Donna Alward - The Texan's Baby

“Jet.” Chris smiled again and held out his hand. “Good to see you. Sorry about your dad.”

The men clasped hands firmly. “You and Lizzie?” Jet looked between the two of them. “Since when?”

Lizzie stepped in, not trusting Chris to answer. “Since about eight weeks ago.” She could feel Chris’s gaze on her face and she refused to look at him.

“Eight weeks?” Jet’s lips dropped open. “Well, aren’t you the one for keeping secrets, Miss I’ll-Never-Date-A-Cowboy.” He winked at her.

Her brother was far too astute and far too charming for his own good. “I have a family who tends to make everything their business,” she said wryly. “Figured I’d better keep it under the Baron radar or else you’d tell him stories and scare him away. Besides, you’re the last person qualified to give me a dating lecture.” She raised an eyebrow at him. Jet never had any problem getting girls. He attracted them like bees to honey with his good looks and easy charm. He was a bit like their father that way. “Chris came for moral support,” she added.

She hoped God wasn’t about to strike her down with a bolt of lightning, the way the lies were tripping off her tongue with such ease. And she totally ignored what Jet said about not dating cowboys. She wasn’t exactly opposed to them, but if she didn’t say she was, her family would be trying to set her up left and right.

Chris didn’t say anything, to her great relief. But he did come closer and put his arm around her, resting his hand on her waist. The touch seared through her jacket to her skin.

For the next several minutes she caught up with Carly, who had also driven up from Houston, and her stepbrothers, Jacob and Daniel, who sat away from the rest of the family and chatted quietly, their elbows on their knees. Jacob and Daniel resembled each other heavily, from their dark hair and eyes to their body language. Chris knew Jacob from the circuit as well, and she was relieved because it eased the tension that always seemed to simmer just below the surface of the family. Julieta’s son, Alex, had fallen asleep curled up in a chair, but when he woke up he was out of sorts. The doctor had just come to speak to them though, and the sound of his whining was disconcerting.

“Hey, Alex, are you hungry?” Chris stepped forward and squatted down in front of the boy. “I haven’t had any dinner. How’s about you and me go to the cafeteria and see what they’ve got to eat?”

Alex’s brown eyes looked innocently into Chris’s. “I can’ts go with you ’cause you’re a stranger.”

Lizzie’s heart warmed as Chris smiled and looked to Julieta for backup.

Julieta excused herself for a moment and came to Alex’s side. “This is Chris, Alex. He came with Lizzie, and he’s okay. If you want to go to the cafeteria, you can. Maybe you can grab Mama something to eat, too, okay?”

“Can I have money?” he asked. “So I can pay all by myself?”

Lizzie tried not to smirk. The kid was learning early.

“Of course.” Julieta took a few bills out of her purse and gave them to Chris. “Chris will look after them for you, okay? And if you aren’t a good boy, he won’t let you pay for the food.” She gave him a stern look.

“Yes, Mama.”

“Ready?” Chris asked.

Alex nodded and Chris stood. Lizzie watched them head for the unit doors and her heart gave a strange thump against her ribs as Alex reached up and trustingly put his small hand in Chris’s.

The family turned their attention back to the doctor, who was explaining the procedure to put a rod in Brock’s leg, the plan for the next few days and the concerns they had for his recovery. Lizzie was disheartened to hear that recuperation could take from four to six months, especially for a man of Brock’s age. He was in general good health, which was in his favor, but with the added concussion, though minor, what he needed most right now was time and rest and once he was ready they’d start on rehab.

After he left, Julieta sat down, her face drawn, and Lizzie looked at Jet.

“Well, little brother, if you were ever going to reconsider going into the family business...”

Jet scowled. “I’m in the family business. Rodeo. On my own ranch, thanks.”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it.” She kept her voice low, not wanting the whole family to overhear her putting the screws to her brother. “Dad’s not going to be able to go into work for a while. You know he wants you as part of the business.”

“And you’re already a vice president. You’re the one to take the reins now, sis.”

She scoffed. “Right. Like the board is going to stand for that.”

“It will if Dad says so.”

“And will he? Because he’d rather it were you. I swear, if he puts Mark Baker in the driver’s seat I’ll resign. That man is impossible.”

“You won’t resign. You love that company as much as Dad does.”

She sighed. He was right. So what was she going to do? Run an entire energy company in between bouts of morning sickness and prenatal appointments?

She squared her shoulders. Well, why not? If she didn’t, she’d just prove every chauvinistic thing Mark Baker ever said absolutely true.

“You’re sure you won’t come aboard?”

Jet smiled his charming smile. “I’m sure you’ll do a great job, Liz. And I’ll tell Dad that, too, if it helps.”

“Yeah, thanks a lot,” she answered halfheartedly.

Jet disappeared after that, and she caught sight of him texting in a corner of the waiting room. She took a seat and slid off her heels, which were starting to hurt her feet. She leaned back and closed her eyes as exhaustion began to creep in. Maybe they’d soon be allowed to see Brock and then she could go home to her comfy apartment and bed....

“Lizzie?”

It was Jacob this time, looking incredibly earnest. She knew right away why he’d come to sit with her. While Jet couldn’t be convinced to take on a bigger role at Baron Energies, Jacob wanted one and Brock kept holding out.

“Hey,” she said tiredly.

“Looks like Dad’s going to be out of commission for a while. Do you think that puts you in charge?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

“I’d be happy to step up, take on a bigger part at the company if that would help you out, ease some of the pressure.”

Lizzie considered her words. Jacob was a good man and they tended to think a lot alike. She didn’t understand why Brock kept him in the wings at Baron. She also knew that his offer came from a genuine willingness to help, and not really from trying to advance his personal position.

“I’ll let you know. I appreciate the offer, Jacob, but I’m going to have to run everything by Dad, you know that. Even if he does have to hand day-to-day control over to someone...me...I can’t sanction changes he wouldn’t make. You understand that, right?”

“Shit would hit the fan,” Jacob acknowledged with a smile. “I’m going to be on the road a lot this summer. The one thing I do that he seems to approve of is rodeo.” He frowned. “But will you promise that if you need anything, you’ll ask?”

“I will, but Jacob, it’s not even a done deal.”

“Sure it is. We all know who he’d like to have running the company....” Jacob looked over at Jet in the corner. “But he relies on you and you’re family. That trumps everything.”

“So are you,” she pointed out. Sure, she remembered the time before Peggy and the boys had come on the scene, but they had been a part of their lives for so long there was no question about their place in the family—at least for her.

“In a way I’m glad I’m not you.” He grinned suddenly. “He’s going to hate being at home and away from the office. I bet he calls you a dozen times a day.”