Trucker Daddy (Working Man Series Book 3) Read online

  “I can’t believe you gave the dog tuna salad,” she said, looking over her shoulder.

  “He’ll eat just about anything. Except chow.”

  “I don’t think I’m so afraid of him anymore,” she said, putting more food into his mouth.

  “What happened to make you scared of dogs?” he asked, swallowing down the salad and taking another sip of iced tea.

  “I was bitten by a dog when I was a child.”

  “Burrito will never bite you. He’s a good watchdog but, like I said, he’s mostly bark and no bite. He’s a pushover. All anyone has to do is give him food and he’ll let them do whatever they want.”

  She giggled, and he liked the sound of feminine laughter in the cab of his truck.

  “How did you get Maggie to stay so quiet?” he asked. “Is she all right?”

  “She’s just fine.” Twiggy downed some more salad before saying more. “I gave her one of her new teething rings and a toy to play with and she’s amused.” She looked back over her shoulder and smiled. “Then again, I think she is more amused with watching Burrito lick the paper from that tuna wrap.”

  Cal suddenly heard a small baby’s giggle and it took him by surprise.

  “Was that Maggie?” He glanced back over his shoulder and then out the front window again. “Did she just laugh?”

  “She does that on occasion,” said Twiggy, holding up more salad but he shook his head.

  “I thought all she ever did was cry.”

  “You really need to get to know your daughter.”

  “Daughter,” he repeated softly, his heart lodging in his throat. “I’m really a dad now, aren’t I?”

  “Yes, you are. How does it feel?” She put the fork in her mouth and licked it, about driving him mad. It was such a seductive action but he was sure she had no idea what she was doing or how much she was affecting him right now.

  “I don’t know how it feels. I haven’t had time to even give it much thought. I’m not sure I’m going to be able to raise a child on my own.”

  “So, there is no Mrs. Reeves then?” She pushed the rest of the salad around with her plastic fork and dared to peek up at him.

  “No,” he told her.

  Tuesday felt a breath of relief leave her body when she found out that Cal wasn’t married. It was something she’d been meaning to ask him, but the time never seemed right up until now.

  “Do you have any children? I mean besides Maggie?” she continued, needing to know more about this mysterious man.

  “Not that I know of,” he answered with a smirk. “Why? Do you?”

  “Me?” Her eyes opened wide. “No! I am not married and neither do I have any children.”

  “Yeah, I didn’t think so,” he told her, smiling more than ever now. “I would have been very surprised if you had.”

  “What does that mean?” She didn’t like his presumptions. It made it sound as if he thought she couldn’t get a man to marry her, nor could she possibly have children even though she wasn’t that old. “You don’t think I could if I wanted to, do you? You think no man would ever want me. Is that it?”

  “Huh?” He looked at her from the corners of his eyes. “No. I didn’t say that.”

  “You didn’t have to. You insinuated nobody would ever want poor little Tuesday Twaggard, and no one would ever kiss me if it wasn’t on a dare.”

  “Now wait a minute, sweetie. You’ve got it all wrong.”

  “I thought I told you not to call me that.”

  “I’ll call you whatever I want.” She could see him getting upset now, but she didn’t care. His words hurt her and she wasn’t going to stand for it. “You didn’t let me finish.”

  “I think we’re done here.” She collected her things and headed back to the sleeper compartment of the truck, hearing him groan.

  “Twiggy, come back here.”

  “No. The dog can keep you company because I am going to stay back here with Maggie for the rest of the trip.”

  “Suit yourself,” he spat. “The dog is better company anyway. Come here, Burrito,” he called the dog and Burrito eagerly jumped up on the seat next to him.

  Tuesday held back the tears that threatened to consume her, taking Maggie out of the car seat and holding her to her chest. “Don’t worry, Maggie. I’m sure it’ll all work out,” she said, stroking the little girl’s hair. She said the words, trying to convince herself it was true. However, she didn’t believe for a moment that it would ever work out with Cal raising Maggie on his own.

  How could she leave the poor, little, innocent girl with this beast? He was a trucker with no manners and no respect for women or even babies. Just dogs. “I’m sure he’ll be a good father to you,” she said, no longer believing that Cal Reeves could ever be a good father . . . or even a good husband, not that any of this even mattered to her. She was here to do a job, and when it was over, she would never have to deal with Cal Reeves again.

  Chapter 8

  It was already dark when Cal pulled in to the truck stop where they would spend the night. It had been a long and lonely ride with Tuesday not talking to him for most of the day. Yikes, the woman was sensitive. She had read things into his words that he’d never meant. She sounded so insecure and he didn’t know why. The girl had everything going for her. Twiggy was beautiful, smart, daring, and a terrific mother to little Maggie. Mother. Why did he even think that? She wasn’t the baby’s mother and never would be.

  “I’m going to get a bulb to replace my headlight. I’ll be right back,” he said over his shoulder, parking the rig and turning off the engine. Thankfully, this truck stop was also a repair place where the rigs could get parts, and also gas up before hitting the road again. “Twiggy? Did you hear me?”

  He got up and started back to her, but stopped when he saw her lying back on the bench, sound asleep with little Maggie held tightly in her arms. The baby was asleep as well.

  “Okay, never mind,” he said, looking back at Burrito. “Watch over them until I return.”

  The dog sighed and Cal’s stomach growled. He was starving and needed to pick up some real food and maybe a beer since he’d had a hard day and needed to relax. It wasn’t long before he returned with the headlight and replaced the bulb. He taped plastic over the light for now and when he got back to Texas he’d take it to the repair shop and get the damage fixed properly. Thankfully, the patch on the radiator hose seemed to be holding. With any luck at all, he’d be able to complete the entire trip before having to deal with it.

  He let Burrito out to sniff around, do his dirt and run a little before heading back into the truck for the night. Cal snarfed down the burgers he’d bought, and shared the French fries with the dog. Chugging down the cold cola seemed so satisfying after drinking that bland, sugarless iced tea. Twiggy said she was trying to help him be healthy, but honestly, he wondered if she was doing it to torture him, making him pay for what he had done to her in the past.

  He smiled, looking at Twiggy and the baby, both still fast asleep. He needed them to move so he could pull down the bed for the night, but decided he would take a quick shower before waking them up. He stuck the six-pack of beer in the fridge, stripped off his clothes and disappeared into the tiny bathroom to clean up.

  The baby stirred, waking Tuesday, causing her to jerk upward when she realized they were parked and no longer moving.

  “Cal?” Looking around, she didn’t see him anywhere. The dim blue rope lights lit up the area around the stove and fridge, giving enough light to see perfectly. Burrito was stretched out on the passenger seat, looking satisfied for some reason. “Cal? Are you here?” She got to her feet, wondering where he’d gone. He obviously wasn’t here since she could see the small space perfectly and it was empty.

  Maggie started to fuss, so Tuesday spread the changing pad on the floor and changed the baby’s diaper. She had just finished when the door to the bathroom swung open and Cal walked out, stark naked, stopping when he saw her. His hands moved downward quickly t
o cover his groin, but she still got a glimpse at his impressive private parts.

  “Twiggy,” he said, flashing a smile. “I thought you were sleeping.”

  “I was, but the baby needed changing.” She kept her eyes on the baby instead of on his naked body, although she was tempted to take a better look. Cal Reeves was very sexy . . . especially when he was naked. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t walk around naked,” she told him, noticing the quiver of her own voice.

  “I – I need a towel. Can you get one for me? It’s over there.”

  Well, now she had to look up to see where he was pointing. Thankfully, one of his hands still covered his groin area, although she couldn’t miss the dark, curly hair peeking out.

  “I don’t understand why you didn’t take it with you in the first place.” She hopped up and got the towel and handed it to him, keeping her eyes averted so she wouldn’t be looking at this perfect specimen of a man.

  “The shower gets everything in there wet since it’s such a small room. If I had taken a towel, it would be soaked. I usually just hang one on the back of the door but I forgot. Thank you.” He took the towel from her and she quickly turned and headed back to the baby, sitting down on the floor.

  “I can’t believe you walk around naked!” she said, feeling shocked. “After all, anyone can see you through the front windshield.”

  “I don’t really care since this is a truck stop and only truckers are out there.” She heard him drying himself. “But if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll pull the blackout curtains across the cab area. I honestly rarely use them.”

  When she peeked up at him, she saw that he’d tied the towel around his waist and was reaching up to pull blackout curtains across the area with the front seats, blocking the view out the windshield. “S’cuse me, Burrito. The little lady wants privacy.” Burrito got up and ran back to be with them.

  When Cal reached, the towel rode up, exposing the bottom swells of his toned butt cheeks, making her breath hitch. Then, when he bent over to fix the curtains near the floor, she got a glimpse from his backside at what dangled between his legs.

  Tuesday quickly picked up the baby and spun around.

  “It’s hot in here, don’t you think?” she asked, feeling all hot and bothered now, thanks to Cal.

  “Well, not really since I’m standing here naked,” he answered, coming back to join her. “Take off some clothes and you’ll cool off.”

  “What?” Her head snapped around and she saw him grinning like a cat that swallowed the canary.

  “I’m only joking, Twiggy. You really need to learn to relax. You’re wound so tight that I swear you’re going to snap. Here, maybe I can help.” He reached out for her and she froze. She wondered just how he planned on helping her relax. Her eyes closed and she hugged the baby, not able to move.

  “You’re going to have to move to one side or the other,” he told her, causing her eyes to open again. “I need to pull down the bed.”

  “Oh!” She stepped to the side as he folded up the table and bench and pulled out a queen sized bed from the wall. She could see that there were more cabinets above it that she didn’t see before since they’d been hidden. “That’s a big bed for such a small area!” The bed went long ways, the feet of it by the driver’s seat, rather than sleeping crossways as she’d thought would be done.

  “It’s big enough for two. Or even three,” he told her. That made her heart skip a beat. What was he insinuating?

  “Th – three?” she asked, wondering if he was into threesomes or some other kind of kinky sex.

  “Mmm hmm. Burrito, you, and the baby.”

  “Oh.” She bit her lip and nodded slowly as her heart continued to pound. “And where will you sleep?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I’ll just sleep in the driver’s seat, or on the floor at the foot of the bed.” He pulled out a pair of briefs, his back toward her. Then he dropped the towel as he donned them. Once again, her eyes were fastened to his bare back end. God, why did he excite her like this? She was trying her best to hate him for their past together, but he was an attractive man and she couldn’t help wondering what it would feel like to kiss him right now. Or make love to him.

  “No!” she said, shaking that illicit thought from her head, embarrassed to have even had it.

  “No?” he turned around and looked at her. Now his bare chest stared right at her and it was mesmerizing. Small droplets of water still clung to his chest, calling out to her to touch them. She had to stop herself from reaching out to wipe them away. “Oh, then you’re all right with me sharing the bed with you. That’s what you meant when you said no.”

  That was the furthest thing from the truth but, then again, she couldn’t tell him that she’d said no, trying to brush away sexual thoughts of him from her mind. “I – I . . . sure,” she said in a mere whisper, wondering why the hell she’d just agreed to something crazy like this! “I mean . . . it is your bed after all. And it’s just – platonic between us. Right?”

  “Of course. Why?” he asked, running a brush through his hair. “Were you expecting something else?”

  “No!” she almost shouted, turning and squeezing her eyes closed, still holding on to the baby. Maggie made little noises, reaching out and grabbing Tuesday’s hair. “Ow. No, Maggie,” she told the child, trying to dislodge her hand from her hair.

  “Let me,” he said, walking up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders and slowly turning her around. He was so close to her with his half-naked body that she could feel the heat emanating from him. It made her feel as if she were going to combust. “There,” he said, untwining Maggie’s fingers from her hair. “Let me take the baby for a while to give you a break.”

  “Sure,” she said, handing Maggie over to him. He kissed Maggie’s strawberry-blond head, and held her in the crook of his arm. Then he casually bent over and grabbed a bottle of cold beer from the fridge. “Want a beer? I’ve got a six-pack,” he told her, handing the bottle to her.

  It surprised her that he had beer since she hadn’t seen it in the fridge earlier. “No,” said Tuesday, her mouth feeling so dry that she could barely swallow.

  “Well, feel free to use the shower,” he told her, plopping down on the bed with Maggie still in his hold. Burrito ran over and hopped up on the bed next to him as Cal popped off the top of the beer and took a swig. “Hand me that remote, will you?” he asked, nodding to the TV remote that was held on by Velcro to the wall just behind the driver’s seat.

  “All the comforts of home,” she told him, giving it to him.

  “Yep, this rig is my home away from home.” He switched on the TV and put Maggie down on the bed next to him on her stomach. The little girl pushed up to her knees. “Then again, this truck better have all the comforts of home for what I paid for it.”

  “So you own it then?” she asked, gently lowering herself to sit on the opposite edge of the bed.

  “Bought and paid for,” he told her, switching through the channels, taking another swig of beer. “I decided I didn’t want to work for anyone but myself, and this is the only way to do it.”

  “Do you really like being on the road all the time?” she asked him. “I would think it could become lonely.”

  “Well, not if you know how to keep from being lonely.” He settled on the ball game on TV.

  “And how do you do that?”

  “I have company every so often.”

  “Oh. Girls.”

  “Mmm mmm. May and June are my favorite ones to pass the time with,” he said, shocking her to hear him say this.

  “I think I’ll change into something else to sleep in.” She nervously got off the bed, hearing a big fart come from the baby. “Oh, I’d better change her first.”

  “Don’t be silly. Go on, and get comfortable. I’ll change her diaper.”

  “Really?”

  “Twiggy, I’m a dad now. I am going to have to do these things.”

  “If you insist.” She grabbed he
r bag and squeezed into the small bathroom to change. The floor and walls and even the toilet were wet since he’d just showered and the water went everywhere. “So, where do you find these girls you spend time with?” she asked through the door. “I mean . . . do you know them or just pick them up along the road.”

  “A little of both,” he told her. “What the hell?” she heard him say.

  “What’s the matter?” she called out through the door.

  “I just came across something in the garbage that I didn’t expect.”

  “Oh, yeah. Those diapers can be nasty.”

  “That’s not what I’m talking about.”

  “Really? What do you mean?” She walked out, braless but wearing a nightie that buttoned up to the neck and hung down past her knees. She’d forgotten to bring a robe, and hoped she didn’t look too bare in this. Then again, after what Cal was wearing, just his briefs, this seemed very much covered up.

  “I found a little surprise in the trash,” he told her, holding up the dirty magazines. “What were they doing in there?”

  “Oh, those.” She flashed a smile. “Well, I don’t suppose you need them. I mean with the girls you pick up here and there, I am sure you get plenty of action without the magazines for help.”

  “There is nothing wrong with these magazines,” he told her, shaking them in the air.

  “You disgust me! Not only do you sleep with strangers, but then you need to look at dirty magazines, too? How sex-starved are you?”

  “I’m going to sleep with you in a few minutes. Is that disgusting, too?” he asked her in a calm voice.

  “Well . . . I mean . . . we’re not going to be . . . doing it. That’s different.”