Still, the rodeo world was a small one, and he’d learned of Leah’s unexpected passing after a short and intense battle with breast cancer. The news had startled him, and left him empty for weeks. Had that been why she’d refused his phone calls?
“Thank you for your condolences,” Mariana said tightly. “It’s been a difficult three months.”
“I didn’t know Leah had a sister. She never mentioned you.”
Truthfully, they hadn’t talked much during those three days. He’d naturally assumed they’d get to know each other over time, only that hadn’t happened. Eventually, he’d written off the weekend as one of those temporary rodeo hookups, the kind he generally avoided.
“I’m not surprised.” Mariana reached into the leather purse she’d set on the table. “Leah didn’t tell you a lot of things.” She extracted a snapshot and handed it across the table to Jacob.
He took the photo, his gaze drawn to the laughing face of a young boy. “I don’t understand. Who is this?” He started to return the photo.
Mariana held up her hand. “Keep it.”
“Why?”
“That’s Cody Snow. Your son.”
For a moment, Jacob sat immobile, his mind rebelling. He hadn’t been careless. He’d asked and Leah swore she was on birth control pills.
“You’re mistaken. I don’t have a son.”
“Yes, you do. And with my sister gone, you’re his one remaining parent.”
The photo slipped from Jacob’s fingers and landed on the table, the boy’s laughing face staring up at him.
*
FRANKLY, MARIANA WAS surprised Jacob had agreed to let her drive him home to Dallas. She’d suggested it when the band started playing and conversation became difficult over the noise. She’d give him credit for that. A lot of men might have run the instant she’d pulled out the picture of her nephew.
“I’m parked over here.” She pointed to the very last row in the dirt parking lot.
He’d just gotten off the phone with one of his brothers, letting them know he’d be, as he put it, hitching a ride back to Dallas with her. That was all he’d told them, and the message had been delivered through clenched teeth.
She didn’t blame him. It was a lot to take in. She hadn’t expected him to leap with joy when she sprang the news on him. His willingness to discuss her nephew was actually more than she’d anticipated. Though talk was cheap, as Mariana well knew.
“I apologize for ambushing you at the rodeo and in front of your family,” she said. “It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. I was visiting a client here in Shreveport. When I found out you were competing today, I decided to try and find you.”
“Did you think I’d refuse to meet you somewhere else?”
“The thought did occur to me,” she admitted. “Or that you wouldn’t come alone.” He was a member of a powerful and influential family, one that employed an army of attorneys and advisers.
“I’m not agreeing to anything without DNA testing.”
“Of course.”
Mariana had taken her sister’s word that Jacob Baron was Cody’s father. While unlikely, it was possible Leah had slept with more than one man. As Mariana only recently learned, her sister had been insistent on getting pregnant. Jacob required proof, and she understood that. Were he her client, she’d advise the exact same thing.
Reaching into the side pocket of her purse for her keys, she stumbled when her heel caught in a small hole. These shoes were definitely not made for traipsing across rodeo grounds. Not that she owned a single pair of boots.
Feeling a steadying hand on her elbow, she turned and muttered, “Thank you.”
Jacob let his hand linger. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. Really.” Her ankle did twinge a bit. The sensation was overshadowed by the tingle his touch evoked and the look of appreciation in his eyes. That had startled her more than the stumble.
Withdrawing her arm, she attempted a smile. He was simply being a gentleman, right? Cowboys were like that. Old-fashioned and mannerly. At least, most of the ones who’d traveled in and out of her sister’s life were. The same could be said for their father. That was part of his charm and why the ladies loved him.
All the ladies. Even the ones he took up with while he was still married to Mariana’s mother.
She depressed the button on her key fob, and her headlights flashed in greeting as the door locks popped open. The Infiniti was a recent purchase. She’d decided if she wanted to make junior partner, she needed to look like a junior partner.
Jacob opened the driver’s side door for her. It was on the tip of her tongue to object. This wasn’t a date. She refrained, however. He was surely just being polite. Cowboys, she thought with a sigh.
As they bumped and bounced out of the dirt parking lot, Mariana worried about the paint on her car. What had she been thinking, coming here at the last second? The signs in town advertising the rodeo had been too tempting to resist. More so when a quick phone call confirmed Jacob was competing.
“You mentioned visiting a client. What is it you do?” He didn’t appear to mind the rocky ride. Neither did he wince with each scraping sound.
“I’m an attorney with Hasbrough and Colletti.”
“Ah.” He instantly closed down, as if a steel door slammed shut between them.
“I assure you, I’m not after your money. This is no scam or blackmail scheme. I’m concerned only for my nephew and what’s best for him.”
“Right.”
Mariana took his reaction in stride. She was an attorney, after all, and used to it. Those in her profession were frequently the answer to someone’s prayers or their worst nightmare.
They approached the main road, and she released a pent-up breath. Without thinking, she reached out and gave the dash a there-there pat. Jacob raised one eyebrow but said nothing. Once they were on the main road and traffic eased, she was able to concentrate.
“Perhaps I should start at the beginning,” she said.
“Please do.”
“I didn’t know who Cody’s father was until right before the doctors put Leah on life support. She never told anyone that I know of. I think she believed she could beat the cancer. She did once before, four years ago, and our mother’s a survivor.”
“I didn’t realize.”
A small, painful lump formed in Mariana’s throat. She swallowed before speaking. “Leah gave me your name but begged me not to tell you until Cody was eighteen. She didn’t want your money, Mr. Baron. Only to be a mother.”
“Call me Jacob. And why are you telling me rather than respecting her wishes?”
“That’s a very long story.” And Mariana wasn’t about to delve into her daddy issues with a complete stranger. “In a nutshell, I believe it’s the right thing. Legally and morally. You have a son and should be allowed a role in his life. He deserves all the benefits a father can provide.”
“A role?”
“However great or small a role you choose.”
With his schedule, she doubted he’d want more than every other weekend, if that. Didn’t rodeo cowboys like him want their freedom? That was what her father told her mother right before he walked out on them.
“Noble of you.” Jacob’s voice rang with suspicion.
“We’ve just met. You have no reason to trust me. Especially with the bombshell I’ve just dropped.”
“Bombshell, yeah,” he said drily.
“But you will see soon enough that my intentions are indeed noble.”
“I’m guessing Leah named you as his guardian or something.”
“She did. She also put your name as father on Cody’s birth certificate. You’re his legal father. DNA testing will reveal if you’re his biological father, as well.”
“You say she told you right before she was put on life support?”
“Yes. The circumstances were grave. I don’t think she was lying.”
Jacob leaned his head back and rubbed a spot on his forehead as
if it throbbed.
Mariana was momentarily struck by his ruggedly handsome profile, which was not at all like her. Broad shoulders didn’t sway her. Neither did dark, penetrating eyes and a mouth that could only be described as sexy.
Had she really just thought that? Yes, she had, and she needed to stop right this second. It wasn’t easy. Jacob drew her glance like a magnet.
He’d been smiling when she first spotted him at the rodeo, and to her chagrin, her heart had given a small leap. He was staring out the windshield now, and his intense expression was nearly as captivating as his smile. No wonder Leah had chosen Jacob to father her child.
Probably best not to bring up that little tidbit. Hard enough learning he was a father. Finding out Leah had used him merely as a sperm donor...well, it wasn’t necessary and was too risky. She didn’t want to give him a reason to abandon Cody entirely. Her conscience wouldn’t let her.
Running a background check on Jacob wasn’t something Mariana had immediately done once Leah revealed his name. Rather, she and her mother had stayed by Leah’s side as the machines kept her alive. They’d said their goodbyes, made their peace and let her hold Cody in the crook of her frail arm. Her eventual passing was poignant and gut-wrenching.
With it also came a certain amount of relief. Leah was no longer in pain. After a small but moving memorial service, Mariana became the mother figure in Cody’s life. It was a role she’d gladly fulfill indefinitely.
Depending on what Jacob wanted to do, it was also a role she might be forced to give up. Mariana had wrestled over telling him for weeks.
She and her sister had never agreed on a father’s responsibility toward his children. Leah believed as their mother did: a man was unnecessary and would ultimately break your heart. Mariana felt the complete opposite. Fathers had a moral responsibility to their children as well as a fiscal one. Her profession only reinforced that in her mind.
Shortly after the memorial service, she began accumulating information on Jacob. No way would she allow him visitation, much less share custody of her nephew, should he be unfit.
Jacob certainly had the means to support a son. He was from a wealthy family, was college educated, held a good position as senior safety manager at Baron Energies’ largest drill site—though she was surprised he wasn’t further up the food chain—owned his own home and was, by all accounts, an upstanding citizen.
He had only one fault in her opinion, and it was a doozy. Rodeoing. Besides the frequent nomadic lifestyle, there were also buckle bunnies. A man with Jacob’s good looks was bound to have a vast following, though from Mariana’s research, he didn’t avail himself.
Except, apparently, for her sister. Though by her own admission, Leah had misled him.
Mariana’s sense of right and wrong had eventually prevailed, and she decided to approach Jacob. She just hadn’t planned on it being today. Maybe she should have curbed her impulses when those signs for the rodeo appeared.
“Please don’t feel that I’m pressuring you into anything,” she said to him. “We’ll take this one step at a time at whatever speed you’re comfortable.”
“If he is my son, I’ll do the right thing.”
“Good. We’re in agreement on that.”
Mariana didn’t jump for joy. She’d heard fathers make similar statements before, then go back on their word. If that happened, she was prepared to raise Cody herself. More than prepared, she was happy to. She loved her nephew.
She turned from the road onto the freeway. It had grown dark since they left the rodeo grounds. Jacob’s face was cast in shadows. Mariana allowed herself to relax. She wouldn’t be distracted by him for the remainder of the trip home.
“What’s the first step?” he asked, the edge in his voice unmistakable. “Meeting him?”
“We start with the DNA testing. I can give you the name of a facility my firm uses. It’s downtown, not far from Baron Energies’ offices. Or we can use one of your own choosing.”
“Is there one in southwest Dallas? The farther south and west the better. I can drive over at lunch tomorrow.”
He wanted a facility near the drill site where he worked. That made sense.
“If you give me your phone number when I drop you off, I’ll research a location and text you the info tomorrow morning after I arrange for the testing. You can go in at your convenience. But if you’d be kind enough to let me know when you do, I’d appreciate it.”
“Okay.”
“It’s a very simple and quick procedure.”
“How long? For the results,” he clarified.
“Five to seven business days. You’ll be notified by email when the results are available and—”
“Okay,” he said again in a tone that clearly implied he was through discussing the testing.
Again, she cut him some slack. This was an enormous amount to process. She must be patient.
Several minutes of silence followed, after which he asked, “Then what?”
“If the results are positive, we can set up a meeting for you and Cody.”
“Who’s taking care of him now? Seeing as you’re here.”
That wasn’t a question she’d expected from him. “He’s in day care during the week when I’m at work. Today, my mother’s watching him. She lives in Austin and drives up every other weekend.”
“How does she feel about this? You telling me.”
Another unexpected question. Mariana relied on the skills she acquired as an attorney to maintain her composure and smiled. “She doesn’t know.”
“She doesn’t approve.”
Jacob was obviously more astute than she’d first thought.
“She loves Cody very much, and he’s all she has left of Leah.” The painful lump returned, forcing Mariana to wait before speaking. “I decided not to tell her until you and I had talked and the DNA results are in. Why upset the apple cart for no reason?”
Several more minutes of silence passed. Mariana was ready to spend the remainder of the ride with only her own thoughts for company when Jacob spoke softly from the darkness.
“Tell me about him. Cody. What’s he’s like?”
For the first time since she’d approached him on the rodeo midway, she began to think Jacob might have an interest in Cody.
She described her charming yet headstrong nephew until the next exit on the freeway, when Jacob’s lack of response caused her earlier doubts to return. If he turned out to be like Mariana’s father, then poor little Cody would be the one to pay the price.
Chapter Two The noise was constant and nearly deafening, even with earplugs. Jacob didn’t remove the small foam devices until he was far from the drill site, stuffing them into the front pocket of his work shirt. He could still hear the rig and the generators grinding in the distance. Sometimes, he thought he could hear them in his sleep.
His hard hat came off next, and he ran fingers through his perpetually damp hair. The drill site was in a constant state of sweltering, summer, winter, spring and fall. In addition to noise, the massive drill gave off enormous amounts of heat. Today, Mother Nature added to their discomfort by providing unseasonably warm weather for early November.
Jacob opened the door to his truck, tossing his hard hat and fluorescent-green vest onto the passenger seat. His aim was good—or bad, depending on one’s perspective. The hat hit a stack of papers and hand tools, knocking them onto the floorboard. He didn’t bother straightening the mess.
I’m a father. Could be a father, he amended. He’d find out for sure when the test results came back in roughly a week. As Mariana mentioned, he’d receive an email with a link to the lab’s secure website where he could log in and view the results.
One email, and his life could be forever changed in ways he had only begun to imagine.
Jacob lived twenty minutes from the drill site and twenty-five minutes from Baron Energies’ headquarters in Dallas. Convenient. He’d bought the house last year, planning on being promoted from the field to an executiv
e position. That had yet to happen.
Brock refused to consider transferring Jacob. Not until he’d “gained more experience.” In truth, Brock had been waiting and hoping for Jet, his biological son, to take an interest in the company. Jet had finally started coming around, leaving Jacob even further out in the cold.
Every proposal he presented, and he did it often, was immediately shot down with Brock proclaiming in a loud voice, “There will be no alternate energy division. Not as long as I’m in charge. We Barons are oil people.”
How anyone could look at the world today and not recognize the value of alternate energy baffled Jacob. Oil was a limited resource. Wind and sun weren’t. For at least the next billion years.
Out of frustration and anger, Jacob had returned to rodeoing this past spring, seeking an outlet for his pent-up energy. No pun intended. It had been a great stress reliever and, at first, fun. Then he’d started winning, and—this was a surprise—Brock had taken notice.
The higher Jacob’s ranking climbed, the more frequent talks he and his adoptive father engaged in about Jacob’s future with the company. Brock was still determined that Jet take over one day—now it was alongside his sister Lizzie. But he was listening to, if not entirely agreeing with, Jacob’s ideas for expansion.
To that end, Jacob spent every weekend on the road or in the air. It had paid off. He was a hairbreadth away from qualifying for the National Finals Rodeo in December. Brock was thrilled. He himself had won a few titles back in the day. Carly, too. Jacob would be the first of his sons to follow in his footsteps.
Maybe follow. How would a son affect Jacob’s career? Both of his careers?
Visitation or custody? Mariana Snow hadn’t been specific as to which. He still thought it a little strange that she didn’t want full custody herself. If she hadn’t told Jacob, he might never have known he had a son. She could have easily complied with her sister’s wishes, and Jacob would have been none the wiser. It was enough to give him pause.
Rather than head directly home, he drove to the family ranch. The Roughneck was a little out of the way but worth it. Days like this one, he needed to climb on the back of a horse. In his opinion, there was no better way to work off stress or unload a heavy mind.
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