Runaway Lone Star Bride. Cathy Gillen Thacker

in his arms. The boy’s lower lip quavered. He took one look at Maggie and held out his arms for her to come and get him.

      Aware the choice was a full-blown toddler eruption or an interruption during the meeting, Maggie stood and walked over to Hart. The little boy vaulted into her arms, promptly stuck his thumb in his mouth and rested his head on her shoulder.

      “Sorry about the interruption,” Hart said, clearly not sorry at all, if it meant his little boy would get the maternal comfort he needed. “But Henry wanted Maggie.”

      “No problem.” Lynette waved off the intrusion. “All little boys want their mommies.”

      Except I’m not his mommy, Maggie thought. And I’m not going to be his nanny, either. But not wanting to get into that, during what was turning out to be a not-so-easy sales pitch, she prompted instead, “So, you were saying...?”

      “After reading everything in the reviews online, there’s no way we would feel comfortable holding our wedding here, even if the Double Knot is where Lynette’s parents were married,” Ben said flatly. “So,” they rose and headed hand-in-hand for the door, eager to be on their way, “thanks for meeting with us, Ms. McCabe, but no thanks.”

      They walked swiftly out the door. Seconds later, the exterior door banged shut.

      Hart turned to Maggie, perplexed. “What was that about?”

      “The malfunction of the steam engine, a year and a half ago. The train broke down as it was headed up the mountain. We had to transport the wedding party up to Nature’s Cathedral by bus. The wedding ceremony itself went without a hitch, but the train still wasn’t fixed, so everyone had to get back on the buses and drive down the old logging trails to the reception. Naturally, we apologized profusely for the inconvenience and the couple was given a hefty discount in compensation, but a number of the members of the wedding party were terribly upset, and they posted bad reviews about the Double Knot and The Wedding Train all over the place.”

      Hart slipped into business mode. “What’s been the impact on the bottom line?”

      “Not good.” Contentment flowing through her as Henry snuggled even closer against her, Maggie explained the subsequent lag in business.

      “Can’t anything be done to counter the negative reviews?”

      Maggie decided not to sugarcoat the situation. “If your parents would agree to a social media presence, then, yes.”

      “You’ve tried to persuade them?” Hart guessed.

      “A few times,” Maggie admitted. “Callie is an expert in the field and could probably help us, but your parents don’t want any part of it.”

      Hart shook his head in wordless disapproval. “Tell me about it! Since they aren’t keeping up with the times, I tried to get them to sell the business and retire. But they refused. They wanted me to come in and take it over. They still do.”

      “But you’re not interested,” Maggie allowed, trying without success to figure out why the notion that Hart did not want to return to his home state of Texas was so upsetting to her. Given the sparks they drew off each other, she ought to want him as far away as possible.

      “I’m grateful for the upbringing I had here and the people skills I learned from working in such a chaotic business, but it’s not for me.”

      Honestly, Maggie couldn’t see Hart managing the wedding business, either. A larger than life, big-picture guy like him would go crazy with the aesthetics and the minutiae. Sometimes, she felt like she might, too. “I understand. But that aside...” Aware she was loving holding the toddler a little too much, she handed Henry back to his dad. “You really can’t barge in when I’m in the middle of a meeting.”

      Hart was instantly contrite. “I know—I’m sorry. I forgot to take the diaper bag with me and Henry’s toys were in there. And once Henry heard your voice...”

      Maggie took a seat behind her desk and retorted, “You couldn’t have entertained him any other way?”

      Smiling casually, Hart gave her a leisurely once-over. “Magnolia McCabe...are you accusing me of just wanting to commandeer your attention and spend time with you?”

      Maggie flushed at his low, flirtatious tone.

      With his smile widening and his son cradled tenderly against his chest, he inched closer. Maggie rocked back in her chair and tried to tamp down the immediate spark of excitement she felt. It took every ounce of self-control she had not to rise and join them both.

      “Because it’s really not true,” Hart quipped. He sat on the edge of her desk, facing her. “It’s Henry here, who is completely and utterly crushing on you.” He indicated the winsome toddler. “Henry, whose heart you seemed to have captured.”

      It was easy to see the staggering resemblance between Hart and his son. Both were incredibly handsome and engaging, in their own way. Maggie felt something catch in her heart. She knew her need for connection went soul-deep. But this was not the time or place to indulge that desire. Not when the child was so vulnerable.

      She swallowed around the telltale tightness of her throat. “I know Henry likes me. I like him, too. But you can’t keep treating me like his nanny.”

Chapter Three

      For a moment, Hart looked like he’d had his fair share of disappointments, too. He gave her a steely-eyed glare. “I’m not asking you to take responsibility for my son.”

      Maggie forced herself to keep her guard up, resisting the urge to become even more involved in what was, she knew, a very emotionally charged situation. And where was the child’s mother, anyway? Who was she?

      As if sensing the tension between the two adults, Henry squirmed unhappily in Hart’s arms.

      He awkwardly attempted to make his son comfortable. Failed. “But with my parents not here, and me not knowing the first thing about taking care of a baby... Look, I just need you to show me what to do,” Hart said, serious now. “Help me fix him something for dinner, get him ready for bed.”

      And then what? Maggie wondered. The three of them would be under the same roof, since her quarters were in the main house, too.

      Not to mention the fact that with his parents away and the rest of the staff on hiatus at the moment, they were completely alone. And though Henry might work as an effective chaperone some of the time, he wasn’t always going to be awake.

      She ignored the fluttering in her middle. “You don’t ask a lot.”

      “It’s not for me.” Hart set Henry down on the floor. Happily distracted, the toddler immediately walked off, exploring. “It’s for him.”

      Maggie followed Henry into the hallway to the door. She watched as the little guy stood on tiptoe, trying to work the doorknob.

      This child was definitely going to be a handful.

      Turning back to Hart, she folded her arms across her chest. “Shouldn’t you already know how to do all this?”

      He slung the diaper bag over his shoulder. “It’s a long story.”

      “I’ve got time.” Maggie opened the door for Henry. He toddled out, onto the long covered breezeway that connected the Double Knot Wedding Ranch offices to the sprawling cedar and stone ranch house. In the opposite direction, on the other side of the main house, the breezeway led to a four-car garage.

      Ten acres away from that, on the other side of a beautifully landscaped flower garden and lawn, there was a train station built in the style of the Old West. There were covered platforms where guests sat as they waited to board the old-fashioned steam engine that would take them to Nature’s Cathedral at the top of Sanders Mountain, a huge party barn where receptions were held and a large parking lot where wedding guests could park.

      Maggie