Carolyne Aarsen - A Father in the Making

Chapter Four

“Josh, Nico, we’ve got to get going.” Mia gave Grace’s face a quick wipe as she called up the stairs to the bedrooms above. Though Nico couldn’t talk, nothing was wrong with his hearing and Mia knew he was playing upstairs in his bedroom.

While she set Grace beside Jennifer, Josh meandered down the stairs. His hair was still neatly combed and, thank goodness, his clothes were still clean.

“Josh, honey, can you speed it up a little?” Mia tried to keep her impatience from seeping into her voice as she stuffed a couple of diapers into the diaper bag that doubled as a purse and swung it over her shoulder. “We have a long drive ahead of us.”

Ben Brouwer had pulled a bunch of strings, called in some favors and got her an appointment with the specialist today at 11:00 a.m. in Cranbrook, a fifty-minute drive away. “Is Nico coming?” she asked Josh as she picked up both twins.

“He’s not here,” he said in a matter-of-fact voice. “He went outside when you were in the bathroom. When you were changing Grace.”

Panic streaked through her. There was a creek on the ranch. Nico loved water.

She charged outside, Grace and Jennifer bobbing on each hip, Josh barely keeping up with her. Her panicked gaze swept the yard when she got to the van. All she saw was buildings and fences. All she heard was the soft breeze in the trees surrounding the farmhouse. Denny was off to work and Evangeline had taken Ella to town for a doctor’s appointment.

“Did he say where he was going?” Mia asked, setting Jennifer in one car seat, clipping her in one-handed.

“He’s not talking, remember?” Josh said, giving her a frown.

Her mind raced as she ran around the other side of the van, secured Grace in the car seat and plopped a pacifier in her mouth.

“You stay here, sweetie,” she said to Josh. “And don’t move. Mommy is going to look for Nico.”

Thankfully, Josh just shrugged, got into his booster seat and started playing the handheld Nintendo he’d found in the house.

She left the door of the van open as she called Nico’s name, her voice sounding shriller each time.

“Nico. Where are you?” She called again, desperation filling her voice. Dear Lord, don’t let him be by the creek, she prayed, one hand on her chest as she ran across the yard. Please let him be okay.

She paused a moment, listening again for something.

“He’s over here.”

Nate’s voice. Coming from the barn beside the horse corrals.

Relief mixed with concern blended with a touch of anger. Why hadn’t Nate brought him to the house?

She stepped into the barn, momentarily blinded as her eyes adjusted to the darker interior.

She blinked, looking around and then she saw Nico. He sat on the floor of the barn, leaning against the wall, stroking Socks’s head. The dog’s ears perked up when Mia came close and his brown eyes studied her, but he didn’t leave Nico’s side. Nor did Nico look up at her, his hand slowly stroking over the dog’s head again and again.

Mia pushed her hand against her still-racing heart. A door creaked and Nate came out of a stall, looking surprised to see her there. “You okay?” he asked, his voice still hoarse from yesterday’s smoke.

His hair was neatly brushed and his cheeks still seemed to shine from his recent shave. He wore a tan shirt today and clean blue jeans. If possible he looked even better than he had yesterday.

“Yeah. No problem. Just fine,” she said with a dismissive wave of her hand, but she couldn’t stifle her concern at the sight of her son here. Nico didn’t bond quickly with people. His connection with Nate, though understandable, was worrisome, especially after listening to Denny talk about him last night. Turned out Nate was a loner who worked as a ranch hand over the winters and ran the cutting horse circuit all summer. A free spirit. Disconnected.

Certainly not the kind of man she could allow her children to become attached to. Especially not Nico.

“I didn’t know Nico was here. I’ve been looking for him.” Her panic was slowly being replaced by annoyance. “I’m leaving for a doctor’s appointment in Cranbrook in a few minutes.” She glanced at Nico, who seemed to be ignoring her. But she knew from the way his hand slowed its rhythmic petting of the dog that he hung on every word they spoke.

“Sorry. I didn’t know,” Nate said, closing the stall door behind him and latching it shut. “I would have sent him back to the house otherwise.”

“I would appreciate it if you could do that next time he comes out here,” Mia said, her request coming out more sharply than she intended.

“Sure. I get that.” Nate reached for some lengths of rope and sat down on a nearby hay bale between her and Nico. “You heard your mom, sport,” he said, addressing her son as he started to braid the three strands together. “You shouldn’t come out here unless your mother knows.”

“That’s not what I was getting at.” Mia lifted her head to hold Nate’s dark gaze. For the tiniest moment an unexpected combination of fear and attraction thrilled through her.

Too easily she recalled how it had felt to be held by him. That surprising feeling of safety and support she hadn’t experienced in a long, long time.

She swallowed and looked away, suppressing the foolish reaction, then squatted down in front of Nico. “Honey, we have to go. I need to be in Cranbrook in an hour.”

Nico raised his head to hold her eyes for a scant second then shifted them to Nate, as if seeking his approval.

Mia fought down her agitation, aware of the other kids waiting in the van. The importance of making the specialist appointment hung over her like a cloud, yet right now she had to tread cautiously with her son.

So she placed her finger under his chin, to make him turn his eyes back to her. Thankfully, he gave in right away and she eased off. “Sweetheart, I know it’s nice to be here with Socks,” she said, forcing herself to talk quietly. Slowly. Deflect the focus of his trip to the barn from Nate to the dog. “I know you love dogs, but right now Jennifer and Grace and Josh are waiting for us and I don’t want Jennifer to start crying because she misses us.”

Nico blinked and he opened his mouth and for a heart-stopping moment Mia thought he would speak. But his mouth worked, open and shut, but nothing. When she saw the shimmer of tears in his eyes, she drew him close. “Oh, sweetie, it’s okay. You’re safe.”

She stifled her fear at how close she had come to losing him. But she couldn’t stop herself from looking up at Nate, who watched them through narrowed eyes as his hands worked the rope.

He put the rope aside, crouched down beside Nico and laid his large hand on the boy’s shoulder. “You should go with your mother, buddy. She needs your help right now.”

Nico sniffed, nodded and then scrambled to his feet. He gave Nate a curt nod and, without another glance at Mia, left the barn, Socks trotting along behind him.

Though Mia was thankful for Nate’s assistance it bothered her that Nico responded to Nate more than he had to her.

“Thanks for that,” Mia said as she got up.

“Just trying to help,” he said, holding his hands up in apology.

“I know that and I appreciate it.” She hesitated, torn between her need to get going and her need to draw boundaries for her children.

Then he started coughing and her resolve wavered as she was reminded of what he had risked for the sake of her son.

He’s not the kind of man you can let your children connect with. His leaving will cause Nico and Josh too much pain.

Annoying as she was, sometimes Other Mother was right.

“You know that I can’t thank you enough for saving Nico’s life,” she started, watching as Nico stepped into the van.