Deb Kastner - The Cowboy's Forever Family

Slade brushed his palm across the stubble on his jaw and gave Laney’s belly a pointed look. He appeared to be debating something in his mind.

She tensed, ready for the worst he could give.

His gaze shifted to Carol. Without warning, he strode forward and enveloped the older woman in a big, affectionate bear hug, dwarfing Carol and causing her to giggle like a young girl. “You know I love you both.”

Laney nearly fell off her stool. Of everything Slade could have said or done, verbally and physically expressing his love for this family was the last possible guess she would have made. Who would have imagined that the harsh, judgmental cowboy Laney was familiar with had a soft side? Clearly he held great affection for the Becketts, and to her very great surprise, he wasn’t afraid to express it.

“If y’all are set on accepting Laney into your lives, then I will, too. I’ll show her around the ranch and give her some pointers on country living. She’s got a huge learning curve here, and I’m sure she can use all the help she can get.”

Laney sniffed indignantly. That was all well and good for Mr. Arrogant, assuming she would be doing back flips because he’d conceded to allow her to live in her own home, and had, in fact, offered to help her, whatever that meant.

As if she needed his assistance—with anything . He made it sound as if he was doing her a favor. It obviously never even occurred to the big lug that she might not want anything to do with him. As if it was his decision to make whether or not she was part of his life. No need to ask her what she thought about it.

Even if she wasn’t seven months pregnant, she would in no way be doing any kind of gymnastics over Slade McKenna. Hadn’t he already created enough havoc in her life? Hadn’t he stuck his nose into her business when he had no right to be there and ultimately been the primary cause of the demise of her marriage? Hadn’t he led Brody down all the wrong paths, tempting him with all manner of reckless ideas when Brody most needed to learn to be responsible and to live up to his commitments?

Laney wanted nothing to do with him. Not one single thing.

But when Slade raised his milk glass in a silent toast to her, she realized just how difficult it was going to be to avoid him and all his meddling in her affairs. The Becketts accepted what he said at face value. They clearly adored him, and he filled an extra special role in their lives now that Brody was gone.

Whether she liked or not—and she didn’t, not one bit—it appeared Slade was about to become a permanent part of her life.

Chapter Three

Slade awoke in a cold sweat, thrashing back and forth as he wrestled with the blanket that had somehow become knotted around his ankles. In his mind he kept hearing the eight-second buzzer—a bull rider’s favorite sound and now his worst nightmare.

He groaned and yanked at the stubborn blanket, refusing to let his thoughts go back to the moment that had darkened his life permanently. Unfortunately, his life was about to get even more cloudy, with the distinct possibility of thunderstorms in his near future.

He had a new goal in life, a new mission to fill his time and his thoughts. He had a baby to protect.

If that meant being in the company of Laney Beckett, then so be it. A restless night’s sleep hadn’t made the situation any more palatable, but at least he knew what he should be doing next—getting Laney under Dr. Delia’s care. Hopefully she’d been seeing a doctor all along, taking extra precautions to make sure she and the baby were healthy, but she was here in Serendipity now and Slade trusted Delia, whom he’d grown up with, more than any city doctor he’d ever encountered. Besides, if Laney was sticking around like she said she was going to do, Dr. D. would likely be the one delivering Brody’s baby.

Might as well start out the way he intended to finish—making sure Brody’s kid had the best of everything life could offer. He took a shower and then made a quick phone call as he dressed. It took a bit of finagling, but he managed to get Laney an appointment for late morning as he’d hoped.

His beat-up blue pickup truck rumbled to a start and within minutes he was pulling into the Becketts’ long driveway. Located only a few miles out of Serendipity proper, the Becketts’ ranch bordered Slade’s folks’ spread, which had been one of the many reasons he and Brody had originally become friends. Slade’s two older brothers still worked the land, but Slade had opted to become a cop and live in an apartment complex just off Main Street.

Once he arrived at the ranch, he parked next to a pathetic little silver hybrid, which he assumed was Laney’s. Certainly Grant and Carol would never drive anything so small and impractical. There were more dirt roads than paved ones in Serendipity, especially outside of town. Her ridiculous little car wouldn’t handle the washboard more than a dozen times before breaking down, and he shuddered to think of her driving that flimsy car in a rainstorm.

Slade scoffed and shook his head. The woman now owned a ranch and she drove a hybrid vehicle. What kind of irony was that? She clearly didn’t have the first clue about country living. Leave it to Laney to make all the wrong choices. She really did need his help if she was going to have any hope of making it here.

He rapped twice on the Becketts’ front door to announce himself and then entered without waiting for anyone to answer. He knew Grant and Carol were both early risers, and if Laney wasn’t an early bird then she needed to learn to be. It was part and parcel of life on a ranch. Up with the sun. Starting now.

Instead of encountering Carol and Grant, the first person Slade came upon was Laney. Dressed in garish bright pink sweatpants and a purple sweatshirt that stretched tightly over her middle, she sported rectangular black-framed reading glasses which were perched on the end of her nose, reminding Slade of an owl. Or a librarian. She was stretched out on the living room sofa with a book in her hands.

A romance novel. It figured.

She didn’t appear to have heard him enter the house, or else she was too engrossed in her novel to care. Or maybe she was just ignoring him.

“Hey,” he said, his voice still low and hoarse from sleep. He cleared his throat and waited for her to acknowledge him.

She raised her glasses and glanced up at him, then rolled her eyes and sighed loudly. “Oh, lovely. What are you doing here?”

“Well, good morning to you, too.”

She picked up a mug from a nearby end table and took a noisy sip of the contents. “Can we start over? I’m not a human being until after my second cup of coffee.”

He frowned. It was a good thing he was here to take her to see the doctor, if she was loading herself up with caffeine. He didn’t know the first thing about pregnancy, but he was fairly certain coffee wasn’t good for her.

“Should you be drinking coffee? Isn’t that bad for Brody’s baby?”

Her eyebrows rose as if he’d said something shocking and not simply suggested she take better care of herself and the baby. “It’s just an expression. If you must know, I’m drinking tea this morning.”

He opened his mouth for the obvious follow-up question, but she held up a hand to stave off his words.

“Decaffeinated green tea, full of antioxidants that are good for Baby Beckett. Are you always this pushy?”

He started to shake his head but ended up shrugging a shoulder. “Sometimes.”

When it had to do with the welfare of Brody’s baby.

“Well, cut it out. You’ll quickly discover I don’t respond to bossiness And I don’t like bullies.”

Was she calling him a bully again? She’d probably be surprised to know he was the guy in high school who championed the little guys. He wasn’t a bully—he was the guy who beat up the bullies of the world.