Teresa Southwick - The Bachelor's Baby

“Not for me.”

“Don’t start with that rescue thing again.”

She took a deep breath. “There’s something you need to understand about me, Tucker.”

“Shoot.” He stuck his fingertips in the front of his jeans and gave her his undivided attention.

“When I was a little girl, we didn’t have much money. Didn’t go to the movies or do a lot of anything, for that matter. What we did have was a TV set. My mother scrimped and saved to buy it” She stopped and waited for him to say something.

“Go on. I figure you’re going somewhere with this. I’m listening.”

“Besides books I borrowed from the library, my only entertainment was that TV. I grew up on John Wayne Westerns, reruns of Maverick and Bonanza. Clint Eastwood was my hero.”

That was a little irritating. Hard to go up against a fella who was bigger than life. Not that he wanted to compete. “Go on.”

“My favorite part was when the cowboy rescued the heroine. He’d ride in on his white horse, dispose of the bad guy in short order, then carry the damsel in distress off and take care of her as they lived happily ever after.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“Not a thing, except it’s fantasy. I found out soon enough real life was very different from that.”

“So do you have a point?”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re a cowboy, for goodness’ sake.”

Was he supposed to know what that had to do with the price of a Stetson? “Last time I checked it wasn’t a crime.”

“That’s true. But something else you should understand. I’m an accountant. I’ve always been good at math. I like rules, regulations, equations, and formulas. My point is this—cowboy equals rescue. Rescue equals myth. Therefore, cowboy equals myth.”

“I’m no myth, sweetheart,” he said sarcastically. “I’m a flesh-and-blood man who found out his own flesh and blood is in the other room. This has nothing to do with rescuing you and everything to do with the fact that I want to be a part of Jason’s life.” She opened her mouth, and he pointed at her. “And don’t tell me you were afraid of that.”

Her mouth pulled in a straight line as she crossed her arms over her chest. “You have no legal rights to him, Tucker.”

“The hell I don’t. My father taught me that every man should live by a code. He said, ‘Write it in your heart and stand by it. Ask no more and give no less than honesty, courage, loyalty, generosity and fairness.’” He took a deep breath, remembering the way his father had always said those words with a hand on Tucker’s shoulder. He wanted to be that kind of an influence in his son’s life. “You don’t need to hold me responsible, I can do that all on my own. The way I see it, I have a moral obligation to that boy, more binding than man-made laws. But if necessary I’ll use them.”

“What are you implying?”

“I’m not implying anything. I’ll say it straight out. I intend to be a father to my son. If you force my hand, I can tie you up for a long time in court.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“I don’t want to.”

She paced for a few moments, her forehead puckered thoughtfully. Finally she stopped in front of him and said, “Tucker, I need some time to think about this. I’m glad you know about Jason. But, truthfully, I never expected to see you again. For the past year I haven’t had to consult with anyone about anything.”

Once again he realized how little he knew about the mother of his son. More than ever he was convinced that he was right about this. “You said you had no family to help you—”

“My mother and sister have their hands full taking care of themselves.”

“What about your good friends? Who took you to the hospital when you had the baby?”

“Let it go, Tucker. I got there and had a normal birth and a beautiful baby boy. You didn’t know. You have nothing to feel guilty about.”

“Maybe not. But all the same, I can’t help feeling that there’s a lot to make up for.”

“I’m sorry. As far as your proposal, there’s a lot to consider.”

“Like what?”

“Where would I live? What would I do?”

“The house is big enough for all of us. You’d have your own room, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“I wasn’t worried,” she said too quickly.

“Yeah. As far as what you’ll do, taking care of Jason is a full-time job.”

She shook her head. “I can’t just stop looking for work.”

“You don’t have to. There’s no reason why you can’t do it from the ranch.”

She shook her head. “I can’t make a snap decision about what happens now. You’re going to have to understand that.”

He didn’t understand. It seemed cut-and-dried to him. She didn’t have a job, and she didn’t want to leave the baby. On the ranch she could take her time about finding work, while she cared for his son.

Something else his father had told him: “It’s better to sit on your horse and do nothing than to wear him out chasing shadows.” Her agreement to come to the ranch was not what he would get if he continued to push.

He walked to the table and picked up his hat. “I do understand that you need some time to think. I’ll just be going now.”

“Are you leaving town?” she asked.

“Why do you ask?”

“In the past, every time I needed to get in touch with you, you’d moved on.”

“Not this time.”

“Being my Lamaze coach does not constitute saving my life, thereby giving you control of it.”

“So you invited me to lunch to yell at me? Silly me for thinking that you might have been grateful I sent you the man on the white horse.”

“Grateful that you took matters into your own hands and interfered?”

Casey was only half joking as she looked at Kim Delaney, sitting across from her in a booth at the local burger joint. Dark brown hair in a short pageboy fell sleekly around her pretty face. Her warm brown eyes were highlighted by the longest, thickest black lashes Casey had ever seen. In fact, Kim was pretty enough to thoroughly dislike. But their friendship transcended mere physical attributes and petty female envy.

Kim was the very good friend she had told Tucker about. She had been there for Casey through everything. Including the night she’d met Tucker and the night she’d given birth to his son. Beside her in the booth, Jason slept peacefully in his car seat, while his mother had lunch with his godmother. Casey smiled tenderly as she tucked the receiving blanket snugly around him, a protection against the air-conditioning.

“Define interfere” Kim said, not in the least intimidated.

Reluctantly Casey pulled her gaze from her son to her friend. “You sent Tucker to the condo and told him I’d been let go from the firm. I think that’s interfering. Since when do you break company rules and give out the home address of an employee?”

“Rule, schmule. It was vague verbal directions.”

“I’m serious, Kim.”

She sighed. “I know you are. And you deserve an explanation.”

Casey looked at her and waited. When one wasn’t forthcoming she said, “Well?”

“I’m thinking. Technically, since you were canned, I didn’t have to withhold your address. Besides, you and Tucker have a lot to talk about.”

“You said the same thing to me a year ago when I met him.”

“I was right, too. The two of you chattered like magpies all night.”

“If we’d stopped at that, I wouldn’t be in this bind now.”

Kim sighed. “I’ll never forgive myself for talking you into going to that bar with me. It’s just that I couldn’t stand to see you wasting the best years of your life staying home night after night with TV and books.”

“What happened is not your fault.”

“I know how you are about blue eyes and dimples. I should never have left you alone with him.”

“You stayed until two in the morning, until you could barely keep your eyes open. I refused to leave with you. That’s ancient history, Kim. I’ve got bigger problems now.”

“What?”

“He’s making noise about his legal rights. He wants me to move to his ranch with the baby.”

“Boy, howdy!”

Casey couldn’t tell if that remark was sympathetic to her plight, or encouraging her to accept Tucker’s offer. She decided the latter. Part of the reason their friendship had endured since high school was that opposites attract. Kim was a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants sort of gal; Casey planned her life step by step. Moving to his ranch was not one of the steps she intended to take.

“My job contacts are here, Kim. Jason’s pediatrician is here. You’re here.”

“I could be talked into going with you, if he’s got any more at home like him.”

“Be serious.”

“I am. Dead serious.”

“This is all about him and what he wants. He can’t just swagger in here and get things his own way.”

“Case, I’ve got news for you. Cowboys don’t swagger. They can’t really. It’s sort of physically impossible with those bow legs from riding horses. They sort of sashay—”

“Kim! You’re splitting hairs, and I don’t really care how he walks.”

“Yeah, and I’m Princess Di.”

The server deposited a tray littered with burgers and drinks. When they were alone again, Casey looked at her friend.

“I know it sounds like a wonderful adventure to you. But I’m not the sort of person who just picks up and moves at the drop of a hat—not even a cowboy hat.”

“Why not?”

Casey sighed. Kim wasn’t going to make this easy. Drawing in a big breath, she willed herself to patience. “There’s a term for it, maybe you’ve heard. It’s called cautious.”

“You’ve got to learn to be a risk taker, Case.”

“I’d need a personality transplant to do that. Besides, I’ve got Jason to think about.”

“Come on, you’re just throwing down stumbling blocks. Quit being so contrary. You can find a pediatrician near the ranch. Dr. Olsen may be able to give you a reference. You can send out your résumé from there just as easily as you can from here. And while you’re at it, you won’t have to worry about a roof over your head and food on the table.”

Casey thought about that and knew Kim was right. She had someone more important than herself to worry about. Jason. If not for him, she’d have told Tucker Smith to take a flying leap. She stared long and hard at the woman across from her, happily chewing and swallowing the last bite of her hamburger. “Do you stay awake nights thinking of ways to complicate my life? Or does playing devil’s advocate just come easily to you?”

Kim grinned. “What are friends for?”

It was damned irritating that her friend made such good sense.

That evening Jason fussed long after he should have gone to sleep for the night. Casey couldn’t quiet him. She’d tried walking him until her legs were ready to fall off, and had rocked him in the chair until she was dizzy. No dice. Even his baby swing didn’t produce the usual tranquilizing effect.

She was exhausted. Now that Tucker had dropped into her life again, sending her on an emotional roller coaster with his proposition, the baby’s crying put her on the verge of tears herself. It hadn’t been this bad since Jason’s first night home from the hospital.

“What’s the matter, big boy?” she asked as he wailed into her ear.

He wasn’t wet, hungry or sick. He didn’t have a fever, she’d taken his temperature.

“Are you so tired you just can’t sleep?” she asked, wishing he could tell her.