Cowboy's Curvy Nanny (Cowboy Billionaires #1)

by J. P. Comeau

  I grinned at her comment. “It’s our house, Maria. You’re just as much of a part of this family, and you know that.”

  “That’s very kind, Mr. Remington. Thank you.”

  I walked over to my suitcase. “I’m packing up now. I’ll call you once I’m on the highway. And when I get home? We’re going to figure out what to do next. That woman isn’t keeping my daughter. She doesn’t get to leave me for someone else, demand all of my money, and then take our daughter after radio silence for weeks now. That isn’t happening.”

  “No, sir.”

  “I’m glad we’re on the same page. I’ll call you soon.”

  “I’ll be here, sir.”

  I started throwing my things back into my suitcase. “On second thought, Maria? Take the weekend off. Hell, take the entire week off. Paid leave.”

  She paused. “Lo Siento?”

  “Take the week off, Maria. Go spend it with your husband. Go visit the grandkids. Go do something for yourself. It’s paid time off. I won’t count it against your vacation.”

  She sighed. “Oh, gracias, Mr. Remington.”

  “Bryce, damn it. You’re part of this family. ‘Bryce’ is just fine.”

  I heard the smile in her voice. “Thank you, Bryce. Really.”

  “Now, go on. Enjoy the week. And when you get back, I promise everything will be all right.”

  “Bryce!”

  I paused. “Yes?”

  “There’s… something else.”

  I blinked. “I’m all ears, Maria.”

  She sighed. “Don’t be mad at me.”

  I braced myself. “I’d never be upset with you for simply confiding in me. What is it? What’s wrong?”

  The silence from her was deafening. “So, my sister. She lives and works in Houston, right?”

  “Actually, I didn't know that. Had I known, I would’ve paid her a visit and said ‘hello’ from you.”

  “I didn't know you were in Houston, exactly. Just that you were on a business trip.”

  I waved my hand in the air. “Doesn’t matter. What is it you want to tell me?”

  She started talking quickly again. “Well, sir—I mean, Bryce—my sister works for a veterinarian office. I never really paid attention to all that nonsense because when we get together, we talk about anything other than work. Si, so I figured out that she doesn’t just work for any veterinarian’s office. Your vet? Dr. Morris? He has a second vet office in Houston.”

  “The one your sister works for.”

  “Si.”

  “What does this have to do with me?”

  She sighed heavily. “My sister sent me a picture. She thought she was sending me a nice, juicy piece of gossip about her boss that we could giggle over, but you really need to see it.”

  “Do you know my cell number?”

  Silence hung on the other end of the line before my phone lit up against my face.

  “There. I sent it,” Maria said.

  I moved the phone away from my ear and opened up the text. And when I saw the image, my gut almost bottomed out through my asshole.

  “Maria, when did you get this picture?” I asked.

  She paused. “Lo Siento, sir. I-I-I mean, Bryce I, uh, I got it just after you left. You know, for your trip? I figured I’d show it to you when you got back. Then, everything happened so fast, and Patricia was here and--.”

  “Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh. It’s okay. Take a breath. I’m not upset with you.”

  She sighed. “Promise?”

  I nodded. “I promise. I’m not upset. But, what I want you to do is keep that picture. Save it to your phone, and don’t delete it until I tell you to. Okay?”

  “Si, Bryce.”

  “And go home. Let me take care of everything else. Give yourself a week to just enjoy your life.”

  “Are you sure?”

  I smiled softly. “I’m more than sure. You just gave me something they call leverage, and I have a feeling things are going to be just fine from now on.”

  I hung up the phone and shoved it into my pocket. It didn’t take me any time at all to throw my things into the suitcase and zip it up. I didn’t even double-check to make sure I wasn’t leaving anything behind, either. If I left it, I could buy a new one. Simple as that. But, I had to get back home before Willow did something incredibly stupid…

  …like leave.

  “Mr. Remington, is everything all right?” the front desk attendant asked.

  I slid her the key to my room. “Family emergency. I have to go. Thank you for your hospitality.”

  “Of course, sir. Is there anything you--!?”

  I rushed out of the automatic front doors of the hotel lobby before the woman even finished her sentence. I had to get home. I had to make things right. I had to be the glue that held this family together before everything fell apart on me. I’d already done that once. Hell, I was still suffering from the fallout of my family, failing one time.

  I wouldn’t fail my family again.

  “Come on,” I grumbled, calling Willow for the third time after listening to her voicemail message. And for the third time listening to her voicemail greeting.

  After tossing my luggage into the back of my convertible, I hopped into the front seat. I peeled out of the hotel parking lot without a second thought, almost running over the valet attendant. I ignored how hungry my stomach was as I passed by fast-food joints. Coffee shops. Diners and restaurants that were still open well past regular dinner time hours. I put the pedal to the metal as I careened onto the interstate, my tires squealing as I weaved in and out of traffic.

  And with the wind in my hair, I felt my strength coming back. I felt my balls reattaching themselves. I dug down deep to find the one part of my manhood that hadn’t been completely obliterated, and I tugged it--kicking and screaming--to the forefront.

  No matter what it took from me, I had to put us back together. Myself, Willow, and Marie Lee had to be fixed.

  And my ex-wife?

  Well, she could go fuck the man she left me for and be happy with the decision she made.

  I squealed into my driveway just after midnight and didn’t bother unpacking my things. Hell, I didn't bother taking the damn keys out of the ignition! I used the spare key under the mat to unlock the door, throwing my shoulder into it just in case it decided to stick on me again. These humid summers could kiss my ass when it came to owning a log cabin-style ranch house on a bazillion acres of nothing but trees. Hot and wet as could be, and the house ballooned like my ex-wife on her period.

  “Willow!” I exclaimed.

  I rushed to the back of the house and stormed onto the porch, only to be greeted with a lifeless backyard.

  “Willow!” I roared noting her truck wasn’t parked beside the guest house.

  After nothing but the echoing of my voice bounced back at me, I retreated back into the kitchen—the note. Where the hell was this note, Maria had spoke of? I finally found a piece of paper taped to the refrigerator. I walked up to it as my eyes scanned through the words, but I had to murmur it to myself in order to process it.

  “Dearest, Bryce. I’ve taken a full-time office position with a warehouse on the other side of town. I start at the end of the month. Thank you for all the generosity you showed me, and I wish you--no, no, no, fucking hell no!”

  I ripped the note off the fridge and dashed to the sink. I stuffed the fucking thing down the garbage disposal before flipping on the faucet. I jammed my hand against the switch and listened to that paper shred before it got washed down the drain.

  “No,” I whispered.

  I turned the disposal and the water off before I leaned against the counter. With the heels of my hands pressed into my eyes, I forced my mind to settle down. I had to think this through. I couldn't let my fucking family fall apart twice because of my bitch-ass ex. She had screwed around with me for the last time, and I wasn’t going to take it any longer. So, I ripped my phone out of my pocket and dialed Pat’s number.

  And th
e first sound I heard before her voice even hit my ears was Marie Lee crying in the background.

  I shook with fury as her voice finally appeared. “What?”

  I scoffed. “What do you mean, what? Where the hell do you get off storming into my house and kidnapping your daughter?”

  She barked with laughter. “Kidnap!? She’s my daughter! More mine than she ever was yours.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “What the hell does that mean?”

  “It means while you were out working all these hours and training all these animals and going to all these rodeos, I was the one actually raising her.”

  “Daddy!” Marie Lee cried out.

  I heard Patricia shush her, and my head almost blew through the roof.

  My blood boiled. “Don’t you shut our daughter up when she’s calling out for me. You hear me?”

  “I’m done with this phone call. Call me when you can--.”

  The words flew from my mouth like wildfire. “I’ve got court-ordered documents that state you’ll get nothing if we don’t meet up to talk about this.”

  She snickered. “You’re bluffing. I know you. You’ve only given those divorce papers one good looking through. Enough to be pissed off at me for absolutely no reason.”

  “You want fifteen percent of a business that has nothing to do with you!”

  “Because I had to put up with your insufferable, absent ass for two years, Bryce. Two damn years, and you didn’t give me shit except for a stretch-marked body, a spoiled daughter, and no future to look forward to whatsoever.”

  Now, my momma taught me never to harm a woman. Never to lay even a pinky on her unless she wanted it. But, at that moment? I dreamt of all the ways I’d slaughter that woman if she ever stepped foot back into this house.

  “Patricia, I’m giving you one last chance to just come over and talk. Bring Marie Lee back, and we can settle this like adults,” I said calmly.

  She scoffed. “Or you’ll what?”

  I sighed. “Well, since you’ve got a pretty sparkling diamond ring on your finger in this picture I have of you with Dr. Morris, I’d assume you’re planning some sort of a wedding. And I’d figure you might need the money from me. You want to start your new life.”

  She paused for a long time. “I knew you had someone following me, you sick fuck.”

  I grinned. “You’re right. I hired a private investigator. But, I didn’t get this information from him.”

  “You’re lying.”

  “That’s fine if you think so. Doesn’t change the truth. You were good at dodging my P.I. But, what you failed to do was get to know the people around you while you were living with me.”

  “What!?”

  “Maria’s sister works for Dr. Morris’s clinic down there in Houston. That’s how I got my hands on this fun little picture I’ve got stored on my phone. Not everyone likes him, you know.”

  About a minute’s worth of silence passed, except for the occasional sniffle from my daughter in the background.

  “Pat.”

  She finally spoke. “What?”

  “I’ll agree to your terms, in a roundabout way, in the divorce papers if you just come over so we can talk. Like adults.”

  “Fine. When?”

  “Tomorrow. For lunch. Be here at noon, and bring Marie Lee. You don’t bring our daughter? I let this picture loose across town. We’ll see how that kind of gossip holds up in court around here since our divorce is filed in the same county where we got married.”

  She growled. “I hate you.”

  “Trust me, the sentiment is mutual. Noon. Here. Otherwise, you know what I’ll do.”

  Then, I hung up the phone and readied myself for a long, sleepless night.

  22

  Willow

  After leaving last night to go back to my old apartment, I woke up with the sunlight beating against my face. I rolled over and pressed a pillow over my head, hoping to sleep the entire day away. I didn’t want to get up. I didn’t want to go anywhere. I didn’t want to get involved with anything or see anyone or do the things I knew I had to do.

  Like go back to Rocking R Ranch and pick up the rest of my shit.

  “Ugh,” I groaned.

  I slid the pillow off my face and was shocked to find that it was already noon. My eyes bulged, and I leaped out of bed, heading straight for my bathroom. The stale smell of unmoving air was still pungent, but I blocked it out. After turning on all the fans in my place last night, I figured I’d leave the windows cracked after I left to go get my things. Surely, the smell would be gone by then.

  Hopefully…

  After cleaning myself up and putting on a loose-fitting dress, I headed back to Bryce’s place. But, when I pulled up into the driveway, I saw someone storming out of the front door. The woman looked familiar, and that tight-lipped expression gave way to a reddened face I placed almost immediately.

  What the hell was Patricia doing at the house again?

  I pulled up behind Bryce’s truck and watched with raised eyebrows as the long-legged woman slammed herself into her car. Without so much as glancing in my direction, she put the car in reverse. Only, it wasn’t until I turned around and saw the windshield of her car head-on that I realized she wasn’t the one driving.

  Then, my jaw hit the floor.

  “Doctor Morris!?” I exclaimed.

  His eyes briefly held mine before he threw the car into ‘drive’. Then, he and Patricia peeled off down the road. I scrambled out of my truck as my eyes widened in realization. Holy shit, was that the other woman in Dr. Morris’ life.

  My fling was the man Patricia left Bryce for?

  “God, what a world of disappointment she’s in for,” I murmured to myself.

  “Willow.”

  Bryce’s voice sent warm shivers throughout my body as I turned around. And when I found him standing on the porch with his hands in his pockets, he looked as cool and as calm as I’d ever seen him. I didn’t know what to think or feel, or even say at that moment. But, when I saw that cute little girl emerge beside him, gripping onto his legs, tears welled in my eyes.

  “Marie Lee,” I whispered.

  “Wiwwow!” she exclaimed.

  The little girl stumbled down the porch steps, running as quickly as she could. With her curls bouncing and her eyes full of happiness, I met her halfway and scooped Marie Lee into my arms. I cried into the crook of her neck as she wrapped those little arms tightly around my neck. She brought her legs up, locking them around me, seemingly trapping me in her embrace.

  I fell to my knees on the soft front lawn grass and cried tears of joy.

  Damn it, it felt good to see this little girl again.

  “Pretty girl, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

  I lifted my head and watched as she shook her head ‘no.’

  “Were you scared?” I asked softly.

  She nodded slowly, and it killed me inside.

  “Well, it’s never gonna happen again. Not on my watch, okay?” I asked.

  I didn’t even hear Bryce approaching us until his shadow cloaked us from the sun.

  “That means you’re staying?” he asked.

  I looked up at him with my watery eyes and found the kindest expression written across his face. He offered me his hand, and I kindly took it, still not wanting to give up the relief of his daughter’s embrace. We walked inside, hand in hand, our fingers just barely intertwined. And when we got inside, he closed the door.

  He swooped Marie Lee out of my arms.

  “Wait, wait, wait. I just--a few more minutes?” I asked.

  She giggled. “Swim time?”

  I checked my watch. “Good girl. It is technically swim time.”

  Bryce kissed her cheek. “Why don’t you go play? Then, once Willow and I are done talking, we’ll both come swim. Okay?”

  “Yay!”

  I held up my finger. “Wait--I don’t know if I should--.”

  But, the look on his face told me to stop talking. So, I did.
r />   He put his daughter down, and I watched her barrel upstairs, no doubt trying to get to her swimsuit and floaties that were kept in her closet. I watched until she disappeared down the hallway, then a pressure at the small of my back ripped me from my trance.

  “Come on. There’s fresh sweet tea in the kitchen,” he said.

  And I didn’t have to be told twice.

  We filled our glasses with ice and poured them full in silence before we sat at the kitchen table. I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles as his eyes bored into my forehead. I tried not to chug the sweet tea too quickly, though, but damn it, this man made a good gallon. I wasn’t sure how long we sat in silence. But, once he heaved that heavy sigh of his, I tried to form the words.

  He beat me to it, though. “I’m sorry for what Pat did to you while I wasn’t here. She didn’t have my permission to take Marie Lee, and, of course, if I had suspected she would show up unannounced, I never would have left.”

  I nodded slowly. “I should’ve questioned it harder. I should’ve fought harder.”

  “You did nothing wrong, Willow. That woman is her mother. She’s supposed to have her best interests at heart. You have no idea of knowing whether or not she was telling the truth.”

  I gazed into my glass. “That’s the thing. Deep down, I knew she wasn’t. And I let it happen anyway.”

  “You only had so much power. That’s what Patricia does well. She strikes at that one area she knows you don’t have full control over and twists the knife in deep. Don’t blame yourself.”

  I nodded slowly. “I can do that.”

  “Willow.”

  “Yes?”

  “Look at me.”

  I slowly lifted my eyes. “Yes?”

  He grinned. “Hey there.”

  I blushed. “Hey there, yourself.”

  He chuckled. “I am sorry for what she did to you, though.”

  I shrugged. “It’s not your fault. You couldn't have known she’d do that.”