Rugged Daddy

by Rye Hart

  All of them were unconscious in a matter of a few minutes. Cameron strode over to me.

  “Heather. Are you all right?”

  He helped me up as I stumbled into his arms.

  “I’m okay,” I said, coughing. “I’m okay.”

  “Are you hurt?” His hands roamed my body as I looked up into his face.

  “No,” I said. “Thanks to you, I’m not hurt.”

  Then, I caught movement behind his body. “Cameron, look out!”

  He shoved me into his truck and slammed the door before a gunshot rang out. I screamed in holy terror as I curled myself up into a ball. I knew he was shot. I just knew they’d killed him.

  Then I heard someone scream. “Put your hands where I can see them and get on the ground. On the ground! Now! Drop the weapon!”

  I heard the truck door open as a familiar pair of hands fell to my legs. I felt myself being tugged to the edge of the seat, and I fell into Cameron’s strong embrace. He held me close, shielding my body with his as we used the truck to take cover. I fisted his shirt and buried my face into his neck as he talked low into my ear to try and drown out the firefight.

  “Hudson’s here. SWAT’s here. Everything’s going to be okay. They can’t hurt us any longer. We’re fine. You’re fine. And once we get you back to the doctor, I’m sure our child will be fine too. You were so brave for me, Heather. I’m so proud of you. Don’t open your eyes. Don’t look. It’s almost over.”

  The shooting stopped and footsteps fell toward the truck. A fear unlike anything I’d ever experience filled my body. My mind spun out of control. I fisted the fabric of Cameron’s shirt so hard, I couldn't feel my fingers. My head hurt from the crying, and my throat hurt from all the dust I had inhaled. My lungs spasmed to get the dirt up, and my body wouldn’t stop shaking.

  I no longer had control of anything. My body could no longer handle the stress, and the last thing I remembered was Cameron murmuring a phrase in my ear I’d wanted to hear him say from the beginning.

  “It’s done, Heather. You’re safe.”

  CHAPTER 33

  CAMERON

  Seeing Heather with all those tubes scared the hell out of me. I sat with my hand against my mouth as Audrey curled up in the bed next to her. I couldn’t take my eyes off her, thinking about how pale she looked and how frightened I was about the condition of her and our child.

  Audrey’s hand migrated to Heather’s stomach, and the sight tugged at my heart.

  The second she’d walked into the hospital with Nicole, they both wanted to see her, which gave me time to explain to Audrey what was going on. I told her that some bad guys wanted to hurt us, but they weren’t going to be doing that any longer. Then, I told her Heather was pregnant, and that she was resting because the doctors told Heather she needed to sleep.

  Now, I watched as my daughter rubbed her small hand on Heather’s stomach while her lips silently moved. She was talking to her future brother or sister.

  A groan came from Heather’s mouth, and I shot up out of my chair. I took her hand in mine and hovered over her as relief rushed through my body. Her eyes fluttered open, and Audrey immediately placed a kiss on her cheek.

  But I saw the panic roll through her eyes.

  “The baby,” she said in a whisper.

  “Heather, look at me,” I said.

  “The baby.” Her hand flew to her stomach as Audrey looked up at me with wide eyes.

  “Heather, look at me. Listen to me.”

  She clutched at my hand as she struggled to full consciousness. “The baby’s fine,” I said. “They found a heartbeat. You’re okay. The baby is okay. Everything is okay.” I smiled down at her as I smoothed my hand over her forehead.

  “I’m in a hospital,” she said.

  “You are. They’re getting you fluids and keeping tabs on you for a little while.”

  “I was drugged.” Her voice was a rough whisper.

  “You were. They found trace amounts of Stadol and Phenergan in your bloodstream. Not harmful to our child, but enough to knock you and out.”

  She’d done well and stayed strong and as composed as anyone could expect during the whole nightmare. Not many people could handle a killer with a loaded gun aimed at their head without going into hysterics, much less a woman with a baby to protect.

  I watched a smile cross her face as the morning sunlight trickled in through the hospital window. But the tears in her eyes were unmistakable. Audrey wrapped her arms around her neck and Heather seemed surprised. Like she didn’t know she was there. She was still in shock. Processing everything, probably. I sat down on the edge of the bed and caught her tears with my thumb as she held my daughter in her arms.

  “Thank you for the baby,” Audrey whispered.

  Heather held her close and squeezed her eyes shut.

  “Yes, thank you for the baby,” I repeated after my daughter. Then, without even thinking, I added, “Heather, I love you.”

  Her watery gaze locked with mine as her lips parted in shock. “What did you say?”

  Audrey tucked herself further into Heather’s neck as her legs wrapped around her body. My daughter clung to her like any second she would evaporate into thin air. Heather pressed kisses to my daughter’s head. Her motherly instincts were already running over. I brought her hand to my lips to kiss as I gazed into her eyes, giving myself time to collect my thoughts.

  “I love you, Heather, and I want us to be together. I know you’ll be a spectacular mother, and you’re already a part of our family anyway. It’s going to take the Jaws of Life to pry my daughter from your neck.”

  She smiled into Audrey’s hair and breathed in her scent.

  “You really mean that, don’t you?” Heather asked.

  “I do,” I said. “I want you in my life, Heather, and in my daughter’s. For good.”

  My daughter finally pulled away to look up at Heather. “Will you stay?”

  “Oh, sweetheart, of course, I will.” Her eyes fluttered up to mine as my heart skipped. “I love you, Cameron. I don’t know when it happened, and I don’t know why it happened, but I love you. And I want to raise this child with you. I don’t want to leave your side, and I don’t want to leave your daughter. I want to stay. I want to be with you.”

  I leaned over and captured her lips as her hand came up to cup my cheek. Those words. I had wanted to hear them the second she told me she was pregnant in that sub shop. I leaned into her, feeling her pouty lip swell at the contact. My heart soared. My life felt complete. The threat was gone, my daughter and I could live a normal life, and Heather and our child wouldn’t have to live out their lives in fear.

  I pulled back and looked into her eyes as Audrey snuggled underneath my arm.

  “Come here, you,” I said.

  I pulled Audrey into my chest and tickled her, relishing the sounds of her giggle. Heather threw her head back and laughed as her legs parted to accommodate my thrashing child. She got in on the action, tickling her neck while I tickled Audrey’s stomach.

  When Audrey was gasping for breath and begging us to stop, she lay there with her head on Heather’s stomach.

  “I can hear him,” she said.

  “She thinks it’s a boy,” I said.

  Heather rolled her eyes as a smile crossed her cheeks.

  “And if it is a boy, I’d like to put my bid in for a name,” I said.

  “Oh, we’re already starting with that?” Heather asked.

  “We’re safe. Everything’s fine, which means, yes. We can enjoy this pregnancy,” I said.

  Her eyes sparkled with the morning sun as it poured through the window of her hospital room.

  “Okay,” she said. “Then what’s your bid for a boy’s name?”

  “Luke,” I said.

  “Luke?”

  “My brother’s name.”

  I watched her brow furrow as her hand raised to cup my cheek.

  “Would you be all right with that?” I cupped my hand over hers.

&n
bsp; “I think it’s a beautiful idea.”

  “What if it’s a girl?” Audrey asked.

  “Don’t jinx it,” I said with a wink.

  “I don’t know,” Heather said. “I’m kind of partial to Mackenzie.”

  “Mackenzie Leigh,” I said.

  Heather’s smile grew on her face as I brought her palm to my lips to kiss.

  “Luke Alden if it’s a boy, and Mackenzie Leigh if it’s a girl,” Heather said.

  “I like it,” Audrey said.

  “Me too,” I said as I gazed into the eyes of the woman I loved. “Me too.”

  CHAPTER 34

  HEATHER

  The second I stepped into Cameron’s home, Nicole bombarded me with the biggest hug I’d ever gotten. I cried when I saw her. I wrapped her up in my arms and held her as close as I could get her. I felt her tears on my shoulder. Nikki never cried. I’d known her for years, and I’d only seen it three times.

  “I’m so glad you’re all right,” she said breathlessly.

  “I’m fine,” I said. “I’m fine, and the baby’s fine.”

  “Good. That’s good. I’m so glad.”

  She kissed my cheek before wrapping me up in her arms again.

  Audrey wiggled between us and laughter poured from Nikki’s lips. She picked up the girl in her arms before the three of us hugged. I couldn't imagine my life without them. All of them. Cameron. Audrey. Nikki. Even Hudson, though I didn’t know him well. He’d popped by a few times while I was in the hospital to bring us food, and he seemed nice enough. Very sassy.

  “Thank you so much for watching Audrey,” I said.

  “I’m just glad you thought to call me,” Nikki said. “Anything I can do to help you, you know I’ll do it.”

  “I really appreciate it, too, Nikki.”

  She released me as her attention turned to Cameron, and I knew what was coming.

  “Even though Hudson over there has explained to me that everything is apparently okay now, that doesn’t mean you and I won’t talk.”

  “I know,” Cameron said.

  “Heather’s my best friend, and there’s nothing that comes between that,” she said.

  “I know,” Cameron said.

  “I get to see her whenever I want. No matter what.”

  “You do,” he said.

  “Because she’s like a sister to me, and the idea of losing her—”

  I wrapped my arms around her waist and laid my head between her shoulder blades.

  “You take care of her,” Nikki said. “That’s your job. And I swear to you, if she calls me crying because you’ve messed something up, you can bet your sweet behind I’ll be coming to kick your ass.”

  “I promise nothing like that will ever happen,” Cameron said.

  “He’s a good man,” I said.

  “Doesn’t mean he doesn’t need a stern talking to.” Nikki punctuated her words with her hands.

  “I like her,” Hudson said.

  We all looked at the grinning man in the corner before he pushed himself off the wall.

  “You’ll be happy to know that the FBI and SWAT teams, led by none other than myself, have taken out the entire outfit that came after you.”

  “Humble as always,” Cameron said with a grin.

  “It was a huge success, and none of them will be able to come after you guys or hurt anyone ever again,” Hudson said. “But I did some digging into this Charlie guy.”

  “That’s a name I haven’t heard in a little while,” Nikki said.

  “Did he do something again?” I asked.

  “Not technically but when Cameron filled me in on—”

  “Who’s Cameron?”

  We all turned our eyes down to Audrey as she stood there with a furrowed brow. My eyes worked their way back up to Cameron as he raked a hand through his hair. We still had a lot of work to do in order to get all of our lives back on the right track. I looked over at Nikki and nodded my head. She bent down in front of the little girl and took her hands.

  “I think they need to talk about some adult stuff. So why don’t you and I go put on a movie and eat the snacks I brought for you,” Nikki said.

  “Snacks! Yes, please.” Audrey gave Nikki a huge smile.

  “‘Atta, girl,” Nikki said. “Come on. We’ll go find something awesome to watch.”

  The three of us waited until they were around the corner before Hudson continued talking.

  “When Cameron filled me in on the brick Charlie tossed through the window a while back, I decided it was worth it to turn over that stone, especially since we didn’t know if anyone in the town was compromised by the guys looking for Cam,” he said.

  “Wait, are you about to tell me that Charlie was working with them?” I asked.

  “No. He wasn’t, but he has made a lot of his fortune with shady dealings. In the FBI, we call it ‘dirty money.’ We can’t connect him to any sour individuals, but there’s a heap of circumstantial evidence, enough to secure a restraining order that protects you wherever you go as well as your bakery, your apartment, and this cabin.

  “Oh my gosh. My bakery,” I said.

  “Don’t worry,” Cameron said.

  My head whipped over to him as my eyes danced along his face.

  “Whatever it takes, we’ll get it back up and running. Don’t let that worry you,” he said.

  “But—”

  “Don’t. Let it. Worry you,” he said.

  “I also might have told Charlie that if he came within one hundred feet of you or Cameron or the children that I would throw him in prison for life,” Hudson said as he shrugged.

  “So, we’re okay,” I said.

  “You’re more than okay. I’ve already begun the process of lifting your identities. Official paperwork will be mailed to you, Cameron, but once you get it, you and Audrey can resume using your birth names instead of the ones I handed over to you years ago.”

  “So we can come out of hiding,” Cameron said.

  A smile crossed my face as my eyes darted between the two men.

  “Yes,” Hudson said. “You guys can officially come out of hiding.”

  I ran over to Cameron and threw myself into his arms. I kissed his cheek over and over again before my smile prevented me from being able to pucker my lips. He held me tightly, so tightly, I almost couldn't breathe. I was so excited for them and excited for the life they had ahead of them. I was also excited for the life I would lead with them. I felt adventure coming our way. We were free to live our lives and do whatever we wanted whenever we wanted and wherever we wanted.

  “We could travel,” I said.

  “I’ll take you anywhere you want to go,” Cameron said.

  “We could move.”

  “I’ll buy you any house you want in any place you want it.”

  “We could go on a vacation,” I said as I settled down onto my feet.

  His thumb traced my jawline before swiping along my lower lip. “Anything you want. It’s yours.”

  The day quickly passed by, and soon, we were saying goodbye to both Nikki and Hudson. I tried to get them to stay just one night now that I was out of the hospital, but they insisted it was time for the two of us to spend some quality time together. We waved them off before getting Audrey tucked into bed. Then, the two of us settled down on the couch. I snuggled into Cameron’s side as his arm slipped around my waist, feeling his chest rise and fall against my cheek with his breathing.

  His hands danced along my hip, shooting heat between my thighs.

  “How do you want to address all of this with Audrey?” I asked.

  “I think she’s been hit with enough for now,” Cameron said. “We’ll take it a piece at a time until everything is slowly revealed.”

  “I think we should start with your name,” I said. “I think her name is going to be too confusing.”

  “And I think that’s a great idea, though I hope you’ll be here for those conversations.”

  “Why wouldn't I be?”

>   “Because you have a bakery to run and an apartment that still has your name on it.”

  “That doesn’t mean I won’t be here with you guys,” I said as I looked up into his eyes.

  “What if I offered you the chance to be here with us permanently?”

  I sat up from his body and placed my hand on his chest. “What are you asking, Cameron?”

  “I love you, Heather. More than words will ever be able to communicate. The idea of you going back and living in that crackerjack box studio apartment of yours doesn’t sit well with me. Audrey’s used to having you around. I’m used to having you around. So why don’t you move in?”

  “Are you sure?” I asked.

  “Move in with us, Heather. We’re going to be having a child together. You’ll be here eventually so we can raise Luke together.”

  “Or Mackenzie,” I said with a grin. “And that’s a wonderful offer, but I need to be close to my bakery so I can get it up and running again.”

  “You can do that from here. I know you don’t have transportation now, but I’ll get you a car.”

  “You can’t just buy me a car, Cameron.”

  “Yes, I can, and I will.”

  “Look, I haven't been completely honest with you about my bakery,” I said.

  His eyes locked onto mine as I drew in a deep breath.

  “My bakery isn’t in the best financial position,” I said. “And closing it down for this long? It’ll take me months to get it back up and running. It’ll take me weeks just to get the regular foot traffic I used to have in there in the first place, and I’ve still got to find funding to help me expand so I can compete with the bakery up the road from me. It’s why I looked into the surrogacy in the first place. I needed money to help my business.”

  “Why haven't you told me any of this?” Cameron asked.

  “Because we’ve sort of been dealing with other things,” I said with a giggle.

  “But this is important to you. Why didn’t you tell me your bakery was financially struggling?”

  “I was embarrassed. I still am. I’ve poured everything I have into it. My savings. All the money I do get from my sales. I’ve gotten three loans from three separate banks to try and make it work.”

  “Then, I’ll pay off your loans.”