“Yeah, I was real good for Rain.” Actually, Brody thought, the only person who’d ever thought he was any good was Rain. And he’d had to go and prove her wrong.
“You weren’t then,” Eli began, “You need to do better now. You’ve got two daughters to consider.”
Brody turned to Owen. “Two daughters you could have told me about any time during the last six years.”
Owen frowned. “She asked me not to.”
“What? Why?”
“She had her reasons,” Owen said, not telling him anything.
“She had no right . . .”
“You weren’t around to tell.” Eli crossed his arms over his chest. “She spent three years trying to find you, but you made damn sure you couldn’t be found. She loved and took care of Autumn like she was her own. The minute she sees you, she tells you about the girls. She didn’t hide it from you. In fact, she’s terrified you’ll try to take them away from her for no other reason than to be ornery about the fact you didn’t know about them.”
“I’d never do that. I want us to be a family.”
“Yeah, I got that from the kiss you laid on her. Not fair, by the way. Since you’ve been gone, she’s been a mother. It’s been a long time since she remembered she’s also a woman,” Eli said, giving him a nod when the shock registered on his face.
His brain was on overload. Brody decided with Eli present, better to stick to his daughters than the fact Rain tasted as good as ice cream on a summer day, and he had plans for that delectable woman. Hot, sweaty plans with lots more kissing.
“Okay, forget everything else. How did Rain end up with Autumn?”
“Because, dumb-shit, you had sex with a viper,” Owen said scathingly. “Rain had to—”
“That’s for Rain to tell you,” Eli interrupted. Owen clamped his jaw shut, daggers shooting out his eyes all aimed at Brody.
Brody bit back a hot retort and the demand someone give him a straight answer. Apparently, the only one who’d do that was Rain. “Okay. What about Rain and the girls? Where are they living? Are the girls healthy? Do they need anything?” He tried to cover all the bases, but he’d just become a father and he wasn’t sure where to start. He’d planned on coming here, finding Rain, convincing—begging, if he had to—her to marry him, and then they’d have a family. It seemed so easy and brilliant in his mind. Reality sucked. Well, maybe not. He had a child with Rain. Two, by the looks of the bond between her and Autumn. That was his ticket in the door. Now all he had to do was keep her from tossing him out on his ass again.
“The girls are perfect,” Owen said, smiling for the first time since Rain left. “They live in Eli’s old house. Eli moved to the apartment upstairs after the girls were born.”
“I wanted her to have a place of her own, to be on her own. I couldn’t give her college and the freedom she’d worked so hard to earn, but I could give her the freedom to run her own household and raise her girls without my interference.”
“When I moved back to town, I offered to help her financially.” Owen’s eyes grew sad. “She wouldn’t accept, except a few times when she was short and didn’t have a choice but to ask for help.”
“So, she’s had Autumn since she was a baby?”
“Yes. But that’s a long, ugly story. One you’ll have to get from Rain. She deserves a chance to tell you herself,” Owen said.
“Fine. Owen, are you done for the day?”
“I’ve got a few things to tie up at the office. Why?”
“Seems I have a family to take care of and provide for. I’ll need your help putting some legal matters in order.”
“Will you petition the court for joint custody?” Eli asked.
“No. I need to set some things up for the girls. I owe Rain seven years of child support and some kind of monthly support from now on. That is, until I can convince her to marry me,” Brody said bluntly to gauge Eli’s reaction. Eli didn’t give anything away, only stood waiting to hear what came next.
“I own the cabin and half the land on Clear Water Ranch. I also own part of a company. If something happens to me, those things will go to the girls.”
“Wait,” Eli interrupted. “How do you own a company when you’ve been in Iraq and Afghanistan for the last six years?”
“I had a buddy who was really smart and had a great idea, but he needed the money to get started. The military provided everything I needed, I banked a lot of the money I earned, and decided to invest in my buddy’s idea. He started the company and got the patents on a couple of his ideas, but because I financed the patents, I insisted the patents be in my name to protect my investment.”
“Sounds like you were the smart one,” Eli said, surprising him.
“If Bill Gates can buy an operating system from someone and build a company, why couldn’t I do something similar? Anyway, the company took off. I do some of the work, but for the most part, I’m a silent partner. Now that I have the time, I’ll get more involved.”
“Your degree in business and finance doesn’t hurt,” Owen put in.
“You know all this about me, but you couldn’t make a simple phone call and say, ‘Hey, man, come home. There’re a couple people you need to meet.’”
“You were overseas most of the time. Besides, not my call to make,” Owen said. “Get over it.”
“I don’t have a choice. I do, however, have to change my plans for the future.”
“So, you’ll stick around this time?” Eli asked.
“I’m not going anywhere. At least, not without my girls.” Seeing both Eli and Owen about to argue, he added, “All my girls, Rain included. If that woman thought I was stubborn before, she hasn’t seen anything yet.”
Brody let that sink in with both his brother and Eli. Since Eli didn’t seem inclined to kill him or maim him anymore, he asked, “What do I owe you for the truck?”
Eli pulled out a slip from his back pocket and handed it over. Brody looked at the list of parts and their cost. “This can’t be the total.”
“That’s the bill. How do you want to settle up? Check? Credit card?”
“There’s nothing on here for the labor.”
“According to Rain, we don’t charge labor for family.”
That hit him right dead center in the heart. “She said that?”
“Yep. Pay for the parts. She did the work. As far as I know, she left your brake lines intact.” He winked and Brody almost laughed, but Eli’s words held a ring of truth to them.
As much as Rain might want him in the girls’ lives, they still had a lot to work out. Rain was a stubborn, proud, strong woman, who could make things difficult if she wanted to torture him. He had no doubt she’d mete out some kind of punishment. He’d just have to take his licks and convince her he may have left a scoundrel, but he’d come back a man ready to settle down into a comfortable life as a husband—and father.
He’d just thought to do those things in that order, not the other way around.
Chapter Seven
* * *
BRODY NEVER THOUGHT he’d be afraid of two little girls, but he sat outside Rain’s old house afraid to go up the walk and face them. He didn’t know them, and they didn’t know him. He desperately wanted them to see him as their father, call him Dad, and love him. If he’d been there from the start, he’d have all those things. Coming in halfway through their raising, he’d have to earn it. He had no idea how to go about doing it. The only thing he’d come up with over the last two hours was to win them over, just like he had to win over Rain. If dating Rain turned into love once before, it could again. He could date his daughters too in a sense. It all came down to time. He needed time to prove himself, to his girls and to Rain.
He grabbed everything he’d brought with him, got out of the truck, and made his way up the walkway. Before he knocked, Rain opened the door. She wasn’t quite smiling, but she wasn’t hissing and spitting either.
“The girls were watching you from their window upstairs. They thought maybe y
ou’d changed your mind about being their dad.”
One side of his mouth went down before he answered. “Can’t change something that is.”
“Don’t I know it,” Rain shot back.
Unclamping his jaw, he held out the roses to her. “For you. Two for every year I was gone. One for each girl. I owe you a hell of a lot more. Think of this as a peace offering. At least, for tonight.”
Although she held the roses in front of her, she hesitated to bury her face in them. She didn’t want to like them. Then, she gave in and smelled them before brushing her fingers over the delicate petals. “How on earth did you find purple roses?”
“I’m a resourceful guy,” he said with a grin. Memories flooded back. “Whenever you came out to the ranch and we’d walk the fields, you always picked the purple wildflowers. I guessed purple was your favorite.”
“They’re beautiful.”
“Yeah, beautiful,” he said, looking at her face. Not quite as long as he remembered, her hair hung in waves down past her shoulders. Her face was scrubbed clean, maybe a touch of makeup on her eyes. She’d never worn much. She didn’t need to. Those deep pools of brown remained wary.
It was a moment, her standing there holding the huge bouquet of flowers, their eyes locked, time standing still. He wanted to tell her he loved her. Just say the words, let them fall from his lips and possibly wipe away some of the hurt and pain he’d caused her.
He opened his mouth, only to clamp it shut when his brother appeared behind Rain.
“You guys coming in, or what?”
Rain jumped and pasted that calm, blank expression on her face. She turned and disappeared into the house without another word.
“Was it something I said?” Owen joked with a wide smile.
“You might have given me another minute alone with her,” he said under his breath, trying to reel in his temper.
“The girls are tired of waiting.”
Magically, the two little ones appeared out from behind Owen’s legs. He gave them both a huge smile. He had to admit, he was happy to see them.
“We made spaghetti,” Dawn announced.
“You did?”
“Mom said it’s your favorite.”
“It sure is. Did you help her make it?”
“Yeah. Autumn helped, too.”
Brody stared down at his other daughter. Half-hidden behind Owen, looking up at him with her thumb and index finger pinching at her bottom lip. Her eyes were as wary as her mother’s. “Hi, Autumn.”
“Hi,” she said softly. He bent with the pink bakery box held in front of him. “What’s in the box?”
Brody smiled, letting her know he wouldn’t bite. “Well, now. This here is something special for you and Dawn. Want to peek?”
“I want to see!” Dawn shouted and moved closer, putting her hand on his shoulder. Nothing had ever felt better than that little hand, so trusting.
Autumn, obviously the more cautious and shy one, he’d have the hardest time winning her over. “Autumn, go ahead, take a look.”
She came out from behind Owen’s legs and moved toward him. Very slowly, she stretched out her hand and lifted the lid of the box like there were monsters inside. Her eyes grew wide as saucers and she smiled. It was the prettiest smile he’d ever seen, lighting up her whole face. For a moment, he thought she looked like his mother.
Dawn’s squeal was ear-piercing. “Cupcakes.”
“That’s right, sweetheart. For after dinner,” he added to Dawn. Fixing his attention back on Autumn, he asked, “Do you like chocolate, Autumn?”
She nodded and bit down on her lower lip.
“Well, how about we go inside and see about dinner. The sooner we eat, the sooner you two can have the cupcakes. Gotta eat all your dinner first,” he added.
“You’re certainly sounding like a dad,” Owen teased. “Come on ladies. Let’s eat.”
“I want a piggyback ride.” Dawn practically crawled up Owen’s leg. After Owen hoisted her up, Autumn stared up at her sister riding into the house on Owen’s back. The two of them whooped and hollered their way toward the kitchen.
“Want a ride, baby girl?” He wasn’t sure if it was the endearment or the fact she really wanted a ride, but she smiled hugely again and melted his heart.
“Can I?”
“Sure.” He bent so she could climb up on his back. When she clasped her hands at his throat, he stood with one arm secure under her bottom. “All set?”
“Yep,” she said with more enthusiasm than he’d heard from her yet.
The house hadn’t changed much over the years. In fact, it was comforting to see most everything was still the same, yet Rain and the girls had made their mark. Along with the pictures of Rain at various ages growing up, several pictures of the girls sat scattered about the mantel and tables. He smiled and felt sad he’d missed so much.
The picture of Rain standing on the porch, a bundled baby in each arm, caught his attention. The smile on her face told him she was happy to bring her girls home, but her eyes held a distinct sadness. He wondered if she was thinking he should have been there. He still hadn’t had enough time to really take it in, everything she’d had to do to bring those girls home and raise them on her own. Then he thought of everything he’d missed. The anger bubbled up, but he tamped it down. It wasn’t Rain’s fault he’d missed it. Still, he wanted to blame someone, and blaming himself only made him angrier.
They made it into the kitchen, Autumn laughing the whole way as he bounced her on his back. Rain turned from stirring a pot on the stove, surprised when she saw him with Autumn. Placing the bakery box on the counter, he went to Rain, not giving her time to move away. “Give Mommy a kiss.”
Rain moved close to him to kiss Autumn, her nails digging into his shoulders. He inhaled her sweet scent and fell into a dozen memories of them as teens. One of her sitting on the tailgate of his truck, her legs kicking back and forth, licking an ice cream cone. He said something that made her laugh, and she leaned into his shoulder and laid her head against him. His gut tightened even now, thinking of the way she made him feel when she laughed, and made him want to join in.
“You look good up there, baby,” Rain said, her heart aching. Her daughters had waited a long time to have their father home. Here he was, giving piggyback rides and trying his best to make them feel comfortable. What little girl wouldn’t welcome Brody’s openness and charming smile? He was just a big kid himself sometimes.
She remembered them as teens in high school. Brody a senior and her a young freshman. She’d run up behind him and jump up on his back, wrapping her legs around his waist. He’d grab hold of her thighs with his big hands and hold her steady, smiling at her over his shoulder and laughing with her. He didn’t laugh often, but she brought it out of him. She cherished those fun moments they shared. Moments when he let his guard down. Something he’d only ever done with her.
The purple roses were nice. It touched her that he remembered such a simple thing about her.
She remembered things about him, too. Like he hadn’t been quite that well built when he was younger. The military had added a lot of muscle to his tall, lean frame. His hair had always been an unruly mass on his head, golden blond streaked by the sun. It was still the same bright color, but now it was trimmed short around the edges, he’d left the top a little longer. But it wasn’t his broad chest or the snug fit of his jeans that took her back. His smile brightened the blue of his eyes until you thought you might actually see that spark of a twinkle in them like some cartoon come to life. Now, that smile had a harder time coming. When it reached his eyes, that spark glowed, but didn’t ignite.
Owen spoke to her about Brody’s accident and what caused him to veer his truck off the road and into a ditch. Flashbacks from the war. Owen was there when Brody woke from a nightmare. The thought of Brody suffering made her physically hurt. Her chest grew tight and her heart shuddered.
“Rain, are you okay?” Brody asked, bringing her out of her though
ts.
Straightening her shoulders, she answered, “I’m fine. Dinner is just about ready.”
She turned her back on him and stirred the sauce. Dinner was done, but she needed a moment. She should have known Brody wouldn’t leave her be. He knew her too well.
He leaned into her, put his hands on both sides of her against the counter, his chest against her shoulders. He made her whole body come to life as warm waves of heat radiated out from her lower belly.
“Come on, Rain. What’s wrong?”
“I’m fine.” She stirred the thick, simmering sauce.
“Mommy gets sad sometimes,” Autumn said from over Brody’s shoulder.
“She does?” Brody asked.
“Sometimes she gets sad and just stares. Sometimes she’s sad after she talks to Uncle Owen.” Autumn’s fingers slid through her hair, something she did often, and Rain always loved it. When Autumn was a baby, she’d grab fistfuls of her hair and just hold on to her. As if Autumn needed that reassurance Rain would never leave her.
“Autumn, would you and your sister please put the napkins on the table and tell Uncle Owen and Pop it’s time to eat.”
Brody set the girl on her feet, which gave Rain the perfect opportunity to move away. Distance was necessary to keep herself from giving in to the force that pulled her to him. He’d left her. Alone and pregnant, she’d cursed him for what he’d done, then she’d cried more often than she’d ever admit.
“Rain, honey, why are you sad?”
“I’m fine, Brody. Leave it alone for now. Dinner’s ready.”
“No. Not this time. Seems to me I’ve left you alone for far too long.” He backed her up against the counter.
Rain wasn’t about to put up with it. She planted her hands on his chest and shoved. “You don’t get to come in here and ask about me. You walked away, turned your back and left, making it damn clear you didn’t want anything to do with me.”
The Return of Brody McBride Page 7