The Soldier's Twin Surprise

by Judy Duarte

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make assumptions. It’s just that...” He paused, trying to backpedal and not having much luck. “Then why are you here?”

  She flinched as if he’d struck her.

  Damn, he should have handled that better. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a jerk. I guess my mood is only slightly better than it was the last time you saw me.”

  “You can say that again.” She arched a pretty brow then slowly shook her head.

  “I owe you an apology for that day, too. But keep in mind that I’d just gotten the worst news of my life, and I was in a lot of pain.”

  “You were also loaded down with pain medication, which can really take a toll on your thought process.” Her downturned lips slowly curled into a pretty smile. “So you’re forgiven.”

  He nodded, then pointed to the chair his mother had vacated. “Have a seat.”

  She seemed a bit reluctant. Then after a couple of beats, she complied. As she took the place beside him, she said, “I came to tell you something.”

  “What’s that?”

  She bit down on her bottom lip and paused for the longest time. Finally, she said, “I’m pregnant.”

  Wow. He had no idea what to say. He gave her expanded waistline another look, and when she rested her hand softly on a good-size baby bump, he realized now what he should have seen the moment she climbed out of her car.

  He wasn’t an expert on that sort of thing, but one of the guys in his unit had a pregnant wife. She’d been about seven months along and had a bump that size. And since he and Rickie had been together about five months ago, she must have been pregnant the day they’d met.

  “I’m not asking anything of you,” she said. “I can handle this on my own. But I thought you ought to know.”

  Why did she think he ought to...? Damn. No way. He’d used a condom. “Now wait a minute. Are you saying it’s mine?”

  “That’s exactly what I’m saying.” She turned toward him, her eyes zeroing in on his. She must have read the disbelief in them, because her gaze morphed into a glare. “Are you doubting me?”

  He hadn’t meant to be an ass about it, but yeah. He had plenty of doubts. Was she trying to pull something over on him?

  It wouldn’t be the first time a woman tried to snag a soldier for his military benefits. And while Clay was no longer in the Army, his family did have a sizable spread that might seem appealing.

  “It’s just a little hard to believe,” he said. “You look to be about six or seven months along.”

  “There’s a good reason for that,” Rickie said. “I’m carrying twins.”

  Clay wouldn’t have been any more stunned if she’d doubled up her fist and bloodied his nose. This couldn’t be happening.

  Hell, if he didn’t have a bum leg that ached like hell, he’d be tempted to take off at a dead run.

  Before he could wrap his mind around the news or come up with any kind of response, the door squeaked open and his mother walked out, holding a tray filled with glasses of lemonade and several servings of cake.

  At first, he thought she might have missed out on hearing the stunning announcement, but by the look on her face, he realized she’d heard at least part of it—the most shocking part. His mom loved babies and had mentioned a hundred times that she couldn’t wait to be a grandma.

  And that’s when Clay realized he was in one hell of a fix.

  * * *

  Driving out to Wexler to visit Clay had been one of the dumbest decisions Rickie had ever made. And now he was looking at her as if she’d just set fire to his barn. She never should have come here today.

  Okay, so he needed to know about the babies, but why hadn’t she revealed her news the way she’d practiced? It had sounded so good when she stood in front of the bathroom mirror this morning and recited a script.

  But when he asked why she was here, she figured she’d better cut to the chase. And that’s when it all fell apart.

  Rickie glanced at his mom. Poor Sandra gaped first at Clay, then at Rickie. This was so not going the way Rickie had planned.

  Sandra leaned against the porch railing as if she might collapse. The tray she held was listing to the side, and if she wasn’t careful, the drinks and the dessert were going to drop to the floor and make a terrible mess. Of course, that one would be a lot easier to clean up than the one Rickie had just created.

  “Here,” Rickie said, reaching for the tray. “Let me help you with that.”

  The dumbfounded woman, whose jaw had nearly dropped to the ground, handed it over without an argument. Then, after looking at Rickie’s midsection, she snatched it right back again. “Good grief, you don’t need to be helping me. Let me carry that.”

  Whatever. Rickie wasn’t an invalid, but she decided not to argue. Instead, she tried to soften the blow and segue into a productive conversation. “I realize this is a bit of a shock.”

  “To say the least.” Clay raked his hands through his hair, which had grown longer than his prior military cut.

  She liked it that way, although she’d better not study him too closely. Like she’d told him before, she didn’t need anything from him.

  “I don’t know what to say. This is more than a little mind-boggling.” His expression verified his words.

  “Don’t worry,” she told him. “I know you’re not interested in having a relationship with me. And you don’t need to have one with the babies, either. I just thought it was only right to let you know.”

  “You’re pregnant with Clay’s baby?” Sandra finally set the tray down on a small patio table. “I mean, babies? Oh my gosh. This is wonderful. I’ve always wanted to be a grandmother, but Clay insisted he wasn’t going to ever have kids. So I’m delighted at the news. Do you know if you’ll be having boys or girls?”

  “Actually, there’ll be one of each.” Rickie glanced at Clay, who seemed too stunned to speak. “I’ll admit that I was surprised, too. This wasn’t something I expected to happen, but I’m making the best of it.”

  At that, Clay finally chimed in. “Okay, Mom. Would you mind giving Rickie and me a little privacy? We have some things to talk over, and we don’t need an audience. Or a cheering section.”

  “Yes, of course.” Sandra smiled brightly. “I’ll just slip inside the house and find something to do.”

  Once the door clicked shut behind her, Rickie continued to stand, realizing she’d better not get too comfortable. “I didn’t realize you don’t like kids.”

  “It’s not that. I just... Never mind.”

  “And I assume you’re going to want a paternity test, but that won’t be necessary. I’m not asking for child support.” Rickie blew out a sigh. “But for the record, even though I was shocked and had to revamp my career plans, I’m actually happy about it. And that’s why I’m no longer in the Army.”

  “I’d think you’d enjoy the security.”

  “Not if that meant being separated from my children for any length of time.” She unfolded her arms. “Besides, I recently found a life insurance policy I didn’t realize my parents had. So that’ll tide me over for a while.” A very short while.

  “I don’t know what to say.” Clay shook his head, then reached down and rubbed his knee. “This isn’t going to be easy for you.”

  “I don’t expect it to be, but I’ve got things under control. I’m taking a couple of night classes, which will lead to a nursing degree. In the meantime, I’m job hunting. I hope to land a temporary position at a hospital or clinic until I have to go out on maternity leave. And actually, I have an interview at a local hospital in an hour, so I need to go.”

  “Before you do, how can I get a hold of you?”

  She reached into her purse, pulled out a small notepad and pen. Then she jotted down her cell number and handed it to him. “I live in Jeffersville—on Bramble Berry Lane.”

  “Okay. Got it.” He slipped the paper in his pocket. “Good luck on the interview.”

  “Thanks. I need a little time
to unwind so I can put my best foot forward.”

  “You’re not going to be able to work very long.”

  “It’s a temporary position, but at least I can get my foot in the door there.”

  “So you plan to go to work after the babies are born?”

  “That life insurance policy will be helpful for a while, but not until they go to kindergarten. So I’ll have to get a job. But a lot of single moms are able to provide a loving home for their kids.” She nodded toward her mother’s car. “Anyway, I have to go.”

  As she opened the driver’s door, he asked, “What are you going to do about child care?”

  “I’m going to hire a nanny.” She didn’t wait for him to respond. Instead, she climbed into her car and headed for that interview.

  She wasn’t too worried about childcare. She had a couple of months to find a loving and dependable person to care for the twins.

  It’s just too bad they wouldn’t have a loving and dependable daddy.

  * * *

  As Rickie drove away, Clay raked a hand through his hair and watched until her car disappeared from sight. Her unexpected visit had shocked the heck out of him, and her news had left him completely baffled. He had no idea what to think, let alone do.

  He still couldn’t believe what she’d just sprung on him. She was pregnant, and not with just one baby, but two. Even more surprising than that—according to her claim, he was the father.

  Now that was rich. What did he know about babies or parenting? Then again, did he actually need those skills? Rickie had said she didn’t need him or his financial support, which ought to be a relief. But it wasn’t. What kind of guy turned his back on his kids?

  He tried to sort through his thoughts, but guilt and confusion clouded his brain.

  Apparently, fate wasn’t finished messing with him. Could his life get any more unsettling?

  When the screen door creaked open and his mother walked out onto the porch, he realized things were about to get worse.

  She scanned the deserted yard and driveway. “Is Rickie gone?”

  “Yeah.” Clay kept his response simple, hoping his mom would just pick up that tray of drinks and cake and go back inside. He wasn’t up for a discussion with anyone, especially his mom. But when she plopped down in the seat next to him, he knew he was in for a maternal interrogation.

  Sandra Masters had never been able to read her only child, so she usually said the wrong thing or reacted in a way that made Clay clam up, rather than share his thoughts and feelings with her. And apparently, none of that had changed while he’d served in the Army.

  She blew out a long, slow sigh. “So how are you feeling about all of this?”

  “I’m in a state of shock.”

  “I can understand that.”

  Could she? He doubted it. She’d never really understood him or his need to set boundaries between them. Nor had she known how important it had been for him to join the military and do something noble with his life.

  You’d think she’d realize that the military was in his blood. Hell, he’d been born on an Army base in Germany. His dad had been a career soldier who’d achieved valor in Desert Storm.

  Clay didn’t remember much about John Masters, other than he’d died in battle. Then eight years later, Clay and his mom moved to the Bar M, where the sprawling ranch house was filled with pictures and awards that memorialized his father, particularly his patriotism and valor.

  She shouldn’t have been surprised that he would want to be just like his dad. You’d think she would have been proud, but she wasn’t. She’d been afraid of losing Clay, too.

  But she’d lost him anyway. That damned flight mishap had taken the real Clay away from her for good, and she’d been left with a facsimile who was broken down and miserable.

  “Rickie is a pretty girl,” Mom said.

  She certainly was. And if truth be told, he’d been glad to see her drive up—until she told him why she was here.

  “She seems nice,” Mom added. “Do you think she’ll make a good mother?”

  He hadn’t expected the conversation to take a turn like that, but in spite of being a helicopter mom, Sandra Masters meant well.

  “Believe it or not,” he said, “I really don’t know her very well. But she was an Army medic, and from what little I do know, she seems compassionate. I’m sure she’ll be a good mother.”

  “So what do you plan to do?” Mom asked.

  Okay, then. They were back to the issue at hand.

  Clay scrubbed a hand over his chin. “Hell if I know. It sounds like she has life all figured out for herself and the kids.”

  I’m not asking anything of you, she’d said, more than once.

  I can handle parenthood on my own.

  “Maybe that was her way of trying to calm your fears and test the waters,” his mom said.

  That was possible, he supposed. No matter what Rickie had told him about her ability to go it alone, Clay would offer financial support.

  Only trouble was, long before she’d made her announcement, he’d felt tied to the land and to civilian life. Taking on a daddy role would only serve to lock him down to the last place a guy like him wanted to be.

  He might have gone to West Point and then served in the military, but there were some things that were part of a man’s DNA. And Clay liked being a risk taker, liked pushing the limits and getting that adrenaline rush. And he was determined to somehow get his life back.

  The doctors hadn’t painted a rosy picture about him having a full recovery, but they didn’t know him.

  “I’ve been thinking,” his mom said. “You should take some childbirth classes with her. And you should definitely go to one of her obstetrical appointments. Once you see those babies on an ultrasound, it’ll make things real. And I have no doubt you’ll fall in love with them and be an amazing father.”

  “Don’t get carried away. This is all very new to me. Besides, Rickie and I didn’t have an ongoing affair. Or a real relationship.”

  “Well, it looks as though the two of you will have one now. At least as parents.”

  And there lay the problem, considering the grump he’d been since that damn flight mishap. Try as he might, he hadn’t been able to shake that dark mood in months. What made him think that he could turn that around before the baby...before the babies were born?

  Twins. A boy and a girl. Who would have guessed that amazing night on a tropical beach would have produced two new human beings in one fell swoop?

  Then again, Rickie said she’d been a twin herself. Multiple births ran in some families.

  “Do you know how to find her?” his mom asked.

  Clay patted his shirt pocket. “She gave me her contact info.”

  “I hope you won’t wait too long. Those kids are going to need a mother and a father.”

  Clay had always been able to read the subtext behind her words. “And a grandmother, too. Right? Isn’t that what this is all about?”

  She clamped her lips together, realizing she’d shown her hand. And that, once again, she’d met her match.

  Clay wasn’t about to let her think she could push him into a relationship. Nor did he want her to continue with the false assumption that he’d eventually find something to make him happy he’d moved back to the ranch. That wasn’t going to happen.

  He loved his mom, but he’d be damned if he’d let her talk him into something he wasn’t ready for. Hell, he hardly knew Rickie at all. He did, however, know her body intimately, and his thoughts drifted back to that night they’d met and their incredible lovemaking.

  But there was more to a woman than a gorgeous face and a sexy body. He should probably get to know the real her better. Especially if she was having his babies.

  He had no idea how she and the twins would fit into his life, though. But he wouldn’t turn his back on them.

  Still, what if the doctors had been wrong? What if his vision wouldn’t remain impaired? When they’d explained the extent of his inj
uries, they’d used the word likely and not definitely. His leg was coming along well, and the physical therapist claimed he was making a lot more progress than most people with similar injuries. Maybe things wouldn’t be as dire as they’d seemed when he’d been stretched out on that hospital bed at Tripler.

  Clay blew out a sigh. Even if he could accept his limitations and his new normal, he wasn’t prepared for fatherhood. Or any further loss of freedom.

  But ready or not, that’s where life was headed. And he wasn’t the only one who’d be facing big changes. Rickie hadn’t signed on for this, either.

  He could make a slew of excuses for reacting to the news the way he had. After all, she’d just dumped it on him. And he’d never been comfortable with the touchy-feely stuff. But he probably should have been a little more sensitive, a little more understanding.

  She hadn’t seemed upset when she left. But then again, she hadn’t been happy, either.

  He reached into his pocket and pulled out the slip of paper Rickie had given him, making note of her address and phone number. He wasn’t going to do anything rash. He’d sleep on it, of course, and tomorrow he would drive out to Jeffersville and talk to her.

  Chapter Six

  Clay spent most of the night tossing and turning, thanks to random thoughts of Rickie. He’d had several flashbacks of that day on the North Shore when she’d worn that sexy red bikini and that night she’d spent in his arms. He’d also envisioned her on the base, outside the clinic, her glossy brown hair pulled into a tight military bun.

  He’d felt awkward talking to her that day, but the sight of her had spiked his interest, not to mention his hormones. And then he’d remembered the time she’d visited him in the hospital, compassion glimmering in her honey-brown eyes. In spite of her shy approach and her awkward attempt to offer support, he’d shut her out. He could come up with a boatload of excuses why he’d done it, but that didn’t make it right.

  Yet it was the recent memory that had kept him awake, the image of her standing on the ranch porch, her hand resting gently on her expanding womb.

  He still couldn’t believe what she’d told him. He was going to be a father. That was, if her claim was true. But could he accept her say-so as fact?