The Cowgirl's Forever Family
Page 19
Dada...
She shook her head. Impossible. Her mind was playing a cruel trick. She made her way over to the table and peered into the box. Lights were flashing on the monitor. And more indecipherable words came through.
Brooke’s legs almost gave way and she clutched the table for support. How could this be?
I’m hallucinating...
She inhaled a long breath, felt strength seep into her blood and then straightened her back.
I can do this. I have to do this.
She walked up the hallway, and when she reached the front door her hands were shaking so much she could barely turn the knob. She opened the door and swung it back on its hinges.
Tyler stood on the porch, Cara happily gurgling in his arms, the baby monitor in his hand.
She stayed where she was, confused and overwhelmed.
“So, no shotgun this time,” he said, smiling. “That’s a step in the right direction.”
“What are you doing here?”
His mouth twisted slightly. “Can we come inside?”
Cara was making a whole bunch of squealing noises and the volume amplified when Brooke opened the screen door and Tyler crossed the threshold.
“I don’t understand,” she said, still in shock, staring at the man and baby now in her hallway. “What...what... I think I must be dreaming.”
“You’re not dreaming,” he assured her. “Can we go into the living room so I can put her down?”
They moved up the hall and Brooke was sure her knees were knocking together. Tyler placed Cara on the carpet by the sofa and then withdrew an envelope from the inside of his jacket.
“For you,” he said quietly. “From Matt.”
Brooke stared at the envelope and then met Tyler’s gaze unsteadily. She swallowed the lump in her throat and took the envelope with shaking fingers. Once she was sitting she withdrew a note from inside and recognized her brother’s scrawl.
Brooke
I know you’re gonna think I’m crazy, or maybe you won’t. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and know that I have to do what’s right for Cara. I owe Yelena that, at least. But you know, that’s the damnable thing about doing what’s right, sometimes there’s no way to stop someone getting hurt. So, I figure the only way for the least amount of people to get hurt is to do what I’m doing.
You asked me if I’d made peace with the accident...but I don’t think I have. I’m still running. And I don’t want to take my kid on the run, if you get my meaning. I know I could probably do a good job at raising her, but she deserves more than that. She deserves what I saw the other day when we were all in the kitchen...the three of you together, like a real family. That’s what we had growing up and I want my kid to have that, too.
Don’t think this isn’t the hardest thing I’m ever gonna do, because I know it is. But I know it’s the right thing and I hope one day Cara will know that, too.
I love you, sis. And I promise to keep in touch.
Matt x
Brooke read the words again and then folded the note over. She met Tyler’s level gaze. He was standing by the fireplace, one hand on the mantel. “What does this mean?”
“Your brother is giving up his parental rights. To you. To us both.”
Her heart leaped in her chest. “But... I don’t understand? Did you see this coming and—”
“No,” he replied, cutting her off. “I didn’t see it coming. I’m pretty sure Matt didn’t, either, until we were at the airport.”
The note trembled in her shaking hand. “I should be happy about this. But I think I’m terrified. And in shock.”
“Yeah,” he said and grinned fractionally. “I was like that on the drive home.”
Home...
Her insides were jumping in time with her knocking knees. “What does this really mean, Tyler?” she asked again.
“From a legal point of view,” he said, coming around the sofa, “it means that your brother is giving us joint custody.” He sat down, barely a foot away from her. “From a you-and-me point of view... I guess that really depends on you.”
“On me?” She shook her head.
“Sure,” he said and was suddenly on the floor in front of her, on his haunches. He grabbed her hands and the note crumpled between them. “It depends on how you feel. It depends on whether or not you’ll marry me.”
Marry him?
Brooke took a deep breath to stop herself from hyperventilating. “You want to marry me?”
“I want to marry you,” he said and moved closer, “more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life.”
She couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. “But why, Tyler? For Cara’s sake?”
“No,” he said gently and rubbed the bare ring finger on her left hand with his thumb. “I want to marry you because I’m completely in love with you. And Cara,” he said and grinned as the baby came wobbling toward them and grabbed on to Brooke’s knees. “She’s a bonus. An adorable bonus, just the same. But if there was no Cara,” he said, gripping her hand tightly. “If there was just you and me, I would still want to marry you. I would still love you.”
Brooke reached out and touched his face. “But...how can we? I live here and you live in New York and—”
He silenced her by placing two fingers against her lips. “Do you know what this town needs?” he said and grinned. “It needs a good lawyer.”
Brooke’s breath caught in her throat. “Are you saying...”
“I’m saying that I want to be where you are.”
“But you told me you were up for partnership soon and you’ve worked hard for that and I can’t—”
“The only partnership I’m interested in,” he said, cutting her off again, “is this one. The one where we raise Cara together, as husband and wife.”
It was all happening so fast. “You’d give everything up...for me...for this?”
“Absolutely.”
Love for him coursed through her blood and over her skin. “But, Tyler...you know what that means? Your career isn’t the only thing you’ll have to give up.” She blinked back the tears in her eyes. “I can never give you a child.”
He looked at Cara and smiled lovingly. “We have a child.”
It was a lovely dream. But she had to be sure. “I mean a child of your own. I’ve accepted that I can’t have children, but it’s unfair of me to expect someone else to accept that, too. Can you give up the dream of having a child that shares your blood and your genes and your—”
“Brooke,” he said, a little firmer as he grasped her chin and leveled their gazes. “I was adopted. Do you think it matters to me how we become a family?”
“But you divorced your parents and—”
“Not because I resented them or didn’t think of them as my real parents,” he explained softly. “I was young and ambitious and arrogant and I didn’t want to live the life they had. But I love them dearly. I know I hurt them badly when I filed for emancipation and I can only try to make up for that by being the best kind of man I can, the man they raised me to be. They’re my parents and I know they love me and would do anything for me. And they’re going to love you, too,” he assured her. “And Cara.”
Love surged in her heart, but resistance lingered. “Are you sure?”
“Never surer,” he said and kissed her.
“This has all happened so fast I can barely catch my breath.”
“It has been fast,” he agreed. “And you have done your fair share of making me breathless. But I’m not going to second-guess how I feel about you, Brooke. I fell in love with you here, in this room,” he said and glanced around. “And in the kitchen and the stables and on the porch and in your bed. I fell in love with your kindness and your honesty and your beautiful indigo eyes. You’re the last person I want t
o see before I fall asleep at night. And the first person I want to see when I wake up. Now,” he said against her mouth. “Is there something you’d like to tell me?”
Brooke smiled, so happy she could barely believe it. “Oh, yes... I will marry you.”
His eyes glittered. “That wasn’t exactly what I meant, but it will do.”
She smiled again as Cara started calling him “Dada” and began climbing all over him. “Oh...the other thing,” she teased and reached out to touch his face lovingly. “I love you.”
He sighed and smiled a little. “You took your time.”
“But was it worth it?”
He kissed her sweetly. “You bet.”
“And from now on I’ll tell you every day.”
“Or I’ll remind you to tell me,” he said and scooped Cara into his arms.
“You won’t need to,” she said and laughed happily.
And sure enough, he didn’t.
Epilogue
“You’re not going outside unless you get blindfolded.”
Brooke stood her ground. “I am not wearing a blindfold. And I don’t like surprises.”
They’d been having the same conversation for the past ten minutes. He was by the bedroom door, blocking her exit. Tyler had a surprise for her and she had to wear a bandanna tied around her eyes. Not going to happen.
“Stop being a spoilsport.”
“Stop being bossy,” she snapped back. “And where’s Cara?”
“In her crib playing. She’s perfectly happy and safe. Now,” he said and held up a blue bandanna. “Put this on.”
“No.”
He laughed and her temper at his high-handedness disappeared. He could turn her to mush with just a look. And he knew it. “Can’t I keep my eyes tightly shut? It’s the same thing.”
“You’ll peek.”
“I will not!” she denied indignantly. “I’m not a peeker.”
“Sure you are.” He laughed again and the sound rumbled in his chest so deliciously she felt her desire for him overshadow her irritation at him for waking her up on a Sunday morning and then announcing he had a surprise for her.
His last surprise had been a doozy—he’d bought out Werner Stewart’s law practice and her old lawyer had decided to retire and vacation in Florida for the unforeseeable future. She and Tyler had been married ten days ago in a civil ceremony and had a small reception at the Parker Ranch, after a whirlwind engagement that lasted just over a month. Before the wedding, Tyler had returned to New York briefly, to resign and hand over his caseload and to turn down an offer for a partnership. He’d come back with his personal belongings and Mr. Squiggles, the fluffy cat who had once belonged to Yelena and who now spent his day terrorizing the dogs. But she knew Tyler had no regrets. They had a life to build together with Cara, and now that the ranch was financially stable and Tyler had his new law practice, she had never been happier.
“Okay,” she said and crawled out of bed. “I give in.”
Tyler met her by the foot of the bed and dangled the bandanna. “Ready?”
She nodded. “Just don’t let me bang into anything.”
He chuckled and gently tied the cloth around her eyes. “I promise to protect you with my life.”
Her heart rolled lovingly. Because she knew he would. He was a wonderful husband and such an amazing father to Cara that every time she saw him with the baby she fell in love with him a little bit more. And Cara was flourishing. She was walking and talking and always happy. The adoption process was in motion and it wouldn’t be long before they would legally be able to call her their daughter.
She’d heard from Matt and although she knew her brother was hurting, she also believed he was at peace with his decision. He called her regularly, a far cry from the impersonal texts she’d been getting for the past five years. He always asked after Cara, but never referred to the baby as his daughter.
“What about Cara?” she asked as he opened the door and led her through.
“I’ll get her,” he said and steadied her as they walked down the hall. “Stay here. And no peeking.”
Brooke laughed and soon he was back by her side, with Cara in one arm. He led her down the hallway and toward the front door. Anticipation rose up and she started smiling as he opened the front door and security screen. The dogs were on the porch, bouncing around, and Tyler gave them the command to heel.
“Okay,” he said and touched the bandanna. “Ready?”
Brooke nodded. “Yep.”
He removed the cloth and she blinked a few times to get her bearings in the morning sunlight. She spotted her cousin Grady’s truck and horse trailer parked by the stables immediately.
“What’s this?” she queried.
“Go take a look,” he said and grinned.
Brooke was down the steps in a flash and heading across the yard. Grady was at the back of the trailer and by the time she reached him he had the tailgate down and was back inside the trailer. Brooke heard the pound of hooves and a breathless snort as a huge, dark chestnut horse with a flaxen mane and tail was led backward down the ramp.
The moment she realized what was actually happening, Brooke’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets. She would recognize the powerful colt anywhere.
Cloud Dancer...
Grady was smiling as he led the horse into the corral, released him and then shut the gate.
“It’s good to see things getting back to how they were around here,” Grady said as he gave her an affectionate hug. He waved hello to Tyler, who was now walking toward the corral, and then headed back to his truck. He locked up the tailgate and drove off without saying another word. Brooke stood by the corral, watching, captivated as the beautiful colt pranced around the yard, tail up, head held at a proud, regal angle.
“Happy?”
Tyler’s voice dragged her from her horse trance. She turned, tears flowing. “I can’t believe you did this.”
He shrugged loosely, but he looked pleased. “He sure is something.”
“How?” she asked, grasping Tyler’s strong arm. “How did you do this?”
“Grady helped,” he supplied. “It wasn’t hard to track him down. Negotiating with his previous owner wasn’t easy, but he eventually came around.”
“I know how much he would have cost,” she said and shook her head. “It’s way too generous.”
“Nothing is too much for you,” he said gently. “I wanted to do this, so you can rebuild this place. So you can continue your parents’ legacy. So you can have everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”
“Thank you,” Brooke said as she smiled and pressed close to him. Cara grabbed her hand and chuckled as she rested her head against Tyler’s chest. “But I already have everything I’ve dreamed of, right here.”
And she did. Her family. Their family. Forever.
* * * * *
Don’t miss the previous books in Helen Lacey’s new miniseries, THE CEDAR RIVER COWBOYS:
THREE REASONS TO WED
and
LUCY & THE LIEUTENANT
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Drake Carson is willing to put up with Luce Hale, the supposed
“expert” his mother brought to the ranch, as long as she can get the herd of wild horses off his land, but the pretty academic wants to study them instead! Sparks are sure to fly when opposites collide in Mustang Creek...
Read on for a sneak peek from New York Times bestselling author Linda Lael Miller’s second book in THE CARSONS OF MUSTANG CREEK trilogy, ALWAYS A COWBOY, coming soon from HQN Books.
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Always a Cowboy
by Linda Lael Miller