Baby Girl: Dare to Love

by Celya Bowers

  “Hold on, baby,” Kyle said, grabbing a stool for her. He placed it near the horse and Kassie stepped up on it. She was able to mount the horse properly.

  “Thank you, Mr. Kyle.” She leaned down and hugged Nutmeg. It was her custom. She pressed her body against the horse’s neckline and patted her on either side. “I missed you, Nutmeg, but the boat was fun.”

  Nutmeg gave her a nod as if she agreed with the child. Kassie sat up in the saddle. “Okay, I’m ready Mr. Kyle.”

  “Did you really like being with my family on the cruise? Would you want to do it again?”

  She nodded on both counts. “Mommy was so happy.”

  “Were you happy?”

  She nodded. “Mommy has been sad a long time. I’m glad you make her smile.”

  Kyle had to choke back tears forming in his eyes. He was a rancher, damn it! Ranchers do not get worked up over a few choice words by a charming eight-year-old. “How about you?”

  She thought about his words. “I was sad too. I miss Daddy so much. Then he told me he was okay and that he was fine.”

  Kyle schooled his features to complete control. “When did he tell you that?” He put a hand on Nutmeg to steady her. The horse was ready to start moving.

  “In my sleep.”

  Kyle nodded. Possible dream, he reasoned. At any rate, she was back in the land of the talking. Maybe she manifested these thoughts in her mind.

  “I know he’s dead,” she told him honestly. “He told me I needed to be strong.”

  Kyle couldn’t argue with the logic of the child. “He’s right. You need to be a strong little girl. It’s okay to miss someone that’s in heaven.”

  She looked at him. “Are we going to practice today?” She asked, closing the subject of talking to her dead father.

  “Yes, we are. Why don’t you warm Nutmeg up, while I arrange the obstacles for you to jump?” He watched her take off as fast she could. Bruno had told him that Nutmeg hadn’t been eating while they were gone.

  “She ate just enough,” he told Kyle. She wouldn’t exercise with the other horses and would stay off by herself.” Today, it was if she’d been waiting on Kassie. Kyle had noticed she wasn’t her normal self and now he knew why. She missed Kassie.

  Nutmeg and Kassie had bonded. He couldn’t be prouder. He was considered training another horse for Kassie to compete with, but in that instant, that no horse would ever do. Kyle knew he would enter Nutmeg.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  “Mr. Kyle look!” Kassie said. “The police!” She pointed toward the office. Kyle looked in the distance and saw the police car moving toward the arena. Trust Blake not to walk the three hundred feet. Kyle couldn’t imagine what was going on now. He reached his cell phone belted at his waist and dialed Bruno. The ranch hand answered on the first ring.

  “Hey boss,” Bruno said. “What’s up!”

  “I see Mansfield’s finest headed my way. Can you stay with Kassie while she practices her jumps? She’s really good, just make sure she doesn’t gallop too fast.”

  “Gotcha boss. On my way.” Bruno ended the call.

  Kyle placed the phone back in its leather holder. “Okay, Kassie, start your jumps.” He watched her raced around the arena warming up for the first jump.

  She approached the miniature fence and took that with ease. Kyle grinned. “Way to go, Kassie!” He clapped his hands. He felt as proud as if she was his own.

  He noticed Blake parking near the arena and getting out of the car. Kyle walked over to him. “Hey Blake,” he said letting him inside the arena. “I’m waiting on Bruno to take over for me.”

  Blake nodded. “Actually this won’t take too long.” He watched Kassie as she jumped the second hurdle. “Isn’t she a little young to be jumping that high?”

  “No, I’ve had kids younger than Kassie jumping. She’s a natural. Not afraid of anything,” Kyle said.

  “My, don’t we sound like a proud trainer,” Blake joked.

  “That I am.” He noticed Bruno walking toward Kassie. “Okay, Bruno is here. Let’s walk.” He led the officer out of the arena. “Now what’s going on?” They headed for the large arena.

  Blake took out his notepad. “I understand you paid for Ava’s funeral last month.”

  “Yes, no one in her family would claim her body. Everyone deserves a funeral service.”

  He nodded. “Yes, I know that, Kyle. But why does that have to be you?”

  “I was married to that woman for ten years. There wasn’t any insurance or at least that’s what the police department told me.”

  “Turns out there was a policy. It wasn’t much, not Cosgrove money, but there is a policy.”

  “So what are you not saying?” He stopped walking and faced his childhood friend. “Are you trying to say I had something to do with her death?”

  “She was trying extort money from you,” Blake commented. “A man in your position might have just paid her off to keep her quiet.”

  “Well, I didn’t.”

  “Good. That’s the Kyle Cosgrove I know. Ava’s partner, Max Burnett was just picked up on a routine traffic stop. Once the officer had approached the car, Burnett became belligerent and tried to strike the officer. Needlessly to say, he’s languishing in the Arlington jail.”

  “So what has this got to do with me?”

  “Ava’s name was brought up during questioning, and he went nuts. Called her all kinds of names, blamed her for him getting disinherited, and for his current situation. Your name came up.”

  “What?”

  “I remember you saying something about her showing up demanding you sign some kind of paper.”

  “Yeah, and I talked to my attorney and he was going to issue her a cease and desist order, but then you guys found her dead. So that kind of put an end to that.”

  “Well, apparently, she had told Burnett that she would be able to get money out of you. The night before she died, they fought because she hadn’t got the paper signed.”

  “So fight is equated with beating, I take it,” Kyle surmised. “Sad to hear that about Ava. She was better than that, but she was always looking for the rich guys.”

  “Why did you divorce her?”

  “She admitted to an affair. She was pregnant by someone else.”

  Blake checked his notes. “Says here she had a miscarriage.”

  “Right. I hadn’t talk to Ava since the divorce until she showed up on my doorstep. I had nothing to do with her death, so what is the reason for your visit, Blake?”

  “All right. Burnett admitted to killing her. His plan was to put the gun on you somehow. But he hadn’t realized how hard it was to come on the property without being noticed.”

  “So he was going to plant the gun. Where?”

  “I don’t think the plan was well thought out. They were two desperate people looking for an easy mark. Once he’d killed Ava, his plan spiraled out of control.”

  Kyle nodded. “So this was some a fishing expedition. You have some blanks you needed filled and you hoped I could help.”

  “Something like that. The insurance policy was a mystery. We were hoping for a little clarity about that.”

  “Why was it a mystery?”

  “You were the beneficiary.”

  “What?” Kyle stared at his friend. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Nope. It was a relatively small policy worth about 25,000 dollars. Any reason she would list you as the beneficiary?”

  Kyle shook his head. “No. Like I said before we hadn’t had any contact until she showed up at my door.”

  Blake shook his head. “We wouldn’t have known about the policy if Burnett hadn’t been singing. I’ve been in touch with the insurance company, and they said that her parents actually had the policy on her.”

  “I’d spoke with her mother and she said nothing about it,” Kyle said. “That woman just said she wanted nothing to do with Ava or her funeral.”

  Blake shrugged. “Wow. Talk about family dysfunction. Rich people h
ave too much money and not enough time. Their kids always doing crazy things.” He cast a quick look at Kyle. “Not you, though. You guys are the good rich people.”

  Kyle laughed. “We have our share of problems too. Money doesn’t guarantee happiness.” He’d felt happy with Jemma, but she had no idea of how much he was actually worth.

  “I’d like to able to choose just once,” Blake said. “But if I had to, I think I would still choose happy.”

  ***

  Jemma glanced at her cell phone again. Kyle and the police officer had been gone a long time. She hoped everything was all right. Think of something else, she told herself. There was Christmas to think of. Since this was her first Christmas in the house, she’d wanted to host dinner for her family.

  What about Kyle? She was sure Tesla mentioned something about Christmas dinner. But what? She’d have to talk to him about it later. She laughed to herself. A few months ago, she would have never thought this was possible, but she was actually in love with a man.

  “What are you grinning about?” Kyle sat next to her.

  “You.” She kissed him quickly. “Is everything okay with the police and all?” The officer waved to Kyle as he walked back to his patrol car.

  “Yes, they caught Burnett and he confessed to killing Ava.” He filled her in on the rest of the horrible story. “I don’t know why she named me beneficiary.”

  “Because she knew you would do the right thing.” She turned and faced him. “Kyle, she knew no matter what went down between you two, you would always do right. You would plan her funeral with dignity. Not all ex-husbands would have been so thoughtful. You made sure she was buried in a decent casket and I’m sure her grave has a headstone.”

  He stared at her. “Thank you, Jemma. I never looked at that way, but you’re right. I was always brought up to do right. I don’t regret it for one second.”

  She put her hand in his. “That’s what I love about you.” She leaned against him, inhaling his manly scent.

  “You’d better stop,” he teased. “You know what that does to me?”

  “What?” Jemma feigned ignorance. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.

  “I just bet.” He rose. “I’d better get back to Kassie. How’s she been doing?”

  “Great. My heart almost stopped when she jumped little fence thing.” She looked up at him. “Do you really think she’s good enough to compete?” She didn’t want Kassie doing too much and revert back to her former life.

  “Yes, I do believe that she’s good enough to compete. And quit being such a nervous Nellie.” He walked to the arena.

  She supposed he was right. She would always be a nervous mother. Every time she watched her baby girl and that very large horse sail through the air, her heart did that loopity-loop thing as if she was on a rollercoaster. How she going to be able to stomach competition? Maybe she could get some tranquilizers to make it through the contest.

  Not being to take much more, Jemma sought the solitude of the office. Chutney was sitting behind the desk. “Hello, Mrs. Patterson. How did you enjoy the cruise?”

  Of course, everyone at the ranch would know, she thought. “Oh, it was amazing. Kassie loved it. I thought she was going to be nervous about all the water, but she thought it was beautiful.” Jemma took a seat at the table and started looking at the cookbooks. But she noticed something on the wall. Their vacations photos. Not just Cosgroves, but also her parents, Jemma and Kassie!

  She rushed to the collage of photos. Jemma didn’t remember anyone with a camera and wondered where these pictures came from. There was a good one of her and Kyle, then another one with the kids. They were only gone four days, but there had a lot of fun packed into those days.

  Chutney joined her at the pictures. “It does look like fun.”

  “It was.”

  A while later, Kassie blew through the door and ran straight to her mother. “Mommy, you missed it!”

  Jemma didn’t think she wanted to know what she’d missed, but knew her daughter wouldn’t be happy until she told her. “What did I miss?”

  “Nutmeg is the best horse ever! She jumped the trees!”

  “Trees?” Jemma felt her voice rising. “Where is Kyle?” She was fuming. How dare he endanger her baby?

  Kyle entered the building and held his hands up in surrender. “Before you get all ‘how could you hurt my baby’, it was maybe a four foot jump.”

  “And that’s supposed to make me feel better?” She grabbed her daughter and held Kassie tight. “What if she’d fallen?”

  He shook his head. “No one falls on my watch.”

  “Mommy, it was fun.”

  When Kassie looked at her with those big brown eyes. It was hard to refuse the child anything on this planet. Especially with what they’d been through the past year. Her baby was growing up and she was going to have to let her. “Are you sure it was fun?”

  “Yes, Mommy. Mr. Kyle says we’re going to do it again on Sunday.”

  Jemma sighed. So this was what parenting was about. Knowing your baby was going to get hurt, and there was little she could do about it. “Okay, baby. I promise I will watch on Sunday.”

  Kassie and Kyle slapped hands in a high five motion. “Yay,” Kassie said.

  Jemma felt like she was getting played. And she most likely right.

  ***

  Christmas Eve, Jemma sat on the sofa in Kyle’s modest home. She’d been here countless times, but this was different. They were celebrating as a family. Kassie was picking out Christmas movies for them to watch and Kyle was in the kitchen, preparing snacks. It couldn’t get much better than this.

  Earlier, Kyle had prepared dinner, or most likely he’d had it catered. Although his cooking skills had improved, he was still struggling with meals completely on his own. He’d presented her and Kassie with a dinner consisting of baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese.

  Kyle, dressed in a dark sweater and jeans, entered the living room with a tray of cookies, cupcakes, and brownies. A bottle of wine and two glasses for them and a glass of milk for Kassie. Jemma watched with satisfaction as he prepared a small plate for her daughter and handed it to her.

  “Thank you, Mr. Kyle.” She returned her attention back to the tv.

  “You’re welcome, Kassie.” He sat beside Jemma. “See and you thought I couldn’t handle it.” He had made Kassie a pallet in front of them.

  Jemma poured them each a glass of wine. “Okay, you’re right. Now feed me.”

  He handed her a dessert plate and then fixed himself one. “Okay, Kass, we’re ready.” He settled against the back of the couch. “I’m so glad you guys are here.”

  Jemma settled next to him. “Me too.”

  Christmas morning, Jemma awoke to the noise of her daughter shouting. “Merry Christmas, Mommy! Merry Christmas, Mr. Kyle!” She called from the other side of her bedroom door.

  Jemma sat up a little too fast. Her head swam at the motion. Kyle was lying in bed laughing at her. “Okay, what happened?” She glanced down to make sure she had on clothes and breathed a sigh of relief. She hated to think of the turn of events that got them here.

  He sat up, letting the bedsheet fall from his body. He had on a PJ’s. “Well, last night, we drank quite a bit, Kassie had fallen asleep, and I knew there was no way either of us should be driving. So I put Kassie in the spare bedroom and I put you in my bed.”

  “But we aren’t at your house. We’re at my house. I’m in my night gown. Explain.” She crossed her arms across her chest. Oh, this was going to be good, she thought.

  “I knew how important it was for Kassie to wake up here on Christmas morning, and that your family was coming over for dinner. So about five o’clock this morning, I loaded you guys into my car and brought you here. And yes, I changed you into your night gown, but in all honesty, I did that at my place.”

  She was touched by his actions. Frightened by the part of him changing her, but on the other hand, he’d seen her naked on se
veral occasions. Her daughter, however, was another thought. “What about Kassie?”

  He actually looked embarrassed. “You’re the only who got a changing service. I forgot to go back and check on her.”

  Jenna was relieved. “Well she wished us Merry Christmas, so I guess she must have come in here at some point and saw you in my bed.”

  “How do you feel about that? I know you think you’re shielding her but she’s a lot smarter than you think.”

  “I know she is. I still remember that little girl who choose not to speak. I don’t want anything to make her backtrack.” She rose from the bed and grabbed her bathrobe. “I’m very grateful for what you did.”

  “But?”

  “Now, I need to fix breakfast. Come down when you’re dressed.” She left the room. “We’re going to open presents right after breakfast.” Jemma headed to Kassie’s room, but her daughter wasn’t there. She ventured downstairs, still thinking about Kyle’s words. Maybe she was too protective of Kassie. She’d been making such good progress since Kyle came into their lives. Why was Jemma fighting it so hard?

  Shaking her head, she walked into the living room to find Kassie sitting in front of the Christmas tree. Jemma sat next to her daughter. “Merry Christmas, Kassie.”

  Kassie looked up from her stack of gifts and smiled. “Merry Christmas, Mommy. This is the best Christmas ever.” She pointed to the large boxes.

  Jemma knew those weren’t her gifts to Kassie. Her family was bringing the rest with them. She leaned over to read the tags: they were from Kyle and his parents.

  “Can I open them now?”

  “Why don’t we wait for Kyle to come downstairs?”

  Her little face was crestfallen. Jemma relented. “Okay, you can open one.”

  Kassie picked a bright red box with a green bow attached. The box was beautiful. Jemma wondered when Kyle had time to sneak all this stuff in the house without them knowing. He’d make a good spy, she mused.

  Kassie ripped into the box and held up a pair of shiny black riding boots. “Look, Mommy!”

  The black leather boots were beautiful. So that was why he hadn’t wanted Jemma buying her competition outfit. “Yes, baby. They are so pretty.” Closer inspection showed they also had her initials on the back of the heel. Kyle had dropped some serious cash on those boots.