one thing she didn’t want to do was depend on anyone. Her mom would be overjoyed at the news of becoming a grandmother, but since Jennifer Claiborne had finally found real happiness with a man by the name of Brad Richman, and their relationship seemed to be turning serious—if their planned trip to Paris this week was any indication—the last thing Savannah wanted was for her mother to devote her time to her. Her sister, Jessica, was still enjoying the bliss of being a newlywed, and her brother, Rico, would be busy now that he had started as a private investigator.
As Savannah stepped aside to let the next customer be served, she placed her hand on her stomach, knowing whatever changes she made in her life would be worth it. She was having a baby and no matter how Durango Westmoreland felt, she was very happy about it.
Durango stood next to the water fountain and took in the woman standing across the semicrowded airport. Damn, she was beautiful…and she was carrying a baby in her shapely body.
His baby.
He shook his head. What the hell was he supposed to do with a baby? It was too late to ask the question now, since the deed was already done. He sighed when he saw her head over toward the ticket counter, knowing what he had to do. He quickly crossed the room to block her path.
“We need to talk, Savannah.”
Durango’s words startled Savannah to the point that she almost dropped her carry-on bag. She narrowed her gaze at him. “What are you doing here? We don’t have anything to talk about. I think we said everything, so if you will excuse me—”
“Look, I’m sorry.”
She blinked as she stared at him. “What did you say?”
“I said I’m sorry for acting like an ass earlier. My only excuse is that your news came as a shock.”
Savannah’s eye’s shot fire at him. “And…?”
“And I believe that your baby is mine.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him, refusing to let go of her emotions and start crying. Since becoming pregnant she had turned into a weeping willow. “And what has made you a believer all of a sudden?”
“Because of everything that happened between us that night and the fact that you said it is. I have no reason not to believe you.” A slow smile played on his lips. “So that settles it.”
If he believed that settled anything then he had another thought coming. “Nothing is settled, Durango. Fine, you’ve acknowledged that I’m having your baby. That means you’ll be one of the first people on my list to get an announcement card with pictures when it’s born.”
She turned to walk away and he blocked her path again. “Like I said, Savannah, we need to talk. I won’t let you deny me the right to be a part of my child’s life.”
Savannah raised her eyes to the ceiling. An hour ago he had been humming a different tune. “If I had planned to do that, I wouldn’t be here.” After a deep, calming breath, she added, “I came because I felt you should know and to give you a choice. I didn’t come to ask you for anything.”
She suddenly felt her face flush from the way he was looking at her. Was her hair standing on end? Were her clothes wrinkled? The flight hadn’t been kind to her and she’d almost gotten sick from all the turbulence they had encountered while flying over the mountains. Her hair was a tangled mess and her makeup had worn off hours ago. By the time the plane had landed and she had gotten a rental car to drive out to his ranch, she had been so shaken up she hadn’t cared enough about her appearance to even put on lipstick.
“Whether you ask for anything or not, I have certain responsibilities toward my child and I want to talk about them,” Durango said. “You’ve done what you came here to do and now that my head is back on straight, we need to sit down and discuss things like two mature adults.”
Savannah lifted an eyebrow and gave him a speculative look. What did they have to talk about? She’d already told him she wouldn’t be making any demands on him. She swallowed thickly when a thought suddenly popped into her head. What if he planned to make demands on her regarding their child? Just last week there was an article in the Philadelphia newspaper about a man who had sued his girlfriend for joint custody of their newborn child.
Maybe talking wasn’t such a bad idea. It would be better if they got a few things straight in the beginning so there wouldn’t be any misunderstanding later. “Okay, let’s talk.”
When they reached an empty table in the airport coffee shop, Durango pulled out a chair for Savannah to sit down on and she did so, on shaky legs. Her gaze drifted over his handsome face and latched on to his full lips. She couldn’t help remembering those lips and some of the wicked—as well as satisfying—things they had once done to her.
She glanced away when his eyes met hers, finding it strange that the two of them were sitting down to talk. This was the first time they had shared a table. They had once shared a bed, yes, but never a table. Even the night of the rehearsal dinner he had sat at a different table with his brothers and cousins. But that hadn’t stopped her from scrutinizing and appreciating every inch of him.
“Would you like something to drink, Savannah?”
“No, I don’t want anything.”
“So how have you been?” Durango asked after he had finished ordering.
She raised her eyebrows, wondering why he hadn’t asked her that when he’d first seen her earlier that day. He had picked a hell of a time to try to be nice, but she would go along with him to see what he had to say.
She managed to be polite and responded, “I’ve been fine, and what about you?”
“Things are going okay, but this is usually the hardest time of year for rangers.”
“And why is that?”
“Besides the icy cold weather conditions, we have to supervise hunters who won’t abide by the rules and who want to hunt during the off season. And even worse are those who can’t accept the restrictions that no hunting is allowed in Yellowstone’s backcountry.”
Savannah nodded. She could imagine that would certainly make his job difficult. Jessica had said he was a backcountry ranger. They were the ones who patrolled and maintained trails in the park, monitored wildlife and enforced rules and safety regulations within the areas of Yellowstone. She shuddered at the thought of him coming face-to-face with a real live bear, or some other wild animal.
“You okay, Savannah?”
He had leaned in after seeing her tremble. Surprise held her still at just how close he was to her. “Yes, I’m fine. I just had a thought of you coming into contact with a bear.”
He pulled back, smiled and chuckled. “Hey, that has happened plenty of times. But I’ve been fortunate to never tangle with one.”
She nodded and glanced around, wondering when he would forgo the small talk and get down to what was really on his mind.
“What do you need, Savannah?” he finally asked after a few moments of uncomfortable silence.
She met his gaze as emotions swirled within her. “I told you, Durango, that I don’t want or
