He licked his lips, tasting Cole’s lingering kiss. He ran a hand through his hair sighing. He knew why he’d been avoiding the man since he’d seen him a couple of days earlier. He was attracted to him but he couldn’t decide what he wanted to do about it. The kiss was great, but Kane wasn’t looking for a forever partner.
I’m not even sure if Cole wants the same thing. From what he could figure out during dinner, Cole had just gotten out of a relationship. Is he still in love with his ex?
Kane shook his head. He’d decided earlier that night he was going to find an easy bed partner, because he found that he was watching Cole during the entire dinner. But after that kiss, he wasn’t so sure he wanted just anyone for the night. He was in the mood for something more. Putting his hat on his head, he continued with his walk, he wasn’t going to dwell on things any longer. The next time he saw Cole he’d pretend as if the kiss hadn’t happened between them.
Cole walked into his parents’ cabin, closing the door quietly. He ran up to his room and packed his bags, not trying to think about what the fuck he’d just done. He’d kissed a man he shouldn’t have, his parents’ boss at that. How could I be so stupid? Cole was going to blame it on hormones or the way Kane looked and the way he smelled. Gods, he smelled so good I wanted to rub against him like a dog in fucking heat. I can’t let it happen again.
Which was why he was leaving. He had a type and Kane Cartwright was the kind of man he was attracted to. The alpha type that brought out the needy, submissive omega nature inside of him. Cole enjoyed a good game of cat and mouse and it was the same game he played with Ryker that led to the abusive relationship they had.
He enjoyed being taken and claimed, wearing the passion marks of his lover proudly. He was an omega and always gave himself fully to the alpha he was in a relationship with. He was also an omega who just didn’t know how to pick good alpha males as partners.
Once his bags were packed with the few things he’d brought with him, he wrote a note, leaving it where one of his dads would see it when they came to wake him up. He might be acting like a scared kid, but his thoughts were too fucked up for him to go off and kiss someone.
It was a good kiss, he touched his lips that were still burning, and flushed when he thought how soft Kane’s lips were. It felt good to be held in the other man’s strong arms. Shaking his head, he pushed his thoughts to the side and looked around the room to make sure he wasn’t going to leave anything behind.
Picking up his bags he opened the door and quietly made his way down the stairs. He was about to open the door but froze when the lights came on and he heard the voice behind him.
“So, you weren’t going to say bye to me or your pop?”
Cole closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the door. He turned resting his back against the door and stared at his dad. “I . . .” Cole didn’t know exactly what he was going to say.
“I knew there’s more going on other than you told us today. And you might not be ready to talk about it, yet. But know that you don’t have to leave because you’re afraid to talk to us.” Denny stepped closer to him and pulled him into his arms. The bags in his hand fell to his feet. “We love you, Cole, remember that. Whatever you’re going through . . .”
“I’m pregnant,” he blurted out stopping whatever his dad was going to say.
“Wh—what?” Denny stepped back and looked at him.
“I found out a few days ago.”
Denny sat down staring at him. “Ry—”
“Ryker doesn’t know,” Cole finished for him. “He will never know.” His lips trembled and he started to cry. He’d finally said the words and he was overwhelmed with emotions that he hadn’t realized he was holding on to.
Denny nodded and his eyes softened. He got up and pulled Cole into his arms. “Everything is going to be all right. You will move in with us and your pop and I will help you take care of the baby.”
“Wait, Dad,” Cole said stepping away from Denny. “I don’t want you and Pop to take care of me. I can do it on my own.” It’s time I did things on my own.
“And that’s why you’re here?” He turned when he heard his pop’s voice. “I don’t know what kind of mess you got yourself into . . .”
“Bill, he’s pregnant,” his dad said stopping his pop’s rant.
“Wh—what, pregnant?” His pop looked at him and his dad before his larger body hit the floor.
“Shit, I should have waited until he sat down first. He did the same thing when I told him I was pregnant with you.”
“Is he going to be all right?” Cole asked.
“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” his dad said. “Help me get him to the couch.”
Cole nodded and walked over and grabbed his pop’s legs. He and his dad struggled to get his pop partway to the couch. The only thing they could manage was leaning him against it. “Hey, baby, wake up.” Denny lightly slapped Bill on his cheek.
Bill’s head lolled to the side as he opened his eyes. “Hey, love.” He smiled dreamily at Denny.
“Are you feeling better?” Denny asked him.
“I had the craziest dream. You told me that Cole was pregnant.”
“Um . . . Pop, it wasn’t a dream.”
“Don’t you dare pass out on me again, William Bradford.” Denny grabbed his face, turning it to his. “We are going to deal with this like responsible grandparents.”
“Grandparents,” he whispered.
“Yeah, grandparents, doesn’t that sound wonderful?”
“It does,” Bill said and sat up. He turned and looked at Cole who was sitting behind him. “How are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you know what you’re having?”
Tears welled in Cole’s eyes, and instead of crying he started to chuckle. He was worried about nothing and should have known that his parents would understand.
“I’m okay,” he answered when he was able to. “Just tired.” He looked at both of his dads who had tears in their eyes as well. They were smiling at him. “I’m sorry.”
Denny’s brows creased together. “Why? What do you have to be sorry for?”
“I’m such a disappointment as a son. I got pregnant by a man who might not have been in love with me like I thought. I should be able to handle my shit. Instead of dealing with it, I came running to my dads to fix it.”
“Oh, you silly boy,” Denny said to him. “That’s what we are here for. Well, that and other things. But we’re here to help you when you need it. You have never been a disappointment to us, we love you very much. Cole, we know you can handle things on your own, but don’t ever be afraid to come to us when you need help.”
Cole looked at Bill who was nodding. “What he said.”
“What will I ever do without you two in my life,” he said, dashing away his tears.
“I hope you never find out,” Denny said. “Is that why you were leaving?”
“Leaving? Who’s leaving?” Bill asked looking just as confused as he sounded.
“Your son,” Denny answered. “Keep up, baby.”
“Yes, I was leaving because I didn’t want to be a burden to you two.” He left out the part about kissing Kane, they didn’t need to know about that part.
“Well, you can just forget that thought,” Bill said to him. “Where the hell are you going, anyway? I don’t know what happened between you and Ryker, I never liked him by the way; not sure if you knew.”
“Yeah, Pop, I knew. I think everyone in New York knew.”
“Well, now that he’s out of your life, you can move on and find someone worthy of you, an alpha who will treat you the way you should be treated,” Denny added and cupped his cheeks. “You will find your one true mate, the way your father and I found each other.”
“Did you two just forget that I’m pregnant, who would want to be with a single parent? Let alone a pregnant one?” He didn’t add the part about not believing in the one true mate crap like his parents did. “Besides, I think it’s time I focus on me and the baby. No lover o
r any relationship entanglements. I’m swearing off men for a bit.”
“Hush, child,” Denny said to him. “We’ll deal with that later.”
Cole looked at his dad wondering if the man heard him.
Denny stood to his feet. “I’m tired and I want to go back to bed. We’ll discuss things in the morning, like work and such.”
His pop went over to the door and grabbed his packed bags while his dad walked him up the stairs. Apparently, they weren’t going to talk about anything else for the night. His dad walked him to his room and kissed him on his cheek. His pop dropped his bags off at the door and kissed him as well.
“Night, son,” they said together.
“Night,” he whispered as he closed the door. He leaned against it, sighing with relief. Now that he’d told them, what came next he wasn’t sure. Pushing off the door, he started undressing and got ready for bed. There was nothing else for him to do now but sleep.
Kane was cleaning out the stalls when he heard a knock next to where he was working. He turned and was surprised to see Cole Bradford standing there.
“Winston told me you were in here.”
Kane nodded and pulled his T-shirt from his back pocket. Taking off his baseball cap, he dabbed the sweat off his face with his shirt then stuffed it back into his back pocket. “Can I help you?” he asked.
Cole snapped his eyes up to Kane’s face and he didn’t miss the tinge of pink in his cheeks. Cole cleared his throat before he spoke. “About what happened last night, it won’t happen again.”
“Is that what you came here to tell me?” Kane asked.
“Yeah, and that I’ll be staying here for a bit.”
“Okay.” Kane shrugged and was about to get back to work thinking that their conversation was over, but Cole was still standing there. “Is there something else I can do for you?”
Cole sighed and looked away then back at him again. “I saw on your website that you’re looking for someone to run your new bakery and cafe shop. You also need someone with managerial and bookkeeping experience. You know that I can bake and I have a lot of experience running a restaurant.”
“Yeah, so?”
“Fuck, are you going to make me beg? You know exactly what I’m trying to say or ask for.”
“I was wondering where it was,” Kane said.
“Where what was?” Cole asked confused.
“The attitude I’ve been treated to for the past couple of days.”
“I was trying to be nice,” Cole mumbled.
“Well don’t try to be nice on my account.”
“You’re an asshole, you know that, right?”
Kane shrugged. “I’ve been told that a time or two.”
“Fuck it,” Cole said and walked away.
Kane’s eyes fell on the man’s ass. It was a nice and supple ass to go with the fucking attitude that it seemed he liked. Mouthy omegas. Kane had always ignored the whole alpha, beta, omega shit that most people in society got caught up in. If Kane saw someone that he liked and they felt good in his arms, he’d find a way to get them in his bed.
He’d fucked alpha males over the years. He also knew that society looked down at alpha males if they were to admit they liked to take it up the ass like a wanton little omega. He was tired of hearing the talk of mates and finding his forever one, Kane never believed in the stories that only alphas and omegas belonged together.
Finding a mate, getting married, or having kids isn’t for me. Who has the time to get hung up on the whole finding a mate crap?
Shit! Kane mentally cursed. He also knew if he let Cole walk away without offering him the job, he was going to regret it. Cursing, Kane threw the rake down and ran to catch up to the other man before he got too far. He’d made it to the barn door just as Cole’s car had pulled off.
Fuck, now I’m going to have to grovel. Better finish my work before I go see the man. Sighing, Kane walked back to the barn going back to his work.
“That fucking egotistical bastard,” Cole yelled as he walked into his parents’ cabin, slamming the door.
“Um . . . okay, want to tell me what happened?” Bill asked.
“That man,” he said as if his papa knew who he was talking about.
“Which man, there’s a lot of them on this ranch, so I’m going to need you to be more specific.”
“He makes me so damn mad.” Cole was pacing the room while he spoke. “He doesn’t even know me, all he had to say was yes or no. But no, he wants me to beg. I’m not going to beg. I’ll find a job and show him.”
“I wish I knew who you are talking about,” his pop said to him.
“Kane Cartwright,” he said as if it should explain everything.
“Oh,” was all his papa said. “I take it you two don’t get along?”
“Like oil and water, we just don’t mix at all.”
“I see.”
“Is that all you have to say?”
“What am I supposed to be angry about exactly?”
“Well, he—and then he—” Cole stopped mid-pace, unable to explain exactly what made him angry with Kane.
Last night he had a hard time sleeping and got on his parents’ computer. He was searching for jobs in the area when the advertisement for the new cafe and bakery popped up. Since he was going to stick around for a bit, he thought why not apply. He sat down on the couch and slouched down, resting a hand on his flat stomach and smiled. Bill placed a hand on his.
“I can’t believe I’m going to be a grandfather.”
“I can’t believe I’m going to be a dad,” Cole said to him. He looked at his pop. “Do you think I’ll be a good dad?”
“Nope,” Bill said. He looked at him shocked. “You’re going to make mistakes and your kid will get angry at you at sixteen and tell you he wants to move out.”
“Are you ever going to forgive me for that?”
Bill smiled. “Maybe one day.” Cole rolled his eyes. When he was sixteen, he wanted to stay out late past curfew but his parents wouldn’t let him. They’d argued about it and Cole told them he wanted to move out and go live with his grandparents.
“You’re going to be a good dad,” Bill told him. “And later a great one. You will make mistakes but so will your kid, so cut him or her some slack when they do. And one day your child will tell you they love you and your heart will burst with joy and you won’t stop smiling.”
“You think so?”
“I know so,” Bill assured him. “So, explain to me again what happened between you and Kane.”
He was about to respond when there was a knock at the door. Cole went to stand, but Bill patted him on the hand telling him to stay seated. While Bill went to answer the door, Cole leaned back and closed his eyes. His head snapped up and his eyes opened when he heard Kane’s voice.
“Hey, Bill, sorry to bother you on your break, but can I talk to Cole for a bit?”
“Ah . . . yeah, sure,” Bill said. “I was about to head over to see Denny anyway.” Bill turned and looked at him. “We’ll talk later.”
Cole stood and nodded. He watched his papa leave then he turned and walked into the kitchen trying to find something to eat. “If you came to apologize, I don’t want to hear it.”
“Apologize? I don’t have anything to be sorry for.”
“Fine then, why are you here?” Cole asked him.
“What are your qualifications?”
Cole turned around narrowing his eyes at Kane. “For what?”
If Kane was asking what Cole thought he was asking, he was going to kill the man. He ignored the fact that he had on his shirt and tried to forget that it was only a few minutes earlier he was staring at the man’s nipples, muscled chest, and six or was it eight-pack abs. There was a V, he definitely remembered that.
“I can see what you’re thinking, get your mind out of the gutter. I’m talking about a job.”
Cole relaxed and leaned against the counter. “I can pull my resume up if you want it.”
“No,
I don’t need that.”
“Then what do you want?”
There was a gleam in Kane’s eyes and Cole wished he could ignore it but it only made him think of their kiss from the night before.
“You to bake for me. I hear you’ve baked for everyone else on the ranch and I’ve yet to taste your goods.”
“That’s it? All I have to do is bake for you and if you like what you taste I have the job?”
“Yup,” Kane answered. “If you’re as organized as Bill and Denny, I’m sure your managerial skills are up to par.”
Cole nodded, he didn’t mean to toot his own horn but he practically did the books for Ryker until he decided to hire a regular accountant. Things were starting to look up, and to think the night before he was going to run because of a little kiss. Maybe Kane wasn’t so bad and then he had a thought and stared at the other man. Something felt off. It was way too easy. “What’s the catch?”
“No catch at all.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“Are all New Yorkers suspicious like you?”
“The smart ones are.”
“Well, here on the Black Meadow we trust each other and our word is our bond.” Kane tapped his knuckles on the counter and nodded.
“What’s this, the Wild West? Do I need to get Wyatt Earp to make sure we’re not going to cheat each other out of this deal?”
Kane smiled but didn’t say anything. He turned to walk away but Cole stopped him.
“Wait, there’s something you need to know before we go any further.”
Kane turned and crossed his arms over his chest staring at him. “What is it now?”
“I don’t know if this will change the outcome for me getting the job, but I think you should know.” Cole closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant,” he said opening his eyes. Kane stared at him for a few minutes and Cole fidgeted, hating that he was showing how nervous he was.
“Okay,” he said after a few minutes.
“That’s all you have to say is ‘okay’?”
“What exactly do you want me to say? As long as you being pregnant doesn’t hinder you from doing your job. If you get it, of course. But I don’t see a problem.”
The Cowboy's Baby_Mpreg Romance Page 5
