Right away I felt guilty. Had I not found out that Tate had attempted suicide I would have been head over heels for this kind of announcement. Instead it made me feel uncomfortable. I wanted nothing more than to move forward, but the odds were already against us. I was pregnant with another man’s child, and Rusty had been told to steer clear of me. In light of the new information I’d been given, my decision was made. There was no way that I could expect anything to work out in my favor. The damage was done.
“I better get inside.”
He grabbed me and held me from walking away. “Are we okay?”
With a quick nod I pulled out of his hold. “You can’t touch me around my family, Rusty. I’ve got enough to worry about.”
He threw up his hands. “Sorry. I’ll just go give Mrs. Mitchell these flowers and pretend I don’t know you.”
I tried to think of what to say to make him not feel hurt, but it was no use. As much as I wanted to be with Rusty, I knew it wasn’t going to happen. Our summer fling was about to end, and with that knowledge I felt so defeated.
I knew my hormones were making me feel crazy things, but enough was enough. Something had to give. I couldn’t want Rusty one minute, and refuse him the next. It wasn’t fair to him, or me even.
When I entered the house I found my parents and the rest of my family all conversing together. This dinner wasn’t the official wedding shower, so it wouldn’t rustle feathers if I announced my pregnancy. Of all the people there, Shalan was probably going to end up being the most supportive.
For a while it was easy to blend in with my family and avoid Rusty. The problem with that was the fact that I actually caught myself looking for him. I caught his stare quite a few times before we all headed out to the pole barn where all of the tables and chairs would fit.
Music was playing as I sat down at the table next to my parents with my brothers, just like I was used to doing. Jax was already doing his normal scheming with Jake. I saw them whispering and pointing toward Christian. With a swift kick to one of their legs I caught both of their attention. “Don’t even think about it. So help me God I will beat you to the ground, and then let Noah have a turn.”
My parents looked at me like I had three heads. When my dad reached across the table and grabbed my hand I immediately felt our bond breaking. He didn’t even know the news and already was concerned about me. “It would be nice if you didn’t do that while wearing a white shirt, honey. You know that blood stains are horrible to get out.” Even his humor couldn’t get a reaction out of me. I was frozen with guilt.
A few minutes later we all stood to say grace. Everyone bowed their heads and I secretly scanned the room to find Rusty. His eyes were on mine. I watched as he winked and formed a smile in the corner of his lips. A part of me wanted to smile back, but it would only give him false hope, when I knew there was none left.
Then the room got quiet. My heart raced, my hands felt clammy, and I swore that if I didn’t make my announcement at any second I was going to chicken out and not do it at all. So as the family took their seats I remained standing and blurted out the hard truth I’d been so frightened to share. “I’m pregnant.”
My dad laughed for a second, of course thinking it was just one of our family pranks. Since we were known for some drastic shenanigans, he never would have dreamed that I was making this kind of announcement because it was true. It wasn’t until I sank down in my seat and watched his reaction that he knew it wasn’t a joke. “Daddy, say somethin’.” The tears were already running down my face, and as I lifted my hand to wipe them away I could see how much my body was shaking.
The room remained quiet, and I could see Noah coming over near our table. While looking down at the napkins, I repeated my announcement. “I’m in my second trimester. I’m due in March.”
My dad kept staring, and I swore that he was about to explode. The pain in his eyes let me know that my biggest fear was happening. My mom caught my attention next. “Honey, why did you wait so long to tell us?”
Jake busted in. “Who is the daddy?”
“Is it that douche, Bells?” Noah’s question send chills down my spine.
Just as I was about to accept my fate and be honest, I heard someone yelling from across the room. All eyes turned in that direction.
“It’s mine.”
Rusty stood there, his hands in his pockets, with a big grin on his face, as if I’d just delivered my family the happiest news of their lives.
I sat there in shock, not knowing what to do.
Chapter 21
Rusty
I’d like to say that everyone welcomed me into the family and accepted that I was the father of Isabella’s unborn child, but that’s not exactly how it all panned out.
After I’d stood up and blurted out that comment, everyone turned their attention to me. Not that their expressions mattered at all. I was only focused on one person and from the utter disbelief on her face I knew that she wasn’t very happy.
A few things happened at one time. The room got loud with everyone talking at once, and Noah started to come after me. The twins, which I knew were Isabella’s brothers, both grabbed him and held him back. Mr. Colt Mitchell walked up to me and sat down at the table. While all of the commotion was taken place around us, he motioned for me to join him. I could see her father eying me up, and knew it was only going to be a matter of time before he was hunting me down. For all he knew I’d knocked up his daughter, and it was very obvious that we hadn’t come to this party as a couple.
Colt looked me dead in the eyes. “I reckon you need to start explainin’ to me what’s goin’ on here. I never pegged you to be a trouble maker¸ but I’m sure you can imagine that this predicament my niece is in ain’t very settlin’. You see, I promised her daddy that we’d keep her safe, and now I’ve got to explain to him how my ranch hand has been screwing around with his child. You can see where this is going to be a problem, can’t you Rusty?”
I nodded. “I do. Before I say anything more I think it would be best to let you know that I care deeply for her.”
We heard yelling and turned our attention back to where Isabella stood with her parents. She had her face covered and I could tell she crying. When she rushed outside, I got up and left Mr. Mitchell sitting at the table so I could chase after her.
Even as I called her name she continued walking. Until we reached the first set of stables she never turned around to address me. Once inside it was a different story. I’d no sooner made it over the threshold when I felt a hand slapping across my face. The burn was already apparent when she began screaming at me. “How could you? This is none of your concern. My pregnancy ain’t your business, Rusty.”
I tried to grab her arms as I replied. “Will you just calm down and hear me out? I did this so we can be together. Don’t you see that this solves everything?”
“What are you talking about? I never said I wanted to be with you, Rusty. You knew that I was strugglin’ with my baby’s father already, and now you do this. Not only will my family think I’m a whore, but they’ll hate me for sure. So thanks for nothin’!”
I didn’t know what to say. In all honesty I thought she’d be happy. Every time we’d been alone a side of her came out that screamed to be with me. It made absolutely no sense.
“I’m real sorry that you feel that way. Do you want me to go back in there and tell them all it was a lie?”
She shook her head with fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. “No. They’ll fire you for sure, and make you leave the ranch. I might be pissed at you, but I’d never want to cause another man his livelihood. I just wish you would have talked to me. I had everything worked out in my head, and now I’ve got a mess to figure out.”
I reached for her and held one of her hands in mine. She didn’t try to pull away. “Iz, I did this because I want to be with you. I could be a good dad to that baby. If what I do isn’t enough for you I could start practicing again and get my license reinstated.”
&nb
sp; “No.” She finally removed her hand from mine and took a step backwards. “I refuse to live my life as someone’s replacement, Rusty. It’s not happenin’. Now can you please just leave me alone? I need to get my head on straight before I go back in there and deal with my family.
I looked down at the ground, only hearing her call herself a replacement. It definitely got to me on a deeper level than she probably set out to do. Before I could consider saying anything else to piss her off, I turned and walked away, passing her mother, and Shalan when I did.
I should have been prepared for Noah to come seek me out. From the amount of anger that was gleaming off of his face I knew it was going to get ugly. As my heart rate picked up I prepared myself for a physical confrontation.
Noah approached me quickly, coming up on me with his arm jacked back. “I trusted you.”
I put my hands up, determined that I wasn’t going to fight back. Not only had Isabella’s words messed me up, but somehow I wanted him to hurt me. I was already feeling pretty low, and without the hope of being with his cousin, I didn’t really have anything to be optimistic about. She was most likely already spilling to her mother that I wasn’t the father.
Just imagining never being with her again felt like daggers stabbing into my heart. I should have never let myself feel something again, when I knew I wouldn’t be able to control how it all played out. “Go ahead. Just get it over with. I know I deserve it.”
Out of nowhere came Mr. Tyler Mitchell. I’d been working at the ranch for long enough to be familiar with who everyone was. He looked upset, but not so much angry. Noah looked over at his uncle, and then in the distance we both spotted his father coming toward us. He put his arm down and took a couple steps back. “Uncle Ty. I was just -.”
The man put his hands up to motion for him to be quiet. “Go back to the party, Noah. I’ll handle this myself.”
Knowing that Noah’s father was my main boss, I feared what he was walking over to say to me. For sure he was going to have me packing by the end of the night.
Tyler spoke first. “Rusty.” He shook his head and scratched it, as if he was trying to refrain from saying the wrong thing. Colt came up and stood behind him with his arms crossed over his chest. “You knocked up my daughter.”
“It’s not what you think, sir.”
“Don’t call me sir. You’re probably close to my age than my daughter’s. Ty is fine for the time being.”
“Okay, Ty. Like I said before. This isn’t how it seems,” It was hard to explain something that was a lie, in order to pass it off as the truth.
“Well the way I see it, you knocked up my daughter and the cat is out of the bag. She’s obviously decided to keep the child, being that she’s so far along.” He looked down for a second, and even I could tell he was distraught. “This is bullshit. Do you hear me? That’s my little girl that you put your hands on. Forgive me for wanting to break you in half right now. I’m just not able to control the aggression that I’d like to take out on you.”
Colt stepped in, putting his hand on his cousin’s shoulder. “I think it’s best if we all just calm down before we do somethin’ we might regret. Don’t you agree?” The question was for Ty, not me. He waited for him to nod before continuing. “Rusty, I’ve always considered you a good man. Isabella is a beautiful young lady, and I can see where you’d want to get to know her. You’re both adults, and things can happen that is beyond our control. Now, I understand Noah had asked you to not pursue somethin’ with my niece. Is that true?”
I nodded. “Yes. He did several times.”
“And you disobeyed that request?”
My response was more a shrug. “I suppose I did.”
“It takes two to tango, and if anyone knows somethin’ about forbidden relationships it’s this guy here. Once upon a time he was told the same thing as you. So I’m sure he understands how difficult that can be sometimes.”
Isabella’s dad immediately gave his cousin one of those looks that says ‘I’m kicking your ass for this later’, while I tried not to smile. It wasn’t that I wanted them to immediately accept me into the family. My decision hadn’t been based on that at all. I’d done this to protect Isabella, not hurt her. “I can assure you that I’ll do everything I can to support your daughter. I understand what Noah had asked me, but the truth is that I care for her. No disrespect to you, but this wasn’t about the sex.”
“Save it. I can’t think about her that way do you understand? I can’t picture my little girl with child. I realize it is happening, but it’s too new to accept. I came over here to prevent my nephew from making this personal. For now, until I can talk to my daughter, I’m -.”
In the distance we all heard Noah. “I want him off this property!”
Near the stable I could see Isabella walking toward us with her mother and Shalan in tow. “Daddy, wait. Please don’t let Noah kick Rusty out. This ain’t his fault. He’s just tryin’ to protect me and the baby. He can’t lose his job.”
Her dad looked from me to Isabella. “Sweetie, I don’t know what you want me to say.”
She looked right at her father, as if none of us were around. “I want you to say that you love me, and you’ll support me. I know I hurt you.” Her sobs became apparent and Ty wrapped his arms around her without hesitation.
“I do love you, Iz. That’s never going to be a question you need to worry about. You’re my daughter. No matter what you do, I’ll continue loving you. This is all a shock. I don’t even know what to say.”
“Say that you and Mom will love your grandchild. Please. I need to know I’m not alone.”
I watched an upset father begin to get emotional in front of a crowd of people. He sniffled and leaned his face down onto his daughter’s shoulder. My heart broke for the bond that they shared, and I finally realize why she was so afraid. I didn’t know their history, but clearly they were close. Her mother joined in, putting her arms around both of them. I could hear Isabella crying even though I couldn’t see her any longer. They talked amongst themselves while all three becoming caught up in despair.
Colt put his hand on my shoulder and motioned for me to follow him. Since I assumed that my time on the ranch was about to end, I continued looking back at Isabella. It was so juvenile, but I didn’t even have her phone number. If I was being escorted off the property this could be one of the last times I’d get to see her. Surely her family would have her move home, which would make sense. She had nothing keeping her in Kentucky, especially me.
“You need to give them time,” he explained. “This isn’t about you seein’ her, Rusty. To be honest, I think you’re probably a good man. It took a lot of courage for you to stand up in front of everyone and admit what you did. Right now we all need time to take it in. Our family doesn’t do well with secrets, and you’re just about the most secretive man I’ve met.”
He was right. I needed to tell them who I was if I wanted a chance at ever being respected. “Do you want me to leave the ranch?”
“No. However, I do need you to go home. Give her time to talk to them. It’s best for everyone.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll leave now.” It wasn’t what I wanted to do, but I had no other options. I hadn’t thought about the repercussions of such a big confession. Never had it concerned me that I’d be causing a commotion. Isabella was a wreck, and her parents weren’t taking the news as being happy. It was to be expected, but still didn’t make it easier to understand. They didn’t know what it was like to lose their child. I think when that happens you’re willing to let little things go. Given the chance to do it all over I never would have told my daughter no to anything she asked.
While walking back to the trailer I thought about what I was going to say to Isabella. She was so angry with me, and I knew if I didn’t get back into her good graces she was going to push me further away.
Chapter 22
Isabella
As if things couldn’t get worse. Rusty had made my problems double. Standing
there in my dad’s arms, hearing him crying, was the epitome of how much of a mess I’d made of my life. That one night with Tate was going to haunt me until the day I died, and I wanted to hate him for it.
Knowing that I still felt guilt about him losing his job, and basically everything else, I was determined to find a way to help him. It wasn’t clear how my baby fit into the whole picture, but I was certainly going to do everything in my power to rectify his current situation. For the time being, I knew I couldn’t hurt my family any more, so Rusty taking responsibility was going to have to stick. That meant that I had to come to terms with it and treat him at least nice while the family was around.
The bottom line was that I was still pissed at him for doing it without talking to me first.
Because of how everything had played out, our family get together didn’t continue as expected. My parents and I headed back to my house, while the rest of the family attempted to pretend that nothing had happened.
I was sure my brothers were getting into trouble, and Shalan was going crazy trying to stay in control. More than anything I wished I could be there celebrating with everyone.
Anything was better than sitting in my living room across from my disappointed parents. I played with the fabric on the out recliner that I was sitting in, trying to think of ways to break the uncomfortable silence in the room. We’d been back for at least a half hour and besides making drinks, none of us had anything to say.
My father was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. His face was covered by his hands. My mother, who seemed to be in better shape than my dad, rubbed his back, while sobbing to herself.
This wasn’t like you see in the movies, where the family is over-ecstatic. My parents were acting as if my entire future was over, and I suppose in some ways it wasn’t what they wanted for me. I just knew that someday I wanted to have a family. Yes, I’d gone about doing it all wrong, but I wasn’t going to look back and regret it. Every single moment of knowing that I had a child growing inside of me made that choice easy. This was my baby, and he or she was going to be my future, with or without anyone’s approval.
Isabella Page 14
