Free A Cowboy’s Honor by Lois Richer

skirt and top to dinner. And a fresh floral perfume, so he wouldn’t be reminded of smelly animals.
    What Gracie wanted was for Dallas to spend just one moment really looking at her, the way he used to.
    And yet she was afraid of that very thing, felt guilty for even thinking it.
    Her first responsibility was to her child. Her daughter was the best thing that had ever happened to her, no matter what her dad had said.
    “You can’t even look after yourself. How can you care for a child?”
    “I’ll learn. Other women do it.”
    “Other women who have nothing else to do with their lives. I thought you were going to be somebody, to make something out of your life, not waste it on a fly-by-night man who only cared about you enough to sleep with you.”
    “Dallas isn’t like that. Besides, we’re married.”
    “So why isn’t he here, supporting you?”
    Gracie had never been able to answer that.
    “She must be sleeping.”
    Droplets of water splashed on Gracie’s face, drawing her back to the present so fast she jumped to her feet. “Hey!”
    Misty’s giggles echoed across the pool. “You weren’t watching me, Mommy.”
    “I’m watching now.” Gracie snatched up a towel. “Ready to come out?”
    “No.” Misty stood neck-deep in the water, her face alive with joy. “Me and Dallas want you to come in the pool with us. You said ‘later.’ This is later, isn’t it?”
    Dallas said nothing. Leaning against the edge of the pool, half-submerged, he watched her with those gorgeous hazel eyes that made Gracie’s stomach do flip-flops.
    Be careful what you wish for, she told herself.
    Misty’s pool toys surrounded her like a life preserver, proving that Dallas had paid attention to his daughter’s twice weekly swimming lessons with Emily. He remembered that a blind child needed the security of those toys in the vastness of a pool. He was trying so hard to be what Misty needed.
    “Come on, ‘Mommy,’” Dallas said as he held up a hand to Gracie as Misty flopped down on a step and made swishing motions through the water with her hands, singing a little song about fish. “I promise I won’t splash you.”
    “It’s late,” she began.
    “It’s Friday. Tomorrow is parents’ visiting day. By the time the campfire and the meet-and-greet are over we won’t have a chance to swim together. Come on.”
    He was pure temptation.
    “All right. But just for a little while. It’s almost Misty’s bedtime.” Gracie hurried away to change. When she returned, Dallas and Misty were head to head, discussing something. “What’s up?”
    “I want to swim all the way across the pool by myself.”
    “Misty, honey, I’ve told you. When you’re a better swimmer—”
    “I’m a very good swimmer now. Dallas said so.” The stubborn chin lifted. “I want to try, Mommy. I’m not afraid.”
    No, but I am.
    “What if we all go? Mommy will be on one side and I’ll be on the other. That way if you need any help, you can just reach out and grab us.”
    “We’ll be a team.” Misty jumped off the step into the water and Dallas’s waiting arms, ramming him with the floating toy she clutched. “Don’t worry, Mommy. Dallas will help.”
    Which was exactly the problem. Gracie was afraid of his help, afraid of depending on it. Until now she and Misty had managed perfectly well. But with Dallas in the picture, everything changed.
    It was no longer just the two of them. Dallas made Gracie question her decisions, just as he challenged Misty to push beyond the boundaries Gracie had set. Every day he eased into their lives a little further.
    “You tell me the minute you feel tired, Misty,” Gracie ordered. “And when we get to the other side, that’s it. Time for bed. No arguing. Agreed?”
    “Oh, Mommy.”
    When no help came from Dallas, their daughter finally agreed to her terms. Once Gracie had removed the barricade that kept Misty in one corner of the pool, the little girl pushed off with a hearty splash that