The Cowbear's Secret Christmas Baby: Christmas Paranormal Romance (Curvy Bear Ranch Book 1) (5 page)

She wasn’t kidding when she’d said it was tiny. They’d only taken a couple of steps into the studio before reaching the couch. He sat and waited for her to bring the kid out from the bathroom. Apparently he’d gone face-first into a cherry pie and June needed to hose him off.

Rachel paced back and forth as they waited. Her hands wrung together, her eyes downcast. When he couldn’t take another second of her pacing, he reached for her hand.

“I’m sure I’ll like the kid,” he said.

She looked up with shimmering eyes. Was she about to cry?

The door to the bathroom cracked open and a boy, a little over three feet tall, raced into the room. Clad in a bath towel cut to form the shape of a monkey, he shrieked. “Mommy, I grabbed the pie and it fell.”

She leaned over to scoop him into her arms. “I heard.”

He flailed and kicked. “Put me down.”

When she did, the boy turned to face Brady. A rush of awareness punched him in the gut. The kid looked exactly like him down to the same chocolate-colored eyes and thick brown hair.

When Brady could finally take a breath he gasped, “Is he?”

Rachel nodded slowly.

Disbelief, followed by confusion, followed by rage, rushed through him. He stood and yelled. “And you didn’t think I needed to know?”

The boy’s eyes went wide. He stepped closer to his mom and hid behind her legs.

“I wanted to but—”

“Jesus, Rachel. How the hell could you keep something like this from me?”

“You were going off to war. You didn’t give a damn that you were leaving me all alone.”

He narrowed his eyes. “When did you find out? Was it before or after I left? Wait… you know what? I don’t want to know.”

He stomped toward the door.

She ran over to him and grabbed his arm. “Wait.”

“Are you kidding me? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”

“I didn’t know how.”

“Pick up the phone and call.”

“Where? What country was I supposed to call? I didn’t even know where you were.”

He clenched his fists to try to contain the rage. “I wrote to you. You could have written back and told me.”

He spun and swung open the door. He couldn’t get away fast enough. If he couldn’t keep his bear in check, everyone, including his son, would be in grave danger. He needed time to think.

Shit. He had a son.

Rachel bounded down the stairs behind him. “I have to tell you something else.”

He turned and got right in her face. “Stop. I can’t. Not right now.”

She recoiled.

He blinked several times. She’d never been afraid of him before. But what little sympathy he felt vanished as his son appeared in the doorway. The child stared at him with fear in his eyes. Brady’s heart shattered into a million pieces. How could she be so cold?

Chapter 5

Rachel collapsed to her knees in the snow. Her worst nightmare had just come true. Not only was Brady enraged, but he’d left before she’d even had a chance to tell him about Jimmy’s illness.

On her hands and knees, she sobbed until her mom came downstairs.

“Honey, you need to get up. Jimmy’s scared.”

“I should have told him a long time ago. I wouldn’t be going through this if I had just told him. What the hell is wrong with me?”

Her mom sighed and helped her to her feet. “You were only eighteen when it happened. You were just out of high school and still a teenager.”

“But I was an adult.”

“Being an adult isn’t just about hitting a certain number on a development chart. It’s about learning to be responsible. And you’ve learned. I know things have been hard, but you’ve always done the best you could.”

“I failed him,” she cried.

“Jimmy or Brady?”

“Both of them.”

Her mom guided her up the stairs. “Come upstairs. You need to get out of the snow before you catch a cold.”

“That’s not how you catch a cold,” Rachel sniffed.

Her mom chuckled. “Science can’t explain everything.”

She laughed at their age-old argument about where illness really came from. As she collapsed into the couch, Jimmy ran over to wrap his arms around his mom.

“Is the bad man gone?”

Her heart broke all over. At least Jimmy hadn’t realized he’d just met his father. She dreaded the day she’d have to tell him the truth about their relationship.

Her mom set a tea kettle on the stove. “Some chamomile will help you calm down.”

“I have to go after him. I have to talk to him.”

“How did you get him to come over here? What did you tell him?”

“Nothing. I just…” her voice trailed off. Her mother was going to kill her when she found out that she’d slept with Brady again.

“His scent is all over you. You should have taken a shower if you really wanted to hide it.” Her mom chuckled. “So how’d you two end up in bed again? I have to say, I didn’t expect that at all.”

“I ran into him at the bar last night.”

“I didn’t think he drank.”

“If he does, it’s not much. He was pretty messed up last night.”

“Did you get a chance to tell him about the medical situation?”

Rachel stroked the top of Jimmy’s head. “No. I need to, but he’s furious. How can I ask him for help now?”

“You just have to go to the ranch and talk to him. Now that he knows he has a son, there’s no way he’ll turn his back on him.”

“You sound pretty sure about that.”

Her mom smiled. “I know these things. I’ll watch Jimmy while you go and talk to him.”

Jimmy tilted his face up. “Namma said I can help make cookies.”

“With sprinkles and stars,” her mom added.

Rachel forced a smile. “That sounds great. I’m going to go talk to my friend, but I’ll be back very soon.”

“Your mean friend?”

“He’s just upset right now. He’s usually a really nice friend.”

Jimmy scowled. “He better be nice.”

As her mom reached for Jimmy’s hand, she chuckled. “Let’s go make cookies, honey.”

Rachel watched him walk into the tiny kitchen. They’d had a Christmas tradition of making cookies as far back as she could remember. Some of her favorite holiday memories happened during their hours-long baking sessions.

She stood and walked halfway to the door before she remembered the dead car battery. “Oh, Mom?”

June poked her head out of the kitchen. “Yes?”

“My car battery died last night. That’s part of why Brady and I ended up together. Can I borrow yours?”

“I don’t know if it will make it all the way. I hardly ever use it anymore. Everything I need is within walking distance. Do you have your cell phone with you?”

She checked her coat pocket. “Yep.”

June handed her the keys. “Call me if anything happens. I’ll get Carl to fix your car while you’re gone.”

“Carl?”

Her mom blushed. “He works at Sal’s Garage. He’s pretty handy.”

Rachel smiled. “I can’t wait to meet him.”

“Oh, we’re just friends. He comes over and does odd jobs for me, that’s all.”

Rachel suspected he did more than just odd jobs when he came over. Good for her. The woman took care of everyone else; it was nice to know someone was taking care of her too.

Jimmy came around the corner. He already had a puff of flour on his nose. “I’ll make you a special cookie, Mommy.”

“Thanks, honey. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She quickly exited before the first tear could roll down her cheek.

On the way to the ranch, she cringed at every squeak and groan of her mom’s old VW bug. Her mom didn’t make a lot of money running the bakery, but she really needed to upgrade the car. If Rachel could get back to working full time, she’d give her extra money for a new car. Right now, she could hardly help herself, which was frustrating as hell.

As she bounced along the snow-laden road to the ranch, she sniffed back tears. She really missed teaching. She’d been the kindergarten teacher at Little Elm Elementary for one year. The minute Jimmy entered cancer treatment, she’d had to put in for a leave of absence. She hadn’t thought much about her job until now. She really missed the kids’ smiling faces.

The sign for Curvy Bear Ranch glistened with icicles. Last night’s storm had blanketed the ground with a fresh layer of fluffy snow. The only other set of tire tracks in the snow belonged to Brady’s truck. She parked next to it.

After turning off the engine, she took a deep breath. Normally Brady could be reasoned with, but right now, she wasn’t sure that he’d listen to anything she had to say.

She stepped out of the car, shut the door, and turned just as Mack bounded down the stairs on the front porch. With long, quick strides, he closed the distance. A scowl scrunched up his face.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Apparently, Brady had already shared the news with his brothers, and this one looked like an angry bear ready to charge.

“I came to see Brady.”

“He doesn’t want to talk to you. After what you did, he doesn’t have anything to say to you.”

She peered over his shoulder. “Where is he?”

“That’s none of your business. You need to leave the ranch. Now.” His nostrils flared.

She rose up to her full height. “I’m not leaving until I talk to Brady.”

His tone turned dark. “You have no idea what you just did to him. When he came back from the war, he wasn’t doing very well. You’ve stripped away any progress he’s made and now I have to deal with the fallout.”

“I…I didn’t know.”

“Of course you didn’t. You abandoned him the second he said he wanted to leave.”

“He left me.”

Mack crossed his arms over his chest. “You left each other. He doesn’t want to have anything to do with you. So good luck with the kid and get the hell off my property.”

Every muscle in her body tensed with fury. “I don’t care what you think. I’m going to talk to him.”

She stomped around him toward the house.

Mack called, “He’s not in there.”

A series of crunching footfalls sounded just behind her. She spun to find Mack a couple of feet from her. “Are you going to follow me around the ranch? I already told you, I’m not leaving.”

Behind her, a gravelly voice spoke, “I got this Mack.”

A spark of recognition shimmied through her. She slowly turned to find Brady standing on the porch. He’d changed into worn jeans and tan chaps. A Stetson cowboy hat covered his eyes. His rugged good looks awakened every inch of her femininity. God, he could be so distractingly handsome.

Mack grumbled. “You’d better not hurt him or there will be hell to pay.”

Brady strode down the steps. “I can handle this, Mack.”

His brother glared at her before trudging off through the snow.

Her heart skittered in her chest. She struggled with the right words to use to explain why she needed him, but simply settled on, “Your son’s dying and you’re the only one who can save him.”

***

Brady’s jaw dropped. Had he heard her right? “What did you say?”

“Your son’s dying of leukemia and he needs a bone marrow transplant.”

He took a step back and searched her face for any indication of a lie. Nothing. But could he really believe her after all this time? She’d been lying by omission about having a son, so she could easily be lying about this too.

She wrapped her arms across her chest. “Don’t you have anything to say to that?”

He lifted his hat off of his head and brushed his hand across his hair. “Honestly, I’m not sure I can believe anything you say anymore. How could you keep such a huge secret from me?”

“I was scared. I didn’t think you’d want him. You didn’t want me.”

“What are you talking about? I did want you. I wanted you to wait for me to come back from the war. I wanted to…” He stopped. He couldn’t confess that he’d wanted to ask her to marry him that night. But she’d been so angry that he’d been too afraid that she’d say no.

“I know you’re mad.”

“Furious.”

“Okay, furious. I get that and you have every right to be. I should have told you. But I’m asking you…” her voice cracked. “I’m asking you to help him. Not me, him. He’ll die without a bone marrow transplant and I’m not a match.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t have shifter DNA.”

He drew back. “You told the doctor that your son… our son… is a shifter? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to reveal that kind of information?”

“I was careful. I talked to some of the park ranger shifters in Yellowstone and one of them recommended Dr. Landry. She’s working on creating cures specifically for shifters. We tried traditional chemotherapy but it didn’t work. We tried other methods, but they also failed. Trust me, if you weren’t my last hope, I wouldn’t even be here right now.”

A rumble of anger rippled through his gut. “If your son hadn’t gotten sick, you never would have told me about him, right?”

She looked away. “I don’t know.”

He sighed. “How do I know he’s my son? He looked like me, sure, but how do I know he’s mine?”

She turned back with a look of shock on her face as if he’d insulted her. “Are you kidding me?”

“What? Don’t you think it’s a valid question considering you’d given me absolutely no indication that you were pregnant when I left?”

She opened her mouth as if to say something but closed it. A few seconds later she said, “I can have the doctor do a paternity test if that’s what you want. But he’s yours.”

Brady kicked a chunk of snow. “I want to talk to the doctor, alone.”

She perked up. A glimmer of hope shimmered in her eyes. Did she really think he’d turn his back on his own son? Although he’d told her that he wanted a paternity test, he didn’t really need one. The second he’d met Jimmy, he’d known the child was his. But dammit. Not now, he wasn’t ready to be a dad.

She eyed him warily. “So will you come with me to see Dr. Landry?”

He nodded slowly. “Yes.”

Her shoulders sagged with relief. She sounded close to tears when she said, “We can leave first thing tomorrow. I just need to set up the appointment, but I’m sure she’ll be able to see us.”

He steeled his heart. Even though he wanted to gather her in his arms and console her, he couldn’t. Emotions warred in his heart. He passed from angry, to happy, to scared in the matter of seconds. He had a son… good God.

She’d basically dropped him into a new war, one he wasn’t convinced he could win. He wasn’t sure what would happen in the future. Would he be allowed to spend time with his son? Would they work out a shared custody arrangement?

He almost laughed out loud when he realized how ridiculous his line of thought was. He’d assumed his son would stay alive long enough that he’d have to fight with Rachel over custody. He hadn’t even asked her the most important question yet.

“You said he’ll die without the transplant. How long has he been sick?”

“Two years.”

He blew a breath of air through his teeth. “You could have called me. You could have called one of my brothers.”

Sadness moved across her face. “I’m sorry. I thought I could handle it on my own.”

He clenched his fists at his sides to keep from reaching to comfort her. “You wouldn’t have been on your own if you’d called me.”

She looked directly at him. “How can you say that? You were thousands of miles away. How exactly could you have helped me?”

“I would have found a way.”

She shook her head. “We can’t change the past. All we can do is move forward.”

He pressed his lips together. “That’s easy for you to say. You didn’t just find out that you have a son and that he’s dying.”