Loving Laney

by Evans, Harmony

  Jameson stretched his long legs out and frowned as he observed Laney sobbing. He was starting to worry about her.

  A few weeks back, when Laney had asked him for the name of a private investigator, he’d given her one with no questions asked. She’d assured him that she was not in danger.

  Perhaps now, with a baby on the way, it was time for him to get some answers. If something happened to Laney, he would never forgive himself.

  Steven shoved his hands in his pockets and looked away. He hated to see anyone cry, especially his only daughter. Then he remembered Austin and clenched his fists. Was he the cause of all her tears?

  The oven timer dinged and everyone jumped. Laney released her grip on her mom so she could tend to the cookies.

  “Sit down, honey. You look exhausted.”

  Laney pulled out a chair, and slowly eased herself into it. She was tired. Whether it was from being pregnant, from stress or from the excitement of seeing Austin after all those months, she didn’t know, but she knew that if she would lay her head down on the table it would be lights out.

  Gwen gave her a strange look and then pointed her spatula at her younger son.

  “Jameson, go grab Laney a pillow from the sofa in the Great Room so she can rest her back against it,” she ordered. “Wes. I’ve got a pitcher of milk in the refrigerator. Get it out and put it on the table, please.”

  Gwen slipped on her oven mitts like a prizefighter getting ready to step into the ring.

  “And, Steven, wipe that hangdog look off your face. This is supposed to be a happy occasion.”

  “I agree. Cheer up, son,” Grandpa Charles admonished. “This is no different than birthing a calf.”

  Steven shot his father a look. “The hell it isn’t, Dad. This is my daughter we’re talking about.”

  And she wasn’t going to get off that easy.

  Gwendolyn could coddle her if she wanted, like she always did, but somebody had to restore order and discipline in the Broward household, and that someone was him.

  Never mind the fact that all of his children were grown and living on their own. In fact, they each had their own homes on Broward property.

  Wes and Jameson worked on the ranch. Although lately, Wes was around much less often than Steven would have preferred, he thought with a grimace. Now that Wes was engaged to Lydia, they traveled a lot. Steven hoped that they’d soon settle down, get married and start a family.

  Unfortunately, he had no idea when that would happen or where Wes would end up living permanently. His mind still simmered in anger at his son who had recently sold his homestead without discussing it with the family to Samara Lionne, some actress he’d never even heard of until she’d suddenly decided that Granger would be the perfect place to buy a second home.

  Jameson was his loyal one. He loved the land, the BWB Heritage Ranch and the great state of Montana as much as he did. His new wife, Brooke, had ranching in her blood, although Steven was quickly learning that she’d rather play with clay than herd cattle. He prayed that Brooke wouldn’t lead his younger son away from his true purpose in life: running the Broward family ranch.

  Twenty years ago, when Steven had taken over the day-to-day running of the ranch from his father, some folks in Granger had gossiped that he’d run it right into the ground. His notions about cattle breeding seemed downright insane to his more conservative neighbors. His innovative idea to specialize in breeding high-end cattle and heritage farm animals ended up putting the Broward family name on the map. The Browards went from being well-off to being filthy rich.

  Laney had her horse breeding business and it was very successful. Even though the gold medal that she never wanted to show off had attracted a lot of gawkers, rancher wannabes and other crazy folk to Granger, he was proud of her accomplishments.

  Like her mother, she’d always been independent, ambitious and sometimes a pain in the ass. Though he’d never pegged his daughter as a wild child, something must have happened to change her.

  Steven took his hands out of his pockets and turned to Laney. “How could you let a thing like this happen?” he demanded. “For God’s sake, you’re not even married!”

  At his harsh words, Laney stopped sobbing and a hush fell over the room.

  “I’m sorry, Dad. I can explain,” she pleaded, her face stained with tears.

  Jameson walked into the room and handed Laney a small round pillow. “Thank you,” she said gratefully. She wedged it behind her back and sighed in relief.

  He slid into his chair and glanced at the silent faces of his normally boisterous family.

  “What did I miss?” he asked.

  “Hush, Jameson. Let Laney talk,” Gwen instructed.

  She put a platter of warm cookies in the middle of the table. No one moved to take one.

  Laney took one whiff and immediately felt nauseated. Normally, she’d start to gobble them up. But right now she could barely look at them, let alone eat them, but she didn’t have the heart to ask her mother to take them away.

  She bit her lip and began. “Remember the gala I attended on New Year’s Eve?”

  Steven looked confused, but Gwen remembered right away.

  “It was in Dallas, right? You were getting together with your friends Maya and Robyn.”

  Laney nodded. “I hadn’t seen them in such a long time. Anyway, Austin was there. He was one of the event sponsors and, well, uh—”

  She paused, stifling the urge to squirm in her seat.

  How could she tell the story without making herself sound cheap? She didn’t want to talk about his kiss. She didn’t want to even say his name again.

  “Just spill it, Laney,” Jameson urged, hoping she would provide some clue as to why she had hired a private detective.

  Laney slanted her eyes at her brother and steeled her voice once more.

  “Austin came up to me and we talked. And one thing led to another and—”

  Bam! Wes set the pitcher of milk down hard on the table and everyone jumped. He sat down. “Spare us the gory details, Laney.”

  “That must have been some talk,” Jameson said, half-jokingly.

  No one else said a word.

  “Is Austin the father of your baby?” her mother asked quietly.

  Laney paused only a moment before nodding. She felt an immediate sense of relief, but the feeling was quickly replaced by shame as her father’s voice exploded into the taut silence.

  “But you barely know him! Didn’t you use birth control?”

  Laney’s cheeks burned. Talking about sex was difficult enough with anyone. But talking about it with her entire family was something akin to torture.

  “We did but it must have failed,” she insisted, trying desperately to defend herself. “That does happen, you know.”

  Wes and Jameson glanced at one another, as if they had some personal experience, and then just as quickly avoided each other’s eyes.

  Steven snorted. “So that was the reason for Austin’s unannounced visit. He saw the headlines, did the math and—”

  “Hellooo, Daddy,” muttered Grandpa Charles. “Well, at least he’s not after the Broward fortune. He’s got his own.”

  Gwen shot both men a look. “Austin Johns is a good man. I’ve dealt with him plenty of times. He’s honest, forthright and—”

  “A Texan.” Steven finished. There was no use arguing with Gwen when she liked someone. “You can tell him we don’t have any oil on our land. Just cows and horses.”

  “Steven, really!” Gwen said in an exasperated voice. “He’s not interested in our land.”

  “Hrmph. Maybe not, but I wouldn’t put it past him. What did he say when you told him he was the father?”

  “He said he wanted to help.”

  “Well...well...well.” Her father reached fo
r a cookie. “I think he’s helped enough.”

  Laney stared at her father, on the verge of tears again. How could he be so unfeeling?

  “Dad, I don’t know how many times I can apologize, but I’m sorry I disappointed you all.”

  Her mother put her hands on Laney’s shoulders and squeezed.

  “Honey, a baby is never a disappointment. This is certainly a surprise, but it’s also wonderful news. You’re going to have the first Broward heir!”

  Laney turned her head and kissed one of Gwen’s hands. “Thanks, Mom.”

  “Boys?”

  Wes was the first to offer his congratulations.

  “I ought to thank you for letting me off the hook,” he said as he leaned down and gave her a hug. “Lydia hasn’t talked about having babies yet, but I’m kinda glad we won’t be the first. We have a lot of plans!”

  Jameson arched a brow. “Care to reveal any of them?”

  “Not yet. We’re still firming up the details, but I’ll share the news as soon as I can.”

  Grandpa Charles coughed. “Laney, I still don’t understand how you managed to hide things. You still look as slender as a whip. Same as the day you graduated from high school.”

  Gwen took a closer look at her daughter. “I agree. I remember when I was pregnant with Wes, I had a little baby bump at three months. Wes was a big boy.”

  “With a big mouth,” Grandpa interjected.

  Laney laughed. “I’m not that thin. I just eat well and choose my wardrobe wisely.”

  Grandpa chuckled and patted his ample stomach. “Two things I don’t do. Maybe I can learn something from you.” He reached for his third cookie. “Then again, maybe not!”

  Jameson got up and gave his sister a reluctant hug, unsure of how to act around her now.

  “Congratulations. Now that your secret is out, does this mean you won’t need the private investigator anymore? Because if not, I’d like to get him on Wes’s case. If he won’t tell us what he’s got planned, that guy will.”

  Jameson didn’t want to ask the question, but he figured that was the only way he’d get a straight answer from her.

  Gwen dropped her hands from Laney’s shoulders and pulled out the chair next to her. “Private investigator? What’s going on?”

  Laney wanted to scream. First her brother told his wife about the investigator, now he had to spill it to their entire family.

  “I hired him because I thought someone was trying to blackmail me.”

  “Why would you think that?” Gwen asked, a note of fear in her voice.

  “A few weeks ago, I got an anonymous email through my school account telling me that if he didn’t receive a certain amount of money, he would tell the whole world my secret.”

  “You actually paid this person?” Wes asked.

  Laney nodded. “I guess he didn’t like the amount I gave him.”

  “How much?” her father asked.

  “You don’t want to know.”

  Her mother took in a sharp breath. “Did you ever meet him?”

  “No. I’ve never even spoken to him. I wired the money to a special account. I thought everything was taken care of, but I still wanted to try to find out the person’s identity. That’s when I asked Jameson for the name of a private detective.”

  “Laney, I don’t like this one bit,” Gwen said, her voice shaking a bit. “What if he tries to hurt you?”

  “How do you know it’s a him?” Wes said.

  “Actually, I don’t know if it was a male or a female,” Laney admitted. “The email was signed ‘The Cobra.’”

  “Sounds like a male to me,” Steven said.

  “Sounds like a snake,” asserted Wes.

  “Sounds like you need a bodyguard,” Jameson surmised, draping his arm around his sister’s shoulders.

  “I agree,” said her mother.

  “I don’t. I’m not going to be constrained by a bodyguard or by fear. I’m fine.”

  “Why would somebody do this? Do you know anybody in Bozeman who would want to hurt you?”

  Laney shook her head. “Not really. My classmates seem cool. They’re all great people who care about animals, just like me.”

  Steven sighed. He’d always thought his daughter was a little too trusting. For proof, all he had to do was look at the situation she was in now with Austin.

  “You were always as stubborn as those horses you raise. Just be careful,” he said roughly.

  “I will, Daddy.”

  He nodded. “I hate to be the one who has to issue a reality check, but I’m concerned about the additional attention that this news will now bring to the family. I was hoping that things would let up a little bit. Get a little quieter around here.”

  “Truthfully, I was, too,” Laney said. “I’m really sorry about this.”

  Gwen went and hugged her husband. “Will you stop worrying so much? Everything will be okay. You’ll see.”

  Grandpa clapped his hands together. “Enough with the lovey-dovey stuff. Are you having a boy or a girl?”

  “I don’t know yet,” Laney responded, reaching into her purse. “Do you all want to see a picture of the baby?”

  She waited until they were all gathered around her before she passed the sonogram around.

  The baby was real now. To all of them.

  Grandpa scratched his chin. “I think it’s a boy—look at those hands! They’ll be as old as mine someday,” he said, wriggling his fingers.

  “Look at those chubby cheeks,” Jameson teased. “I think it’s a girl.”

  He passed the sonogram printout to Wes.

  “It doesn’t look like much,” said Wes, passing it to his father.

  Steven stared at the image. The sight of the blurred figure made him tear up a little, but he didn’t want anyone to know.

  “It looks like you,” her father coughed and quickly passed the thin sheet of paper to his wife.

  “How can you tell?” Laney asked.

  “Because it’s beautiful,” Gwendolyn said, choking back tears. “Oh, Laney, I’m so sorry you didn’t feel like you could come to us sooner.”

  “We’re not the problem here, Gwen,” Steven grumbled, trying to infuse some parental reality into the warmth of the moment. But one look in his wife’s eyes told him that he was wrong.

  “Oh, yes, we are. Our daughter didn’t feel comfortable talking with us. She felt she had to keep our first grandchild a secret. Don’t you think that’s a problem?”

  Grandpa Charles grunted in agreement. “I would say it is. If children, even grown, can’t turn to their parents, who can they turn to?”

  “We’re going to put that all behind us now,” Gwen stated emphatically. “Let’s make a pact. Between all of us. No More Secrets. The Broward family needs to stay strong and stay together, now more than ever.”

  Gwen made a fist and put it in the middle of the table. Grandpa was the first to stick out his hand and lay it over hers. Then Jameson and Wes. Laney was next.

  “Dad?” Jameson asked. “What about you?”

  Laney turned her head and looked up at her father, afraid of what she’d see in his eyes.

  In her eyes, Steven saw a deep love for him and their entire family that would nourish and sustain a future generation of Browards. Destroying their bond through unforgiveness would go against everything he’d ever taught his daughter.

  “I hope he likes cattle. We can always use some more help around the ranch,” he said gruffly.

  Holding back tears, Steven reached out his hand and placed it gently over hers.

  Chapter 4

  Laney stepped out of her mother’s red convertible in front of The Sunflower Café, Granger’s only upscale eatery, with an even worse sense of dread than she’d f
elt twelve hours earlier.

  Since she’d told Gwen about the baby, her mom had all kinds of decorating ideas for the nursery. The plan was to eat a light breakfast and then head down to Bozeman for some serious shopping.

  Although she was looking forward to spending some long-overdue quality time with her mother, she wasn’t quite sure she was ready to face the good people of Granger yet.

  Since the news broke yesterday, the media backlash had been brutal and her publicist was working desperately to find the “positive spin” in the story. It would only be a matter of time before everyone learned who was responsible for her “baby bump.”

  And then the real firestorm would begin.

  She had to be ready for it. Clearly, the media was no longer her BFF, they were her sworn enemy. Now was the time to protect her already damaged reputation and that of the Broward family.

  She’d already placed a call that morning to the private investigator she’d hired in the hopes that he’d be able to find out who was responsible for leaking the story. Was it The Cobra, the person who’d blackmailed her? Or someone else?

  Laney wasn’t about to sit back and wait for an answer.

  She had her own agenda. Her plan was to find out as much information about Austin as she could.

  Discreetly, of course.

  Her mother had eyes in the back of her head and ears that homed in like radar. Laney knew she was probably having a hard time coming to grips with the fact that she didn’t know her own daughter was pregnant. Avoiding the BWB ranch for the past few months had certainly helped, but now Laney doubted that Gwen would want to let her out of her sight.

  That’s why this lunch was so important, Laney thought, as she looped her arm through Gwen’s.

  Her mother, who had done some business with Austin in the past, knew more about the man than she did. Although Laney wasn’t the gossiping type, she’d hoped to learn something—anything!—that she could tuck away for the future. Just in case he decided to try to take her baby.

  Laney shuddered inwardly. Uncovering the dirt on Austin would make debating the difference between calico and chintz with Gwen a whole lot easier to stomach when they went shopping.