The Rancher's Secret Child

by Brenda Minton

  Marcus shrugged out of his raincoat. “I hate rain.”

  “But you hate it more when we’re going through a drought and everything dries up.” Alex sat sideways on the seat of the ATV. “So, when are you going to tell me about your kid?”

  “I guess I kind of thought it wasn’t any of your business.”

  “Really? I’m your brother. Your twin. It seems to me I’d be the person most likely to listen if you need to talk. You had to know that everyone in town would be talking about how much that little boy looks like you.”

  “I guess I hadn’t thought about it. And no need to analyze my mental condition, brother, I’m fine.”

  “Of course you’re fine. But you have a son. That’s huge.”

  “Yeah, it is.” He sat there thinking about Oliver. “He seems like a pretty great kid. And I don’t want to mess that up for him.”

  “I get that. But we don’t always get to choose how things work out,” Alex responded. “Well, we should make a run for the house before the rain picks up again.”

  “You can head home. I’ll do the rest of this myself. I’m sure you want to see Marissa.” Alex’s wife of five months. He’d found her standing on the side of the road in a wedding dress. She was a little bitty thing, but fierce, and she’d convinced Alex to give up his single ways. They’d married in December, a year after they’d first met.

  Alex wasn’t Marcus. As kids they’d been different as night and day. The same went for the two of them as adults. Alex thought things out and let things go. Marcus had always battled it out and held on to his anger. When it came to their father, Alex had tried to reason. He’d searched to find ways to solve their problems. Conversely, Marcus had gone at Jesse and he’d paid physically for his efforts.

  Marcus’s phone buzzed. He glanced at the unfamiliar number and answered. “Marcus Palermo.”

  “Marcus, Guy Phipps here. We’ve got a car in the ditch just south of the old crossroads bridge.”

  “Who is it?” He glanced at his brother. Alex had moved closer, pulling out his phone as he did. Probably worrying about his wife. Or their sister Lucy. Even Maria, if she was on her way home from college. She’d begun her summer break just a few days ago and planned on heading home.

  “Not from around here. Name is...” Guy paused. “Name’s Lissa Hart. She’s got a little boy with her. She said to call you.”

  He took a deep breath and made eye contact with Alex, who now appeared worried. “Are they hurt?”

  “Nothing serious. Doc is here. He’s checking her shoulder. The little guy might have bumped his head.” Guy paused again. In the background, Marcus heard sirens.

  It shook him. Marcus could willingly get on the biggest and meanest bulls in the country, a ton of pure rage and power. It might get his adrenaline going, but it didn’t shake him. It didn’t make him feel weak as a kitten and helpless to do anything.

  “Guy, are they taking them to the hospital? Do I need to meet them somewhere?” Marcus glanced at Alex, who had followed as he walked away, wanting privacy, wanting to put on a mask, as if this didn’t matter. Alex wore a worried expression and Marcus knew his own would match. The two of them might be different, but they were the same. The twin thing wasn’t just a myth.

  He knew Alex would feel his concern. And from that troubled look in his dark eyes, Marcus understood Alex felt his brother’s guilt. He’d sent the kid away. He didn’t know how to be a dad, so he had sent his son on down the road in the middle of a torrential rainstorm with floods predicted. Proof that he didn’t deserve to be a parent. He wasn’t any better than his own father, putting his own feelings ahead of the safety of a child.

  And Lissa. He hadn’t given her a second thought once he’d said his goodbyes. At least, he’d told himself he wasn’t going to give her a second thought. It counted, that he’d intended to forget her. But even now, those blue eyes of hers triggered a memory. She’d challenged him to care. For his son.

  Few people got away with challenging him. Few people had the backbone for it.

  On the other end of the line the first responder was giving him information. He had to focus. “Doc said he’s going to drive them back to his office if you want to meet him there. The boy is asking for you. He’s a tough kid.” There was a smile in the first responder’s voice.

  “Put him on the phone.” Marcus waited and pretty soon a hiccup over the phone told him Oliver was there and fighting tears. “Hey, little man. You okay?”

  “I hit my head.”

  “I bet that hurt.”

  “It did. They said I wasn’t uncon...uncon...” He sounded like a boy trying to be brave.

  “Unconscious?” Marcus supplied.

  “Yeah. So I’m okay.”

  “Nothing else hurts?”

  “Nope,” Oliver said on a sniffle.

  “Is Lissa okay?”

  More sniffling and then, “Yeah, I think. She says her shoulder hurts. She’s not crying, though. Doc said she’s tougher than a bull rider. I think you’re a bull rider.”

  “I am a bull rider,” Marcus told his son. His son. “Listen, I’m going to see you in a few minutes. You’re tough. You’ve got this.”

  “Yeah, I’m tough.” The boy sounded like he meant to convince himself.

  “I’ll be there in a few minutes, so you keep being tough and you take care of Lissa. She’s not as tough as she’s pretending to be.”

  He ended the call.

  “Let’s go,” Alex said. “I’ll drive.”

  “I can drive. I want to grab a couple of blankets from the house.” Marcus headed for his truck.

  “They’re fine,” Alex called out to him. “If they were in bad shape, Doc would send them to Killeen.”

  “I know that.” Marcus opened his truck door and found his keys in the ignition. Alex climbed in on the other side.

  “You should take your keys out.”

  “Yeah, I know. But spare me the lectures.”

  “So you don’t want me to tell you that you care about this kid and you shouldn’t let him walk away?” Alex reached to turn up the heat.

  “I want you to stay out of my business.”

  Alex gave him a thumbs-up. “Right.”

  “Don’t talk.”

  His twin zipped his lips.

  Marcus might have grinned at the ridiculous gesture, but he didn’t have an ounce of humor in him. He had sent his kid away in this weather. His reckless decision had put Oliver and Lissa in danger.

  It took fifteen minutes to get to the scene of the accident.

  Flashing lights and scattered emergency vehicles lined the road. Marcus pulled behind a first responder and got out. The rain had picked back up. He saw Lissa sitting in Doc Parker’s car. Oliver sat huddled against her, his face pale and a bandage over the right side of his forehead. Doc leaned in talking to them.

  The car she’d been driving now sat on the back of a tow truck. The driver’s side was dented and the tires on the passenger’s side were flat. Alex said something to him about seeing where they would tow the car.

  When Marcus appeared behind Doc, Oliver noticed first and big tears rolled down his cheeks. Marcus pushed away memories of his sister looking much the same way. He hadn’t been able to help Lucy, but he could help Oliver. At least for today he could handle things and make sure the child wasn’t frightened and didn’t feel alone.

  And then he made eye contact with Lissa and he could see in her blue eyes that she was being strong for Oliver. He recognized the flicker of pain that flashed across her features, tightening the lines around her mouth. But she managed a smile as she raised her left hand in a half-hearted wave.

  “The roads are a mess,” she informed him with a hint of humor in her voice.

  “Yeah, I’ve heard.” He leaned against the side of the car. “How are they, Doc?”

  �
�Oh, not too bad all things considered. I think Miss Hart has a dislocated shoulder. Actually, she’s a nurse and that’s her diagnosis. I would concur. Mr. Oliver has a good bump on his head, but I think he’s okay. I’ll take them back to my office. We’ll get that shoulder back in place and I’ll turn them over to you.”

  Turn them over to him? He started to object. He was the last person they should be relying on. But Oliver looked happy with the news. And Lissa Hart looked...relieved?

  * * *

  Lissa kept her left arm around Oliver. Her right arm she kept at her side. Every bump jostled it and sent a shooting pain to her shoulder. She cringed and Oliver snuggled closer.

  “It’s okay,” she encouraged, trying to smile.

  “Marcus is going to be with us.” Oliver said it with satisfaction, as if Marcus Palermo solved all of their problems.

  The way she looked at it, Marcus was just another problem. He was too handsome. He was too much of a loner. He didn’t need or want anyone in his life. And the little boy sitting next to her wanted and needed a father. He would have to be told the truth, and when that happened, she knew he would want to stay with Marcus.

  “I know he is going to be there.” She bit down on her lip as they hit a few potholes. The first responder had warned her that a ride with Doc Parker could be worse than the accident. She now understood the warning.

  The car stopped at what appeared to be an abandoned convenience store. “What is this?”

  Doc had already gotten out and was opening the door to help her. “My office.”

  “Oh.”

  “Don’t worry, it’s better than it looks. I know, an RN like yourself, you’re used to city clinics and hospitals. This serves us just fine.”

  “I’m sure it does.” She eased herself out of the car and waited for Oliver. He had been so brave, but he now had big tears in his eyes. One broke loose and slid down his cheek. He swiped it away and managed a fierce look.

  “Are you okay, sweetheart?” She leaned close to the little boy.

  He nodded and sniffed away the tears. “I’m good. I’m going to be a bull rider someday. Like Marcus. So I have to be tough.”

  She wanted to sigh at that revelation. Oliver needed male role models. That was all. He was attaching himself to Marcus not because of the connection but because he represented everything a kid like Oliver wanted. Marcus was tough. He had lived an exciting life. He was a world champion. Of course Oliver wanted to be like him.

  Doc cleared his throat as he looked from her to the little boy. “We’d best get you inside and put that shoulder back in the socket. Marcus will be here any minute. He just had a hard time keeping up with me.” The last was said with a grin and, she thought, a bit of misplaced pride.

  He led them through a dismally decorated waiting room to a small exam room. Lissa gave Oliver what she hoped to be a reassuring look.

  “Oliver, do you want to sit out in the waiting room? I bet Dr. Parker has a book you can look at.”

  Doc rubbed a hand through thinning gray hair. “Books. Yes, I should have books. I keep meaning to get more. I have young ones that come in and books are something they love to take home with them. I can’t deny a child a book. And it’s Doc, not Dr. Parker.”

  He walked away mumbling about books and toys and a shopping list. Oliver followed him out of the exam room, leaving Lissa alone. She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer. For her shoulder. For the doctor. And for the situation with Marcus and Oliver.

  Her peace was short-lived. She heard male voices from the waiting room. Doc’s more gentle voice resonated through the door. She couldn’t make out his words. There were footsteps in the hall, a door closed, more talking. She heard Oliver telling them about how hard he hit his head and that he was sure he must have a headache. She smiled at his matter-of-fact assessment of his condition. He was fine, she assured herself. He wouldn’t be talking and laughing if he wasn’t okay.

  And then the door opened and Marcus Palermo charged through, looking ragged and worn. Without greeting her, he took off his hat and hung it on a hook. He brushed a hand through curly, dark hair and then he seemed to remember her presence.

  “What happened?”

  “I’m fine, thank you. So is Oliver.” She didn’t have the patience for overbearing, take-charge men.

  “I’m sorry—” he shook his head “—I shouldn’t have let you leave in this weather.”

  “You didn’t have a choice. I’m an adult and I made the decision.” She grimaced as a hot flash of pain hit her shoulder, payment for what should have been a carefree shrug.

  “It wasn’t safe,” he said as he took a seat on the rolling stool next to the exam table.

  “I’m twenty-eight. I know how to drive in the rain. Could you please go sit with Oliver? He’s alone. I don’t want him to be alone.” She also didn’t want to be told what she could or couldn’t do. Her short relationship with Troy Larson had taught her that there was a fine line between a caring man who wanted to spend time with a woman and a controlling jerk who didn’t trust her out of his sight.

  “Oliver isn’t alone. He’s with Doc and my brother, Alex.” He pinned her with his dark gaze. “Doc said your shoulder is dislocated.”

  “Yes. It’s happened before and it isn’t too bad this time. I’m more worried about Oliver. If you could sit with him. Make sure he isn’t nauseated. Watch that his speech doesn’t slur.”

  The door opened and Doc stepped inside the cramped room with the green carpet and mustard-yellow walls. He glanced at his watch and then at her.

  “Well, young lady, let’s get this shoulder taken care of so we don’t miss lunch. Essie has the best enchiladas on Tuesdays.”

  She nodded toward the door. “Cowboy, you should go. This isn’t going to be pleasant.”

  Doc cackled at her warning. “You think I haven’t reset a bone or two for these boys? Marcus could probably set this shoulder with his eyes closed. He only lets me do it because he’s polite. Shy, quiet type, you know.”

  She closed her eyes and nodded. “Yes, he is quiet.”

  “Well, I can’t fix everything,” Doc said softly. She wondered what he meant by that. “Now, let me see.”

  He felt her shoulder and then gently rotated her arm. She took a deep breath, knowing what would come next. Still, she wasn’t prepared. Not for the bolt of lightning-deep pain or the arm that encircled her, holding her steady. Marcus smelled of rain, soap and aftershave, the kind of spicy scent that made a girl think of mountains and lakes. For a brief moment it took her mind off the pain in her shoulder. He was strong. Definitely the kind of guy a girl could lean on. But just for a moment.

  Doc handed her a couple of pills and a glass of water. “I’m sorry about that. No way to do it without causing a lot of hurt. I’m going to put some ice on your shoulder and we’ll put that arm in a sling. I guess you’ll know when it’s time to start exercising it a bit. And I guess I don’t have to tell you not to drive. From the looks of your car, it won’t be going anywhere for a while.”

  She briefly closed her eyes. “I need to call my insurance. I can get a rental.”

  “That won’t be possible.” Marcus gave her a sympathetic look. Maybe a grimace. She wasn’t sure. “Not only is your car totaled but the bridge is going to be under water.”

  “I’m not sure what to do,” she admitted as the full impact of the situation hit home.

  “For now you stay put.” Marcus’s voice, soft and raspy, had an edge to it. And she got it. He wasn’t any happier about this than she was. He probably thought he’d seen the last of her.

  Doc cleared his throat. “If I might be so bold, Essie is in the waiting room. She heard about the accident on the scanner and she came right over. She’s a bit nosy. But she’s ready to take you to her place.”

  “Doc, could we have a minute alone?” Marcus asked.

 
“You and me?” Doc didn’t show a hint of amusement, but a knowing twinkle lit his eyes.

  “Doc,” Marcus’s tone held a warning.

  Lissa cringed. Controlling men. They were all the same. When he’d dated Sammy, had he asked her where she was going? Who she was going with? When she would call him?

  Doc looked from one to the other of them and sighed. “Right, I’ll go check on that young man of yours.”

  Lissa watched Doc slip through the door, closing it tightly behind him. Marcus pinched the bridge of his nose.

  “Stay with Aunt Essie,” he said finally. “The flooding is going to be worse. The next few days could get pretty bad. You obviously can’t drive with your right arm in a sling.”

  Stay. She knew that this was the fork in the road. There were many in life, and this time the choice was hers and it would affect not only her life but Oliver’s. And Marcus’s.

  “Fine, I’ll stay. But I have conditions.”

  “Name your price.”

  She shook her head at the reference to money. “There is no price. I’m not after money. I’m after your time, Marcus. While we are here, you have to spend time with Oliver. And at some point we have to tell him that you’re his father.”

  “I don’t know how to be a father.”

  Of course he didn’t. But what man did? It happened to everyone. People decided to have children. They became parents. It wasn’t as if they knew how to do it beforehand. It was on-the-job training.

  “Maybe you don’t know how, but you’ll learn. I’ll be here and I can help.”

  A muscle ticked in his jaw. “That’s a lot to put on a man who, until you showed up, hadn’t planned on having a family. Ever.”

  “I understand. But you do have a son. He’s sitting in that waiting room and he thinks you’re the best thing ever.”

  “He’s a good kid,” Marcus said softly in his gruff way. She realized now it wasn’t that he was gruff. It was his voice.

  “Yes, he is.”

  She sighed, knowing the decision she had to make, and knowing that it meant eventually losing Oliver to this man, his father. “I have vacation time,” she told him. “I’ll give you three weeks to get this figured out. And I’ll help you as much as I can. But I don’t want to lose Oliver, either.” And she hoped that in the end she wouldn’t lose him, not completely.