Storm Read online

  The little girl smiled, showing deep dimples in her cheeks. “I’m Amanda Jo Bateman and that...”—she pointed over her shoulder—“...is my daddy. His name is Storm. Everybody calls me Mandy.” She leaned toward Chloe and whispered, “’Cept Daddy calls me Amanda Jo if he’s mad.” She put her hand over her mouth and giggled.

  Chloe laughed. “I doubt if he gets mad at you very often. You’re way too pretty to get mad at.”

  Mandy bobbed her head up and down. “That’s what he says.”

  Chloe smiled at her and turned her gaze to the man standing by the stove, and choked back a gasp. It was happening. Storm Bateman.

  The man of her dreams stood staring at her. He was the type of man she’d always wanted. Drop-dead gorgeous. His thick black hair touched the collar of his flannel shirt and although his square jaw was clean-shaven, she could see a shadow. His nose was straight and sat over a sexy set of lips. Lips, that she already knew exactly how to kiss a woman breathless. Her eyes moved to his. They were so dark they appeared black...something about him that had always intrigued her. Not being able to stop herself, her gaze moved down over his broad chest, to the front of his jeans. She mentally groaned. He definitely knew how to fill out a pair of jeans. They hugged him in all the right places. From his thick thighs to his ample sex. Chloe’s eyes traveled back to his face and felt her cheeks flame when he raised an eyebrow at her. Closing her eyes, she internally groaned.

  “Would you like some coffee?” he asked.

  Chloe straightened up and nodded.

  “Are you hungry? My daddy makes the bestest pancakes.” Chloe watched as Mandy walked under the table, pushed out a chair, and climbed into her booster seat.

  “Actually, I am starving.” Chloe smiled. The little girl was the spitting image of her father...from her dark hair to her dark eyes. Her silky hair was up in a ponytail making Chloe smile to think that no one other than Storm could’ve done it for her.

  “She’s starving, Daddy. Make some more pancakes,” Mandy ordered.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Can I do anything to help?” Chloe asked.

  “No. I’ve got this...have a seat. We have pancakes every Sunday. It’s just later than usual since we all slept so late.”

  “This is Boo. He’s my best friend, after my daddy.” Mandy shoved a stuffed bear at her.

  Chloe took the bear and looked it over. There was nothing special about it. Boo was just a brown stuffed teddy bear with black eyes, but obviously special to this little girl. “He’s very handsome.”

  Mandy giggled. “Daddy says he’s ugly.”

  Chloe burst out laughing and glanced over to Storm, who was shaking his head.

  “Heaven help me but she hears things she shouldn’t,” he muttered.

  “I heard that too, Daddy.” Mandy laughed.

  Chloe snickered when Storm groaned. However, her stomach rumbled when he set a huge plate of pancakes in the center of the table. When she looked up at Storm and noticed a pink barrette in his hair, she couldn’t stop the laugh that erupted from her throat. He raised an eyebrow at her.

  “The barrette is very becoming on you,” she said, grinning.

  Storm reached up and removed the barrette then grinned.

  “Mandy likes to play hairdresser, but I draw the line at cutting.”

  “It’s great that you let her practice on you.”

  “Help yourself,” he told her, his deep voice making her shiver. “Are you cold? Do you have other clothes in your car?”

  “Yeah, I have a few suitcases in the trunk.” She gazed up at him. “Thank you. Did you...?” She stopped and glanced down at her body encased in the oversized robe. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth thinking of what he saw if he had.

  “Undress you?” At her nod, he grinned, showing perfect white teeth. “Yes. Now hurry before the food gets cold. By the way, your shoes and dress are probably ruined.”

  Chloe felt her cheeks growing red. Oh dear God! He had undressed her. She groaned as she thought of him taking off her clothes. At least, he’d left her in her bra and panties. Although in all honesty, they didn’t cover much. She pulled the robe tighter around her. But then again, it wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen before. That thought made the heat rise in her cheeks again.

  “Maybe Santa bringed her for me, Daddy.”

  “Brought. Mandy, I told you that Santa doesn’t bring mommies.”

  “Then why did we find her? Nana says everything happens...uh, I forget.”

  “Happens for a reason.”

  “Yeah, so that’s what happened. A reason.”

  “I’m not having this conversation with you, Amanda Jo. Eat your pancakes.”

  “Okay, Daddy.”

  Chloe cleared her throat. It was obvious to her it didn’t bother Mandy at all that her daddy used her full name. Mandy grinned at her and climbed down from her seat.

  “Sit by me, Chloe.” Mandy pushed the chair out next to her.

  “Please sit by me, Chloe,” Storm corrected his daughter.

  “She’s gonna sit by me, Daddy.” Mandy frowned at her father.

  Chloe took her bottom lip between her teeth to keep from laughing. Storm glanced at her, blew out a breath, and shrugged. Chloe took the seat beside Mandy and loaded her plate with pancakes. When she took her first bite, she moaned with delight.

  “These are fantastic.” She glanced at Storm to see him staring at her. She lowered her eyes.

  “Thank you.”

  “Daddy makes the bestest ones ever.” Mandy climbed back into her seat then picked up her fork and dug in. She glanced up at Chloe. “You have really pretty hair. Don’t she, Daddy?”

  “Doesn’t she,” Storm corrected again. “And yes, she does.”

  Chloe’s gaze met his. They stared at each other until Mandy interrupted. “I’ll learn when I go to school, Daddy.”

  “Yes, you will.” He smiled at his daughter.

  Chloe bit back a groan. The man was so hot and it made him even hotter that he loved his little girl so much. Chloe could see the love in his eyes each time he looked at Mandy and the little girl truly adored her father.

  “Anyway...I like your hair. I wish I had yellow hair.” Mandy grinned up at her.

  “But you have beautiful hair, Mandy.”

  Mandy giggled. “I know. My Nana tells me that all the time. She’s Native ’merican. Her name is Jaya.”

  Chloe glanced at Storm and took in the high cheekbones, straight nose, and dark eyes. “That’s fascinating. I bet she’s beautiful too.”

  “Nana is really beautiful. Daddy looks like her and I look like Daddy so I guess that means I look like Nana.” Mandy frowned then suddenly grinned as if just realizing the implication.

  Storm chuckled. “That was a mouthful, princess.”

  “Jaya is a beautiful name,” Chloe said.

  “It means Victory in Cheyenne,” Storm told her.

  Chloe nodded. “I like that. Well, thank you for bringing me here. After I help you clean up, I’ll be on my way. I’ll just call Kennie...what?” She stopped when she saw Storm shaking his head.

  “You need to take a look outside, darlin'.”

  Chloe stared at him. He’d called her darlin'. It had been a long time since a man had used an endearment when speaking to her. She knew it didn’t mean anything but it was nice to hear. She stood and moved to the window only when she gazed out, she gasped. The yard and driveway lay covered in snow. Deep snow. And more was coming down in a heavy flow. She spun around to look at Storm. He stood leaning against the counter with his arms folded across his broad chest. She thought if he laughed, she’d scream

  “I don’t think you’re going anywhere for a while,” he said softly.

  “But...but no, I don’t have any clothes with me.” Chloe knew it was a stupid thing to say but it was the first thing that popped in her head. Staying here was definitely not a really great idea.

  “I’ll take the truck and get your clothes but trust me...it
’s only going to get worse. In the meantime, I’ll give you one of my T-shirts, some socks, and a pair of sweatpants. You can keep the robe too. It’s mine, but I never use it. My mom bought it for me years ago. Your car is only a mile or two up the road. I should be able to get there and back within an hour.”

  “An hour?” Chloe couldn’t comprehend it taking that long.

  “The roads are bad but if you want your clothes, I need to go now before it turns to ice.”

  Chloe nodded. “All right. Do you want me to go with you?”

  “No. Just stay here with Mandy, please.”

  “Daddy, no! I want to go with you,” Mandy screamed as she wrapped her arms around his legs. He bent down and picked her up.

  “I’ll be back soon. Don’t I always come back when I say I will?” He wrapped his arms around her.

  Mandy nodded but continued to cry. Chloe slowly moved to her and rubbed her back.

  “How about we play a game or watch a movie together while we wait for your daddy to come back?”

  Mandy peered at her. “I want to watch my princess movie. Daddy says I’m a princess. I have tara too.”

  “Tara?”

  “Yep, I’ll get it.” Mandy pushed away from Storm so he put her down and she ran down the hallway.

  Chloe looked at Storm to see him leaning against the counter with his arms folded and a grin lifting his lips. She frowned as she stared at him. When Mandy came back into the room with a tiara on her head, Chloe did her best not to laugh as she realized what a tara was. She narrowed her eyes at Storm.

  “You could have told me.”

  “No way. The look on your face trying to figure out what she meant by tara was priceless.”

  Chloe smiled and crouched down in front of Mandy. “Your daddy’s right, you are a princess with a beautiful, uh, tara. Come on, let’s go watch the movie.” She sighed, her heart melting a bit when Mandy wrapped her arms around her, and so she picked her up. Chloe nodded to Storm. “Thank you, and please...be careful.”

  “I’ll be right back. If I’m not back in an hour, get Jimmy. He’s in the barn. He’ll come after me. Just in case, my cell reception fades.”

  “Maybe you shouldn’t go.” Chloe nibbled on her bottom lip. She watched as Storm’s eyes lingered on her lips.

  “You’ll need your clothes. It’s best if I go now before it gets worse.”

  “All right. Just please be careful, Storm.”

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He pulled his coat and hat on then left.

  Chapter Two

  After she changed into the clothes Storm gave her, Chloe cleaned up the kitchen with Mandy’s help...well, with Mandy chatting away a mile a minute the entire time.

  “I’m real excited for Santa to come. It won’t be long,” Mandy told her.

  Chloe smiled. “Not too much longer. It seems like Christmas is here so fast after Thanksgiving.”

  “We’re going to Nana’s for turkey. You can come too.” Mandy jumped up and down.

  “I’m sure I’ll be gone by then, Mandy,” Chloe said.

  Mandy stopped hopping and stared up at her. “Where are you going?”

  “I, uh...I don’t know yet,” Chloe mumbled.

  “Then you can stay with us.” Mandy nodded her head and lifted a plate up toward the sink.

  Chloe took the plate and sighed. “Sweetheart, I can’t stay here forever.”

  “How long has my daddy been gone?” Mandy asked.

  Chloe shook her head at the switch of conversation and glanced at the clock. “Only ten minutes. Let’s go watch your princess movie and he’ll be back before you know it.”

  Mandy ran to the living room leaving Chloe to clean up alone, which was probably a good thing. She finished loading the dishwasher, found the detergent, and set it to run then she headed to the living room, where she took a seat on the couch beside Mandy. The movie was already beginning. She gazed around the room. It was a nice room. The interior walls were log. The TV hung above a large stone fireplace and large windows let light filter in giving the room a light friendly feel. The hardwood floors were dark mahogany with scattered rugs.

  Chloe stood and walked to the foyer, and the full glass door. She opened it and stepped outside. The wind almost had her running back inside but she wanted to see the house. The front porch ran along the entire front of the house with a swing at one end. A few rocking chairs sat empty and covered in snow. The exterior walls were rough-hewn logs. The snow covered most of the porch but didn’t quite reach the house. She tiptoed around the snow and water spots on the porch to peek around the side. The porch actually wrapped around the side as well and led to the side door. She could see tire tracks in the snow, leading away from the house. Snow and ice pellets blew in, hitting her in the face making it feel as if someone had tossed glass at her. As she stood there peering around the corner of the porch, she saw a man coming toward the house from the barn. He halted in his tracks when he saw her. He put his hand over the top of his cowboy hat to hold it in place as he continued forward and stepped up onto the porch.

  “Hello,” he said to her with a smile.

  “Hello.”

  “Huh, who are you?”

  Chloe smiled. “A damsel in distress.”

  The man’s eyes widened, and then he laughed. “I’m Jimmy Howell.” He took the glove off his hand and stuck it out toward her. He was an older man, possibly in his mid to late fifties.

  Chloe put her hand in his and shook it. “Nice to meet you, Jimmy, I’m Chloe Baxter.”

  Jimmy was about to say something when Mandy came running around the porch and launched herself at him. He laughed as he caught her. “Hey Mandy Pandy!”

  Mandy giggled and laid her head on his shoulder. “We’re watching my princess movie. This is Chloe.”

  “I know. We’ve met. Where’s your daddy?”

  “He went to get Chloe’s clothes. We found her last night in the snow. She was sleeping.”

  Jimmy looked at Chloe. “Really? People shouldn’t sleep in the snow.”

  Mandy nodded her head. “It’s why we bringed her home.”

  “Brought.” Jimmy corrected then he turned to Chloe. “You were stranded?”

  “I tried to avoid a deer and ran off the road. I got out and started walking...” She stopped at Jimmy’s groan and grinned at him with a humble shrug. “Yes, I know. Not a smart thing to do. I remember getting so tired I couldn’t go on and then the next thing I knew, I’m waking up here. Mr. Bateman went to get my suitcases since it doesn’t look like I’ll be going anywhere for a few days.”

  “It will probably be more than a few days. We’re expecting two bad storms to move in—another in a few days, and one next week.”

  “Next week is Thanksgiving,” Chloe stated with a frown.

  “Yes, ma’am and if you have somewhere you need to be, you’d better be letting them know you won’t make it.”

  “I...don’t,” she whispered. She didn’t really know what her future held for her anymore.

  Jimmy stared at her. “How long has the boss been gone?”

  “Not more than fifteen minutes or so, and he said to find you if he wasn’t back in an hour.”

  Jimmy nodded. “All right. I’m heading home but I live on the property, so if he isn’t back in that time, let me know. My phone number is beside the phone in the kitchen.”

  “But how will you go get him? Won’t you both get stuck?”

  Jimmy smiled. “I’ll go after him with horses.” He tipped his hat. “You lovely ladies have a nice time watching your movie. You both need to get inside before you get too cold.” He set Mandy down, walked down the steps, and headed toward the barn.

  Chloe picked Mandy up and watched as Jimmy walked past the barn and disappeared around the side of it. She shivered with the cold so she carried Mandy inside and set her on the sofa. She walked over to the fireplace and noticed it was ready for a fire, just needing a match set to it—easy peasy. Her eyes skimmed the mantel where she
found a pack of matches and easily lit the fire. She stood back watching it snap and crackle as the flames rose higher then suddenly, smoke began to fill the room. Chloe waved her hand in front of her face, coughing.

  “Oh my God! Did I catch the house on fire?”

  “Call Jimmy,” Mandy yelled as she ran around the room.

  Chloe ran for the kitchen, found his number, and called him. She explained the problem.

  “Damper? How do I do that?” She listened to him explain as she carried the phone back into the living room. The room was filling up with smoke but the fire seemed to be dying. “The fire’s going out.”

  Chloe nodded as she listened to Jimmy explain about the damper and that she should have opened it before starting the fire. “How was I supposed to know that? I’ve never started a fire before,” she muttered as she hung up.

  She sat on the hearth and doing as Jimmy instructed, she opened the damper. Most of the smoke rose up the chimney but quite a bit still filled the room. Chloe sighed as she glanced around the smoke filled room. Storm wouldn’t be happy about this, of that she was sure.

  “Mandy, we need to open the doors and windows to get the smoke out.”

  Mandy stopped running and gazed up at her. “But it’s cold out.”

  Chloe squatted down in front of her. “I know, sweetheart, but we need to get the smoke out of the house.”

  Mandy put her hand over her nose, and giggled. “It stinks.”

  Chloe stood. “Yes, it does but if we open the doors and windows, it will get better.”

  Mandy nodded and ran to the kitchen. “Okay.”

  Chloe opened the front door and then entered a room located across the foyer from the living room. A large cherry table with bench seats on each side sat centered in the room. A buffet sat under a huge window...a huge window that unfortunately, didn’t open. A large hutch sat on the opposite wall. She headed through another doorway that took her into the kitchen. She lifted the window over the sink and turned to the door. It was open, but she didn’t see Mandy anywhere.

  “Mandy?” she called as she walked to the open door. Her heart slammed into her ribs when she saw the child running around in the snow with no coat on. Chloe stepped onto the porch. “Mandy! Get in here. It’s too cold to be out there.”