The Cowboy's Valentine. DONNA ALWARD

can’t imagine wanting to do math rather than be in a barn,” Kailey said. “Let me talk it over with my dad. How much would you charge?”

      Lacey named her hourly rate—a little on the low side, taking into consideration that budgets were probably a little tight in a small ranching community.

      “You’re staying at the house? I’ll give you a call. Because honestly, you’d be doing me a huge favor if I didn’t have to worry about this stuff.”

      “Yep. If I don’t answer, just leave a message and I’ll get back to you.” For the first time in weeks she felt a sliver of hope. Even if she ended up getting a position somewhere on a more permanent basis, she could manage a single client after hours.

      At that moment Kailey’s cell phone rang and she frowned. “Weird. Hardly anyone ever calls me. Most of the time they text.” She dug around in her purse and found the phone. “It’s Carrie. I hope there’s nothing wrong.” She answered it at the same time as Lacey’s phone began to ring.

      A strange feeling crawled through Lacey’s stomach. She looked at her phone and saw Duke’s number on the display. She swallowed as she hit the accept button. She hoped it was nothing with the baby. That would be terrible for them and a little too close to home for her.

      “Duke? What’s wrong?”

      “Thank God I got you. Where are you?”

      “In town, shopping.”

      “Can you stop by the preschool and pick up Amber rather than her going to day care?”

      The crawly feeling intensified. “What’s happened? Is Quinn all right?”

      “He’ll be fine. There was a fire at his place, though. He tried to stop it while he was waiting for the fire department.”

      Gibson was so small that the department was volunteer-based. Response time could be slow...

      “Is he hurt? What about the house?” Dread spiraled through her. Please let him be okay, she thought. And poor Amber. She didn’t need any more upheaval, either...

      “The house will be fine, eventually. Quinn kept it confined to the kitchen area and the department got there in time to knock it down. It’ll need gutting, though. And Quinn...he got a few burns. He’s on his way to the hospital now.”

      She lowered her voice. “How bad, Duke?”

      “Not that bad,” he assured her. “But he needs proper treatment and the burns are going to be tender for a while.”

      She closed her eyes, thinking of Quinn in pain, picturing him trying to fight the fire all on his own. Stupid, brave man.

      “I’ll get Amber. Should I come to the hospital?”

      “No.” Duke’s voice was firm. “I don’t know how much she remembers from when Marie died, but there’s no need to freak her out. Just take her back to the house after school. I think she’s done at noon.”

      Lacey caught Kailey’s worried gaze and knew they were getting the same information.

      “Don’t worry about it, Duke. I’ll take care of it.”

      “Thanks. We’re going to head in to the hospital now.”

      “Then come to supper at the house. I’ll cook for everyone. Amber can help and it’ll be good to keep her busy. She likes helping in the kitchen.”

      “You’re a gem, Lace.”

      Gem, huh? Truth was, she was more worried than she cared to admit about Quinn and she would benefit from being occupied. “Don’t worry about it. Just text me with updates, okay?”

      “Can do.”

      She hung up at the same time as Kailey and they looked at each other. Lacey wondered if her face looked as worried as Kailey’s.

      “You heard the news,” Kailey said quietly.

      “Yeah. Duke asked if I’d pick Amber up after school. I hope he’s right, that Quinn’s burns are minor.”

      “Me, too. Gosh, that family has been through enough.”

      Lacey remembered what it was like to lose a parent at a young age. And she remembered how frightening it was to think that something might happen to the one left behind. “This might be the perfect day for some Valentine’s Day planning,” Lacey said tightly.

      “I’ve got to head home for a bit, but I offered to help the guys with the chores tonight. That way Duke and Carrie can look after Quinn.”

      Lacey had nearly forgotten what it was like to live in a small town, but the current crisis reminded her. “Listen, I’m going to cook for everyone. You’re welcome to stay too, if you don’t have to rush back home.”

      “Thanks.” Kailey tucked her phone back in her purse. “I’ll play it by ear, see when things get finished.” She reached out and squeezed Lacey’s arm. “Give Amber my love, okay? She’s a sweetie.”

      “I will. See you back at the ranch.”

      Kailey rushed off to pay for her items and Lacey checked her watch. She still had some time before she needed to pick Amber up from school, so she added a few more craft supplies to the cart, and then threw in what she guessed to be the right size pajamas and set of yoga pants with a matching shirt, just in case Amber needed a change of clothes. Once she’d paid for those, she headed to the grocery store and picked up whatever was missing from the pantry for tonight’s supper. There would be at least five of them to eat, six if Kailey was there, so she picked up a large roast and an extra bag of carrots. Fresh green beans were on sale, and she bought whipping cream and a bag of apples. On the way out, she snagged a couple of bottles of red wine. Once her groceries were stowed in the trunk along with her other purchases, she found it was nearly dismissal time and made her way to the school.