Natural Born Daddy

* * *

The pounding on the front door woke Kelly from a sound sleep. She glanced at the clock beside her bed. It was well after two in the morning. She automatically sniffed the air for the smell of smoke. A fire was the only thing she could think of that would cause all this uproar at this hour. The air smelled summer fresh with just a hint of the flowers she’d planted in pots on the porch below.

Grabbing her old chenille robe from the foot of the bed, she belted it tightly around her and glanced outside. She spotted Jordan’s car parked haphazardly in front of the house. So much for the who, she thought wearily. All that remained was the why. Why would he be carrying on like a lunatic in the middle of the night? She’d sent him a polite thank-you note for the gifts. Maybe he hadn’t considered it adequate, but this was hardly an appropriate hour to discuss her lack of manners.

She hurried down the stairs, pausing only to reassure a sleepy-eyed Dani that there was no problem.

“Go on back to bed, sweetie. It’s just Jordan.”

“He sounds mad or something.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it.” In fact, she was going to wring his stupid neck.

Downstairs, she switched on the porch light and opened the door a crack, determined not to admit him. “What do you want?” she demanded, noting that he was still wearing a suit and tie. He had at least loosened the tie. Obviously he’d driven all the way across the state straight from work.

He shoved a huge box toward her. It wouldn’t fit through the crack. “I brought you this.”

The box was intriguing with its gold paper and fancy bow. Still, Kelly determinedly wrapped her arms around her middle and refused to take it. “Jordan, this has to stop.”

Her insistent tone seemed to totally bemuse him. He regarded her with evident confusion. “Why?”

“Because I cannot be bought.”

Shock registered on his handsome features. “I’m not trying to buy you,” he swore. “I’m trying to…”

Words clearly failed him. Kelly could understand why. There was hardly another interpretation for what he’d been doing. “Buy me,” she supplied.

“No,” he insisted. “I’m trying to court you.”

Her heart skittered wildly. “Oh, Jordan,” she murmured, feeling her insides turn to mush. “Please don’t do this to me.”

His gaze settled on her and a once-familiar warmth spread through her.

“Could I come in so we can discuss this?” he asked.

Kelly did not want him in the house, not with her resolve wavering and his determination solidifying. “It’s the middle of the night. I have fences to mend in the morning.”

“I’ll help,” he promised.

“When was the last time you mended a fence?”