The Cowboy Who Caught Her Eye by Lauri Robinson

was the way several parts of him were no longer looking upon Molly as an opponent. The woman had flustered him since the day he hit town, and that was still happening, but in a different way now. He’d been way too close to kissing her back there in the barn, and not on the hand. Plenty of times in the past he’d played the gentleman, used false charm to persuade a woman to tell him what he needed to know, but he’d always drawn the line at kissing.
    Molly was bringing up his past, too, more often than he liked. Not in words, but little actions. Like when her lips had curled up, forming a little smile, his past had flashed another image. Amelia again. She’d been so tiny and alone way back when, and he’d fought kids and adults to leave her be. They’d only been children, and he couldn’t say exactly what they felt for each other, but Amelia was the only person he’d cared about way down deep inside, and he’d hurt when she died. Hurt terribly. That had been fifteen years ago, and he hadn’t thought of her for a long time, and had no reason to now.
    Other than Molly. She reminded him a lot of Amelia. Little, lost and alone. Sure, Molly had a home and family, but in some ways that made it worse for her—she had that much more to defend.
    That was goading him too, how he wanted to defend her, keep her secret. Keeping those girls safe was foremost in his mind. There had been times the past few days he’d almost grabbed customers by the backs of their shirts and hauled them out the door. He hadn’t needed to, though. One look from him and the men understood they either treated those girls with respect or they’d answer to him. There had been one or two who hadn’t grasped that readily enough, and he’d sent the girls into the house. He’d waited on those customers himself, who, he’d bet, would never make the same mistake a second time around.
    Knowing that wasn’t very satisfying though. It only had him wondering who’d protect the Thorson sisters after he left. That shouldn’t be his problem. He was here to solve a case. Nothing more. And certainly not to kiss Molly. That was a bit frightening, the thought of kissing her. Something deep and powerful said he might catch a glimpse of paradise if he kissed her, and he didn’t need paradise. Not that kind. He’d find his in Montana when this case was over.
    Two days ago, while researching the stolen money, he thought he’d stumbled upon a clue as to who the father of Molly’s baby was. Karleen had mentioned a man had asked Molly to marry him. Then he’d learned the man had left town well over a year ago and hadn’t been back. No woman could be pregnant that long.
    It was perplexing. Molly wasn’t friendly, and two people had to be friendly for a woman to get in the family way. Unless someone had forced himself on her. He’d toyed with that idea, but couldn’t quite accept it. Molly was as ornery as she was stubborn. She’d have shot any man who got close to her. Or clubbed him, or stabbed him, whatever it took.
    Not that a woman even as obstinate as Molly couldn’t be overpowered, but there would have been evidence of that. She was a fighter and would have pointed out the man, seen him punished for his wrongdoing, no matter how embarrassing it may have been on her part. She was ashamed of her condition, he understood that—but moreover, Molly Thorson was deep down trembling in her socks, scared, which told him she’d had something to do with getting into the predicament she was in.
    He’d been cautious with his questions, letting them flow naturally into conversations that wouldn’t raise any suspicion as he’d questioned Karleen. He’d asked if Molly had been gone for any length of time. Karleen had sworn Molly hadn’t—she’d never consider leaving Ivy and her alone. Ultimately, he had no reason to believe anything Karleen told him wasn’t true, but Molly had to have been gone long enough to get in her condition.
    Carter shook his head and