The Texan's Surprise Son

by Cathy McDavid

  He hadn’t bothered telling her. Of course not; he knew she’d be mad. Maybe he really was in range and ignoring her calls.

  “I’ll talk to you later.” Mariana didn’t give her next move much thought. Zero thought, actually. She simply marched back down the hall to the conference room.

  “I’m leaving,” she told her fellow team members upon entering the conference room. “Family emergency.”

  “You can’t walk out.” Trevor gaped at her as if she’d lost her mind.

  Quite possibly she had. Her potential promotion was on the line, if not her job. Mariana had poured her heart and soul into this case, as well as given countless hours. Throwing everything away at the last second was insanity.

  She squared her shoulders. Saul would have to understand and not take her to task.

  “I don’t have a choice,” she said. “You can manage without me.”

  The sound of her heels clicking on the floor didn’t quite drown out the chorus of shocked outbursts.

  It wasn’t only Cody’s well-being that motivated Mariana’s hasty exit. It was the betrayal.

  He’d as much as lied to her. And if he was going back on his word this early in their relationship, about something he knew was vitally important to her, what did that say about his character and his respect for her?

  This, she thought angrily, was something her father would have done. Not take a toddler to a rodeo—he hadn’t cared enough about Leah or Mariana to do that. But leave without telling her mother and purposefully doing something he knew she wouldn’t like.

  Mariana tried Jacob again. When the recorded message started to play, she hung up and tossed the phone onto the passenger seat. Next, she pulled over to the side of the road and programed the car’s GPS. The Valle del Sol Rodeo was one hour away. She could make it in fifty minutes if she pushed.

  Chapter Thirteen Mariana put work from her mind as she wove through the crowd at the rodeo grounds. Saul wasn’t happy about her abrupt departure. In his opinion, Jacob’s taking Cody to the rodeo didn’t qualify as an emergency.

  What did he know?

  She also didn’t think about the speeding ticket that very surly highway patrol officer had issued her. Eleven miles over the limit wasn’t that much. And where did he get off saying it was fourteen? Mariana could fight the ticket. She would fight the ticket. Later. First, she needed to find Jacob and Cody.

  Déjà vu. She’d been here before, done this before. Not the Valle del Sol but another rodeo just like it. She was looking for Jacob then, too.

  Seriously, Mariana. You are screwing up big-time.

  The memory of Trevor’s warning proved hard to ignore. He’d lectured her soundly during the drive, right on the heels of Saul’s terse reprimand. Mariana paid less attention to Trevor, even though, according to him, the deposition wasn’t progressing well.

  You might as well kiss the promotion goodbye.

  She hadn’t liked the sound of that or the unmistakable glee in Trevor’s voice. He was her biggest rival for the promotion. Saul had gone so far as to intimate Trevor might be the better candidate after all.

  Did no one understand?

  Jacob obviously didn’t. Not about Cody or her. Earlier, she’d reached him. At last! He’d admitted to bringing Cody with him but only after Mariana mentioned her conversation with Carly. Had he intended to tell her at all or wait until she came home to an empty house on Saturday and freaked? Doubts assailed her, about him and about their relationship.

  As a result, she didn’t alert him of her plan to confront him, saying only that she wasn’t needed for the deposition and had decided to join him at the rodeo. Perhaps because he was too occupied with competing, he hadn’t questioned her.

  Steer wrestling was his first event. Why he was competing baffled her. He wasn’t close to qualifying. Only in bronc and bull riding. When she asked, he said he’d entered in order to get his head in the game.

  Head in the game. Uh-huh. Rather than watching his son, he was competing in an unnecessary event.

  Mariana quickened her pace. With each step, her anger intensified. She didn’t stop to consider the cause or what she was going to say to Jacob once she tracked him down. Too much hurt clouded her thinking.

  “Hey, lady! Watch it.”

  “Sorry.” The guy wasn’t the first person she’d jostled or bumped in her haste to reach the arena. Tugging her trench coat more closely around her, she continued on.

  Maybe she should slow down just a bit. Concentrate. The bucking chutes and livestock pens weren’t far ahead. Cutting behind the stands, she cast her eyes right, then left. Where was he?

  Without slowing, she tried phoning him, but the call went straight to voice mail. He must have shut off his cell. He did that when he was competing. She imagined his surprise when she strode up to him, fit to be tied. He could forget all about getting his head in the game then.

  A high-pitched wail sliced through the noise of the rowdy crowd and straight into Mariana’s heart. Cody? Could it be? She strained to hear. Yes. Definitely Cody. And he was in distress.

  She made a sharp turn, almost trampling a small child. “Excuse me.”

  The child’s parents scowled at her and snatched the boy away as if she were a danger to him. Did she look that angry?

  Losing her bearings for just a moment, she found them again when Cody resumed his wailing. Was he hurt? Sick? Miserable? Being mistreated? In whose care exactly had Jacob left the poor boy? Her stomach twisted into a tight knot.

  There! About twenty feet ahead. A young gal, she couldn’t be more than sixteen or seventeen, held a flailing Cody in her arms. They stood on the far side of the bleachers, near the public restrooms. Clearly, the teen was incapable of handling Cody. Not getting whatever he wanted or needed, he was throwing the grandmother of all tantrums that two-year-olds were famous for.

  Another time, a different child, Mariana might have felt sorry for the girl and sympathized. Today, she just wanted Cody soothed and safe in her arms. Whatever the problem, she’d deal with it.

  “Here, I’ll take him,” she announced, approaching the gal. “He’s my nephew.”

  The instant Cody saw her, he started squalling and kicking his feet every which way.

  The gal came dangerously close to losing her grip. “What? Who are you?”

  “Quick.” Mariana opened her arms. “Before you drop him.”

  “Mama, Mama,” Cody cried.

  Mariana managed to grab hold of one foot. This young gal was obviously in way over her head.

  “Go away!” The teen turned her body, putting herself between Cody and Mariana. “If you don’t leave right now, I’ll call security. I swear.”

  Cody’s crying escalated.

  “Perhaps you didn’t hear me.” Mariana forced herself to remain calm. “I’m his aunt.”

  “His father said nothing about any aunt showing up.”

  The gal might be young, but she was a little brighter than Mariana first gave her credit for. And, perhaps, a little more responsible, as she wasn’t about to turn over Cody to a stranger. Not that Mariana cared. She wanted her nephew and nothing was going to stand in her way.

  She employed her best attorney voice, the one she used to win over a client’s confidence. “Would he call for me if he wasn’t my nephew?”

  “He wants his mother. You said you were his aunt.”

  Did Mariana resemble a kidnapper? In her suit and heels? She looked like something, apparently. Possibly a little crazed. People were staring as they passed. One of them might actually call security. She thought about showing her driver’s license, but what would that prove? Her last name wasn’t the same as Jacob’s.

  As much as Mariana wanted Cody, she’d rather not deal with a security guard or, worse, the police. “Let’s call Jacob, okay?”

  The gal’s eyes narrowed to thin slits. “I’ll do it.” It required enormous effort, but she managed to extract her cell phone from her pocket while still holding on to Cody, whose face, b
y now, had turned beet-red.

  “Are you all right?” A middle-aged man came over, his wife beside him. He wore a concerned expression. Hers was suspicious.

  For one ridiculous moment, Mariana imagined defending herself in a court of law for trying to remove her nephew from the arms of his babysitter.

  “There’s been a mix-up,” Mariana explained.

  “No mix-up,” the girl said over Cody’s crying, her cell cradled in the crook of her neck. “His father was very specific. I wasn’t to let him out of my sight for anything.”

  “Mama, Mama.” Cody’s flailing progressed to thrashing as he twisted to get a look at Mariana. The teen really was close to dropping him.

  Mariana edged closer.

  “No answer.” The teen pocketed her phone.

  “This is my nephew,” Mariana insisted. “I was in Houston, taking a deposition. I’m an attorney.” She looked at the couple, hoping her claim of belonging to a respectable profession would reassure them, if not intimidate them slightly. It didn’t.

  “If so, then why didn’t the boy’s father tell this young lady about you?” The man posed a good question, unfortunately.

  “I wasn’t able to reach him.”

  The man stepped closer to the teen. “Is there someone I can find for you?”

  Even more people had gathered. This was getting out of hand.

  Mariana made another attempt to reason with the gal. “I’m asking you to give me my nephew before something happens. Like he gets hurt.”

  That didn’t go over well.

  “Leave us alone,” the girl shouted.

  “What’s going on here?” A deep male voice had every head swiveling.

  Jacob emerged from the small crowd. His face was sweaty and covered in grime. His jacket hung open as if hastily donned, the dirt stains on his shirt visible. Apparently, he’d finished his steer wrestling run.

  “Mariana?” He stared at her with confusion.

  Without waiting for an answer, he went to the teen and took Cody from her.

  Immediately, the boy stopped crying, shoved his thumb in his mouth and with his other arm, hugged Jacob’s neck. Tears streaked his cheeks.

  “Everything okay, Hannah?” he asked.

  Mariana all but leaped on Jacob in her rush to comfort Cody. She assumed he’d immediately relinquish the boy. He didn’t. “Jacob?”

  “She said she’s Cody’s aunt,” Hannah muttered, glaring at Mariana.

  “She is.”

  “You didn’t tell me about an aunt.”

  “I didn’t know. I figured she’d wait for me.”

  Frustrated at not being able to hold Cody, Mariana crossed her arms. “I told you I was coming. Why didn’t you let her know?”

  All at once, the teen’s composure broke down, and she sobbed, “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Not at all. Everything’s fine.” Balancing Cody on his left hip, Jacob unzipped his jacket pocket, pulled out his wallet and extracted a pair of twenties. He handed them to Hannah. “Here. You can head back to your family now.”

  Her mouth fell open. “This is too much money. I only watched him a few hours.”

  The look Jacob sent Mariana spoke volumes. “I’m thinking you earned it.”

  “Thank you!” After relinquishing the diaper bag and giving Cody’s head a pat, Hannah hurried off.

  The crowd had also dissipated. Well, except for the middle-aged couple. “Everything okay?” the man asked Jacob.

  “We’re fine. Appreciate the help.”

  The couple left, but not before giving Mariana a cool once-over.

  She was beginning to feel like a creep. Or worse. And it was totally undeserved. She’d done nothing wrong.

  Jacob’s angry expression said differently. “Quite a little show you put on.”

  She bristled. “I heard Cody crying. Screaming, actually.”

  “So you accosted poor Hannah?”

  “I didn’t accost her.”

  “Let’s go.” With his free hand, he latched on to her arm and walked her along beside him.

  “Where?” she demanded.

  “Someplace less public. I have an hour before my next event, and we need to talk.”

  “Good.” Mariana shook her arm loose. “I couldn’t agree more.”

  *

  “SIMONE CALLED RIGHT before you got here,” Jacob said. “I forgot to tell you. Her daughter’s fine. Home from the hospital. The car is a different story.”

  “I’m glad to hear that. About her daughter. Not the car.” Mariana pressed her fingers to her temple as they walked. She was a little ashamed she hadn’t given any thought to their nanny.

  “She’s sorry. Says she’ll be back to work on Monday. I told her not to worry and take all the time she needs.”

  “Sure. Fine. We’ll manage.”

  Where were they going, for Pete’s sake? The parking lot? Cody, still riding in Jacob’s arms, kept up a nonstop stream of babble, pointing and waving.

  “Relax, will you.”

  She stiffened at Jacob’s admonishment even though it might be—okay, was—deserved. She had gone a little overboard.

  “You didn’t answer your phone,” she said.

  “And you terrified Hannah. She’s just a kid.”

  “Now you admit it.”

  “She’s an experienced babysitter, Mariana. Came highly recommended by several mothers here.”

  “She didn’t look experienced from what I saw.”

  They were headed toward the practice rings. Jacob found a quiet area far away from the noise and commotion. The stack of straw bales provided a perfect seat—for Jacob and a drowsy Cody, who snuggled his face into the front of Jacob’s shirt.

  Mariana refused to sit. Not in her suit and not in her suede trench coat. She’d stand. Better yet, pace. This wasn’t going to take long, after all. Jacob had mentioned competing in an hour. He probably wanted to be with his buddies, doing whatever it was they did before events.

  “I’m not making a mountain out of a molehill,” she insisted, anticipating his next remark.

  His brows rose but he said nothing.

  “You shouldn’t have taken Cody without telling me.”

  “Taken him? I brought him with me. There’s a difference.”

  The difference being Cody wasn’t her child. “We agreed to make all decisions regarding his care jointly. And you’re the one who insisted he and I not come to any rodeos after Lucky Draw.”

  “Okay. You’re right on that count. Both counts,” he amended after she started to object. “I didn’t tell you because I knew you’d be upset. Which you are.”

  “That doesn’t excuse your actions.”

  “Mariana, Cody isn’t a bike or laptop we’re sharing use of. There aren’t rules of ownership. He’s my son. I’m his parent.”

  And she wasn’t.

  Mariana raised her chin to hide her hurt. “That’s right. I’m just his aunt. You get to call all the shots.”

  “We’ve been through this before. You’re more than just his aunt.”

  “I was worried. About both of you. More than worried, I was scared. First, no one answered my calls. Then, when I get here, I see Cody with this girl. And he was throwing a fit. How did I know she wasn’t abusing him?”

  It was a stretch, she conceded that, but not entirely beyond the realm of possibilities.

  “Put away your attorney hat for a few minutes. Do you honestly think I’d leave Cody in someone’s care who wasn’t competent?”

  “You didn’t know her before today.” Mariana leaned a hand on the haystack for balance and removed one of her shoes. Making a face, she shook out a pebble, then replaced the shoe. “And you were letting this girl wander the rodeo grounds with him.”

  “Her name is Hannah.”

  “What if something had happened?”

  “She had to use the restroom. Should I have told her no?”

  “You could have watched Cody while she went.”

  “I was com
peting.” He spoke slowly, as if she were dense.

  Mariana took offense. “It always comes down to that. Rodeo, rodeo, rodeo.”

  “You’re being way too hard on me.”

  A part of her agreed, though she wouldn’t admit it to Jacob.

  “I grew up with a father who put himself before everyone else. It eventually cost him the love and respect of his family. I don’t want the same thing to happen to you. Cody needs his father.”

  “I left him with a competent babysitter. It’s not as if I abandoned him.”

  “You did something you promised not to. My father was like that. Always taking my mother for granted.”

  “So this is about your father.”

  “You’re a lot like him.”

  Now it was Jacob’s turn to get angry. Deep lines appeared, bracketing his mouth. The hand not holding Cody clenched into a fist. Cody stirred, but fortunately didn’t wake.

  “You’re a lot like your mother. Rigid and uncompromising.”

  “I am no such thing.”

  “It’s your way or no way.”

  “That is not true!”

  He shook his head. “We aren’t arguing about Cody. Or Hannah and her babysitting skills. Or about my rodeoing, either. Your nose is out of joint because I made a decision without you.”

  “We had an agreement.”

  “It’s one weekend.”

  “This time.”

  “Don’t accuse me of something I haven’t done. That’s not fair.”

  All right. It wasn’t. She made an attempt to restrain her temper.

  He continued, his tone less contentious. “When we first decided that you would live with me, it was going to be temporary. You knew you’d be giving up the day-to-day involvement in his life.”

  “That changed.” She swallowed. “At least, it did for me.”

  “It’s changed for me, too.”

  “Then why lie to me about leaving?” She despised the desperation in her voice “I’ve already admitted I was wrong. It won’t happen again. What more do you want?”

  “I’ve heard that before. From my father. When he was arguing with my mother.”