The Outsider Series: The Complete Omnibus Collection

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Diana was just as he remembered, with brilliant, rich red hair that shimmered under the setting sun. Just like her mama, she had pale skin, pink cheeks, and deep red lips. Her eyes had always been the killer for him; the deep blue had a way of reaching in and squeezing his last breath out, making it difficult to breathe. But she wasn’t her mama, and that was a mistake he’d made when she came back to town and he’d made things difficult for her.

Andy hadn’t spoken to Diana since before she married Jed. He’d seen her in town with her husband, his cousin, and heard through the rumor mill that they were expecting their first; but by the looks of her large and swollen belly, she appeared ready to deliver any day. She was leading a dark mare from the barn, and he was startled to realize that, although she was pregnant, she was still the sexiest woman ever. Wearing those blue jeans and a large pink shirt that draped to her thighs, she was a sight to behold. He still wished she was his, that the baby she carried was his. Hell, he wished for a lot of things.

“Andy, thanks for coming.” She said it as graciously as ever, head high and shoulders back. Her confidence continued to throw him. She wasn’t like other women—she didn’t fall apart, she wasn’t a drama queen, and she was as stubborn as a mule; but then she had survived hell as a child, including his heartless behavior when he tossed her out of her home and landed her in foster care. In the long run, he had done her a favor, but that still didn’t make what he’d done right.

“Well, of course I would come. What happened, Diana? Where’s Jed? Did you try calling his cell phone again?” Andy leaned into each step, watching her and all that she tried to hide. A tear slipped down her cheek, but she quickly tried to hide it, to wipe it away. He could feel the awkwardness hanging between them like a frayed rope, beyond repair.

Diana tied the dark horse to the corral fence. “He’s not answering, but it doesn’t say he’s out of range. He could have dropped his phone, for all I know. He’s done it before. He hates cell phones, anyway, and he won’t ever carry one unless I nag him to death. You know how he is. He’s training that new stallion, Red, that he bought before Christmas at auction. He wants to start taking him on pack trips this summer, so he’s been going out every day since last week, getting him ready. We’ve got a group coming in two days before the baby comes.” Diana stepped away from the horse, rubbing her arms and shivering.

Andy didn’t think about it; he took off his lined denim jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She stiffened when he touched her, but then something relaxed in her shoulders and she wiped her tears, giving him a forced smile. There were dark circles under her eyes, and she couldn’t hide how tired she was when she looked up at him.

“Diana, you look so tired. Is Jed treating you okay?”

Her eyes flashed fire, and she stepped back. “Jed treats me just fine. He respects me, and he loves me. I’m just tired all the time now. It’s called being pregnant.”

“Well, maybe Jed shouldn’t be leaving you alone right now,” he snapped back, irritated because he realized he was jealous of what Jed had with Diana. He knew that if Diana were carrying his kid, he would be watching over her like a hawk.

“I’m pregnant, Andy, not an invalid. I told Jed the same thing.” She slid his coat off and handed it back. “I’ll get my coat. If you can help me saddle Scarlett, I want to get started before it’s dark.”

He took his coat and grabbed her by the arm. “You’re not going anywhere. I’ll go find Jed. You go inside and lie down.” Andy chuckled, but it was from disbelief. “Look at you. You’re about to give birth, and you’re going to climb onto a horse. Are you nuts? No, you’re staying here.” He walked to his trailer, unlatched the door, and led Sugar out. He tied her beside Scarlett and felt his blood boil when Diana tossed a saddle blanket on Scarlett and strode back inside the barn.

“What the hell are you doing? I said you’re not going. Now go into the house and wait, put your feet up. You’re not coming.” He was furious and wanted to throttle her, and when she ignored him and pulled on a large sweater and slicker, starting to lift her saddle, he was seething to the point that he was positive his head would blow off.

“Stop!” he shouted, and he grabbed the saddle before she could lift it. “What the hell are you doing? I said you’re not coming. You cannot ride a horse now.”

“Well, actually, yes, I can. I just need to be careful. Scarlett is gentle and doesn’t spook. My balance is off a little, but I know my limits. That’s my husband out there, and I’m going. He could be hurt, or…” She choked back a sob. “You can help me saddle Scarlett, or I’ll do it myself. But I am going, even if I have to follow you.”

Her jaw was set and her face hard as she glared at him. He wanted to grab her and shake her senseless, but she wasn’t his. She belonged to another man, his cousin. He realized that unless he tied her up, she would find a way to follow.

“Diana, you’re risking Jed’s baby by getting on that horse. I can move a lot faster without you.”

“Hogwash. Jed taught me to ride, and I’m as comfortable on a horse as I am walking. Women have been riding horses while pregnant since the beginning of time, and I certainly don’t plan on racing or doing anything that would jar me and the baby. Scarlett is gentle—she’d never toss me or hurt me. I’m going to find my husband,” she shot right back.

If Andy had his hat, he would have stomped on it. “Jed is going to kill me.” He groaned out loud. “You listen to me, you ride behind me and where I tell you and nowhere else, and you are going to take it slow and steady.”

She nodded and seemed to breathe more easily as she rubbed her swollen belly. “Thank you, Andy.”

“Yeah, well, don’t thank me just yet, sweet thing, because if you were mine, I’d toss you in bed and tie you down and wouldn’t let you up until the baby was born.”

“You’re such a pig,” she growled as she grabbed a hat from the hook.

What he didn’t say as he followed this tough-as-nails woman, who would never be his, was that Jed would most likely kill him when he discovered that Diana had been allowed to tag along. But then, Jed should have known better than anyone that Diana had a stubborn streak a mile wide, and once she set her mind on something, nothing and no one could change it.