“All right,” Dusty relented. “Just take good care of him, okay?”
“Absolutely.”
She’d take the best care possible of him.
Before she left.
* * *
“Well, hello there,” Sydney said to Duke. “I’ve missed you.”
“I missed you too, Sassy.” The little boy gave her a big hug.
“I hear you and Daddy had quite an adventure.”
“Yes. Mama’s sick.”
“I know. But she’ll be better soon.”
“And Sam is sick too?”
“Yes, he is. But seeing you will make him feel a lot better.”
“Daddy said he had a accident in the car.”
“Yes, he was hurt pretty bad. But the doctors fixed him right up.”
“Will the doctors fix up Mama too?”
Sydney melted. Duke’s big brown eyes shone with love and trust. “Yes, Duke. The doctors will fix Mama.” She hoped she wasn’t lying to the little boy. “Let’s go say hi to Sam, okay?”
A few days had made a big difference in Sam. The lacerations on his face looked much better, though he still wore the eye patch. The doctors said he’d be able to leave in a few more days. He finally felt he looked okay enough to let the little boy visit.
“Look who came to visit,” Sydney said, holding Duke’s hand as they entered Sam’s room.
Sam and Sydney had asked that any machines, other than his IV, be removed before Duke came. The nurses had smiled and said Sam no longer required the other machines, he was doing so well. Now he lay in bed, his lips curved into a smile at the sight of Duke.
“How are you doing, buddy?”
“Fine. I’m sorry you got hurt.”
“That’s nice of you, but I’m going to be fine.”
“Good, I’m glad. My mommy’s in the hospital too.”
“Yes, I heard. I’m sorry about that, but they’re taking really good care of her.”
“Yeah, that’s what Daddy says.”
Sam paused for a moment. “Daddy’s right.”
Sydney knew immediately the reason for the pause. It was hard for Sam to say “daddy.” He thought of himself as Duke’s daddy.
They’d agreed Duke wouldn’t stay long. They didn’t want him to get upset at the sight of Sam.
“We should get going,” Sydney said.
“Thanks for coming to see me,” Sam said.
“You’re welcome. We’ll come back soon, won’t we, Duke?”
“Sure. We’ll come back soon.” Duke smiled.
Sydney relinquished Duke into her father’s care and went back to Sam.
“Thanks for bringing him,” Sam said.
“No need to thank me.”
“That’s not true. I need to thank you for so many things.”
The long fingers of guilt threatened to choke her. “No, you don’t.”
“Sydney, please. Let me do this.”
She sighed and looked around the hospital room. So sterile. So empty. Thank goodness Sam would be leaving soon. He’d have to wear the eye patch for a few weeks, but other than that, he’d get along fine.
“Okay, Sam. Say what you need to say.”
“Look at me.”
She turned.
His expression glowed with seriousness.
“I love you.”
She closed her eyes for a moment. A pang of remorse shot through her. She loved him too, but it didn’t matter. She was leaving. She’d made up her mind.
“I love you too.”
“Sydney, I’d be dead if it weren’t for you.”
“I did what anyone would have done.”
“You promised you wouldn’t let me die, and you didn’t. And you promised you wouldn’t leave me here alone, and you didn’t.”
“Sam, I—”
“Please, let me finish. I love you. Yes, I still wish you’d told me about Duke from the beginning, but I forgive you, Sydney. I forgive you.”
Tears welled in her eyes. She didn’t deserve his forgiveness. She didn’t deserve him.
“And I trust you, Sydney. I trust you with my life.”
“Sam, please.”
“I want to be a part of your life. I want to be a part of Duke’s life. I won’t disrupt his life. I’ll settle for being his brother-in-law.”
Sydney dropped her jaw open. “What?”
“I want to marry you, Sydney.” He squeezed her hand. “You are what I’ve been waiting for all these years. Please. Marry me. You’ll make me the happiest man in the world.”
Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest. “Sam, are you sure? After all I’ve done? The lies?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything. I love you.”
Joy bubbled through her. Could it be true? “Sam, I love you too. I love you so much.”
“Then you’ll marry me?”
Her mouth trembled as she brushed her lips over his. “Yes, Sam. I’ll marry you.”
Epilogue
“We catched seven Rocky Mountain trouts!” Duke beamed as he held up the fish.
“I catched one and Duke catched two,” Sean announced. “Daddy and Uncle Sam catched the rest.”
“They’re both born fishermen,” Zach said. “It’s enough for dinner, if you ladies are up to it. The boys can share one, and that leaves one each for you two and two each for Sam and me.”
“Ugh, trout?” Sydney rubbed her belly. At ten weeks into her pregnancy, morning sickness—rather, all-day sickness—was at its peak. The thought of putting anything fishy in her mouth made her want to retch.
“Make that two for you then, darlin’,” Zach said to Dusty. “Saltines for Sydney, I assume?”
“Sassy eats so many crackers,” Duke said. “That’s all she eats!”
“You’d rather have crackers than trout?” Sean shook his head.
“Leave Auntie Sydney alone,” Dusty said. “When there’s a baby inside you, sometimes certain foods make you feel icky.”
“Did you feel like that when I was inside you?” Sean asked.
“Goodness yes,” Dusty said. “I couldn’t eat beef. It darn near killed your daddy that I wouldn’t eat his genuine McCray beef.”
They all erupted in laughter.
Duke had been living with Sam and Sydney on the McCray ranch for nearly a year. He missed his parents, but Roy had taken Duke to the hospital twice to visit with Carrie. Sam and Sydney had gone along. Carrie was improving, but it was slow going.
Roy had sold the ranch in Carson City for a decent price and now lived on the McCray ranch as a ranch hand. It was the best way to stay near Duke and be able to see to Carrie's needs. None of them wanted to disrupt the little boy’s life.
“Will your mother be able to come home soon?” Dusty asked after the boys had run outside to play.
“Yes, Daddy thinks so. She’s chosen to stay longer and get further treatment. She feels terrible about everything and wants to make sure she won’t relapse.”
“What’s going to happen with Duke?”
“We’ve talked about it. Sam and I are willing to do whatever’s best for him. He can stay here with us, or he can move in with Mom and Daddy. Either way, we’ll see him often. He’s right here on the same ranch.”
“Will you ever tell him the truth?”
“Someday, when he’s older.”
After a dinner of saltines, eaten with a clothespin on her nose to avoid the fish stench, Sydney tucked Duke into bed and joined Sam in their own bedroom.
“I’m beat,” Sam said. “A day with those two critters can take it out of a man.”
“Hmm, that’s too bad.” Sydney smiled. “Those crackers settled my tummy, and now I’m feeling”—she reached over for his erection—“a little frisky.”
“Oh yeah?” He rolled toward her. “I think I can accommodate you.”
Sydney turned, reached into her nightstand drawer, and pulled out two bandanas.
Sam’s eyebrows shot up. “I didn’t think you wanted to try
that again.”
She winked at him. “That’s what you get for thinking.”
Continue The Temptation Saga with Book Seven: Tantalizing Maria (coming soon)
Continue the The Temptation Saga with Book Seven
Coming Soon!
Message from Helen Hardt
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading Trusting Sydney. If you want to find out about my current backlist and future releases, please like my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HelenHardt and join my mailing list: http://helenhardt.com/signup/. I often do giveaways. If you’re a fan and would like to join my street team to help spread the word about my books, you can do so here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hardtandsoul/. I regularly do awesome giveaways for my street team members.
If you enjoyed the story, please take the time to leave a review on a site like Amazon or Goodreads. I welcome all feedback.
I wish you all the best, and keep reading!
Helen
Also by Helen Hardt
Sex and the Season:
Lily and the Duke
Rose in Bloom
Lady Alexandra’s Lover
Sophie’s Voice
The Perils of Patricia (coming soon)
The Temptation Saga:
Tempting Dusty
Teasing Annie
Taking Catie
Taming Angelina
Treasuring Amber
Trusting Sydney
Tantalizing Maria (coming soon)
Daughters of the Prairie:
The Outlaw’s Angel
Lessons of the Heart
Song of the Raven
Steel Brothers Saga:
Craving
Obsession (coming soon)
Possession (coming soon)
Collections:
Destination Desire
Her Two Lovers
Non-Fiction:
got style?
Acknowledgments
Like the first book in the Temptation Saga, Tempting Dusty, Trusting Sydney’s main characters are named after former dogs of mine, Sam and Sydney. I hope you enjoyed the story of two people learning to trust each other against the odds.
So many people helped along the way in bringing this book to you. Celina Summers, Michele Hamner Moore, Jenny Rarden, Cera Smith, Kelly Shorten, David Grishman, Meredith Wild, Jonathan Mac, Kurt Vachon, Yvonne Ellis, Shayla Fereshetian—thank you all for your expertise and guidance. Eternal thanks to Waterhouse Press for the expert rebranding of the series.
And thanks most of all to you, the readers. Who else would like to read about in the Temptation Saga? A book is coming…and I’ll leave you to guess whose story it will be.
About the Author
Helen Hardt’s passion for the written word began with the books her mother read to her at bedtime. She wrote her first story at age six and hasn’t stopped since. In addition to being an award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance and erotica, she’s a mother, a black belt in Taekwondo, a grammar geek, an appreciator of fine red wine, and a lover of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. She writes from her home in Colorado, where she lives with her family. Helen loves to hear from readers.
http://www.helenhardt.com
http://www.helenhardt.blogspot.com
Trusting Sydney: The Temptation Saga: Book Six Page 17