Using the spare key Darcy had lent him, Garrett let himself inside, thinking that it was probably best his hosts couldn’t see him now. In spite of everything, he was grinning like an idiot. Knowing that Arden would be on his ranch, the land he’d loved since he was a boy, filled him with a sense of triumph and more joy than was strictly logical. As soon as he’d first wondered if she might one day agree to move, he’d been steadily consumed with a need to show her the Double F.
She was emotional right now, and he could imagine how a conversation where he asked her to uproot her entire life would go. It would simplify matters if she’d already grown fond of the area surrounding his home. Relocating might give their unorthodox family their only legitimate chance at bonding. Maybe he was getting ahead of himself, but it was invigorating to nurture some small spark of optimism in the pit of confusion his life had become.
Unfortunately, there was one thing he had to do before he took Arden to the ranch. He had to call his mom. So far, he’d responded to her texts but had managed to put off actually speaking to her. In every message she sent, he could feel her anxiety like a sunburn abrading his skin.
If he called the house now, his father would probably be outside, still working for the day. Assuming Caroline was home, she should be at liberty to talk. Should he practice what to say? Bitterness swamped him. He’d been raised on the propaganda that he and his parents could talk to each other about anything, yet now he had to rehearse just to endure a ten-minute phone call with his own mother?
Best to get this over with, then. Sitting at the Connors’ kitchen table, he pulled his phone out of his pocket. He was up and pacing before the first ring had finished.
“Garrett? Oh, thank God.” Her voice was full of maternal reproach. It made him crazy that, in spite of the position she’d put him in, she could make him feel guilty. “I’ve been worried sick!”
“It wasn’t my intent to worry you by not calling,” he said stiffly. “I told you I needed space. But I’ll be coming home tomorrow, at least temporarily. If you talk to Will—” damn, those words were hard to say “—tell him that I’ve made a preliminary appointment consultation. My understanding is that’s followed by up to a week in the hospital with testing to find out if I’m a good candidate. That’s not to say I’ve decided one hundred percent to go through with the procedure even if I am, but—”
“It’s a start. We’re both so sorry to have to put you through—”
“Don’t!” He didn’t want to think about his mom and Will as a unified “we.” The idea of the two of them, his parents, discussing him behind Brandon’s back... His free hand clenched into a fist. Knowing he couldn’t hurt granite, he took a swing at Darcy’s countertop. It stung like a bitch, but left him feeling calmer. “There’s something else I need to tell you. I’m bringing someone with me to the ranch. A woman named Arden Cade.”
“Oh?” Beneath the expected surprise was a note of what sounded like disapproval.
“Is that a problem?” he asked defensively. He was a grown man with his own house on the acreage. He’d had overnight guests and weekend visitors over the years.
“Garrett, you’re in a very tough place right now. Not quite yourself, and I don’t want you doing anything drastic that you might regret later. I know a lot about regrets,” she murmured. “Knee-jerk reactions to stress and jumping into—”
“I do not want your advice on relationships.” He also didn’t want to argue with her or listen to more apologies. “I’ll text you before we hit the road. See you tomorrow.”
He hung up the phone, angry with his own rudeness and her hypocrisy. He wasn’t fourteen, looking for her wisdom on girls. How could she act as if their mother-son dynamic hadn’t been irreparably altered?
If he hadn’t gotten so ticked off, maybe he could have done a better job explaining his and Arden’s situation. Or not. The righteous fury that had burned through him when he learned about his child was still there, boiling below the surface like lava, but other powerful feelings were developing, too. The instinct to shield her and the baby from all harm. The driving need to kiss her again. The appreciation for her inviting nature—when he wasn’t actively angry with her, she was easier to talk to than almost anyone he knew.
The more time he spent with Arden Cade, the less he understood just what their situation was. Now they’d be together for three days in his one-bedroom home. Would he come out of this weekend with answers? Or just more questions?
Chapter Eight
Arden stared out the truck window, suppressing the need to ask for another stop this soon after the last one. Garrett’s parents were expecting them for lunch. At the rate we’re traveling, we might make it to the ranch in time for a midnight snack.
He pointed at a green exit sign. “I’m gonna get off here. Help me look for a place to stop.”
“Don’t do that on my account,” she managed to say, her tone brittle. As much as she appreciated that he’d come over to help with packing and dinner last night, it was a tad humiliating. On top of having to cancel paying jobs this weekend, she couldn’t accomplish basic tasks? Not being able to ride for ten minutes without needing to scout out another restroom intensified her mounting frustration.
“Oh, this isn’t for you, it’s for me. Old junior rodeo injury.” He tapped his side. “My hip jams sometimes. Need to stretch my legs.”
The corner of her mouth quirked. “You expect me to believe that load of horse manure?”
He grinned, unabashed. “Hey, I’m trying to salvage your pride here. The least you could do is play along.” When he winked at her from beneath the brim of his black cowboy hat, she couldn’t help but laugh.
They changed lanes to make their way toward the exit ramp, winding up behind a huge truck that said Lanagan Brothers across its back doors. “Speaking of brothers,” Garrett said, “what did yours say about our little road trip?”
She bit her lip.
“You did tell them? We’ll be gone three days, and I know you wouldn’t want them to worry.”
“I was planning to call them from the road,” she said brightly. “At a safe distance. Like maybe your parents’ driveway.”
He smirked. “That explains why I didn’t find Justin at your front door this morning. I half expected to see one of them waiting with a duffel bag and the announcement that he was tagging along.”
“With time, I think you could all become friends.” Her words came out with less conviction than she’d hoped.
“Don’t sweat it. Everyone’s families come with their own peculiar baggage. Mine especially.”
She saw the way his fingers tightened on the steering wheel, and her heart ached for him. One of the reasons she’d agreed to this trip was because she knew he’d been avoiding his mother in Cielo Peak. Arden didn’t want to provide an excuse for him to stay away from home, away from his problems. Still, the thought of his parents made her uneasy. She’d been astonished that Garrett was bringing her to meet the Frosts without first warning them that she was carrying their grandchild. She hoped this wasn’t, on a subconscious level, petty retribution—him springing this shock on his mother after she’d dropped her own bombshell. Bound to be the most awkward introductions in the history of Colorado.
When she’d tried to suggest giving them a heads-up would allow his parents more time to adjust, he’d become prickly, so Arden had dropped the subject, aware that he already had ample reason to be irate with her. Other than that, he’d been the perfect travel companion, thoughtful and funny with decent taste in road-trip music.
“Aha!” Garrett indicated a billboard for a family-owned place that was both a diner and a country store.
They followed the directions and reached a building that looked like an adorable stone cottage on steroids. There were two separate entrances at either end. Garrett parked near the door leading into the shop.
>
He unbuckled his seat belt. “Want a souvenir for your collection?”
This had been his running gag for the day. The first time they’d stopped, she’d remarked that she hated to use an establishment’s restroom without buying something. So he’d jokingly purchased her a shot glass while he waited. At the following two places, he’d presented her with a postcard and the gaudiest ink pen she’d ever seen in her life, closer to the size of a rolling pin. It was a feathered monstrosity that played bird calls when you pressed buttons on the barrel.
He’d looked inordinately proud. “I’ve outdone myself. How am I going to top this?”
She’d pursed her lips to keep from giggling. “You are only allowed to buy me bottled water for the rest of this trip, you lunatic.”
As they strolled up the sidewalk, she reminded him firmly, “Just water. Got it?”
He tipped his hat at her. “Yes, ma’am.”
They stepped inside, and a blonde woman behind the cash register called out a friendly hello. Arden headed for the sign that said restroom, smiling inwardly when she heard Garrett ask the blonde to point him in the direction of the bottled water. A few minutes later, Arden reemerged and discovered that the blonde had come around the counter, abandoning her post to stand much closer to Garrett. She was practically draped across him as she laughed at something he said.
To be fair, Arden assumed the woman needed his proximity for body heat. After all, the tiny little thing was wearing a cropped sweater with low-slung skinny jeans. Exposing so much midriff, she must be chilly. Beneath the fluorescent lights, a dark orange jewel winked in her navel. A pierced belly button and a flat stomach. Arden sighed, recalling her own reflection in the ladies’ room mirror. She felt like a bloated, overripe tomato in the bulky coat she wore—its bright red color had been so appealing in the store, but now...
Garrett suddenly turned, as if sensing her presence. “There you are. I got the water. Anything else you need?”
Only to get out of here. She shook her head. “Ready when you are.”
The blonde pursed her lips in a pout, laying her hand on Garrett’s arm. “Leaving so soon? You should stay and have some lunch at the diner. The bison burger is my favorite, but we also have a wonderful Denver omelet and green chili.”
“Actually, we already have lunch plans,” Arden said, sidling closer to Garrett. Since she’d made a beeline for the restroom when they walked in, it was probable the blonde hadn’t gotten a good look at her yet. Once the cashier realized Arden was pregnant, would she assume Arden and Garrett were a couple?
Whether the woman noticed her or not, she didn’t put any space between her and Garrett. She managed to reach for the business card holder on the counter without ever taking her eyes on him. “Next time you come through this way, give me a call. Maybe we can have that lunch together.”
He didn’t take the card. “Appreciate the offer, ma’am, but I’m not in these parts often.”
His refusal should have mollified Arden, but her temper was still smoldering when they got back into the truck. Not that she had any claim on Garrett, or cared who he found attractive. But wasn’t there a code between females, an inherent rule that you didn’t flirt with another woman’s guy right in front of her? Garrett wasn’t hers, of course, but the blonde hadn’t known that. The rational conclusion, after seeing them together, was—
“I got you something to go with the water.” Garrett rustled the brown paper bag in his hand, and she wondered what he would pull out of it. Snow globe? A decorative plate featuring the Sangre de Cristo Mountains?
A squeak of excitement escaped her when she saw the familiar gold wrapping. “Are those what I think they are?” Manners temporarily forgotten, she lunged for the package. “They’re my favorite! How did you know?” These particular caramel-filled, individually wrapped chocolate medallions weren’t always easy to find. She never would have thought to look in a kitschy little market on the side of a low-trafficked road.
He grinned, clearly pleased with himself. “There were some in the candy dish on the coffee table at your house. I recognized the logo when I saw it again in the store.”
“Oh, these are the best! I could kiss y—” She broke off abruptly, then wished she hadn’t. It was just a stupid expression. By stopping midsentence, she gave the words more weight than she should have had. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” But he didn’t start the truck. He was watching her, and she could feel the heat in his gaze.
A shiver of awareness ran through her. For the first time, Arden wondered if she’d gotten in over her head when she’d agreed to this trip.
* * *
IN SPITE OF the circumstances under which he’d left, driving through the wrought-iron archway of the Double F filled Garrett with the same sense of joyous homecoming it always had. He loved his home, these sprawling ranges of short-grass and sand-sage prairie where generations of Frosts had made their living. His grandparents now resided in an assisted-living home in the nearby town, but Brandon brought them here at least one weekend a month for Sunday supper. During some visits they all fished at the spring-fed lake, other times they simply played cards on the wraparound porch that circled the two-story brick house.
Garrett lived farther back in a modest one-story. He experienced a wave of excitement mixed with nerves as he imagined showing Arden his place. When he’d left, he certainly hadn’t been expecting to bring someone back with him. Would she like his house? Would she be cataloguing all the potential dangers to a baby? The good news was he didn’t have stairs. But when he considered all the other possible hazards, it made his head spin.
“I’ll buy outlet covers the next time I go to town,” he announced. “That’s a standard part of baby-proofing, right? I’m completely open to making whatever changes necessary. Just let me know what needs to be done.”
She was quiet, the silence heavy around them. Was she thinking about all she still needed to do to prepare? He knew she’d hoped to take care of the baby registry this weekend and that she was worried about how fast time was flying. Or was her pensiveness caused by the idea of the baby being here with him and, by default, not with her?
His parents’ house was directly in front of them. “Do you want to stop here, or would you rather come back after we’ve had a chance to drop off our bags at my place and freshen up?”
“We’ve already made them wait long enough. Let’s get out here.” But her tone was bleakly unenthusiastic as she shrugged back into her coat.
Garrett had a sudden paralyzing moment of doubt over his decision to bring her. Was it too stressful, meeting his parents like this? What kind of selfish idiot subjected a pregnant woman with dangerously high blood pressure to a nerve-wracking situation? “We don’t have to do this, sweetheart. We could turn around and—”
But Brandon and Caroline were already hollering their greetings as they hustled down the porch steps. Obviously, someone had been keeping watch for his truck.
Arden’s smile was sad, her tone wistful. “They sure are eager to see you.”
She was unmistakably missing her own parents. His reservations about this trip evaporated. Even though he and Arden weren’t dating, they were still linked by the baby. Given time, his parents, the only grandparents her child would have, could become like Arden’s honorary extended family.
They climbed out of the truck just as his parents reached them.
“’Bout time you got your butt back here,” Brandon chided with gruff affection. “I’m too old a man to be running this place by myself.”
Garrett blew out his breath in a rude noise. “Good thing we have half a dozen employees, then, huh?” He threw his arm around his dad’s broad shoulders and hugged him. Looking at him now, with a fresh perspective, Garrett wondered why he’d never noticed there was no resemblance between them. Brandon had brown eyes and san
dy-blond hair, though it was liberally streaked with silver under his ubiquitous Stetson. His build was more compact than Garrett’s, his features blunter.
If Garrett hadn’t inherited his mother’s coloring and facial characteristics, would the truth have come out sooner?
He nodded to Caroline, using introductions as a way to put off embracing her. “Dad, Mom, I want you to meet someone very special. This is Arden Cade.”
As she lifted her hand in a timid wave, her coat slid, giving them a much clearer look at her figure.
“Oh, sweet mercy,” Caroline breathed, her hand flying to her mouth. She impaled Garrett with a gaze full of impatient questions. “N-nice to meet you. I’m Caroline Frost.”
Arden shook the woman’s hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Garrett was impressed at Arden’s warmth. There’d been no irony in her tone despite all she knew about his mother.
“And you,” Arden said, turning to his dad with a broad smile, “must be Brandon Frost. Your son really looks up to you.”
Brandon cleared his throat twice, then hugged Arden with almost comic gentleness, as if he were worried she might break. “So, um, how long have you and my son known each other?”
“We met at Hugh’s wedding,” Garrett said. “About six and a half months ago.”
Pink swept across Arden’s cheeks, and she shot him a reproving glare. Was she annoyed that he’d told the truth? He glared back. His father was being lied to enough without Garrett further prevaricating.
Brandon glanced between the two of them, then dropped his arm around Arden’s shoulders in a protective manner. “It’s cold out here today. Let’s get you inside, young lady.” He steered her toward the house, their heads close together as if they’d known each other for years.
Caroline whistled under her breath. “Wow. He’s a good man, but I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him take to someone that fast.”
Garrett had no intention of lagging behind and being forced into conversation with his mom. She’d no doubt have questions and opinions regarding his pregnant guest. It was only on the top step of the porch that he temporarily slowed, his gaze straight ahead, his voice low.
HER SECRET, HIS BABY Page 10