“Can’t his aunt take care of him?”
Daniel had been shocked when Jacob broke the news at dinner last week. Hadn’t everyone? Then he’d congratulated Jacob. The only one who did. It was when Jacob started talking about Cody and the family’s reaction that Daniel clammed up. Jacob didn’t make a big deal of it. Daniel had his own issues with the Barons. The two brothers always had that in common.
“She could, I guess,” he answered slowly.
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Cody’s my son. My responsibility. Expecting Mariana to watch him while I’m out of town isn’t fair. Especially since this may not be the last weekend.”
“She has guardianship of him.”
“I’m asking for full custody.”
“Really? When did you decide that?”
“You sound like you disapprove.”
There was a pause before Daniel answered. “It’s a big step. How does Mariana feel?”
“She’s cooperating.”
He and his “housemate” were walking on tiptoes around each other the past few days. He had only himself to blame for that. What had he been thinking, kissing her like that?
He’d been thinking how pretty she looked. How easy and natural it was talking to her. How it should be against the law for a woman to smell as good as she did.
Contemplating any kind of relationship other than platonic was a waste of time and energy. They couldn’t be more ill-suited for each other, and the timing couldn’t be worse. And yet the kiss had set off a chain reaction inside him. Interest built swiftly to attraction, attraction to desire. All from a kiss that was hardly more than peck.
In hindsight, having her live with him may not have been his most brilliant idea. The temptation to taste those lips again would be hard to resist.
“So take him with us.”
Jacob blinked himself back to the present and the conversation with his brother.
“I can’t bring a two-year-old to a rodeo. Not without a babysitter.”
“Ask his aunt.”
Jacob started to object, then reconsidered. Would she go? Probably not. “She isn’t a fan of rodeos.”
“Don’t know unless you ask.”
He could. What was the worst that could happen? She’d say no, then he’d see if she wouldn’t mind watching Cody for the weekend.
Except what message would that be sending? He was the one who’d insisted on his ability to handle parenthood. Were there reputable babysitting services in Round Rock? There had to be. But Mariana wouldn’t like that, either.
“I’ll figure something out,” he said. “If I don’t talk to you before then, see you Friday morning.”
Mariana’s car was in the driveway when Jacob pulled in a few minutes later, the rear passenger door wide-open. She must have had her arms full and forgotten to close it. He came back after parking his truck in the garage and shut the car door. Entering the house through the garage, he was immediately accosted by Buster.
“Missed you, too, pal.” He gave the excited dog a petting before proceeding to the kitchen, where he was accosted again. This time by the aroma of dinner. Mariana stood at the counter, removing plates from the cupboard. Cody played on the floor at her feet, an array of pots and their lids surrounding him. He was enthralled, moving lids from one pan to the other. “You cooked?” Jacob asked.
“I stopped for Chinese takeout on the way home. Is that okay?”
“Great. I love Chinese food.”
“I feel bad. You’ve been doing all the cooking.”
While she set the cartons on the table, Jacob grabbed Cody and placed him in the high chair. Cody squealed his objection until Mariana set a bowl of lo mein in front of him. Ignoring the fork she gave him, he dug in with both hands.
While they ate, Mariana discussed her day and the progress she was making on the Paulo Molinas case. Their first settlement offer had been flatly rejected by her clients.
“Does he have the money to settle?” Jacob listened with only one ear. He was too busy thinking of how to broach the topic of the rodeo with her.
“Absolutely. His attorneys are claiming he doesn’t, which is a lie. Our team is still uncovering accounts he’s hidden. And there’s always the insurance. Medallion Investments carried a large policy.”
Hidden accounts made Jacob think of his own father, a place he’d rather not go. Not today.
“What are your plans for the weekend?” he abruptly asked.
“I was hoping my mom would come for a visit, but Grandma caught a cold and isn’t feeling well.” Disappointment tinged Mariana’s voice. “Mom thinks she should stay in case Grandma gets worse.”
An idea sprang suddenly to mind. How far was Round Rock from where her mother lived? Jacob did a quick mental calculation. Forty-five minutes at most. Was it feasible?
“Daniel and I are competing at the Lucky Draw Rodeo this weekend.”
“Ah.” Her monosyllabic reply couldn’t be less enthusiastic.
“I was thinking, it’s not far from where your mom lives. Why don’t you and Cody ride with us? We could drop you off and pick you up Sunday evening after the rodeo.”
She deliberated for all of one second. “No.”
“Why not?”
“A road trip with a two-year-old is no fun.”
“We’re talking a few hours. He’ll sleep for half of that.”
“I have work to do.”
“Take it with you. What’s the difference if you do it here or at your mom’s?” His argument must have made some sense for she appeared to waver.
“I don’t know....”
“Your mom will really appreciate it.”
She studied him from across the table, her chopsticks poised above her plate. “This arrangement is much more to your advantage than mine.”
Busted.
He dived into his Mongolian beef with a fork, having never mastered the art of eating with chopsticks. “I prefer to think of it as a compromise. And your mother does get to see her grandson.”
Mariana absently sopped up the grape juice Cody had spilled with a paper napkin before he could smear it around the high chair tray. “Maybe.”
“We leave Friday morning.”
“I have to work on Friday.”
“Then meet us in Round Rock Friday evening, grab Cody and head to Austin.”
“Wait a minute!” She laid her chopsticks aside in order to gesture with her hands. “You can’t take Cody on a car ride, then to a rodeo, by yourself.”
“My brother will be with us.”
“And how much experience does he have with children?”
“Mariana—”
“Do not pull rank on me again. Please,” she implored. “We’re not talking about a family dinner.”
“I have to compete. I can’t afford to miss another weekend.”
She stiffened. “Of course not.”
He started to say he wasn’t like her father, then stopped. To her, he must look and sound exactly like Zeb Snow.
“I’ll just stay home and watch Cody,” she said.
Jacob didn’t want to argue.
“Come with us. Just this once. Next week, we hire someone to watch Cody.”
“A nanny?”
“Yeah. For weekends only. That way, you can get your work done.”
She hesitated.
“I promise. You can have equal say in who we hire. More than equal say. What do I know about hiring a nanny?”
“I could talk to my boss about taking half a day off.” She prodded a piece of orange chicken with her chopsticks. “I am due a ton of vacation time.”
“And you’ve been putting in really long hours at the office.”
“We’ll see.” She resumed eating.
She hadn’t exactly conceded, but Jacob let himself enjoy the small victory anyway. He still had three days to seal the deal.
They were finishing dinner when Jacob’s cell phone chimed, alerting him to an email. He automatically tensed
as he had every day this week. Would the DNA testing facility be sending the results this late in the day?
Seconds later, Mariana’s cell phone beeped from her purse on the counter.
“That’s weird,” she said, then, as if realization dawned, looked at him before leaping from her chair.
Jacob got to his phone first and checked the screen. His heart lurched upon reading the name of the sender.
“It’s from the lab,” Mariana said from behind him, her voice thready.
The email font was tiny. Jacob had to expand the message to locate the embedded link. It took him three attempts to type in the password he’d chosen.
And there it was. The results. In big bold letters with a disclaimer that the test results were 99 percent accurate.
“I guess we know for sure now.” Mariana expelled a long breath. “Leah was telling the truth.”
“Yes, we know.” Jacob waited, giving himself a moment to fully process the ramifications. Mariana sat back down, but she didn’t meet his gaze. Cody slammed his fists on the high chair tray, his way of saying he was done and wanted down.
“I’ll get him.”
Before she could move, Jacob reached for her hand. “Wait.”
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s something I want to talk to you about.”
She looked at him then, visibly on edge. “Besides the rodeo?”
“I want full custody of Cody. Not shared.”
“Full,” she repeated.
“I’m not going to be a part-time father. Cody deserves more, and I’m going to see he has it.”
Chapter Six
“What, Mom? Oh, no!” Mariana sat in the rear seat of Jacob’s truck with Cody beside her, her mother on the phone. They were well on their way to Austin, only about an hour from the city limits. “I understand. Don’t worry, it’s okay. Your feeling better is what’s important. I don’t know yet.” She caught Jacob’s glance in the rearview mirror. “Let me see.”
“What’s wrong?” Jacob asked when she’d disconnected.
“Mom came down with Grandma’s cold. She woke up with a sore throat and a runny nose.”
“That’s a shame.”
“She doesn’t want Cody and me to come. She’s afraid we’ll get sick, too.”
Selfishly, Mariana didn’t want either her or Cody to succumb. Caring for a sick toddler was no picnic. He’d have to stay home from day care, and with so much to do at work, she couldn’t take any more personal time off. Two days last week and today had put her behind. She’d been able to make a few phone calls while Cody napped, but not review the notes she’d made on her tablet or study the briefs she’d downloaded. She’d been hoping to tackle those while her mother babysat.
“We’ll book you a hotel room where we’re staying,” Jacob offered.
“I don’t suppose we could go back home.”
Both men cranked their heads around to gape at her.
“Bad suggestion?” she asked weakly.
Jacob returned his gaze to the road.
Daniel cast him a sidelong look. “We might not make it in time to compete in tonight’s events.”
She tried to brush off his remark. Daniel wasn’t a mean guy. He actually seemed pretty nice. The resemblance between the brothers was undeniable. In more ways than one. They both placed rodeoing high on their priority lists. Like her father. She was, she thought with aggravation, surrounded by them.
“What about taking a shuttle back?”
Mariana considered Jacob’s suggestion for a nanosecond, deciding she’d rather stick pins in her eyes than ride public transportation with what was bound to be a cranky two-year-old. Her fellow passengers would hate her.
“I don’t think so.”
“A rental car?”
That sounded like an ordeal. The day had already been a long one, and it was barely ten-thirty.
She laid her head back, resigning herself to the inevitable. These two cowboys weren’t turning back for anything, and her other options were unappealing.
“The hotel room it is, I guess.” Luckily, they’d packed Cody’s portable crib and stroller.
Only then did she remember she wouldn’t have any means of getting around. Drat. Stuck in a hotel room for the entire weekend. How exactly again had she wound up in this predicament?
She’d agreed, that was how. The morning after Jacob suggested she and Cody ride along and his announcement that he wanted full custody. She was still reeling from that, though in hindsight, she should have seen it coming. Instead, she’d convinced herself he was more like her father. Wrong.
For Cody’s sake, she was happy. As long as Jacob didn’t fail him. She’d miss her nephew terribly, of course. Common sense told her he had no intention of phasing either her or her mother out of Cody’s life. They’d always be his family, the keepers of Leah’s memories. Cody would know her through the stories they told him.
Mariana wiped away a stray tear. It had been her plan to tell her mother in person about Jacob assuming full custody. News like that deserved to be delivered face-to-face, not in a phone call. Only now, she and Cody weren’t going to Austin.
“About that rental car...”
As it turned out, they didn’t make it to the hotel. Not right away. While Daniel called to book a second room and advise the front desk of their late checkin, Jacob drove them directly to the fairgrounds. She bit her lower lip rather than complain. It would do no good. The brothers were on a mission.
On the plus side, Cody was content munching on Froot Loops and not making a fuss. He began babbling up a storm when they pulled onto the rodeo grounds in Round Rock, the sight of so many trucks, trailers and horses exciting him.
“Migo, Migo.” He grinned and pointed at a horse the same color as Amigo.
Mariana had to admit, she, too, was a little fascinated by all the goings-on. She’d been to rodeos, of course. As a teenager to watch Leah compete. Back then, it had been torture. A place her mother dragged her against her will. While Leah had competed, Mariana buried her nose in a book.
How was it her mother had hated Mariana’s father always being away at some rodeo but she’d fully supported Leah? Maybe, thought Mariana, her mother didn’t dislike rodeos as much as she’d disliked her husband. It was something to consider and perhaps inquire about when the time was right.
They parked in the participants’ lot. Because Jacob and Daniel hadn’t trailered any horses, there was only Cody and his stroller to unload. Mariana grabbed her briefcase along with the diaper bag and hung both from the stroller’s handle. If Jacob and Daniel took long doing whatever it was they needed to, she’d find a comfortable place to sit and review those briefs.
They crossed the dirt lot and made their way to the arena and registration booth. The stroller bumped and lurched. Mariana grunted as she pushed. Cody laughed.
Jacob materialized beside her. “Let me help.”
She was instantly aware of him, as always of late. Ever since their kiss. Assuming his intentions were to ease her cumbersome load by carrying her briefcase and possibly the diaper bag, she was surprised when he took over steering the stroller.
“Thank you.”
The sight of a tall, handsome cowboy pushing a stroller garnered plenty of female stares, hers included. He didn’t look silly or out of place or put upon. He looked like a dad who pushed his son regularly and didn’t mind. Mariana was sure hers wasn’t the only heart melting.
The rodeo was not officially starting for a few more hours, but the grounds were already bustling with activity. Food and merchant vendors setting up. Maintenance staff running lines, checking equipment, grading the arena and testing the sound system. Livestock handlers moving calves and bucking stock to the holding pens. The local equestrian team—Mariana remembered a similar team from Leah’s youth—practicing their opening ceremony drill in a distant field.
A tingle of anticipation wound through her as she took it all in. Soon, the stands would be packed and the participa
nts competing, one of them Jacob. She knew from his and Daniel’s conversation during the drive that he was entered in three events: saddle and bareback bronc riding and, of course, bull riding.
She was struck with a sudden urge to watch him compete. She hadn’t seen him in action before, having arrived at the Louisiana State Fair Rodeo for their initial meeting well after he was done.
Once Jacob and Daniel had registered and were given their numbers, Daniel said to Jacob, “Let’s check out the bulls and horses we’ve drawn.”
“I will. Later. First, I’m taking Mariana and Cody to the hotel.”
Giving up his chance to check out the livestock? Mariana was impressed.
“It’s all right. You go on. Cody and I will keep busy.”
Jacob studied her. “Are you sure?”
“We’ll get something to eat. Maybe find an out-of-the-way place where I can work for a while.” She marveled at her willingness to stick around even as the words spilled from her mouth. Thirty minutes ago, she’d been silently complaining.
“Thanks.” His gaze was tender and, dare she think it, fond.
She found her lips curving upward in return. “No problem.”
He came around to the front of the stroller, leaned down and tugged on the brim of Cody’s ball cap. “See you later, pal. Take care of your aunt Mariana for me.”
“Bye-bye.” Cody extended his hand and squeezed his fingers in his version of a wave.
Mariana resumed pushing the stroller. “Call me later.”
Before she quite realized what was happening, Jacob gave her cheek a peck. “For luck.”
Her whole face instantly warmed. After that, he and Daniel sauntered off as if their entire worlds hadn’t just tilted on their axis. Mariana’s certainly had.
She watched Jacob’s form grow smaller until he disappeared behind a metal building, the warmth spread until it reached all the way to her fingertips and toes.
“Cody, your aunt Mariana might be in a bit of trouble.”
“Bye-bye.”
“Yeah, bye-bye good sense.”
She located a picnic table in the large awning-covered food court. By some miracle, she managed to work while Cody played with the toys she’d brought. More work was accomplished while he dozed in his stroller. She probably let him sleep too long and would pay for it tonight when he’d be up late, but she finished everything she’d hoped to, which relieved her stress enormously.
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