Cowboy's Barmaid: A Small Town Military Romance (Lucky Flats Ranchers Book 2)

by Piper Sullivan

  “Mary, thank you, I’ll talk to Mr. Landers,” she said and then looked up at him, “I’m Mrs. Denton, the principle of Bright Stars Daycare, how can I assist you today?”

  He just promised some nobody a refurbished playground? He rolled his eyes mentally and squared his shoulders.

  “Mrs. Denton, I was just explaining to, Mary, that I will be attending the father and son evening with Jacob, so if you can just confirm this, I will be on my way.”

  The woman stood quietly for a moment before nodding her head, “Of course,” she said and ever so casually hooked her arm in his and guided him towards the exit, “Perhaps you can consider spending some time with the other boys too, I’m sure they would love to have such a famous baseball player in their midst.”

  Un-bloody-believable, he thought to himself, the audacity of these people simply bowled him over, but if that’s what it took to have Jacob at the father and son evening, then so be it. But once Lucy was out of hospital he was going to insist she find another daycare, even if he had to pay for it. He was not going to allow Jacob to be educated by a bunch of idiots.

  ***

  The father and son evening was a blast, and although he had to spend time pitching and playing with the other boys and dads, he got to spend some real quality time with Jacob. Of course, the other kids were fussing over him and just about every single one of them tried to arrange for sleep overs at Jacob’s place. In less than a day Jacob had turned from an insignificant nobody in their eyes to popular. It wasn’t exactly the best thing, since the last thing Joe wanted were for kids to befriend Jacob solely for his association with a famous baseball player. But nevertheless, Jacob was in his element and Joe was sure that Lucy had raised him to not get a swelled head over a little attention.

  By seven the next morning, Joe had packed up the tent and was ready to head on back to Lucy’s apartment, he needed some serious down time to recharge his batteries. It didn’t take long for Jacob to pass out once they were home and settled and although Joe wanted to sleep as well, he couldn’t. He spent the morning tidying up the place. While he tidied the kitchen he noticed a pile of documents lying in the corner on the counter. Some envelopes with big red stamps screaming out OVERDUE, and others that appeared less intimidating, but he could only guess these were all bills and by the weight of all the overdue envelopes, she was not able to pay them. He shouldn’t be meddling with her personal affairs, but after the pile called out to him a second and third time, he gave up the fight.

  She might hate him for a brief moment in time, but once she realized that she has no more debt, she’ll eventually come around and thank him.

  He worked his way down the pile listing the accounts that needed immediate settlement and emailed them to his manager to handle, who of course couldn’t understand why he was taking on a charity case. But no one told him how to run his finances, or what to do with his money.

  A particular piece of paper caught his eye, it was Jacob’s birth certificate with only Lucy’s details on it, she had made no mention of the father, which he found quite odd, but then again, he had no idea how these things worked anyway. Jacob Daniel Conlay, he smirked at that. Daniel was his middle name too, a warm fuzzy feeling settled in his stomach and he kept on reading over the details. Date of birth – 13 June 2012. It dawned on him that he never once bothered to ask Lucy exactly how old Jacob was. For a four year old boy, he was pretty clued in with life and much more mature about matters than he would expect from a toddler. He piled the birth certificate with the rest of the papers and gathered it all up then stuck it back in the corner. Once she finds out that she has no more debt she can have a go at him, but for now, he was simply going to pretend he had no clue.

  Chapter 10

  Lucy looked forward to the visits from Jacob and Joe, and even though she felt like death itself, she always ensured that she looked her best. She had become friends with one of the nurses who helped her with her hair and light make-up. But today she felt less radiant. A week had passed since a partial mastectomy was performed, removing most of her left breast, and although she was able to go home, she knew that in a week's’ time she would have to start her radiotherapy. She feared that most, but if she wanted to see her son grow into a teenager she had to do what it takes to beat this.

  At least she would be home, and she could take care of Jacob herself, she couldn’t expect Joe to stay longer than he already had; besides he had a life of his own to live. The idea of telling him about Jacob had also taken a back seat. The door to her room opened and Dr Moffat entered the room.

  “How are you feeling today Lucy?” he asked as he stood next to her.

  “Okay I guess,” she said solemnly.

  “I know it’s very daunting but you’re lucky that breast cancer is often curable to a point where you won’t have to go through this again.”

  “Often, doctor? That’s not exactly a guarantee,” she said bitterly.

  He placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled, “If you do the treatments and you fight through this, you can beat it. I promise you. You have to find the will to survive.”

  He was right, she had to fight, but how does one fight an invisible monster that threatens your very life, and tries to rob you of everything you ever lived for?

  “I know, I just don’t feel all that well today,” she admitted and moved to sit up.

  “You’ll have days like this, but once you’re home with your family, you’ll have a lot of support, and you’ll feel much better.”

  She liked the doctor, but she also knew that doctors were trained to bullshit. They have a special class that trains them how to break news easily; although the news is everything but positive. Instead she smiled and nodded. Just then Jacob came bolting into the room.

  “Mommy!” he cried out and leaped onto the bed to hug her.

  Joe was quick enough to scoop him up before he threw himself against her chest.

  “Easy there, your mommy has a little bit of a sore and if you hug her too tight she might get hurt.”

  Lucy instantly snapped and reached for Jacob, “For heaven sake Joe, he can hug me if he wants to.”

  Joe shrugged and then placed Jacob on the bed, “Fine.”

  Lucy felt bad for a moment, she didn’t have to snap at him, he was just trying to help, but she didn’t feel like apologizing either. Jacob however, was much more careful this time as he gently hugged her, and she had to fight back the tears that threatened to spill.

  “Are you excited that I’m coming home or has Uncle Joe been spoiling you?” she asked as she combed her fingers through her son’s messy hair.

  “I’m happy, you can come teach Uncle Joe to make boiled eggs,” he said.

  Joe chuckled and Lucy looked up at him, “He doesn’t know how to make boiled eggs? I find that rather hard to believe.”

  “It’s all squishy and gross,” Jacob said pulling a face.

  Joe shrugged, “I have no clue how long to boil them, if I boil them too long the shell cracks open and the egg leaks into the water, if I boil them too little it’s half raw. I’m afraid I’ll need a few lessons there.”

  Lucy laughed and her eyes met Joe’s. For a moment there was a sizzle of anticipation between them and she saw that look in his eyes again, the same one that had her fall head over heels with him back at her brother’s wedding. She quickly averted her gaze and turned her attention to her son.

  “I tell you what, the moment we’re home I’ll show you both how to cook an egg,” she offered and then slowly got off the bed.

  Before this very moment, the thought of her left breast having been removed hardly troubled her, but now with Joe so close, she was mortified by the fact that her breast was practically mutilated. She kept her good side to him and pulled on her jumper and when Joe tried to give her a hand she quickly shrugged him away.

  “I can do this myself… thank you,” she had no idea why she suddenly felt so agitated.

  “Right champ, up you go!” he said ignoring her su
btle outburst and lifted Jacob onto his shoulders, “best get to the cooking lesson.”

  At the same time he picked up her bag and headed to the door and waited for her to exit. First thing she noticed were the nurses all huddling at the nurse’s station trying to appear as inconspicuous as ever but she knew right away that they were all fanning themselves over Joe, that irritated her even more. They were like a bunch of mosquitoes zeroing in on their victim. She didn’t dare look behind her, but she assumed he enjoyed the attention and was probably winking at every single one of them.

  She tilted her chin and held her head high as she walked out of the ward and headed straight for the elevator. As the doors closed, she took a deep controlling breath, which was probably the biggest mistake ever. He smelled like sandalwood and soap, clean and fresh, the scent immediately assaulted her senses and she once again parted her lips to avoid breathing through her nose.

  The quicker they got home, the quicker she could send him on his way and get on with her own life. He didn’t need to know about Jacob, she had kept it quiet for this long, why go and upset the whole apple cart now.

  Chapter 11

  Joe had made some herbal tea for Lucy and got her medication, while she put Jacob to bed. It was one thing being here with Jacob, but being here with Lucy was a real trip down memory lane. Although, what they had all those years back was a fly by night romance that would never have lasted, the scent that filled this small space was distinctly Lucy, a mix of lavender and well, lavender. He was never good with the different scents women liked and the only one he knew popped to mind.

  Her door stood slightly ajar as he got to her room, “Lucy?” he warned before he stepped into her room. She was lying curled up under her blanket and her shoulders were shaking.

  “Lucy, are you okay?” he asked again and placed her tea and pills next to her on the night stand.

  “I-I’m fine,” she said and sniffed.

  “No, you’re not fine, come, have some tea,” he said and reached out to touch her shoulder, but she shrugged him away.

  “I just want to be alone,” she whimpered.

  He could leave her be, and give her, her space. But something in his gut told him otherwise and without putting much thought into it, he toed his shoes off and lay down behind her, spooning her frail body, separated by a thick blanket against him. He wouldn’t even know where to begin, but if holding her was all he could do to ease her worry and her pain then so be it. At least she didn’t chase him away this time, he thought as he buried his nose in her hair. She just felt so perfect here in his arms. He never stayed over at any woman’s place, no woman ever stayed over at his, and he sure as hell didn’t cuddle after sex. But this wasn’t sex was it? It was something different, Lucy was also not his latest shag after a winning game, she was his friend, and he was doing exactly what friends would do, consoling her.

  “You can talk to me, I want you to know that,” he whispered into her hair.

  ***

  Where should she even start? She wondered as she lay in Joe’s arms. It felt so familiar, yet so strange. Why did life have to be so complicated? Telling him about Jacob could have one of two outcomes and neither of them promised anything good. He could either run because of shock or deny it, or he could accept it and the tabloids will go nuts over the gold digger from Erie who tried her luck at claiming his paternity for her illegitimate child. You have to tell him, Chris’ voice rung in her mind, reminding her that she can’t run forever, but this moment was too perfect to ruin.

  “Jacob is pretty clever for a four-year-old,” he said.

  She stiffened in his arms, was he fishing or was that genuine interest, “He is much more mature than some of his peers,” she said tentatively.

  “Yeah, definitely your son there’s no doubt, thank god he got your brains, because if he got his dad’s brains it would have been an utter waste,” Joe continued.

  Lucy turned unto her back and looked at him, “What do you mean by that?”

  “I’m just saying, the dumbass that left without taking the responsibility of such a bright young boy, never deserved him in the first place.”

  Lucy sucked in a breath and then scooted off to the other side of the bed and sat up.

  “I don’t think he’s to blame,” she said and the way the muscle ticked in Joe’s jaw was obvious that he was annoyed, “Sometimes things just work out the way they do.”

  Joe sat up and looked at her, “C’mon Luce, his name isn’t even on Jacob’s birth certificate; hell, if he was my kid I would have made sure my name appeared on that dotted line regardless of the state of my relationship with my child’s mother.”

  Lucy threw her head back and laughed, “You? Seriously Joe, you hate the entire idea of kids, you made that quite clear that weekend...kids would never fit into your world.”

  She had already said too much, fearful that he might have put one and one together, she got up and walked over to the window and peered into the brick wall opposite her bedroom window.

  She felt Joe’s hands on her shoulders as he came to stand behind her, and her body sunk back against his, if only things weren’t as complicated as they were. She thought as she closed her eyes. Joe slowly pulled her back against him, and then he turned her around and hugged her against his chest and looked up into his eyes. He gently grazed her skin with the pad of his thumb and then ducked his head and looked deeply into her eyes.

  “Everything will turn out fine, you’ll see.”

  She nodded and looked down, averting the intensity of his gaze, but when he nudged her chin up with his knuckle, her lips parted and she inhaled sharply. He was so close; his eyes boring into her very soul and his lips paused inches from hers. The sudden spike in her pulse almost rendered her breathless, and as his mouth hovered just above her trembling lips she closed her eyes. She took a tentative breath but as she inhaled, his lips came down on hers. It was a gentle kiss at first, but as she relaxed in his embrace it became more urgent. A faint moan escaped her as the resistance she had fought so hard to keep at bay, crumbled down like a bank of eroded soil, washed away by the storm of passion that raged through her.

  In one swift motion he bent his knees and tucked his hands under her bottom, lifting her effortlessly into his arms. Her legs snaked around him as if her mind had been hijacked. He gently laid her back down on the bed and once again brought his mouth to hers. His lips roamed, over her chin along the line of her jaw, devouring her. His stubble grazed the curve of her throat and her frantic heartbeat a million miles a second. She wanted to feel his skin against hers, feel his hands explore every inch of… No! She thought with a start, she’s half a woman, Joe would be horrified to see her naked. And as panic overpowered passion she shoved against him and slid out from under him.

  “No! I mean we can’t,” she said trying to catch he breath and bring the erratic beat of her heart under control.

  “Lucy, I…” he started dragging his fingers through his hair.

  “He’s yours,” she blurted out without thinking. Anything to distract him and herself,

  “What?” he asked as his brows creased together.

  “Jacob, he’s yours, I should have told you,” she started but the look on his face was one of shock.

  “Jacob is mine?” he asked disbelievingly.

  All she could do was nod, words failed her and excuses had fled the recesses of her mind.

  “I wanted…”

  “You wanted to wait until he was eighteen to tell me, or wait until you were dead?” Joe ground out.

  He was angry, and Lucy had no idea to handle anger other than retaliating.

  “Well what did you expect me to do? You were the one who decided that baseball was more important than the people you left behind!”

  “We were young, for god sakes Lucy, I hardly knew you before that weekend, and just because I thought to follow my career, now I’ve made bad choices? That’s pretty damn rich coming from someone who can’t even afford to pay her bills much les
s!”

  She flinched and staggered backwards, “What do you know about my bills?”

  He came closer and glared at her, “Everything, but you can thank your selfish ass that you won’t have to worry about a single cent anymore.”

  Stumped, Lucy stood and stared at him, he had gone through her bills, what else did he come across? She watched him as he put his shoes back on, tugging violently at the shoelaces as he tied them. If she had to put their indiscretions on a scale, hers would far outweigh his. She had kept his son away from him for four years, and now that she was in a pinch, he was good enough. She had truly become a selfish wench with no regard as to how it would affect everyone else. As it stood at the moment, there would be no fixing this in a hurry.

  She recoiled as the door slammed shut behind Joe, she contemplated running after him but her bravery failed her greatly, so she simply slumped down on the bed and sobbed.

  Chapter 12

  Two days later…

  Joe was trying to be tolerant, and in this particular case, more tolerant than most. He was mad at her for never telling him about Jacob, but after he had calmed down he realized that she was right. Children and white picket fences had no place in his life. He was still pissed at her for not telling him the truth from the start, he didn’t want them to part on uncertain terms. As they walked out to his car, he felt as if he was leaving behind a part of him, which made no sense at all. He had a different life in California.

  One thing that consoled him was that she had agreed to let him pay for a better daycare and to help out with Jacob’s expenses in general. He made her promise not to consider paying back a cent of the debt he had settled with her bills. But the pain and uncertainty that flooded his soul with muck, was the fact that he was leaving his son behind. They decided not to upset Jacob now, and leave things as they were.

  “Thank you for helping and for understanding, I don’t know what I would have done if you…” Lucy said as she looked out into the distance.