A Next Door Neighbor For The Cowboy Billionaire (Brookside Ranch Brothers Book 6)

by Hanna Hart

  “The reality of being a family wasn’t as exciting as Skylar’s imagination. You know, she met someone, and it was easier to walk away from Sutton, I guess because…” he trailed off.

  Madelyn nodded, still disgusted by Skylar’s behavior.

  Part of her was angry that this woman wouldn’t want to be the caretaker of her beautiful son but relieved all the same that Sutton didn’t have a different mother to look to. That meant Madelyn would slip into the role without confusion.

  “The truth is,” Jaxon began slowly. “Sutton isn’t Skylar’s. Or mine, biologically.”

  The admission sent a jolt of excitement through Madelyn’s body. “What do you mean?” she asked, trying her best to come off as sympathetically curious.

  Jaxon licked his lip and looked up toward the staircase that led to Sutton’s room. Lowering his voice, he admitted, “We adopted him.”

  “That’s amazing,” she said with a breath.

  “I don’t tell most people that, so…” he trailed off unsurely.

  “I’ll keep it to myself,” she assured him, rubbing her hand against his. “But really, I think it’s awesome. What inspired you to do that?”

  “My family is pretty open to adoption,” he said. “We have a couple blended families in our mix, so it was never weird to me. I’m not one of those people who goes ‘They have to have my DNA otherwise they aren’t mine,’ you know? So, when Skylar told me she couldn’t have kids, adoption seemed like the right way to go.”

  Madelyn nodded. What a strange set of events.

  Jaxon and Skylar had everything to do with Madelyn’s life, even though they had been strangers to her.

  If Jaxon hadn’t met Skylar, and Skylar hadn’t been reproductively challenged, then they never would have adopted Sutton, and maybe Madelyn never would have been reunited with her beautiful little boy.

  “Thankfully, Skylar’s name was never on the adoption papers, so it was never this big, complicated mess when we broke up,” Jaxon explained, then grimaced. “I guess that should have been a red flag for me at the time.”

  “Hindsight is twenty-twenty, as they say,” Madelyn said softly. “You’re lucky she didn’t, if you think about it.”

  “Yeah,” he nodded, avoiding her eyes.

  “What?”

  “Nothing,” he said, giving a one-shouldered shrug. “I feel kind of weird about mentioning it. Like I said, we didn’t really tell anybody about the adoption except for family. I don’t want you to think of my relationship with Sutton as different or less genuine somehow.”

  “Hey, you raised him from the very beginning,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.

  She was so grateful for all Jaxon had done for her. He’d begun to raise her child, he’d befriended her when she had been so lonely, and he was slowly stealing her heart. “You’re his dad and the only parent he truly knows,” she said. It was the truth.

  “Yeah,” he agreed reluctantly.

  “So, did you name Sutton, or...?”

  “It was the name he was born with,” he said. “There was no contact between the bio and adoptive parents except for one little note from the mother, asking if we could keep his name. I wouldn’t have changed it anyway. I love his name, and he already knew it, you know?”

  “Right,” she said, and her heart warmed. “So, you don’t know anything about the biological parents?”

  “No. The records were sealed. It was a completely private adoption. They don’t know us, and we don’t know them.”

  “You never tried to find anything out about them?” she asked, feeling the tingles of nerves running through the soles of her feet. “I’m sure with all of your wealth, you could have pulled it off.”

  “No,” he said with ease. “Honestly, the less I know about them, the better.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Just trust me,” he laughed. “I wouldn’t do well with knowing who they are. I mean, I’ve wondered about them, sure. I look at Sutton, and he’s so cute, and he has all of these little personality traits coming out and sometimes I wonder if he got such-and-such a thing from one of his bio-parents. But it’s not a great thought, is it?”

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “I mean, why would his parents give him up?” he queried, sending a guilty pang through Madelyn’s stomach. “Were they reckless teenagers? Drug addicts? Were they just selfish and didn’t want a kid? Did they struggle financially? No matter what the answer is, it always comes down to the parents not wanting my son. And what kind of person could give up Sutton?”

  “Your ex did,” she wanted to say spitefully. “And you loved her!”

  Instead, she said, “Sometimes life is complicated.”

  “I’d be happier not knowing, I think,” he reaffirmed.

  “Do you think you’ll ever tell him?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. I have a while before I have to think about things like that. He has no reason to ask, really,” he said.

  Madelyn smiled and gave a slight nod. She swirled her drink in her hand, running her thumb across a thick drop of condensation on the moist glass. “You don’t think any of your family members will ever say anything?”

  “I haven’t given it much thought,” he said. “And I mean, if he does ask, then I would be honest with him. There’s nothing about our situation that makes us any less family.”

  “No. You’re right,” she said honestly. “There isn’t.”

  13

  Jaxon

  Jaxon lived in a private neighborhood. It was gated without being pompous and had old ash trees that lined the sidewalks. The houses were old, but most had been renovated. It had a family feel to it that Jaxon had loved even before he had a son.

  He loved the feeling of security that came with being in a small, gated neighborhood. He loved knowing who his neighbors were.

  His younger sister Kennedy argued that getting to know your neighbors was “Weird. This isn’t the fifties!” But Jaxon disagreed. Having a community, as opposed to faceless neighbors, was exactly the kind of environment he wanted to raise Sutton in.

  He loved knowing the elderly couple two doors down with their beast of a malamute; he loved that he could go and play pool over at the house across the way with the middle-aged couple and their kids; he loved meeting Madelyn.

  If he hadn’t been a friendly neighbor, he wouldn’t have the most wonderful girl in the world as his girlfriend right now.

  Being in a small community made you more trusting. You knew nearly everyone in town, probably knew their entire history, and created a family-vibe for the town. But being in a tight-knit community also made you feel a little bit more suspicious of those around you.

  For example, the strange man lurking around Madelyn’s house. He was most definitely not a part of the Kerhonkson community, and frankly, the guy looked like he was up to no good.

  Jaxon watched the giant of a man from his front porch. The man walked around Madelyn’s entire house, peeked over the fence into her back yard, and even opened her mailbox to inspect a letter. At first, Jaxon wondered if perhaps the man was her father, but he looked nothing like how Madelyn had described him.

  “Hey, man, can I help you?” Jaxon asked as he walked up onto his neighbor’s property.

  The tall man turned to see him and gave a slight frown. “I’m looking for a girl. Dark hair. Works for the Lochlan Group?”

  “Lochlan Group?” Jaxon repeated with a raised brow.

  “Yeah, it’s a private investigative firm,” the man said, crashing Jaxon’s assumption that the Lochlan Group must have been the law firm Madelyn worked for. “You know anyone like that around here?”

  “No, can’t say that I do, sorry, man. This is a private neighborhood, though, and we have kids here, so…” Jaxon trailed off.

  “Oh! Yeah, sorry. I’m really sorry,” the man said, walking closer to Jaxon. “I just found out my wife went and hired some PI to follow me around. She’s gonna use whatever she finds against me—ta
ke the kids away. I just...” he trailed off in distress, rubbing his hand against his head. “I don’t know what I’m gonna do.”

  “That’s rough, man,” Jaxon nodded. “I’m sorry to hear it.”

  “I got word that it’s this Lochlan Group and some girl lives here and—”

  “Where are you from?” Jaxon interrupted.

  “The city.”

  “Ah,” he nodded. “And you think the PI lives here?”

  “That’s what I heard. I was just hoping I could talk some sense into her, maybe prevent her from taking this information to my wife, if she hasn’t yet.”

  Jaxon looked down at the man’s clenched fist. “Talking some sense into her” seemed to be the opposite of what he was after. He couldn’t imagine why this guy would think a private investigator for New York City would come live in the middle of nowhere in Kerhonkson.

  “Well, sorry to break it to you,” Jaxon began with an annoyed breath. He was done with this guy being in the community. “I know everyone in this neighborhood, man. No private eye’s here. We’ve got a preschool teacher, a few managers, a lawyer’s assistant, and a couple of financial-types, but no PIs.”

  “Yeah?” the man asked, suspicious. “You sure about that?”

  “Yeah man,” he nodded. “Sorry.”

  The man had fair blond hair and blond brows that looked nearly invisible. He looked young, maybe a couple of years older than Jaxon, but weathered. The stranger looked dubiously at Madelyn’s house. “Okay,” the man said slowly, the word dragging out with tones of disbelief. “Well then, I’m sorry I bothered you.”

  “It’s no problem,” Jaxon said. “Here, let me walk you out.”

  Jaxon made small talk with the man, work and weather, as he walked him to the outer gates of the neighborhood to make sure the man truly left the property.

  “I hope you find what you’re looking for,” Jaxon said by way of farewell.

  “Thanks,” the man nodded. “So do I.”

  The encounter unsettled him for the rest of the day. What tip could possibly have led him to this neighborhood? He shook his head, wondering how strange that man’s life must have seemed. To realize you were being followed and outed for cheating on your partner—to put your kid’s happiness in jeopardy. It must have been an exhausting life.

  Jaxon had plans with Madelyn the following day. He had been planning another outing at the ranch now that summer was in full swing. He couldn’t remember the last time he was this excited about anything.

  “Hey, you,” he said, greeting her with a kiss as she hopped into his car. “How was your day?”

  “It was good. I mostly did some paperwork this morning. Nothing to write home about.”

  Jaxon nodded. “Do you ever get to be in court for any of the cases you work on?”

  “No, not really. I just do desk work, mostly,” she smiled.

  “You head into the city a lot for someone who just does deskwork,” he said offhandedly as he pulled the car out of the neighborhood.

  She gave a wry smile and narrowed her eyes at him as she asked, “Are you spying on me?”

  “Never,” he said.

  “Yeah, I report to our firm in Manhattan sometimes since I’m a transfer from Boston and they don’t know me as well there.”

  “You should let me and Sutton tag along one day—let us show you the lay of the land in the city,” he offered.

  “Ah, but you’re such a good tour guide here in Kerhonkson,” she said.

  “Yeah, but we only have about three things to do here, and after that, I’m all tapped out. Not much of a tour guide.”

  “Alright,” she giggled. “Date night in the city it is. And what about now? Where are we headed?”

  “Today,” he announced, “will be a family day.”

  “Family day?”

  The way she repeated the words made Jaxon cringe inwardly. Had he overstepped a line? “Sorry, was that weird? I didn’t mean to imply that we were—”

  “No, it’s cute. I love that!” she giggled, turning to regard Sutton, who was fixed into his car seat. “I would be honored to be considered a part of the Brooks clan.”

  “I’m glad to hear you say that,” he said. “Because I have the perfect plan for us this evening.”

  “Dazzle me,” she grinned.

  “You, me, Sutton, out on the water. Then dinner. Then tonight, a concert under the stars.”

  Madelyn had once mentioned that she loved going to Waterplace Park in downtown Providence and rent canoes or kayaks. She told him how she would row through the Woonasquatucket River; how those were some of her favorite memories.

  Ever since hearing about it, he had been planning for a romantic night at his manmade ranch lake.

  The romance was sucked out of the event, however, when they approached the side of the canoe at the ranch and Sutton started pulling a temper tantrum, crying and refusing to get into the boat.

  There were elements of parenthood that were so good, then others that were downright embarrassing.

  The good: quiet moments with Sutton. Watching him sleep, playing, having him cuddle up against Jaxon, watching this little human being learning, understanding, and changing on a nearly weekly basis.

  The bad: being publicly embarrassed by ridiculous things like spilling juice, falling and screaming, telling strangers they are “funny looking.”

  And this—scream-crying because the water looks too high up against the sides of the boat.

  “Aw, come on, buddy; it’s not scary, I promise,” Madelyn said sweetly. Her voice was all sugar as she spoke to the little boy up on the dock. She held Sutton’s hand and pointed into the boat where Jaxon sat and said, “Look, your daddy is doing it.”

  “I’m not Daddy,” his son cried.

  “No, you’re Sutton. You’re your own kind of brave!” Madelyn cheered.

  Still, Sutton shook his head, crossed his arms, and said, “I don’t want to!”

  “Okay, okay,” Madelyn cooed, sitting down cross-legged on the dock and pulling Sutton into her arms. “Why don’t you tell me a story instead?”

  Sutton sniffled but seemed to perk up at this. “What kind of story?”

  “Tell me about one of your newest friends,” she said.

  Sutton looked down into the water at the fish that swam around—one of the reasons he had been so freaked out. They were large pond fish that scared the boy, though now, apparently, they were about to make an appearance in one of his tall tales.

  “I once heard a fish play piano, and he played loud, and his name was Keith,” Sutton said, wide-eyed.

  Madelyn smiled and winked privately at Jaxon. “Wow, and does he live in this pond?”

  “Yeah, I know him,” Sutton nodded, his tears forgotten.

  “Well, don’t you think he wants to say hi?” Madelyn urged.

  Sutton looked down into the water. “Yeah, I think so,” he said slowly.

  “Okay,” she said. “Then why don’t we get in the boat together, and I promise I’ll hold you so tight that nothing can happen to you.”

  Sutton nodded and smiled at Jaxon, visibly brightening. “Okay.”

  Crisis averted.

  The three of them rowed in the lake for over an hour, just talking and laughing together. The ranch was in full summer bloom. Watching Madelyn in the boat with Sutton on her lap, her dark hair wild and country, he had never seen her look happier—or more beautiful.

  For dinner, the three of them ate at the ranch wagon experience. Guests were pulled by old-fashioned horse-drawn wagons and taken into a clearing where beautiful tables had been set up. The guests were seated by a rushing river and would enjoy an authentic chuckwagon dinner.

  The dinners were all cooked over the fire and consisted of prime rib, chicken, corn, asparagus, and even fruit cobbler.

  There were banjo players and games, too. Horseshoes, of course, and other field favorites like soccer and bocce ball.

  After dinner was the main event—the concert. In the summe
r, every weekend at the ranch had a new musical guest. Some were local musicians and folksy artists. Other times, there would be big stars. The proceeds of each show went toward the charity of the artists choice, otherwise, they were sent to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

  Tonight, the special guest of honor was none other than Phoenix. He had been staying in New York at his brownstone for the last few weeks while he was finishing up the North American leg of his tour and agreed to come and play at Brookside.

  Jaxon was happy to see his brother and equally excited for Madelyn to meet someone from his family. He would be happy for Phoenix to bring news back to his mother that her youngest boy was dating again—not entirely crushed and consumed by Skylar’s departure.

  “Is it okay if I introduce you as my girlfriend?” he asked in a whisper as they began walking up to his brother and sister-in-law, Miranda.

  “Of course!” she said with a giggle.

  And so, he did.

  “I hear you’re going to be putting on a heck of a show,” Madelyn said once they had been formally introduced.

  “It’s not every day I get to perform for my nephew,” Phoenix said, affectionately reaching over and brushing Sutton’s cheek with his fingers.

  “No, but if he could, he’d have them running his fan club,” Jaxon teased.

  Madelyn grinned. “Ah, I see. You don’t make new fans; you just wait for your gigantic family to birth more for you.”

  Phoenix let out an amused breath and gave Jaxon a pointed look. “She’s perfect for you,” he said.

  Jaxon met Madelyn’s eyes and smiled. “I think so, too.”

  “Can I take him for the first song?” Miranda asked, reaching her arms out for Sutton.

  “Of course,” Jaxon said.

  His brother nodded toward Miranda and mused, “She misses the girls when we’re away.”

  “Don’t they go with you when you tour?” Jaxon asked, and his brother nodded.

  “Yeah, Mom has ‘em for a few weeks this summer.”

  “And you’re letting them be brainwashed, just like that?” Jaxon laughed, and his brother rolled his eyes.