Harlequin Heartwarming June 2021 Box Set

by Patricia Johns

  “Your sister will probably be happy to have you stay,” Taryn said.

  “Probably,” he agreed. He wondered if Taryn would be happy to have him closer by.

  “A friend of mine just found out that she’s pregnant,” Taryn said.

  “Oh, yeah?” The trees closed in around them again.

  “It wasn’t planned,” Taryn said. “And the relationship isn’t the most solid... He’s a bit insecure, and she really wants a certain type of guy, but they aren’t in a really good place right now...”

  “Okay,” he said. He wasn’t sure what she was getting at.

  “She’s worried,” Taryn said. “It’s one thing to see where a relationship goes. It’s quite another to be forced together for the rest of their lives because they have a baby.”

  “Like us,” he said.

  “Actually, not like us,” she said. “This friend and her boyfriend really do love each other—which isn’t always enough to make a relationship work, and I think they’re both old enough to know that. Anyway, I realized last night how fortunate we are that we didn’t start out with romantic hopes or tender promises. We aren’t in love with each other. I know that no one else but you might understand that, but I think we actually have a chance at making this work—co-parenting and being friends.”

  Was it going to be easy for her? Because that line wasn’t going to be an easy one for him to walk. Maybe when she went back to Denver and they were safely ensconced in their own cities, it would be easier.

  “I was thinking about how my son will see me,” he said quietly. “Watching a man make my mother cry was hard. Seeing her so disappointed, so heartbroken. I never want my son to see me hurt you. You know what I mean?”

  “I think I do,” she said, and she smiled. “And I agree. We’re luckier than I realized.”

  “So what is your friend going to do?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” Taryn said. “She’s still in shock, I think. She’s happy about the baby, but I think the pregnancy has made her think twice about their relationship.”

  “Did you give her advice?” he asked.

  “No, I can’t. That decision is too personal,” Taryn replied. “She just wanted someone to understand how complicated it was.”

  “And you did,” he said.

  “Do I ever...”

  They were coming around the side of the lake, and there was a sign announcing the Mountain Springs town limits.

  “What’s the plan with your grandmother today?” he asked.

  Taryn adjusted her position in the seat. “She’s almost ninety. And she’s determined to stay on her own in her house, but we were all scared that something would happen and we’d only find out after it was too late. But you know, she seems like she’s doing just fine. She’s rather annoyed with us for being such worrywarts when none of us were close enough to actually see how she’s doing.”

  “How is she with your pregnancy?” he asked.

  “She’s worried about me doing this on my own,” she replied. “She thought I should have held on to Glen, even with the cheating, so I’d have a man to take care of me.”

  “Knowing you, I don’t imagine you took that well,” he said, unable to help the smile that tickled his lips.

  “I didn’t,” Taryn confirmed with a short laugh, and then she sobered. “We do have a decision to make, though. Eventually, you and I will have to tell our families about our...unique relationship. I’m just wondering if we tell my grandmother who you are today.”

  Noah tightened his grip on the steering wheel. How exactly would the old woman react to that kind of news?

  “Do you want to?” he asked.

  “It would skip over the whole ‘why didn’t you tell me that was who he was?’ conversation later,” she said. “And while I know she doesn’t approve of my choices, it might give her a little bit of relief. You’d be the—” Taryn looked over at him. “I don’t mean this as pressure, but she’d see you as the man who would take care of me.”

  Noah smiled faintly. “I’m going to pay child support—no question about that. I know you’re not asking for it, and I know you don’t trust nobility in a guy, but you aren’t going to have to take care of this little boy on your own. Not with me in the picture.”

  “I know, I know...”

  Taryn was silent for a moment, and Noah ran the idea through his mind. All of this had come up so quickly—from seeing Taryn again to realizing he was going to be a father... They were both going to have to navigate this with the people in their lives, and Noah would rather have it known up front that he was going to meet his responsibilities. He didn’t want her family thinking he was some kind of deadbeat.

  “Sure,” he said after a moment of silence. “If you want to tell her, tell her. And I’ll do my best to reassure her that you’ll be taken care of.”

  “Okay,” she said. But somehow, Taryn didn’t seem reassured.

  They arrived on an older street, but the houses and lawns were all well kept up. Noah parked in front of the house Taryn indicated, and circled around the truck to help Taryn out.

  The front door opened, and an elderly woman pushed open the screen. She wore a pair of polyester pink pants and a matching pink blouse.

  “Hello, dear,” she called.

  They headed up the walkway together, and the old woman eyed Noah speculatively.

  “Hi,” he said, and he offered his hand.

  “Granny, this is Noah Brooks,” Taryn said. “We’re working together up at the resort.”

  “Nice to meet you,” the old woman said. “I’m Mrs. Cook.”

  “Pleasure,” he said, and he shook her frail hand in a gentle handshake.

  They all went inside, and Taryn nodded toward the couch.

  “Why don’t I help you get the tea, Granny?” Taryn said.

  Noah sat down on the plastic-covered couch and looked around the small sitting room. There were a lot of pictures of children at various ages—school pictures, group shots, family photos. From the kitchen, he could hear the low murmur of voices. A cat appeared out of nowhere and wound around Noah’s legs, and he reached down and petted it.

  From deeper in the house, there was the tinkle of china. This home was so...grandmotherly, and he realized that this old woman would be a part of his son’s life. His son would have a great-grandmother that he might very well remember. Noah hadn’t had a lot of extended family, and he was glad that his son would.

  Taryn appeared in the sitting room again first. She carried a platter with a teapot, several delicate cups and saucers, and a sugar bowl. They were going to drink tea, apparently. And talk about difficult things.

  Mrs. Cook came into the room behind her granddaughter, and she looked at Noah again, this time with a different understanding in that clear gaze. She folded her hands in front of her.

  “So, you’re the father,” Mrs. Cook said, and then pressed her lips together.

  “Yes,” Noah said with a more confidence than he felt. “I’m the father.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  TARYN’S GRANDMOTHER HAD taken the news with remarkable composure. She’d simply nodded a couple of times, reached out and patted Taryn’s belly tenderly, and then went to find her sugar bowl. And now that they were in the living room with Noah, Taryn cast her grandmother a nervous look.

  “I think we should discuss this,” Granny said, and she went to the platter, bent down and poured three cups of tea. “Noah Brooks, is it?”

  “Yes, that’s me,” Noah said.

  “Do you like sugar in your tea?” Granny asked.

  “Yes, please.”

  “Hmm,” she replied, as if that little fact told her something, but she put a trembling spoonful of sugar into one cup and handed it over to Noah.

  “Granny, there isn’t anything to discuss,” Taryn said. “Like I told you, we h
ad...an encounter...and we’ve decided to stay good friends and raise our son with the benefit of parents who are respectful and supportive of each other.”

  Granny passed Taryn a cup of tea in her shaky grip, and then turned to her own cup. She moved slowly, settling herself into her old rocking chair and taking a sip of tea before she spoke.

  “You sound like those divorce announcements the people in Hollywood put out,” Granny said. “The gossip magazines are my guilty pleasure,” she said to Noah with a small smile. “They say things like ‘We remain best friends, and love each other dearly, but have decided to part ways. We remain dedicated to raising our children in love and harmony...’” She shook her head. “I don’t believe a word of it. If they felt half as tenderly toward each other as they claimed, they’d try to make a marriage work. The truth of the matter is, they can’t stand each other and they want to move on. All pretty words—that’s it.”

  Taryn glanced over at Noah. “It’s different for us, though.”

  “Because you weren’t married, and you weren’t dating,” Granny concluded.

  “Exactly,” she replied. “There are no dashed romantic hopes here.”

  “Are you so sure?” Granny asked, raising her eyebrows. “You shared an...encounter...that produced a child. Most people would call that some kind of romance. Human emotions aren’t so easy to categorize, are they? Noah, look at her.”

  Noah looked over at Taryn, and his gaze rested on her easily. He smiled, a slow upturn of his lips.

  “Are you telling me,” Granny went on, “that when you look at Taryn—this beautiful woman who is carrying your child—that you feel nothing?”

  Noah’s gaze flickered between Taryn and her grandmother, and Taryn’s stomach dropped. She didn’t want to hear this. They’d already been tumbling past all sorts of lines, and she was half-afraid that Noah would admit to it.

  “Granny...” Taryn said.

  “Nothing?” Granny prodded. “No protectiveness? No tenderness? No desire to keep her safe?”

  “Of course I do,” Noah said, and his voice was deep and strong. “I’ll be making sure she’s okay, and we’re going to talk about how I can get to know my son. I’ll damn well be paying child support, and if she needs anything at all—”

  “All very proper,” Granny said softly. “But there’s a baby on the way. And the two of you seem to think you can avoid all the difficult emotions. And I think you’re both idiots.”

  Taryn rolled her eyes. “Granny, Noah doesn’t know you yet. You can’t just call him an idiot.”

  “I called you both idiots, and he’s the father of my great-grandchild, so I suggest he get to know me,” Granny replied curtly. “I have another solution that could solve your problems. But it’s an old-fashioned one, and you probably won’t like it.”

  “Get married,” Taryn said.

  “So it occurred to you!” Granny said brightly, and she smiled.

  “It’s more complicated than that,” Taryn said.

  “Is it?” Granny asked, turning to Noah. “Is it really that complicated?”

  “It is...” he confirmed.

  Thank goodness he was keeping his cool. Taryn cast him a grateful look.

  Granny sighed. “I’m glad to know that you are taking responsibility for your son, at the very least. It’s not anything to congratulate you for, but it’s something.”

  “Thank you.” Noah glanced toward Taryn, and she shrugged weakly. He couldn’t say she hadn’t warned him.

  “Now, I do see something very promising in this relationship,” the old woman went on. “The two of you are in each other’s corner. You’re on the same page, so to speak. You’re both determined to hold your ground with me and prove that your way—the one you’ve agreed upon together—is the best. And you don’t care what an old woman thinks about it.” She waggled a finger at Taryn. “And that is actually a relationship trait of a successful couple.”

  “Granny, we’re very different people,” Taryn said. “I’m just about forty. I’ve been married before. Noah is no spring chicken, either.”

  “I’m forty-two,” Noah said, and they shared an amused smile.

  “The fact that we’ve both agreed that the nonromantic way is the best way says something. We’ve both been through a lot, and so have the people close to us. We’re not naïve.”

  “I agree,” Granny replied. “But I’m going to point something out—neither of you are young. You’re both single and middle-aged. By the time I was your age, I’d been married and given birth to eight children already. How much time are you going to give the universe to deposit the perfect spouse in your lap? Marriage is a commitment, and it’s hard work. But if you’re willing to be kind and faithful, you could have the family that I know Taryn, at the very least, has dreamed of all her life.”

  When Granny stopped speaking, they were all silent for a few beats. Taryn watched a robin flit by the window, and she felt a wave of wistfulness. Was it as simple as that? Or was that the kind of story people told in her grandmother’s day to get couples married who’d conceived a child?

  “Now,” Granny went on, “I’ve talked enough. But it might be nice for you to see a few photos of Taryn when she was young, Noah.” She rose to her feet, put her tea cup back on the tray and went over to her piano and picked up a framed photo. “Come here, Noah.”

  Noah put down his tea, as well, and shot Taryn a rueful smile before he joined Granny by the piano.

  “Is that her?” he asked, pointing.

  “No, that’s her cousin Bridget. This is Taryn—the little one with the Popsicle.”

  Noah chuckled softly.

  “That was one summer when I had four of my grandchildren here all at once. It was hectic and wonderful. There is no better way to get to know a child than to be with them for twenty-four hours a day—now, you remember that, Noah.”

  Taryn felt a rush of annoyance as her grandmother’s glittering gaze flicked in her direction. Granny was making a point Taryn didn’t want made. The last thing she wanted was Noah going for joint custody! But Noah didn’t seem to be taking the bait. He picked up another photo.

  “That’s Taryn for sure.”

  “Her high school graduation,” Granny agreed. “She always was a beautiful girl, wasn’t she?”

  “Yeah...” Noah looked over at Taryn with a smile.

  “She’s also very stubborn,” Granny added, lowering her voice as if it kept her words private. “You should know that about her up front. But under that stubborn streak of hers is a very loyal heart. She’s kind—and that’s not something that comes easily these days.”

  “Thanks, Granny,” Taryn said dryly.

  “She’s also a bit of a workaholic,” Granny said with a faint wince.

  “Granny, you are not helping!” Taryn said.

  “My dear, I thought you two were going to have a—how did you call it?—a respectful and supportive relationship.” Granny said. “I dare you to try that without knowing each other inside and out. And knowing you, my dear girl, means knowing your family, too. Because we can offer insights.”

  “What was she like when she was a kid?” Noah asked before Taryn could interject.

  “Oh, our Taryn was a spitfire!” Granny chuckled. “We all thought she’d end up being a lawyer. But a woman running her own business needs a spine of steel, too.”

  “So she argues well, does she?” Noah asked, and Taryn could make out the mildly amused tug at the corners of his lips.

  “Oh, yes. She’s most eloquent when she’s furious, too,” Granny said. “Have you not seen that yet? Well, since you’re both so keen on knowing each other well, I suggest you see her angry.”

  “You’re about to,” Taryn said, shooting her grandmother a warning look.

  “You don’t scare me, missy,” Granny said with a low laugh. “But I will tell you both somethin
g. In my day, lasting marriages started on less than what you’ve got here.”

  “Like you and Grandpa?” Taryn asked meaningfully.

  Granny looked at Taryn, and her eyes misted. “Fine. You don’t want my input? I can see that.”

  Taryn’s heart gave a squeeze. “Granny, I—”

  “No, no,” Granny said. “We weren’t a perfect couple by any stretch. Therefore, any advice I have after nearly ninety years on this planet must be garbage.”

  “That isn’t what I’m saying,” Taryn said. “But these days people don’t just stick with it when their hearts are broken, Granny. Women don’t put up with husbands treating them like Grandpa treated you. Men don’t stay in marriages after they’ve fallen out of love... We don’t have a society insisting that we endure. So we have to be more careful. We have to. I’ve been through a painful divorce, and Noah has had his own share of heartache. We know what heartbreak feels like, and we don’t want to put this little boy through any more than he needs to go through.” She rubbed a hand over her belly. “Don’t you see that?”

  Granny looked between them, then nodded. “Yes, I see it.”

  They were all silent for a moment, and then Noah leaned forward and put his cup of tea back down on the platter.

  “Did you talk to your parents yet about leaving me alone about moving?” Granny asked.

  “Not yet.”

  “I have a more thought-out response now. Tell your father that if he wants to discuss downsizing me, that he come and face his mother himself,” Granny said curtly. “In person, where he can look me in my eyes and tell me that I’m too feeble and scattered to care for myself. You go ahead and pass that along. I’ll be waiting to hear what he says.”

  Her father wouldn’t do it—there was a reason why Taryn had felt responsible for this mission. He’d coordinate with his brothers, and they’d try to force Granny into that retirement home. And Granny would hate it.

  “Granny, I’ll back you up,” Taryn said. “I will.”