against her temple. “I do believe he offered you a challenge.”
Fiona smiled. “That’s exactly what I heard, too. And I wouldn’t dream of not accepting a challenge.”
JUDAH WASN’T NERVOUS about his rides. He’d almost been carried by angel’s wings on every one so far, so high did his bulls buck and thrash, so easily did he hit eight on every ride. Never in his life had he ridden so well. Somehow the bulls he’d drawn were rank, and somehow, he was unbeatable. If rodeo could always be so easy … and yet, in all his years of rodeoing, he’d never ridden like this. He was living in the moment, blessed by the rodeo-loving gods.
And then it happened. He was sitting outside, thinking about his next ride, pondering the bull he’d drawn—Lightfoot Bill was known for tricks, and better cowboys than him had come flying off—when the hometown crowd came whooping and hollering over to him. It wasn’t a huge scene they made, just enough to let him know they’d brought practically every one of their friends, including Darla Cameron.
She was definitely pregnant. Even he, who had little experience with the changes of a woman’s body, could see that the lady he loved was with child. Her tummy protruded despite the pretty blue dress she wore, and if his eyes didn’t deceive him her breasts were taking on the shape of sweet cantaloupes.
Yum.
She was beautiful, Madonna-like. Judah’s heart thundered as he met Darla’s gaze.
His concentration went haywire. “Hello, Darla,” he said, and she said, “Hi, Judah. Good luck.”
And then she went inside the arena, and the other ladies kissed his