“Nope,” Jase said.
“Okay, listen don’t take her with you. Now back up. What the hell happened?”
“What, do you think I’m nuts? Of course I’m not taking her with me. Who knows what I’ll find.”
“How the heck far did Destiny go? Dammit, why did she do that?”
“She only got a little past your boarder barn, carrying a lead rope. That’s a spunky girl you got there.”
“Too spunky for her own good sometimes.” His heart beat out of his chest. His kid could have been lost in the desert. That’s all he would’ve needed, to have the local search and rescue call him. Nobody better though. He patted Nora’s hand when she wrapped her fingers around his arm.
“Hey, I’ll call you later,” Jase said. “Call mom if you want more info. I gotta get outta here.”
He glanced at Nora. She walked across the room to get the coffee pot ready. He needed about five cups. Maybe a ticket home. Tristan dialed his mom’s phone. “What the hell happened?”
“I was fixing breakfast. Destiny snuck out to see her horse. You know the rest of the story. We’ll find her. I’ll give Des breakfast before we go out a ways in my 4x4.” China clinked, telling him his mom was setting the table. “Selva is already out there on Sammy George. They’ll find her.”
“Put my kid on the phone, Mom.”
Nora brought him a cup of coffee. He slipped into his shorts and sat on the sofa with his cup.
“What, Daddy? Are you mad at me?” She sniffled again. “I’m sorry.”
“No, baby cakes, I’m not mad. I wish I was there to help.”
“I’m okay now.” Her fork scraped against the plate. “Grammy made pancakes.”
“Okay, you do what Grandma says. Listen…don’t ever take off like that again. Get an adult, so we can get right on it. All right?”
“Yep, sir. Bye, daddy and Nora-Mama. Nora-Mom, I mean.”
“See you, Destiny,” said Nora into the phone. “I love you, sweetie.”
Tristan hit END. He set his cup on the table and paced across the room trying to get his heart rate down. “This could’ve been bad.” Tristan ran his hand over his head, straightening tousled wake-up hair. “Did you hear? She went out after the horse.”
“Yes, I know.” Nora rubbed her forehead with her fingertips. “That poor little thing.” She hurried to Tristan and touched his shoulder. “They’ll take care of it. One of them will find the filly.”
“This is why I left the ranch in their hands. I know they can. It’s just that…that I’m not used to someone else doing my job.” He hugged her when she put her arms around his waist. “I’ll get used to it.”
“You will, honey. Everyone on the ranch wants to be there for you. This includes your brother, so let them all help.”
Tristan lifted her off her feet, twirling in a circle. “I have a wife now. I plan on taking more time for you and Des.” He released her. “They’ll find her,” he said with a sigh.
Nora smoothed her fingers over his hair. “That was a quick night, huh? I’m excited about the rest of our lives.” She peeked through the balcony. “Look at that beach out there. We might as well say we spent our wedding night in the sand.”
“Yes, ma’am. A memory I’ll never forget.” Tristan kissed her cheek and glanced out the door. “I need more coffee. Let’s order room service.”
“Sounds delicious. I’m ready. I sure worked up an appetite.”
“In your sleep?” Tristan’s brow lifted as he eyed her. He took a sip of coffee.
Nora strutted into the bathroom. “No!” She closed the door but opened it a crack. “The part before the sleep.”
“Oh, that part. Yep, the beach. I do remember.” He willed his phone to ring with good news. Too inpatient to wait, he dialed Selva’s number. After a few rings with no answer he hung up and called Randy.
“Randy—”
“Yeah, it’s me. Anything new going on? I know the guys are out looking for the filly. Do you know anything yet?”
“Hey, we’re off in different directions. I won’t have a signal much longer, but yeah, four of us are lookin’. Your mom will be out soon.” Randy paused. “It’ll be okay, we’ll find her.”
“What about the gate?”
“Someone didn’t latch it, but it only swung open a little ways. Remember how it gets stuck and you have to lift it? Well, that’s what prevented the mare from getting out. Hey, I’m about to lose you in a minute when I get to that spot on the trail.”
“Okay, Randy, thanks.” The call dropped before he hit the end button. Dammit, I feel so helpless.
Nora came out of the bathroom and picked up the menu. Tristan pulled his jeans on. “No word?” she asked.
“Nope. That was Randy. They’re all in different directions. I don’t know if it was my kid who left the gate open.”
“She’s careful when she’s out there. She wouldn’t have done it on purpose,” Nora reminded him.
Tristan poured another cup of coffee. “Accidents happen, but it tells me she isn’t ready to be left alone with them yet. She won’t go out there again by herself. Well, she snuck out.”
“We’ll go through the lessons again when we get home.”
“Don’t worry about that, I’m sure Jase will take care of it for sure. I bet he had a fright when he found Destiny alone in the desert.” He set his cup down and lifted his hands. “What the hell was she thinking trying to go after the horse?”
“She thought like a five-year-old who lost her horse.”
Tristan stared at the floor. “You’re right. No doubt she’s her own person.”
“She’s her dad’s daughter…so much like you.”
He glanced up at Nora standing there—her hair wavy now due to falling asleep with it wet. She had on a blue satin robe he had never seen before. His gaze ran up the front of her. He moseyed over to untie the belt. “This is new. I like it.” The front fell open giving him the perfect opportunity to play. He ran his hands up from her waist. The lace at the top of the gown was sexy against her breasts. To his pleasure it exposed more than maybe she knew.
“Yes, it’s new,” she whispered, shimmying her shoulders. “Wait till you see what I’ll wear tonight, that I didn’t get to wear on my wedding night.”
He rubbed his thumb over her breast. “Complaining?”
Nora laughed and stepped back. “Do you have to ask, Carlson?” She headed for the coffee pot. “I’m still so tired.”
Tristan caught her hand. “Nope, I know it was pleasurable, Carlson. I don’t know if I ever heard you scream like that.”
“I rest my case then. I hope the waves drowned it out.” She tied her belt, poured a cup of coffee, and opened her suitcase. “These clothes need to get on hangers.”
“Right.” He headed for his. “When is breakfast?”
“As fast as they can get it here, darlin’.”
Tristan stood at the window, peering outside. “I’ll have to find a couple hay bales around here to lift, so I don’t go weak.”
Nora stood beside him and squeezed his bicep. “Hmm, not much chance of that.”
“Let’s not find out. Maybe I’ll lift you.” With that said, he lifted her into his arms like he did when he carried her over the threshold. “Yeah, this’ll work.”
She put one arm over his shoulder. “You won’t have to worry about increasing weight because I’ll do that automatically.”
“Increasing weight, huh?” Tristan teased her, saying. “Cool. Built in weight bench. I love it.”
Nora smacked his arm. “Don’t go getting used to it.” She kissed him, slowly, the way he liked it sometimes, and gave a slip of the tongue before trying to pull away.
“I like this,” he mumbled against her lips. “I plan on getting used to your kisses every morning.” A knock on the door interrupted them. He released her to the floor and wiggled his eyebrows. “The day begins.”
***
Later that afternoon Jase called. “I hate interrupting yo
ur honeymoon, dude, but we found the horse and childproofed the fence. The filly’s fine, too. Thirsty with a couple scrapes on her legs, but she’ll be okay. She’s back to running in the corral with her mother.”
“Ah, so it was my daughter who left the gate open.” He peered at Nora on the blanket beside him as the breeze picked up the ends of her hair. Tristan ran his finger from her chest down to her abdomen then back up.
“No one else was there, Trist. She feels bad, but I’m taking her for ice cream. She’ll perk up.” Jase laughed.
Ice cream—the cure-all for his daughter. “That’ll work for sure. Thanks, Jase. This means a lot to me that you took care of it.”
“Of course. You’d do it for me. All the guys helped. Mom’s inviting them for dinner tonight. Get back to your wife now, bro, everything is great here.” Before hanging up he asked, “Hey, how’s the beach?”
Tristan gazed at the ocean. “Chilly, but hey, it’s the beach in San Diego. It’s supposed to warm up tomorrow. A record high for February.” Maybe he should have taken his cousin Caulder up on his offer to use his place in Hawaii, but California was a short flight, and hours closer to their honeymoon with no jetlag. “Tell Des I’ll call her tonight. Probably while she’s all hyped up on ice cream.”
“Later.” Jase hung up and Tristan laughed.
He pulled Nora into his arms. “Looks like life is back to normal on the Double Dutch. Whatever normal is on the ranch.” Holding her in his arms and the sound of waves crashing against the shore almost lulled him to sleep, but Nora sat up. He blocked his eyes from the sun. “Are you okay?”
“Uh uh. I have to go inside. Please give me the key card.”
He reached into their bag. “I’ll get our stuff together—”
Nora got up. “I don’t have time to wait.” She left him there in the sand. Tristan gathered their beach necessities, and stuck it all in the bag. He shook the blanket. The ocean was spectacular with the sunshine glittering on it, making star-like rays as they rode the waves into shore. He had to admit the wind was a tad chilly to be on the beach, but the sun was warm. Tristan rushed inside. He banged on the door, but it took a few minutes for her to open it.
“I need to jump in the shower, I’ll be right out.”
He took her arm. “Hey, are ya better? You’re pale.”
“Well, now I am. I’ll lie down after my shower and see what happens. It’s passing now.”
“Alrighty.” Tristan washed his hands and got stuff out of the fridge to eat.
***
Nora stood in the doorway after her shower. Tristan sat at the table, wrapping up sandwich fixings. “I so wanted to see the sunset from the beach.”
“We still can. Or we can go to the deck on the lower floor.” He pointed to the balcony. “It’ll be right out there, too, but they claim dinner on the deck is great for watching the sun go down.”
“Now that my stomach is better, I can think of food. Can we eat there tonight?”
“Let me make a reservation.” He got up to put the food back into the fridge.
Nora pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes a moment. “I’m sorry I had to rush in. It spoiled our afternoon.”
“It’s all part of being pregnant.” He took her hand from her face and kissed her on the forehead. “Not to worry, okay. This will happen.”
Her lips pressed together before speaking. “I hope it ends soon. I don’t like the nausea. Especially on our honeymoon.”
“Not to worry.” Tristan nodded toward the door. “I’m sitting on the balcony before getting a shower. If you’re not taking a nap, grab a snack. Come join me.” He poured a beer.
Nora took a dish of cut-up, fresh fruit from the fridge. On the balcony, she took a seat at the round table beside Tristan. The ocean breeze blew his hair into his face. She breathed in and out, taking a minute to relax. “You’re so great with my pregnancy, but you have experience.”
“I need my damn hat.” He shoved his fingers into his windblown hair, smoothing it back again with his hand. “You’re mistaken about my experience. No I don’t.”
Narrowing her eyes, she mentally questioned his comment.
“Ya know what? Um… Ah, ah.” Tristan stammered as if struggling to find the right words. “I never made love to a pregnant woman before.”
Hmm? That seemed odd to her. “What? How’s that possible?”
“Honey, Rachel broke our engagement. There was just that time after we tried to get back together to make it work. Well, that little five-year-old bouncing around is the rest of the story.”
She took a bite from a strawberry, thinking about what he said. That Rachel called off their engagement and then she got pregnant. It had to be hard on both of them. “I’m surprised. I didn’t really know the details.”
Tristan tilted his head back, gazing upward momentarily. “She didn’t want me around her while she was pregnant. Rachel was done with me. Then I found out she looked into giving our baby up for adoption.”
She gasped. “Oh, no!”
“Well, she knew I’d have none of that. She changed her mind along the way but still wanted nothing to do with me until my daughter was born…and we shared custody. We were never intimate after Destiny was conceived.” He scrubbed his hands over his face. Tristan tilted his head side to side then back. After a few moments, he made eye contact with her again. “So, you’re my first pregnancy, really.”
Kids squealed on the beach, playing in the sand while teenagers tapped volley ball’s back and forth. Lovers lay wrapped in a blanket as they had earlier. How awful it would have been for Rachel to give up Destiny. Tristan would’ve been devastated. She placed her hand over his. “I’m honored to be Destiny’s Nora-Mama as she said earlier.” She warmed thinking of it. “So cute, but she was unsure of calling me that.”
“You can tell her you don’t mind.” Tristan stood. “Hey, I forgot to make that dinner reservation. I’ll be right back.”
She watched him go through the door. Married to him about twenty-four hours, she was thrilled to be his wife. She had never realized the hell he went through with Rachel. Unfortunately, that was only the beginning.
When he came back through the door, he asked, “How’s seven o’clock sound? You should be feeling great by then, right?”
“It’s unpredictable, you know.” Nora lowered her eyes, thinking about asking the question on her mind. She took a chance, yet asked with a bit of reluctance. “Tristan? Um, how did…”
He took a seat, lifting his chin to acknowledge her, yet he gazed out at the ocean.
Nora clasped her hands together on her lap. “How did you find out about Rachel? I mean, it must’ve been the most awful thing to go through.” She gulped. “You don’t have to answer. I shouldn’t have asked.”
“The sheriff called me. He wouldn’t tell me anything, other than to ask me to come down there. Of course I knew it was by where Rachel lived when he gave me the address. Near your old apartment.” He stared into space with a faraway look in his eyes.
Nora stood beside him and put her arm around him.
His chest rose in a deep sigh. “I thought it was Destiny for some reason. All the way there I prayed it wasn’t my daughter. Well, I didn’t want it to be Rachel either, of course.” Tristan fussed with the bottom two buttons on his shirt. “I didn’t want it to be anything.”
She whispered, “You don’t have to go on, honey.”
He nodded, but continued, “When I got close, the street was blocked off. There were flashing lights everywhere. I parked and jumped out of the truck…about crazy by then. Rachel’s car doors were open. Sheriff Thompson saw me first.” Tristan paused. “Leon grabbed a hold of me. Held me back. After that I knew it couldn’t be good.”
“Tristan, I’m so sorry.” She hugged him, her eyes tearing. “So sorry it happened.”
He took a deep breath…and another. “A female deputy held Destiny. I almost got sick right there, so thankful she appeared to be okay that my stomach
just churned.” Tristan glanced up at her. “You read the article so you know the details,” he said, gulping.
His body trembled now. Nora took his arm and pulled him up, hugging him as tightly as she could. She rubbed his back, unable to prevent tears from falling and dampening his shirt.
Tristan’s arms went around her. He lowered his head to her shoulder. “They thought I did it. Why I don’t know, I had no reason to hurt her. We shared custody and got along. That night they asked me to come to the station for questioning. Mom came for Destiny. I knew by the way the detectives looked at me–the questions they asked, they suspected me.”
“The reporter mentioned that the spouse or partner was usually the first to be assumed guilty, whether stated or not.”
Tristan straightened his posture and placed his hands on her shoulders. “If they hadn’t found the murderer the next day, I don’t know what would’ve happened.” He shuddered.
“You would’ve been cleared by your reputation alone.”
“If only life could be that simple, but my mom, even Jase knew I was home. Either way, they found him. He is rotting in prison for his crime now.” Tristan stepped to the rail, but turned. “Thank God he didn’t hurt my baby.” His brows pulled in. “My heart is saddened when I think of what Rachel went through. If anything she was a good mom to Destiny. I know she fought for her life to protect her.”
Nora went to him and he held her, placing his hand tight against her back. “My daughter is safe, happy, and she has you for her mom.”
Gently wrapping her hand around the back of his neck, she said, “We’ve both seen a lot of bad things in life already, but I promise to make the rest of yours as happy as possible.”
“Ah, darlin’, I have no doubts about that. You’ve already given me more happiness than I thought I’d ever have.” He pressed his lips against her temple. “I should thank you again for stopping to help a stranger that day.”
Nora had to agree it was the best thing for both of them. “You’re welcome. But remember, I almost didn’t.”
“Never mind. It doesn’t matter.” He nodded toward the table. “Finish your snack. Let’s leave this gloom behind and take a walk on the pier.” Tristan finished his beer. “We’ll work up an appetite again.”
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