The Army Ranger's Surprise (the Men of At-Ease Ranch)

by Donna Michaels

  Was it always going to feel like that?

  Kaydee blinked back her stupid tears again, opened the door, and gasped.

  Leo…

  Looking exactly how she loved—badass and sexy—he stood on the porch, leaning against a post, with a dozen roses in one hand, a bag in the other, and a look in his eyes that said she was the most important thing in the world to him.

  Fi removed the case from Kaydee’s hand and said something, but Kaydee didn’t catch it. Her heart was smashing into her ribs with swift, erratic beats that thundered in her ears.

  He’s here. Actually here.

  But her brain wasn’t, because she couldn’t seem to remember how to move. She kind of just stood there and blinked at him and his Ranger buddies standing in the driveway behind him. They had his back. That thought managed to flash through her mind, and she blinked again. Dammit.

  “I’m so sorry, Kaydee,” Leo said, his tone deep and warm with emotion as he stepped toward her. “Sorry for being an ass,” he said. “I shouldn’t have walked away from you yesterday. Shouldn’t have let you think you don’t matter to me, because you do. So damn much. If you can find it in you to give me another chance, I swear I’ll never leave you again.”

  A familiar sensation returned to swarm her chest. Hope. Kaydee fought an inner battle on whether to allow it to blossom or die. Did she dare take another chance? Did she dare believe him?

  Leo stopped in front of her and offered two red roses. “I hope you can forgive me,” he said, but before she could find her voice and reply, he handed her two more. “These are for believing in me…even though I didn’t and was a stupid ass.”

  She choked out a half laugh, half sob.

  “Damn straight,” Brick said, and the crowd chuckled.

  Two more roses made it into her grasp. “These are for being the sweet, caring woman I don’t deserve. And these are for wanting me anyway,” he said, handing her two more.

  By now, her hands were shaking, and she had to keep blinking and swallowing to fight the burning in her eyes and throat.

  “Oh, that was a good one,” Fi muttered while Jovy sighed dreamily behind her.

  “I wish you could see yourself the way I do,” he said. “The way you donate your time to others. Sacrifice for your family. Step out of your comfort zone so a couple of amorous octogenarians can have an all-nighter.”

  “Thank you, honey,” Ava said.

  Kaydee blinked and focused on his grandmother standing next to her smiling grandfather in the crowd. Her heart swelled, and she met Leo’s smiling gaze. “You fetched them?”

  “Yes.” His smile broadened. “It wouldn’t be right to profess my love for you without them here.”

  Love?

  Her grip on emotions slipped, and hope exploded to life inside her, interfering with her ability to draw a breath. “You love me?” she whispered.

  “God, yeah, I love you.” His voice was low but fierce as he handed her two more roses. “That’s what these are for. Because I love you. I love everything about you. The way you put yourself out there for me, even though it means straying into uncharted territory. The way you look at me. God, I love that. And the way you saved me.”

  She frowned. “You didn’t need saving, Leo.”

  He’d done that all on his own. He was the one who’d turned it all around. Found the courage to ask for help. Made himself happy. And she was so damn proud of him for doing that.

  “Yes, I did need saving,” he said. “From myself. You made me realize that I wasn’t toxic. Holding on to my past was.”

  Oh God…he got it. He finally got it.

  And she wanted to get closer to him. To touch him. But she could tell by the determined gleam in his eyes he had things he needed to say, so she remained still, silently willing him to continue.

  “I like this present me. I like who I am with you,” he said. “And I want to be the man you want to step out of your comfort zone with.”

  She smiled. “You are. You so are.”

  He answered with a grin. “I want to be the man you want to spend the rest of your life with.”

  Air backed up in her throat, and she cleared it as he handed her the last four roses, his gaze fierce, protective, and warm. So warm. “These are for carrying my baby and wanting me—I hope—to share your lives. My world doesn’t work without you in it, Kaydee. I don’t like the me without you.”

  Her heart squeezed, and her eyes filled again. It was too much. Perfect. Right. She was done. That was it. She needed to hold him. Touch him. Love him. She was shaking so bad her teeth were practically chattering, and the poor roses were rustling so hard it was a wonder the petals didn’t fall off.

  “Give me them,” Fi said, sticking her hand around Kaydee, as if reading her mind.

  She handed off the flowers, then turned back to Leo.

  “Hang on,” Beth said, rushing forward to tug the bag and chocolates from Leo before scurrying back to stand by her husband in the crowd. “Carry on.”

  She smiled her thanks to the woman before returning her attention to Leo. “I’ll let you in on a secret,” she said, stepping closer to touch his face. “I recently discovered I don’t like the me I am without you, either. She’s too closed up. Miserable.”

  He reached out to place his hands on her hips. “I can help with that.”

  She chuckled. “I know. I also know another secret. I love you, too, Leo. So much I think my heart might burst.”

  Joy brightened his gaze, and soon it blazed. She knew that look. He was going to kiss her. Her nearly bursting heart leaped. And when he hauled her in close and their lips met, her entire body came alive. She was acutely aware of all of him, right down to the way he held her tight like he would never let her go. She really, really loved that part.

  When he finally broke the kiss, she barely heard the crowd’s applause, for she was hyperaware that a certain body part of his—her favorite part of his—was hyperaware of her, too.

  A smile tugged her lips. “You really are happy to see me.”

  He choked out a laugh and leaned in for another quick kiss. “With every breath.”

  “Okay, I’ve got to know,” Fiona spoke up from behind. “What’s in the bag?”

  She felt another laugh vibrate from him before he drew back and turned to Beth. The woman grinned and scooted forward to hand the bag back.

  “Brick needs to take some pointers,” Beth whispered loudly with a wink before retreating back to her frowning husband.

  “Hey,” Brick said.

  She glanced from the red bag Leo placed in her hand up to his still-smiling face. “What is it?”

  Leo shrugged, his gaze alight with mischief. “Something I thought you’d like our baby to have.”

  Our baby…

  Tears sprang to her eyes, and this time she let them spill out. God, it felt so good to hear him say that. She blinked a few times as she dug in the bag to pull out a small, stuffed… “Captain America?”

  “Good choice,” Emma said.

  Leo smiled. “Figured it didn’t matter, boy or girl, everyone loves Cap.”

  Nodding, she drew in a breath. “And I love you.” She lifted up to kiss his cheek. “And my surprises. I just feel bad I don’t have anything for you.”

  “No need,” he said, gently holding her face in his hands while he wiped her wet cheeks with his thumbs. “You are my greatest surprise.”

  Epilogue

  Eight months later…

  It was a typical Sunday in May, and Leo was kicking back with his buddies on the ranch porch, watching their wives playing some kind of humorous card game at a picnic table under the large oak. Big cow lying at Stone’s feet, her ears twitching every time the wind carried the women’s laughter up to them.

  Leo could easily pick out Kaydee’s sweet tone. It never failed to trip his heart.

  Neither did she.

  “When we left active duty, did any of you ever think we’d be doing this?” Stone asked, looking out over the Tex
as landscape, beer in one hand while petting the cow with the other.

  Brick glanced at his beer. “Drinking?”

  “Shooting the shit?” Leo asked.

  Cord raised a brow. “Sitting on the porch?”

  Vince chuckled. “Petting your pet cow?”

  “No, you assholes,” Stone groused.

  “Watching our wives play cards?” Vince tried again with a grin.

  “That, for one.” Stone pointed to Vince. “Who would’ve ever thought we’d all be married and settled someday?”

  “Or that Leo and Stone would be dads soon.” Vince grinned before taking a pull of his beer.

  “Leo? Sure,” Brick said. “But my brother? No way.” The goof shook his head, but Leo saw the mock surprise on his face.

  Stone frowned. “Why wouldn’t you think I could be a dad?”

  “Because you’re a mother hen, not a father hen.” Brick snickered, then laughed outright when his brother flipped him off.

  Leo laughed along with his buddies, and his heart lifted as he watched Kaydee leave the game and approach with a hand on her back and the most adorable waddle. Jovy wasn’t far behind.

  “Duty calls,” Stone said with a grin, then glanced at the cow. “That means you behave, Lula Belle.”

  The cow mooed.

  Unlike Kaydee, who was due any day, Jovy still had a few months. But Leo knew those backaches didn’t care how much time you had left. Or if it was the middle of night or day.

  “Hey.” Kaydee gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “Need your magical hands.”

  Brick grimaced. “TMI.”

  Cord whacked the idiot so Leo didn’t have to.

  “Sure.” He motioned for her to turn around, then he helped her sit on his lap and got to work applying pressure low on her spine, smiling at her moans and how uncomfortable it made Brick.

  “Me, too, hun,” Jovy said to Stone, then death-glared the cow before settling on her husband’s lap for the same.

  “How was the game?” Leo asked Kaydee.

  She shrugged, too busy pressing into his hand and sighing. At that moment, he was pretty sure he was the luckiest bastard in the world. And it made him revisit Stone’s earlier question and revise it a little.

  If someone had told Leo last year that this spring he’d be happily married, expecting a baby any day now, a Foxtrot supervisor, and part owner of At-Ease, he would’ve laughed in their face and asked what they were smoking.

  Not necessarily in that order.

  But here he was, sitting on the porch at the ranch, rubbing the back of his very beautiful, very pregnant wife while she sat on his leg…at least it looked like she sat on his leg. Hard to tell since he’d started to lose feeling a minute ago.

  “So, you two heading home today or staying another night?” Stone asked, hand on Jovy’s spine, using the other to keep Lula Belle’s tail from hitting his wife.

  It was weird how the cow’s tail suddenly started to wag—excessively—once Jovy had arrived.

  “We’re heading back today,” he said.

  Until her dad retired in a little over a year and her parents moved to Texas, Kaydee and Leo had decided to live in Dallas to be close to her grandfather. It meant an hour commute each way for him, but he didn’t care. It was worth it to come home to a happy wife.

  He’d proposed not long after he’d moved in with her, and three months ago, they said their I dos right here on the ranch, just like all his buddies before him.

  “How’s your grandmother and Nate?” Vince sat back in his chair and grinned. “They’re my heroes, deejaying at the rec center.”

  Kaydee grunted. “Until music blares through the walls at two a.m. because they’re ‘mixing.’ I told them that was so not happening when the baby’s here.”

  “For sure,” Jovy said, then her face brightened as a large truck rumbled to a stop in the driveway. “Oh, good. He’s here.” She clapped her hands, glee claiming her expression. Her discomfort was apparently forgotten as she stood and walked around Lula Belle without batting an eye.

  That was new. No Lula Belle barbs or death glares.

  “He? He, who?” Stone frowned, rushing after his wife as she practically skipped to the truck…which wasn’t easy to do considering her baby belly.

  Kaydee rose to her feet, and Leo silently gave thanks as he rose, too, shaking out his numb leg, urging the blood flow.

  Leo glanced at Kaydee. “Do you know about this?”

  “No.” She shook her head and patted her swollen belly. “All I know are bathrooms at this point. And that you give the best back rubs.”

  He moved behind her to dip his head and brush his mouth to her ear. “That’s not all I’m good at rubbing,” he whispered.

  She laughed and set her head to his chest. “I remember those days.”

  He snorted. “You forgot last night?”

  She’d enjoyed herself last night. He knew it. So did the neighbors.

  “Jovy, what did you do?” Stone’s shocked tone brought Leo’s mind back to the present and he watched as the truck drove off, leaving a smiling Jovy and a very big brown-and-white cow in the driveway.

  “What does it look like?” She snorted.

  Or was that the cow?

  “I bought Lula Belle a boyfriend.” A smug smile curved the woman’s lips. “Let’s go, Raging Moo. Get up. It’s time to meet Bucky.”

  Kaydee laughed. “Great name.” Amusement lit her eyes as she smiled at him.

  He groaned, far less amused.

  Seriously? Would he ever get away from the Marvel references?

  “Could’ve been worse.” Brick snickered. “Could’ve been Sebastian.”

  “Or Stan.” Vince grinned.

  He mentally flipped them both off. Cord, Vince, and Brick laughed, and Bucky turned toward the sound, and watched as Stone managed to coax Lula Belle to her feet. She stretched, then slowly made her way to the driveway.

  “Yes!” Jovy smiled, patting Bucky’s back. “Here she comes, boy. Go get her.”

  Kaydee inhaled. “He’s actually doing it.”

  Leo shook his head, wondering if anyone from their old unit would believe him if he told them about this. Holding back a snicker, he watched as the two cows moseyed closer and sniffed each other. Everything looked promising, until they mooed, and Lula Belle turned and walked back to Stone.

  “No.” Jovy frowned. “No…that’s not what’s supposed to happen.”

  Brick and Vince laughed, followed by Cord.

  Bucky’s head jerked at the sound.

  “What the hell was that?” Cord asked, brows crashing together, glancing from Jovy to Stone to Bucky…who mooed at him.

  Jovy scratched her forehead. “I don’t understand. That should’ve worked. Maybe we did it wrong. There’s got to be something I missed.”

  “Think faster,” Cord said, his gaze narrowing as the cow began to trot his way. “Jovy?”

  “It’s not my fault!” she said, wringing her hands. “Are all the damn cows in Texas defective?”

  Kaydee leaned against Leo and laughed. “This is better than Netflix.”

  “Stone. Dammit. Do something,” Cord said, his tone more insistent than Leo had ever heard. Hell, the guy had faced down insurgents without batting an eye. “He’s not stopping.”

  “Use your Warlock stare,” Brick suggested with a laugh.

  Leo knew he shouldn’t, but he laughed, too. He couldn’t help it. It was damn funny.

  “Lula Belle.” Jovy marched over to the cow grazing near Stone’s feet. “What did you say to Bucky? You broke him.”

  The cow stopped grazing, raised her head, looked at Jovy, then mooed. Bucky didn’t react, unless you counted sniffing Cord’s crotch.

  Cord reacted, though. He cursed and hopped up onto the porch. Apparently only Lula Belle knew how to climb steps, because Bucky stayed in the yard, but paced the length of the porch. “Jesus,” Cord grumbled. “Could this day get any crazier?”

  Kaydee cleared her throat
. “Uh, does my water breaking count?”

  Leo’s heart slammed into his throat. He jerked his head in her direction and blinked. “Seriously?”

  She nodded. “Yes.”

  Damn. Their doctor and hospital were in Dallas—over an hour away. “Are you okay?” He grabbed her hand, and it shook, so he brought it to his chest…and that’s when he realized he was the one shaking.

  “I’m fine.” She smiled, a calm, beautiful smile that immediately grounded him.

  He leaned in to brush his lips to her forehead. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too,” she said, squeezing his hand.

  “What do we do?” Brick’s panic tone startled the cows. “Should I boil water?”

  Vince snorted. “Yeah, sure. If we were in the movies.”

  Leo glanced at the faces now crowded around them. “Okay. Looks like we’re having a baby.” He gave out orders. It never even dawned on him to panic. A far cry from the man he was when he’d first set foot on the ranch three years ago.

  Leo and Cord helped Kaydee settle into the back seat of Kaydee’s car that Jovy had covered with a few towels. Thank God they hadn’t come down to Joyful in his truck. He climbed in the back with her because Cord insisted on driving them, and because his buddy was an army medic, Leo didn’t argue, just in case their baby decided to arrive super quick.

  As it turned out, their little girl was very considerate, not only waiting until they got to the hospital, she waited for their doctor to arrive, and all their family and friends—except for Kaydee’s parents, who were catching the first flight in the morning.

  Watching his wife cradle their little girl, something inside Leo clicked into place. He hadn’t realized anything was out of place. Being with Kaydee made him whole. Now he was…solid.

  “How do you feel?” he asked, brushing his wife’s temple with his lips.

  “Happy,” she said, her tone hoarse with emotion. “So happy.” She glanced up at him. “You?”

  “Complete,” he said firmly.