Christine Wenger - The Rancher's Surprise Son

Cody kissed her forehead, her eyebrows and her neck. Then did it all over again. His hands ran over her back, her shoulders—wherever he could reach without releasing her from his arms, just to make sure she was real.

“You feel so good. Do you still love me, Laura?”

“Of course, Cody. Of course!” She covered him with kisses, devoured his lips, lifted his T-shirt and ran her hands over his chest.

He was ready and certainly willing to make love to her, but alarms went off in his head. He shouldn’t even be here, nor should Laura. To make love with her would be...heaven...but maybe now wasn’t a good time.

Cody suspected that there wasn’t going to be a good time in their future.

Should he give in to what they both wanted?

Laura stepped back, but held on to his biceps. “I think we need to take things slow. We have to get to know each other again.”

His heart took a dive in his chest. “You’re right. It’s been a long time. And a lot has happened. You got married. You had a son.”

“My father has talked to you, hasn’t he?” Laura studied his face.

“Yeah.”

“He threatened you?”

Cody shrugged. “That doesn’t bother me. It’s what he can do to you and Johnny.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Such as?”

“He could send you away. He said something about your aunt Betty in Boston. He said that there was a nice military school for Johnny there, too.”

“I am not going to Boston, and Johnny isn’t going to some military school. We are staying right here in our pretty cottage. Besides, this is where you are.”

“And I can’t leave for at least two years, but I doubt that I can turn around the Double M by then. I don’t know if I could ever make it real profitable. We’ve all tried throughout the years.”

Laura moved away from Cody and crossed her arms in front of her chest. It was her turn to pace. “If anyone can turn it around, it’s you.”

“It takes money, Laura. The place needs an overhaul, and there’s none.”

“We can never have peace in Duke Springs, Cody. Never. I thought that having a grandchild would mellow them both, and it did to a point, but sometimes it made things worse.”

Cody could see the tears swimming in her emerald eyes, and he hugged her to him.

“Oh, that didn’t make any sense.” She sniffed. “But J.W. would never send us away. He’d miss Johnny too much. My mother had a better threat this morning. She’s going to file for custody of Johnny if I consort with a known felon such as you.” Cody handed her a red bandanna and she wiped her eyes. “Maybe we ought to stay away from each other. You have too much to lose. So do I.”

Cody swore and was just about to punch a saguaro, spikes and all, when Laura closed her hand over his fist and helped him to relax.

“Just tell me, Cody...once and for all, tell me that you are innocent. Tell me that you didn’t kill Lindy. Tell me, for heaven’s sake.”

He pulled his hand away from hers and swore. “I can’t. I can’t say anything. If I did, all that time I spent in prison would be for nothing.”

“Who are you protecting, Cody?”

No answer.

“I need you to tell me, or I can’t see you anymore. I might lose my son. Don’t you get that?” She was gritting her teeth.

“I didn’t kill Lindy!” Cody shouted. “I didn’t kill him, but I wish to hell I did.” He turned away from her and Laura could tell that he was trying to compose himself. “There, I said it. I finally said it.”

She wrapped her arms around him from behind and let her wet cheek rest on his back.

“Who killed him, Cody? Your mother? Cindy? It has to be one of them who did it. You wouldn’t go to jail for anyone else.”

He turned around and pulled her tight to him. “Please, Laura. That’s enough. I shouldn’t have even told you what I did. But when you said that your parents—or at least your mother—might try taking Johnny away from you...well, I had to tell you the truth.”

“I am so relieved! I mean, I knew you were protecting someone. Why else wouldn’t you defend yourself?”

“Please, don’t ask me anymore. I can’t tell you. If it gets around...”

She kissed him to assure him that he didn’t have to speak further. She didn’t need to know anything more.

“And I can’t sneak around with you forever, Laura. I love you. We’ve always wanted to get married.”

“I know, but can you accept Johnny, too?”

“I admit that I was shocked, and even disappointed, that you slept with someone else, and that you even got married—”

“I never got married, Cody. That was something I just told my parents. They couldn’t cope with me having a child out of wedlock. I just told them that I eloped with a fellow student to Vegas so it would make them feel better.”

Cody felt the tension slip out of his body. “I’m glad of that. But did you love him? Johnny’s father, I mean.”

“Yes. I loved him very much, and I know he loved me.”

Cody felt sick to his stomach. Why had he even asked that question?

Laura took his hand. “You never answered me. Could you accept Johnny?”

“Of course!” Cody answered almost immediately. “You didn’t even have to ask me that. I can’t wait to meet him.”

“You will—someday.”

“And I don’t care who the college dude is.” Cody couldn’t get the picture of Laura sleeping with someone else out of his head. Aw...hell.

“Johnny’s the light of my life.”

“He should be.”

“I don’t have any regrets, not one,” she said strongly. “Well, maybe one.”

“What’s that?”

“That Johnny’s father doesn’t know he’s the father of such a wonderful boy.”

“He doesn’t? Then you should tell him, Laura. A man has the right to know.”

“I’ll tell him.” She remained silent for several heartbeats. “When some important matters get resolved. I don’t want Johnny stuck in the middle of a power struggle. Anyway, when the time is right, I’ll tell Johnny’s father about him.”

“When the time is right?” Cody shook his head. “How old did you say Johnny was?”

“He’s going to be...uh...four.”

“That’s a long time to keep a boy from his father.”

“I know, Cody. I know. But there are circumstances...”

“Like what?”

Cody had such strong feelings about this. He found it hard to understand why Laura wanted things to stay as they were.

“Let’s just drop it. I’ll take care of Johnny’s father in my own sweet time.”

“You’ve already wasted four years of two lives. If I was a father, I sure as hell would want to know, and would want to participate in raising my child.” Cody shook his head. “I don’t understand you, Laura.”

“Some guys are not like you,” Laura shouted, wondering where her anger came from.

“If the college dude doesn’t want Johnny, I’ll help you raise him. I’ll raise him as if he were my own.”

“And risk me losing him altogether because you have a criminal record for killing someone, even though you didn’t do it?” A fresh gathering of tears glinted in her eyes, and she closed them and let the tears fall. “It’s all such a big mess.”

“We can’t let anyone take Johnny away from you. We just can’t.”

She liked how he said “we,” but it was really all up to her. She had to handle her parents even more carefully now that Cody was out of prison.

Yes, it was all a big mess, and Laura wondered how to make things neat and tidy.

But that was impossible. They all were headed for a big explosion, and there’d be no turning back.

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